How do you Edit a Photo?

Now that Digital Cameras have image resolution capabilities up to and beyond 18 megapixels what do you do when you want to edit those pictures after you have taken them.  How do you take an image that is 4000x3000 and reduce it or compress it so that it can be put somewhere else like a webpage, blog, etc.  What tools are out there to do this? There are programs out there that can help you out but what if you cannot afford to buy a program...

Read More

A Different Type Of Professional Development

 I love checking things off on my list!First Edcamp  First presentation at Edcamp Last Saturday, April 21 was the first ever EdcampNC. It was held at Poe Hall on the North Carolina State Campus. I wasn't really sure what to expect because I had never attended one before. I had heard about others around the country: EdcampPhilly, EdcampDenver, EdcampSocialStudies, etc. I really wanted to see what it was all about.The first thing...

Read More

My First Edcamp Experience

This past weekend I was able to attend my first Edcamp in Raleigh, North Carolina.  I was not sure what to expect and really did not know how things were going to work since I was told that there was no agenda.  No agenda I thought to myself, how will I know what I want to do and where I am supposed to be throughout the day.  If you do not know me, and my co-workers and friends can tell you, I am a very strict timeline follower. ...

Read More

What can questions do?

How many questions do you ask each day?How many questions form in your mind each day?What does it mean to have questions?Is it Ok to have questions that don't have answers?I think asking questions is a good thing (even the WHY? questions from my child).If you are asking questions, that means you want to know more .... which means you are engaged in learning, even if it is not always the traditional definition of or setting for learning to take place.This...

Read More

Leading Change? Creating Innovation?

The old saying is that "No one likes change but babies in diapers." (Barbara Johnson) If that is true, how does a district make systemic change? Kotter International states, "Urgency is becoming increasingly important because change is shifting from episodic to continuous. That means there is a constant need for an urgent focus on what is important." Change is around every corner. There is no longer a period of breathing room in education. In North...

Read More

Free Electronic Field Trip

Visit Colonial Williamsburg website where teachers and students can find out more information about colonial times. There are videos, podcasts, blogs, etc. Find out if Thomas Jefferson's ideas about education are still valid today by viewing his blog. Read recipes from the colonial era at "History is Served". There is also a Kids Zone with games and activities. There are many more activities for teachers and students to find at Colonial Williamsburg....

Read More

More PD In Your PJs From @SimpleK12

Some of you may know but, in my spare time I do presenting for Simple K12. These free webinars are on a wide variety of topics. There are loads of other great presenters too who present on a whole host of topics. Everything from iPads, to flipped classrooms, to time management. (You can view the entire list here.) Yes, they are free. So cool right?Well, the bunnies at Simple K12 have outdone themselves this time and created their first virtual conference....

Read More

Did you know there is a city in Texas named Melissa?

At times I find the comments after an online article more interesting than the article itself ...I think it is quite interesting to see people's responses to the information being shared.  There are times when I learn things from reading the comments, and there are times when I don't learn anything (other than that people in general need to think more about the comments they leave and their word choices at times, but that is another topic).The...

Read More

Using CPS Verbal Engage Questions and ActivInspire Expresspoll for Formative Assessments

When teachers ask students questions in class without the use of Student Response Systems such as CPS or ActivExpressions, do they receive an accurate assessment of whether or not the students truly understand what was covered in class? Student response systems allow students to remain anonymous and therefore permit all students to respond without worry or concern. Teachers can ask questions that require more thought provoking text responses from...

Read More

Tools And Resources For Creating Infographics

Infographics. You have probably seen them before. There are so many out there on a wide variety of topics. Here are just a few. (Click the images to see more):The Computer Can Be A Dirty PlaceVisualizing WikipediaEven Batman has an infographicThese really are a great way to visualize data. And believe it or not, you don't have to be a graphic designer to create them. All it takes is some data you want to visualize and knowing where to go to...

Read More

Interactive Sentences Using ActivInspire

Have you been trying to figure out a way to engage your students a little more while they are in their writing centers creating sentences?  Why not use your ActivBoard and ActivInspire to make creating sentences a little more fun.  There is a tool called Append Text that will allow your students create sentences by Appending (adding text) after a sentence starter word.To set this up you will need to open ActivInspire and on a new flipchart create your list of words that you want students to use to create sentences.  Then in a blank...

Read More

Who is your favorite?

Part of my classroom library one year Do you have a favorite author?How many books have you read by that author?Did you enjoy reading one book by that author so much that you went in search of other books by that author?I admit that I do that as an adult reader. I greatly enjoyed reading Walking Across Egypt by Clyde Edgerton, so search for other books written by that author. I have enjoyed most of the books I have found, and I have found many books...

Read More

Updates in StudyLadder

Yesterday I received an email from StudyLadder about what was new for 2012. Also, from one of my Diigo groups there was a link to Mathematics Patterns. Guess what; it was from StudyLadder! This started me thinking about another blog post on StudyLadder. In May, 2011, I wrote a blog post about StudyLadder (Work Your Way Up The StudyLadder). I talked more about Literacy in that blog post; now I want to talk about Math.StudyLadder is free for teachers...

Read More

Anything Containers in ActivInspire

So let’s say that you are using ActivInspire with your students to teach a concept in class and you need a place on the page for students to write notes or calculate math problems. Let’s also say that you need more than one area for you students to answer your questions or solve your problems and there isn’t enough space on the page. You can use the shape tool to draw a rectangle (note paper) with a tab so that the student can slide it on the page...

Read More

StudyBlue

So, what exactly is StudyBlue? Who is it designed for and how would you use it?  StudyBlue allows teachers and students to make flashcards online. You can use StudyBlue online or on your mobile device. Students can view their flashcards as a review sheet, or quiz themselves while reviewing for a test. One of the newest things students can do with StudyBlue is, they can search and find other students flashcards on a subject.Click to view the...

Read More

Quick & Fast Mapping Made Easy

While attending a conference recently I was in a workshop that was offering a lot of resources for Social Studies and Science and I was introduced to what I thought was a really great website.  As soon as I saw the website my ADD kicked in and I started thinking of all of the ways that it could be used for Social Studies mostly and as well for the other curriculum areas.The site, oh yeah I have not told you yet, is Batch Geo.  This site gives you the ability to quickly create an interactive map from Spread Sheet data.  Yes you can...

Read More

Do you think learning and curiosity are connected?

How do you encourage and support curiosity?I saw something on Edutopia that caught my attention: Four Strategies to Spark Curiosity via Student Questioning by Kevin D. Washburn.I admit that the the way curiosity and questioning are connected in the title is what first caught my eye.One of the first statements that jumped out at me is "Curiosity is the name we give to the state of having unanswered questions. And unanswered questions, by their nature,...

Read More