Category: Tech

advisory, AMLE, Conferences, MSM, News, Podcast, Tech, Web SpotlightBy Troy Patterson

MSM 193: A Whole “Latte” Stuff in This Show!

Jokes You Can Use:

Mom: Were you a good boy today?
Son: Yep. You can’t get in too much trouble standing in the corner.

I wouldn’t say the restaurant was suspicious, but there were 3 shakers on the table: Salt, pepper and alka-seltzer.

Eileen Award:

  • Jamie Cruikshank
  • Steve Collis


Advisory:

Best Ad Campaigns of All Time.

http://www.englishblog.com/2012/02/infographic-best-ad-campaigns-of-all-time.html

A Short History of Calendars

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=kzprsR2SvrQ


Middle School Science Minute

by Dave Bydlowski (k12science or davidbydlowski@mac.com)

This middle school science minute is about writing lab reports. In the January, 2012 issue of Science Scope (NSTA publication) Fred Enge wrote an article entitled, “Not Another Lab Report.” Fred shares his ideas on helping his 8th grade students improve on their lab reports.  Two important factors came into play:
1.  Relevance
2.  Guidance

From the Twitterverse:

Monte Tatom @drmmtatom

Six Strategies for Differentiated Instruction in Project-Based Learning | Edutopia #fhuedu508tinyurl.com/7dsv85w

Character Scrapbook – A Tool for Student Reflections on Stories #fhuedu508
*

baldy7 Tony Baldasaro

Speaking Up Is Hard to Do: Researchers Explain Whyon.wsj.com/ysY3kG via @WSJ

@rmbyrneRichard Byrne

Hot Apps for Higher Order Thinking. ow.ly/8TYrB
Jerry Blumengarten @cybraryman1

#edcampchicago #edcampstl #bbedcamp Please send me your Smackdown link to add on My Smackdown pg: tinyurl.com/4by2uxk TY
Distance Education @onlinecourse

Seven Tips for Writing Strong Grant Proposals – dedu.org/aWNxvY
Library of Congress @librarycongress

Happy 165th Birthday Thomas Edison! “The Sneeze” is the earliest surviving copyrighted film. 1.usa.gov/sAfw3
* Larry Ferlazzo @Larryferlazzo

Nice PBS News Hour Story On Teaching English Slang bit.ly/x0OyAE
 CooLHeadS @CooLHeadSInc

Character is doing the right thing when nobody’s looking.
 DeeAnna Nagel @TherapyOnline

The Whens, Whats and Hows of iPad 3 shar.es/fUgMn
 Richard Byrne @rmbyrne

Want People to Return Your Emails? Avoid These Words [INFOGRAPHIC] feedly.com/k/yHVD9R
 Ron Peck @Ron_Peck

RT @web20classroom: An Educators Guide To Evernote: bit.ly/yrpq5I #edtech
 Steven W. Anderson @web20classroom

Some pretty neat ways to use Audacity (and audio) with students: bit.ly/i8nuQA
 Terie Engelbrecht @mrsebiology

Cube Creator by ReadWriteThink-make biographies, mysteries, or stories bit.ly/dksZjI #edchat #midleved #elemchat #edtech

News:

ISTE Island

ISTE Island has been a resource for many educators over the years.  February 28th the Island goes into LOST mode (vanishes completely) as ISTE will no longer make payments to Linden Labs to maintain the island.  There’s a party on the 27th and all are invited to attend.  

Resources:

Algebra in the Real World Movies

Videos to help show how algebra is used in the real world.
http://www.thefutureschannel.com/algebra/algebra_real_world_movies.php

Latte

Latte is a Mac OS X application that uses such Web engines asCodeCogs and Google Chart to typeset formulas written in LaTeX. Formulas can be dragged to other applications (e.g. Keynote, Pages) and, in the case of PDF formulas, scaled to an arbitrary size. Both the LaTeX input and the rendered output can be saved onto your local disk, making it easy to build a library of formulas.
http://olivierlabs.com/latte/index.html

Text to Speech

Mac Only. Extends the functionality of the built-in Text to Speech.

http://www.tuaw.com/2012/02/10/daily-mac-app-text2speech-lets-hear-what-you-write-in-record-ti

Web Spotlight:

English Slang

http://larryferlazzo.edublogs.org/2012/02/10/nice-pbs-news-hour-story-on-teaching-english-slang/

Solve for X

A forum to encourage and amplify technology-based moonshot thinking and teamwork.
Somewhat similar to TED.
http://www.wesolveforx.com/

Strategies:


AMLE 2011:

Mastery and How to Assess It

Rick Wormeli
This is based on Fair is Not Always Equal.

Has a discussion guide, participant study guide, and videos

Define Mastery

Can use it and apply it in another context?

Must incorporate it later in the year . . .

Final exams given over last 2-3 weeks and never for a long period of time/sitting.

What evidence will you tolerate?

Sit down with your team/department and decide.

What exemplars?

What are teachers putting on their tests?

“Agree on a commonly accepted definition of mastery.”

What is the difference between proficient in the standard/outcome and mastery of the standard/outcome?
What does exceeding the standard mean?

Common Assessments

Written by local teachers

Given when the kids are ready to take them.

Do a variety of them.

They don’t count a huge amount on the report card.

Ask him for the article on Clarifying the Curriculum.

Feedback vs. Assessment

Feedback:  holding up a mirror to students, showing them what they did and comparing it to what they should have done – There’s no evaluative component!

Assessment:  Gathering data so we can make a decision.

Greatest impact:  Formative Assessment.
Be clear:  We mark and grade against standards/outcomes, not the routes students take or techniques teachers use to achieve those standards/outcomes.

Events & Happenings:

Calendar of Events:

Ohio Middle Level Association:

AMLE Affiliate Conferences:

Classroom 2.0’s Live Calendar.

advisory, MSM, News, Podcast, Strategy, Tech, Web SpotlightBy Troy Patterson

MSM 192: Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives. (Sorry, Guy).

Jokes You Can Use:


There are only two ways of handling a woman – nobody knows either one.

Girl: “Too bad you flunked the test. How far away were you from the right answers?”
Boy: “About 2 seats.”

Boy: “I just had a date with Siamese twins”
Girl: “Did you have a good time?”
Boy: “Yes and no”.

On Our Mind:

Why don’t teachers nominate colleagues for awards?

Eileen Award:

  • Dave Bydlowski


Advisory:


http://gullible.info/

Middle School Science Minute

by Dave Bydlowski (k12science or davidbydlowski@mac.com)

This middle school science minute is about Nature Journaling. In the January, 2012 issue of Science Scope (NSTA publication) Janita Cormell and Toni Ivey wrote an article entitled, “Nature Journaling: Enhancing Students’ Connections to the Environment Through Writing.” Janita describes how she shared her passion for nature with her sixth-grade students through nature journaling and how her students gained a better understanding of the natural world.

From the Twitterverse:

*EdTechUofA EdTech Services UofA  RT @mrsebiology Web-based Digital Storytelling Tools/Online Interactive Resources: bit.ly/hthC4X #edchat #edtech #midleved #elemchat
*  EduSum Summer Charlesworth “@DoremiGirl: RT @justintarte: “Mining the middle school mind” bit.ly/zwasQl #midleved” cc @MYSA_Australia
*  russeltarr russeltarr Google to retire Blogger & Picasa brands tinyurl.com/77z3gyo
*rmbyrne Richard Byrne  Connected Mind – A Free Mind Mapping App in the Chrome Web Store ow.ly/8Rqht
*  russeltarr russeltarr The slave who spoke from beyond the grave #historynews tinyurl.com/7zy2nvq
*  jybuell Jason  Nice group of questions from Federal Way. How to talk to your student/teacher about standards based grading schools.fwps.org/lakedolloff/20… #sbar
*missnoor28 Miss Noor ㋡  RT @ashley: STOP Teaching Tech! vsb.li/NqBvyZ
*  2learn2 Steve  A baker stopped making donuts after he got tired of the hole thing. #stevec
*  Ron_Peck Ron  The Jerusalem Archaeological Park su.pr/1MkQQV #sschat #historyteacher
*  cybraryman1 Jerry Blumengarten  Friday Chats: #midleved (Middle School) #D5chat bit.ly/avnj3b #ConnectedPD First Friday Feb. 3 9am PST with guest Steve Hargadon
*   aimeewhitbread Aimee Whitbread  @mthman Any plans to resurrect #midleved Fri night chat? I’d be happy to help moderate if you’d like.
*  mrsebiology Terie Engelbrecht Formative Assessment Ideas: scr.bi/yOsiUA #edchat #midleved #elemchat
*  BarbBlackburn Barbara R. Blackburn  Very sad news about Gordon Vars, one of the founders of the #midleved movement. bit.ly/wlMD46 #highered He will be missed.

