JSD Engaged Classroom

New Links and Ideas For You

noreply@blogger.com (Margo Shirley) — Fri, 21 May 2010 19:31:00 +0000

Now that you have been using your Document Cameras daily, you probably are looking for new ideas for using your Document Camera in your classroom. Find many lesson ideas here:
http://t4.jordan.k12.ut.us/t4/content/view/323/37/

Start planning for next year to participate in the 2011 Jordan District Film Festival. Students and Techers submitted great films and the award winning films can be found at:
http://web.me.com/bonniemmuir/filmfestival/Home.html
If you have any great student projects to share with us, please leave a comment and share!

Continue learning technology by checking out the resources at UEN and the T4 Professional Development page:
http://profdev.uen.org/register/view_course_by_month
http://t4.jordan.k12.ut.us/t4/content/section/6/35/

Be sure to check out the T4 front webpage in June to find great summer learning ideas for you and your students.
http://t4.jordan.k12.ut.us/t4/

Have fun in the sun! Thank you for continuing to move technology forward for you and your students.

Safe Images for the Classroom

noreply@blogger.com (Nancy) — Mon, 17 May 2010 21:47:00 +0000

There have been some questions lately about finding appropriate images for classroom use. A Google Image search can lead to some questionable results. Following are some suggested sites for finding plenty of useable images, clip art and photos.

SIRS Discover Pictures: (http://discoverer.prod.sirs.com/discoweb/disco/do/frontpage) This can be accessed through Pioneer Library. Lots of good pictures for elementary use are found here.

eMedia: There are hundreds of still images here as well as videos, all preapproved by UEN. (http://eq.uen.org/emedia/access/search.do?hier.topic=72fb35ab-18e5-2fbe-2439-6cfacaa2782b )

World Book Online: (http://www.worldbookonline.com/kids/Home ) All the articles here will come with beautiful images, that we are able to use.

Morgue Files: (http://www.morguefile.com/) Beautiful pictures that have “died” as far as copy write is concerned. You still may need to watch for content but they are searchable by topic.

KidRex: A child friendly search engine, the images here are filtered to remove questionable content. (http://www.kidrex.org/ )

Soundzabound-Another great tool from UEN

noreply@blogger.com (Harrison) — Mon, 03 May 2010 14:35:00 +0000

Soundzabound is another great tool from UEN that can be used by Educators and Students for any educational project. Soundzabound is a library of music and sounds that you and your students can use without worrying about copyrights or other legal issues, and best of all it is free for you thanks to UEN. Soundzabound is accessed through the K-12 Pioneer resources. Have you ever had a student ask you where they can find music or sounds to use for their school projects? Have you ever been concerned about your students using “just any music”? I know that I have. If you use Soundzabound you wont have to worry about the lyrics or the content. It is an easy one-stop shop for all of your classroom sound needs. Check it out for your next class project.

OpenOffice - a free alternative to Microsoft Office

noreply@blogger.com (Muir Family) — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 11:00:00 +0000

Teachers sometimes ask about getting Microsoft Office for home use. Rather than buying Office, I would like to suggest a free alternative, OpenOffice.

OpenOffice includes powerful applications for making text documents, spreadsheets, presentations, diagrams, databases, and much more. Given that the full suite is free, this is one of the best deals you'll find in all of computing.

OpenOffice has six full-blown applications; 1-Writer (a word processor very similar to Word), 2-Calc (a spreadsheet program similar to Excel), 3-Impress (a presentation program similar to PowerPoint) 4-Base database (similar to Access), 5-Math equation editor, and 6-Draw graphics program.

Let's open OpenOffice and see how it looks:

The OpenOffice interface is looks a lot like the MS Office interface, and even advanced Office users will find nearly everything they're used to in Word, Excel and PowerPoint.

Let's take a look at a few screen shots from three of the applications in OpenOffice:

Writer (similar to Word)

Calc (similar to Excel):

Impress (Similar to PowerPoint):

Most of your questions about OpenOffice can be answered at their website, but let's go through a few frequently asked questions here:

FAQ's
Can I open my Office documents in OpenOffice?
Yes. Writer opens Word documents, Calc opens Excel documents, Impress opens PowerPoints.

