SNOW!.jpg

Well...the weatherman was right! We got some snow. This is from our backdoor in Briarwood. Share your picts!
Desiree Caskey
Technology Integration Specialist

Multi-Tasking Muddling Teen Brains?

I listened to NPR on my way to work this morning and heard this story.

Studies with adults have shown that when we multi-task we are actually less productive because the brain has to disconnect and then recreate thought processes as we bounce from task to task.

After reading the article, I wondered if the same is true for the kids of Generation M - a group who learned multi-tasking behavior from the cradle. Do their brains experience these same "brown-outs" or have they adapted/evolved/adjusted?

So my question for all of you is - do you think your students multi-task more productively than you do - or are we all just muddling our brains?

- Karen

Quick Survey for MEA

Creating Online Slide Shows

This is an example of a quick slide show I created on Slide.com. You can also use Moblying.com. They are extremely similar.

A Vision of K-12 Students Today

Adapted From Michael Wesch

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Check out some new Web 2.0 Tools

As usual, Larry Ferlazzo has come up with another great set of "Best of..." lists. I went through his 25 best web 2.0 tools for Education 2008, and hand-picked a few that I thought were relevant to our TILT days and what you have been doing in your classrooms. I also want to list a few that have been mentioned in the past but need repeating!

Some Web 2.0 Tools to Use inside or out of the Classroom:
1. Flowgram:
You can combine web pages, images, powerpoints and other documents...then narrate to create a tour or tutorial. You can even add highlights and notes.

2. Bookr:
This is a very simple way to create a storybook using flickr photos. You simply search Flickr by user or tag and place your pictures into pages and type your story (or captions) with each photo. It would be a great way to explain a concept or publish and online book. It reminds me of iphoto on the web. You might want a Flickr account and upload photos for students to use.

3. Edublogs.TV:
This is another hosting site for videos. You can upload your own or pull them from YouTube. Like SchoolTube and TeacherTube, this site is dedicated to creating a repository of videos for educational use.

4. Digital Vaults:
You have to visit this site to appreciate it. It is a visual representation of the National Archives in a very cool, interrelated, interactive way. I can't even begin to explain how cool this site is - and how much kids will love exploring it!

5. Moblying:
As you can see from the Sidebar...Moblying is a slideshow creator. It is a lot like other slideshow or photoshow creators. I was able to upload a few photos, add a transition effect, change themes...and customize it until the cows come home! When I was done, I could email it, save it as an URL, or embed it into my blog!

6. Graspr:
Another video site...this one archives tutorials. You can upload your video tutorials, create your own or just use those that are there.

7. Zunal:
If you like WebQuests, you will want to check out Zunal. It lets you build your WebQuest right on the site. You can also browse and use existing WebQuests. The site even gives you a step-by-step tutorial on planning and building a WebQuest.

8. Wix:
This is really a fun site to create a web page! It has great sound effects, easy images, and a built-in tutorial as you go. You can start from a template or blank page...you might get lost in the creativity of the site though.

9. MeBeam:
Man, this is a fun site! You can video-conference with multiple people...as long as they have video capabilities. I learned that I have to set my internal video to USB, and then it worked!

10. Book Glutton:
This site lets you read books online with other people. You can upload your work or search the site for books to read. You can read with a group or on your own. If you go to the site, be sure to watch the video that thoroughly explains how the site works. You need to watch this.

11. CommunityWalk:
I really like this easy to use map creator. You can put pins in the map by address, lat & long or just by clicking. You can then add narrative and photos to your pin. Of course you can tag and share!

12. Definr:
Simple is sometimes better. This site is a very fast dictionary. It even has word prediction for those that have difficulty with spelling.

13. CircaVie:
An online timeline creator. You can place text, pictures, video into a timeline. GREAT for history classes. You can also search and use existing timelines.

14. Digital History:
Another style of timeline. It shows the political, social/economic, or cultural events of the world though map pins. Hover over a pin and you get a description of the event. Click on it and you get a wealth of information.

15. PBWiki and WikiSpaces:
Easy wiki creators for collaboration. Both have simple editing tools and user-friendly interfaces.



So...lots of new tools to play with . How could you use these in the classroom? With your colleagues? With your family?

Geocaching with TILT

On Monday, some TILT III members had a crash course using GPS units and participating in a Geocache in downtown Billings (visit geocaching.com for further information). As the members soon found out, locating a cache in an urban setting proved quite difficult even under ideal conditions.

Would you find educational value in doing such an activity with your students? Can you think of other ways to integrate this technology?

**Posted using BlackBerry Curve!

------
Billings West High
Health Enhancement
(406) 655-1311 672-6634

What about a Wiki?

Kathi Hoyt and I have recently been sharing ideas and resources as we venture into the world of wikis. Elizabeth Waddington introduced me to the wiki years ago but I never took a shine to this tool until I started focusing on the 21st Century Skills initiative...and now after reading Marzano's book (Classroom Instruction that Works), and presenting on the revised Bloom's taxonomy, I am even more determined to make my world a wiki world. (Not to be confused with wacki...I am already there)

Kathi sent me a copy out of the most recent issue of Edutopia (free resource) titled The Way of the Wiki and I thought it fit perfectly with the direction we are taking in phases II & III for TILT this year. When I read, "A simple, cheap technology with a funny name will become an even more powerful portal into creative teaching and learning this year.", and " A wiki is the ultimate enabler for collaboration.", I knew I was on target for introducing wikis to you at the beginning of this year.

I encourage you to read this article and if you don't already, check out the blog by Vicki Davis mentioned...I subscribe to Cool Cat and she is great! You will hear her name mentioned frequently amongst technology educators as a leader in our field.

I would also encourage you to subscribe to Edutopia...you might have heard of the founder and creator...George Lucas. He has great information for the educator that wants to incorporate creativity in the classroom.

May the Force be with you!

