1. Getting SMARTer….

    For the past several years, I have been fortunate enough to have a media cart in my classroom…  Her name is Louse and with her, I have learned countless strategies and creative ways for integrating the laptop, projector, speakers, and document camera into my everyday routine. I have presented many workshops for teachers, and offered [...]

  2. iTunes Resources

    More than 800 universities have active iTunes U sites including Stanford, Yale, MIT, Oxford, and UC Berkeley.  iTunes U allows you to upload and share educational content which is really cool.  In the Beyond Campus section of iTunes U, students and teachers can also access content from distinguished entities such as MoMA, the New York [...]

  3. Ideas are Like Fish … David Lynch

    Discovery Education Helps Students Search for the “Big Ones” “Ideas are like fish. If you want to catch little fish, you can stay in the shallow water. But if you want to catch the big fish, you’ve got to go deeper. Down deep, the fish are more powerful and more pure. They’re huge and abstract. [...]

  4. Blogging Around the Christmas Tree

    by Christine Cote   After spending the long weekend cooking and shopping, I was eager to settle down and get into a good book. However, in today’s digital age, I found myself catching up on some interesting blog sites.  Blogs are such a fascinating way to share a message or information. They are so easy [...]

  5. What Do You Find Pinteresting?

    by Suzy Brooks This fall has been spent in a state of inspiration as I wander the pages and pages of resources available on Pinterest.com.  Have you?  Are you using Pinterest for teaching?  While it is tempting to spend time finding pins relating to ALL areas of my life, I’ve tried my best to find [...]

  6. A Fly on the Wall

    Have you ever wished your job allowed you to wander the halls and peek into other teacher’s classrooms … be that proverbial fly on the wall? While some lucky teachers may be able to do this, most of us do not have this opportunity. Enter … The Teaching Channel. The Teaching Channel records real teachers [...]

  7. National Epilepsy Awareness Month

    November is National Epilepsy Awareness month. Having a daughter with this disorder, it is something that has transformed not only her life but the lives of every person in her life.  A previous den post by Jannita Demian (thanks Jannita!) spoke of how this disorder affected her family’s life as well.  This is a far [...]

  8. Great Opportunity in NYC!

    Do you live within a few hours of New York City?  Are you looking for a great reason to head to the Big Apple?  Discovery Education is hosting an event in New York City on Saturday, November 19.  As part of our Discovery Education Wilkes University Instructional Media Program we are hosting several events around [...]

  9. Catching Up or Leading the Way?

    I had the privilege of hearing Dr. Yong Zhao speak two summers ago at the MA New Literacies Symposium and again at the MassCUE Conference on October 27th.  I think you will be encouraged by this Asian educator’s perspective on the American education system, especially during this data driven environment.  His views on what we’re [...]

  10. Why not try a Tweet?

    I have had several conversations with teachers recently about using Twitter in the classroom.  Most of the conversations had a negatively slant to any use of Twitter.  I want to try and help teachers understand that although Twitter may not be a tool for every situation it certainly has a place in education both as [...]

  11. MassCue

    The MassCue conference is behind us once again!  I think it rains every year!!  Gillette Stadium is a great setting for the conference and I even got to say hello to Robert Kraft!  It was amazing what the elevator people were going through to see what elevator he would take and how they would have [...]

  12. Autumn

    We are well into October and the school year is moving quickly!  I find as an educator this is the perfect time of year to update my personal and professional learning communities.  Fall is probably the busiest time for most educators but a perfect opportunity to add to a network of educators to build resources [...]

  13. Comic Strips for Reluctant Writers

     One of my favorite blogs is “Free Technology for Teachers” by Mark Byrne.  Everyday he shares an interesting tool or classroom resource. He also explains how the tool may be useful in an educational setting. For example, today (9/21) there is a 5-minute video posted explaining the Aurora Borealis and vocabulary building resources and widgets.  While perusing other [...]

  14. With a Little Help From My Friends

    I can grow with a little help from my friends… As educators, we need to continue our journey on the road to discovery and be life-long learners.  It is always appreciated when a friend passes along an opportunity to collaborate and learn with others in the field of education.  I have recently received two such [...]

  15. Grading the Digital School

    As we begin yet another new school year, I think we all look for inspiration, motivation, and new challenges to keep our passion for educating at it’s peak.. I received a link to an article in the September 3, 2011 Sunday New York Post, written by Matt Richtel, titled “Grading the Digital School, In Classroom [...]

  16. Hurricanes? Politics? Stock Market?

    How many of your students watch, listen, or read about important events happening in the United States and the world? If they are like my students and my children, knowledge of current events is extremely limited. Flocabulary is a great tool to use in your classroom to quickly review the week’s happenings through The Week [...]

  17. Outstanding PD with Teaching Channel

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    Every once in a while we have the opportunity to be a part of a new initiative. Here is your chance! Through my PLN I learned of a relatively new web resource for professional development and a platform for sharing best practices (Beta version launched in June). It is called Teaching Channel, a California Public [...]

  18. Using Pictures to Ignite Learning

    posted by Christine Cote…   I attended a training session on the use of PQARs and am excited to try this practice in a classroom. What is a PQAR? PQAR stands for Picture Question Answer Response. Imagine showing an image to your class of Neil Armstrong and asking them what they can tell you about [...]

  19. Edutopia

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    “Edutopia is a Web site published by The George Lucas Educational Foundation (GLEF). Founded in 1991 by filmmaker George Lucas and venture capitalist Steve Arnold, the Foundation celebrates and encourages innovation in K-12 schools. Edutopia’s editorial agenda is based on documenting, disseminating and advocating solutions related to six core learning strategies. Project-based Learning Integrated Studies [...]

  20. Keep Connected

    The principal at Burlington High School in Burlington, MA is providing a great way to stay connected over the summer. Following the model of the “unconference” used at Edcamp, BHS will be hosting mini-Edcamps Tuesday mornings this summer.  It is a great opportunity to make new connections and share ideas.  The following was posted on [...]

  21. Fun things to do with Discovery Images

    There are thousands of beautiful and powerful images on the Web for educational use, and some of the best are found on Discovery Streaming. These images are great for so many educational projects and presentations. Below are three ways to use images that may be new to you. 1. Zooburst- 3D Storybooks http://www.zooburst.com/zb_gallery.php This web [...]