How do I get OpenOffice?
Download it at http://www.openoffice.org.

Is it available for Mac, Windows, and Linux?
Yes. It is available on several platforms, all free downloads.

It starts out free, but will it always be free?
Yes, OpenOffice is an open source software. It will always be free.

How do I update OpenOffice?
In the OpenOffice Help menu, choose "Check for Updates"

Where can I get training on how to use it?
http://www.tutorialsforopenoffice.org
YouTube.com has a plethora of very good OpenOffice tutorials.

Is Jordan District switching from Office to OpenOffice?
No. There is no current plan to move teachers from Office to OpenOffice.

Can I use Office and OpenOffice on the same computer?
Yes, you may have both programs installed on your computer and choose which program you wish to use.

Do I have to switch to OpenOffice?
No. The program is available for anybody to download and use as they wish.

Is OpenOffice better than Office?
The best thing to do is to try it for yourself and make that determination. Over 500 million people have downloaded OpenOffice. It is available in many different languages.

Is support available for my questions about OpenOffice?
Yes. http://support.openoffice.org

What is the coolest thing about OpenOffice?
In my opinion, Portability. A revolutionary feature of OpenOffice is that you can download a portable version, write it to a flash drive and keep it in your pocket to use on any computer you meet on your way. Can you imagine doing so with Microsoft Office?

Virtual Field Trips

noreply@blogger.com (Margo Shirley) — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 04:06:00 +0000

Educational Funding is limited. One of the first cuts at your school could be a bus field trip with your students. Don’t worry, you can still take field trips electronically. Virtual field trips remove classroom walls and opens windows out into the world.
Virtual field trips can offer students more opportunities because you can take them to places they wouldn't normally be able to go to otherwise. In addition, virtual field trips may even boost students' reading comprehension skills and will expose them to different cultures and environments.

Below are a variety of links for virtual field trips. Try ending your school year by taking an exciting virtual field trip with your students. Have students experience different field trips and then create a multimedia presentation of their field trip to share with other students.
Please comment and share new virtual field trips that you have used.

Virtual Field Trip Collections

This organization hosts electronic field trips with four main parts: the Trip Journal, the Virtual Visit (a streaming video), an Ask the Expert tool, and a hosted Web chat.
http://www.efieldtrips.org

Ball State Electronic Field Trips
http://edcommunity.apple.com/ali/search.php?institution=Ball%20State%20University%20Electronic%20Field%20Trips

Blackwell’s Virtual Field Trip Lists
http://www.vickiblackwell.com/vft.html

eThemes
http://www.emints.org/ethemes/resources/S00000995.shtml

Gail Lovely provides a hot-linked list organized into live journeys, "interactive environments," travelogues, e-museums, building and place tours, map-based visits, and read-along visits.
http://www.gaillovely.com/VirtualFieldTrips.htm

Lists of Virtual Field Trips
http://www.techtrekers.com/virtualft.htm

Scholastic Internet Field Trips
http://teacher.scholastic.com/fieldtrp/science.htm

Simple K12 Virtual Field Trips
http://www.simplek12.com/virtualfieldtrips

The Teacher’s Guide Virtual Field Trips
http://www.theteachersguide.com/virtualtours.html

UEN Virtual Field Trips
http://www.uen.org/tours/fieldtrips2.shtml

Virtual Webams (teachers should search and check these sites first)
http://www.virtualfreesites.com/cams.html

Museum Virtual Field Trips

1000’s of Museums Online
http://www.museumstuff.com/

National Air and Space Museum
http://www.nasm.si.edu/education/online_fieldtrips.cfm

Examples of Virtual Field Trips
http://www.thwt.org/virtualtours.htm

Historical Virtual Field Trips

Henry “Box” Brown Underground Field Trip
http://housedivided.dickinson.edu/fieldtrips/brown.html

Colonial Williamsburg Electronic Field Trip
http://www.history.org/trips/

George Washington's Mount Vernon Estate
http://www.mountvernon.org/learn/index.cfm

Online Field Trips from Think Classroom
http://www.thinkport.org/Classroom/trips.tp

