Recently, Discovery Channel’s DiscoveryEducation merged with United Streaming. Now with a small paid subscription, schools can have access to this vast amount of media and unlimited downloads of that content.

For teachers who like to download video segments, rather then entire movies, DiscoveryEducation has a new option: Flash-based movies using the .FLV format. This is a great option for SMART Notebook users — you can download the .FLV version of the movie and insert it onto a Notebook page without loosing the Internet during a lesson.

What’s the advantage? This gives the teacher at least two different ways of helping students to takes notes while playing a video:

1. Using SMART Video Player (plays the ASF formats), the video pauses while the teacher uses a pen to guide notes, and
2. while in Notebook the teacher can write onto the same page as the FLV movie is playing without pausing or stopping the movie.

If you have any other great hints or suggestion, please let us know!

The game starts with a couple of experiments that teach about the difference in gravity and air pressure between earth and mars. Next, students apply what they learned as they play a target-hitting challenge. They have to take into account the gravity and air pressure of the planet they are on. Successful completion of the game allows students to reach the bonus round which showcases how gravity and air pressure affect moving objects on each planet of our Solar System. This game is… out of this world!

Go to: kidsciencechallenge.com , click on “Sports On Mars”, click on “Games!”

Here is a short video of me playing the game. I had some practice:

Now that you have a SMART Board, you have access to many useful teaching aids right at your fingertips. One website that has a library of highly visual teaching aids is Freezeray.com.

Freezeray is devoted to creating visual animations that can be used to enhance a student’s comprehension of a complex concept or idea. For instance, if you click on the “Physics” tab you will open up a link that has a variety of demonstrations that deal with the concepts of light, forces, waves, energy, electricity and magnetism, and earth and space. Each visual aid is accompanied by a short description on how to use it within the classroom. The opportunities are endless. Take some time to explore the different sections of this site and watch the animations go.

Interactive Whiteboards are helping teachers and students to interact with content in a bold new way. Ready access to interactive whiteboards coupled with the ever growing abundance of flexible digital media has created extraordinary windows of opportunity for our teachers and students. Join us as we discuss various instructional and professional development frameworks designed to help educators further integrate technology into the their classroom.

Have no fear WolframAlpha is here! This website is dedicated to making knowledge more accessible. On October 21^st the website hosted an interactive web event called Homework Day. Students, of all ages, were able to table their toughest questions and get the answers and help they need. The event was only one day, but the site is here to stay.  All of the submitted questions and a photo gallery of the event are archived on their website.

To get your questions answered on WolframAlpha, simply add your formula or question into the search box and press return. Watch and wait while the site deconstructs your question to generate your answer.  Mathematics, Health, and Finance are just  some topics that the website can assist with.

So the next time you get stumped, visit WolframAlpha.

This interactive volcano from Discovery Kids is better suited for elementary grade levels. The animations and sounds are very good. Only three types of volcano are introduced.

This National Geographic interactive volcano may be better suited for higher grade levels. It provides more in-depth information on types of volcanoes and how plate tectonics plays a role in their formation.

Finally, check out the Volcano Maker from ChannelOne.com. You’ll be able to create a volcano based on criteria like cone size, gas, and silica.

Our Courts is a website envisioned by Justice Sandra Day O’Connor that is dedicated to teaching students about 21st century civics. The website includes lesson plans, games and a place where students can send messages back and forth with Justice O’Connor.

While you’re teaching about goverment also check out Alex Kane’s Bill of Rights Lesson from our Educator Resource Center. This lesson describes and reinforces students understanding of the first 10 amendments to the United States Constitution. After the lesson, go back to the Our Courts website and have students review what they learned by playing the Do I have a Right? game.

With Myna, you can:
1. Quickly create tracks and add your own content or instrumentation
2. Export your work as an MP3 for use in a Notebook presentation

The flexibility of this program makes it a valuable resource to educators. It is easy to use and a great way to engage students.

Any soundtrack created in Myna can be downloaded as an .mp3 file. Once it has become an .mp3 file it can then be used in SMART Notebook pages. Download this file to see how Myna can be used with SMART Notebook.

*Important Note: Only .mp3 audio can be added to any SMART Notebook file.

Random Word Chooser is within Lesson Activity Toolkit 2.0 in the Gallery. If you don’t have LAT 2.0, or if your LAT 2.0 has fewer than 164 “Interactive and Multimedia Objects” you will want to update.

Here’s how to check for updates:

1. Click on the Gallery expandable side-tab.
2. To the right of the “Type Search Terms Here” field, there is a a Magnifying Glass, and there is a “Wrench (with a yellow handle). Click on the Wrench with the Yellow Handle.
3. Choose from the menu “Check for Updates.”
4. Choose LAT.
5. On the left, check the box for “All categories.”
6. Follow the onscreen directions.
7. You won’t see the changes until you QUIT and RESTART Notebook.

It doesn’t matter if you’re on a PC or a Mac, but if you’re on a Mac it will ask you for your password.