One more day until the Bob Bullock State History Museum is taken-over by the DEN! It’s going to be wet and cold here in Austin, but there will be the warmth of sharing and fun within the walls of the museum.
We are glad that so many people have decided to register and attend this event in Austin. But many DEN teachers just couldn’t get away or make it to Austin. So, we are opening our doors, or more precisely- laptop camera, to those who wish to participate from their remote locations. We will be broadcasting much of the day on Ustream. There is nothing to register for and you can watch for free!
The survey results show Wednesday and Thursday noon in a tie for first place as choice for our tweetup meetup eatup. So I am making an “executive decision” and saying that we will have our DEN fellowship on Thursday at 12. For those meeting in person, we will gather at the convention center exhibits main entrance at that time and decide on where to eat from there. For those meeting by tweeting, find yoda_1 on twitter for updates from TCEA, DEN Event, meetup on Thursday and more.
TCEA is coming soon and besides the pre-con event, a Discovery and DEN presence will be felt at the main conference. A couple of events to be aware of:
First, DEN Stars, stop by the DE booth to pick up your lapel pin. Show off your status! Also watch for news and signs announcing DEN Stars and members who are presenting sessions at the conference.
Second, we would like to meetup/tweetup at the conference (dutch treat on food and drink). For a eating meeting, go to www.surveymonkey.com/s/BBXVG96 and register your choice for the time. Also, remember to Tweet all along about what you are learning from the great sessions.
Collette Barragan, DEN Star member and Elementary Fine Arts teacher/Technology Integration Professional for Fort Stockton I.S.D. will be presenting the high energy RM Easiteach Dancemat at TCEA. Collette will be giving the audience a first-hand look at the Dancemat and it’s possibilites. She will also be letting the audience dance their way to higher knowledge with various subjects. RM Easiteach has also given Ms. Barragan a Dancemat and software to giveaway to one lucky TCEA member during the presentation. Quizdom Student Response System will also be highlighted during the 50 minute presentation. Session Title: Dance Your Way to Learning Date: Feb. 10, 2010 Session ID: 100284 Time: 1:00 - 2:00 p.m. Room: Ballroom F
Sixty-four teachers joined the Discovery Educator Network Virtual Science Conference at Finch Elementary in McKinney, Texas. Braving the 11 degree temperatures in Texas, the teachers were provided with some of the most effective strategies for transforming their science classes through the meaningful and effective integration of digital media content.
Sessions included ideas from Geocaching to Glogster, Flip cameras to Smartboards, and included sessions titles “Where Do Old Sneakers Go To Die” and “Teaching Process Skills with Mythbusters.”
“It was a huge success,” shared Mary Carol Strother, both an educator from LMS Finch Elementary and a Texas DEN Leadership Team member. “People thanked me all day long for offering the conference.”
Keep your eyes on the announcement board on the DEN websites for more virtual or hands-on conferences in your area. Join the DEN today and get these announcements sent to you!
Discovery Education and the Texas DEN Leadership Council proudly present a Day of Discovery at the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum on Tuesday, February 9, 2010.
This Day of Discovery will provide Texas educators and welcomed guests with an exciting and enriching day of professional development focused on creative ways to engage your students using digital media and curriculum resources from Discovery Education. During the day, participants will learn how they can enhance their lessons and student engagement by creating multimedia presentations, digital stories, and virtual field trips! Breakfast refreshments and lunch will be provided and the day will conclude with prizes and fun (Texas Theater style)!
Discovery’s Day of Discovery has a strong history in Texas, and this day promises to be no exception. Over one hundred teachers from across Texas last year enjoyed the fun opportunities to learn about using media in the classroom.
Registration for this year’s pre-conference is on a first-come first-seated basis. Register now to reserve your place! Go to: http://links.discoveryeducation.com/TCEA2010 to register.
Tuesday, February 9th, 2010 at Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum, Austin. The workshop is 8:30a - 3:30p, with registration starting at 8:00a.
“Two heads are better than one” We’ve heard the quote and its relative “two minds are better than one”. In today’s web 2.o- social media world, sharing is encouraged and collaboration cheered, but copyright issues can still arise. What if someone tries to make money off of your freely shared creation? What if they change it with ideas you don’t like?