What's On the Horizon

These last couple of days I have been gearing up for our first TILT meetings for the school year. As I look at my groups of teachers and where they are in the learning process, I struggle to decide what to focus on for each group. Some teachers need more time to increase their technology literacy while others just need time to develop lessons and activities. BUT...everyone is always interested in the latest technology and how it can fit into education.

If I had it my way, I would just spend the day showing you cool videos from YouTube like
My YouTube Story
The Mom Song

but alas, there is more to technology integration than this.

So...what are some of the things we will be exploring this year...

This year we will be incorporating Bloom's Taxonomy into our technology exploration. There are some great resources for the new revised taxonomy and how it applies to the 21st Century learner.

We will be taking a page (or several pages) out of Classroom Instruction that Works. We will be looking at the 8 most highly effective teaching strategies and what emerging technology works best with each strategy.

Hmmm...sounds like the old school staff development is making a come back - watch out, next we will be studying brain research. If you have been in TILT, you know that is not the case. We will have some great, engaging days.

In Phase III we will be doing a lot more collaboration - get used to Google Docs and wikis folks.

In Phase II there will be more time spent developing lessons and classroom activities.

In Phase I...well, probably the most structured phase, we will explore all kinds of technology. We will start with the basics but work hard to explore many new tools.

One thing to keep in mind. This year my goal is to produce a podcast on how we have been integrating technology in our district. If you have a lesson or activity where you are integrating technology, please invite me!! I want to document as many of these innovative activities as I can.

Be sure to check out our agenda blog to get specifics on our upcoming meetings.

University of Wyoming Football Game - & My Blackberry

I am experimenting with posting pictures from my Blackberry Curve. I can really see a need for a Blackberry for every student! :O)

Can you imagine the type of collaborative projects we could do with other classrooms around the world...sounds like the basis for a grant to me.

Blogging In Billings

Wow! I am so proud of my TILT teachers - taking the initiative to create classroom blogs to use with their students and parents. AND...teaching other teachers around the district to do the same! I think you are going to find some great information and classroom ideas from these folks:

Here is a list (some are by invitation only, so not listed):
Connie Jensen - 2nd Grade
Jamee Wilson - 3rd Grade
Julie Betts - 3rd Grade
Doretta Lambert - 3rd Grade
Sandy Anseth - 5th Grade
Dan Erikson - 5th Grade
Sara Olsgaard - 6th Grade
Elizabeth Waddington - Middle School Art
Susan Veit - Middle School English
Marjorie Zeedyk - Middle School Reading
Doug Van Zee - Freshman Health & PE


Some Ideas of How to use a Blog:

• Communicate with parents about classroom activities, homework assignments, and school events. (replace your classroom webpage)
  
• Post Internet resources for students to use for research projects
• Post assignments for students
  
• Journaling for students
• Book Reviews
• Collaborative Activities
• Creative Writing
• History
• Put lesson content for students that are absent on your blog
• Post classroom calendar events
• post assignments based on literature readings and have students respond, creating a kind of portfolio of their work.
• post prompts for writing.
• provide examples of classwork, vocabulary activities, or grammar games.
• provide online readings for your students to read and react to.
• post photos and comment on class activities.
• publish examples of good student writing done in class.
• show case student art, poetry, and creative stories.
• create a literature circle.

A Little Font Humor

This YouTube Video was shared by Poly Drive Elementary librarian Kelli Delaney. I think it is terrific!

Do You Believe in Me?

This is a keynote speech from a young man from a Dallas elementary school. If you needed a reminder of why you do what you do...here it is!

Welcome Back: Classroom Ideas for Gadgets

Many of you purchased digital cameras and camcorders over the summer and may be wondering how you can use them in your classroom. Here are some ideas for using these gadgets in the classroom.

Digital Camera Ideas:

1. Photos of vocabulary words.
2. Bulletin board photo journal of classroom activities.
3. Create a digital scrapbook of student’s year: art, handwriting, portrait photos, etc.
4. Create a personal or classroom alphabet with pictures.
5. Use pictures for concept illustration (art, math, science).
6. Make an electronic portfolio of student work for Open House or parent review.
7. Create an “About the Author” section of student writing books.
8. Use the camera to create a video yearbook.
9. For math ask students to take pictures of angles in the classroom or school yard.
10. Story Starters: Show a picture and have students write a story based on the picture.
11. Provide a series of photos and have students write a story using what they see.
12. Help students with vowels sounds with pictures
13. Take pictures of objects in different positions to study prepositions
14. Take pictures of objects or students showing different actions for verb identification
15. Take pictures of a tree throughout the year to study growth, seasons, weather...etc.
16. Decisions, decisions. Take a picture of a scene and ask the students to make a decision about what happens next.
17. Take two pictures and compare them using a Venn diagram.
18. Identify the parts of speech in a picture.
19. Create clock "flash cards."
20. What else?
    

Using a Video Camcorder:

1. Record early readers to document progress (share at parent/teacher conference).
2. Create a short video for the manners of the week.
3. Document student behavior for parents, counselors, principal. (positive and negative)
4. Document your teaching for self-improvement.
5. Document experiments for students who were absent.
6. Allow students to interview each other on a topic. (review items for a test)
7. Have students create a "how to" video for a HEPE activity.
8. Have students create safety videos for other students or your school website.
9. Record concerts or school activities for parents or absent students.
10. What else?
    

Welcome Back! It is going to be a GREAT year.

Welcome back for another exciting school year. I know that we are just like the kids...these past months have drained our brains of most of what we have learned over the last school year. Well, I have put together a list of resources that will hopefully jump-start your thinking and get those synapses firing once again. Enjoy!!

