"I Learn, You Learn, We Learn" Blog

DEstreaming, of course!   September is National Sewing Month.  Although a skill and hobby that has come and gone for some, as a Family & Consumer Science teacher, I’ve seen a growing  upward trend in the number of students who want to know how to sew. In a cultural diverse district such as I teach in, there are many children who not only know how to sew by the time they reach middle school, but who are interested in future careers where sewing  and design are a necessary skill.

The resources on DEstreaming help my students understand  the importance of sewing in our countries early history, how the sewing machine was  and important invention of the industrial revolution and careers that use the machine and skills that revolve around sewing and textiles. From events and articles , to videos, images and even a sound file; DEstreaming has sewing covered.

 And what about protecting that new kindle or iPad? Click here to see a video and get directions  on  how to create a  cover  for those new tech tools.

Within the post before last I promised a photo of the Cinquain Quilt my class created during national literacy month. Students created a cinquain about a special person: family member, friend, etc.  We then cut them out and mounted them on decorative paper to create this paper quilt for this bulletin board.  I wish I saved some of the poetry they wrote about those people.

The bulletin board received many compliments. I did as well for incorporating literacy in my Family & Consumer Science classes.  My response? “Thank you. But what exactly do you think I teach in this class?”  I’m sure I don’t have to tell you their answers.

Did you know DEstreaming has many videos about poetry? There are 341 results when I search for “poetry” for grades 3-8.

I may not be very good at it, but I love to fish. I don’t get a chance to do it very often and it wasn’t something I did at all when I was a kid.  I did , however, take my own kids fishing and it was a blast. At 24 and 22, my kids still fish when they can.  My family did have a boat.  Some of my best memories as a kid were going to Mine Kill State Park and waterskiing on the reservoir with my family and friends.

Explore the Blue is an online initiative  by partners Discovery and Take Me Fishing to encourage students to get outside and enjoy water activities. The site they put together provides teachers with resources to share with their students about outdoor activities and the value of the various water bodies as clean and natural resources.  In addition the site provides online activities for students to learn about fish,  catch fish and fish hatcheries.  Here is an example of a fish I created, I call it a Blue Fin Bubble Trout!  See what you can come up with at http://exploretheblue.discoveryeducation.com/explore.cfm. 

Here are my kids enjoying the water and fishing.

 
I was never a big fan of poetry when I was in school probably because I never understood the poems the teacher picked out for our class to read and decipher. When it came to writing them, the best I could do was the old standard “Roses are red, violets are blue…..”.  It was painful! I would bet I’m not the only one.  Are any of you willing to admit the same?

Still, at this stage in my life, my first choice of something to read wouldn’t necessarily be poetry; however,  I’ve learned as a teacher some kids (more than I actually would think) enjoy various forms of poetry and  there are some good poetry sites out there for students and adults as well.

As a Family and Consumer Science Teacher, I’m always looking for ways to incorporate literacy within the realm of the curriculum I have to teach.  A few weeks ago I came across this site, POETS.org.  I learned it was National Poetry Month and started my quest to incorporate some fun poetry into my lessons.

My seventh grade students have recently finished a  Special Person Cinquain Quilt. This was part of a lesson in interpersonal relationships and an introductory lesson on quilts and community service. This particular quilt is made of paper and each quilt block has a Cinquain Poem on it created by students about special people in their lives. The quilt will be displayed on a bulletin board (a picture will be posted later).

POETS.org is a site containing poems for just about everyone. You can find poetry events to an iPhone poetry App! Check it out at http://poets.org/. 

Of course DEstreaming has many resources to teach poetry and images such as this one for students to create poetry about.

 Here are some additional sites of poetry resources:

EETT Instant Poetry Forms – http://ettcweb.lr.k12.nj.us/forms/newpoem.htm

The Poetry Zone – http://poetryzone.woodshed.co.uk/index2.htm

Giggle Poetry – http://www.gigglepoetry.com/

Have Fun!

Earth Day falls on Thursday, April 22, 2010–and it’s the 40th Anniversary of the holiday. It’s a great time to learn about
our planet and how to take care of it!

DEstreaming and Waste Management have partnered to provide educators with and  an abundance of educational resources , including lesson plans and classroom materials suitable for a wide range of subjects and grade levels. You’ll also find teaching activities, video assets, worksheets, puzzles, and more.

 Visit http://thinkgreen.discoveryeducation.com/ for resources galore for your classroom!

