The App List: What’s Going on my iPads {iPad in Education, Mobile Learning, iPhone apps} | Developing Education

The App List: What’s Going on my iPads {iPad in Education, Mobile Learning, iPhone apps} | Developing Education

Tech Ease

Tech Ease

Questions about tech integration in your classroom? Many of your answers are found here.

AT&T Don't Text While Driving Documentary

The Super Book of Web Tools for Educators

The Super Book of Web Tools for Educators

twitter in 60 seconds

100 Inspiring Ways to Use Social Media In the Classroom

100 Inspiring Ways to Use Social Media In the Classroom

12 Ways to Create Videos Without a Camera or Software

12 Ways to Create Videos Without a Camera or Software

Creating a Personal Learning Network

Check out this SlideShare Presentation:

Creating a Personal Learning Network

View more presentations from Corinne Weisgerber.

40 Amazingly Educational iPad Apps for Kids

40 Amazingly Educational iPad Apps for Kids

The Ultimate Guide To Using iPads In The Classroom | Edudemic

The Ultimate Guide To Using iPads In The Classroom | Edudemic

Resources to Help Schools Understand Social Media

Don't skip this post.

Resources to Help Schools Understand Social Media

Twitter in Plain English

Video: RSS in Plain English

Blogs in Plain English

Social Media in Plain English

iPad Apps for Education | Diigo

More classroom iPad apps. Special thanks to George Couros for sharing his Diigo links. If you're on Twitter, you need to follow him.

iPad Apps for Education | Diigo

Top 20 iPad Apps for Teachers | Diigo

Have a new iPad? Here are some apps to think about adding.

Top 20 iPad Apps for Teachers | Diigo

Twenty Google Tools Tutorials for Teachers

Google keeps adding more and more tools for education. Here are some worth investigating.

Twenty Google Tools Tutorials for Teachers

The 5 big mistakes in virtual education

Check out this SlideShare Presentation:

The 5 big mistakes in virtual education

View more presentations from guiramirez.

Disrupting Class Book, by Clayton M. Christensen

The 35 Best Web 2.0 Classroom Tools Chosen By You | Edudemic

Check these out. How many do you use? Which ones would you like to use but cannot access from school?

The 35 Best Web 2.0 Classroom Tools Chosen By You | Edudemic

Two Tech Teachers: Improving Reading Fluency with Web Cams

Two Tech Teachers: Improving Reading Fluency with Web Cams: "While at my wife's bedside at the Cleveland Clinic last week, I ran across an interesting post on Twitter. It offered a link to an article ..."

If we were really serious about educational technology

Here is a great post by Scott McLeod from his blog, Dangerously ! Irrelevant.

If we were really serious about educational technology

What would you add to his list?

Harrison Tech Club: Understanding the Internet

Harrison Tech Club: Understanding the Internet: "Google has created a free eBook that explains the internet.  This is a must-read for all Tech Club members, parents, and teachers.  20 Thing..."

The Pursuit of Technology Integration Happiness: 10 Ways to use iTunes/Podcast in the Classroom

The Pursuit of Technology Integration Happiness: 10 Ways to use iTunes/Podcast in the Classroom: "I had a great learning moment the other day when a teacher I was observing was using iTunes to teach Current Events and World Geography.  Th..."

"Moodle" Official Music Video

Conrad Wolfram: Teaching kids real math with computers | Video on TED.com

Conrad Wolfram: Teaching kids real math with computers | Video on TED.com

Wes Fryer on Digital Storytelling in the Math Classroom

A Catalog of Classroom Resources

Welcome to the Learning Tools Directory.  This guide is easy to navigate and is constantly being updated.  You are welcomed to add your own, too.  Just be certain it hasn't already been posted.  The site is provided by Jane Hart, founder of the Centre for Learning and Performance Technologies.  Ms. Hart's directory contains more than 2,000 web tools for education and business.

The Pursuit of Technology Integration Happiness: Weekly Core Subjects Resources

The more I look at the work of Michael Zimmer, the more impressed I am. He is amassing an amazing list of resources. Visit his blog soon and be sure to check out his older posts as well.

The Pursuit of Technology Integration Happiness: Weekly Core Subjects Resources: "Another week, another great set of resources for the Math, Science, Social Studies, and English. Hope you find some resources that you can ..."

Eric Sheninger, Principal, New Milford HS, New Jersey

Office in Education - Teacher guides for Office Web Apps

Office in Education - Teacher guides for Office Web Apps

Justin Tarte - Life of an educator...: Reflections of a PD representative - try not to ta...

Justin Tarte - Life of an educator...: Reflections of a PD representative - try not to ta...: "I typically have a clear and well-thought out purpose for each blog post, however for this blog post I am going to simply reflect on today's..."

The Case For Social Media in Schools

A Must read from Mashable

The Case For Social Media in Schools

Welcome to the International Children's Digital Library

Thanks to Twitter, I found this powerful resource a few minutes ago, the International Children's Digital Library.  It is free to join for students and teachers.  I was able to easily create a short list of culture stories in multiple genres.  Thousands of books are available in native languages, making this a great resource for our ESL/ELL families.

