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On my recent trip to Shanghai China for the Learning 2.011 conference I was struck but so much that the experience will likely feed my thinking for the rest of my life. The conference is a bringing together of international school teachers, led by some of the most stellar educational minds of our time. The cohort leaders at this events lead with kindness, expertise and amazing resumes in the forms of blogs, podcasts, books and proven thought leadership in multiple realms. It was in this rarified company that I was given time and opportunity to go out and explore China as a pedestrian learner.

"It's Google's world, we're just teaching in it. Now, we can use it a little easier. With classes, homework, and projects-not to mention your social life-time is truly at a premium for all teachers, so why not take advantage of the wide world that Google has to offer? From super-effective search tricks to Google tools specifically for education to tricks and tips for using Gmail, Google Docs, and Google Calendar, these tricks will surely save you some precious time."

"The concept is simple. Allow students 20% of class time, or one day a week, to work on and explore one topic of their choice." - Sean Ziebarth

The site claims that it will address 10 times more mistakes than a word processor including contextual spelling errors and poor vocabulary usage. Where was this grammar resource site/tool when I was having to write so many papers in college? Now this will be a great option to go right along with hemingwayapp.com for reviewing my blog posts. Time to share this with my staff and students!

"Give Students Mobile Devices to Maximize Their Learning Time "

Help students learn to match digital times with the analogue clock.

it2Go is a free online collection of stories and poems in Mp3 (audiobook) format. You can: * Download the files to your Mp3 player and listen on the go, * Listen to the Mp3 files on your computer, * View the text on a webpage and read along as you listen, * Print out the stories and poems to make your own book. There are four ways to get started with Lit2Go: 1. Browse by Author. You can pick your stories by the author's last name. 2. Browse by Title. You can pick your stories by title. 3. Search Database. You can search the collection by title, author, keywords or reading level. An abstract, citation, playing time, and word count are given for each of the passages. Many of the passages also have a related reading strategy identified. Each reading passage can also be downloaded as a PDF and printed for use as a read-along or as supplemental reading material for your classroom. 4. Launch iTunes. If you have iTunes software installed on your computer, you can download many of the selections directly into your iTunes library. The free iTunes application for either Macintosh or Windows computers may be downloaded directly from Apple, Inc.

it2Go is a free online collection of stories and poems in Mp3 (audiobook) format. You can: * Download the files to your Mp3 player and listen on the go, * Listen to the Mp3 files on your computer, * View the text on a webpage and read along as you listen, * Print out the stories and poems to make your own book. There are four ways to get started with Lit2Go: 1. Browse by Author. You can pick your stories by the author's last name. 2. Browse by Title. You can pick your stories by title. 3. Search Database. You can search the collection by title, author, keywords or reading level. An abstract, citation, playing time, and word count are given for each of the passages. Many of the passages also have a related reading strategy identified. Each reading passage can also be downloaded as a PDF and printed for use as a read-along or as supplemental reading material for your classroom. 4. Launch iTunes. If you have iTunes software installed on your computer, you can download many of the selections directly into your iTunes library. The free iTunes application for either Macintosh or Windows computers may be downloaded directly from Apple, Inc.

"Ian Jukes, Ted McCain, and Lee Crockett write in their book Understanding the Digital Generation, "Schools have not recognized the changes that have occurred in the world around them and have continued to teach as if it were 1980." In the spirit of David Letterman, here's my "Top 10 Signs Your Schools Caught in a Time Warp." A list for school administrators. "

Students will have an amazing time listening and reading the various legends and myths. Students can also create their own.

Students will have an amazing time listening and reading the various legends and myths. Students can also create their own.

(See how one teacher's angry blog sparked a viral classroom debate.)

"Jam With Chrome is a fun new Google web tool. On Jam With Chrome (only works if you use the Chrome browser) you can play nineteen virtual instruments. Jams can have four musicians playing together in real-time over the web. It's an application that I had a bit of fun playing with this evening. Unfortunately, there doesn't appear to be a native recording application built into Jam With Chrome. You could use a screencasting tool like Jing or Screenr to record your jam session. "

" Published on Nov 16, 2012 by Kevin Honeycutt Make deep, lasting connections in the time you have."