The National WWII Museum
http://www.nationalww2museum.org

Smithsonian’s History Explorer
http://historyexplorer.americanhistory.si.edu/

Utah and National Parks

Glacier National Park
http://sd5.k12.mt.us/glaciereft/

National Parks Electronic Field Trip
http://www.nationalparks.org/npf-at-work/electronic-field-trip/

Windows into Yellowstone Wonderland
http://www.windowsintowonderland.org/

Utah National Parks
http://www.uen.org/utahnationalparks/

Science Virtual Field Trips

Exploritorium
http://www.exploratorium.edu/

Adventures in Medicine & Science (AIMS) Program of Saint Louis University http://aims.slu.edu

Cleveland Museum of Natural History
http://www.cmnh.org

Monterey Bay Aquarium
http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/efc/cam_menu.aspx

This site lists a collection of mainly science and health-related VFTs and online labs.
http://www.accessexcellence.org/RC/virtual.php

Mote Marine Laboratory
http://www.mote.org

NASA Digital Learning Network (Kennedy Space Center, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Johnson Space Center, and Goddard Space Flight Center)
http://dln.nasa.gov/dln/content/catalog

Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI)
http://www.omsi.edu

Additional Distance Learning Field Trips

Center for Puppetry Arts
http://www.puppet.org

"eMedia" A Resource Wonder

noreply@blogger.com (Nancy) — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 20:40:00 +0000

I am so impressed with the resources provided to teachers and students through UEN (Utah Educational Network). I have to confess that when I was teaching in another state I discovered many of the lesson plans and materials that are provided.

eMedia is another one of the resources that you can use in your classroom without causing you an anxiety attack over “one more thing to learn”. eMedia is an ever-growing selection of videos, movies, images, documents and more that are correlated with Utah Core Standards and appropriate for school. This can save you hours of looking for materials.

The materials are organized by grade level, subject, type and standard. There are even popular series here. Many have lesson plans.

If you have questions there is a starters guide to eMedia. Have fun exploring.

Earth to Jordan Teachers---literally :-)

noreply@blogger.com (Muir Family) — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 06:36:00 +0000

"How geeks show they care" http://www.geogreeting.com.
(if the movie doesn't play, click here)

Do you want a fun, 'earthy' way to send a greeting to a friend? Then go to GeoGreetings:

Be prepared to spend a lot of time when you go there. You will be hooked and you will want to send GeoGreetings to all your family and friends.

It's fun to spell words using buildings that are shaped like alphabet letters. These building have been found on Google Earth by avid searchers. The letter A is found in Bangkok, B is located in the Canary Islands, C is in Germany. D is a lake in Moscow, and so on. Utah gives us the letter K --found in Salt Lake City.

Student will love this site. They might even enjoy seeing their spelling list written in GeoGreetings. Maybe they can find letters or symbols elsewhere on Google Earth.

Just for fun: Take a look at this heart-shaped island found in Croatia!

Printing large posters on regular sized paper

noreply@blogger.com (Harrison) — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 07:33:00 +0000

Have you ever heard of PosteRazor? There might be other tools out there that do the same thing as PosteRazor. PosteRazor is a tool that will allow you to take an image that you would print on a normal size piece of paper and turn it into an image that can be as large as you want.

Here is an example from PosteRazor. First you start with any picture file, like this one.

Then using PosteRazor you break it up into a bunch of smaller images, like this.

When you are done, instead of printing the image on one page, it will print out on multiple pages and when you put the pages together the image will be much bigger. Don't worry about the pink colored lines, they are only shown above to represent the multiple pages that you will use when you print it. If you put it together correctly you will never see them.

In order for PosteRazor to work the item that you want to make bigger needs to be a picture file (a .jpg, a .png or some other picture format). The way that I accomplish this is by creating the document using a tool like Word or Pages and then take a screenshot. The screen shot is saved as a picture file on your computer.

Once the image has been saved on your computer you can use PosteRazor to make it larger. PosteRazor talks about DIN A4 paper size. DIN A4 is the same as a 8.5in by 11in piece of paper. Click here for the PosteRazor website. Click here to download PosteRazor. Click here for PosteRazor screenshots.

Digital Pedometers

noreply@blogger.com (Nancy) — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 22:35:00 +0000

Hi!! Last month at UCET I had the opportunity to work with Harrison to present a session on Digital Pedometers. Wow, it was actually fun. There are so many different and new products that could be used to measure walking and in school to promote fitness.

