Summer, I <3 U!

Ah, the lazy days of summer! If you are an educator or student, that is. At the end of the school year, I had every intention of writing posts all summer long. I actually wrote one just after school let out. However, a couch potato thwarted my attempts. She made me watch nine episodes of the first season of HBO's True Blood in one day. She forced me to lay in the sun reading books, not once, but three times! She cajoled me to take several long walks with my dog. Couch potato, if you and I were not one-in-the-same person, I would julienne slice you and fry you up with some sweet yellow onion.
But hey, isn't having the summer off one of the perks of being in education? I may not have to go into school each day during June, July, and August, but I still work all summer long. I spend a great deal of time surfing for good resources on the Internet, read books and education articles on the web, spend time networking with other educators on Twitter and Plurk, and occasionally play games on my computer to keep my brain sharp. You won't see me losing a half year of learning over the summer, nosiree!
Next week, I am conducting a workshop for teachers in a neighboring district on blogging, using wikis and podcasting. I have had force myself to put down the remote and hold off watching the last three episodes of True Blood in order to plan my session. The planning hasn't been a pain in the neck at all! It is also nice to focus without being interrupted.
What blog hosts and wiki hosts do you find best lend themselves to K-12 teachers and classrooms? What do you use for podcasting? What are some of the most innovative ways you have seen each used by teachers and students? All suggestions, links to great examples and tutorials welcome!

That's A Peach, Hon - Positive Feedback

I love the movie Caddyshack. I went to see it on one of my very first dates in the summer of 1980. I chuckle when I remember my date, Carl, calling me to ask me to see the movie. I told him I would go, but I had seen it the night before. He told me it was ok, because he had just seen it earlier that day! It was a fun date, and a hilarious movie that I still love to quote today. One quote that I use often is

I think that being a teacher, I tend to want to give people positive feedback when possible. It is a gift, or curse, that most teachers possess. In school, students thrive on positive feedback. It's purposes are many: to motivate, acknowledge, encourage,and reinforce, to name a few. Positive feedback need not only come from the teacher. Students can provide feedback to one another that can often be more powerful. Today's site shares a way for students to show their creativity and provide positive feedback to each other.

PhotoPeach
PhotoPeach is a very simple slideshow application that allows you to share photos in a story or spiral format. Simply upload or find photos on Flickr or Picasa, arrange them, and choose music. The slide show is automatically created for you. I really like the layout for adding subtitles to each slide. Once created, others can easily comment on the show. Free registration is necessary to create a show, but none is needed to comment. Check out my story and spiral below. They're peachy!

All in the Fam on PhotoPeach - Story




All in the Fam on PhotoPeach - spiral

What Was Your Name Again?

How do teachers learn the names of their students? When I was teaching in the classroom, I always managed to get each student's name correct after two or three days. I am not sure how I did it; maybe it was the personal connection that was made with each child. I taught fifth grade and teamed with another teacher, so I usually had close to 50 names to learn. Now I work in a middle school where teachers see about 150 students a day. How can teachers quickly make connections with that many students? How do they possibly learn all the names?
What about other things we have to learn? Like states and capital? How does a person learn these things if they can't make, or don't care to make, a personal connection? What are the tricks to learning new vocabulary? Today's site can help when you are facing such a challenge.

Vocaber

Vocaber is an online vocabulary learning tool. It uses spaced repetitions to help you retain vocabulary you have already learned. The idea is that too much or too little repetition is ineffective. At this site, you can find or create vocabulary lists, practice lists, or share your list with others. I tried out the World Capitals list. The lesson was thorough and lengthy. I spent about 20 minutes and didn't complete it. Even though I have no personal connection to these places, I now know that Valleta is the capital of Malta, and Windhoek is the capital of Namibia.

Nothing Fancy Here

Chances are, if you come to my house for dinner, you will eat off paper plates. Nothing fancy here. If you had walked into my classroom when I taught 5th grade, you would have been able to concentrate on your reading because there wasn't much to look at on my walls. Nothing fancy there either. I don't like to focus on appearances, I want to focus on what matters. If it is dinner, I want the food to be delicious and satisfying; if it is my classroom, I want the environment to lend itself to learning.

Today, we seem to have to "fancy everything up" so much. What happened to the birthday parties of our youth where you would eat cake and ice cream and then spend a couple hours in the back yard playing Freeze Tag? A friend of mine told me that recently, his four year-old daughter went to a party at a Spa. The little "glamour girls" got the whole beauty treatment, complete with cucumber slices to relax their eyes! I wonder if the girls really appreciated the day, or if they would have had just as much fun playing dress up or with dolls.

The baby and toddler toys of today all produce electronic sounds. What happened to the good ol' Fisher Price wind up television that I had when I was little? Now a days, everything has a computer chip in it.

Technology has come a long way. Thank goodness we aren't trying to create Wordle clouds using a DOS prompt. Our students can create "All About Me" posters complete with audio, video, and hyperlinks to sites that give a glimpse into their personalities.

All this is very cool, but luckily, some very un-fancy things still can still be useful, if not fun.