Join the NY DEN LC at the Baseball Hall of Fame on March 20 for some Spring Training

The event will be at the ACTUAL National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY on Saturday, March 20th, from 8:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. This DEN Spring Training will give you an opportunity to connect with a like-minded community of educators and learn more about DE Streaming. There will be session presentations on how to integrate DE Streaming into your classrooms to peak the interest of your connected learners! Topics will cover everything from the DE Streaming basics to how to use powerful digital storytelling tools to excite and engage your students. Not only will you have the opportunity to attend great training sessions with this event, but you will also get access to explore the Hall of Fame museum after lunch! Did I mention… You get breakfast and lunch too! The NY DEN is proud to have you join us for this exciting event!

Fill out this form to register for this event!

Check out this jam-packed list of FREE webinars offered by Discovery Educator Network. Get ready for back to school with a visit to one , a few or all of the sessions listed below.

All sessions begin at 11 AM ET. Register Here. It’s free and easy.

Digital Storytelling Week
8/3/09
Thinking Outside the Slide: Creating non-linear PowerPoint presentations and learning centers with Discovery Education Media
8/4/09
Digital Storytelling Made Easy: Using Discovery Education Content with Animoto and PhotoStory
8/5/09
Director’s Cut: Discovery Education Media and MovieMaker (PC)
8/6/09
Director’s Cut: Discovery Education Media and iMovie (Mac)

Leadership Week
8/10/09
The Information Society is HERE: Are our schools up to the task? with Dr. Scott McLeod
8/11/09
Policies, Safety and Social Networking
8/12/09
Web 2.0 for Administrators and Others: Schools, Tools, and the 21st Century
8/13/09
Data Driven Decisions with Discovery Education Assessment

Science Week
8/17/09
Myth Busted: Easy Ways to Integrate Digital Media into Your Science Classroom
8/18/09
Getting Your Hands Dirty with Discovery Education Science
8/19/09
Differentiating Instruction with the Discovery Education Science Assessment Manager
8/20/09
More and Muir Tech Tips for Going Green

Web 2.0 Week
8/24/09
Get Your Glog On! The DE streaming Builders and Glogster
8/25/09
The Thread that Ties it All Together: Discovery Education Content and Voicethread
8/26/09
Two Roundtrip Tickets to Anywhere in the World: Designing Virtual Field Trips with Discovery Education Media and Google Earth
8/27/09
Learning Through the Funnies: Mixing Discovery Education Content with Free Comic Tools

Enroll today.

Digital Storytelling week begins at Discovery on Aug. 3. Sign up today to learn many ways to incorporate Digital Storytelling in your classroom.

Aug. 3  Thinking Outside the Slide

Aug. 4  Digital Storytelling made easy with Discovery Education Content, Animoto and PhotoStory

Aug. 5  Discovery Education Media and Windows Movie Maker

Aug. 6  Discovery Education Media and Windows iMovie

All webinars start at 11:00am ET. Click here for a complete list of webinars and registration information.

If you are still questioning the validity of digital media in our schools,  read and watch the video below.  I have had the awesome opportunity to be a part of the Discovery Educator Network and I’m appreciative and grateful Schenectady continues to offer the DEstreaming service to our schools.  I use the materials from Discovery every single day in my classes and I can honestly say I don’t know what I would do without this invaluable resource.

I encourage any of you or your colleagues to become more acquainted with DEstreaming and if you’ve had a chance to view Discovery Science or Health, let your coordinators know how much you LOVE them.  In addition, if you are interested in becoming a member of the Discovery Educator Network (DEN), let me know. It’s a fantastic opportunity and I will be happy to assist you in the process!

Two days ago, the House Education and Labor Committee held a hearing to examine how technology, innovative education tools, and digital content are transforming and improving education in America.  The DEN’s very own Scott Kinney, Vice President of Outreach and Professional Development for Discovery Education, served as one of seven panelists who testified as to how technology and digital content can improve American education in the future.

Citing recent research, Scott illustrated that students use technology profusely at home, while most are unable to use that same technology in the classroom.  Today’s tech-savvy students function by consuming, processing, and learning from media, in many forms simultaneously.  Scott asked the committee to envision an educational system that supported the use of technology in the classroom, therefore, supporting how students learn naturally.

In the Teacher Tools section of  DEstreaming you can find themes to fit just about any topic.  Each theme includes video segments, lesson plans, discussion guides, related resources and student activities for each grade level.

* Before clicking on the link below, open a new window and log in to your DEstreaming account.