Since the library is digital, a group of students with computer access can read and enjoy the same book.  No worries about locating enough copies.  Let's discuss the possibilities of this resource.

Over 75 Free Rapid E-Learning Resources » The Rapid eLearning Blog

Over 75 Free Rapid E-Learning Resources » The Rapid eLearning Blog

A Vision of Students Today

10 internet technologies that educators should be informed about

How many of these do we use? Why?

10 internet technologies that educators should be informed about

Watch and Learn

Here are 20 sites for free educational videos.

Watch and Learn

Confer-The perfect App for Readers/Writers Workshop?

David Lowe has come up with what may very well be the perfect application for Reader's and Writer's Workshop.  Confer is a note-taking application that is great for tracking conferences with students.  The full program is a $4.99 download from iTunes, but you can check it out by downloading the Confer Lite version.  The program works on iPad, iPod Touch, and iPhone.  I just put the Lite version on my Touch and will post my opinions after I try it with students.  Meanwhile, check out these screenshots.

The Ultimate List of Free Web-Based Education Resources - eLearners.com

Wow! Nearly everything you need to supplement instruction is here at your fingertips.

The Ultimate List of Free Web-Based Education Resources - eLearners.com

Class blogs: A better way to teach?

This article comes from the Mortarboard Blog.  Have you considered student blogging as a way to increase and improve writing skills?

DigiGogy: How can we do more with less?

"Effective teachers are effective because they know their students, maximize the resources they have, and collaborate with colleagues." Michael Fisher

DigiGogy: How can we do more with less?: "In the last few workshops I’ve done with teachers, there has been an underlying theme of, “this is great, but my reality is…” And then they ..."

Blogging About The Web 2.0 Connected Classroom: New Posted Resources 11/06/2010

Steve Anderson is an Educational Technologist who is well worth following. He regularly posts tools, resources, and insights that assist and inspire the classroom teacher. Take some time and investigate his site.

Blogging About The Web 2.0 Connected Classroom: New Posted Resources 11/06/2010

Digital Storytelling-Making Stopmotion Movies

Kevin Hodgson is a sixth grade teacher and serves as the technology liaison for the Western Massachusetts Writing Project.  I have long respected Kevin as an educator and a technology innovator.  His guide to Making Stopmotion Movies is one of the most how-to guides I have found.

Twitter Increases Student Engagement [STUDY]

Here is a follow-up to the previous post.

Twitter Increases Student Engagement [STUDY]

Thirty Interesting Ways to use Twitter in the Classroom

There is a link to this topic on the Interesting Ways page, but recent events have compelled me to bring the link out here: Thirty Interesting Ways to Use Twitter in the Classroom.   Teachers in elementary school classrooms in the Wawasee district are now actively using Twitter in their classrooms.  They are increasing real-world opportunities for their students to write.  They are using Twitter to connect with other kids around the world and share their learning.  They are demonstrating that increasing opportunities to write increases skill levels in writing.

These are educators who have come to understand that social media is here to stay.  It will not go away and is the preferred method of communication for most of our students.  These same educators have invited me to join them and explore ways for our students to share their learning with each other.  I gave them the link to Thirty Interesting Ways to use Twitter in the Classroom.  Then, I told them Twitter was blocked in Warsaw, at least, I know it is for me.  The last time I asked, I was told unblocking Twitter and Facebook was being considered.  There was a time it was unblocked for me for more than a year.

I told the Wawasee teachers that WCS was still considering the question.  Maybe now is the time.  Maybe now is the time for us to join the discussion.  I would love to know your thoughts.

Free Technology for Teachers

Richard Byrne has created an award-winning blog that is an invaluable resource for teachers He just posted a new article on 20 tutorials for using Google Tools.  I have linked his blog in Favorite Blogs section on the left side of this page.  Take a good look at his resources.  They are well worth your time.

34 Free productivity tools that will help you eliminate expensive software

Kelly Tenkely posted this list of 34 Free Productivity Tools for the Inspired Classroom blog.  These are great tools for sharing with your fellow teachers.

Blogger Buzz: Safe Browsing on Blogger

Blogger Buzz: Safe Browsing on Blogger: "National Cyber-Security Awareness Month is here once again. In that spirit we wanted to share a bit about what we are doing on Blogger to he..."

Tiny URLs

When blogging, we often take a word or phrase and link it to a web site.  No one really sees the link.  They just click it and go.  There are some times, though, when we have to show the URL just as it is.  One example would be sharing a link on Twitter or in a electronic document where linking a word or phrase is not an option.  Some URLs, especially those for linked documents buried in the back pages of a web site, can be extraordinarily long.  Times like those are when you need a URL shortener.  One of the easiest to use is Tiny URL.  Bookmark this site and keep it handy.  You will be able to shorten any URL quickly and easily.  Here is a screen shot of the site.  Add it to your tool bar.  It's free.