J.ot Down

J.ot Down is a simple Internet-based notepad. You very simply begin typing, and anytime you pause, it will save your work with a unique url. You can keep this url private, or share with the world. This could be a very useful students who are brainstorming ideas, partners collaborating on a project, or an entire class adding to a list of items learned about a topic or subject. The environment is nothing fancy, but the idea is brilliant! (Thanks to @SkipZ for sharing this resource)

Sporcle

The creators of Sporcle claim that the site is full of mentally stimulating diversions. The games here are created simply, no fancy flash videos or Internet stickies. Quick trivia games on topics from a wide range of categories from History to Television. Choose a game, click Start, and begin answering. It reminds me of the "red light challenge" on the TV show Cash Cab. You don't have to answer in order, just get all the answers. Sporcle could be used for review, or for a quick time filler in the classroom. (Thanks to @cscribner for sharing this resource)

60 for 2 Syndrome

How many people clean their entire house in one day? Read a complete novel in one sitting? Build a house without a break? Teach the Civil War in one lesson? Most of these ideas are unreasonable; however, one could read an entire novel in a sitting, if their eyes didn't get too blurry. Each project is more plausible if broken down into parts, such as cleaning the kitchen, bathroom, and bedrooms one day, and dusting, vacuuming and mopping the next. When broken down, each project becomes more manageable and meaningful.

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to help a teacher find video clips to enhance a lesson she is going to teach to her American History class on Progressivism. This teacher takes care and time to write beautiful lesson plans. Beautiful, in that they are specific, detailed, and meet state standards. Beautiful in that direct instruction and activities are well thought-out so that the content becomes meaningful for the students. Beautiful because they are developed from the heart.

Back in the day, if such a teacher wanted to enhance a lesson with video, she would go into the school library and select a film off the shelf and set aside a class period to show that film. Picture the scene as the film is playing: Teacher sitting in the back of the classroom grading papers by flashlight. Some students appearing to watch the grainy, out-date-film with glazed over eyes, but most day dreaming or asleep with their heads resting on their unopened American History books, while the film rolls endlessly on.

OK, maybe it isn't that bad, but technology has helped cure us of the "60 for 2" syndrome. Although I am not sure if that syndrome actually exists, I am referring to watching 60 minutes of video for 2 minutes of pertinent information. Even if all 60 minutes of film have valuable information in them, chances are, that information that students need to learn will be spread out over several lessons. How many students will remember that particular part of the film two weeks later when the information is finally presented in a lesson. Much better to use video clips than an full length film.
So, back to my colleague who wanted to enhance her history lesson with video clips. We started searching for specific topics such as "the Grange" and the "Populists" and our search efforts returned a wealth of information resources. While there are many subscription sites out there that are wonderful, (our district subscribes to Discovery Education Streaming), one site stood out as a leader for free video clips.

How Stuff Works Videos
How Stuff Works has been around for quite awhile. So long, in fact, that I neglect to visit it much. In preparation for helping my teacher friend yesterday, I came across the videos section of the site and was pleasantly surprised at the size and variety of the collection. We quickly were able to find short, meaningful clips to enhance her objectives for both the Grange and the Populists. She was thrilled to have videos to fit in her lessons that wouldn't require her to spend an extra day to show them. I was thrilled to find a "tried and true" site providing extended content!
How Stuff Works videos is definitely worth checking out. The categories include Adventure, Animals, Auto, Computer, Electronics, Entertainment, Food, Geography, Health, History, Home & Garden, Money, People, and Science. Each category has a few to many subtopics. Searching is easy, and the videos are relevant for middle and high school. One tip: Math and English related videos can be found in the People category under the sub-topics of Education and Learning.

Virtual Note Board

How many of you use a note board at home to organize your life, leave messages for your family, remind yourself of appointments, etc? I really need something like that for my house. I currently just use a calendar tacked up in our laundry room. There are several appointment cards paper clipped to it. Not very effective, as sometimes the cards fall down and slip under the washing machine.
I wish I could be better organized. It always amazes me when somebody says that I am. Just like it amazes me when somebody says I can draw well, or that I have a good voice. Oh, they just don't know! I have been working on organization for a couple years now, and have been successful in some areas (my closet) and not so much in others (my desk). Today's site would be very useful for organization, and much more!

Wallwisher

Wallwisher is a virtual note board that you can attach stickies to for many purposes. It is a simple app to use and doesn't even require registration, unless you want to save a "wall". If you do want to register so that you can create and save several walls, it is so easy because you can make a wallwisher account, or use your Google or OpenID information. Walls can be kept private or shared, can be edited by only you or others. The only thing I have found a bit annoying is that you have to create a name, subtitle and choose a picture for each wall you build. This could cause a loss of momentum if you were building a wall as part of a brainstorming session.

I have created a wall to list a few ways to use this app in your classroom. Check it out and add ideas of your own! http://www.wallwisher.com/wall/classroomuses

Microsoft: My "No Surprises" Friend

What was the very first Microsoft product you used? Paint? Excel? Works? Chances are if you first used a computer in the 80's like I did, it was MS-DOS. Surprised? Microsoft first made it's operating system, MS-DOS, available in 1982. If you are a bit younger, your first OS was most likely Windows, introduced in 1985.

I can't really recall using computers at all in my school days. I graduated from high school in 1983. I remember taking a class called office machines, but all I really remember about the class was learning how to use a 10-key by touch. The school library had a card catalog that was a series of drawers holding index cards. In typing class, we typed on typewriters.

In college, I took a class called "Introduction to Computers". While I don't really remember too much about the course, I do remember using a computer and thinking that it wasn't that hard.

