Discovery Education has tons of resources, programs and applications for educators. How do you find it all and learn how to use them? The Discovery Educator Network and this blog is one way. Here are some more ways:

Training Resources for Discovery Education Tools and Apps:  http://goo.gl/usJsd - lots of great resources, tips, help and more.

25 Free Resources from Discovery Education: http://goo.gl/ZG2RU

Here are some more great resources from Discovery Education: http://goo.gl/zQha

What are your favorite Discovery Education resources?

Register today!

2012 ISTE Pre-Conference
Day of Discovery

University of San Diego
Saturday, June 23, 2012

http://links.discoveryeducation.com/2012ISTE

Join Discovery Education, Adobe Youth Voices, Discovery Educator Network Gurus, and educators from across the country for a Day of Discovery in San Diego, CA.

This unique day of free professional development will highlight creative ways to engage students and invigorate your curriculum using the latest 21st century tools and Discovery Education resources as we celebrate the Discovery Educator Network’s seventh birthday.

Special guest presenters include Adobe Youth Voices

DEN Gurus Dean Mantz and Jennifer Wagner

Saturday, June 23, 2012
8:30 AM – 3:00 PM
Check-in begins at 8:00 AM

A conference-style event, this day will give you the opportunity to choose from multiple sessions, earn a certificate for participation, win prizes, and workshop with nationally recognized K-12 experts.

Space is limited – register today!

http://links.discoveryeducation.com/2012ISTE

Adobe Youth Voices
Demonstrating the power of technology to engage middle- and high school-age youth, Adobe Youth Voices provides breakthrough learning experiences using video, multimedia, digital art, web, animation, and audio tools that enable youth to explore and comment on their world.

Discovery Educator Network Gurus

Dean Mantz, Sterling Public Schools, Kansas
Dean is the Network Coordinator and Integration Specialist for Sterling USD #376 in Sterling, KS. Before working in Sterling, Dean was honored in his previous district as “Teacher of the Year” while teaching middle school history and technology. He has been serving on the Kansas DEN Leadership Council since it was established in 2008. Along with working for Sterling Public Schools, Dean is an Adjunct Professor for Sterling College facilitating the Technology in the Classroom course for pre-service students. Dean also serves as a National Mentor for LoTi conducting professional development sessions in Kansas and Oklahoma.
Jennifer Wagner, Calvary Murrieta, CA
Jennifer is part of the IT/Help Desk department at a private K12 school in Southern California. She assists students, teachers and administrators with creative ways to utilize 21st century digital tools. In her spare time, she hosts online projects for PreK – 6th grade teachers at Projectsbyjen.com, writes a monthly newsletter and provides Daily Wordles for teachers to use with their students. Jennifer has been recognized by Global SchoolNet, Google, and Kidspriation for her innovative uses of technology.

Adobe announces the availability of Adobe Photoshop Touch for the iPad2. Photoshop is the premiere, industry standard, for photo editing and effects and having it available for the iPad expands it’s usability.

The Android version of Adobe Photoshop Touch, along with other Adobe Touch Apps, was launched on Android back in November 2011.

Photoshop Touch brings core Photoshop tools to mobile devices, and now to the iPad2. Features include: combine multiple photos into layered images, edit and add professional effects, touch up photos, paint, lay out ideas, and more. It also integrates with Facebook and Google Image Search to make finding images easier.

It also has interactive tutorials for users.

This is another great tool for educators and students to use to create projects.

Adobe Photoshop Touch is available in the iTunes App Store for US$9.99. Adobe Photoshop Touch will also be available for $4.99 via the education volume App Store (iTunes Link: http://bit.ly/Ax2Gmj).

If you would like additional information about the app please visit the product page or follow @AdobeEDU or @AdobeStudents for the latest news. Please feel free to contact me directly with any questions.

Here is a link to the press release that Adobe issues – it has some really helpful links:http://eon.businesswire.com/news/eon/20120226005151/en/Adobe/Photoshop/Touch

Related:

You and your students could win fabulous prizes for your classroom with a 1-take music video!

http://links.discoveryeducation.com/videochallenge

What’s up?
Launching today, the Dr. Lodge Music Video Challenge asks students to select one of Dr. Lodge McCammon’s standards-based songs, determine the dance moves, and film the music video in 1-take.

What could I win?
One grand prize winner will receive a school assembly with Dr. Lodge McCammon, a Flip camera, and thirty backpacks for the winning classroom.  Ten more finalists will receive Flip cameras and sets of classroom backpacks, too!

Why would I do it?
If fabulous prizes and national recognition aren’t enticing enough, Dr. Lodge’s songs are standards-based and focus on specific content areas.  The challenge is open to all students – from elementary to high school grades.  Nothing could be more fun, engaging, and…educational.

I’m in.  What’s next?
To participate, register anytime between January 30 and February 26.  Review the rubric, and utilize the resources available to you and your class.  When you’re ready, upload your video, and be sure to vote for your favorite from the selected finalists!

There must be more information.  Where can I go?
For everything, including important dates, judge’s rubric, resources, and other contest information, visit:

http://links.discoveryeducation.com/videochallenge

NCCE 2012 – Seattle, March 13-16!

