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So often when we talk about schools, students, parents and teachers, we discuss things in arm-lengths type of way. We discuss how they need to have richer and more meaningful learning experiences, how we need to provide them with the opportunities to use the technological tools in authentic learning experiences. What we don't discuss is how schools need to be places of living not just of learning. They need to be places of community where children can experience life-lessons not just academic lessons. The story that follows is about one such event that took place at our school this past year.

Youtube has a great tool called Spotlight that lets you make any video interactive. It's really handy for lessons and quizzes. Essentially, you can ask students a question - or a series of questions - and when they answer show them a personalized video response according to how they did.

By studying the theory of critical thinking and tenaciously applying it to classroom practice, I began to see more clearly how to approach content as a mode of thought, rather than as fragmented bits of information. I began to see the intimate connection between thinking and learning, to see how to intervene in thinking deliberately and constructively to deepen one's understanding, and to interface the content of my subject with the values and motivations of students.

"Not every educator should be expected to use all of these technologies in the classroom, but every educator should understand what these are, the potential they have in the classroom, and how their students may already be using them. "

A chart displaying online universes and how they are growing. From the David Warlick presentation.

overpopulationisamyth.com

a great student made presentation on how to create an effective presentation

Blogs are easy to create. But just because something's easy doesn't mean it will stick. As someone who supports teachers in understanding and using digital learning tools, this is a pattern I've seen all too often. So how does a teacher or her students find blogging success? Here are a few things I've discovered in both my own blog as well as with my work with students and teachers.

How many of our libraries have audible subscriptions and ipods available for circulation.... hmmm.

This video shows the user how to set up the Aggregator module in Drupal 6. The aggregator module allows you to import RSS and atom feeds for display on your Drupal site.

The Web and cell phones help us communicate, connect and learn in ways we never could before, but they've also forever changed how we interact with others. Things we used to share in person - and in private - can now be broadcast to thousands, instantly. Sometimes we type things we would never say to someone's face. As a result, new issues like forced sexting, textual harassment and cyberbullyiing have emerge