Two Cool New Resources!!

These are the resources I modeled at the beginning of our work session!

http://screencast-o-matic.com/

This website records what you're doing on your screen! It is a great tool to show kids how to do anything electronic, how to do a bibliography, etc. You could also use it to guide kiddos when you have a substitute, or to differentiate for certain kids who did not get your lesson the first time around!

http://www.wallwisher.com

This website is a wonderful discussion forum to use with your students. Your students all post a "sticky note" of 150 characters or less, and all stickies appear on the screen. A teacher I know uses it as an admit or exit slip.

Really cool website!

Check out this article!

http://thejournal.com/articles/2010/10/06/action-student-generated-video-web-site-teaches-visual-communications-skills.aspx

This website has a some great virtual stuff-and is dubbed "NPR" for kids. It has a collection of virtual field trips where students can meet "fascinating people from all over the world." What I love is that it has a video collection of YA book reviews done by students. Your kids can send in video book reviews (on cd through snail mail) and if its chosen to be on the website your student gets a $25 gift certificate to amazon. The site also has video podcasting lessons. This website seems to be k-8.

Here is the website directly:
http://www.meetmeatthecorner.org/

Valid Websites

I really appreciated Jon's latest blog because while it is important to criticize technology so we can better understand and use it-its always nice to remember how it can be such a powerful tool.

The key is how to get our students to navigate the internet effectively. I'm sure you've all done lesson plans on checking the validity of websites. I once saw a candidate for Maine teacher of the year give a lesson plan on exactly this using this website (and it has become my favorite to use!):

http://zapatopi.net/treeoctopus/

This website on the "tree octopus" looks 100% legitimate. It has links, its scientific name, a "FAQs" page...and of course, it is all a huge hoax and a great tool to show kids how using multiple resources is so important. (Wikipedia even has a page about it! Try googling it.)

Inquiry Approaches and Ideas

I was thinking about what might help all of you folks, and my thoughts went to the end, that project that you'll be sharing in April both in person and online. We all have different approaches, but one thing I thought of was the potential value of keeping a research journal (or blog) as your work unfolds. Sure, it's valuable to help guide and keep track of thinking, but it's also valuable for producing a project. Imagine being able to draw on the quotes you can pull from observation notes and journal entries as you've been going through this work.

So if you're not keeping a journal - be it on paper, blog, or nifty iPad, then think about it. It might be worth it.

Here's a link for all to some NWP articles on teacher research:
http://www.nwp.org/cs/public/print/resource_topic/teacher_research_inquiry

Journaling gets a number of mentions.

Multimedia Help

I just came across the step-by-step narrated slideshow tutorial for iMovie users. I'm using it with my students, and of course driving home the point that everything comes down to the writing in the end.

And for those of you considering creating MP3s with kids for any kind of multimedia, this is an interesting - and quite cool - text to speech program.

http://vozme.com

The male voice is good for pretending you're a robot. The female voice is a little better.

An online book I'm enjoying...Make Me a Story

You can read this book in its entirety right now at the Stenhouse website. It's geared towards younger kids, but it's interesting and I think all levels could adapt it to fit their needs.

"Just as writing can be a process of discovery, so can digital storytelling, where images, words, and music all work together to create meaning."
-- Lisa Miller

http://www.stenhouse.com/shop/pc/viewprd.asp?idProduct=9235

I really like that Lisa Miller, the author, uses digital storytelling as a tool to motivate her students to write, while keeping the process of writing the most important aspect.

Something to Consider for Back to School Planning

In light of the fun and appropriate "warm-up" activities Bailey did with us yesterday, I thought I'd pass this along. I instruct a seminar for student interns and this was passed on to me by my boss at the University to share with them-but I think it's great for all of us to be reminded of how sensitive we should be about some of the back to school assignments we ask kids to do. Bailey-I really liked both activities but especially the M & M one because I got to know many of my colleagues in a short time!
http://carolwscorner.blogspot.com/2010/07/not-typical-first-day-of-school-entry.html

Great Resource

http://www.freetech4teachers.com/