Don’t forget to join the conversation on MiddleTalk and Twitter at #midleved this Friday at 8:00 pm EST.


iBooks Author update

News:

Reed-Custer District seeks balance in ‘friending’ students

Marney Simon – Staff writer
So what is a school district to do when technology advances faster than school policy?
Dr. Butts said that there may very well be educational value to social media such as Facebook, Twitter and other sites, the district has to find it and be able to encourage the use of it appropriately.
School board members noted that finding a balance for how Facebook and other social media is used in relation to the schools is difficult.
“Used appropriately it’s an after hours reach-out, I don’t want that to be taken away,” Speed said. “I just want us to say, hey, if you’re going to have it, it has to be maintained in a professional manner. Lead by example. That’s why we’re here.”
http://www.braidwoodjournal.com/main.asp?SectionID=13&SubSectionID=143&ArticleID=8490

Resources:

Going Paperless as a Teacher – Part 1

http://transformed.teachingquality.org/blogs/01-2012/going-paperless-teacher-part-1

Web Spotlight:

What’s Wrong with the Teenage Mind

What happens when children reach puberty earlier and adulthood later? The answer is: a good deal of teenage weirdness.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203806504577181351486558984.html?mod=WSJ_LifeStyle_Lifestyle_5

The Amazing Educational Jargon Generator

http://www.sciencegeek.net/lingo.html

Everything You Thought You Knew About Learning Is Wrong

By Garth Sundem

Taking notes during class? Topic-focused study? A consistent learning environment? All are exactly opposite of the best strategies for learning.
http://www.wired.com/geekdad/2012/01/everything-about-learning/

This is What our Sun will Look Like When It Dies

In a few billion years, our dear Sun will look like this, a beautiful glowing eye of spent starstuff trash in the shape of Sauron’s Eye.
http://gizmodo.com/5881048/this-is-how-our-sun-will-look-when-it-dies-yes-its-the-eye-of-sauron

The Faculty Project

The best Professors from the world’s leading Universities are coming together to teach online
FOR FREE!
http://facultyproject.com/

Strategies:

“WE PENALIZE KIDS FOR GETTING DISTRACTED FROM BORING STUFF AT SCHOOL”

by DAVE CAOLO
Spot-on. Brilliant observations by Sir Ken Robinson. You might have seen this before.
It’s both exhilarating and depressing. I’m nodding my head in agreement yet feel sorry for our broken educational system which, in my opinion, won’t ever change. I was bored to tears as a student and still consider myself a marginally-functional idiot, bereft of any particular talent or skill.
I distinctly remember handing an art project to my 6th-grade teacher. It was a watercolor of a man standing outdoors. She took the painting from me, opened a black marker and drew an outline around the man to “finish” it. So, the painting I made was “wrong.”
Worse, my 8-year-old already dreads school because “it’s so boring.”
http://52tiger.net/we-penalize-kids-from-getting-distracted-from-boring-stuff-at-school/

Events & Happenings:

Calendar of Events:

ISTE News:

  • ISTE Eduverse Talks are the recorded sessions held on ISTE Island every week. Join ISTE in their Second Life conference location for their weekly talks on education.
    • The ISTE Special Interest Group:  Virtual Environments is holding meetings on Mondays from 4:00 – 6:00 pm (SLT) on ISTE Island.


Ohio Middle Level Association:

AMLE Affiliate Conferences:


Classroom 2.0’s Live Calendar.


Second Life:

    • Regular Tuesday meetings are scheduled. See the board on the ISTE Island for up to the minute details.  Check frequently this week as the ISTE Annual Convention is this week.
    • Video: Educational Uses of Second Life
Strategy, TechBy Troy Patterson

Open Source Text books

On the last show, we talked about Apple’s iBooks Author. I’m interested in exploring this option. My first thought was that we could take an open source textbook, convert it using iBooks Author and return it to the community. I think that this would have a lot of potential. I would love to find an appropriate open source middle school math (with the appropriate Creative Commons licensing), that we play around with.

The idea would be to create an improved version of the book and return it to the community.

I’ve found some books that are great at the University level. Most of the books that I have found are available in pdf format. This makes the file size smaller and does allow for portability, but it does make editing difficult. (Yes, I know that pdf’s can be converted, we’ve talked about the tools).

So far, I have found books through the CK12. However, these are either epubs or pdfs. Neither is particularly easy to edit. CK12 does provide editing functions, though this seems to be a more advanced feature and results in a pdf hosted on their site.

After a little bit of playing around, I’ve discovered that you need to create chapters within Pages or Word. These can then be imported directly into iBooks Author as Chapters.

For my first test, I downloaded a book from CK12. I then converted the pdf to rtf. Next, I added some formatting to the document (Title, Heading 1, etc.). As noted above, I think that I would need to split the document up into discrete chapters in Pages.

From my small test, admittedly just playing around for an hour or so, it seems that it is doable. It would take some planning and prep work, but it doesn’t seem to be a monstrous task.

I’ll need to get with a math person to see how good the instruction is through the book. However, this would seem to be a possibility. If you know of some good resources, especially good open source textbooks, please let me know. Post a comment, or send an email.

 

This is cross posted on my Professional Learning Network Site.

MSM, News, Podcast, Strategy, Teaching Tip, Tech, Web SpotlightBy Troy Patterson

MSM 191: Becoming an Author(ity) on iBooks Author.

Jokes You Can Use:

Whilst escorting his wife to the concert, Jim asked his wife what they were seeing. “Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony” she replied. “Good” Jim responded. His wife was surprised, she didn’t think that Jim really enjoyed going to the symphony. “Well, I’m glad that you’re looking forward to this. Where have you heard this before?, she asked. “Huh”, Jim responded. “I’m just happy that we missed the first four”.

Whenever my wife needs money, she calls me handsome. “Hand some over”.

On Our Mind:

  • iBooks Author
  • Listener question:  Is Apple’s New Education Initiative Dangerous? ~ Interesting dialogue #fhuedu642 => @msmatters What do you think? tinyurl.com/6m4uzw4 – From Dr. Tatom.


Eileen Award:

  • Doc Tatom
  • Donnielle Kota-Moore


Middle School Science Minute

by Dave Bydlowski (k12science or davidbydlowski@mac.com)

Metal Safety.

This middle school science minute is about metal safety. In the December, 2011 issue of Science Scope (NSTA publication) Ken Roy wrote an article entitled, “Test Your Metal (safety knowledge).”  He investigates the safety issues involved in using metals with middle school students.

