Westport Public Schools - ITL

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"Read & Write is a free Google Chrome Web App that increases the accessibility of the text of documents in your Google Drive account. After installing the app you will see a Read & Write tab appear at the top of your browser window whenever you have a document open in Google Drive. Clicking that Read & Write tab will open a menu of accessibility options"

"Often we forget to teach thinking skills to students. Project-based learning (PBL) by design demands that these skills be taught and assessed. Every PBL project has 21st century skills that are taught, assessed, and transferable across various disciplines."

"For many teachers transitioning from a traditional teaching focus to one that is committed to PBL, contemplating the creation of an interdisciplinary PBL unit might seem ambitious. However, the next step in growing as a PBL practitioner is to integrate a variety of content areas into your project design. Here are some tips to get you started:"

"Smarter Balanced, which awarded a contract in April to a design and development group led by CTB/McGraw Hill, plans on a January 2013 pilot of its test items/tasks. The curious can view recently released annotated examples of the Smarter Balanced performance tasks. "

sample 6th grade performance task from Smarter Balanced

"Here's an article by BIE that appeared in the September 2010 issue of Educational Leadership magazine from ASCD. Good for general audiences as well as educators, it explains the essential elements that make rigorous PBL different from "doing projects.""

similar to Picnik, no sign-in needed

Checklists to support Project Based Learning and evaluation "

for computer class?

"Instagram says it now has the right to sell your photos In its first big policy shift since Facebook bought the photo-sharing site, Instagram claims the right to sell users' photos without payment or notification. Oh, and there's no way to opt out."

includes Common Core State Standards Rubrics, presentation software, web 2.0 rubrics and more

"NOW OPEN: Siemens Summer of Learning Application A Siemens Foundation Initiative Applications due February 5, 2013 The Siemens Summer of Learning Application is now open! The Siemens STEM Academy offers two one-of-a-kind, all-expenses-paid professional development opportunities that provide unique experiences to middle and high school teachers from across the country looking to bolster STEM learning and gain pragmatic skills that they can translate back into the classroom. "

video

scripted curricula "Navigate stormy middle-school seas with the Second Step program. The program teaches empathy and communication, emotion-management and coping skills, and decision making. These skills help students stay engaged in school, make good choices, set goals, and avoid peer pressure, substance abuse, bullying, and cyber bullying."

"What is Global Competence? A globally competent student can"

"Common-Core Tests to Take Up to 10 Hours Districts will get 20 days to administer By Catherine Gewertz New tests being designed for students in nearly half the states will take eight to 10 hours, depending on grade level, according to guidance released last week. The new information comes from the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers, or PARCC , one of the two big groups of states that are building tests in mathematics and English/language arts for the Common Core State Standards ."

"Common Core Standards: Teaching Argument Writing Argument writing is one of three types of writing stressed in the Common Core Standards for English, history, and science/technical studies. As I transition from persuasive to argument writing, my focus is on using technology to engage and support students throughout the process. Tall order. Here are some of the strategies I used to teach argument writing. What's the difference between persuasive and argument writing? Persuasive writing aims to persuade the reader that the stated position is correct. The writer wants to "win over" the reader, often by appealing to emotions. In contrast, argument writing must present a strong claim and support that claim with "sufficient evidence" and relevant "valid reasoning.""