My favorite was the iPod Nano, it is a little tiny iPod that has a pedometer when it comes out of the box. I have been getting up and putting it in a pocket, that is it. At the end of the day I have a count of all my steps, distance and calories burned. All the data stores in a calendar history and syncs to my computer. Not bad for something so small and hold 8 GB, FM radio, video camera, and a voice recorder.

There are several free apps for the iPod Touch and iPhone, i am checking out three .99 ones. (Go Pedometer, iSteps, and Footsteps)

Here are some other fun sites: Log It is from PE Central and allows you to record students steps online and enter competitions and track progress. Nintendo is coming out with a new game where you take the "Pokewalker" out and earn extra with physical activity that then you sent to the game control with an infrared beam.

There is more, so take some time to look and then step away from the computer and go for a walk.....

New Ways and Ideas to Create Word Clouds

noreply@blogger.com (Margo Shirley) — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 14:13:00 +0000

Remember how Wordle creates Word Clouds.
http://www.wordle.net/

Remember that Word Clouds are collections of words from a document or documents that show the frequency of word use by their size, and are often designed in a unique manner.

Here are some resources to continue to use Word Clouds in your Curriculum.

Forty-five Interesting Ways to use Wordle in the Classroom
http://docs.google.com/present/view?id=dhn2vcv5_157dpbsg9c5

19 Word Cloud Resources, Tips and Tools
http://teacherbootcamp.edublogs.org/2010/02/14/12-word-cloud-resources-tips-tools/

Other Examples of Word Cloud Sites

Tech Tools and Words Clouds
http://marisaconstantinides.edublogs.org/2010/02/10/tech-tools-pedagogy-ii-word-clouds/
Comparison of Word Cloud Sites
http://philbradley.typepad.com/phil_bradleys_weblog/2010/02/wordle-closed-alternatives.html
More Examples of Classroom use of Word Clouds
http://21centuryedtech.wordpress.com/2010/03/03/i-can-back-off-my-blogging-turn-down-my-tweeting-and-even-wrap-up-my-wiki-but-i-can%E2%80%99t-wane-my-wordling/

UEN Resources for Science

noreply@blogger.com (Harrison) — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 08:40:00 +0000

As teachers we are always trying to find engaging content that relates to the core subjects that we are assigned to teach. Just as important as the lessons being engaging they should also be tied to the Utah State Standards. Margo Shirley just introduced me to a number of resources that are provided for Utah educators by UEN. I was not aware of most of the resources that Margo showed me, so I thought that I would pass on some of that knowledge to you.

The tools that I will show you are UEN Resources for K-12 Education-Science. There are 8 broad topic areas that link you to a wealth of information for those topics. To access the general resource area click here. And to access the Science specific area click here. I know that you will find great resources to use in this UEN site. Give it a try.

Online Photo Editors

noreply@blogger.com (Muir Family) — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 03:59:00 +0000

Online photo editors abound nowadays. Dumpr.net, Picnik.com, Fotoflexer.com and Picture2Life.com to name just a few. Some of the fun things you can at online photo editors are:

Upload most common file format used in digital cameras
Edit your photos in a few simple clicks
Fine-tune your results
Crop, resize, and rotate in real-time
Use special effects, from artsy to fun
Access many artsy fonts
Save photo right to your computer
Platform independent
No download required, nothing to install
All photos are private by default

Let’s look at some examples: First find a picture you want to use, for example this cute baby. Now let's edit the photo using a few fun photo features found Dumpr.net:

Here are a few more sites you might like to try:

Have fun fixing and remixing photos! Send us any examples you would like us to post.

Engaged Classroom Student Work

noreply@blogger.com (Margo Shirley) — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 04:31:00 +0000

Dear Engaged Classroom Teachers,

I am sure by this time in the school year you have completed some great learning projects with your students. To share these great projects we will need to update the internet address of your Engaged Classroom website where we can view your student’s electronic projects.

I have created a new web page where we can share your web page to view your student projects. Please send your updated website address to your Curriculum Technology Specialist and we will make sure it is linked.

