Weekly Core Subjects Resources

The first full week of December and only a couple more weeks before the Christmas break.  This weeks edition of Weekly Core Subjects Resources brings some interesting links and resources.

English
Spreeder is a site that allows you to create a bookmarklet and then easily read text by copying and pasting any text from the webs to improve your words per minute.  A simple and user friendly site to increase your reading ability.

Repeat After Us is a site created by a student that is an online library and language lab.  You can search the site by author, title, and genre.  You can also search through the library based on three difficulty levels.

Mathematics
Numdic is a number dictionary.  You put in a number and it will provide you a wealth of information about that number. 

WebMATH is a site that helps you solve your math problems from Discovery Education.  The help is divided into several different levels of math and categories to help students with math problems.

Geogebra is a well known math software available for download to learn algebra and geometry.  I will avoid reinventing the wheel and point you to Free Technology For Teachers who has recently shared some valuable links to resources and video tutorials for Geogebra. 

Mathematical Doodling is an interesting site with some videos where I am guessing a student turns regular doodling into mathematical formulas and functions.  Kind of entertaining.

Another great site for math students and teachers provides interactives for various formulas and functions in mathematics.  There are also some for science as well.

Science - See link above as well.
Chemicool is another site offering an interactive Periodic Table of Elements as well as the history of the Periodic Table. 

Tree of Life Web Project is a site that explores how life is developed.  You start at the trunk of the tree and then expand into the different branches. 

CSI The Experience: Web Adventures is a great site for teachers who have units or even an elective class for Forensic Science.  The shows CSI really has exploded student interest in Science, and this site brings the experience to life. 

The Human Touch of Chemistry is a great site with information and interactives related to the study of Chemistry.  You can learn about famous scientist, everyday chemistry, the history and future of chemistry as well as other neat resources.

51 Science Experiments for Kids - A list of some videos to share with students.

The Science Resource Center is a site with, well, resources for science teachers.  Resources are divided by subject matter.  All resources are open to be reproduced, but at the same time, they provide the ability for users to submit their own materials for other teachers. 

Top 20 Podcast for Science Lovers

Social Studies
Edinformatics is a site for education in the information age.  One of their sites is the Greatest Inventions of All Time.  I always taught a unit on inventions and the impact on society.  This site would have been very useful for that unit.

50 Amazing Museum Exhibits You Can Enjoy Online is a great resource to bring what could be an expensive field trip into the classroom.  The museum exhibits are broken down into 4 different categories. 

Chronicling America is a site by the Library of Congress and it is intended to provide historic American newspapers.  You can view pages from the newspaper from all the way back to 1860-1922 from about 25 states.  You can also information about newspapers from the 1960-present.  Click here for a list of all the newspapers available.

Top 20 Podcast for History Lovers

Here is an extra link in continuation with podcast, the Top 40 Podcast for Teachers,  and the Top 50 Podcast for Learning a Foreign Language

Find something useful?  If not, check out my previous Weekly Core Subjects Resources Posts

You might also be interested in my publications to learn about various Web 2.0 Tools to use in the classroom.

If you are visiting this blog for the first time and would like to subscribe to the RSS Feed you can do that here.  To learn about RSS Feed and Google Reader, watch this great RSS in Plain English video

2010 Edublog Awards - Voting is Now Open

One of the best ways to discover some great educational blogs is to visit the Edublog Awards.  After weeks of nominating voting is now open.  You can vote for blogs, tweets, wikis, social networks, audio and video categories.  There are 23 categories that you can vote for.  You can see my nominations here. 

The Pursuit of Technology Integration Happiness has been nominated in two categories and I am completely humbled to be included with these other great bloggers and educators.  You can vote for The Pursuit of Technology Integration Happiness for the Best Resource Sharing Blog and Best Educational Technology Support Blog. 

Check out all the other great categories and case a vote!  Thanks for your vote!

Juxio

Juxio, from the term juxtaposition creates a picture and text slide show in a new way.  Juxio is another form of digital storytelling.  With the site you upload photos and then add text to the photos.  In then can be shared, printed, or presented in a slide-show presentation.  The slideshow presentation is a continuous stream that allows the reader to read text as it relates to previous or future images. 