Resources For Using Technology In Your Classroom

District Resources:
Links for Teachers & Students: http://www.billings.k12.mt.us/tilt/
• Access to Important District Resources
• Search Engines
• Educational Websites for Both Teachers & Students
• Technology Standards and Guidelines
• Technology Tutorials


Educational Blogs:
Montana Link Share Project: http://tiltlinkshare.blogspot.com/
Top 100 Technology Tools: http://www.c4lpt.co.uk/recommended/top100.html
Weblogged - Read/Write Web: http://weblogg-ed.com/


Other Great Educational Websites:
Apple Learning Interchange (ALI): http://edcommunity.apple.com/ali/
NOVA Online: Virtual Tour of the Moon: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/tothemoon/explore.html
The Discovery Channel: Planet Earth: http://dsc.discovery.com/convergence/planet-earth/planet-earth.html
PBS – Yellowstone Park Virtual Tour: http://www.pbs.org/edens/yellowstone/tour.html
The Futures Channel: http://www.thefutureschannel.com/index.php


Great Web 2.0 Sites:
Del.icio.us http://del.icio.us
Blogger http://www.blogger.com
SchoolTube http://www.schooltube.com
TeacherTube http://www.teachertube.com
VoiceThread http://voicethread.com


Get them all! Visit Desiree’s Del.icio.us Site http://del.icio.us/caskeyd

Posting from Blackberry

Today I am demonstrating how to post to Blogger from a wireless phone. In the email settings tab of the blog, you can choose an address to send a message to and Blogger will automatically post it as the most recent article!

I will try and add an image of last nights storm clouds as well to see if it shows...

Doug Van Zee

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

MCCE Summer Technology Conference a Success!

MCCE Sumer Tech Conference

The Best of Series by Larry Ferlazo

I stumbled upon this blog the other day while researching new web 2.0 applications. I forgot all about what I started researching and became immersed in this very informative blog post. Larry has spent a lot of time compiling these sites and you can spend a lot of time exploring them! Although I might change a few of his lists slightly, I learned a lot and added to my collection of resources.

Visit My Best of series to explore!

Google Earth

What is Google Earth? Google Earth is currently available for download as a desktop application, although you need to be connected to the Internet to use it. Every time you open Google Earth, it automatically connects to Google's servers, giving you access to terabytes of geographical, political and social data. See related article on HowStuffWorks.com

• Click here to begin to explore Google Earth


• Click here to download Google Earth
• Classroom activity "Size Is Relative"(.pdf)
• Click here to learn about 5 cool, easy things you can do in Google Earth
• Google Earth Users Guide
• Google Earth BLOG
• Content Area Google Earth ideas
• .KMZ file resources: kmzlinks.com : Google Earth Gallery :
• Other Links
  
  Getting Started with Google Earth
  About Google Earth Files - KML/KMZ
  Google Earth Help / FAQs
  3D Modeling Tools and Resources
  Recommended Reading/Blogs
  Google Earth Related Blogs
  Sightseeing Sites
  Google Earth Conversion Tools
  Google Earth for Teachers
  GPS Visualization Tools/Software
  Google Earth Storm Tracking/Weather
  Google Earth Games
  Other Google Blogs

MCCE Summer Tech Conference: Power point files

For attendees of the PowerPoint sessions, please use the link below to explore template files and some other Power Point options.


Power Point

Powers of 10

Embedded Video

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Another Successful Year for TILT

TILT showcase fun

For some quick snapshots of the event, see the collection on Picasa Web Albums. If anyone is worried about their posterior or tongue sticking out...it is private. You may share the link or download the photos as you wish.

p.s. the giraffes love their new sib and are belted in ready for tomorrow's commute.

Jazzed about Jooce

Holy All-In-One Tools, Batman!

If you have not had the opportunity to explore this AWESOME website, you are in for a real treat. Jooce is a one-stop everything website. With a free account you can email, chat, save files, share pictures...instantly share all your videos, pictures, and songs with friends as well.
The really cool thing is Jooce actually turns your browser into what looks like a computer desktop. You have a control panel to make the environment personalized, you can even set the wallpaper!
I think the thing I like best about it is the interaction it has with the user...it is just fun to play with even if you don't use it as your sole technology tool.

This is currently in my top 5 technology tools now...

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Preparing for the Showcase

Everyone:
I will be in the Board Room all afternoon to set up the tables and such. You are welcome to come at anytime. The event will start promptly at 5:00.

5:00-5:45
Dinner: Taco bar provided by The Soup Place (Thank you Nancy Smith)
Awards: This year there are some special awards
Prizes: You will receive a ticket when you walk in the door and we will draw for prizes.
Video: Just something in the background for you to watch.
Note: You will be given a packet of items. There will be a colored card in your packet. Please sit at the table that has the same color table-tent as your card.

5:45-6:00
Setup your section of the showcase - look for your nameplate and place your items there.

6:00
Start Your Presentations! I just mean be ready to explain your showcase and explore other TILT member's work. Please make a concerted effort to visit all the other TILT teacher exhibits.

1st Year Teachers:
Because you are the student, please focus on the technology that you have explored and found valuable. You will write up a 1 page paper describing the technology and how you have used it. If you used it with your students (or your students used it), even better.
Showcase at least one project that you have created using the technology mentioned in the paper. Your showcase can be in any form you choose. Some examples are: multimedia presentation, video, binder of paper, plackard (three-fold style), brochure, pictures....there is no limit. Remember to make a copy of your 1 page paper for Desiree.

2nd Year Teachers:
Because you wore your teacher hat more this year, please focus on your curriculum and how you introduced technology into an activity to enhance your students' learning. In your 1 page paper, explain the classroom activity, the technology used and whether your integration was teacher-directed or student-centered. Your showcase can be in any form you choose. Some examples are: multimedia presentation, video, binder of paper, plackard (three-fold style), brochure, pictures....there is no limit. Remember to make a copy of your 1 page paper for Desiree.

Note: There are always exceptions to any directives, right! If you have actually started entering the "phase 3" and want to showcase a "Mentor" project...you are welcome to do that.

7:00
We are done! If anyone wants to stick around and help clean up, that would be greatly appreciated. :O)

Thanks for another successful year.

