Whether you’ve always dreamed of being an astronaut or not, playing one for a day at the Challenger Learning Center in Atwater, California, was "out-of-this-world" fun!
Our adventure began with a presentation by guest speaker, Michelle Chouinard, Assistant Professor of Psychology from UC Merced. Her thought-provoking presentation was entitled, "Children’s Questions: a Mechanism for Learning about the World." Our group of teachers had many questions for Michelle and we had to "fly" to make our mission on time.
We listened carefully to the instructions of our mission commander - we were about to "Rendezvous with a Comet." Each of us had an assigned role with tasks to complete. (Even though we had important tasks, we couldn’t help but take pictures along the way!)
We were, of course, ravenous after our rendezvous and sat down for a lunch catered by the Hilmar Cheese Factory. It was all delicious… but I think everyone enjoyed the Cheesecake Brownies the best! They were heavenly!
Once fed, our educators were ready to accept their Challenger Challenge. They assembled in teams of 3 or 4. Each team was given a flashdrive with a variety of media assets from the new unitedstreaming. The assets included futuristic/space-themed video segments, images, and audio files. Their task… to create a digital story using at least two of each of the asset types they were given. These creative and enthusiastic educators came up with some wonderfully entertaining digital stories! After many laughs and lots of applause, they spent the remainder of the day exploring the Learning Center’s Science and Technology Museum. 
It was a BLAST!
Find other Challenger Learning Centers across the nation!
The New unitedstreaming has another tool in its arsenal. Along with the Quiz Builder and the Assignment Builder, now there is the Writing Prompt Builder. You can create your own original writing prompts with embedded images from the unitedstreaming image library or search for ones already made. Create an entire library of writing prompts in your "My Content" area and never be at a loss when you need one quickly. Challenge your students with open ended, critical thinking questions aligned to your curriculum. Since you are the creator, you can write prompts in other languages. You are now able to include academic vocabulary specific to the needs of your students.
It’s something to write home about!
Have you noticed the new search feature on the NEW unitedstreaming site? Are you aware of all it can do? You might consider it an advanced filtering system. For the purposes of this post, we are going to refer to it as the ability to "Drill Down" because it allows you to delve into the depths of your search and subject matter. So, let’s take a look…
When you type in your first keyword and click ‘go,’ you will notice that numbers appear next to the media types, subjects and grades. This lets you know how many total resources we have that fit into each category. Of course some cross multiple categories. To narrow this search you are now able to "Drill Down" according to your needs (this process is highlighted in the PowerPoint below.) For example, if you are a 7th Grade Science Teacher, you can first click on the 6 - 8 grade link under ‘By Grade.’ This will narrow your results to just material that fits your grade range. Also, notice the "breadcrumbs" that are on the upper left side indicating the path you are following as you continue to Drill Down. Now you can narrow by your subject, which was Science. You can Drill Down further within Science by choosing a topic such as Earth and Space Science. Finally, you can Drill Down by sub-topic, such as Oceans. This wonderful new tool will allow you to Drill Down and find exactly what you are looking for. Give it a try during your next visit to unitedstreaming.
Download drill_down_powerpoint.ppt
Here’s another tip for using the New unitedstreaming Version 3, but in a more personalized way. Ever wanted to make a really good and useful web page better by putting your own personal touch to it? Well, now you can. The New unitedstreaming is here to accommodate your own taste and cut down even more on your search time - by allowing the resources to come to you.
Today’s feature will give you that feeling of comfort right at your own fingertips. In this new version, you can select choice options of resources and place them right in front of you each time you login. You can place options on your page such as the week’s top videos, new videos, even featured videos - all related to your subject area. You can even choose teaching tips which will allow you to quick reference learning opportunities with just a click of the mouse. Download this PowerPoint tutorial to learn how.
Download my_homepage1.ppt
Here’s another tip for using the New Unitedstreaming Version 3, but in a more personalized way. Ever wanted to make a really good and useful webpage better by putting your own personal touch to it? Well now you can. The New unitedstreaming is here to accommodate your own taste and cut down even more on your search time - by allowing the resources to come to you.
Today’s feature will give you that feeling of comfort right at your own fingertips. In this new version, you can select choice options of resources and place them right in front of you each time you login. You can place such options on your page such as the week’s top videos, new videos, even featured videos - all related to your subject area. You can even choose teaching tips which will allow you to quick reference learning opportunities with just a click of the mouse. Download this PowerPoint tutorial to learn how.
Download My_Homepage.ppt
With over 1,000 added images to the new unitedstreaming… now is a good time to check out Photostory 3… It’s so simple even your students can create their own movies. Here’s a great website with some helpful tips and tricks. ( http://www.windowsphotostory.com/ )
Special thanks to Steve Dembo for letting us know about David Jakes collection of Photostory 3 Tutorials that can be found at http://www.jakesonline.org/photostory.htm Go and check it out! Create your own photostory and post it to our DEN website.
The New unitedstreaming is here and each day the rest of this week we’ll be presenting a new feature here on the blog. So be sure to tune in each day to find out about something new.
