PSU Professional Development

The Missouri Library Association is an organization that works to encourage cooperation of all Missouri libraries and services through the state of Missouri. This first thing featured on this website is a mission statement of the MLA. State laws, budgets, etc. is listed next as well as any current information about the MLA. This is a great website for librarians in Missouri because it would keep you current with any new information from the state!

I just thought this website was fun for learning all kinds of interesting information. There are so many people online all the time, why not use each other for help with any type of question. It was interesting to read the things that people were talking about and a great way to learn information. I think is also a great tool for using to quickly find information on any information you might be wondering about or may want to start a discussion about.

This is an awesome site for book lovers! It allows you to browse through popular books, which I love to do, just to see what people are reading for an idea of what to read next. Then you can put books that you own on your "shelf". You can then have friends and share actual books with each other, if you live nearby. It is also a great place to read ratings on books. It then links you to Amazon and other libraries where you could check our or buy the books! You can also put your "bookshelf" on a blog to show off your interests to all your friends.

This is the website of the elementary school where my kids go to school. They are always playing with new and creative ways to get the kids interested in what they are learning about. The fourth grade classes do podcasts after different lessons to emphasize what they have learned as well as work on their reading fluency skills.

aMap is short for 'argument map'. The idea's very simple - to get more people arguing by mapping out complex debates in a simple visual format. At its heart, aMap is about helping people get to grips with complex (or otherwise) issues and get people thinking. aMaps come in two different formats: Printed pocket-sized aMaps, which you can buy on the eMaps website Interactive personalised aMaps, which you can make on the eMaps website The underlying structuring of aMaps is based around "informal logic" - this is the logic people use to argue in everyday life. Informal logic has a four-tiered structure: - Your position (I think . . .) - what you think over all - Propositions (Because . . .) - reasons that support your position - Arguments (As . . .) - supporting arguments that back up each of your propositions - Evidence (Supported by . . .) - supporting evidence to back up your arguments Although aMaps can be used just for fun, to help students improve and/or develop their reasoning and critical thinking in their essay writing and verbal communication.

WePapers helps students and others share and expand their knowledge for free. You can find and download papers and documents you need in a matter of seconds, discuss them with others, or just mess around. WePapers is where you find the kind of quality information you wouldn't find anywhere else on the web, the kind of papers you'd have to dig for in dusty library basements and still not find what you're looking for. WePapers is one big study group! Universities are even using it for class-notes and articles. I could see using this in a classroom situation for research papers and the such. Students would have the opportunity to connect with others around the world, get help, and feedback from others just like them.

Create a map of your favorite places, travels or destinations. Public, private, or community maps are available to make. I could see using this site in a variety of ways. It could be used as a beginning of the year "Get-to-know-you" activity. It could also be used to focus in on a specific geographical area in a Social Studies or Geography unit.

This is a fun online timeline creator, which can be shared with others online. A valid email is needed to create a timeline, but that could be set up by the teacher or LMS. It's very visual in learning about time.

This is a free private journal on the web. How much fun would to use the web to keep track of your daily journal entries at school. These entries can be shared with others ONLY when you allow them to be. Images can be added on entries as well. Those who keep a journal are known to have a better "working memory." Keeping a journal also improves the writing process and aids in creativity. No more pen and pencil for journals after today!

A VoiceThread is a tool for having conversation around media. A powerful new way to talk about and share your images, documents, and videos. Viewers can leave comments via voice, text, audio file, or video. Imagine, an entire group discussion on ONE page; digital storytelling made simple! It is free and has an education side to it with a secure network for K-12 students and teachers to collaborate and share ideas with ANYWHERE in the world!

This is just the first step in making education and technology more engaging for educators and students! Glogster is also a perfect web 2.0 tool for your learning and your WIKIs. Glogster provides master-accounts for teachers integrating all student accounts, which are kept private! Mix graphics, photos, videos, music and text into slick Glogs.

This site gives us a quick overview of what web 2.0 is doing and where it is taking us with technology. It is a video that shows us how far we have come since 1996 working with HTML and now working so much with digital.

This site allows you to share the books you have read with others and let them know what you thought about it. It also lets you choose books you want to read and has the capability of letting others tell you what they thought about those books. It is a great social network for all kinds of readers.

Tutorials for microsoft office applications - microsoft excel, ms excel, excel sheet, spreadsheet, ms powerpoint, microsoft powerpoint, create a graph, ms word, microsoft word, excel tutorial, word tutorial, powerpoint, borders, and more. This site would be helpful for any classroom teacher who wants to integrate technology.

This is a literacy website for preschoolers. It has resources for online activities, children's literature, technology, webquests and lessons for the young child.

This site is developed by the American Federation of Teachers. It has many relevant topics. It has a great section titled "hot topics" that provides information on topics related to Professional Development.

This site was created by a technology integration specialist. She shares her thoughts, ideas, and projects. Almost daily she adds new sites to her blog. She has a lot of information about digital storytelling. If you are looking for technology project ideas this is a good place to browse.

This site is a direct link to Professional Development in Kansas. It is a KNEA site.

This site is devoted to literacy education. Their goal is to reach children to share the love of reading and writing. The site includes seminars, webinars, video conferences, blogs, and podcasts. This site would be helpful to any teacher devoted to teaching reading and writing.

This site is open to all edubloggers from around the world. The initial information is in Spanish. However, I found it interesting to have Live Traffic Feed from Wichita, Kansas; only 23 miles from where I live. This is why I chose the site. IT has other Language section, too. Could be used in Foreign Lang. courses.