My Favorite Technology Tools

Recently, I was sitting in the back of a room during a technology workshop. The speaker was asking, “How many of you use ____?” Each time I raised my hand. Finally, the lady next to me shoved a notebook and pen at me and said, “What are your 10 favorite tools?” It made me think…this is what we should be sharing in MCCE (along with the support and purchasing questions). So here are my favorite tech tools (available for both mac and pc) in no particular order:

Flock: new social browser - I think I like it better than Firefox!

VoiceThread: web 2.0 story-telling tool (kind of)

Inspiration: concept mapping software

Google….Everything!! …Docs, News Reader, iGoogle, Earth, Timeline, Gmail and more

Blogger: blogging software (Word Press is new to me)

Del.icio.us: social bookmarking - this is flocking amazing! Sorry, inside joke. My username is caskeyd…add me to your network!

iTunes If you think this program is just to play music...think again. You can get audio books, rent movies, watch TV shows....and that is just the entertainment part. Podcasts are free, contain all kinds of educational information, and...you can create your own! That is so cool.

TeacherTube, SchoolTube & YouTube: these video sharing sites will let you expand your bag of tricks and resources. You can find information on pretty much any subject and it is a social site, so you can upload your own videos and share them!

Other Tools (Fun & Function):

MooURL: Have a long URL, use this tool to shorten it when you are sharing with friends.

VLC: media player…opens multiple types of video including flash (.flv) and exports to multiple file types. Very handy!

UnPlug: an extension for Firefox that lets you extract media from websites.

VoiceThread: an online story creation tool that is super easy to use

Jooce: a cool website that turns your browser into a desktop environment - use this to share media files.

Skype: Chat software with video capabilities

SlideShare: a website where you can post and share your powerpoint shows.

Blog Sighting!!

Check out this neat blog. It adds a nice dimension to using technology in the classroom. you can even sign up and send your kids to the moon. :)

Growing Up Online

This is a very interesting look into the digital world put on by PBS and Frontline. It is definitely worth watching.

Visual Statistics: Using GapMinder.com

If you have not heard of GapMinder, you need to check it out!! And then, you need to share this site with your co-workers. This site has some great visuals that can be used in math, social studies, science, health, business...almost any classroom.

Learn about trends in the world (climate, population, technology, health and more). To get started, go to this site and click on the GapMinder World Link. You will be impressed with all off the information you can uncover.

Bloom's Taxonomy Narrative

I got this from my MT Cadre workshop. I think it explains the environment we have been working to create for the last two years in TILT.

Compare the old Bloom's to the new Bloom's.


A dynamic learning environment

Bloom’s Taxonomy and the World Wide Web are two pieces of a puzzle that forms a dynamic learning environment. With them in place, the remaining two pieces, the teacher and the student, will be changed. If the teacher creates a constructivist or inquiry-based classroom environment, then both teacher and student must behave differently to take advantage of the learning opportunity it affords.
The student

In an inquiry-based classroom, students are not relegated to the traditional desks in straight rows. Students are not empty vessels waiting to be filled. They assume an active role in which they must locate, evaluate, organize, synthesize, and present information, transforming it into knowledge in the process. (Note the distinction here from Bloom’s definition of knowledge — see below.) Students work collaboratively with classmates to explore a problem. This makes it possible for each student to come to his or her own understanding of a particular topic as he or she constructs knowledge. This environment is focused on the learning and is more student-centered than the traditional classroom.
The teacher

If the classroom has become more student-centered, then what does this mean for the teacher? Is he or she no longer necessary? Of course not. In fact, the teacher’s role is just as important as it has always been — if not more so. With a knowledge of learning styles and of Bloom’s Taxonomy coupled with access to the wealth of resources provided by the World Wide Web, the teacher works alongside the students. Teachers scaffold learning so that students can assume a more active role in their own learning. This means that lessons are in fact more carefully constructed to guide students through the exploration of content. Teachers’ instructional arsenal contains a greater variety of instructional techniques and knowledge of instructional design. Their role has evolved from the limited didactic form of lecturing once held as the standard view of an effective teacher.

Attention to Bloom’s Taxonomy does not mean that every class period must be optimally designed to place students in inquiry-based roles. Teaching requires that we constantly assess where students are and how best to address their needs. This may mean that on certain occasions it is necessary to lecture. In the long run, it means that the teacher balances methods of instruction by providing opportunities for the students to take some ownership of their learning. It means that it is more likely that various learning styles will be addressed. And it means that we may not hear the dreaded question Why do I need to know this? so often
Final thoughts: A Bloom by any other name

Benjamin Bloom did his work long before the advent of the "Information Age," and some of his terms conflict with the way we often talk about the Internet. It has become common to say that what students find on the Web is only information, and that they have to construct knowledge from that information on their own. If Bloom were devising his taxonomy today, he might call the first level Information instead of Knowledge.

Perhaps the point to remember is that it doesn’t much matter what you call it, as long as you teach it. Bloom’s Taxonomy is a convenient means of talking about higher-level thinking, but other taxonomies could be (and have been) designed with different names for more or fewer levels. If your students are analyzing, synthesizing, and evaluating, they’ll be able to decide for themselves what to call their ideas!

(excerpts from http://www.learnnc.org/lp/pages/bloom0405-1#4-0-0)

Thanks Daren for sharing!

Community Walk: Explore Billings!

CommunityWalk Map - Welcome to Billings

School Ideas

Classroom 2.0 in VoiceThread

Digital Storytelling at Burlington

This is a digital story that I have also posted to the Burlington Elementary website. It was a lot of fun to create and if you haven't tried digital storytelling - well - you should!!

Castle Rock art expressions

TED Talks: Is Creativity Killing Education?

Sir Ken Robinson talks about the future of our educational system and how we are educating our students to not be creative. This is a very compelling argument for supporting creativity in students. Why am I sharing this?

The Revised Bloom's Taxonomy lists Creativity as the highest level for knowledge acquisition and learning.

21st Century Skills includes Creativity and Innovation.