From the Twitterverse:

*bethanyvsmith rules without relationship equals rebellion #educon
*Ron_Peck Have I mentioned lately how awesome #Edmodo has become? Great new features for the site and app. If you’re not using it you’re missing out.
*drmmtatom emPower eLearning zite.to/x37xCG via @zite #fhucid #fhuedu642
*chrislehmann What if hallways were dry erase walls? What could kids create? #EduCon
*mbteach Talking about how teachers can take on different leadership roles in schools. We have a good list going #educon
*teromakotero shares tinyurl.com/6q5my7 (25 Free Digital Audio Editors You Should Know) plurk.com/p/fg5ywq
*onlinecourse Four Most Unemployable Majors – dedu.org/zqfC3E
*bethanyvsmith #bannedsites the truth about tech in school and blocking sites mindshift.kqed.org/2011/04/straig… #educon
*Mimadisonklein Check out Common Core on the Android Market! market.android.com/details?id=com… #FETC
*shannonmmiller So excited to be Skyping into #educon this morning with @mluhtala @InnovativeEdu @joycevalenza for our Banned Sites presentation #tlchat
*
tomshepp tomshepp
Rubrics for Assessments of Online Activities zite.to/z99SQW #edtech #elearning #mlearning

How to Create Your Own Textbook — With or Without Apple http://zite.to/AxcSlU #edtech #elearning #mlearning
*TJwolfe_ LiveBinders Resources bit.ly/woVXKn
*AngelaMaiers Does This Scare You? twrt.me/z9o973 via @knealemann

Don’t forget to join the conversation on MiddleTalk and Twitter at #midleved this Friday at 8:00 pm EST.

News:

Supreme Court Declines Cases on Student Internet Speech

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday declined to take up major appeals involving student free speech rights on the Internet.

The 3rd Circuit held in the Blue Mountain case that a Pennsylvania middle school student’s 2007 MySpace parody depicting her principal as a sex addict and a pedophile was so outrageous that no one could have taken it seriously.
The 3rd Circuit court found that the profile did not create a substantial disruption in school, and the court rejected the school district’s arguments that other facts created a nexus between the parody and the school.
In her appeal to the Supreme Court, Kowalski said, “This court has never addressed the appropriate First Amendment test for student speech that occurs entirely off school premises.”
The justices declined on Jan. 17 to hear the cases without comment or recorded dissent.
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/school_law/2012/01/supreme_court_declines_cases_o.html?cmp=ENL-DD-NEWS1

Resources:

25 Audio Editors:

“A digital audio editor is defined as a computer application for manipulating digital audio. As a multimedia creator, we normally use audio editor for recording audio, edit the duration and timeline, mix multiple sound tracks, apply simple effects for audio enhancement and create conversion between different audio file formats.
There are countless ways that digital audio editor can be used, and fortunately there are plenty of good and free digital audio editors out there to help you with your own implementation. So if you’re thinking to purchase a license for Adobe Audition, Cool Edit or Soundforge, hold that thought first. Not to say they aren’t cool, but it’s always wiser to tryout free applications before going to the pay deal.”


Most Amazing High Definition Image of Earth – Blue Marble 2012

A ‘Blue Marble’ image of the Earth taken from the VIIRS instrument aboard NASA’s most recently launched Earth-observing satellite – Suomi NPP. This composite image uses a number of swaths of the Earth’s surface taken on January 4, 2012. The NPP satellite was renamed ‘Suomi NPP’ on January 24, 2012 to honor the late Verner E. Suomi of the University of Wisconsin.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/gsfc/6760135001/

100 iPad Apps Perfect For Middle School

If you’re a student, teacher, or administrator at a middle school looking into adopting iPads for educational purposes, it’s important to know that the iPad is more than just an easy way to browse the web or visit the app store. There are actually thousands of educational apps hiding in the bowels of the app store.
http://edudemic.com/2011/11/ipad-middle-school/
http://palmbeachschooltalk.com/groups/ipadpilot/

Seinfeld

Seinfeld teaches History:
Think History, Saturday Night Live.
http://cooperativelearning.nuvvo.com/lesson/9592-seinfeld-tea

Alfie Kohn vs Dwight Schrute

Classic Schrute Bucks episode. Good for talking about classroom management.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G59KY7ek8Rk

Web Spotlight:

Straight from the DOE:  Dispelling Myths About Blocked Sites

100 Best YouTube Videos for Teachers

With the increasing use of technology in classrooms, it’s no wonder that teachers have a growing interest in using YouTube and other online media sharing sites to bring information into their classrooms. Here are 100 YouTube videos that can provide supplementary information for the class, give inspiration, help you keep control of class and even provide a few laughs here and there.
http://www.smartteaching.org/blog/2008/08/100-best-youtube-videos-for-teachers/
http://t.co/V6EeeuLv

Valentine’s Day Teaching Resources

http://www.squidoo.com/valentines-day-teaching-resources

Strategies:

Why Interactive White Boards are Used Ineffectively in Classrooms

An interactive White Board (IWB) or SMART Board has the potential to deliver content better than traditional methods of teaching. Why?
http://www.teachscienceandmath.com/2010/07/28/why-interactive-white-boards-are-used-ineffectively-in-classrooms/

Events & Happenings:

Calendar of Events:

ISTE News:

  • ISTE Eduverse Talks are the recorded sessions held on ISTE Island every week. Join ISTE in their Second Life conference location for their weekly talks on education.
    • The ISTE Special Interest Group:  Virtual Environments is holding meetings on Mondays from 4:00 – 6:00 pm (SLT) on ISTE Island.

Ohio Middle Level Association:

AMLE Affiliate Conferences:

Classroom 2.0’s Live Calendar.


Second Life:

    • Regular Tuesday meetings are scheduled. See the board on the ISTE Island for up to the minute details.  Check frequently this week as the ISTE Annual Convention is this week.
    • Video: Educational Uses of Second Life
Interview, Podcast, Strategy, Teaching Tip, TechBy Troy Patterson

MSM 189 – (Homework + Science) Dave^2 = Podcast

Homework:

Middle School Matters is proud to bring you a wonderful interview with Mr. Dave Tucker. His school has taken on the issue of homework with some terrific results. If your school struggles with students turning homework in, you need to listen to this interview.

Middle School Science Minute

by Dave Bydlowski (k12science or davidbydlowski@mac.com)

This middle school science minute is about the physics of curling. In the December, 2011 issue of Science Scope (NSTA publication), there is an article entitled, “Swept Away: Exploring the Physics of Curling” by Liza Esser.  In the article, Liza explains the game of curling, the physics of curling, and then she develops a 5E lesson that she uses in her unit on forces and motion.

Interview with Mr. Dave Tucker

School Improvement team effort

What things would improve the learning of the students?  Proficiency, meeting the needs of the students.

Changing it from a policy group to a learning policy group.

A strong indicator was the completion of homework.

Started with research and reading.

What should the policy be?

Decided that existing ones were not the best to choose from or merge into a policy.

Read stuff by Doug Reeves  (Wears a bow tie) in the pictures in his research articles.

Yes, it isn’t APA documentation, but will help you find it.  🙂    )

“No Missing Homework” policy wasn’t the best choice either.

All homework would be accepted, late or not, and accepted for full

credit.  No Killer Zeros.  A 0 is 10% below a D.

Tiered intervention system.

Homeroom/Advisory 30 mins.  (Homework Club Time)

Using Zangle, staff can pull the missing assignment list for each student.

Provides a coaching role for the Advisory teacher.

Level I:  Student gets a pass to Homework Club from Advisory and they have to continue to go there until it is all completed.

Level II:  Students are pulled from an elective class of administration’s choosing and put into an elective class called Homework Club II.  (Band seems to be an inoculation against Homework Club!)

Level III:  Intervention level that requires staying after school with the administrators  (This unjustified border is driving you nuts, isn’t it?)

What does homework mean?  Why give it?

It’s a good formative assessment.

Good way to introduce a subject.

Practice a skill that has been taught.

We don’t want homework to be a test of academic stamina.

It needed a systemic response with all of the teachers on board.

It is so labor and detail intensive.

Encore subjects are second to Core curriculum.

Art & Science of Teaching by Marzano


Find more information about Mr. Dave Tucker at gischools.org or contact us and we’ll pass it along.

Events & Happenings:

Calendar of Events:

ISTE News:

  • ISTE Eduverse Talks are the recorded sessions held on ISTE Island every week. Join ISTE in their Second Life conference location for their weekly talks on education.
    • The ISTE Special Interest Group:  Virtual Environments is holding meetings on Mondays from 4:00 – 6:00 pm (SLT) on ISTE Island.