Publishing and sharing student projects is very motivating and exciting to highlight how technology is impacting student learning in Jordan School District.

http://t4.jordan.k12.ut.us/t4/content/view/319/38/

I would like to begin by sharing the student work of Heather Reich’s class at Majestic Elementary.

http://msreich.wikispaces.com/Student+Work

Remember, you can always call us, your Curriculum Technology Specialists, to support you and your students where needed to continue to create student projects.

http://t4.jordan.k12.ut.us/t4/content/view/17/33/

Thank you for sharing.

Language Arts and Thinkfinity.org

noreply@blogger.com (Harrison) — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 15:01:00 +0000

At thinkfinity.org there are a plethora of tools and resources for educators. We all know that there are times when we need an idea or spark of inspiration to help us reach our students and help them understand important and sometimes difficult topics. At thinkfinity.org you can find resources that are specifically related to Language Arts. The three main resources are: EDSITEment, Literacy Network and ReadWriteThink. You could click on the links to explore those thinkfinity.org partners or you could just do a keyword search to find any of the hundreds of resources that tie to a Language Arts topic no matter what area they are listed in.

Blooms Revised Taxonomy

noreply@blogger.com (Margo Shirley) — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 03:45:00 +0000

As an Engaged Classroom Teacher, I hope you are remembering to use technology tools and higher learning activities in your student learning activities. The following website shares Bloom’s Technology Resources that use the Web 2.0 tools and technologies for processes and products.

http://edorigami.wikispaces.com/Bloom%27s+Digital+Taxonomy

I really found the Bloom’s Digital Taxonomy Quick Sheets in pdf form a valuable resource for new learning ideas that use Web 2.0 tools and technologies.

My best wishes to you for a great 2010 year with continued higher level learning for you and your students.

Outstanding Technology Educator Awards at UCET

noreply@blogger.com (Muir Family) — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 02:36:00 +0000

Nomination are now open for UCET awards!
Each year at UCET one teacher, leader and network administrator are honored with a plaque and a check for $500.

Do you know a deserving teacher or administrator who you want to nominate? The deadline for these nominations is Feb. 10, 2010.
2010 UCET Nominations for Outstanding Technology Educator
Do you have a teacher that you would like to recommend for Outstanding Technology Teacher of the Year? Someone who’s made a big difference in how successful your school has been integrating technology into education. Here’s your chance! Please take a moment and nominate your technology educator of the year! Click here.

2010 UCET Nominations for Outstanding Technology Leader
OK, the person you wish to nominate is not a teacher, but an administrator, director, or school leader? No problem! Please nominate your choice of Outstanding Technology Leader of the Year by clicking here.

2010 UCET Nominations for the Jack Erickson Excellence in Technology Services Award
Do you have a school or district technology person who regularly performs above and beyond the call of duty? One who tirelessly solves problems, trains teachers, and keeps things running flawlessly? This form is to be used to nominate a network technician, administrator, engineer, or systems operations specialist whose primary duties may include: network maintenance, monitoring, troubleshooting, and network reconfiguration as needed. Click here.

We look forward to seeing you at UCET. Great classes, free wi-fi, teacher grants for technology equipment, and super breakfasts and lunch! Murrary High School, Feb 26, 27th. Sign up at www.ucet.org

WolframAlpha

noreply@blogger.com (Muir Family) — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 22:52:00 +0000

Wolfram|Alpha is a computational knowledge engine. How is that different than a search engine like Google? Wolfram|Alpha answers factual queries by computing the answer from data. Let’s look at an example: I will enter Farmington in the search field:
I see the results for Farmington, Utah—not Farmington, Michigan or Connecticut or Maine. How does it know I mean Utah? It pulls my IP address from my computer, located in West Jordan and assumes I mean the Farmington just north of here. Just in case I do mean another Farmington, I am provided with a list of other cities named Farmington in other parts of the U.S.

Instant results show weather, current and historical population, local time, current and historical weather, elevation, GPS coordinates, a U.S. map pinpointing Farmington, Utah and more.