Montana State Standards for Technology Integration includes Creativity and Innovation.

We know that technology has a vast collection of tools for students to create and be innovative. When we change our approach from teacher-directed to student-centered - which is true technology integration - not only are we allowing students to construct their own knowledge, but we are also supporting the use of tools for creativity and innovation. Although this video is a bit long...I thought it was worth watching and worth sharing.
To watch this video, visit TED Talks (an excellent resource).

The Dog is Always Blamed for the Eaten Homework

Are We Keeping Up? A Quick Look at Emerging Technology

Recently posted on the Internet was a top 100 list of E-Learning Tools. I quickly scrolled down the list and was amazed at how many we have explored in TILT. In TILT, we have a great advantage - time to explore or at least be exposed to new technology.

I hope that as you look through this list, you are encouraged by the level of awareness you are at for emerging technology in education. Of course there are going to be tools on this list that you and I have not had the opportunity to explore yet, but how cool is it to have a place where we can see what is considered emerging in the area of E-Learning.

Tell me, how many on this list have you explored? How many on the list are you at least familiar with? (I use or have explored 50, I am familiar with 96)

FUN!

Using Excel to Create Posters: Video Tutorial

If you have not had a chance to check out some of the great videos available through TeacherTube, here is one that I think you can use for yourself, your students or clubs and activities.

Donor's Choose

For those of you with creative ideas in your head about how to use some sort of technology in your classroom but have been disappointed because you can't seem to get your hands on it, this site is for you!! Donorschoose allows teachers to make a proposal that they would like to see funded for their school. Then, other people around the country read your proposal and decide to help you fund it. It is an amazing system. I was able to get an ELMO funded for my classroom. I am very excited about this website because I see it as a way to gain and give back to the education of students around the nation. Check it out!

Contest Winner! Tom Stahley

Congratulations Tom for sharing a most spectacular gadget. I want to go out and buy one! The Meade MySky looks like a great tool to have along camping! You can get a guided tour of the night sky just by pointing this baby at the stars. It incorporates GPS technology, audio and video to help you learn about what you are pointing to in the sky. Just point and shoot to learn about planets, stars and constellations.

Now here is a technology that gets me revved up!!

Tom wins a $25 coffee card from City Brew.

Creating A Post in Blogger

This is a post to remind you how to create a post.
(Warning: video takes a long time to load)

Contest: Share a website or tech gadget that revs you up!

Give me an example of a technology gadget or website that really gets your heart racing! It can be one that you use for teaching, learning or for personal use. The most original (humor is always nice), thoughtful response will win a $25 coffee card to City Brew!

Using VoiceThread in the Classroom

This is an example of how VoiceThread can be used in the classroom...keep your eyes on this site to see how our 5th grade classroom at Poly Drive Elementary is using VoiceThread!

Using GPS & Google Earth for Science Scavenger Hunt

What a great day yesterday was! Tom Stahley, Denece Lord, Doug Van Zee and I created a scavenger hunt and posted our results onto Google Earth and created a .kmz file that we can share with others.

Integrating Technology into the Science Classroom:
The objective of our scavenger hunt was to identify signs of chemical weathering, oxidation, biological weathering, abrasion, and frost wedging.

We created a worksheet that contained the items we needed to find. Once we discovered an item on our scavenger hunt list, we recorded a waypoint into our GPS, recorded it on our worksheet, and wrote a short description of what we were looking at. We then took a digital picture of the item.

When we finished collecting data on all of the items on our scavenger hunt list, we came back to the Lincoln Center and entered our data into Google Earth. We collaborated to create a .kmz file so that anyone could see our efforts. If you click on the .kmz file, it will open in Google Earth and show you our placemarks.

We are in the process of creating a teacher resource document and tutorials for this classroom project. Watch the blog for those in the near future!

GPS Scavenger Hunt Photos

Technology Use in the Classroom

Understanding Symbols

There are a lot of symbols for technology that are universal. This means they serve the same function no matter what technology you are using: computer, VCR, video camera...but, for some reason, adults don't realize this. So...to help you out, here is a list of common symbols and what they mean.


PLAY: When you click this button, your music, video, or audio will play


PAUSE: When you click this button, your music, video, or audio will pause. Clicking it again, will resume play.


RECORD: When you click this button, you will record audio or video. The color of this button is almost always red.



STOP: When you click this button, your music, video, or audio will stop.



REWIND: When you click on this button, your music, video or audio will rewind. Depending upon the media, it may rewind to a previous file or will continue to rewind until you click Stop.


FAST-FORWARD: When you click on this button, your music, video or audio will be fast-forwarded. Depending upon the media, it may move to the next file or will continue to fast-forward until you click Stop.

Are You Jing With It?

Some of you might be reading the title of this post and saying...?HUH? So, if you are interested in capturing and sharing any part of your computer screen, then read on...

For those of you that need to or just like to explain how something is done on the computer, Jing just may be your answer. Jing is a program that instantly captures and shares images and video…from your computer to anywhere...your local hard drive, an ftp server or, the company (TechSmith) will host your files for you on Screencast.com. TechSmith, by the way is the same company that created Camtasia and SnagIt - two high-end, high-priced screen capture programs. Yep, I paid for and use these programs because they were what was available at the time and they are relatively easy to use.

One positive thing - Jing works on both PC and Mac, which is good news for those of us that are bi-platform.

Secondly, it is easy to use and has more functions available than just your computer's built-in print screen. Jing lets you do a live crop of the area you are trying to capture - after invoking the capture command, your cursor turns to cross-hairs and you select the area of the screen you are interested in capturing. After that you choose whether to capture an image or a video.

When you are done, you can click the stop button and you have the option of sharing the file on Screencast.com, uploading it to an ftp site, or saving it as a file. By default, it uses the date and time as a file name, but this is easily changed. TechSmith is really encouraging users to upload to Screencast.com so that they can see how people are using it.