What sticks out most in my mind is my first teaching job. I was hired in November, well after the school year had begun. I was hired as a math improvement teacher in a Title 1 school (at the time called Chapter 1). I will never forget the very first group of children that came into my math lab on my very first day. They were a group of energetic sixth graders. They entered my classroom much less nervous than I had on that day. One boy asked if they could "get on the computers". My heart sank! I couldn't believe they were asking the one thing I had prayed they wouldn't. What was the reason for my despair? I didn't know how to turn the computers on!!

Luckily, I got caught up in their energy. After questioning them about how often they were allowed to use the computers, I let them sit down and I began to watch their every move!

I have come a long way since that first day in November of 1988. All the way from learning how to use a computer from 12 year olds to teaching community classes on Windows and MS Word. All the way from a math lab to technology integrator.

I have learned much along the way, but I always go back to my humble beginnings standing in that math lab peeking over the shoulders of those sixth graders. I now have a great deal of knowledge, but I can always learn more. Each bit of knowledge is returned back to my students, be they children or adults. If I think about all that I have learned and then returned (through teaching) with technology, Microsoft products would top the list.

Besides Windows OS, Microsoft's Office products such as Word, Excel and PowerPoint have been invaluable in teaching and learning. I love using these with students and helping them create digital representations of their new knowledge. The geek in me loves the idea that none of these products were created with students in mind. Between my thirst for learning, and ideas shared at http://www.microsoft.com/, I have been able to stretch the limits of my mind and others when thinking of uses for these programs.

In addition to Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, I can not leave out the tried-and-true Paint. I can't really remember the first time I used it, but the last time was just yesterday to "erase" part of an image. A few weeks ago, I spent a day in an 8th grade Science room introducing MovieMaker. Students took a 42 minute overview and turned it into several wonderful videos that showed their understanding of the science concepts they learned.

And then there is IE, for those of you who have been living under a rock for the past decade and a half, I am referring to Internet Explorer. This browser has been my loyal companion as my world has expanded through the vast network. I can't IMAGINE teaching and learning without it. It is my dictionary, thesaurus, advice columnist, telephone book, encyclopedia, stationery, cookbook and more.

As I have been typing this blog, I have been considering why I have such a fondness for all things Microsoft. The answer was easy. Microsoft IS easy! If you learn one program, you have essentially learned them all. For example, I can depend on using ctrl + c to copy no matter what product I am using. The continuity from OS to program to browser makes my job as teacher and learner a piece of cake.

Thank you, Microsoft, for being my "no surprises" friend.

A Few Things Google

If I were to rank Google in a list of things I need to use each day, it would be higher than a telephone, blow dryer, and washing machine. It would be right up there with toilet paper, toothpaste and soap. A curling iron, vacuum, and microwave don't even come close!

Yes, I admit I need Google. I need it like I need my grandma when I have a cooking question. I need it like I need fingernail polish when I have a run in my panty hose. I need it like I need a lasso when I ....oh, you get the point.

The great thing about my need for Google is that it keeps growing as Google grows its resources. Today, I will be highlighting some of the cool Google features I love. Some are new, some aren't - but may be new to you. What are your favorite Google features and tools?

iGoogle

iGoogle is a personalized homepage for lovers of Google, or anyone! Here's what I love most about it:

*I can have my favorite resources, such as Twitter, come to me rather than having to go to them.

*I can add widgets and organize them on the page any way I want

*I can see my emails and calendar on my home page

*I can create multiple iGoogle pages and easily switch between them

*I can add cool themes to fit my interests or mood

Get an overview of iGoogle here, and also check out how to create your own iGoogle page.

My iGoogle page

Google Image Search and Similar Search

Google's image search isn't anything new, but there are new features. Once you type in a search, you can filter the results based on image size, type of image such as clipart, faces, line drawings, and photo content, or color. I have found this feature to be invaluable and know students and teachers alike will too.

Another tool, which is all "a Twitter" today is Google Labs' Similar Images, which allows you to refine your search with similar images. Just type in your keywords and then click the similar images link under a picture to see similar images.

Google Labs News Timeline

A new way to search the news is to use Google Labs News Timeline. Go to the timeline, choose your content such as news, newspapers, videos, sports scores, etc., and type in your query. The results will show in a timeline with a few features that you can modify to your liking. Result sources can be modified as well. This one is worth checking out.

Earth Day 2009

"Every day is Earth Day" is a phrase we have come to associate with a Wednesday each April when we suddenly are conscious of the eco-footprint we leave on our planet. Imagine if we only concerned ourselves with protecting our planet and its resources one day a year? Luckily, many of us adopt habits that help us continuously give back to our world by doing things such as recycling, planting food gardens, buying in bulk, and carpooling. There are many, many ways to preserve our resources, first and foremost being education. Let's make sure our children don't suffer from "little ol' me" syndrome by educating them that every person needs to do their part, without fail, because "every day is Earth Day". What will YOU do?

Earth Day Network Footprint Calculator
Work through this simulation to find out what footprint you are leaving on our planet. Then find out ways to reduce your footprint and learn more about our planet's resources.

Eco Bunnies 2: Earth Day Escapade
Cute animated video that introduces the idea of "carbon footprint". At the end of the video, viewers are directed to a carbon footprint calculator. This calculator needs annual usage figures, so might be best as a project for students to do with parents.

EcoKids Games
EcoKids Earth Day Canada site provides several games to help student learn how to be eco-citizens. Games include The Great Garbage Caper, Yard Sale and Errand Run, a game about alternative transportation.