For a very cool, you-just-gotta-see-introductory video from Stephen Wolfram, check out this video:
http://www.wolframalpha.com/screencast/introducingwolframalpha.html

Social Studies and Thinkfinity

noreply@blogger.com (Harrison) — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 21:20:00 +0000

As educators we love to borrow and share lesson plans, ideas and resources. Thinkfinity.org is a tool provided by the Verizon Foundation for educators to use. The lessons and resources are tied to national standards and might need to be tweaked and or adjusted to meet Utah standards. There are 4 main resources that specifically relate to Social Studies, they are: EconEdLink, EDSITEment, Smithsonian’s History Explorer and Xpeditions.

You can do a general keyword search from the main Thinkfinity.org homepage. You can do a more specific search by using any or all of the dropdown menus. Just remember that the more specific you are in choosing categories, the fewer results you will get.

You might also choose to invesigate a specific partner, and then search within that partner’s website. Once you get to the specific partner website you can navigate and search through the resources provided there.

Refining Search Skills

noreply@blogger.com (Nancy) — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 06:00:00 +0000

Educator and speaker Alan November believes there is a growing gap between what we teach children and what is needed in this expanding global workplace. In his opinion students need to be able to do three key things when they leave school.

Have the capacity to do good research on the Web

Have good global communication skills

We should evaluate teachers on their ability to directly engage children with people all around the worl

Be self-directed

Our system is based on the concept that teachers own the learning

Corporations need people who don’t need a boss to tell them what to do

The top skill learned in school is to learn how to be taught

Quickly I will highlight the first of those skills. “The ability to do a good search on the web”. Most students just type in a stab at their topic and take the “Big 6”, which one told me was the first six hits on the list. Not a real effective method, but easy and seldom corrected.

Boolean Searching

Really a strange name for a very simple concept, it is like a verbal Venn diagram. If I want a search of ‘yellow trucks’ and type in Yellow Trucks I will come up with all the sights that have Yellow and all the sites that contain trucks, as well at the “yellow trucks” With Boolean searching you write “yellow and trucks”, the results will only contain both words. If I want to eliminate “Chevy” then type in “yellow and trucks not Chevy”. Try it with something you want to look up and look at the hits. Try it with two or three different search engines and check out the numbers.

For a fun look at Boolean searching checkout Boolify: the Boolean Project. It is great for explaining the process, even to younger groups.

Keys To Search the Internet More Effectively:

Read the Help or Tips Menu

The Help or Tips Menu will provide valuable information about how to perform an effective search.

Prepare to Search

Think about what you are looking for. Make a list of key words that you can work with. Consider what is the best search tool for the job.

Use Unique Terms When Possible to Retrieve More Specific Results

The words you choose will determine the information you find. Try to use words that are specific and describe what you are looking for in unique ways.

Use the Directories in Search Engine or Subject Directories

Directories are available on most search tools and help organize sites into categories.

Use More than One Search Engine

Not all search tools are alike. A search will produce radically different results depending upon the tool used. Every search engine it’s has strengths and weaknesses. Try doing the same search on different tools. Compare the first ten sites retrieved by each tool.

Use Capitalization When Needed to Refine a Search

Not every search tool is case sensitive. Capitalization sometimes finds sites that have the search term in the title--this is especially useful when searching for a terms that are not capitalized unless they are in a title.

Use Quotations or Other Symbols to Specify a Phrase

Search tools do not know whether a search is for "lesson" or "plans." The default is typically lesson or plans in simple searching. Use quotations to surround a phrase such as "lesson plans."

Keep Results to a Minimum: Size of the Search Tool Does Not Matter

If you have not found what you are looking for in the first 20 to 50 sites, give it up and reword your search or try another search engine.

K12 Online Conference 2009

noreply@blogger.com (Margo Shirley) — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 17:58:00 +0000

K12 Online Conference 2009
Participate in a great Technology Learning Experience!

K12 Online 2009 is a FREE conference open to ANYONE interested in integrating emerging technologies into classroom practice. A primary goal of the conference is to help educators make sense of and meet the needs of a continually changing learning landscape.

http://k12onlineconference.org/
http://wiki.k12onlineconference.org/
http://wiki.k12onlineconference.org/home/for-participants/2009-schedule

Flip "over" Video

noreply@blogger.com (Margo Shirley) — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 16:34:00 +0000

Flip Video
http://www.theflip.com/en-us/

Flip Video is the world's simplest camcorder. It lets you capture the everyday moments that happen anywhere, everywhere and share with anyone. Shooting video is as easy as taking a picture. There are NO chargers, NO cables, just a USB connection!