Ohio Middle Level Association:

AMLE Affiliate Conferences:

Classroom 2.0’s Live Calendar.

Second Life:

    • Regular Tuesday meetings are scheduled. See the board on the ISTE Island for up to the minute details.  Check frequently this week as the ISTE Annual Convention is this week.
    • Video: Educational Uses of Second Life
MSM, News, Podcast, Tech, Web SpotlightBy Troy Patterson

MSM 188 20% Project and A Plethora of Words and Resources…

Jokes You Can Use:

Why are so few men with whiskers in heaven?
Because most men get in by a close shave.

What’s the definition of a financial genius?
Someone who can make money faster than the rest of the family spends it.

I know a woman who has cooked so many TV dinners that she thinks she’s in show business!

On Our Mind:

New Year’s Resolutions.
Feedback
PLN site – http://rmmade.com

Eileen Award:

  • Happy Birthday to Jeff LaRoux
  • Nicole Woulfe
  • Linda Neville
  • Rachel C.


Advisory:

It has a name you know:

http://www.buzzfeed.com/daves4/25-everyday-things-you-never-knew-had-names


Honest Logo

http://m.mymodernmet.com/profiles/blogs/if-logos-were-honest


Middle School Science Minute

by Dave Bydlowski (k12science or davidbydlowski@mac.com)

This middle school science minute is about formaldehyde. In the November, 2011 issue of Science Scope (NSTA publication), in the section on “Scope on Safety” a question was asked about what a teacher should do if they find specimens preserved in formaldehyde.  Two very good options are provided.

From the Twitterverse:

*missnoor28 Miss Noor ㋡ 21 Things That Will be Obsolete in 2020 vsb.li/702G5F by @MindShiftKQED #edchat
*
missnoor28 Miss Noor ㋡ Classroom Guide: Top Ten Tips for Assessing Project-Based Learning | @Edutopia | @scoopit vsb.li/40FoQf #edtech #edchat #PBL #edujo
* missnoor28 Miss Noor ㋡ 15 Fascinating Academic Studies Done on #Twitter | @scoopit vsb.li/DGX93Z by @OC_org #edtech #edchat #SM
* Ron_Peck Ron Check out “Goals for the New Year?” on Social Studies Chat: ning.it/zSmBHw #sschat
* missnoor28 Miss Noor ㋡
LibriVox Audiobooks ..Free PodCasts vsb.li/SdA78d #ESL #EFL #EngChat
* deenawarwick Deena Warwick 25 Everyday Things You Never Knew Had Names buzzfeed.com/daves4/25-ever… via @BuzzFeed
* DianeRavitch Diane Ravitch How did voucher schools in New Orleans do? educatenow.net/resources/data…
* Eduware_Inc Eduware, Inc. Over 1,000 tests have been made in the last week on #WizardTM, with over 91,000 total! Make yours today at goo.gl/7GZVZ
* zeitz Leigh Zeitz (@zeitz) 6 Secrets To Overcoming Burnout : Some interesting ideas for the hard working. openforum.com/articles/6-sec… via
* JaneBalvanz Jane Balvanz @kimsoutherngirl @DianeRavitch Can you imagine Race to the Top for surgeons? Whoever finishes brain surgery first wins. Ready, set, go!
* Ruth_A_Buzzi Ruth Buzzi Sarcasm isn’t nice but it beats killing people.
* johnkuhntx John Kuhn @DianeRavitch NL pitchers should be “assigned” the batting avg of another player, since they don’t bat.
* jybuell  Lectures Suck | Psychology Today psychologytoday.com/blog/everybody…
* MsSandersTHS Beth Sanders 5 Must have Ed Apps in 2012 for the 21st Century Student Centered Class post.ly/4hGbk #evernote #schoology #socrative #voicethread
* Bcudly Brent cudly Middle Level Education by @Bcudly on @scoopit

Don’t forget to join the conversation on MiddleTalk and Twitter at #midleved this Friday at 8:00 pm EST.

News:

It’s Time to Rethink the Hours America Spends Educating
http://www.edutopia.org/time-out

LearnCentral becomes Blackboard Collaborate

http://www.wecollaborate.com/

Novo 7, DroPad A8i and the Aakaash . . .

So you’re thinking about a cheap tablet . . .

Resources:

Documentary Tube

Documentary films are informative motion pictures that are intended to highlight events or issues for posterity. They are meant to bring some realization of a situation to its viewers.They often pose the pros and cons of issues and leave the viewer to make an informed decision. In their early conception, documentaries were usually made for schools or for private release. Today, things have definitely changed, as documentaries are even making it to the big screen.
http://www.documentarytube.com/

Old Television Themes

A vast resource of audio.
http://www.televisiontunes.com/

Sketch in 3D on the Web

About

Remember the old cartoons where hand drawn lines appeared
to vibrate because of differences between frames?

That’s what this experiment simulates. It also adds a third
to your drawings by allowing you to rotate the canvas.
http://hakim.se/experiments/html5/sketch/

Web Spotlight:

The 20% Solution

I recently assigned a new project to my 11th grade English students: The 20% Project. Although it’s called a “project”, that term is merely for student understanding and lack of a better word. This project is based on the “20 percent time” Google employees have to work on something other than their job description. It has been well documented, and Google has exponentially grown as a company while giving this 20 percent time.
http://educationismylife.com/the-20-project-like-google-in-my-class/

The Living Room Candidate

Election video ads. Can be sorted by year, by type, or by issue.

http://www.livingroomcandidate.org/

10 Funniest Things

http://educationismylife.com/top-10-funniest-things-ever-said-in-education/

MiddleWeb’s New Resources (438)
http://tln.typepad.com/middleweb/2011/12/middlewebs-new-resources-438.html

Urgent call to a medieval Help Desk
http://blogs.suntimes.com/ebert/cyberworld/urgent-call-to-a-medieval-help.html

30 Webtools to Transform a Classroom – LiveBinder
http://www.livebinders.com/play/play_or_edit?id=259021

Continuing to Learn with the iPad- Storytelling
http://langwitches.org/blog/2011/12/28/continuing-to-learn-with-the-ipad/

Strategies:

5 Awesome Things you can do with an iPad and a projector

http://www.classroominthecloud.net/2011/10/5-awesome-things-you-can-do-with-ipad.html

Physicists Seek To Lose The Lecture As Teaching Tool
http://www.npr.org/2012/01/01/144550920/physicists-seek-to-lose-the-lecture-as-teaching-tool
(Referenced in the Twitterverse:  http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/everybody-is-stupid-except-you/201201/lectures-suck)    

Events & Happenings:

Calendar of Events:

ISTE News:

  • ISTE Eduverse Talks are the recorded sessions held on ISTE Island every week. Join ISTE in their Second Life conference location for their weekly talks on education.
    • The ISTE Special Interest Group:  Virtual Environments is holding meetings on Mondays from 4:00 – 6:00 pm (SLT) on ISTE Island.

Ohio Middle Level Association:

AMLE Affiliate Conferences:


Classroom 2.0’s Live Calendar.


Second Life:

    • Regular Tuesday meetings are scheduled. See the board on the ISTE Island for up to the minute details.  Check frequently this week as the ISTE Annual Convention is this week.
    • Video: Educational Uses of Second Life
AMLE, Conferences, Podcast, Strategy, Tech, Web SpotlightBy Troy Patterson

MSM 187 Oh There’s No Plate Like Chrome For The Hollondaise . . .

Jokes You Can Use:

1.  What time of day was Adam born? A little before Eve.
Why was Adam a famous runner? He was first in the human race.

2.  On our way home from visiting family we stopped at a Culver’s to grab some breakfast.  Sitting in the booth across the way was Santa.  He had ordered the Eggs Benedict and when the nice Culver’s chap brought out his order he set down a hubcap in front of the jolly old elf.  As he passed me I stopped him and asked about the hubcap.  He said, “Oh, well, there’s no plate like chrome for the Hollondaise …”

Eileen Award:

  • Luke Rakoczy
  • Craig Cadman
  • Michael Palmer
  • Lynda Gonzalez-Napier


Advisory:


Middle School Science Minute

by Dave Bydlowski (k12science or davidbydlowski@mac.com)

This one is about using Gummi Bears in the Science Classroom.  