The Greenerator
Check out Scholastic's Act Green site to learn how to be green by playing games, joining the Green Team, printing reminder tags and door hangers, and much more!

Writer's Block

I haven't written a new post in a week. I am blaming it on being busy at work and home and writer's block. Sometimes, I have trouble finding a resource to write about. Sometimes, I have a resource I want to share, but the words to introduce and describe it just won't come. I have empathy for students who suffer either of these forms of writer's block when they have been assigned a piece of writing. Hopefully, today's sites will help!

911 Writers Block
911 Writers Block is emergency help for those who suffer from writer's block. Writers punch a telephone key to get ideas for everything from setting, characters, and ending, to how to kill a character, and calisthenics.

Plot Scenario Generator
Archetype Writing's Plot Scenario Generator provides students with the plot to get a story going and the conflict to keep the story rolling!

Imagination Prompt Generator
Imagination Prompt Generator, from Creativity Portal, is just what it claims to be, a writing prompt generator that generates short prompts to inspire the imagination. If you don't like the first prompt you see, simply click the button for a new prompt.

Abby Who?

I love that scene in Young Frankenstein when Igor is sent to get a brain. He is supposed to get the brain of a scientist/saint. However, he drops that brain and picks up another brain.

Later, Dr. Frankenstein questions him, and he tells him it is the brain of Abby Normal.



Those, and many other scenes in that movie always crack me up!

Today's site is a fun little beta site that will have your students making their own memorable movies.


Xtranormal
Xtranormal is a site where students type in text that is converted to an animated movie scene. Students pick the characters, scenery, actions and extras, then type in the dialogue. The scene is converted to a movie in seconds. A movie can be made and viewed, but not saved, without creating an account. Accounts appear to be free, at least while in beta.
This could be used in every subject area, for character ed, bullying prevention, careers...the possibilities are endless!

Next Stop: Scripps

I was in a classroom spelling bee in second grade. I was one of the final two. We had to spell several words because we both kept spelling the words correctly. Finally, I got the word that means "purposeful forward movement by moving arms and legs in a body of water". And I spelled, "S-W-I-M-I-N-G". OK, the double consonant got me. Maybe I should have asked for the teacher to use the word in a sentence; or perhaps, the origin of the word. Still, not bad for an 8 year old.




Interactive Spelling Bee

Spelling Bee, from Anneberg Media's Learner.org, helps students practice their spelling, just like an old fashioned spelling bee. Students choose their grade level and listen to the short passage. The passage is like a cloze passage, with words missing. Students click in a blank to hear the word repeated, then type correct spelling of the word in the blank. Once all the blanks are filled, the student checks their answers, then has the option of reviewing the words or moving on to the next level. Tips and suggestions for becoming a "Top Notch Speller" are also included.

There's No Place Like Homepage

Growing up in Kansas, I have always been a big fan of The Wizard Of Oz movie. I can remember watching it even as a little girl. The flying monkeys used to terrify me. However, being a Kansas native, tornadoes do not scare me. I love the thrill of hearing the sirens go off and stepping outside to look for funnel clouds. Of course I respect their power and know when it is time to seek shelter. When my husband and I were first married, we lived in a mobile home in south Wichita. We weathered a tornado or two in the storm shelter provided by the park. Luckily, our little trailer survived each twister event while we lived there.

As tornado season approaches once again in Kansas, (the sirens actually did go off a few weeks ago...you never know in Kansas!), I will look forward to the excitement, and hope for the best for myself, neighbors, family, and friends.



Schoolr

Schoolr is a one-page resource source that could certainly double as a very useful homepage for students and adults alike. Organized on this single page are search fields for:

Google

Wikipedia

Dictionary.com

Thesaurus.com

Acronym Finder

Urban Dictionary

Also, you can convert units of measure, translate text and create citations using Citation Builder. This very convenient packaging of many useful sites could leaving you saying, "There's no place like home(page)."

Cool Tool for Podcasting

I haven't really gotten into podcasting, at least the creation of podcasts. I always have good intentions of creating something in a podcast, but never do. I think it is because I don't like the sound of my voice when I hear it. It has that Midwestern twang to it. I can't imagine what my colleagues or students think of it!
Nevertheless, I think podcasting has a strong place in schools, especially student-created podcasts. I have seen, rather---HEARD---many wonderful examples of podcasts created by students. It takes on a whole new realm of learning for the student when not only do they speak, but they hear themselves speak. Volume, rate, inflection, not to mention the use of "like" and "ummm", all play a big role in podcasting. Most of these skills are taught when students are reading, but not taught for presentations.
A podcast really isn't any different than an oral presentation. Students still prepare in the same way. The podcast can be kept forever, where an oral speech is saved only in the audience's memeory. Today's resource will help students prepare for creating a podcast so that they can focus more on the skills necessary to make them sound professional.

CuePrompter
CuePrompter is a free online teleprompter that can help students when practicing for an oral presentation or speech, podcast or vodcast. The application is a snap to use and free for all commercial and noncommecial purposes. You can select the speed, screen size, text color, and even mirror the text. Check this out if you are delving into the world of podcasting with your students!

Something Cool - Close to Home!

