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Evaluating the use of technology in a classroom environment is not something most administrators are trained to do. It is easy to walk into a classroom and see that every student is using a computer, but how do you really assess if and what type of learning is taking place?

"If, like most people, you haven't "layered" since last winter and only "merge" at speeds of 60 mph and over, getting accustomed to the lingo and layout of Photoshop (Adobe Photoshop) can be daunting. These nine free resources are good places to learn how to lasso, dodge, burn, paint, filter or do whatever else you need to in order to accomplish your desired photo editing task. If we didn't mention your favorite Photoshop tutorial, add it in the comments below and let us know how it helped you in your design endeavors."

HTML Gear makes it easy to add and manage multiple widgets, including guestbooks, polls, feedback forms and more. Best of all it's FREE! Guest Gear Get comments from your visitors with our highly customizable guest book. Poll Gear Find out what your visitors think! Create colorful polls on the topics of your choice. Link Gear Manage links, count clicks, and let your visitors recommend sites. Feedback Gear Get feedback from your visitors without having to reveal your e-mail address. Event Gear Share dates and coordinate group events. Text Gear Put different words of wisdom, tips, factoids, or quotes on your page each time your page loads. Headline Gear Place current headlines from a variety of hot news categories on your site.

"What the Web of Tomorrow Will Look Like: 4 Big Trends to Watch" Did you know that it's been nearly twenty years since the first website was placed online? Have you ever thought about how the Internet and the web have evolved in time?

"More and more websites are coming online to give students the ability to unleash their creativity in new and innovative ways. From abstract art to pointillism, students now can click and draw their way into original works of art, and today's freebie gives you a great list of places to begin. The sites are labeled by grade level to help guide you to those that best suit your students. In addition, I've added ratings to give teachers and students an idea of how much interactivity is available at each site. Some allow students to create from beginning to end, while others simply generate the final product with minimal effort. What you will not find here are basic virtual coloring sheets. I tried to find sites that would give students a chance to generate their own original works of art. What could be better? I will warn you that some of these sites will drag you in to create for long periods of time. Don't worry, you'll just be channeling your inner artist. Have fun!"

"Vook is a relatively new tool Internet entrepreneur by Bradley Inman. With the idea to combine books and videos, Vook brings these media forms together. With content from great writers and professional videos by filmmakers from TurnHere, Vook brings its customers the best. Great books and films can finally come together all in one place. "

"Although search engines provide a great starting point when you're searching for someone online, with all of the new social sites that have popped up over the past few years, they're often just not enough. In our recent State of Blog Search 2009 post we discussed the various reasons you may choose to use any or all of the following blog search tools: Technorati, Google Blog Search, Ice Rocket, Ask.com Blogsearch, and FriendFeed. While these blog search engines are great to fill specific needs, they're also another great place to look for your footprints on the Web. "

"Create your own children's book. StoryJumper is a place to create and discover stories for kids. What's your story?™ Harold & HankThe Three Nails * * * * * * * * * Simple Not sure how to start? Our StoryStarter makes telling stories easy. We'll help you write a story in just 7 steps. Fast Use our art or your own drawings & photos to illustrate your story Fun Show the world that you're an author. Share stories online and order beautiful hardback books starting at only $24.95"

"If you're new to computers or simply need a refresher course on how to get the most out of your Mac, you've come to the right place. Welcome to Mac 101: Your guide to using a Mac effectively and efficiently. If you've switched to Mac from Windows, Switch 101 is just for you. Whether you want to learn how to get around your Mac desktop (or find out what a desktop is, for that matter); figure out how to connect your printer, iPod, digital camera, or other device; discover email and the Internet; learn how to do various tasks; learn how to use the software that came with your Mac; or even find out what to do when things don't go as planned; we have the answers. "

Oftentimes, teachers want to offer a fun assignment to students that they will be excited to participate in. With Blabberize, students can upload photos of any person, place or thing. Then, you can trace the mouth of the photo and record a voice for the photo to speak through. There are an endless amount of possibilities that students can do with this fun tool. Sharing information about authors, subjects and books are great ways to use this tool. You can even save the projects and embed it in class websites or blogs.

Read all the way to the end and click on the link to sing the petition. If they passed thin in Florida, it will be happening other places soon. It WILL impact you too!!

Peter Lourie is a present day explorer/archeologist who has his own website talking about his adventures. He also has a teachers page where he shares many of his lessons as well as experiences visiting and talking with students. This would be an excellent resource for elementary teachers to look at for a while. The man has been TONS of places that we all study in Elementary and Middle School.

LISTEN AND READ CAREFULLY. A palindrome reads the same backwards as forward. This video reads the exact opposite backwards as forward. Not only does it read the opposite, the meaning is the exact opposite.. This is only a 1 minute, 44 second video and it is brilliant. Make sure you read as well as listen...forward and backward. This is a video that was submitted in a contest by a 20-year old. The contest was titled "u @ 50" by AARP. This video won second place. When they showed it, everyone in the room was awe-struck and broke into spontaneous applause. So simple and yet so brilliant. Take a minute and watch it

One of my favorite TV moments is when Norm of the series Cheers walks into a bar and everyone shouts, "Norm" as if they were welcoming him home. Part of the Cheer's theme song, Where Everybody Knows Your Name by Gary Portnoy, goes: Making your way in the world today Takes everything you've got Taking a break from all your worries Sure would help a lot Wouldn't you like to get away Sometimes you want to go Where everybody knows your name And they're always glad you came You want to be where you can see Our troubles are all the same And this is what Twitter is for me, a place where my Personal/Passionate Learning Network (PLN) knows my name, they're glad I came and we find out all our educational problems are pretty much the same."

Welcome to The Innovative Educator! I'm glad you've come to visit the space I've created to share my ideas for making the learning environment a more exciting and meaningful place.I created this site as a companion to my blog The Innovative Educator. If you are an educator or someone interested in education I hope you find some of what I share valuable and that you are inspired to put some of my ideas into action or use some resources and recommendations I've shared in meaningful ways. As you navigate through this site you will find I invite you to the conversation on every page. I want to hear your feedback and recommendations, so use the discussion boards on the pages if you have something to share. Come on in. Look around. Share your thoughts and ideas and if you have any comments, questions or suggestions, please email me at lnielsen.professional@gmail.com. Lisa Michelle Nielsen The Innovative Educator "

Why? Because tomorrow will take students to places - real and virtual - we've never been. Because tomorrow they will perform jobs that don't exist today. Because tomorrow belongs to them. Iowa must look ahead to provide what's best for students, not back at how things used to be. That is why Iowa Future is promoting the need for innovation in education, sharing ideas from across the state and nation, and highlighting the work underway to prepare for the future, to help all students realize success and possess the knowledge and skills to be ready for tomorrow, not yesterday.

"a place where Teachers help other Teachers. TeacherCast is designed for both the seasoned teacher who is searching for some great resources as well as the teacher who is a unsure how to start incorporating newly developed 21st-Century skills. We are here to help you get to know the latest websites and apps that are driving today's classrooms. We want to help you learn how to use these technologies to enhance your teaching and better engage your students."

Very interesting infographic on social learning. I really like how they make the point of the learner being center of the learning taking place.

"The Blogging Teacher: Setting Up Your Classroom Page Blogs ("web logs") are an effective way to communicate with parents and the school community about the learning and events taking place in your classroom. As a teacher, using a blog page as a method of sharing news and information can be helpful to parents (and students) by allowing them access to these things online - rather than by paper handouts and agenda writing. "