Mark your calendars!  This Wednesday, at 5 p.m. SLT (7 p.m. CST, 8 p.m. EST) we’ll be meeting around the campfire at 2DP to further discuss Sir Robinson’s book, ‘The Element’.  In particular, our focus for the evening’s conversation will be how we can help facilitate our students’ finding their ‘element’.

Come join us, dress is ‘campfire casual’.

We’ll gather around the campfire at 2 DP.  Here is the SLurl

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Eduisland%202/112/101/22

On Wednesday, March 3rd and 10th, at 5 p.m. SLT (7 p.m. CST, 8 p.m. EST) the New York DEN and the DEN in Second Life will be co-hosting a book talk on Dr. Ken Robinson’s book, The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything.

I first heard (and heard of) Sir Robinson at the 2009 Celebration of Teaching and Learning in New York City.  He also keynoted at the 2009 NYSCATE in Rochester, New York.  And I had another opportunity to listen to this engaging, enlightening, and entertaining individual at the 2010 PETE&C on February 22nd in Hershey, Pennsylvania.

Hopefully, you went out and purchased or borrowed the book and are ready to join the New York DEN and the SL DEN for two evenings where we’ll hang around a campfire, discuss the book, and maybe eat a s’more or two (What?  You’ve never had a virtual s’more?)

We’ll gather around the campfire at 2 DP.  Here is the SLurl

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Eduisland%202/112/101/22

Hope to see you on Wednesday, March 3rd at 5 p.m. SLT (7 p.m. CST, 8 p.m. EST).  Oh, and dress is ‘campfire casual’.

On Wednesday, February 10, we had the pleasure of having Sholi Oh (Sarah Rolle, Director of Technology, The Elisabeth Morrow School - RL) present on Quest Atlantis.

Looking for an alternative to Second Life that you can safely use with students?  Look no further!  Quest Atlantis is the location for you.

Sholi did a FABULOUS job in her overview of the Quest Atlantis project and how it is being used in her school.  She shared some machinimas created in Quest Atlantis which gave the audience a real feel for how that virtual world looks.

Knowclue Kidd was kind enough to host the presentation at her location, Project Theatre.

If you missed the presentation, check out Sarah’s resources here.

Just an update that the venue for Wednesday’s Workshop on Quest Atlantis has been changed to Project Theater @  Eduisland 2 (219, 45, 22).

SLurl is HERE.

This is going to be AWESOME!!!  Come into a virtual world to learn about a virtual world!  If you’re like me, you’ve heard about Quest Atlantis, but have not had an opportunity to explore it further (at least that’s my excuse!).  I am very excited to have Sholi Oh share her experiences about a free (did I say *FREE*?) virtual world for students.

So join us at 2DP on Wednesday, February 10, where Sholi Oh (Sarah Rolle in RL) will talk about her experience with Quest Atlantis. Quest Atlantis is a free, engaging 3D virtual world developed and supported by a team at Indiana University. This is a very safe setting for students from different countries to interact. It also has a wonderful focus on both academics and social commitments in the form of quests. Our students love it! Come and learn about its engaging power in the classroom.

Sarah is the Director of Technology at The Elisabeth Morrow School in Englewood, New Jersey.

As always, 5 p.m. SLT (7 p.m. CST, 8 p.m. EST).  See ya there!

And here’s the SLurl:  http://slurl.com/secondlife/Eduisland%20II/132/131/22

On Wednesday, March 3rd and 10th, at 5 p.m. SLT (7 p.m. CST, 8 p.m. EST) the New York DEN and the DEN in Second Life will be co-hosting a book talk on Dr. Ken Robinson’s book, The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything.

I first heard (and heard of) Sir Robinson at the 2009 Celebration of Teaching and Learning in New York City.  He also keynoted at the 2009 NYSCATE in Rochester, New York.  And now I’ll have another opportunity to listen to this engaging, enlightening, and entertaining individual at the upcoming 2010 PETE&C on February 21 - 24th in Hershey, Pennsylvania.

So, NO EXCUSES!  You’ve got PLENTY of time to go out and purchase or borrow the book, read it, and join us on March 3rd and 10th for an engaging discussion.  Need help getting into Second Life?  Just post a comment below, and we’ll make sure to hook you up with someone that will have you teleporting around inworld in no time!

Dialogue, Data, Direction - Second Life
The Discovery Educator Network and ISTE in SL are trying to figure out how to revitalize Second Life for education. Please help us decide on a direction. The results of this data will be discussed at an ISTE/DEN SL Event on Thursday, January 28th from 6 p.m. -7 p.m. SLT at the ISTE Fire Circle.
But before you join us (or even if you can’t get inworld then), please fill out the following form.

This week’s Wednesday Workshop will focus on Gender Equity: Recruitment and Retention of Girls in STEM and will be presented by Celestia Cazalet (Elaine Plybon RL). 

Enrollment of girls in higher level science, technology, engineering, and math programs is traditionally much lower than that of boys. Is there something we, as teachers, can do to turn this trend around and increase the number of girls who pursue careers in STEM areas? This workshop will use interactive technologies and discussion groups to brainstorm ideas of how to address this issue in our schools. Come with an open mind and be prepared to think, evaluate, and share.

SLT TIME:  5 p.m. SLT ( 7 p.m. CST, 8 p.m. EST)

Location: 2 Discovery Place HD Theater

I know that some of you have upgraded your computers so that your experiences in virtual worlds are enhanced.  (I know that was my ‘excuse’ when I decided to upgrade my laptop.)  I ‘needed’ more RAM, I ‘needed’ a better graphics card, I ‘needed’ those bells and whistles — well, maybe not the bells and whistles, but I figured if I was going for it, I was going for the whole kit and kaboodle.

I own a netbook (which I absolutely LOVE) and have been reluctant to install the Second Life client on it.  I don’t know about you, but not only when I want something do I want it now, but I don’t want to wait for it.  And let’s face it, netbooks aren’t known for their speed ‘under the hood’ or their stunning graphics capability.

And then in Twitter today, @kanor74 retweeted a post about ‘9 Ways to Make Second Life Run Faster on Your Low Performance Computer’.  Check it out for yourself and decide if you can make your desktop, laptop, netbook, and who knows, but maybe even a future Google Android run your Second Life faster.

Want to know how to create signs for your SL organization? Do you want to deck your virtual halls with some holiday wreaths? Do you know what an alpha texture is? (The correct answers are: Yes, Yes, and “The one before Beta?”). Or are you new, unsure, and just want to feel more at ease with manipulating objects?

Join us in the Eduisland 2 sandbox on Wednesday, November 18, for a “make and take”. This is not your Grandmother’s “prim”. You will flip – horizontally and vertically - and become a “full bright” scholar! Textures will be provided.

Time: 5 p.m. SLT (8 p.m. Eastern, 7 p.m. Central)
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Eduisland%202/57/67/21/

See you in-world!