I found a cool blog today, thanks to @hci, a fellow Tweeter from Wichita. The blog, which is highlighted below, was created by the Wichita Eagle's copy desk. The Eagle is Wichita's local newspaper. They have had an online presence for a long time now; a site that I regularly visit if I need to refer to an article that I had recently read, to get funeral information, or many other bits of information. I had missed this wonderful blog, called Grammar Monkeys, until today. Each blog entry features a grammar tip in the form of a podcast. I like that each episode gives a grammar tip in a short and concise way. This could make a wonderful intro for writing a paragraph based on the tip, to add to a teacher's class blog or web page, or as a bell ringer activity. Any other ideas?

Grammar Monkeys
Check out Grammar Monkeys blog that gives short and sweet grammar tips in the form of podcasts. The tips are suitable for upper elementary through high school students, as well as life long language learners and lovers. I would love to see a post on the use of lose/loose - a pet peeve of mine! Thanks @hci and Wichita Eagle for opening my eyes and ears to this blog!

The Art of Relaxation

Once when I was teaching fifth grade, a parent told me that I was ADHD. He told me this in the hallway. I think he was in marketing, but he sure thought he was medical practitioner of some sort. I really took offense to his statement, mostly because it is true. I prefer to say that I "don't relax well".
In about three minutes, or however long it takes me to finish this post, I will officially be on Spring Break. I hope that I can work on relaxing during the next 10 days off work. The sites I am sharing today are two that I find very stress-relieving. Hope you find them to be as well.

Auditorium
Auditorium is a flash game that combines light and sound. Players manipulate the sound waves to make the music play. While listening to soothing music, players can use problem solving skills to advance to new levels. What a unique experience!

Boomshine
Boomshine isn't new, but it is definitely like a favorite blanket for me. I play this game when I am stressed, and the relaxing music always melts my tension away. Click your mouse to hit as many of the floating bubbles as possible with your "boom". The bubbles burst creating a chain reaction. If you burst enough bubbles with one "boom", you advance to the next level. Many websites offer this game. Make sure you have your speakers on when you play.

Fiddlesticks

On this first Monday of Daylight Savings Time, I am sitting at my desk watching the sun rise in a painted sky. Usually DST affects me, but I was able to get out of bed before the crack of dawn this morning. I love to "spring forward" because it means longer days are coming and that Spring is just around the corner. I look forward to the budding leaves, the tulips' pop of color, toad stools, and even the lion's roar of the tornado sirens. Mostly I love Spring because after it slides right into summer!



Phrasr
Phrasr is a Flickr application that pairs words with Flickr photos to create short slideshows. You choose the words, then Phrasr suggests photos for each word. Once you have selected the pictures you want, a slideshow is created. Each show is saved and can also be emailed. Imagery, idioms, rebus stories, oxymoron are just a few ways to incorporate this fun app in your classroom. Check out the one I made here.

Everyone's an Artist

So I suck at art. I always have. When I taught 5th grade, once a week I was supposed to teach art. Ha! Once a week, I taught crafts. There is hope for me though. I might not ever learn about the elements of design and lines, shading and hue, but at least the Internet provides me with a way to create something that is somewhat artistic. Today's site came to me by way of @AaronPotsick, an educator and tech lover, that I follow on Twitter.

SUMO Paint
SUMO Paint is a free online image editing software that is incredibly easy to use. The environment is similar to other image editors and allows for you to create, share, and comment on other's work. This is so cool that even I can make something eye-catching. Check this one out!

Express Yourself

As teachers we often look for ways to make an assignment more appealing to students. We try to get into their world so they will perform well for us. The Jeopardy Labs site I shared in my last post is one such example of making a lesson more appealing to students. A few days ago, I ran across a site that allowed students to create a short newspaper article that generates an authentic looking picture of the article. I thought that would be a way to entice students to complete the task of writing a paragraph or two, which would otherwise seem boring. On further investigation, I found a blog that highlight such sites; so many, in fact, that you could practically make every single lesson of the year more appealing!

The Generator Blog
The Generator Blog is a blog that highlights generator sites. The list is long and distracting! I could spend a few good days looking at all the generators listed. Everything from a dog tag generator to a site that allows you to generate a virtual spatula are listed here. A virtual spatula???? Anyway, I won't spend any time telling you how these generators could be used in your lessons. If you are a teacher, your head will be swimming with ideas once you start looking at the list. Have fun with this one, folks!

Our Love's in Jeopardy

Where were you when I needed you?
Well, you could not be found
What can I do?
Oh, I believed in you
You're running me around

Remember this old song by the Greg Kihn Band? It came out in 1983, the year I graduated from high school. If you only knew the drama surrounding my boyfriend and me then, you would understand what the lyrics of that song meant to me.
Or perhaps you prefer the Weird Al Yankovic parody

Be honest, how many of you sing that version in your head when you catch Jeopardy the game show on TV? Or are you like millions of others who get the famous

Doo doo doo do

Doo doo do,

Doo doo doo do

Do...doo doo doo doo do

stuck in your brain? Either way, most of us have watched the game show hosted by Alex Trebek at least once in our lives. Some of us think we could be the next Ken Jennings, and others of us have miserably failed.

Interestingly enough, the Jeopardy format continues to be popular in classrooms as a way to review material. Today's site has an easy template to create your own Jeopardy game.

Jeopardy Labs

Jeopardy Labs is a super-easy site to play or build an online jeopardy game. No registration is required to create a game that has a game board that looks very much like the TV show. Simply create a password to be able to edit your game at a later date, and fill in the board with categories, answers and questions. Once finished, a unique URL is created for your game. You can go back and edit by going to the edit-version URL and typing in the password. There are over 2000 games already created on the site, but because of the super-simple nature of building, why not just create your own? I created this game for a 6th grade Science teacher in my school. With the science textbook in front of me, it only took about 20 minutes. This will be great for him to use with his classes on the Activboard in his classroom.
My Jeopardy Template

Who's On First?