Resources to Learn How to Use the Flip Video

How to Use a Flip Camera
http://www.allaroundyou.net/page/how-to-use-a-flip-camera

Flip Video Basics
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_rZKOK8DwU&fmt=22

Making a Video on a Flip Camcorder
http://www.mindbites.com/lesson/495-making-a-video-on-a-flip-camcorder

Shooting Tips
http://www.flipvideospotlight.com/resources/shooting.aspx

Editing Guidelines
http://www.flipvideospotlight.com/resources/production.aspx

The Flip Camera for PC and Mac (Movie Maker and iMovie, too)
http://it.seattleschools.org/blog/category/tools-and-applications/video/

Educational Uses for the Flip Video

Capture student successes
Create writing prompts
Document fieldtrips
Demonstrate student progress
Develop storytelling skills
Interview community members
Record science experiments
Reflect on student presentations
Review new concepts
Share classroom event

Forty-Two Interesting Ways to use your Pocket Video Camera
http://docs.google.com/present/view?id=dhn2vcv5_6tv55j7g9

Creating a Public Service Anouncement (PSA) from Granite District
http://theflip.wikispaces.com/PSAs

Video Sharing
http://www.flipvideospotlight.com/resources/distribution.aspx

Storytelling
http://www.flipvideospotlight.com/resources/storytelling.aspx

Digital Wish Lesson Plans
http://www.digitalwish.com/dw/digitalwish/view_lesson_plans

Purchasing Information

You can pruchase from CDW-G at $168.00

Flip Ultra™ 120-minute Camcorder 2 for 1!
http://www.digitalwish.com/dw/digitalwish/product?id=4310

Flip Video Spotlight Mission and Network / Matching Purchase Program
http://www.flipvideospotlight.com/about/default.aspx

Flip Video MinoHD Mobile Lab
http://www.digitalwish.com/dw/digitalwish/product?id=2127MHD

Ultimate Pocket Camcorder Comparison
http://gizmodo.com/5401862/ultimate-pocket-camcorder-comparison

GIS Day (Geographic Information Systems)

noreply@blogger.com (Muir Family) — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 20:20:00 +0000

On Wed, November 18th, several Jordan District teachers took the opportunity to go to GIS Day.

Participants learned what GIS is and how it is used in our daily lives. Here is a great video for your students that explains GIS.

GIS professionals from various municipalities taught sessions on aerial mapping, using elementary-level GIS software, and how teachers with no GIS mapping experience can work with a GIS mentor to implement GIS in their classroom.

So what is GIS? A Geographic Information System (GIS) can save, search, retrieve and analyze geographic data. GIS is currently being used academically and in many professional fields including environmental science and transportation. Everyday GIS use can be seen in the hand-held Global Positioning Systems (GPS) carried by hikers and fishermen and in navigation systems that many cars have today.

Here are some GIS resources that we learned about at GIS Day:
Videos:

GEOSPATIAL DATA SOURCES

1-Online map viewers

Google Maps
MS Live
US Dept of Agriculture, Aerial Photography Field Office:
MDOQ Viewer

2-Sources of data for download

Data Gateway (USA data)
AGRC (Utah data)
USGS Seamless (USA & world data)
GIS User

3-Free GIS Software (Data viewers)

APFO links & instructions
GIS User links to software and data sources

4- Fun Stuff with Geography
Earth As Art

********************
Important note:
***GIS Class ****
What will you get from the class?
Learn GIS software from scratch. Learn step-by-step instructions with screen shots on how to use GIS software. Get data for lessons on earthquakes, tornadoes, volcanoes, analyzing population, mapping habitats, Magellan's voyage across the Atlantic and Pacific, and much much more.

Minimal Requirements: Intermediate computer skills. No knowledge of GIS software required.

Dates:
Thu, Feb 11th, 2010 for 4-6th grade teachers.
Fri, Feb 12th, 2010, Secondary Social Studies or Science teachers

Place: ASB, 7905 S. Redwood Rd in the computer lab.
How to sign up: Please contact Pam Su'a at 801-567-8320. She will pay for your sub.