From the Twitterverse:

*JFarm Infographics as an Assessment (schrockguide.net) post.ly/4bbsh
* SimpleK12 Need new ways to improve student work ethic? Watch “Saving Time with Innovative Web Tools” on-demand. goo.gl/CBQxF
*mcleod IA uses #iaedfuture for state convos about ed. WI uses #wiedu; UK uses #ukedchat. Your state/country? Plz RT! goo.gl/VlZWQ #edchat
*mrsebiology Creative Writing Livebinder: bit.ly/u2PlHU #edchat #engchat #midleved #elemchat
* lcarroll94 30 Webtools to Transform a Classroom – LiveBinder bit.ly/tRrfxr
*camlecolorado CAMLE Cincinnati merging middle and high schools to provide kids more options edweek.org/ew/articles/20…
*KentManning “One of the first things Jobs did during the product review process was ban PowerPoints.” Page 337 #SteveJobs
*Start_Teaching Start Teaching! Classroom in the Cloud: 5 Awesome Things You Can Do With an IPad and an LCD Projector bit.ly/vp1gIQ
*shighley Susie Highley  TN gov. responds to outcry over new teacher evaluations | Get Schooled bit.ly/slI4vQ >some good pts. in comments as well
*MACUL MACUL  Board members and superintendents can attend #macul12 for free. Details at macul.org • ow.ly/8bVQX
* EduSum Summer Charlesworth  “@jbrogley: – How one teacher is using Twitter in the middle-school classroom – sbne.ws/r/9HVz” interesting!
*shannonmmiller Shannon Miller  So many great ideas here…How to use Twitter in the classroom thenextweb.com/twitter/2011/0… @TNWtwit
*Ruth_A_Buzzi  I love going out & cutting my own Christmas tree! Oh, the neighbors never complain; it’s usually about 3:00 AM, & they think beavers did it.

Don’t forget to join the conversation on MiddleTalk and Twitter at #midleved this Friday at 8:00 pm EST.

News:

TED Presentation: On-line Charters

Frustrated by the lack of innovation, agility and flexibility in traditional schools, Ali Carr-Chellman, a former third grade teacher, realized that these types of traditional elementary classrooms were not for her. She is now an instructional designer, author and educator, working on how to change schools to improve education. Ali is a professor at the Pennsylvania State University in the College of Education working primarily with doctoral level students to help produce the next generation of faculty with inspired research ideas and methods. She also teaches online courses focused on helping teachers learn how to improve their own instructional design practices and classrooms. Her recent research projects include, “Bring Back the Boys,” which offers a look at ways gaming can be used to reengage males in their elementary education. In another project, Ali asks prisoners and homeless people how to reform schools, offering new opinions to policy making.
Interesting presentation about Cyber Charters. The presentation includes a look at the financing. It also includes a look at the public good of education.
* If people whine about teacher pay or superintent pay, point them here. 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4L_wfX3MzRE

Can We Really Learn Online? Response to NYTimes on Wall Street’s Digital Learning Enterprises

So that is the key question:  is the motivation for online learning enriching an online experience more and more of us are having and finding new and inventive ways to learn?  Or is the real motive enriching share holders, even if it is at the expense of real learning?
http://hastac.org/blogs/cathy-davidson/2011/12/13/can-we-really-learn-online-response-nytimes-wall-streets-digital-lea

Resources:

Snag Films National Geographic Channel:

National Geographic is one of the largest non-profit scientific and educational institutes in the world, bringing to the public eye exciting new discoveries direct from the field. Their documentaries span a variety of interests, from environmental and historical conservation to the study of world culture and history with the purpose of inspiring people to care about the planet. Be sure to check out the Secret Life of Cats and Violent Earth!
*Thanks to Richard Byrne at Free Tech for Teachers – http://www.freetech4teachers.com/2011/12/watch-75-full-length-national.html

http://www.snagfilms.com/films/browse/category/national_geographic

Web Spotlight:

Overcoming the Divide Between Curriculum and Technology Leaders

The digital revolution is changing how many U.S. school districts create ­engaging learning environments, with collaboration between the ­curriculum and technology ­departments slowly becoming the norm rather than the exception. By ­developing a common language around how students learn best, these leaders are fostering a shared vision for effective 21st century learning.
Unfortunately, there remains a striking gap between this vision and the day-to-day strategic work these leaders are doing.
http://www.edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2011/12/overcoming-divide-between-curriculum-and-technology-leaders

iPad App listing by Dan Callahan on Pinterest

iPad apps categorized by subject.
http://pinterest.com/dancallahan/

Try these 10th-grade quizzes created from Florida’s standardized test

We decided to do this because of the enormous popularity of a guest post I published last week by educator Marion Brady about a school board member in Florida who decided to take the state standardized test.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/post/try-these-10th-grade-quizzes-created-from-floridas-standardized-test/2011/12/13/gIQABBR6rO_blog.html?wprss=answer-sheet

A superintendent calls school reformers’ bluff

By John Kuhn
As a public school administrator, I have been a steadfast critic of the legacy of No Child Left Behind. But I’ve recently figured out a way that school reformers can get me on their side. It’s very simple.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/post/a-superintendent-calls-school-reformers-bluff/2011/12/11/gIQABKBXoO_blog.html?wprss=answer-sheet

Phishing Quiz

Ever wonder how good you are at telling the difference between a legitimate website and one that’s a phishing attempt? Take this quiz to find out.
http://www.opendns.com/phishing-quiz/

Strategies:

An Interactive Strategy for Reading Assignments in All Content Areas

When it comes time for class discussion about a reading assignment, teachers are often disappointed by the lack of student participation. The kids don’t have a clue what they should say and desperately hope the teacher doesn’t call on them.
Just Say Something is an instructional strategy that addresses these issues in any classroom by engaging students in the reading process through peer interaction.

http://www.amle.org/Publications/MiddleLeveliNSIDER/Articles/ReadingAssignments/tabid/2532/Default.aspx

AMLE 2011:

Classroom Management & Student Motivation  “The Keys to Raising Student Achievement”

He has T-Shirts w/Cha-Ching on ’em.  See also the handout on motivating students.
This session deals strictly with motivation.

Starts with the emotional bank account.

Starts with the Shirt:  Cha-Ching!  Have you made an emotional deposit with your student?

Motivating anybody starts with the relationship.

Questioning Techniques to Motivate Students to Participate.

Think of the name only of the best teacher ever you had in school.

TENSION – used to promote student accountability.

Create questions that get all the students to answer in their head, then ask for volunteers.

Ask questions in a pattern that is predictable and then ask the question that you want one student to answer after everybody has an answer in their head.

Questioning Technique #1:  Ask, Pause, and Call.

Ask the question

Pause for think time

Call on a student randomly.

Stick Pick is good here.

Students are also prepped for discussion because they have an answer in their head.

Signals

Gives away what type of questioning technique we’re using.

Think (with hand pointing to head)

Ask opinion questions to your special ed/needs kids so they can’t be wrong and they experience success.  Then go to factual questions later in the week/year.  Give them success first.

Questioning Technique #2 – Volunteers

Signal

Hands  (says it)

Make sure you go over tests and give pre-tests multiple times so they can get much better.

This is good practice.

“If you did know, what would you say?”  For those students who say “I don’t know.”

Questioning Technique #3 – Choral Response

Reading the directions together.

Signal:  open hands toward the students.  both hands gesture outward to the class.

Questioning Technique #4 – Signal Response

Signal:  Fist to the sternum, then thumbs up/thumbs down/windshield wiper for response.

Best response one is the old fashioned white board.