Steve Dembo and Hall Davidson are featured speakers at this action-packed conference, and no doubt they will be sharing all kinds of great ideas and resources that will keep your fire ablaze!

Early bird registration is available until February 10, 2012.  Visit the conference registration page today.  Don’t miss out on these great sessions!

Steve’s featured speaker sessions:

Going Mobile
Wednesday, March 14, 8:30 AM – 11:30 AM
Students are bringing their cell phone, iPods, PDAs and PSPs to school and we respond by forbidding their use or treat confiscation. However, these are the tools of the new generation and educators must change and consider how to utilize and embrace these new online learning tools. Learn how to create websites designed for portable devices as well as some innovative ways mobile devices are being used in education. It’s time we start taking advantage of the technology that students are hiding in their backpacks right now and using them to support good teaching and learning!

TheNewYou.Com
Wednesday, March 14, 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm
As it becomes increasingly important for our students to have a positive presence on the internet, it is critical that educators lead by example. In this workshop, we will create an online home for yourself, incorporating social media, avatars, video and more. The takeaway? YourNewHomeOnTheInternet.com!

Hall’s featured speaker session:

Web 2.0 and Other Digital Tools for Administrators and Superintendents
Wednesday, March 14, 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm
he tools of Web 2.0 make an administrator’s job easier, faster–and more enjoyable. Exploit tools for communication, monitoring, visioning, social networking and sharing. Twitter, apps, and cellphones offer unexpected benefits. Change the way you work while (importantly) modeling 21st century skills. Content creation, texting, and social sites – they’re not just for students.

Very soon after I had just sent a message out to my Digital Storytelling students alerting them to a good sale on editing software for PC’s, I sat down next to Steve Dembo to hear a keynote speaker at Iowa’s edtech conference. Within minutes Steve showed me a free, web-based alternative to the late (temporarily, I hope), great JayCut.com. It’s called WeVideo and they have even added a YouTube component (http://www.youtube.com/create_detail/WeVideo). With just a minimal experiment of my own to speak from, I have to say that it’s an easy, more powerful alternative for those PC users of the two versions of Movie Maker. It doesn’t have the green screen capability of JayCut (as of this writing at least) and it does depend on your Internet connection, but the price and the creativity it gives you far outweigh those minor “inconveniences.” Sign up now and take advantage of the larger, free accounts that they are offering during this introductory period.

And don’t forget Discovery’s Virtual Conference tomorrow morning to get some great ideas for your new found video editing capability. Sessions begin on the hour from 9 AM to 3 PM EDT.

The best part of the day though was the last hour (at least for me). This hour brought the introduction to Iron Den. Iron Den is just like Iron chef… but totally different. Three teams were chosen. Each team was led by a DEN Leadership Council Member. Those people where April Adams, Beth Weeks and Me… Lea Anne Daughrity. The team’s had two additional members chosen from the audience. Although I didn’t get to meet the other team’s team members, my team was made up of myself, Unique and Ciji.

We were given an overall theme of photosynthesis and asked to create an intro to a lesson on this topic. Finally, we were asked to include a secret ingredient. That ingredient was a picture of a pig. Hmmm! With 35 minutes left, the teams ran off to there own corners and discussed, planned and created their product. The time limit was challenging and it definitely got the blood pumping! In the end we had three great presentations. April’s team chose to create based on all of the activities of the day.

Beth’s team included some of the day’s elements and created a glog for the lesson.

Our team created the entire thing on the iPad using Puppet Pals, iMovie, the camera and keynote. All three deserved a round of applause but just like Iron chef, there can only be one winner. Here is the winning submission:

Iron Den

All in all, it was a great day. The teachers from the Metroplex enjoyed their day of learning and fun and many walked away with some great prizes. The most important part though, was all of the great networking that went on and all of the sharing of ideas and passion.

Christopher Columbus

Columbus Day will be celebrated October 10, 2011.  I like to begin my lesson on that day reading sections from a letter that Columbus wrote without letting the class know who it is from or that it is Columbus Day.  The letter is a primary document found at http://www.ushistory.org/documents/columbus.htm.  The letter tells of the natives he encounters in Hispaniola.  He talks about the beauty of the land and the gold that is there.  He tells how innocent are the natives he encounters, and how he has to forbid his men trading useless items such as broken dishes for a great deal of gold.  He also discusses how he hasn’t seen any monsters, but has seen people who eat human flesh.  The students become actively engaged with this letter and the discussion and are pleasantly surprised to find it is a letter from Columbus.  We then discuss the value and purpose of primary documents.  There are many ways you can build your lesson from here.  If you go into your Discovery account, everyone has one, right?  Anyway, search “Columbus” and at the top of the results screen, you will see a link – “Columbus Day” with the explanation “Featuring resources selected and created by Discovery Education’s curriculum experts, this theme page offers teacher’s guides, video clips, and more.”  Discovery has provided a wealth of resources right there for you to use.  There are video clips, images, and lesson plans for every grade level.  There are even some audio clips.  Elementary students could illustrate what they hear and import it, along with images from Discovery, into Photo Story, a free download from Microsoft at http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=11132, adding the audio for a great presentation.

For more presentations and ideas, go to http://holidays.pppst.com/columbusday.html and celebrate Columbus Day with lots of new discoveries.