From the roadblocks faced by the Constitution’s framers to the three-dimensional personalities of our country’s founders, give students a well-rounded look at early American history.

Get a jump start on your classroom lesson plans for next week. Include DEstreaming video content and make history come alive for your students.   Visit the Calendar within the Teacher Center of DEstreaming for more videos of history during this week.**Note – Before clicking on the links below, sign in to your DEstreaming account

Science – Dec. 11 – 1719: First American sighting of Aurora Borealis

Math -Dec. 9 – 1968: First demonstration of the computer mouse

Social Studies  – Dec. 8 – 1941: U.S. declares war on Japan

Arts & Humanities – Dec. 12 -1913: Stolen Mona Lisa recovered

Language Arts -Dec. 13 – 1843: Dickens publishes A Christmas Carol

Health & Guidance – Dec. 11 -  1844: First use of a dental anesthetic

Famous People -Dec. 8 – 1765: Eli Whitney, American inventor

Dec. 7   Pearl Harbor Day

Get a jump start on your classroom lesson plans for next week. Include DEstreaming video content and make history come alive for your students.   Visit the Calendar within the Teacher Center of DEstreaming for more videos of history during this week.*

*Note – Before clicking on the links below, sign in to your DEstreaming account

Science – Dec. 6 – 1877- First sound recording demonstrated

Math -Dec. 4 -2001- “Goner” computer worm spreads around globe

Social Studies  – Dec. 1 – 1955- Rosa Parks arrested

Art & Humanities – Nov. 30 -1940- Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz marry

Language Arts -Dec. 2 -1867- Charles Dickens’ first public reading in U.S.

The scene above illustrates a Christmas Eve from the life of Ebenezer Scrooge, the character from A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. Drawing by John Leech and available in the image library of DEstreaming.

Mr Fezziwig’s Ball. Corbis. 2006. Discovery Education. 17 November 2008
<http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/>

Health & Guidance – Dec. 2 -  1982- First artificial heart implanted in a human

Famous People -Dec. 3 -1842- Ellen Swallow Richards, chemist

Dec. 1 World AIDS Day

 In the Teacher Tools section of  DEstreaming you can find themes to fit just about any topic.  Each theme includes video segments, lesson plans, discussion guides, related resources and student activities for each grade level.

* Before clicking on the link below, open a new window and log in to your DEstreaming account.

Knowledge of form and function is as important to writing as it is to the visual arts. Examine the structural conventions of a range of genre, from contemporary songwriting and screenwriting to classic satire and horror.

Get a jump start on your classroom lesson plans for next week. Include DEstreaming video content and make history come alive for your students.   Visit the Calendar within the Teacher Center of DEstreaming for more videos of history during this week.**Note – Before clicking on the links below, sign in to your DEstreaming account

Science – Nov. 27  1867- Patent for refrigerated railroad car

Math -Nov.28-1866-Birthdate of Henry Bacon, engineer and architect

Social Studies  – Nov. 28  – 1520- Magellan eyes the great peaceful water

Art & Humanities – Nov. 27 -1924- First Macys Thanksgiving Day Parade

Language Arts -Nov. 24 – 1947- John Steinbeck’s The Pearl published

Health & Guidance – Nov 29 – 1975- New law guarantees children’s right to education

Famous People -Nov.26-1922- Charles Schulz, cartoonist

Nov. 27 – Thanksgiving

The image above is the first frame from the editable video: Animated Hero Classics: William Bradford:The First Thanksgiving. NEST. 1992.Discovery Education. 11 November 2008
<http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/>

Get a jump start on your classroom lesson plans for next week. Include DEstreaming video content and make history come alive for your students.   Visit the Calendar within the Teacher Center of DEstreaming for more videos of history during this week.**Note – Before clicking on the links below, sign in to your DEstreaming account

Science – Nov. 10  -1994- Leonardo da Vinci manuscript changes hands

Math -Nov.10-1983- First documented computer virus

Nov. 11  Veterans’ Day

Social Studies  – Nov. 12  -1954- Ellis Island closes its doors

Image above is of Ellis Island in NY.
Ellis Island a primary U.S. immigration port.. IRC. 2005. Discovery Education. 2 November 2008
<http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/>

Art & Humanities – Nov. 10 -1969- Sesame Street premieres

Language Arts -Nov. 15 – 1884- First newspaper syndicate

Health & Guidance – Nov 11- 1647- Massachusetts passes law requiring communities to provide schools

Famous People -Nov.13-1850- Robert Louis Stevenson, writer