Another positive - which for some of us that do a lot of video tutorials is HUGE - Jing captures the menus unlike a lot of other capture programs.

The final positive element of Jing is its price - currently it is free. For educators, that is a must.

I did a little research on Jing and found that there are a few limitations. Currently it only captures at 10 frames per second which is not a good rate for capturing streaming video, for example grabbing a YouTube video. It does work well however for illustrating the steps in completing a task in an application or walking through an interactive website.

Another limitation is the capture time is limited to 5 minutes and the file sizes are a bit large. The video is captured into a .swf file (Flash). This is nice because .swf is a format that is widely used.

So, it is easy to see how someone such as myself (Technology Integration Specialist) could use this program and be a better person for that...but how can we use this in the classroom?

One idea - I would love to take quick screen shots of websites I use with my students as visual reinforcement of a concept we are covering. There are a lot of animations on the web that I would like to have saved to my computer...for example the water cycle or plate techtonics. Once you find a really good animation, you want to keep it.

Another idea - When I introduce a lesson that integrates technology, I can capture my actions on the computer for creating a project to help the students learn that skill. For example, I can teach the students how to create a character analysis document in Inspiration or teach them how to download an image off the Internet, insert it into a PowerPoint...and copy and paste the web address for citing my source.

I will be using Jing to create some video tutorials. If you are interested in what a finished product looks like, visit the Technology Tutorials section of our website and click on Tutorials in Flash.

Easter Activities for your classroom

Teacher's Guide for Easter Activities
Mrs Busy Bee Classroom

St. Patrick's Day Classroom Resources

Here are a couple of websites you might find useful for incorporating St. Patrick's Day into your classroom activities

http://www.bbc.co.uk/northernireland/spring/patricks/
http://www.teachersfirst.com/holiday/saint_pat.cfm
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/crafts/stpatrick/

Share the Technology

I thought that this site on sharing technology was very interesting. I also noticed that Montana was not on the list of being a donor recipient. I think this may be a good thing to look into if you are in need of a computer etc. Let me know what you think.

Creating Podcasts: Preparing for your Podcast

This video explains how to use an ipod and italk to create an audio file for your podcast.

Using Podcaster to create a podcast

This video tutorial walks you through taking an audio file from iTunes and placing it as an episode in Podcaster. You can use this tutorial if you are using Audacity to record your episodes. Just remember to export your recording as an .mp3 file.

The video also explains publishing the necessary files to complete the process.

Have Fun!

Video Tutorial: Blogging

This video is a reminder of how you can create posts on a blog when someone invites you to be an author to their blog. A good example of this is the TILT Link Share blog...

Making Your First Post on a Blog

After you have been invited to be an author on a blog, it is just a matter of knowing a few steps to create your first post. Watch the video below to learn how.

Network vs Internet

Several teachers have asked me about finding the TILT folder on the Internet and every once in awhile, I see a teacher launch a web browser when asked to go to the TILT folder. AND...I have been asked why we can't see our server folders at home.

I thought it was time I explained the difference between a network and the Internet.

A network is a group of computers that are connected through cables or through a wireless connection. Typically these computers are in the same building or related buildings. Billings Public Schools is an example of a network. McKinley Elementary has its own network. When you use a network, you access files through your computer's operating system. You do not need to launch an application to locate files or folders that are saved on the network (saved to a server).

The Internet(a.k.a. The World Wide Web) is an information system of servers and clients that users can access data on other computers on a global scale (throughout the world). The information on the Internet is accessed by launching an application called a web browser. Examples of web browsers are Internet Explorer, Safari, and Firefox. The Internet is navigated through graphic pages that contain hypertext (Text with links to other text).

These concepts are explained on a pretty basic level, but hopefully it clears up some confusion about the two words: Network & Internet.

Kudos for Innovation

Kudos for innovation is shared by two elementary teachers: Julie Betts from Bitterroot and Dan Erikson from Poly Drive. Both teachers have recently had training in using the ipod mp3 player & iTalk microphone to record audio. They also had training on creating classroom podcasts. Both of these teachers used these new skills and new digital tools to create classroom podcasts. Betts had her students read the biography reports they wrote. Erikson had students read poems from a variety of authors. Both teachers then published the individual student readings into podcast forms.

To listen to Mrs. Bett's biography podcasts, you can subscribe to her podcast in iTunes:
Copy the following link: http://www.billings.k12.mt.us/podcasts/thirdgradepodacast.xml
Open iTunes and from the Advanced menu paste the above link into the box for "Subscribe To a Podcast" option.

To listen to Mr. Erikson's poetry podcasts, you can subscribe to his podcast in iTunes:
Copy the following link: http://www.billings.k12.mt.us/podcasts/podcast2.xml
Open iTunes and from the Advanced menu paste the above link into the box for "Subscribe To a Podcast" option.

Watch future blog posts to learn how to subscribe to other TILT podcasts, and how to make your own podcast.

TILT days energize

This is an experiment as much as anything. My students created collages using the National Gallery of Art website. They made screen shots and imported their artwork into a word doc. I uploaded their images into PhotoStory3 and created this little showpiece for their collages. To see more about their Romare Bearden experience visit the Castle Rock Art website.

What's up with that?

Television has been talking about the digital changeover in 2009...does that affect us with older tv's in our classrooms? Or does it even affect us? Wondering...

podcasts

If you have not had a chance to explore podcasts I highly recommend you do it. There are many great sources that are free via a podcast. If you go to itunes and click on the itunes store there will be a button to push for podcasts. You then can begin searching for different podcasts. There are some neat podcasts done by the national parks, even Glacier National Park has one. One of my favorite podcasts is through National Geographic called Wild Chronicles. The episodes are short little videos that you can use for free to introduce a concept or to explore the world of science. There are many that are based on animals. My students love these short little video podcasts. Be sure that you watch the video first to make sure that is what you want to use. I think you will really like this option for your class.

