Arizona

Oh yes, we were all an engaged classroom at each of the four AZ f2f sites. Adding Ann Lumm’s glogster poster from Cartwright’s session and some photos (click to enlarge)taken by Deena Jorgenson @ Snowflake’s session. I’d like to see some comments here from AZ participants who participated at home or in one of our hosted sessions.

OK - here’s a request for user tips as to how to adjust embedded glogster size. I did edit the height and width in the code, but…   here is Ann’s link

As we eagerly await the unfolding of the SciCon Conference this Saturday, Jan. 9th, I’d like to share something from a previous DEN Virtual Event. Susan Drenkhahn, an educator in Snowflake, developed a lesson plan incorporating resources and tools she learned about in the October 2009 DEN Virtual Conference. At a recent DEN LC meeting, we talked about how we could encourage more of this type of sharing and possible PD credits for going the “extra mile” as Susan did.

You are welcome to contribute your suggestions about the type of PD we could offer in upcoming DEN f2f events OR in the virtual environment.  We’re sure to have some answers and ideas before MEC (yeah, Steve Dembo as Keynote Speaker) in mid-March. Stay tuned to this space and remember to send your contributions to the greater classroom.

Susan’s lesson is designed for Grades 9-12, Spec Ed, self-contained,  and incorporates Science, History, Geography and Reading Comprehension. Way to integrate!

Thanks again to Susan Drenkhahn!    See the attachment      lesson_plan.doc

 Join us for DEN SciCon in Arizona on January 9th.

The Discovery Educator Network (DEN) acknowledges the importance of STEM in the classroom, and is pleased to host a virtual conference on January 9^th promoting science education using digital resources. DEN SCIcon 2010 is an online conference (with a twist) focused on providing participants with some of the most effective strategies for transforming their science classes through the meaningful and effective integration of digital media content.  Join thousands of educators from around the world for an amazing day of professional development sessions, networking and sharing.

Register for one of many in-person events hosted by our DEN Leadership Councils.

Terramar School
7000 W. Happy Valley Road
Peoria, AZ 85383

7 AM to 2 PM

Cartwright Elementary School District 
3401 N. 67th Avenue 
Phoenix, AZ 85033

8:30 AM to 1 PM

Snowflake High School
190 W. 2nd Street South 
Snowflake, AZ 85937

8 AM to 2 PM

Esperero Canyon Middle School
Sabino Canyon Road 
Tucson, AZ 85750
7:30 AM to 2 PM

If you are not able to join a f2f event you may participate personally in the national online event by registering at this link .

Please access all of your Discovery Education services through your account at IDEAL www.ideal.azed.gov   Use the Curriculum Resources link to find DiscoveryEducation Streaming. Thank you!

December’s invitations: Seems I can’t eat dinner more than a couple of times this month. Must maintain that balance of calories in & out while juggling hors d’oeuvres and holiday beverages - this kind of juggling does not burn as many calories as Emily’s bike riding.

Are you looking for more $$ for your classroom, especially in these times of budget cuts? Consider applying for one of the Qwest grants available to AzTEA members. Up to $10,000 is possible. For more info

I know there are some webinars about better blogging.  Looking them up over holiday vacation is on my list of “to do(s)”.  In the meantime, the invitation is open and waiting for you to use this space. Send in your thoughts in the comments area.

Will you and the science teachers at your school be joining other DEN member for Sci Con on January 9th? It’s another of the now famous Discovery Virtual conference events. Snowflake and Tucson are hosting live events with food for a collaborative crowd. Check the National DEN site and read those Discovery newsletters that come to your e-mail box. Check here again soon for a registration link.

The recent webinar with Gail Lovely was excellent. Her site www.offtoagoodstart.yolasite.com captured the attention of every techie in the audience.

Other sites of interest: www.evernote.com   http://www.wolframalpha.com/ http://storybird.com/    

Please RSVP to my invitation to blog here - leave your comments about recommended links, muse about the direction of AARA…

Arizona educators enjoy an enriched relationship with DiscoveryEducation through the partnership with IDEAL. So many of you “know” Steve from DE webinars, his excellent blogs, and his interaction with the DENs around the world. Get your requests for conference leave to your districts and join us March 15, 16 and 17.

A former kindergarten teacher and school Director of Technology, Discovery Education’s Online Community Manager Steve Dembo is a pioneer in the field of educational social networking. Among the first educators to realize the power of blogging, podcasting, Twitter, and other Web 2.0 technologies to connect educators to one another and create professional learning communities, Dembo has been instrumental in the explosive growth of the Discovery Educator Network and its online presence at
http://community.discoveryeducation.com/.

In addition to demonstrating continued innovation in serving Discovery Education’s online community, Dembo continues to be a prolific blogger whose personal blog and companion podcast, Teach42, continues to serve as inspiration for tens of thousands of educators around the world. In 2009 his blog was recognized as one of 20 Must-Read Education Technology blogs by ACE Online Schools and was nominated for Best Individual Blog and Best EdTechSupport Blog at the Edublog Awards. In addition, Dembo has been recognized as one of the top 50 educational bloggers by Social Media Explorer.

We’re glad to host his first visit to Arizona!

