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"Providence Day School believes that there is a responsibility to train our students and faculty to be engaged, ethical, and productive digital citizens which why our resource guide has been updated. Each chapter now has a Take Action section to guide Educators to meaningful ways to engage their students."

An excellent article by former teacher and neurologist Judy Willis about how our brains learn that also includes several practice strategies teachers can implement into their instruction to promote engagement and "deeper learning." From the article: "You don't mean to bore students. In fact, sometimes you're downright interesting-the students are engaged, the buzz in the room is palpable, and even the hesitant students are asking questions. But the fact of the matter is, even the most charismatic and experienced teachers bore students sometimes. But the good news is, it may not be your fault. Judy Willis explains the neuroscience behind it all, and offers some simply tricks to help mitigate the reality that you and your content are instinctively low on a student's neuro totem pole. "

Click the link below for additional resources and to learn more about Judy Willis: http://www.radteach.com/

From the site: "We must first focus on creating the engagement and then look at structures, like the flipped classroom, that can support. So educators, here are some things to think about and consider if you are thinking about or already using the flipped classroom model."

From the site: "We're putting everything you need to know about learning to use iPad at your fingertips. So now is a great time to get started exploring the possibilities. See how iPad gives you and your students the best way to view videos, engage with content, create projects, and turn learning into a hands-on experience."

From the site: "Adobe Youth Voices Essentials provides free curricula and tools for educators to inspire young people to create digital media on issues they care about. Based on the best practices of educators from around the world, our curricula promotes youth expression, creativity, and engagement, helping young people build critical 21st century technology and life skills."

A good article about how one college history professor used WikiSpaces to help his students become more engaged in the study of history and the writing process. With some modification for age/grade appropriateness this might be an interesting project idea for RCS history classes. This might also work well for learning in English classes (classes create Wikis based on novels/books read?). Key selections from the article: "Students did not agree on the merits of the wiki. Some were deeply offended when other students eliminated or modified their contributions. Others found the chance to pick apart other's words and conclusions exhilarating. Regardless, most students seemed to grasp the important lesson I hoped to share: that history is the conversation we have about the past. History is about the authorial choices scholars make. History is about the evidence included and the evidence excluded. By asking students to participate in a joint-writing exercise, they were compelled to pay attention to the language others used, the phrasings and structure employed, the anecdotes emphasized, the facts obscured." "The wiki, while not perfect, may help us change the way our students think about history. It may help them be more attentive to language and argument. Importantly, it may help them value civil discourse as a civic virtue."

This is an excellent resource for Math teachers in all grade levels and topic areas. Mathalicious helps engage students in the study of math because it uses problems that are related and relevant to students lives. There are some really great ideas in here, along with sample lesson plans, teaching worksheets, and step by step guides. For a great overview of Mathalicious, click the link and watch the short video.

From Education Week: http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/sarameads_policy_notebook/2011/05/karim_kai_ani_founder_mathalicious.html "Mathalicious builds high-quality, standards-based math lessons designed to transform how students learn math, and how teachers teach it." "Mathalicious is rewriting middle school math around real-world topics that students care about, from sports to music to technology. By contextualizing math for their students and making math real, teachers can cover more material in less time, and with better results."

Article that lists 7 great YouTube channels which provide a whole lot of science videos to use for learning. Most videos seem to be interactive, engaging, and right to the point. Good resources for finding ideas for in class experiments and videos that model proper procedures/techniques.

Pretty much exactly what the subject says. Includes Ken Robinson, Dan Pink, and other good ones.