South Carolina DEN

It’s almost time for more great workshops at SC ETV- so why not join your fellow South Carolina DEN members for dinner while you’re in the area?

On Wednesday, July 30th, the SC DEN is hosting dinner for our members at Longhorn’s restaurant in the Vista. We will be meeting upstairs at 6:00 pm. Join us for dinner and share some of your best technology tips with other DEN members from across the state!

DEN members should be getting an invitation soon- but why wait?! If you’d like to join us at Longhorn’s at the end of the month, post a comment below on the blog. Let us know where you’re from and if you’re attending any of the ETV workshops. You didn’t register for any workshops? Well, come join us anyway to network with fellow SC educators!

As the school year is wrapping up, many teachers are making plans for vacations AND Professional Development!!!

Below are just a few summer opportunities for educators. Leave a comment if you will be attending these or let us know about other great educational possibilities.

Upstate Technology Conference, June 24-26, Greenville, SC
The theme for this year’s UTC conference is Adventures in Technology: Discovering the Key to Learning. The dates for the conference are June 24-26 with the pre-conference on the 24th. The conference will be held at the newly built, J.L. Mann High School. Fantastic speakers including Ewan McIntosh and sessions are being planned and this year’s conference will be the best ever.
http://www.greenville.k12.sc.us/utc/ to register.

NECC 2008, June 29-July 2, San Antonio
29th Annual National Educational Computing Conference
http://center.uoregon.edu/ISTE/NECC2008/

ETV Technology Workshop, July 29-31, in Columbia

Come try your hand at Blogging, Digital Storytelling, Google Earth, Movie Maker, Podcasting, PowerPoint and more. In the ETV StreamlineSC workshops, you are sure to find many new features even if you have been using it for a while. And see innovative ways to use iPods, Promethean and SMART boards, and Web 2.0 internet technology. We are excited to be able to offer technology workshops again for SC Educators and at no charge. We will have several DEN members as instructors and Brad Fountain of Discovery, too, will be with us again. Don’t miss the excitement! To Register, go to http://register.streamlinesc.org/

Questions? Write Donna T. at dthompson@scetv.org

Check out the DEN events calendar for other upcoming events: DEN events calendar at http://community.discoveryeducation.com/event

Gracious, y’all, we’ve added more STARS to the South Carolina DEN!Stop by and say howdy to the newest members of the family-

Tara Crewe, SC
Meagan Grand, SC

Thanks for becoming part of the crew, Tara and Meagan!

The SC DEN Leadership Council would like to welcome three new STARS to the South Carolina crew! Please show some of that Southern hospitality to our newest members:

Carmen Boheler, SC
Rebecca Maitland, SC
Susan McCarthy, SC

Welcome to the DEN! Please post a comment to tell us where your from if you see your name listed. Already a member? Then leave a welcome comment and tell these folks how the DEN has helped you as an educator.

Y’all come back now, ya hear!

ETV will be hosting ANOTHER round of free workshops this summer!

The dates for the workshops are July 29-31, and seats are still available if you register soon. Topics include StreamlineSC, Web 2.0, Blogging, Google Lit Trips, Movie Maker, SMART Board, Podcasting… it’s a really long list. Don’t believe me? Then check out sessions and times here.

Don’t take too long, seats are filling up fast! As if the lure of free technology workshops isn’t enough, then why not take advantage of an opportunity to connect with other DEN members, or sit in on a session with some of our very own STARS? Educators from every part of South Carolina are invited. And wait, did I mention it was FREE?

If you’re still not sure, here’s yet another excellent reason to sign up today: certificate renewal credits. Don’t be one of “those guys” that waits until the last minute to start working on certificate renewal. Get a jump start! ITV is offering renewal credits. Save this file to learn more: ITV renewal credit info.

More? You want MORE? Time to pull out the big guns… Brad Fountain. Don’t be fooled, it may sound too good to be true, but it’s not. Brad Fountain is returning to the ETV studios in Columbia once again. Didn’t get enough of Brad last time? Here’s your chance to rub elbows with the big guy himself!

Now you have a bunch of great reasons to attend the ETV workshops in July. Did I leave anything out? Leave a comment and tell the world why these technology workshops are an absolute MUST to your summer!

WOW! The STARS are certainly shining this spring!

SC DEN would like to welcome our SEVENTEEN newest STARS to the family. You’re bound to know at least one of these educators:

Lori Alredge
Ramsey Calhoun
Celia Cooksey
Eileen Fernandez-Parker
Michelle Flamos
Steven Infinger
Debbie Lancaster
Bill Langston
Beth Leavitt
Sandra McLendon
Yolanda Moore
Carrie Ratliff
Joana Robertson
Heli Shelley
Bev Sparkman
Thomas Taylor
Kimberly Terre

Is that your name up there? Tell us where you’re from and make your first appearance on the blog. In fact, I hope that everyone will take a minute to leave a comment for our new members.

Congratulations!

Nothing could be finer than some wings in Carolina with the DEN folks!

What a great week! The SC Leadership Council would like to thank SC ETV for hosting three fantastic days of FREE technology workshops. Educators from all over the great Palmetto state had the opportunity to learn new tricks and tips for educational technology, as well as network with other like-minded educators who share a passion for all things techie.

