DEN Blog Network http://blog.discoveryeducation.com Connecting our global community of educators. Thu, 09 Feb 2012 19:30:44 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 Quickly find free NASA educational resources http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/09/quickly-find-free-nasa-educational-resources/ http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/09/quickly-find-free-nasa-educational-resources/#comments Thu, 09 Feb 2012 19:18:16 +0000 David Andrade http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/?p=23007

NASA Educational Standards Quilts are a quick and easy way to find free NASA educational resources that align to National Math and Science Standards.

The materials are available online for download and print, or you can order copies.

The site starts with a menu of 5 quilts: Space Science, Mathematics, California Science, Girl Scouts, and More Education Resources. They are available online, text version, and an Excel version. The online version is easier to use and interactive. The text and Excel versions have the resource links in each box.

You click on the quilt you are interested in. The online versions take you to another page where you select the grade level (K-4, 5-8, 9-12), area (Science: Science as Inquiry, Technology Connections, Personal/Social Connections, Nature & History of Science, Unifying Concepts and Processes). The grid then has different concepts across the top. In science they have forces, motion, sky, solar system, etc.

The light blue boxes have resources. Click on the box and the resources show on the bottom left of the screen, with a summary of the resource on the right.

In less than 5 minutes I was able to find 22 resources for one lesson for my physics class. It’s a great resource for any Science or Math teacher.

 

 

Here are a lot more great, free Educational Resources from NASA

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

]]> http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/09/quickly-find-free-nasa-educational-resources/feed/ 0 Site Maintenance on Friday evening, February 10th http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/09/site-maintenance-on-friday-evening-february-10th/ http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/09/site-maintenance-on-friday-evening-february-10th/#comments Thu, 09 Feb 2012 18:57:32 +0000 Karen Sanders http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/?p=22972 The www.discoveryeducation.com site will be temporarily unavailable on Friday, February 10th, from 9 – 9:30 PM CST for scheduled upgrades.  We apologize for any inconvenience, and remember, all the great posts in the DEN Blog Network will remain available during this timeframe.

]]> http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/09/site-maintenance-on-friday-evening-february-10th/feed/ 0 DEN STAR Access to Discovery Education Science Techbook http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/09/den-star-access-to-discovery-education-science-techbook/ http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/09/den-star-access-to-discovery-education-science-techbook/#comments Thu, 09 Feb 2012 18:38:37 +0000 Brad Fountain http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/?p=22974 Discovery Education is thrilled to provide STAR Discovery Educators with access to the Discovery Education Science Techbook for the remainder of the school year. To access your state’s version of the Discovery Education Science Techbook you will need to log into http://community.discoveryeducation.com and click on Discovery Education Science Techbook Access for STAR Educators, which will be in red below your name on the community site.  

This will take you to a site where you can retrieve your state’s passcode. If you do not see your state listed you can either access the national version or choose another state to access.  You will need to create a NEW username and password with a different email than your current account.

In addition to providing access to the Discovery Education Science Techbook we have a fun little promotion to help get you started on utilizing the Discovery Education Science Techbook. Beginning in February we will be hosting a series of webinars to provide an overview of the Discovery Education Science Techbook.

At the end of February we will enter all of the attendees from the webinars into a drawing for an iPad 2.

 

We will also have two special promotions in March and April plus at the end of the special Star techbook promotion one lucky person will receive an exclusive invitation to the DEN Summer Institute July 21-26 in Bozeman, MT.


DEN STAR Techbook Webinar Series

]]> http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/09/den-star-access-to-discovery-education-science-techbook/feed/ 0 Video Adaptations of Picture Books from DE http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/09/video-adaptations-of-picture-books-from-de/ http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/09/video-adaptations-of-picture-books-from-de/#comments Thu, 09 Feb 2012 17:34:07 +0000 Karen Ogen http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/?p=22967

You may know that Discovery Education has a great selection of educational videos for your classroom.  But, did you know that they also have an impressive collection (over 200 titles) of children’s picture books on video?

Here is a sample of some of the titles that you can find:

 

 

 

  • Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
  • Danny and the Dinosaur
  • The Emperor’s New Clothes
  • Harry the Dirty Dog
  • Make Way for Ducklings
  • Miss Nelson Is Back
  • Officer Buckle and Gloria
  • Stone Soup
  • Strega Nona
  • Where The Wild Things Are
  • Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears
Try searching for “Reading Rainbow” to find over 100 more titles.  Look for chapter books and audio books, too.
Play the video on your SMARTboard so that all of your students can follow along.  Most have closed captioning, so your students can read along, too!
]]> http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/09/video-adaptations-of-picture-books-from-de/feed/ 0 Countdown to the DEN PreCon at PETE&C 2012 http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/09/22955/ http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/09/22955/#comments Thu, 09 Feb 2012 05:41:22 +0000 RJ Stangherlin http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/?p=22955

Can you feel the excitement? It all begins at the Hershey Lodge and Conference Center in the sweetest place in Pennsylvania. Mark your calendar for Sunday, 2-12-12 from 9 AM – 3 PM.

The countdown to the Discovery Educator Network PreConference at PETE&C 2011 begins.

Can you feel it now?

A special thanks to Max Brooks, DEN Account Manager and PETE&C PreCon organizer, for the schedule of events.

You can download the PreCon schedule to your iPhone, Android, or Blackberry by visiting http://petec2012.sched.org. You can also store the PreCon data on your computer for offline reference. Nice job, Max!