Who doesn't know about that famous Abbott and Costello skit "Who's On First?" We've heard it, or tried to repeat it, many times in our lives. Did you know that it was first a part of their stage act and then was featured in the 1945 movie, "The Naughty Nineties"? It is a classic! We get caught up in the tongue-twister-like dialogue, but it does illustrate a very elemental math concept: ordinal numbers. Wouldn't it be fun for students to watch the short clip when learning about ordinal numbers?



Mathematics in Movies
Today's site was shared with me by @maggiev, a fellow Twitterer. The site has several short movie clips that deal with mathematics. Mathematics in Movies was created by Oliver Knill, from Harvard University. His site says that he will continue to add movie clips as he finds them. What a fun way to introduce a new math concept, or to spur a math journal entry. Thanks Oliver and @maggiev for this awesome site!

Sickly Sweet Romantic Crap

I love the old television series Seinfeld. I love the themes of love, acts of kindness, humanity and humility that are portrayed each week by the characters Jerry, George, Elaine and Kramer. Take, for example, this episode where Jerry shows his affection for his girlfriend by calling her a pet name.



How sweet is that? I looked up the word shmoop, sometimes spelled schmoop, on the Urban Dictionary site. It defines it as

Lurve. Sickly sweet romantic crap.
To be schmoopy is to make others vomit with your cavity inducing displays of affection. To want schmoop is normal, don't be alarmed. Submit.

If you don't have schmoop in your life, watch some Seinfeld and feel the love.

OR!

Shmoop
OK, this is one of the coolest sites I have seen all week, if not all month! I feel much shmoop about (towards?) it. Shmoop is a beta site put together by PhD and Masters students at Berkley, Stanford, Yale and Harvard that offers wonderful help for middle/high school students to make a lot of sense of what their literature and history teachers are trying to teach them. At Shmoop, students can get help figuring out what to write on a paper, read summaries of those great literature titles they are asked to read, get an overview of a historical period is a concise, understandable way. Some really good poems are covered too, if you are a lover of poetry, or need to analyze a poem for an assignment. There is already a lot to choose from, but being so new, they have many topics/books/poems in the works. Check out all the shmoopiness and fall in love with literature and history!

Telephone: The Game

Remember that game you used to play called "Telephone" in which you would whisper something in someone's ear, then have them whisper what they heard in the next person's ear and so on until the last person had to state out loud the message they heard? The fun of the game was in laughing at how garbled the original message became. When my grandma was alive, it was like playing that game every time you had a conversation with her. Her hearing had gotten so bad that she often repeated what she thought you said, and most times, it wasn't even close to what you said. Luckily she had a great sense of humor and we could laugh about all of her "mishears".



Dial2Do

Dial2Do is a service that will help you with a plethora of tasks. Register for a free account, call the telephone number given and simply tell the automated voice what you would like to do. When I was trying it out, I decided I wanted the service to add an event to my google calendar. I dialed the number, said "calendar" and named the event, time and date. The service added the event to my calendar! Ok, it wasn't that simple. My son was sitting with me when I was trying it out, so for the event, I said, "kick Derek's butt". What showed up on my calendar was "pick derick butt". For most events and purposes, I think I would know what "pick derick butt" meant. However, if I am creating an event far into the future, I might just want to go to my calendar and add it.

Other features include sending texts, sending or listening to emails, listening to the weather in a chosen area, creating a twitter or other blog post, sending yourself reminders, and much more!

Four Contests - Pt. II

So how many of you are coming back because of yesterday's teaser? Hopefully you just want to know what the other two contests are, but if you are truly interested in what (significant) contests (ok, maybe they should be qualified as sweepstakes)I have entered and won then DON'T skip to the bottom.

The first big contest I entered and won was back in 1992. A local travel agency was promoting the 20th anniversary of Disney's Epcot center. My daughter, who was 5 then, and I were planning a trip to Denver for a wedding. We stopped in the travel agency to discuss the Denver trip. While there, I quickly signed up for the "grand prize" which was a trip to Disney World. Now for the witty part of the story: After we left, I told my daughter that I was sure we were going to win, because I wrote "Pick me" on the entry form. She asked me if I also put "please" because that was the polite thing to do. Of course I hadn't, but knew we weren't going to win anyway. We continued with our errands for the day and then went home.

Once home, my husband told me that the travel agency called and said they had my "travel certificates" and that I was supposed to call back. He didn't know anything else. I told him that I think I had won a contest and he told me I was crazy.

Well, I did win that contest, but for some reason, he still calls me crazy once in awhile!

The second contest I won was a lot bigger than the one I entered at the travel agency. This contest was a part of a cruise I took to Alaska last summer. The cruise line had teamed up with Alaskan Brewing Co. in Juneau to offer a fishing trip to Alaska. We went on the cruise in June, and I submitted my entry not long after we got back. Four days after Christmas, I was notified that I was the grand prize winner!

I had really forgotten all about the contest, and had only entered because they were sending t-shirts to all entrants. I do remember writing "pick me" on the entry form, as I now do on all entry forms since 1992. My hubby and I are looking forward to our Alaskan fishing trip this summer and also to enjoying an Alaskan beer or two!