Just wanted to give a shout out to two amazing DEN members from N. Arizona. April Weston is the Navajo County TIS and Deena Jorgenson is a Title I Math Teacher for Blue Ridge. Together, they coordinated the DEN Virtual Event on Saturday at Blue Ridge HS Library. A sucessful event with satisfied participants was  due to the cooperation of these two DEN members. Many thanks from the rest of the AZ DEN and teachers new to Discovery Education - you two rock! Vicki

You are invited:  DEN Virtual Conference

Saturday, October 24, 2009

6:00AM – 6:00PM (anytime in between)

10 hours PD credit is available (free) 

A local group of educators is meeting face-to-face for collaboration and to enjoy food provided by Discovery Education, but you may also work at home online with your personal internet connection. 

Meet the group: Blue Ridge High School Library   

Register for this face-to-face connection:   IDEAL link   (under construction - look at IDEAL PD page, please)

Please honor your commitment to attend if you register – food is ordered based on the registration count, thank you.  

Another link for the f2f meeting is  https://lrougeux.wufoo.com/forms/den-fall-virtual-conference-pinetop-az/ 

Stay tuned for more information about earning 10 PD hours for the completion of a lesson plan specific to this conference.I will be out of the office Oct 12 - 19, but another active DEN member, April Weston can give you more information. April.Weston@navajocountyaz.gov

You may also register to particpate in this event in your home with your personal internet connection.

Whew, the Day of Discovery for Administrators at SkySong was a success in every measure of the word. Over 100 eager participants joined us for a day of presentations by Philippe Cousteau, Hall Davidson, Brad Hagaman, Justin Karkow, Rosie Escandon and Sarah Crawford. Welcomes and introductions came from Margaret Dugan and Cathy Poplin from ADE, and Mark Nichols from ASU Alt^i/IDEAL. An audience of 35 in Tucson was able to join us for many of the presentations via communications equipment generously provided by PolyCom.  

Break out sessions provided specific focus on techniques and tools available to educators; all of them designed to engage students, use standards based resources, and employ multiple learning modalities. The audience was actively involved in each workshop and there was never a shortage of volunteers for answers and examples. That enthusiasm carried through the beginning of this week with a flurry of e-mails asking for presentation copies, administrative rights for DE Streaming, student access, tutorials for IDEAL resources, and requests for more workshops.

Members of the DEN Leadership Council and Arizona’s Technology Integration Specialists were on hand to assist with directions and connections.

Students at Mesa Academy for Advanced Studies and Yavapai Elementary School were treated to an assembly featuring Philippe Cousteau on Thursday. On Thursday evening, Discovery also hosted a VIP reception at Eddie V’s.

AZ DEN LC would like to thank the Discovery team, IDEAL, ADE and PolyCom for providing our administrators with the opportunity to share the resources their teachers have been raving about!

Photos included in the Flickr photostream reflect all of these events.

Were you there? Can you find your picture? Click HERE to view the photos.

Big thanks to IDEAL & Dept of Ed, Discovery, CCS Presentation Systems, Polycom,  Lindsay Hopkins (Discovery Rep), and all the many who helped coordinate and get this event happening.

The Tucson event was hosted by the generous people of CCS Presentation Systems, who not only had a LifeSize screen to show the morning speakers, but allowed us to use four SMARTBoards for our afternoon digital storytelling project.  We had 35 administrators and lead teachers attend the event and leave very excited about getting their staff to maximize all the Discovery and IDEAL resources.  Their enthusiasm has the phone ringing off the hook and email inboxes chiming in AZ technology integration specialist offices.

For the morning, we used donated PolyCom equipment to stream Margaret Dugan and Cathy Poplin of the Department of Education; Mark Nichols of IDEAL/ASU, Phillipe Cousteau and Hall Davidson.  After a grand assortment of Tucson Tamales, we enjoyed “Beyond the Stream” done Lindsay Hopkins-style.  What an outstanding presenter!  We had so much fun and loved to see the participants taking breaks to play and explore the DEN and the rest of Discovery.  After the “Stream” administrators finally got their turn to do some of the Digital Storytelling we are always talking about.  Lindsay facilitated their PhotoStory “advertisements” and “virtual visit” creations using images from the day.  What fun!

We do regret we did not getting to rub shoulders with the “Talent” of Discovery en vivo, but  having such a spectacular facility (especially for gadget-lovers) and a more intimate situation, made for great Discovery experience.

Thanks again to everyone.  Excellent job!

 Greetings,

It was exciting to meet so many of you at the Day of Discovery event at Cartwright last February. The feedback we received was phenomenal and it was a truly engaging event made even better by a group of enthusiastic educators.

A similar event, but this time geared for administrators, is happening on Friday, Aug 28^th at ASU’s SkySong and we are writing to ask for your help in getting the word out.  You are the “face” of DE in Arizona and perhaps you told your administrator about the value of your experience at Day of Discovery.  

Please personally invite your school administrator to the Day of Discovery for Administrators presentation, “Discover the Undiscovered:  Administrator’s Pathways.”

On August 28th, from 9:00am - 3:30pm, members of the DEN LC and the DE Team including Phillipe Cousteau and Hall Davidson will be revealing the new DEstreaming and administrator resources to your superintendents, principals and curriculum directors.  They will be introduced to the new face and functionality of the Discovery environment (that you have learned about in the DEN Back to School webinars).

You may print out the attached flier for your administrative team. A personal invitation or conversation is even better.  Please note that the registration link is at the bottom of the attached flier. Admin_flier