Workshops were held at the ETV studios in Columbia, and covered a variety of topics from Google Earth to StreamlineSC to the SMART Board interactive whiteboard. Everyone in attendance received a bag of goodies and was entered into drawings for door prizes and one grand prize of a set of Senteos (classroom response system) from SMART Technologies.The folks at ETV also previewed OneplaceSC, which allows educators to access online educational resources like Knowitall.org, DISCUS, and StreamlineSC all in one place with one login.

As if all of that wasn’t enough, DEN members (and other very special workshop attendees) had the pleasure…nay, the privilege, to hob-nob with Discovery Education’s very own Brad Fountain. In addition to hosting workshops for ETV, Brad and the SC DEN Leadership Council hosted SC DEN members to an evening of wings and speed DEN-ing.

And the fun didn’t stop there! Leadership Chair, MaryAnn Sansonetti, gave away prizes all evening to the folks who attended the Carolina Wings dinner. Up for grabs were Discovery hats, bags, and DVD’s- just for meeting up and being part of the SC Discovery Educators Network. Why in the world would you NOT join the DEN?! Prizes, wings, AND Brad Fountain… what more to life is there?

Did you attend the dinner with us? Did you attend the ETV Workshop? Check out some of the SC folks below, and leave us a comment!

What is a Google Lit Trip you ask? Well… that’s up to you!

Google Lit Trips are a fast growing trend in the classroom that combine literary works and the genius that is Google. Imagine taking your students to each page of Make Way for Ducklings or following those infamous duds in The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants.

You are only limited by your imagination. And to make it even easier, why not use digital images from StreamlineSC to make it happen? Teachers, students, and book enthusiasts everywhere finally have a place to share their journey. Still not sure? Well, don’t get mad- save the wrath for these grapes.

We want to hear from you! Do you have an idea for a Google Lit Trip? Have you or your students already created one? Post your comments here and let’s get SC on the map…LITERALLY!

Attention SC DEN Members!!!

Report 3 trainings- water bottle

Recruit new members- baseball jersey

Winning a day with Hall Davidson…Priceless!

From DEN blog… DEN Spring Training 2008

DEN Spring Training is back! This year the DEN coaches are scouting talent for the All-STAR team as well as looking for some new prospects to join the DEN squad. You have a couple ways to impress the coaches during DEN Spring Training and earn some DEN gear.

Renegotiate Your Contract
Every year STAR Discovery Educators are asked to report at least two events they have conducted in the past school year in order to have their contracts renewed for the following season (i.e., maintain STAR status for next school year). Give your agent some additional leverage to land you a big contract by reporting more than two events.

Any STAR DE who reports at least three events for the time period of September 1, 2007 through June 6, 2008 will receive a DEN Water Bottle as a signing bonus.

What is an event?

Click here to report your events.

Recruit a Rookie
We’re always looking for new prospects who can throw a 90 mph fastball or embed a DE streaming video into PowerPoint. If you help us find a rookie sensation, we’ll hook you up with some new DEN gear.

Any STAR DE who recruits a new STAR Discovery Educator before June 6, 2008 will receive a DEN baseball jersey. Note: The STAR DE you recruit must have his/her contract officially signed by June 6, 2008 (i.e., he/she must complete all parts of the application process by June 6).

Help Your Region Win the Pennant
Your DEN Account Managers are looking to you to help them bring home the pennant for your region. The DEN Manager whose region has the most new STAR recruits during DEN Spring Training will win the coveted Discovery Educator Network Louisville Slugger straight from the factory in Kentucky.

West Region

Kim Randall

AK, CA, CO, HI, ID, MT, NV, OR and WA

Central Region

Justin Karkow

AZ, KS, MO, ND, NE, NM, OK, SD, TX, UT and WY

Midwest Region

Mike Bryant

IA, IL, IN, MI, MN and WI

Northeast Region

Dennis Swain

CT, MA, ME, NH, NY, RI and VT

Mid-Atlantic Region

Matt Monjan

DE, MD, NJ, OH, PA and VA

South Region

Brad Fountain

AL, AR, FL, GA, KY, LA, MS, NC, SC, TN and WV

State Challenge
The state with the most STAR Discovery Educators recruited during DEN Spring Training will receive a Day of Discovery featuring Hall “of Famer” Davidson and other major leaguers from the DEN team.

In summary…

• Report at least 3 events and earn a DEN water bottle
• Recruit a new STAR and earn a DEN baseball jersey
• Help your DEN Manager win the pennant by recruiting new STARs
• Get Hall and the DEN team to host a Day of Discovery in your state by recruiting the most new STARs

Good luck! If you have any questions, please feel to have your agent contact us.

The South Carolina DEN is blossoming in spring!

Come on out and celebrate spring with your fellow DEN members on Wednesday, April 23rd. We will be meeting in Columbia during the Spring SCeTV workshops. DEN members should have already received an invitation, which includes dinner and non-alcoholic beverages. That’s right- nothing brings educators together like free food!

ALL RSVP’s must be made by April 19!

Be sure to let us know if you’re going to be there. Send us an email: sc.den.leaders@gmail.com and while you’re at it, let EVERYONE know by posting a comment on the blog!