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]]> http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/09/22955/feed/ 0 Welcome and Congratulations to Jessi Anderson, Georgia’s Newest STAR! http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/08/welcome-and-congratulations-to-jessi-anderson-georgias-newest-star/ http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/08/welcome-and-congratulations-to-jessi-anderson-georgias-newest-star/#comments Thu, 09 Feb 2012 04:34:20 +0000 Monique http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/?p=22931 Welcome to the Georgia DEN family Jessi! Congratulations on being accepted to the Summer Institute too. You will have a great time, meet wonderful people, and learn a lot!

 

Here is Jessi’s application to the DEN Summer Institute.

Wondering what this DEN Summer Institute is all about? Find our more about it including how to apply here.

]]> http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/08/welcome-and-congratulations-to-jessi-anderson-georgias-newest-star/feed/ 1 Resources for Promoting Reading in the Science Classroom http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/08/resources-for-promoting-reading-in-the-science-classroom/ http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/08/resources-for-promoting-reading-in-the-science-classroom/#comments Thu, 09 Feb 2012 04:25:23 +0000 Monique http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/?p=22917 Looking for a way to get your science students reading? Try using some of the following ideas and resources.

Graphic Novels:

Graphic Novels such as Charles Darwin’s Origin of the Species: A Graphic Adaptation, Introducing Relativity: A Graphic Guide, and The Surprising World of Bacteria

 

 

 

 

Bestselling Science: Books by authors such as Michael Crichton, James Rollins, and Dan Brown are action packed and loaded with science facts. These authors fuse real cutting edge science issues with action and drama for a high interest read. Most importantly they all include appendices that address the truth and fiction behind the science concepts central to the plots of their amazing stories.

Audio Books and e-Readers: Have students listen to excerpts of popular novels with science concepts central to the story. Students may take an interest and decide to explore further on their own. Also, e-Readers like the Kindle come with free books and loan programs.

Explicitly Teach Tier 2 and Tier 3 Vocabulary to Students: Students often have difficulty learning science because all students are Academic Language Learners. Academic language is very different from social language, and must be explicitly taught. Tier 2 language is complex language not used often in social speech, but a common feature of written academic language. Tier 3 language is content specific language. Science has a lot of Tier 3, content specific language that is often taught as a part of a new unit of study. For more information on vocabulary tiers see the attached pdf that can also be found here.

182_VocabularyTiers
Use Reading Strategies: Strategies such as Cloze notes, Cornell Lectures and Cornell Notes, Graphic Organizers can be very helpful tools in engaging students in science courses, and ensuring that they have adequate background for abstract and important content. Websites like LD Online provide a variety of strategies for engaging students with learning disabilities that can be used with many struggling learners.

Build A Classroom Library: Collect a variety of informational reading materials at various reading levels to ensure all students have access to a literacy rich classroom experience. Use Discovery Education articles and resources to provide students with extra reading practice. Assign professional journal readings and activities to students in the secondary classroom to ensure that your students are exposed to real world scientific research and writing, and are prepared for college level reading and writing in the science classroom. To get help building your classroom library, consider making bookstores like Barnes & Noble, and others, partners in education. Reach out to authors, publishing houses, and scientific organizations for help in building your library.

If you have tried any of these techniques to increase reading in your science classroom, please post your comments and experiences. We would love to hear from you!

 

]]> http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/08/resources-for-promoting-reading-in-the-science-classroom/feed/ 0 Discovery Sites: U.S. Networks http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/08/discovery-sites-u-s-networks/ http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/08/discovery-sites-u-s-networks/#comments Thu, 09 Feb 2012 04:04:25 +0000 RJ Stangherlin http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/?p=22915 Discovery sites encompass a series of programs within them. Animal Planet, for example, is home to nearly 30 established series, while OWN (Oprah Winfrey Network) houses fewer programs because the site is building capacity. The expansiveness of the U.S. sites explains why Discovery is a leader in the communications industry. For more information, check Discovery Sites: U.S. Networks. Enjoy!

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]]> http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/08/discovery-sites-u-s-networks/feed/ 0 NC Alternative Energy Resource for Teachers http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/08/nc-alternative-energy-resource-for-teachers/ http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/08/nc-alternative-energy-resource-for-teachers/#comments Thu, 09 Feb 2012 02:25:56 +0000 Diane Ripollone http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/?p=22910 This is From http://alternativeenergyatunc.wordpress.com/ could be a future field trip?

“This one of a kind project is currently being tested right here in NC! The new solar double cropping project in Pittsboro, NC is an experiment designed to show that you can have a solar photovoltaic system and grow sustainable crops that thrive in partial shade at the same time!” more

]]> http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/08/nc-alternative-energy-resource-for-teachers/feed/ 0 Ohio eTech Conference http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/08/ohio-etech-conference/ http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/2012/02/08/ohio-etech-conference/#comments Thu, 09 Feb 2012 00:38:21 +0000 Susan http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/?p=22902 eTech Ohio Conference is coming up Feb 13 – 15. One of the highlights will be Kyle Schutt’s “Differentiating your Instruction with Discovery Education’s Digital Media” 10:45-12:45 on Feb 14. Stop by the Discovery Education exhibit, say hello and find out more about networking with other educators via DEN/STAR.
Hope to see you there Ohioans!

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