Juxio is also available as an iPhone App which also means that you can import photos from your phone to use in your slide show.  To get a better idea of how Juxio works, check out some featured Juxes and hints on how to use the software.  I did not see anywhere to embed the Juxes; that capability would be very useful because of how the program works.

You can create an account using your Facebook profile, but that does give them your information, otherwise you can create a login or you can start creating Juxes without an account.  Sign up requires name, email and password. 

10 Alternatives to Standard Professional Development

In an age of budget cuts several schools are cutting access to funds for professional development, my state of Kentucky included.  There are several other ways for teachers to receive professional development.  The thing is, most teachers steer away from other forms of professional development because "if I don't get hours or paid for it, I don't want to take the time to do it."

Stepping outside of the classroom has allowed me to examine my own teaching strategies and abilities.  I have realized that all the professional development I went to while still in the classroom has not been near as beneficial to the alternative "professional development" that I have been participating in since becoming a technology integration specialist.  Some of the alternatives listed below I have done and am doing, others I have been thinking about doing.  I firmly believe that if I go back to the classroom I will be a better teacher for these methods of professional development.

1.) Write a Blog - This has been one of the most beneficial changes to my professional growth.  It allows me to share and reflect.  For teachers, it is something that is simple and provides a way to share what is going on in their classroom and reflect on what is working and what is not.  The majority of educators spend very little time actually reflecting on their learning.  Encourage teachers to blog as a form of professional development.  Encourage Administration to provide a certain number of hours if teachers keep a blog.

2.) Connect to Twitter and Build a PLN - Just the other night during #edchat when the topic was professional development I commented that it was the most beneficial form of professional development I have ever had.  It allows a connection with other professionals and discussing topics related to education and developing a network of educators who teach similar subjects and have a passion for kids.

3.) Join Various Social Networks - The Educators PLN, Classroom 2.0, Technology Integration in Education, or several other Ning type networks are a great starting point.  This is how I originally got started.  This is the first step towards professional development that I took.  I encourage the same.

4.) Attend and Present at Conferences - In 6 years of teaching I never attended a conference.  I might have attended some Professional Development, but never a conference.  Attending 3 separate conferences in the past year and a half has been very beneficial.  I also never presented at a conference, I have done that twice.  This has opened up so many more thoughts about what I do and what other teachers are doing.  The great thing is that there are several free conferences as well to help with costs.

5.) Create a Mini Conference at Your School or in Your District - The standard PD is losing steam.  In every school there are teachers doing great things with their students, and not all necessarily using technology, that could be shared with other teachers.  The idea here is to convince those teachers to share what they are doing with the rest of the staff.

6.) Have a Student Led Professional Development - Students are doing great things, sometimes without the teacher asking them to as part of a project.  Allow opportunities for students to teach teachers how they use technology.  Open teachers eyes to what our students are doing.  Some might be a great artist, or good with a camera, or build creative things, or use technology in a creative way.  Provide time for students to lead Professional Development.

7.) Start a Google Reader Account - Another great aspect of my own professional development.  I have connected with other great bloggers and it has allowed me to read some great educational material.  Another great aspect is the commenting on blogs that can occur which only increases the effectiveness of a Google Reader Account.

8.) Create a Professional Facebook Account - Everyone is on Facebook.  Other educators, educational professionals, education companies and software.  The other great feature is following blogs on Facebook.  With a separate Professional account it would allow you to also connect with parents, current and former students.

9.) Subscribe to Journals - There are several free educational and EdTech journals available for educators.  They are also available in eJournal form as well.  They can be emailed to you for easy reading.  Journals share great thoughts and ideas, as well as links to resources.  Remember they are free, and a previous post will provide links to several.

10.) Peer Observations - A great way to reflect on teaching is to see other teachers teach.  Talk to your principal about shadowing them when they are doing their observations.  Another option is to email principals at other schools and ask about going to observe those teachers.  The only cost will be a substitute unless the teacher is willing to use their own days and then possibly get hours.

