Mysteries for Kids

Finding mysteries to use for instruction always seems to be a struggle. However, the following site may be of some help. Kids.mysterynet.com is a great site. ( I always seem to come back to this site when I'm working on a mystery unit. Lorie Donovan actually found it a few years ago when we were looking for some different mysteries to use with students.) The site has a Solve-It section which has short mystery stories and a Quick Solve section that has mysteries that are only about a paragraph long. After reading the mystery the reader is asked who they think did it. Students can make a selection and see if they are right. The correct answer is given with the clues used to figure it out. This can be a great way to teach the elements of a mystery without having to get into lengthy text. There is also a section entitled Mysteries by Kids. These are stories written by students for students. The stories published were the winners of the MysteryNet's Writing Contest. MysteryNet posted story starters and kids finished the mystery stories. (Students can enter the contest. Requirements are given on the site.) The site also has scary stories in the Chiller section and a Magic Trick section that teaches children how to do simple tricks. All stories and trick directions can be printed. Snoop around the site. See if you might find a mystery for the detectives in your room.

Announcing a New Online Course

I'm excited to announce a new online course called,

"Issues, Trends, and Tools in Education and Technology in a Web 2.0 World"

We have recently aquired an open source, online course management tool called, Moodle. I've created a sample course and would like to have members of the Technology Study Groups volunteer to enroll and try out this pilot course. Your participation and feedback will help us to learn how to use this tool to provide alternative staff development offerings as well as how to help teachers to use this tool to provide online components to courses they are teaching their students.

Below is the course outline. If you enroll and complete all lessons and assignments, you can earn an inservice credit. If you enroll and complete just some of the lessons and assignments, you can use the time toward your inservice credit for the Tech Study Group. Either way, you will also get a "technology-related gift" from me as my way of saying thank you for participating in our pilot project.

If you would like to enroll in this course, please contact Lori Burch and I will send you instructions for creating an account and enrolling.
Don't wait too long. The course is beginning this week.

Course Outline

The course is divided into 3 strands or themes. Each strand has 3 lessons associated with it as well as a reflection activity.

Strand 1 - Blogging
Blogging has become such an integral part of news, information, politics, and social interactions in our technology rich world. This strand focuses on teaching participants about blogs and blogging, helping them to create a blog which they will use as a communication and collaboration tool throughout the course, and giving them a taste of how blogging can be used in the classroom.

Strand 2 - Web 2.0 Tools for Creating and Sharing Content
The Internet today has made a switch from being primarily a "read only" environment where content creators were a limited group who needed to possess special skills, to a "read/write" environmnent where anyone and everyone can easily create and share content online with no special training or skills. This strand will introduce several of these tools that allow users to create, collaborate, and share content online.

Strand 3 - School 2.0
Given all of the above, and more, educators today must rethink teaching and come to a new understanding of learning if we are to reach, teach, and have an impact on students who are growing up in a technology rich world, where technology is a given in their everyday lives, not an optional, added in tool. Our students need a different set of skills in order to be productive citizens of the world of today and tomorrow than their predecessors did. This strand is a more reflective strand giving participants an opportunity to think about these issues and what they mean to them.


At the end of each strand, there is a reflection activity which gives participants the opportunity to respond to what they have learned and share their insights. Participants will also be required to read and respond to the reflections of their online classmates, giving them experience in collaborating and participating in online conversation. At the end of the course there is also a final reflection activity. This will give participants the opportunity to share feedback on the course itself, the structure, the online experience and suggestions they might have for future online courses.

Lori's "Geek of the Week" Entry

I know I'm a bit on the geeky side, but I found this article from ABC News really interesting in so many ways. Below is an excerpt. Click on the title to go to ABC News online to read the entire article.

So Much Data, Relatively Little Space
By BRIAN BERGSTEIN AP Technology WriterBOSTON Mar 5, 2007 (AP)

A new study that estimates how much digital information the
world is generating (hint: a lot) finds that for the first time, there's not
enough storage space to hold it all. Good thing we delete some stuff. .
.

. . . Add it all up and IDC determined that the world generated
161 billion gigabytes (161 exabytes) of digital information last year. Oh, the
equivalents! That's like 12 stacks of books that each reach from the Earth to
the sun. Or you might think of it as 3 million times the information in all the
books ever written, according to IDC. You'd need more than 2 billion of the most
capacious iPods on the market to get 161 exabytes.

So, what do you think? How does this effect us in education? What are the implications for us as a society? Post your thoughts.

Classroom Blogging

I've just listened to an excellent podcast on the topic of classroom blogging. It's a recording of a presentation done by Bob Sprankle at the ACTEM (Association of Computer Technology Educators of Maine) Annual Conference held last fall. He has wonderful examples of how and why to use blogging with students. He also has links to a myriad of classroom blogging resources. You will find the links below.

