New York DEN

Today, Long Island teachers will celebrate the third annual LI Technology Summit. The keynotes will be David Warlick and Will Richardson and all sessions are designed to be top notch.

Whether you’re attending the conference today or not, try to participate in the back channel chat by following the LI Tech Summit on twitter, or by following the hastag associated with the conference: #litechsummit09. You may also fan the LI Tech Summit 09 on facebook and view all of the conference session handouts on drop.io.

VoiceThread has some exciting news about a new feature.

“Over 700,000 historical images from The New York Public Library’s Digital Gallery are now freely and instantly available whenever you’re creating a VoiceThread. The new Media Browser allows you to search or browse these primary source materials - maps, photos, drawings, paintings, posters and more, and then import them directly into any VoiceThread. Links back to the original location of the images on the web are automatically inserted to make citing and attribution easier for you and your students.”  You can find this new feature here.

For those of you not familiar with VoiceThread, it is a fabulous tool that enables collaboration through voice, video, and/or text on any topic you might desire.  Using images from Discovery Streaming, the Internet, student created, and now The New York Public Library, you can create some amazing learning activities for your classroom.

   The K-12 Online Conference is coming soon.  This FREE (we love free) conference is a great way to learn about new tools, see how other educators use these tools, and find out about new teaching practices.  There are archived videos to view and live elluminate sessions in which you can participate.  But for now, there is work to be done.

Do you have a great idea for a 20 minute presentation?  The K-12 Online Conference is looking for presenters.  Let’s show them how great the DEN really is!  You have until August 16th to submit your proposal so get them in now.

The conference organizers are also looking for people to help put the whole thing together.  No experience is required.  Just some great enthusiasm and a bit of time.  I know all our DEN members have plenty of enthusiasm!  Click here for more information.

This is a valuable conference opportunity.  Let’s get excited!

Are you new to wikis? Looking to collaborate more effectively with your community? Register below for an Introduction to Wikispaces online training session. Learn how to edit pages, add images and media, manage permissions and settings for your wiki, and more.

The session will be today, July 9th, at 2pm EST.

The event will be held in an Elluminate room. If you haven’t used Elluminate before, head to their support page before the event to make sure your browser settings are correctly configured.

Click here to register.

It’s official! Registration is now open for the 3^rd annual Games in Education symposium, taking place Wednesday & Thursday, August 5^th & 6^th this summer at Hudson Valley Community College in Troy, NY!

This exciting development opportunity offers educators throughout the greater Capital Region 2 days of FREE presentations, panels, hands-on workshops, and round table discussions related to games and technology in the classroom. Topics presented range from analysis of virtual worlds like Second Life and World of Warcraft from teachers using the games successfully, to the real world pressures teachers face when attempting to straddle two cultures of instruction (old and new).

This year’s symposium will expand to include early childhood and post-secondary education, as well as middle and high school, and will explore the practical application of interactive technologies like video games, social networks, blogs and other media to inspire and promote learning in this generation of “digital natives”.

Don’t miss out! 2009 confirmed presenters include:

· Brock Dubbels, Educator and Technologist

· Bill Shribman, Executive Producer of Kids’ Projects, WGBH Interactive

· Peggy Sheehy, Instructional Technology Facilitator, Media Specialist and a NY Discovery STAR Educator

· Carla Engelbrecht Fisher, Children’s Technology Developer

· Lucas Gillispie, Instructional Technology Coordinator

· Beth King, Senior Doctoral Student, University of Wisconsin

· Andrea Lauer Rice, Founder, Lauer Learning

· Scot Osterweil, Research Director, Education Arcade

· Mark Petersen, Instructional Designer, Hudson Valley Community College

· Marianne Malmstrom, Technology Teacher, The Elisabeth Morrow School

· And more!

Registration is easy and FREE for educators – just go to www.gamesineducation.org and click on Register Now! Stay tuned for updates on program schedule and new speakers as they are confirmed.

Games in Education is presented in partnership by 1^st Playable Productions, WMHT, and Hudson Valley Community College.

Re-posted from the DEN Blog:

Thanks to our good friends over at Tech4Learning, there are STARs aplenty who received free copies of Frames to use in the classroom.  However, what good is a piece of software if you don’t know how to use it?  They have graciously offered to host a webinar to help show you tips and tricks for using Frames with your students!

Creating animated movies and digital stories is a fantastic way to engage students in the curriculum. Learn how students can use the integrated drawing tools in Frames to illustrate their own stories, tell digital stories, and create animated Flash® movies.

The webinar will be May 28th at 4:30EST.  To register, click here.

Are you a New Yorker headed to NECC this summer in Washington, D.C.? If yes, then considering joining us on June 27, 2009 (9 AM to 3:30 PM) for an engaging day of networking, professional development and fun at the world headquarters of Discovery Communications in Silver Spring, MD.

Space is limited. Registration closes June 5th. Enroll today!

Join the staff at the Western Suffolk BOCES for an engaging technology-infused Day of Discovery on May 13th, 2009. From 8:30 am to 3:00 pm, Western Suffolk BOCES has a full-day session of learning that will focus on creative ways that educators can use digital media in the classroom.  During this free professional development opportunity, you will learn techniques to inspire students and how to maximize the resources in Discovery Education Streaming.  Novice to advance techniques will be covered.  This event will be held at the Wheatley Heights Facility (James E. Allen Alternative School) at 31 Lee Avenue, Wheatley Heights, New York.  *Note:  If you’re using a GPS system to find your way, use Wyandanch as the city instead
Participants can register for this event at https://www.mylearningplan.com/webreg/catalog.asp?H=1&D=13208

You may need to create an account for mylearningplan, but there is no fee for this.

The Ypulse 2009 Totally Wired Teacher Award (sponsored by Dell) will honor a public school teacher from grades 3 to12 who is successfully using technology (the internet/social media, mobile technology, gaming) in the classroom.The award is inspired by Ypulse founder Anastasia Goodstein’s book, Totally Wired: What Teens & Tweens Are Really Doing Online, and the challenges she observed around integrating technology into public school classrooms. We will recognize a teacher who has overcome these challenges and is inspiring both students and other educators.

From our sponsor: “The Totally Wired Teacher Award is a great way to recognize teachers who are harnessing technology to help students collaborate, learn and achieve. Dell’s support for this initiative is part of our longstanding commitment to supporting educators who lead by example, demonstrating for students the power of technology to enhance learning and achievement.”

To nominate a teacher for this award, please visit this website to complete and submit a form. If you have difficulties submitting the form, just submit the answers via email to teacheraward@ypulse.com before May 15th at 5 p.m. PST. Representatives from Ypulse and Dell will choose three finalists to interview by phone. The selected teacher will be honored in person at the Ypulse Youth Marketing Mashup June 1-2 in San Francisco. Teachers can nominate themselves.

Important! Please read: All nominations must be for grades 3-12 classroom teachers actively teaching in U.S. public schools. Nominations that do not fit these criteria will be disqualified.

Good luck!