World Math Day Video Challenge

The World Math Day Video Challenge is a contest for students in grades 3-8 to create a video for World Math Day. Entrants upload their video to TeacherTube to be voted on by friends, family and the world. Contest rules here, and videos must be uploaded by February 20th, so hurry up folks!

Winning Ideas Contest 2008-2009
Here is an ongoing contest for teachers that is easy to enter. Each month Scholastic gives teachers the opportunity to share their best teaching ideas with others through their Winning Ideas Contest. Simply share an idea from the month's topic. If your idea is considered the best one, you win $50 in Scholastic products. Easy-peasy!

Four Contests

It has been way too long since my last post. I have no excuse other than that I find it hard to do this part of my post, the writing a witty, insightful narrative, before sharing a cool resource or two. Therefore, I have made the executive decision to not feel guilt about not feeling witty or insightful. I am committing to sharing resources even if my brain is set to dull mode.
Kudos to my favorite bloggers who seem to always have something relevant, if not entertaining to say. Double points to those of you who make me think or laugh. I can only aspire to become a part of your class some day!

Today I am sharing two of four contests that I have learned about recently. Tomorrow, I will share the other two. (Aha! I have already found a way to post twice this week without having to turn my brain on overdrive!) One of the contests is for students, two are for teachers, and one is for anybody. The deadline is quickly approaching for a couple, so speed is of the essence, if you are interested.

Doodle 4 Google
This contest, which is promoted by Google, is for students in grades K-12. Students simply design a Google logo that matches the contest's theme "What I Wish for the World". A teacher must register their school in order for students to compete. Check out all the rules on the site. A few students from my school participated last year. None of them won, but it was fun for them and an easy assignment for the art teacher! Schools must be registered by March 17, so don't delay!

SAT Vocab Contest
The folks over at BrainyFlix have created a contest to teach vocabulary from the SAT test. This fun contest has entrants creating videos that teach SAT vocabulary words. This contest is open to anyone, but would be a great assignment for middle or high school students. The best part - the prize money goes to a middle or high school of the winner's choice! The contest is open for submissions until March 16, 2009....hurry!!!!!

Teaser for tomorrow: two more fabulous contests to enter, and the two contests that this blog author has won!

Baking a Cake and Wrapping the Gifts

In two days, the Sunflower State will celebrate its 148th birthday. On January 29, 1861, Kansas became the 34th state in the Union. Kansas' birth as a state in the Union was very significant because it entered as a free state. At this time in history, just before the Civil War, states were declaring themselves as either free states or slave states. Because abolitionists won out over pro-slavers, Kansas was a place of great turmoil during that time.
After the Civil War, many people made Kansas their home where they farmed the rich soil. Kansas also holds a rich history consisting of, pioneers, the cattle towns, cowboys and outlaws, the railroad, and business and industry. Today, Kansas is much more sophisticated than in the days of gunslingers at Boot Hill. The aircraft industry provides many jobs for Kansans. Our cities, while not large, are comfortable and family-friendly. Kansas is home to the University of Kansas, Kansas State University, Wichita State University (Go Shockers!), and many more respected colleges. Kansas, in the heart of America, also has four beautiful and distinct seasons. When we celebrate the Fourth of July, it is hot as it should be, and there is usually snow on at least one of the twelve days of Christmas. Our springs boast trees and flowers awash with color, as well as the fall, where the colors are quite lovely in their array of gold, auburn and mocha.
Happy Birthday Kansas! I am proud to call you my home.

Sites about Kansas
Here are a couple of sites to learn more about Kansas, its people and its history. The first site is the Kansas State Historical Society. There are many links to information about the 34th state. Another useful site for finding information about Kansas is Kansas History Websites, a listing of sites related to the state.

Digital History
Check out Digital History to learn about the history of America. This site is a collection of primary sources with lesson plans, active learning ideas, multimedia and an interactive timeline to provide a look into the events and people who shaped the nation.

Blog This and You Can Win

Yesterday I learned about a contest that Promethean is putting on. The contest is to try out their new software, Inspire, and then blog about it. How easy is that? The prizes include:

1st Prize - A complete Activclassroom:
Activboard+2Activexpression or Activotes (your choice)ActivsoftwareActivslateActivtabletActivpens
2nd Prize
$3,000 credit to spend in the Promethean Store.
3rd Prize
$1,000 credit to spend in the Promethean Store.

There are two things I especially love about this contest. First, it inspires (pun intended) teachers to stretch their boundaries and try something new. This should be easy because the stakes are really low. If the teacher doesn't like the new Inspire, they can continue to use Promethean's tried and true products.
Secondly, the purpose of my blog is to share resources with teachers in my district and model blogging for them. This contest gives teachers the excuse to jump on the blogging bandwagon. I think a prize of a complete Activclassroom will be just the lure!
The contest details are below. Good luck to everyone...especially Maize!

Promethean's ActivSoftware Blogging Contest
Click here to view the details for this contest. Entry deadline is February 13, 2009, so don't delay!

What Makes a Hero?