Put a sock on the other hand for erasing.

Lowe’s and Home Depot will cut 36 squares out of a sheet of showerboard.

Paddles have the dry erase stuff on ’em.  Group by color.

Four Corners Technique

Agree, somewhat agree, disagree, strongly agree and discuss your position.

Response board

Laminated


Events & Happenings:

Calendar of Events:

ISTE News:

  • ISTE Eduverse Talks are the recorded sessions held on ISTE Island every week. Join ISTE in their Second Life conference location for their weekly talks on education.
    • The ISTE Special Interest Group:  Virtual Environments is holding meetings on Mondays from 4:00 – 6:00 pm (SLT) on ISTE Island.


Ohio Middle Level Association:

AMLE Affiliate Conferences:


Classroom 2.0’s Live Calendar.


Second Life:

    • Regular Tuesday meetings are scheduled. See the board on the ISTE Island for up to the minute details.  Check frequently this week as the ISTE Annual Convention is this week.
    • Video: Educational Uses of Second Life
advisory, AMLE, Podcast, TechBy Troy Patterson

MSM 185 Spinning Beachball of Death

Jokes You Can Use:

My cat started his writing career by authoring a feline-oriented soap opera; he titled that project, “Nine Lives to Live.”

My cat’s writing a feline-oriented Christmas movie script. He has titled this project: “It’s A Wonderful Nine Lives.”

On Our Mind:

Holidays.
Feedback.
Facebook/Google+

Eileen Award:

Eric Runyan – He followed our advice about Rick Wormeli and was greatly pleased.
Eric Stockmeyer – me too! (to several of his points)
SteveParkerZ:  New Twitter follower
Dr. Monte Tatom:  Cyberbully article suggestion

Advisory:

Museum of Obsolete Objects
http://www.youtube.com/mooojvm

We are the Solution

The Pledge to Stop Bullying (with video)
http://wearethesolution.net/

Middle School Science Minute

by Dave Bydlowski (k12science or davidbydlowski@mac.com)

Dave is back with a podcast about Acrylic Nails in the Lab and the safety concerns that exist.
Student safety – always a focus.

From the Twitterverse:

*LizFrerich Lizfrerich
“Education is the ability to listen to almost anything without losing your temper or your self-confidence.” Robert Frost
*tomshepp tomshepp
A head teacher writes… zite.to/rI5pMu #edtech >> Great satire to make a point.
*coolcatteacher Vicki Davis  RT @easybib: EasyBib’s new Educator & Student Content Portal vsb.li/4OYpTs New writing guides & lesson plans this week #edchat #e …
*shannonmmiller Shannon Miller How to Annotate Assignments in @Edmodo ow.ly/7Nntx
*ED_Outreach Massie Ritsch  ED’s Office of Planning, Evaluation, & Policy Development is seeking paid interns for Spring 12 go.usa.gov/5YK
*joeslaughter Joe Slaughter  “Don’t worry that children never listen to you; worry that they are always watching you.” – Robert Fulghum
#pencilchat

erinneo Erin Ochoa
I refuse to use pencils in my classroom until manufacturers figure out a way to limit what students can write with them. #pencilchat

misterlamb Jimbo Lamb
If students all don’t have the same pencil, how are they ever to learn? I can’t know everything about how every pencil works! #pencilchat

pammoran pammoran
Who wrote book Pencils: A Radical Disruption to America’s Class ? think it said by 2020 no student would B working w/o a pencil #pencilchat

jonbecker Jonathan Becker
@johntspencer are you an Eberard Faber-certified teacher? #pencilchat

johntspencer John T. Spencer
Let’s be honest. When you hand a kid a pencil with an eraser, you’re pretty much saying “I’m okay with failure.” #pencilchat

joe_bower Joe Bower
I’m sick & tired of policy makers paying for all these pencils without providing professional development. #pencilchat

teach42 Steve Dembo
@ransomtech Heard that Ticonderoga is doing an update, not an entirely new pencil. HB2S. Little lighter, erases a little faster #pencilchat

pammoran pammoran
Can pencil immigrants teach pencil natives? #pencilchat

mcleod Scott McLeod
If kids can write information down on paper, soon they won’t be able to remember anything in their heads anymore #pencilchat

johntspencer John T. Spencer
I don’t trust kids with pencils. They end up doing sketchy things when I’m not looking. #pencilchat #worstpunever

mrlosik Andy Losik
Dixon really missed the boat by not enabling the Ticonderoga to play Flash content. #Pencilchat

delta_dc David Coffey
Perhaps pencils should not be allowed until students have demonstrated ability to think w/o pencils. #pencilchat

mrlosik Andy Losik
What kind of filters or restrictions can we put on a pencil to keep kids from writing inappropriate words or doodling “parts”? #pencilchat
*fisher1000 Michael Fisher  Love this Livebinder! – 12 Ways to eLearning livebinders.com/play/play/52057
*techsavvyteach Tech-Savvy Teacher Downloading “Creating Multimedia eBooks” from @wfryer speedofcreativity.org/2011/12/03/99%… // that’s a nice price at 99 cents…
* TeacherCast Jeffrey Bradbury Social Studies LiveBinder teachercast.net/TeacherCast/Li… via @teachercast
*Funderstanding Eric Cohen   Michael Bloomberg In MIT Speech: Cut Teachers By Half, Large Classes OK. huff.to/uTDMLM #Bloomberg #education
*onlinecourse Distance Education
A College Degree: Is It Really Worth the Money? – dedu.org/9roLrf
*mrsebiology Terie Engelbrecht

20 Ways to Use Edmodo: bit.ly/savcLT #edchat #edtech #midleved #elemchat

Don’t forget to join the conversation on MiddleTalk and Twitter at #midleved this Friday at 8:00 pm EST.

News:

What Kinds of Things DO Teachers Buy for Their Classrooms?

By Bill Ferriter
After swinging through Target and dropping another $10 bucks on supplies that I need for an upcoming science lab, I decided to pull out my envelope o’ receipts and see how much I’ve spent on school purchases so far this year.
http://transformed.teachingquality.org/blogs/tempered-radical/11-2011/what-kinds-things-do-teachers-buy-their-classrooms

Teachers’ newest online worry: ‘cyberbaiting’

11 percent of teachers know a friend who has been ‘cyberbaited,’ or taunted by a student hoping to record an outburst, according to a new survey.
http://www.eschoolnews.com/2011/11/27/teachers-newest-online-worry-cyberbaiting/

Resources:

Using Wolfram|Alpha in the Classroom

Wolfram|Alpha is a free online computational knowledge engine that generates answers to questions in real time by doing computations on its own vast internal knowledge base. Our long-term goal is to make all systematic knowledge immediately computable and accessible to everyone. This can be valuable to educators in many ways.

http://www.wolframalpha.com/educators/

HistoryWorld Timelines

http://www.historyworld.net/timesearch/default.asp?&keywords=

Themeefy

Create, Curate, Share
http://www.themeefy.com/landing

Web Spotlight:

Join.Me

Instant screen sharing. Instant Aha!
Get everybody on the same page, when they’re not in the same room, instantly. Review documents and designs. Train staff. Demo products or just show off. join.me is a ridiculously simple screen sharing tool for meetings on the fly.

join.me free

  • screen sharing

  • 250 viewers

  • share control

  • multi-monitor

  • chat

  • send files

  • viewer: iPad/iPhone or Android

Strategies:

Events & Happenings:

Calendar of Events:

ISTE News:

  • ISTE Eduverse Talks are the recorded sessions held on ISTE Island every week. Join ISTE in their Second Life conference location for their weekly talks on education.
    • The ISTE Special Interest Group:  Virtual Environments is holding meetings on Mondays from 4:00 – 6:00 pm (SLT) on ISTE Island.

Ohio Middle Level Association:

AMLE Affiliate Conferences:

Classroom 2.0’s Live Calendar.

