Microsofts World Wide Telescope

This is an excellent resource for k12 educators. This site brings to life the vast unknown of space. This virtual telescope provides imagery from space-based telescopes. Also it provides tours of the sky and celestial bodies. It also contains guides tours and historic narratives on most of the Apollo missions. This resources could be used to teach history, geography and science. This is an engaging platform that really captivates student interest.

You must install a small application but the process is simple and well worth the time.
Click below to visit!
http://www.worldwidetelescope.org/help/SupportHelp.aspx

Online Quiz by My Studiyo

Over the weekend I received another link to an online quiz maker. In the past I found many of these to be a bit hokey and not worth much, but since I received this from multiple sources and they all thought that it was a great resource, I decided to check it out. I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised. The ease of putting together a quiz was very intuitive and the process was simple and straight forward. I was able to create a quiz in just a few minutes which is another plus in my book. The use of this in a classroom as an introduction activity would be great, since you can add all types of media to the quizzes. This could be a great way to introduce an upcoming topic or review past knowledge before moving on. Another plus for me was the fact that it was free. All you need to do is create an account and you can start making quizzes; however, they do advertise and that could be an issue for some school districts. Overall this is one that I may use in the future and definitely earned a bookmark. Thanks guys for the link and tip.

thanksgiving_day_quiz

Zoom to Learn

This is a great resource for teachers to post images on the web and have students able to really zoom into sections and look at a particular image. I have found this very useful for things such as maps. Often when I give a map assignment students like to go to Google map and begin working. However, since they can do so much with Google maps they often get lost in the process and are off task looking at their house or other things that are not the focus of my lesson. This is one of the pitfalls of technology. To combat this I have begun using this website to create usful maps that limit what they can look at so that the focus stays on the task at hand. In an age of immense technology sometimes we forget that students can get lost in the amount of information they can find in a simple Google search. We as teachers need to ensure this does not happen and provide resources that limit the inflow of information to attain our learning objective.

http://www.zoomify.com/

Don’t Overlook the Obvious

With all of the many different resources out there for lesson plans and lesson plan ideas. It seems that I have found myself and other colleagues searching every source but those that seem obvious to check, like  the Library of Congress. After visiting their website last night I knew that I just had to blog about this resource. Like you would expect there are some excellent resources and lesson plans to be found on the teachers page of their website. The teacher page contains everything from lesson plans to professional development resources. What I found most impressive was the amount of primary resources you can find to use in your classroom.  While I have used this site in the past it just seems as though I lost track of them and now realize again that this should be a first stop when looking for ideas and lesson plans for class.

http://www.loc.gov/teachers/

I cant create my future with the tools of your past!

Here is a great video created by Marianne Malmstrom that was created as the Keynote for Net Generation Education Project. She asked some middle school students their thoughts on technology and their future and this is what she got. The wisdom that can be gained from kids we we just listen is extraordinary. This is a much watch video for anyone who is interested in integrating technology into education.

No Future Left BehindTechnorati Tags: technology, education, future, middle school, educational technology, edtech, how to, listen, lesson plan

For more great information on technology use in the classroom visit the authors website/Wiki at http://knowclue.wikispaces.com

Wondering where to get started with technology in the classroom? Read this article by Lisa Nielsen

Lisa does a great job laying out 10 ways to get started with 21st century learning in the classroom. You know what it really is not that scary!
Click here to read the article by Lisa  Nielsen.

 

The Why Files (Science behind the News)

This is a great website for secondary science teachers. It provides students with an explanation of the science and technology behind current news of the day. This site is based at the  University of Wisconsin-Madison. Their goal is to “explain the relationship between science and daily life.” This site has many interactive activities explain many natural phenomenons with quizzes, questions and activities that meet many state standards.

Click here to visit the site.

http://whyfiles.org/

Educational Technology Wiki

This is an educational technology Wiki known as Edutech Wiki. this is a great resource for teachers wanting to learn or participate in learning about educational technology. It is hosted by TECFA – an educational technology research and teaching unit at University of Geneva. This site has tutorials, articles, and many other resources for teachers.

Click here to Check this one out!

http://edutechwiki.unige.ch/en/Main_Page

 

Podcasting in 10 Minutes (Part One Setup)

To create podcasts for your class does not take alot of time. This is the first video in a series that discusses and shows you how to create podcasts in under 10 minutes for your classroom. Please provide feedback and any questions.

Interactive Whiteboard Resources

If you have an interactive whiteboard Hitachi has a great list of simulations, activities, games and other resources on their website. Simply go to the following address and look at some of these resources. They are worth a look!
http://www.hitachi-soft.com/icg/educators_corner/classrooms.htmlTechnorati Tags: interactive whiteboards games resources activities simulations Starboard promethean whiteboard