Enter Creative Commons, a site that allows folks to get creative and share their works, with their chosen rights retained. As more educators hear of Creative Commons — and face copyright questions with online media– a little introduction might be in order. A helpful slideshow-podcast “Creative Commons:What Every Educator Needs to Know”, licensed of course under Creative Commons, can be found at http://www.slideshare.net/thecleversheep/creative-commons-what-every-educator-needs-to-know-presentation . This gives an overview of media copyright and sharing issues, tells about Creative Commons, and the various rights choices available. The Creative Commons webiste is http://creativecommons.org/
While we are on the subject of working with media, remember there are many editable titles available in Discovery Streaming for use by subscribers. Video editing software such as Movie Maker from Microsoft, Premiere Elements from Adobe, VirtualDub- an open source software- can be used for this task.
So, explore a little and get creative in your lessons!
There are so many good web 2.o tools out there, several with a Discovery presence already. Now, how can we use those Web 2.o tools with Discovery products to help academic achievement. Here’s a few ideas:
>>Wikis are a great and easy start. Create your own special Discovery related wiki with subject pages to add topical Discovery links to
>>A blog is another easy start way. Create postings on a blog your teachers can easily see (add a feed option preferably) and post Discovery links and news relating to topics being studied at the time
>>Use a Delicious or Diigo account to save bookmarks for presenting to teachers during a Professional Development session featuring Discovery
>>Set up a Ning for your campus or district for sharing ideas on using Discovery in the classroom
What about you? What wonderful ideas do YOU have for combining web 2.0 tools and Discovery? We would love to see your comments on this!
The Siemens We Can Change the World Challenge gives students the opportunity, tools and inspiration to become active agents of environmental change. Elementary and middle school classes from across the country are eligible to participate in the challenge to create sustainable, reproducible environmental improvements in their classroom, school or community.
STAR Discovery Educators who enter the Siemens We Can Change the World Challenge by January 31, 2010 will have their names put into a drawing to win a trip to the NSTA National Conference in Philadelphia, PA (March 18-21, 2010). Airfare, hotel and conference registration will be covered by Discovery Education. You must be a STAR Discovery Educator and let Discovery Education know that you and your students have entered the We Can Change the World Challenge.
If Texas has the most entries to the Siemens We Can Change the World Challenge, our state will earn a Day of Discovery in conjunction with the DEN’s Spring Virtual Conference. This event will be planned, managed and presented by the DEN team.
Discovery Education knows that you do some awesome work in your classrooms using their resources. Upload a 1-2 minute video, podcast, or other multimedia file by November 15, 2009 that explains how you’re using Discovery Education resources to engage your students and get a limited edition Discovery Education sweatshirt!
Discovery Education, KLRN and TCEA Area 20 proudly present a Day of Discovery at Woodridge Elementary School in Alamo Heights ISD on December 5, 2009. This Day of Discovery will provide Texas educators and welcomed guests with an exciting and enriching day of professional development focused on creative ways to engage your students using digital media from the KLRN Connect/Discovery Education streaming library.
During the day, participants will learn how they can use images, audio clips and videos to create engaging multimedia presentations, digital stories, and virtual field trips! Lunch will be provided and the day will conclude with fun and prizes!
When: Saturday, December 5, 2009
Where: Woodridge Elementary, 100 Woodridge Dr, San Antonio
Time: 9:00am – 3:30pm (registration will begin at 8:30)
Cost: Free! (CPE Credit Available)
Space is limited, so register today!
Visit http://links.discoveryeducation.com/SanAntonioDOD to register.
Contact Justin Karkow at Justin_Karkow@discovery.com for more details.
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Discovery Education and the Texas DEN Leadership Council proudly present a Day of Discovery at the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum on Tuesday, February 9, 2010.
Discovery’s Day of Discovery has a strong history in Texas, and this day promises to be no exception. Over one hundred teachers from across Texas last year enjoyed the fun opportunities to learn about using media in the classroom.
Discovery Education, KLRN and TCEA Area 20 proudly present a Day of Discovery at Woodridge Elementary School in Alamo Heights ISD on December 5, 2009. This Day of Discovery will provide Texas educators and welcomed guests with an exciting and enriching day of professional development focused on creative ways to engage your students using digital media from the KLRN Connect/Discovery Education streaming library.