Second Life:

    • Regular Tuesday meetings are scheduled. See the board on the ISTE Island for up to the minute details.  Check frequently this week as the ISTE Annual Convention is this week.
    • Video: Educational Uses of Second Life
advisory, Lesson Plan, Strategy, Teaching Tip, TechBy Troy Patterson

MSM 183 You Vill Pass Dis Test, You Vill Like Dis Test, You Vill Attach De Schtandard To Each Schtandard . . .

Jokes You Can Use:

1. Why are round pizzas put in square boxes?
2. If a deaf person must appear in court is it still called a hearing?
3. Why does the sign read, “Enter at your own risk” who else could you risk other than yourself?
4. If it’s called “frying pan” is it OK to boil something in it?
5. Why doesn’t every doughnut have nuts in it?

Do you know what happens to quarterbacks when they reach the ends of their lives?
They just pass away.

Troy’s Backup Jokes:
Test Question:  Give a brief explanation of the meaning of the term “hard water.”
Student Answer:  Ice

Test Question:  What is methane?
Student Answer:  Methane is a smelly greenhouse gas that is produced when trees and/or cows are burned.
(F in Exams by Richard Benson)

On Our Mind:

Week and a half to AMLE/NMSA 2011 in Louisville . . .
Sessions
Affiliate Sessions:  Contact Doug Herlensky if you’re attending.
Dinner

Eileen Award:

Kam Yousaf

Advisory:

What would it take to make a model look like Barbie?

Here’s a breakdown of what she’d need done to be the kind of doll women aspire to: a brow lift, a jaw line shave, rhinoplasty, a cheek and neck reduction, a chin implant, scooped-out shoulders, a breast lift, liposuction on her arms, and tummy tuck, which would also have to be sculpted as if it were lined in whale-bone from the inside. And that’s just the half of her.
http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/beauty/the-plastic-surgery-a-model-needs-to-look-like-barbie-2584798

Respect

Respect Rap – I use this with grades 2 – 4 but it’s suitable through middle school. Just love the message, the instrumental track, the editing, the kids’ performances (and the Principal’s, too). The choreography is amazing, the scene setup, the dancing at the end … it’s just dripping with awesome. Congratulations, Fearless Lions at Frank Porter Graham Elementary in Chapel Hill, NC. YOU, QUITE LITERALLY, ROCK!
http://www.ncs-tech.org/?p=6844

Middle School Science Minute

by Dave Bydlowski (k12science or davidbydlowski@mac.com)

This middle school science minute is about Oobleck.  This is a great activity when students are full of extra energy.  Just mix cornstarch and water and it makes a “non-Newtonian” fluid.  It starts off with the consistency of peanut butter, then through handling becomes brittle and breaks, but then eventually becomes an oozing liquid again.

I thought it might be fun to do this podcast around Halloween, when slimy things are at the forefront.  Oobleck goes by many names but this is my favorite one because there is a nice tie in to the Dr Seuss book — Bartholomew and the Oobleck.

From the Twitterverse:

*web20classroom From @azjd-5 Skills For 21st Century Learners:7 Things You Should Know About Open Textbook Publishing (PDF): bit.ly/g7LhvC
*Maiju1975 Our race to the bottom. RT @DianeRavitch: This is the graph that shapes our future: nytimes.com/imagepages/201…
*willrich45 I don’t want best practice. I want changed practice. The former usually is just using tech to do the same as we’ve always done. #grumpytour
*rmbyrne Looking for Lesson Materials? Try OER Commons bit.ly/tzFMcI via @AddThis
*missnoor28 Miss Noor ㋡ Teach with your #ipad – Blooms Taxonomy with Apps | @scoopit goo.gl/f6nC1 #edtech #edchat #ipad #mlearningPeriodic Table of #QRcodes | @scoopit #edtech #edchat #science #mlearning
*csousanh Is there still a place for teacher autonomy in US Public schools? #edchat, #vted, #cpchat, #midleved educationalmusings.net
*fabclassroom Sign up for UPS My Choice & be entered into the Win What you want Sweepstakes twrt.me/vbs19v by @dallassinglemom
*sguditus iPad use in the middle school – communication, research and resources: bit.ly/wmsipad #midleved #masscue11
*mrsebiology Podcasting in the Classroom: bit.ly/ukZlEy #edchat #edtech #midleved #elemchat
*ssandifer Teaching with Technology in the Middle: Diigo for Digital Writing Reflection | @scoopit bit.ly/uiMOz6 #edtech
*DianeRavitch Tests for everything including auto shop and foreign languages, to rate teachers. Thanks @arneduncan: online.wsj.com/article/SB1000…
*mcleodScott McLeod

Every day in school students receive regular reminders they’re not trusted. Cumulative impact of that over many years is … ?

New bookmark: Social Media Guidelines:  http://www.delicious.com/ericstoller/social-media-guidelines

RT @ericstoller: Censoring social media is like trying to stop a waterfall with a colander. #NASPAtechC #NASPAtech

*This space intentionally left blank*  (I’ve always wanted to say that . . .)

Don’t forget to join the conversation on MiddleTalk and Twitter at #midleved this Friday at 8:00 pm EST.

News:

Testing Costs

As the nation endures its sputtering recovery, significant cuts to state and local education budgets continue to dominate headlines. With bruising fights over tenure, pensions, and collective bargaining, educators fear that these cuts may shrink educator jobs and benefits for years to come.
Within this context, though, it is testing that has emerged as the real villain. In protest blogs, op-eds, and tweets, critics rail against “billions and billions” spent on assessment, arguing that if only we stopped testing, teachers’ jobs, art classes, sports, school nurses, librarians, small classes, and more would be saved.
http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2011/10/12/07tucker.h31.html

Will Richardson:  Make It Stop. Please.

http://willrichardson.com/post/11862306546/make-it-stop-please

Resources:

60 Seconds

http://www.mediabistro.com/alltwitter/files/2011/06/internet-60-seconds-infographic.jpg

Stitch.it

Simply copy-and-paste a set of links in our text box and click ‘Stich It’. We’ll convert those links into one short URL for you to share. It’s that easy!
http://stich.it/

Good to Know

  • Stay safe online
  • Your data on the web
  • Your data on Google
  • Manage your data

http://www.google.com/goodtoknow/

WhatFolio

http://www.whatfolio.com/

Primary Sources:
Documents from a variety of eras. From 4000bc – 21st Century.
http://avalon.law.yale.edu/default.asp
Welcome to the David Rumsey Map Collection Database and Blog.
http://www.davidrumsey.com/
Royal Society
http://royalsocietypublishing.org/search

Music Primary Sources:

Victrola Book of Opera
http://www.loc.gov/jukebox/victor-book-of-the-opera
Acoustic Recordings
http://www.loc.gov/jukebox/about/acoustical-recording

iPad Resources

https://sites.google.com/site/iccarsproject/home/ipad-ios-resources

Web Spotlight:

Larry Ferlazzo

Daniel Pink was recently interviewed on a local Washington, D.C. television show along with a local university official. You watch it all here, but I thought the few minutes he spent discussing the role of grades, autonomy and inquiry in education to be particularly thought-provoking. I used Tube Chop to “chop” those two brief segments and have them embedded below. I don’t know if they will come through on an RSS Readers, so you might have to click through to my blog in order to view them.
http://larryferlazzo.edublogs.org/2011/10/23/daniel-pink-on-grades-autonomy-inquiry/

Strategies:

How YouTube Is Changing The Classroom
As long as there have been teachers, they’ve battled the same problems: How can they reach students of multiple ability levels at once, cover more course material in limited time, and find more time to engage with students one-on-one?
Some educators think they’ve found a solution to all three problems in, of all things, YouTube.
A small group of teachers nationwide is replacing in-class lectures with short online videos students watch at home. This flip-flop of homework and lecture — from which the model gets its name, “the flipped classroom” — leaves class time open for students to complete their assignments with their teacher standing by to offer one-on-one help.
Research backing the model is scarce, and some critics have dismissed the model as a gimmick. Still, a handful Indiana teachers — and top state education officials — are willing to give it a try.http://stateimpact.npr.org/indiana/2011/10/12/how-youtube-is-changing-the-classroom/

Events & Happenings:

Calendar of Events:

AMLE News:

      • Other News:
  • ISTE Eduverse Talks are the recorded sessions held on ISTE Island every week. Join ISTE in their Second Life conference location for their weekly talks on education.
    • The ISTE Special Interest Group:  Virtual Environments is holding meetings on Mondays from 4:00 – 6:00 pm (SLT) on ISTE Island.

