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"How to Get Started Make sure you already have a Google+ account (and optionally a company page), then follow these steps. Install (or make sure you have installed) the Google Talk plugin. Follow all of the instructions to install the plugin. Then login to your Google+ account (see image for placement of steps): Click the link to "Start your own hangout" in the right column. Check in the top right corner and select the personal account or company page you want to use to host this hangout. If you have multiple cameras and microphones connected to your computer, make sure you select the one you prefer to use first. Invite an entire circle, individuals or select Public. The interface to start a hangout has a clean, simple design. Here some tips for successful hangouts: Give yourself time to practice. I'm part of a group of women on Google+ who routinely test out new features privately before we open up public hangouts. Create the list of people you want to invite by putting them all in a circle. Then just invite the circle. Create any documents you are going to share ahead of time in Google Docs to easily add them to the hangout."

Nicely written blog post from Burlington Public Schools where Patrick M. Larkin is Assistant Superintendent.

"About Evil Mad Science Auxiliary- This is a public group for anyone to add photos that are (at least marginally) related to posts and projects on our blog, Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories, aka www.evilmadscientist.com/. If our web site inspired you to build something cool that you want to show off, please feel free to add it to the pool."

"The Internet Archive, a 501(c)(3) non-profit, is building a digital library of Internet sites and other cultural artifacts in digital form. Like a paper library, we provide free access to researchers, historians, scholars, and the general public."

"Only one Pets in the Classroom grant per teacher, per school year is permitted. Teachers who apply for more than one grant in a school year may be disqualified from the program. Pets in the Classroom grants are offered to Pre-Kindergarten through 8th grade classes only in both public and private schools. Home school settings and high schools do not qualify for grants at this time. These grants are intended to support pets or aquariums in the classroom for the purposes of teaching children to bond with and care for their pets responsibly. The welfare of the small animals involved is of paramount importance. These grants must not be used for the purposes of research or experiments of any kind."

Free to public for Mac and PC. Software to create stop-animation movies.

"Thought it's time to have a post devoted to free Kindle Audiobooks. It'll cover both new, free audiobook offers (which are mostly from Audible.com) and free public domain books converted into AudioBooks."

Free pictures under Public Domain and Creative Commons for website & classroom usage.

Cyberbullying curriculum from Seattle Public Schools.

Geospatial" technologies--which include geographic information system (GIS), global positioning system (GPS), and remote sensing (RS) tools--are becoming increasingly important in our everyday lives. These technologies use "smart" maps that can display, query, and analyze geographic databases; receivers that provide location and navigation; and global-to-local imagery and tools that provide context and analysis. As these tools become vital to helping community leaders ask and answer questions with both local and global implications, the ability to think spatially is an increasingly important skill for students. Hundreds of jobs--in such areas as planning, law enforcement, environmental management, business, public safety, health, and agriculture--now require key geographic inquiry skills.

Books Should Be Free Free Audio Books from the public domain Download a free audio book in mp3, iPod, or iTunes format today"

Most public schools are traditionally run by principals and administrators, who defer to policies dictated by the state. But a group of 60 schools across the country is subverting the top-down system, putting teachers in full control of running their schools. It's called the Teacher Powered Schools initiative, led by Education Evolving, and the goal is to seed a movement that will inspire other teachers in schools across the country to realize their potential as leaders. To that end, Education Evolving released a study [PDF]  in partnership with Center for Teaching Quality, which indicates that 91 percent of Americans believe teachers should have greater influence over decisions that affect student learning. What's more, 81 percent of Americans indicate they trust teachers to make "schools run better." In this model of teacher-run schools, teams of teachers "work collaboratively as leaders and partners to make professional decisions over the areas that matter most for their students, including selection of colleagues, evaluation, budget and resources, curriculum and school-level policymaking.""

"Charlie Reisinger, IT Director at Penn Manor High School in Lancaster Pennsylvania delivers a talk on how we can empower students at all public schools with the elements of the open source way."