Last week I wrote a post about Chelsey B. Sullenberger, the now famous pilot who saved many lives by his quick thinking and doing his job well. In my post, I called him a hero because that is how I see him because of his actions. The local newspaper in my community has an Opinion Line column. People can call in an anonymous opinion the the paper that will be published in this column. Sunday I read one such opinion that said Captain Sullenberger was not a hero because he was just doing his job.
I beg to differ! As I write this post, I am watching the inauguration of Barack Obama as our 44th president of the United States. I am overwhelmed by his speech of overcoming adversity and of hope. I think back to Abraham Lincoln and what he did for this nation. He was doing his job.
I am proud to say that my husband serves as a lieutenant for our city's fire department. Each time he enters a burning building in search of people stranded inside, he is just doing his job.
My dad gets up and goes to work each day while enduring prostate cancer...to do his job.
The lunch ladies who give free food to those students who have forgotten their money, or don't have money to buy lunch are doing their jobs.
They are all heroes, as are so many people who make a positive difference in the lives of others while "doing their job".
I shudder to think what would have happened if Chelsey Sullenberger had called in sick to work that day, or had decided not to do his job right at that crucial moment. Job or not, it is a person's actions and willingness to put other's before them that makes them a hero. If a person had to run a punch a clock before they could scoop a child out of the path of an oncoming car, nobody would be a hero.
Thank you, heroes, for doing your jobs!

Heroic Activities Celebrate Heroes
This article from Education World discusses heroes and offers links to activities, resources and lesson plans for the study of heroes for grades K-12.

U.S. News

Interesting US news for this week and next. What a wonderful story about a new American hero, Chelsey B. Sullenberger, who landed a US Airways plane in the Hudson River saving 155 lives. While in no way would I ever want to have been on that flight, I would love to shake hands with this hero and tell him "thank you" for reminding me that there are great people in America. I can't imagine that there is anyone in this country who hasn't yet heard about this story, but if not, you can read about it here, or watch video footage below. Or simply do a search for Chelsey B. Sullenberger or Hudson River plane landing and choose from the thousands of results.

Coming up next Tuesday is an historic event that makes me wish I didn't have to work that day. Of course I am referring to the inauguration of Barack Obama as our nation's 44th president. History will be made on Tuesday when he becomes the first African-American president in US history. Luckily, our middle school has cable television access and I hope most, if not all, teachers will take the opportunity to view the inauguration with their classes.

My biggest hope is that our new president will celebrate our Sullenberger's feat on this day. What a joyous occasion it would be to see our newest president recognize our newest hero on such a momentous occasion!

Ideas for Active Viewing by Students While Watching the Inauguration

Check out this post on The Innovative Educator blog for some ideas on how to help students actively view the inauguration. Thanks to a post on Twitter, I found these ideas "just in time".

On the Road for Learning

I have to write this quick so I can get to bed early tonight. Tomorrow I have to get up at 3:45 to head to NE Kansas for an instructional coaching training. This year the other Tech Consultants and I are spending the year learning about coaching. Although technology is ever-changing, many of our teachers are able to use it in their classrooms without day-to-day help from us. As we strive for "true integration" by our teachers, whatever that means, it is time for us to expand our bag of tricks and help teachers in another way.
Instead of continually trying to show them how to incorporate technology into their existing curriculum, perhaps it is time to help them change the way they teach so that technology use occurs in a less contrived way. It is a learning curve for us all. My focus for the past several years has been technology alone. Now I need to spruce up on curriculum, strategies and all of the other buzzwords that come along with coaching. I look forward to stretching my mind for the next two days and then spreading the enthusiasm on to my coworkers!

Museum Box
This is an incredible site that has been all the buzz on Twitter lately. If you haven't already read about it on another blog, check it out here. Students can use the tools to create a virtual box of items, audio, images, video and text to support an argument, illustrate an event, add depth to a character - historical, fictional, or living, to name a few ideas. A school can register so that students can identify their boxes with it. Registration is free. One of the coolest integration sites I have seen in awhile!

Clips
Like Museum Box, Clips is a another tool from E2BN, a National Education Network (UK) provider. Clips is a video publishing host for students who want to put their videos on the Internet. Teachers can rest assured that when students visit Clips, they won't come across any videos that are questionable in nature because the site is moderated.

More Photo Fun

I have highlighted online photo editing sites before, but lately I have run across a couple that I wanted to share. These two sites are really photo manipulation sites, rather than just editing. I think of editing as cropping, fixing red-eye, smoothing wrinkles, etc. Today's highlighted sites do have some editing features, but also are unique in that they allow the editor to alter reality quickly, easily and for no cost.
While these sites are fun, photo editing and photo manipulation can be incorporated into classrooms. A variety of lesson ideas such as editing a photo to place a person in a different place or era could be a part of a history or geography lesson. Adding different features, such as bunny ears, to a photo of a horse could inspire a narrative story. Cropping a photo of a student so that the face could be placed on another photo could be a visual for a report on what the student would like to be when they grow up.
Looking at photo editing and manipulation from another viewpoint also lends credence to studying photos and images to increase understanding. In a report in the CITE Journal by Mark Hofer and Carol Owings Swan, the authors state the importance of students learning how to "read" images to create a better understanding of curricular material. Read the report here http://www.citejournal.org/vol5/iss3/socialstudies/article1.cfm.




piZap
With piZap's online photo editor, you can add cool things to your photos like stickers and text bubbles. You can paint on a photo or add an effect like sepia. The site requires no registration.

PhotoFunia
PhotoFunia is a funky little site that allows you to upload a photo of someone and then alter it's reality. Using face recognition technology, you can turn yourself or a friend into a WWII fighter pilot, Santa Claus, or even a tattoo on David Beckham's washboard stomach. Some of the choices in the gallery are pretty racy, so use caution if sharing with students. No registration required.