Students Teach Technology to Teachers | Edutopia

When was the last time you asked your students how they learn best? Please read this article from Edutopia.

Students Teach Technology to Teachers | Edutopia

Pinball - Bounce your ideas around

"PINBALL is here to help you kick start new ideas, to get your thoughts flowing freely, and to develop your creative talents. Bounce your ideas around by using these fun and simple tools, and who knows what ideas might pop up."

In Touch: Can you INSTRUCTIFY?

In Touch: Can you INSTRUCTIFY?: "The LEARN NC Interactive Conference was recently held in Chapel Hill, NC. LEARN NC has a daily blog, Instructify, that not only shares info..."

Rugrat-ical Technology: Five Truths of Teaching Tech to Elementary Students | Edutopia

Here is an interesting take on elementary kids and technology. How willing are we to cut our kids loose with certain software? What are your experiences?

Rugrat-ical Technology: Five Truths of Teaching Tech to Elementary Students | Edutopia

Extra Training from the HP Teacher Experience Exchange

The HP Teacher Experience Exchange is a great place to learn new skills, brush up on old ones, or share your own.  Best of all, it's free.  Check up on the available courses at the HP Teacher Experience Exchange.

Prezi - First Attempt

Well friends, here is my first attempt at using Prezi.  I have a lot to learn, but this was really fun.  If you have experience with this, please share it here.  What tips and tricks can you offer.

View the Glass Class Prezi.

Stixy - Sharing for students and/or teachers

I have been using Stixy for a couple of months.  Three other teachers and I have used it to update each other on projects we do with our students.  By mid-week, I will be involved with another small team.  I also intend for students in my Tech Club to use it for project collaboration.

I sent invitations to each of you, hoping you would give it a a fair evaluation.  Perhaps we could use it to share activities with our staffs or as a discussion forum for various questions.  At any rate, check out Stixy and share your ideas.

Thanks,

Mobile Learning - Great videos from Go Know

Would you like to know more about Mobile Learning?  Here are some great videos from Go Know.
Check out the other links on their page as well.

Advantages of Using a Blog for Teaching

All teachers are being encouraged to begin using or update their Teacher Web Pages found on our school web sites. We may run into some resistance as we try to encourage participation. There is a good Blog function incorporated into the design of the web pages. Perhaps this Slideshare* will provide a bit of encouragement.

Advantages of Using a Blog for Teaching

*Slideshare may be blocked at school. I will post a request on Eduphoria.

for the love of learning: Gaming and Learning

This article, by Joe Bower, describes how he creates screencasts in his classroom. The tools he uses are simple and free. Perhaps using these tools would help us create lessons for Tech Bytes that could be posted as resources here. What do you think?

for the love of learning: Gaming and Learning: "My school does not have one laptop for every kid, but I've been fortunate to have a class set of laptops every day. I set up a class Ning an..."

Algebra on the iPad, a full-year course

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt has introduced a full-year Algebra course design for complete delivery on Apple's iPad.  The application is designed to eliminate use of the course textbook.  Read the full story.

Thoughts on using Twitter

Twitter is a wonderfully easy way to find educators who are using technology in their classrooms and love sharing their ideas and experiences with others.  Twitter is free and signing up is a snap.

Once you sign up, you need to find folks to follow.  I would love it if you would follow me.  My username is g4husky.  Andy Streit just joined.  His username is coltscubs.  I have been doing this awhile so go to my Twitter homepage and take a look at my followers.  I suggest folks like Tom Barrett, Tom Whitby, Joe Biers, Shelly Terrell, The Nerdy Teacher, and Cybraryman.  There are many more.

If you have responded to the email invitation to be an author on this blog, you are now an Administrator.  Login to the site and choose "Design."  Scroll down the lefthand side of the page and find where we have begun to add Twitter Feeds.  Click the "Add a Gadget" tab.  Click the "Featured Gadgets" tab in the new window.  Scroll through that and you will find the gadget for adding your Twitter Feed.  Follow the prompts and, after saving, we can all view your posts on the site.

If you have any problems and run into a problem, let me know.  I am happy to meet with you and find the answers.  Social Media provides powerful opportunities for learning.  Our students are using it and their use is growing rapidly.  By participating, we can learn to understand the media and help our students make good, safe choices when they are online.

Rick

Attention team members

As you respond to the Author Invitation you have received, please email me directly, rglass@warsaw.k12.in.us .  I will then open full Administrative Rights for each of you.  That will enable you to add content, widgets, and arrange elements of the entire site.  We each have the ownership and responsibility of maintaining this blog.  If you are new to blogging, this is a great way to learn. 

Thanks,
Rick

Welcome!

Welcome to the new Warsaw Community Schools Tech Mentor blog.  The purpose of this blog is to give the Technology Mentors a forum for sharing the ideas, plans, and dreams that are necessary for the seamless integration of technology and student learning.

Each member of this blog will be a fully vested administrator of this site.  Each is encouraged to share in its organization, its functionality, and its resources.

Rick Glass,
Harrison Elementary