Ohio Middle Level Association:

AMLE Affiliate Conferences:  

Classroom 2.0’s Live Calendar.

Second Life:

    • Regular Tuesday meetings are scheduled. See the board on the ISTE Island for up to the minute details.  Check frequently this week as the ISTE Annual Convention is this week.
    • Video: Educational Uses of Second Life
MSM, News, Podcast, Strategy, Tech, Web SpotlightBy Troy Patterson

MSM 182 iPads? We’re Blinding You With Science Resources!

Jokes You Can Use:

After dying in a car crash, three friends find themselves at an orientation to enter heaven. Each one was asked, “When you are in your casket, what would you like to hear your friends and family saying about you?” Sean says, “I would like to hear them say I was a great doctor and a great family man.” Karl says, “I would like to hear them say I was a wonderful husband and an excellent teacher who made a difference in children’s lives.” Juan says, “I would like to hear them say, ‘Look! He’s moving!'”

Ladies and gentlemen, hobos and tramps,
Bug-eyed mosquitoes and bowlegged ants!
I’m about to tell you a story I’ve never heard before,
So pull up a chair and sit on the floor.
Admission is free, so pay at the door.

One fine day, in the middle of the night,
two, dead boys got up to fight.
Back to back, they faced each other,
drew their swords and shot each other.
A deaf policeman heard the noise,
and saved the lives of the two dead boys.
If you don’t believe my lies are true,
ask the blind man, he saw it too!


Ruth_A_Buzzi Ruth Buzzi
Nobody really wants their cats to “think outside the box.” #happyCATurday

TweeterofWit CL
Don’t have a fish pedicure. They’re sole-destroying. #fishpedicure

On Our Mind:

CMU CMLA meeting on Wednesday.

Eileen Award:

CMUCMLA

From the Twitterverse:

*Twilliamson15 Just downloaded Smart Seat for iPad…set up my seating charts already…looks useful
*fabclassroom Deal of the Day! Miniature Styling Iron ends Tonight at Midnight twrt.me/qv07c1
*cindybrock “@wfryer: blabberize.com blabberize supports downloading your creations to import into other projects! ow.ly/75xm0 #tmky11
*DianeRavitch Rupert Murdoch wants to teach your kids: motherjones.com/politics/2011/…
*willrich45 Just Posted: Learners not Knowers bit.ly/oLujaN #edchat #edreform
*missnoor28 Miss Noor ㋡” @virtual_teach: Teachers have become what lawyers were (possible still r) …feared, disrespected, distrusted…because of a few bad eggs.
*tomshepp RT @VAMCE2010: 12 iPad Apps for Storytelling in the Classroom appsineducation.blogspot.com/2011/06/12-ipa… #edtech #edchat #ipaded #edapps

RT @VAMCE2010: App Building Tools for Teachers and Students flpbd.it/9mCF #ipaded #edapp #mlearning #ipadapps #tlchat

Teens and Educational Technology, 5 Steps to Success http://zite.to/o38GEU #ipaded #edapp #edapps
*mcleod New bookmark: App Building Tools for Teachers and Students bit.ly/p5HWXV
*shannonmmiller Instrumental Music for Film and Video from Creative Commons ow.ly/6YjTw
**russeltarr Rubrics for Assessment: tinyurl.com/5vdf878
*cfanch classtools.net had a QR code game generator. Cool! #edcampmanor

Don’t forget to join the conversation on MiddleTalk and Twitter at #midleved this Friday at 8:00 pm EST.  

News:

As minds get quicker, teens get smarter

U.S. researchers say they have demonstrated for the first time that adolescents become smarter because their brains process information faster.
http://www.upi.com/Health_News/2011/09/29/As-minds-get-quicker-teens-get-smarter/UPI-84711317352462

GlogsterEDU

Dear Glogster EDUcators,

We sincerely apologize for the site issues you’ve been experiencing lately. We can assure you that they are temporary, and Glogster EDU will be better as a result.

Glogster (glogster.com) and Glogster EDU (edu.glogster.com) are currently sharing server infrastructure. Sometimes this results in capacity overload, which can lead to slow loading or unexpected errors.

We are in the process of moving Glogster.com to a separate infrastructure so that Glogster EDU will be fast and reliable for you and your students.

We will keep you updated on all known issues via Twitter and Facebook, so please follow Glogster EDU on either platform.
We are committed to you, our valued educators, and are taking the necessary steps toward providing you with high quality service you can count on. Thank you for your patience and understanding while we complete the moving process.

Resources:

Science360

We gather news from wherever science is happening, including directly from scientists, college and university press offices, popular and peer-reviewed journals, dozens of National Science Foundation science and engineering centers, and funding sources that include government agencies, not-for-profit organizations and private industry.
http://news.science360.gov/files

Free EBooks

Get 5 free books each month. You can download PDF’s or TXT’s. They also have pay plans that are unlimited downloads and can be sent to Kindle app and more.
http://www.free-ebooks.net/

Biology

Warning, these are anatomically correct.
http://www.zygotebody.com/#
http://www.healthline.com/human-body-maps/
http://www.biodigitalhuman.com/default.html

Password Generator

Help students create better passwords. This is limited but easy to use.
http://passwordbird.com/

Triptico

The Triptico resource application currently contains 20 different interactive resources – all of which are easy to edit, adapt, save and share. You can access them all with one simple download… everything is completely free – and you will receive updates whenever new resources are added!

http://www.triptico.co.uk/

Web Spotlight:

Teacher Wall

Scholastic, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and DonorsChoose.org bring you the Teacher Wall – a virtual teacher town square where America’s educators can share their stories, knowledge, and ideas on our nation’s schools.
The Teacher Wall provides teachers with an opportunity to talk about what’s important to them. From challenges to A-ha! moments, from professional development to job satisfaction, from curriculum to parent engagement – the topics tackled on the Wall showcase a wide range of voices and provide teachers with a chance to interact, share, and learn from one another, all while contributing to the conversation on American education.
http://teacherwall.scholastic.com/

Strategies:

ISTE 2011:  Brain Rules by Dr. John Medina

Dr. John Medina
Crossing the brain is scientific bunk. Question and answer session.
20% to 110% boost with 150 minutes of aerobic exercise.
Does the use of Google change the brain?

Yes, but we don’t know how. Look up cryptochrome.  (Supplement:  The act of sitting in front of a computer plays with the cryptochrome in our heads and messes with the circadian rhythm.)  The brain research being done is only scratching the surface. To correlate it to education is making leaps not supported by neuroscience yet.

Note: This guy is from Seattle Pacific University. A Free Methodist affiliated institute. He dropped the “frickin'” bomb a number of times.  SPU certainly has changed since I was being recruited to go there.

Events & Happenings:

Calendar of Events:

AMLE News:

      • Other News:
  • ISTE Eduverse Talks are the recorded sessions held on ISTE Island every week. Join ISTE in their Second Life conference location for their weekly talks on education.
    • The ISTE Special Interest Group:  Virtual Environments is holding meetings on Mondays from 4:00 – 6:00 pm (SLT) on ISTE Island.

Ohio Middle Level Association:

AMLE Affiliate Conferences:

Classroom 2.0’s Live Calendar.

Second Life:

    • Regular Tuesday meetings are scheduled. See the board on the ISTE Island for up to the minute details.  Check frequently this week as the ISTE Annual Convention is this week.
    • Video: Educational Uses of Second Life