Beyond Four Walls: Mrs. Smith's Tech Blog

Beginning in February, I will be offering an alternative to traditional staff development.  For those of you who are early birds, 30-minute online “webinars” (web-based seminar) will be available to you each Wednesday from 7:45-8:15.   To access these sessions, you need only be sitting at a computer with internet access.   Each week you will register and receive a web link to click on.  This is a new endeavor for me, but I am really excited about the possibilities!!!   The focus for the February series will be Study Island Enhancements.   Sessions will be recorded for those who wish to view them at a later time and/or date.   Traditional after-school workshops will be offered with a more hands-on approach on these topics as well.  Watch your email for details and information on how to reserve your spot!  February dates and topics are as follows:

Feb. 3rd - Setting up a Study Island Class Page

Feb. 10th - Setting Class Properties

Feb. 17th - Using the Study Island Message Center

Kathy Schrock’s Guide for Educators

Kathy Schrock’s Guide for Educators is a categorized list of sites useful for enhancing curriculum and professional growth. It is updated often to include the best sites for teaching and learning.

http://school.discoveryeducation.com/schrockguide/

2010 Winter Olympic Sites (as per Kathy Schrock’s webpage)

The XXI Olympic Winter Games are soon approaching!   Below are some websites with activities and lesson plans.

Canadian Olympic School Program
http://www.olympicschool.ca/default.aspx?PageID=1003&LangID=en

Preschool Olympic Activities (Printable activities)
http://www.first-school.ws/activities/firststeps/Olympics.htm

2002 Winter Olympics Lesson Plans
http://www.edgate.com/wintergames/design/lesson_plans/index.html

Elementary mini-techs for the month of January have been added to MyLearningPlan.   Come create a class blog or Moodle site.  If you already have these set up, join us to learn more and add content.   There will be Open Lab sessions following each workshop for those interested in staying to work with support.   These will be listed separately, so be sure to sign up for both sessions if you are interested.   Watch for more mini-techs to be added in the coming winter months and email me if you have a session you’d like to lead.   Locations will rotate to various building this winter, so please note where the sessions will be held.   Feel free to email me with suggested workshop topics!

Below are some cool student websites I’ve come across recently.  I am going to try to post more each week, so check back often.  If you have a great website you’d like to share, email it to me and I’ll post it here!

Recycle Roundup Game - National Geographic Kids

Students sort trash into three bins: Recycle, Don’t Recycle, and Compost.  Great exercise in categorgizing and critical thinking! (This whole site is a great resource anyway!!!)

http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/Games/ActionGames/Recycle-roundup

Read, Write & Think:  Picture Match

Students categorize pictures according to their short vowel sounds.

http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/interactives/picturematch/

BrainPop! Free Winter Resources

Students in grades 3-6 can view featured BrainPop videos on Seasons, Avalanches, Hibernation, Glaciers and more on this engaging website.   Most of the videos are for use with a paid subscription, but there are also some free and/or featured resources.

http://www.brainpop.com/spotlight/winter/index.weml

Discovery Streaming Highlights

You must have a Discovery Streaming account to view these videos.   Submit a tech ticket if you need help in setting one up!

“Martin Luther King” from Heroes of American History - Grades: K-2
The Boyhood of Martin Luther King, Jr. - Grades: 3-5
“Civil Disobedience: The Work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.” from Civil Rights: The Long Road to Equality Grades: 6-8

I’m working on adding links to my blog.   I have a new category for teachers to use when they need images for student projects.   The sites listed allow images to be freely used for educational purposes, but do require that the site of of origin is listed below the image.  The Nasa Images site has a specific line of text that needs to be included.  Scroll over the link to see what that text is or go to “Terms of Use” on the Nasa Images website.

I’ve also added Scholastic.com’s Lab Favorites to the Favorite Websites category.   Check back to see additional sites as I add them!

Read Across America goes Global!!!

TWICE (Two-way Interactive Connections in Education) is offering classrooms the opportunity to participate in a videoconference event in celebration of reading.  Similar to the traditional “Read Across America” events, this activity will allow students to share with a partner classroom somewhere in the US or world.    Students would create their own books, skits, game show, etc. which would be shared via a videoconference with another class and see what that class had to share with them!    A district tech specialist will work with interested teachers throughout the process.  Registration is due soon, so email me if you are interested for details!  For more information, as well as a photo gallery of what other classes have done, go to http://www.twice.cc/read/

E.T. Hamilton Elementary
Voorhees, NJ

The fifth graders at Farmdale Elementary participated in a webcast today with R.L. Stine.  During the presentation, the author shared information about how he became an author and came up with ideas for some of his books.   He answered questions from the live audience, as well as those sent in by students viewing the webcast remotely.   Farmdale students answered questions online that were used by R.L. Stine to compose a ghost story during the webcast.    Students will have the opportunity to enter a contest where they will write their own ending to a story started by Mr. Stine about a zombie or choose from another story starter.  The winning story will receive signed books, audiobooks and other prizes!   Additional information on the contest can be found at http://www.scholastic.com/goosebumps/webcast/

Farmdale Fifth Graders Meet R.L. Stine

As we settle in the the new school year, students are beginning to use Study Island to build skills that are needed in order to be successful on spring PSSA testing.   Although most teachers are familiar with the program and have been using it for a few years, some may be new to it and/or need a refresher on it.   Use the resources and videos below to obtain more information on the program.   Also don’t hesitate to submit a tech integration tech ticket to request help in using the program with your students and interpreting reports.

Study Island Video Tour (PA) Check out this excellent video tour of Study Island, which explains how the program is set up, as well as information on using it with students in the classroom.

Video Interview with Study Island CEO (please note that you will have to authenticate with your password to view this video)

Study Island - Reports for Teachers This video was created by tech support at another school district.  It is very well done.  If you have questions about how to log into Study Island as a teacher at Hempfield, please refer to your Study Island Survival Guide.  (please note that you will have to authenticate with your password to view this video)

Creating Classes in Study Island Watch this video tutorial to learn how to create classes in Study Island

Video Games Help Students Learn This news clip explores how Study Island games are an effective way to reinforce student learning.

Mrs. Swarm’s third grade class participated in a videoconference event on May 7th with the Hands On Museum in Ann Arbor, Michigan.   Students discussed the three states of matter, then combined ingredients to create two mystery “slime” substances.   They used four of their five senses to describe their slime to the activity leader at the museum and attempted to identify whether it was a solid, liquid or gas.  Each student took a small container of slime home with them for further experimentation!

Click on the link below to see pictures from the event on the HSD Videoconferencing site!

http://einstein.hempfieldsd.org/videoconferencing/

30 astronauts, 3 moon bases, only one moon, and KC2035. What will happen?  Ready to go by 9:10 on this early Friday morning. Nervousness is filling the room. Stress might be visiting the teams as they are working.  The word “over” is ringing in my ears.  Mrs. Grimm and Mrs. Smith say there will be lots of commotion once the mission’s starts….Now.

Click on the link below to listen to a podcast that CES sixth grade students made about the simulation they participated in on May 1st.

e-mission Intro

Read the full article and see photos at http://einstein.hempfieldsd.org/videoconferencing/