He mentions an issue with using Blogger with students which is that of the blue bar at the top that links to other, random blogs. If you would like to begin blogging with your students, but this is a concern you have with using Blogger in the classroom, please email me and I can fill you in on some options for addressing that.

Bit by Bit Episode 32 - Classroom Blogging Podcast
Workshop Links from this Podcast
Blog Tool Options Wiki by Wesley Fryer

New York State Educational Technology Conference 06

Last fall the New York State Association for Computers and Technologies in Education (NYSCATE) held their annual conference. The links below will take you to podcasts and videos of the keynote addresses and of the presentations in most of the sessions at the conference.

Keynote Vodcasts
eLearning Strand Podcasts
Emerging Technologies Strand Podcasts
How-To and Tech Integration Strand Podcasts
Leadership Strand Podcasts
Technical Strand Podcasts
Special Sessions Podcasts

Please listen to at least one (1) podcast and then return here to the blog and post your thoughts, questions, learnings, etc.

More on Web 2.0 Tools

As a follow-up to the Andy Carvin podcast post below, I wanted to share these additional Web 2.0 resources with you.

I frequently listen to an ed tech podcast called, Seedlings Podcast@Bit by Bit, which is produced by 3 ed tech specialists in Maine. In December they got together with ed tech teachers from all over Maine and put together a list of interesting and powerful Web 2.0 tools. Here is a link to there website where you will find all the links, Seedlings Podcast@Bit by Bit Show 11. There you will also find a link to the podcast where they discussed these tools.

Additionally, in January my instructional technology specialists group at BOCES had a similar discussion of distance learning and Web 2.0 tools. Here is a link to our podcast of this discussion at our site, ITS Tech Time - Episode 4 Bonus Show. In the show notes you will find links to all of the tools discussed.

Listen to these podcasts, explore the links and come back here to the blog to post or make a comment on something you found interesting. Better yet, use one of these tools personally or with your students and then tell us about it.

Embracing Web 2.0 in an Education 1.0 Universe

Last July, Andy Carvin of the Digital Divide Network delivered the keynote at the ThinkBright Summer Digital Institute, hosted by WNED public television in Buffalo, New York. The speech, "Embracing Web 2.0 in an Education 1.0 Universe," gave a brief history of the Internet and an overview of how we got to the web of today, the ways in which it differs from the original web we all have been familiar with, and what this means for education. Here's a podcast of the speech, along with the accompanying Powerpoint. Andy has also begun a new site in cooperation with PBS exploring the issues of the Internet, culture and education called, LearningNow.

Listen to this podcast, view the PowerPoint, and explore LearningNow. Then comment here to share your thoughts.

Jimmy Wales of Wikipedia at Wikimania 2006

As a sort of follow-up or maybe as an overview or background info for Denise's post below about wikis, I thought I'd share this with you. Jimmy Wales is one of the founders of Wikipedia and he gave an extremely interesting talk at the Wikimania Conference last summer. Here's the podcast of Jimmy Wales' talk at the Wikimania conference. It's about 30 megs, so it may take a while to download depending on your connection.

Listen to the podcast and post some thoughts or questions here.

Wiki's

I have just completed a Wiki course with Lori Burch. I have started one for Village Elementary and would like to see as many grade levels use and edit it for information. What is a Wiki you ask? A wiki is an easy to use web page that muliple people can edit. For example. When doing research on the Arctic or the Rainforest for example, students will be able to "post" their information so that other students might be able to use that information. It's kind of like an encyclopedia. Sometimes it is hard to find information on the internet that is age appropriate. If we could get this started, it might be a place for future students to go to do some of their research or if the information is outdated to edit this information. I'd like to get your thoughts about this and, also, I need your help as far as getting you and your students involved with this. Tell me what you think. VillageWiki check out the Wiki Link. I have actually put some information on for you to see. If you go to the wiki, go to the Arctic Page then to 3rd grade Arctic. From there the pictures are links to the students research. They did an awesome job.

District Tech Standards Review

Our district technology standards and performance indicators were written about 6 years ago and need to be reviewed for possible revisions. Tech Study Group members either have been, or soon will be, given copies of the current standards and the performance indicators for the elementary level. You can also CLICK HERE for another copy.

Please comment here on what you think might need revising. Things to consider are as follows:

• Are there items that need rewording? How would you revise these items?
• Are there items that need to be moved to a different grade level? If so, what grade level?
• Are there adjustments that should be made in the mastery level for an item for a grade level?
• Are there items that should be deleted altogether? Which ones?
• Are there things missing that should be added? If so, what should be added?
  
• Other things you can think of?