Underground Railroad

This site, The Underground Railroad, is recommended for grades 4 and up. The content presents an accurate and personal view of the brutal practice of slavery, a concept that may be difficult for young students. If you teach grade 3 or younger, please review each section carefully and thoroughly before you decide to use it with your class.

Declaration of Independence Message

This was a commercial before the Super Bowl this past Sunday. It is a recitation of the Declaration of Independence by a few famous Americans. It is a great video you can use in your classrooms...but be aware, it might make you cry!

Email Is Down! Is the Sky Falling?

It is amazing how we rely on our email as a form of communication. How convenient is it to communicate with multiple people at the push (or click) of a button. Now, we find ourselves without this service...and feel cut off from the rest of the world...at least the BPS world. So, is there a solution?
How can we survive if our email server dares to crash on us again...we are educators, we ALWAYS have a plan B. Even if we don't know it.

The answer is to use an alternate email address. I would bet that most of us have a hotmail, yahoo, Google or some other service email. So, if you are trying to get a hold of me via email...you can still do it through email. Just use a different account. Here are two alternative email addresses for me.

caskeyd@gmail.com
caskeys@imt.net

Hey! How about a Plan C?? Using Chat software, we can still stay in touch and the communication is immediate. Hmmm...guess what activity each TILT meeting will start with this next month!

Let's keep the communication open and flowing!

E-mail?

Hey, what's up with the email? Inquiring minds want to know.

National Gallery of Art: Kids!

Take your kids through a tour of this site and discover all of the fun activities available for them. you can visit this site by clicking here.

Many uses for short videos

Just wanted to share that my students and I have had some great learning experiences this week using the short videos from www.simpletruths.com. A few examples . . . We watched "Great Quotes from Great Leaders" and then did a classifying activity with Inspiration (analysis level thinking is part of the Language! curriculum). It was an easy way to incorporate both technology and social studies into my Language! curriculum! I'm also going to have my students go back to the video on their own and reread the quotes for an independent reading activity, as independent reading is also part of the Language! curriculum. So many possibilities. Today I'm going to show "Outside the Box" and have the students, in partner or small groups, orally retell the story.
Guess what? Retelling is also part of the Language! program. Has anyone else used these videos? I'd like to hear your ideas.

Nettrekker: To Use or Not To Use, that is the Question

Let us know if you are using Nettrekker, the educational search engine that our district subscribes to. Take a VERY QUICK poll for us so that you can communicate whether you want to continue to use Nettrekker or not.

Use Google Earth as Your Virtual Telescope

If you have been using Google Earth to simply span the globe...think about spanning the sky. Google Earth has a feature that lets you switch to viewing the sky from earth, turning your window into a virtual telescope. Google Earth has also incorporated some fantastic layers. I really enjoyed the "Life of a Star" layer. This shows you actual stages of a star's life and explains that particular stage. It is really cool.

What a great way for students to learn about stars. Just open Google Earth and click on the "Switch between sky and earth" button.
This will give you a view of the sky above the location you were viewing in Google Earth and it will give you a different set of layers. I double-clicked on the "Life of a Star" layer to get my lesson started.
This is just one of the thousands of uses for Google Earth. You can use Google Earth for history, math, science and more. For more new features in Google Earth, check out the latest edition of their online newsletter, Sightseer.

Share the Christmas Spirit

First and foremost, thank you to Dan Erikson (Poly Drive), Elizabeth Waddington, Kim Kolstad & Susan Veit (Castle Rock) and to Ronda McManus (Career Center) for their efforts in getting their buildings to participate in the TAGLIT survey. These three buildings were the first schools to get 100% participation in the TAGLIT survey for school district #2. Because this survey is such a crucial vehicle for the success of TILT, Karen and I visited each school and rewarded the school with treats...and we rewarded the teachers; each teacher received a digital camera and extra memory card. MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! AND...THANK YOU!!!

Now, you must be feeling the Christmas Spirit so I thought I would share a few sites with you so that you could express your cheer appropriately with your technology. :O)

Use some fun Christmas fonts by visiting the following websites:
http://www.theholidayspot.com/christmas/fonts/
http://www.wonderchristmas.com/fonts/

If you need help installing the fonts, I have a tutorial!

Blue Ray

This may be a silly question, but I have been wondering what the difference is between a blue-ray disc and a normal DVD. Does anyone have a good answer? Thanks!

Post, Read, Comment, Reward: Printer Ideas

Random Comments to this post will be rewarded.

If you had a printer in your classroom...hooked to your desktop or to use with your laptop...what would you do with it? Would it be a benefit? Even a simple black & white inkjet? Give us some ideas of how this could help you.

How inconvenient is it to NOT have one?

If you do have one, how are you using it?

virtual workshops

Last night I participated in an online workshop using ivocalize. It was an art deal called "5 minute masterpieces" run by Marney Makridakis of Artella ( http://www.artellawordsandart.com/ ) The moderated discussion included the usual text (each person identified as they typed and posted); a whiteboard (we did a collaborative art doodle piece at the end); and easy to follow upload so we could share our paper collage pieces that we cut and pasted in our own locations from one side of the U.S to the other and into Canada. Pretty cool stuff! http://www.ivocalize.com/

I may sign up for another if it fits my schedule.

I've included two of the 5 pieces we did last night in an hour...there was discussion between the 5 minute projects.

Elizabeth

BTW - If you want the "story" I wrote to explain the creature and me portraits, you'll have to contact me to email it : )

Post, Read, Comment, Reward: Creative Educator

A random selection from the comments will be rewarded.






Creative Educator is a new publication that gives some great lesson ideas as well as integration tools and tips. It is produced by the company Tech4Learning, which was started by a former teacher and creator of HyperStudio. Tech4Learning also created a great site for image searching called Pics4Learning.

I think it is worth researching. Although all the lessons use their software programs...there are Web 2.0 alternatives to do everything they present! They also have links to free programs like a bibliography maker, a rubric maker and a graphic organizer maker! You can subscribe to the magazine - it is free. From what I have seen...it is a GEM!