Here is another great post on Professional Development from The Educational Technology Guy

So what other methods of professional development have you engaged in?

10 Tips for Getting Teachers to Integrate Technology

A year and half as a technology integration specialist does not qualify me as an expert in field of educational technology.  But in this short year and a half I have learned so much and tried so many different approaches.  Some came with immediate success, some the success took time, and some did not work at all.  From those experiences I would like to share ways that Administrators, Teachers, and fellow Integration Specialists can assist in getting teachers to integrate technology.

1.)  Take Teachers to a Conference - This year I took three teachers with me to TeachMeet Kentucky.  All three came back inspired and ready to integrate and use technology.  What is great, is that each one brought back something different.  One is integrating the use of cell phones in his lessons.  All three are using Twitter to connect with students and parents.  Another is creating a monthly newsletter about her classroom for parents.  Once they get settled, they will share these experiences with the rest of the staff, and with that, you have helped create an alliance of teachers who have a passion for technology to assist you. 

2.) Have a Weekly Tech Day - Once a week host a tech day for teachers to come to you during planning periods.  You will be surprised the turn-out when you narrow down this learning opportunity for your teachers.  Be in a central location and email in advance the topic you will cover, and in the email include common questions you will answer or tips that you will provide that you have heard questions to before.  Allow drop-ins who might have other questions as well. 

3.) Spend a Day in the Faculty Lounge - Take your laptop and just hang out in the lounge, if not in the lounge, the place where the copy machine is.  "While I have you here" will become a common response from teachers.  While teachers are getting copies made, warming up their lunch, checking their mailboxes, ask them how they are doing, and if they need help with anything.  If nothing else, you are visible to the teachers and letting them know you are there to help.

4.) Model the Technology - Use the technology equipment or software in a class with a teacher or in a professional development.  Set up instances for something to go wrong or appear to go wrong so that you can show your ability to adapt and that technology errors will happen.  Let teachers know that the technology and you are not "almighty" when it comes to technology.  I always say that something will go wrong and you need to plan for that to happen.  This happened just the other day in a Professional Development when we tried to use the clicker system.

5.) Offer Professional Development - This seems simple enough.  The trick is to offer short 1-2 hours of professional development for no more then 10 teachers at a time.  Offer it in the computer lab or with laptops available.  Spend 30 minutes explaining and demonstrating.  Then allow teachers hands-on time to use the equipment or software.  Make sure to walk around and ask questions when teachers get stuck.  Create tutorials in advance and make them available on the web.

6.) Create a Blog and Share - Start a blog and share that blog with your teachers.  Teach them about RSS so that it gets fed to Google Reader or their email client.  Focus what you share and how you share it based on the teachers and students in the school(s).  Market to the teachers how the equipment or software will make a task easier or improve a teaching strategy.

7.) Create Content Specific Email Groups to Share Resources - One aspect of the job that I have gotten praise on is sending content specific resources to specific content areas instead of mass emails to the entire staff and then it only applying to a specific subject.  Teachers are more likely to look at resources that they can easily see is specific to their teaching needs.  Make sure your email subject lets them know it is for their subject matter.

8.) Document, Document, Document - When teachers begin to integrate technology it will be important to share with other teachers what they are doing. If students create projects on the web, link to those and share them with other teachers. Visit teachers in their classroom when they are integrating technology and take pictures and videotape the students working on the project. Finally, get testimonials from teachers to share their experiences either in print or in a video and share those with staff and administration.

9.) Always Share With Administration - It is important to make sure that you have buy in from the administration. When a teacher and the students are actively engaged in a lesson using technology, invite the administration in to see the technology use in action. When possible, integrate the technology with the administration. Share technology that they can use so that they can can promote use with teachers.

10.) Stay Informed - Use Twitter, Diigo Groups, Facebook, and other social networks/media to stay informed of the changes to educational technology, because it is changing so fast. Subscribe to various technology journals, newsletters, and webinars to continue to be a life long learner. Stay up to date with updates to technology equipment, software, and web 2.0, as much as you can!

Good luck and start small. Baby steps can go a long way.