2010 Film Festival and UCET Information

noreply@blogger.com (Margo Shirley) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 22:43:00 +0000

Have your students participate in the 2010 Film Festival! Communicate, Collaborate, Connect

•Friday, December 4, 2009 Intent to participate form due to Margo Shirley at the ASB

•Friday, April 23, 2010 Films are due by 12 noon to Margo Shirley at the JSD ASB
(Auxillary Services Building 7905 S. Redwood Rd, West Jordan, UT 84088)

•Thursday, May 6, 2010 JSD Elementary Film Festival Celebration at the ASB Auditorium from 6-8pm

More information can be found at:http://t4.jordan.k12.ut.us/t4/content/view/313/37/

Don't forget to sign up for UCET 2010!

Fri, Feb 26th and 1/2 day Sat, Feb 27th
Murrary High School

Great sessions,great food, put your name in the hat for the yearly drawing (you might win an iPodTouch!)

Don't miss out on the opportunity to attend some great sessions, win a prize, or be eligible to apply for a UCET grant! This year's theme is: A Clear Vision for Teaching in a Digital World. We hope to see you there!

More information can be found at: http://www.ucet.org/inUCETnew/conference/

Searching, Moving Beyond Google

noreply@blogger.com (Nancy) — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 20:03:00 +0000

Since I am new to the T4 team I would like to briefly introduce myself. My name is Nancy; I am new to the district coming here from Osceola County Florida. After years of classroom teaching I became a Media Specialist and now am bringing that technology training to the Jordan School District. High School is my love, but I am happy to be here and willing to work with whomever needs help. Research is a love of mine so you will see a definite “information literacy” bias in my postings.

With that in mind, when did “Google” become “Google-ing” and interchangeable with research, or looking something up. It is wonderful and brings up a huge amount of information, but sometimes six million hits is more than I want and usually more than students can process. I had a student once describe it to me "it's like shopping at Ross, a whole lot of 'stuff' and you may find something good. But when you find it you will be tired and have a headache". With that in mind I will give you a couple of alternatives here and direct you to more. Look them over, check it out.

Quintura is a visual search engine. Good for visual learners or for narrowing a topic. Good results with very little commercial sites. There are fewer results easier to sort and good images.

Clusty.com , organizes the top search results into topics or "clusters" for easier searching. Searches multiple engines. Again, fewer but better results.

Search-cube is a visual search engine that presents web search results in a unique, three-dimensional cube interface. It shows image previews of up to ninety-six websites, videos and images.This is new and fun.

If you want to see more go to the web page on the T4 site… there are several other fun search engines.

Smart Response, Notebook and Tagging

noreply@blogger.com (Harrison) — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 15:57:00 +0000

All of you should have at least one set of Smart Response clickers in your school. These are very useful tools to collect formative and summative test/quiz results in a quick and timely manner. The purpose of tests/quizzes is more than just a grade for the students, they should be used by the teacher to help shape and direct instruction. Teachers should ask themselves as often as possible, “How do I know if my students understand this topic?” and “What do I do for the students that don’t understand it?”

For years the main way of collecting test/quiz scores was to have the students answer the questions for the quiz/test on a scantron or just have the students write the answers on a piece of paper. If the teacher was ambitious they would break down the responses of all the students of all the classes and find out which questions were missed the most and who missed them. Then the teachers may have linked each of the questions to the topics that they were assessing to find out what topic or topics the students struggled the most with. As you know this process takes a lot of time and effort. I am here to tell you, THERE IS A BETTER WAY.

Smart Notebook calls the better way tagging. In a nutshell Tagging allows you to label the questions with the topic that they cover, the standard and objective or any other information that the teacher feels is relevant to their class. Then after the tag is applied you can run reports and see which topics the class struggled with and then reteach them as needed.

How to tag your test/quiz questions in a new notebook presentation:

Start by inserting a question into a notebook document
Choose the type of question
Type in the question
Add the appropriate tag
Then finish creating the question

How to tag your test/quiz questions in a notebook presentation that already exists:

Open the notebook document that needs to have the tags added
Click on the slide/page that contains the question
Click on the Smart Response icon
Click show answer key
Enter the tag information
Repeat the above steps for the rest of the questions