Giving Teachers the Reins for Staff Development

I am reading this article out of a new online magazine called Sourcebook (magazine for professional development) and I just have to quote what someone says....

"I believe that true professional development takes a lot of time. The reason I think that this is so important is because oftentimes professional development is seen as: Go to a training one or two days after school and now you are professionally developed. I believe that to truly grow and learn, you have to use your knowledge, find out what works and doesn’t, and determine what gives you the results that you need."

I thought...HELLO!!! Someone has dared to say it out loud. This is the case with TILT, attaining technology skills and understanding how to effectively integrate it into your curriculum takes time. Planning and implementing it takes...more time. That is the reason for the 3-phase approach to TILT. It models staff development that is ongoing...because we don't just get "professionally developed" in an hour or two.

21st Century Skills Article

With the exploration we have had of 21st Century Skills, I thought you might be interested to know that THE Journal (Journal about technology in the K-12 classroom) has an article about that very topic. It is very insightful.

To read it, click here.

Edheads

Okay here is a very fun site that students can use that is very interactive and fun. This is a great site for extended studies students. The site is called edheads and I have definitely enjoyed what I have explored. (I am thinking that this is a good 4th-5th site) Predicting the weather and the virtual surgery are really neat!

Link Share 2

Alright, here is another site that is very neat to use, you can actually do some 3-D problem solving.

I really enjoyed the design and test feature.

Post, Read, Comment, Reward

Well, well, well...so you have decided to read a post on the blog. Is it because you have been made to or because you want to collaborate and communicate with your peers? Is it because Desiree is making you do it as part of an activity?

Students are posting, reading and commenting on blogs daily. It is part of their life and we should be making it a part of ours.

So in an effort to generate more interest and traffic for the BPS TILT blog, I have decided to create a contest. The first TILT member to comment (intelligently) on this blog will receive a prize.

Better yet, the TILT member with the most comments by semester end will receive a "BIG" prize.

Need a reason to read and to comment? I understand...just like your students, you are wondering, "How does this impact me in the real world?" So...here is the topic of this post...Do you have a projector in your classroom? If you do, how are you using it. Be specific. What is the last thing you did using your projector? If you don't have one...what would you do with one?

Now I know what you guys feel like, working like a dog just to get your students to interact!
:O)

Articles in Teacher Magazine

Thank you to Barb Fettig, US History teacher at Skyview for sharing links to Teacher Magazine articles. I think you can get some very valuable information for your classroom and your school.

Revealing American Education:
This article is a great resource for the discussion of Indian Education for All. It addresses the gaps between Native American and non-Native American viewpoints.
You can find the article here.

Web Sites To Know:
If you are involved in staff development, SQP, or are just interested in professional learning communities and school reform, you should read this article.
You can find the article here.

Using the MS Word Report Card Templates

Some of you have tried using the MS Word report card templates and have found some frustrations. I have created a pdf tutorial and a video tutorial to hopefully help you use these documents.

Printing Problems?
If you are having printing problems, you can save the files to your server folder, or a shared folder and then print them from a PC.

YouTube Videos in the Classroom

To those teachers who want to show videos from YouTube in their classrooms, I say, “Put a sock in it…TubeSock that is!”

If your district is like mine, YouTube is blocked through the school filter to avoid violating school board policy, which simply states the school will not give students access to inappropriate material via the Internet. I am paraphrasing here, but you get the idea. YouTube is a website with a simple purpose…to share videos. It is a social site that lets users mark videos as favorites and to comment on a video. The issue for education is there is no filter at the YouTube site. You can find videos ranging from a virtual tour of our solar system to extremely explicit videos with R-rated (I say XXX-rated) standings.

When our Technology Director is asked about the blocking of YouTube, her reply is, “I realize that many of the videos on those sites do not fall under that category[R], but we cannot filter selectively and in my experience even the most benign videos on YouTube can have vulgar comments posted beneath them.”

Teachers in our district have found some pretty amazing and useful videos via YouTube, but they are frustrated that they can’t show these videos in their classrooms. Our Technology Director put me in charge of finding alternative websites to use or some other solution. That is when I told her, “Put a sock in it… TubeSock that is!”


TubeSock is a shareware program ($15) that works on both the Mac and PC and that allows you to extract videos from YouTube. Obviously, you can’t extract them from school…you are blocked by the filter so you might have to do some prep work. Using TubeSock is painless, I promise.

Using TubeSock
Step 1: Download TubeSock. You can get it from versiontracker.com or the company, StinkBot.
Step 2: Visit YouTube and find the video you want to extract.
Step 3: Copy the URL for the site.
Step 4: Paste the URL into TubeSock:
Step 5: Save your video. You are done.

The cool part of TubeSock is that you can save your video into several different file formats (H.264, .mp4, .flv or .mp3) and you can set the resulting video file to go directly to your Movies or Music directory, or choose the final destination yourself. When the video has been saved, you can use any basic player to view your movie, such as QuickTime, Flash, Media Player…whatever you like.

This inexpensive and easy to use program is a solution for those educators that find videos on YouTube. Now, typically those same videos can be found on appropriate sites, so I have to ask…what are you really watching on YouTube?

Oh! Put a sock in it!

Chalk Talk Results

See what you and other TILT members thought of the following questions:
What is important to you as a student?
What is important to you as a teacher?
What does effective staff development look like?
What are some barriers to integrating technology?

Visit here to see your work!

Interruptions are Impolite

We were in charge of the manner of the week so we made a little class video. Hope you enjoy it!!

I used a digital camera to take the video and then I imported it into iphoto. I then could email it to the other teachers in the school so that they could show their class the manner of the week.

Link Share

Here is a great site that I use with my class to bring real jobs into my classroom in order to help students see the relevancy of the concepts that they are studying in school. They, and I, really enjoy the site and I hope that you will as well!! Just click on the link below!

the future channel

~Abbie