"What is the Value of a Coach? Coaching done well may be the most effective intervention designed for human performance. Atul Gawande A district administrator recently wrote to tell me that her district was facing "tough financial decisions" that are naturally causing lower morale. Everyone in her district feels under attack. And "the coaches are naturally questioning their value."" All of us experience dark times when we wonder if we are making a difference, and coaches are no different. So I thought I would do my best to answer the coaches' question. What is the value of a coach? Coaches Support & Encourage Teachers. A coach is

Discovery Education and 3M have partnered to bring the science of everyday life into your classroom. This fantastic collection of resources is for students in kindergarten through twelfth grade. On the site you will find videos and interactives that help kids learn about the science around them and make connections to what they are learning in school. Lessons are inquiry based and encourage exploration in life science, physical science, earth science and technology/innovation. Virtual labs are interactive flash-based labs where students can discover more about science like wind energy. At the Innovation HQ portion of the site, students can travel through time and look at innovations that they use in their every day life and "meet" 3M scientists. On the Student page, students can see a young inventors hall of fame.

Apps Taskonomy: Digging Deeper into the Application of Apps he iPad (or iPod touch or iPhone) with its apps opens many new opportunities for learning. At the same time, it offers a slightly different wrapper for older learning opportunities. Both can be worthwhile, but it would be a shame if teachers missed the former for the latter. And, if past experience and research is any indication, educators are much more likely to co-opt the new technology to accomplish the status quo. This activity is designed to help teachers think through both opportunities and to categorize those apps that lend themselves to either or both. Teachers will start by exploring a variety of apps, some that lend themselves to learning content such as math facts or spelling words and others that can be used in open ended content creation such as storytelling or photography. Then, teachers will examine a set of lessons that use these apps. Finally, teachers will use a "taxonomy" such as Bloom's Taxonomy, SAMR, LoTi, ETaP, Prensky, etc. and attempt to classify/categorize where the apps fall. Most likely teachers will need to contextualize the app to a particular use/activity. Ideally, teachers will realize that in most cases it is not the app itself, but the use that detrmines where it falls and that the apps belong in multiple places.

Here is the site for you when having studnets watch YT videos or other videos.  http://www.videonot.es You can watch video and take notes at the same time to the right of the video.  All notes are synchronized to the video and save to gdocs.

It would be very helpful if you could provide us with a bit of information. This helps tremendously as we make plans. * The primary audience for this workshop will be K-12 teachers. Is that correct? * Are there any specific objectives or programs you hope to support through these trainings? * The confirmation indicates the workshop schedule is 8:30-3:30, Is that correct? Attached, you'll find the proposed agenda's for our week of workshops. Please review them to make sure they meet your objectives and let us know if we need to make any changes or if you need any clarification on what's included. Please reply to this email as soon as possible to let me know if the agenda's meet your approval. Don't hesitate to contact me if you have questions. I'm looking forward to meeting you all in June. With my summer travel schedule, email is the most efficient way to reach me. I do check several times a day.

"There are an abundance of music apps for your iPad. You've got radio stations, music services, music tagging apps and let us not forget how your iPad can work as a fully functional iPod, too. The question is no longer, "How can I get my music on my iPad?" But is now, "What is the perfect music for this moment in time?" Songza has devoted its existence to the answer of this very question."

Hey everyone, Please go to link and watch the boys' video, "We're Hungry and You Know It." Not perfect but they worked so hard on it ...and it' s pretty clever! I had absolutely nothing to do with it...Zachary and Tristen (8th graders) really ran the show and saw this project to completion. They need lots of views so share with your friends! I'm a little bit excited since this is our first iMovie attempt, AND the very first time I've ever posted to youtube! In case you weren't aware, our students have been working on a protest against the federally mandated reduction of calories in school lunches. They have been bringing sack lunches to school since August, have written letters to state representatives, emailed the White House, and have received recognition by mail, local news, and some national syndicates who have called the school and picked up the story. They'd like to keep the momentum of the movement going, so please help by spreading the word. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u748SRboxVc