So listen up for today’s feature. Have you ever wished you had cool sound effects when editing your digital story or the sound of wildlife in the background of your PowerPoint about the rain forest? Well, the NEW unitedstreaming has added over 3,000 audio file These files can be streamed or downloaded just like the videos and it’s just as easy to do. Download this PowerPoint tutorial to learn how.
Download using_audio_files.ppt .
The New unitedstreaming is here and each day, the rest of this week, we’ll be presenting a new feature here on the blog. Be sure to tune in each day to find out about something new!
"Listen up" for today’s feature. Have you ever wished you had cool sound effects when editing your digital story or the sound of wildlife in the background of your PowerPoint about the rain forest? Well, the NEW unitedstreaming has added over 3,000 audio files. These files can be streamed or downloaded just like the videos and it’s just as easy to do.
Download this PowerPoint tutorial to learn how. Download using_audio_files.ppt
How cool is this?!? I noticed that there was a new post in our "Regional Events-West Coast" in the section for our "First Reunion Planned" discussion board, so I decided to check it out! Can you believe that it was a DEN member from Virginia letting us know a group of DEN members from her state are coming out for NECC and wanted to know if any of us would be getting together to watch the fireworks. She must have heard about our dynamic (a.k.a. WILD and CRAZY) CA group cuz they found us!
So what are ya’ll doing for the 4th? I will also be in town and it would be great to hang out and show some of that ELECTRIC CALIFORNIA PRIDE!
Check out the post…
http://www.discoveryeducatornetwork.com/forum/one.cfm?workspace_id=124617&object_id=215037&tab=object_view
Posted on June 5, 2006 in
NECC 2006 by dave kootman
To celebrate the NEW unitedstreaming being released, the Discovery Educator Network is going to be hosting our very first 12 hour Streamathon!
On Monday, June 5th, from 8:00am EST until 8:00pm EST we are going to be hosting a massive webinar that will be your opportunity to get the inside scoop on all the new features of unitedstreaming. Every hour on the hour, we’ll spend 30 minutes reviewing all the changes that you’ll find in the new version. Then, in the bottom half of the hour, you’ll have the opportunity to get an in depth look at one of the new areas of the site. If you miss one, don’t worry. Each presentation will be repeated three times throughout the day. You’ll have plenty of opportunities to get all of your questions answered.
You don’t need to pre-register for this webinar, just follow the link below and jump in anytime throughout the day! Don’t forget to tell your friends and co-workers!
Webinar Info:
Teleconference: Call in tollfree phone number (US/Canada): 866-469-3239
Call in phone number (US/Canada): 650-429-3300
Click Join Now next to the listing on the calendar in the link below!
On Monday, June 5th, you can click here to join the Streamathon!
Schedule:
8:00-8:30am EST Overview of NEW unitedstreaming
8:30-9:00am EST Teacher Center
9:00-9:30am EST Overview of NEW unitedstreaming
9:30-10:00am EST unitedstreaming in Action / My Home Page
10:00-10:30am EST Overview of NEW unitedstreaming
10:30-11:00am EST My Content
11:00-11:30am EST Overview of NEW unitedstreaming
11:30-12:00pm EST Digital Media Integration
12:00-12:30pm EST Overview of NEW unitedstreaming
12:30-1:00pm EST Teacher Center
1:00-1:30pm EST Overview of NEW unitedstreaming
1:30-2:00pm EST unitedstreaming in Action / My Home Page
2:00-2:30pm EST Overview of NEW unitedstreaming
2:30-3:00pm EST My Content
3:00-3:30pm EST Overview of NEW unitedstreaming
3:30-4:00pm EST Digital Media Integration
4:00-4:30pm EST Overview of NEW unitedstreaming
4:30-5:00pm EST Teacher Center
5:00-5:30pm EST Overview of NEW unitedstreaming
5:30-6:00pm EST unitedstreaming in Action / My Home Page
6:00-6:30pm EST Overview of NEW unitedstreaming
6:30-7:00pm EST My Content
7:00-7:30pm EST Overview of NEW unitedstreaming
7:30-8:00pm EST Digital Media Integration
Via RSS
Our adventure began with a presentation by guest speaker, Michelle Chouinard, Assistant Professor of Psychology from UC Merced. Her thought-provoking presentation was entitled, "Children’s Questions: a Mechanism for Learning about the World." Our group of teachers had many questions for Michelle and we had to "fly" to make our mission on time.
Once fed, our educators were ready to accept their Challenger Challenge. They assembled in teams of 3 or 4. Each team was given a flashdrive with a variety of media assets from the new unitedstreaming. The assets included futuristic/space-themed video segments, images, and audio files. Their task… to create a digital story using at least two of each of the asset types they were given. These creative and enthusiastic educators came up with some wonderfully entertaining digital stories! After many laughs and lots of applause, they spent the remainder of the day exploring the Learning Center’s Science and Technology Museum. 
It was a BLAST!
