Virginia

From the DEN National Blog:

Join us in-person, online or both, on Saturday, October 25th for the DEN Virtual Conference.

Registration is now open!

The DEN Virtual Conference features an incredible lineup of online presentations including “Power Up Your Professional Learning Network” by STAR Discovery Educator Jennifer Dorman.  Check out all of the sessions here.

You can register to attend virtually or join us at one of 17 in-person events hosted by the DEN Leadership Councils.

Either way, you will learn powerful ways to integrate digital media and Web 2.0 tools into your instruction as well as discover an abundance of resources to expand your own personal learning network.

Share the news with your colleagues by sending them the DEN Virtual Conference Flyer.

For more information, visit: http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/fall-virtual-conference

One of the things I attended was edubloggercon on Saturday prior to the official start of NECC. Billed as an unconference, it was a little bit different than the structure of NECC. It was a much smaller crowd, although the 200 people that were there was bigger than the 70 people from the year before. It was a chance to meet and speak with some of the big name educational bloggers out there.

Something that was quite different from anything I else I have ever attended was deciding which sessions would be offered from those proposed. First thing that morning everyone cast their votes for the sessions they would like to participate in and then a schedule was quickly drawn up and put on the wiki. The voting was cool as we used Poll Everywhere which allows you to turn cell phones into classroom response systems (the cell phone in the classroom sessions were packed). Everyone texted there votes in and the bar graphs changed constantly on the big screens during the voting period. Side note: if you don’t text, consider yourself officially behind. You have the choice to catch up or be left back there in the days of yesteryear.

Jennifer Dorman, also known as cliotech, did a great run down of of the Web 2.0 Smackdown.

~Fred Delventhal

Stay tuned for more STAR DEN Members NECC Reflections

For those who couldn’t make it to San Antonio this year, here’s a brief recap of NECC 2008.

ISTE President’s Address: Trina Davis Opening Keynote: James Surowiecki.

Internet Safety Town Hall. Join this exciting discussion on Internet safety! Town Hall format includes Q&A plus keynote speaker Anastasia Goodstein, author of Totally Wired, and panel moderator Amanda Lenhart of the Pew Internet and American Life Project.

NETS•A Refresh Forum. Leadership is key to transforming education and meeting the needs of Digital Age learners. Join us for an interactive session to launch the refresh the NETS for Education Leaders.

Keynote. Jim Carleton and Mali Bickley offer a multimedia-rich, onstage dialogue featuring their inspirational experiences and can-do insights on how they have transcended traditions in education to create dynamic, engaging learning environments.

SIGMS Forum. Featuring a debate on how to interpret and implement the newly revised NETS and AASL standards for the 21st-century learner.

ABCs of Advocacy: Make Your Voice Heard! ISTE’s premier advocacy training event! Whether attending as an individual or as part of a state team you’ll depart armed with the tools and know how to affect change and a network of colleagues to support your efforts!

Closing Keynote. Dr. Idit Harel Caperton will present her recent invention in 1:1 computing—the Globaloria Networks —complete with cases of how today’s social media technology is creating opportunities for student collaboration and global exchange never before possible.

Poster Sessions.

Playgrounds.

Exhibit Floor.

Birds of a Feather Sessions.

ISTE Special Interest Group Annual Meetings.

Highlights from Issue 4 of the NECC Daily Leader

Second Life

NECC by the Numbers

Digital Equity Summit

Making IT Happen Awards

 

Download the complete Wednesday Edition of the NECC Daily Leader (PDF)

Well it’s been a busy couple of days at NECC. I’ve been stationed at the Model Lesson room and have seen some great integration lessons. I stopped by the Discovery Education booth to say hello to some of our DEN friends. Below are some pictures of our STAR Educators, Fred Delventhal, Beth Knittle, Wendy Heller and Marnie Lewis. Also pictured are a few of the awesome DEN Staff, Alex Morrison, Lance Rougeux and Matt Monjan. Tonight is the DEN Dinner which promises to be a fun one. Enjoy, Heather

Created with Admarket’s flickrSLiDR.

Well I leave on June 27th for the NECC Conference in San Antonio.  My goal last year was to write a post and upload photos each day. Well that didn’t happen, I still have a draft post that says NECC 2007 - Day 4. I never got to post photos because I left my camera cords at home. Here it is a year later and I’m off to NECC again with high hopes of writing some interesting and profound posts. Well probably not profound but hopefully interesting :)  I realize I might need some help from folks. So my question to all of you  is: Are there any VA DEN members who are attending NECC and would be willing to help create some blog posts? If you are willing please leave a comment below with your name and email address and I will contact you with the details.

Heather

Attend the Mid-Atlantic SMART Board™ Users Conference - Creating a community of SMART educators

SMART Board interactive whiteboard users – you are invited to participate in our first Mid-Atlantic SMART Board Users Conference.

Get the most out of your SMART Board interactive whiteboard and other SMART products. Join us to learn about our latest resources, share ideas, and discover tips and tricks to enhance the lessons you create with SMART Notebook software – just in time for the new school year.

At this free, full-day conference, you’ll attend a variety of concurrent, hands-on breakout sessions led by experienced SMART Board interactive whiteboard users. Some of them STAR DEN Members. You’ll also have the opportunity to network and share lesson ideas with other educators.

Register today to ensure your spot at the Mid-Atlantic SMART Board Users Conference. Oh and it’s FREE!!!

Register now
August 21, 2008
8:30 a.m.–4:00 p.m.
Kenmore Middle School
200 S. Carlin Springs Road
Arlington, VA 22204

No more pencils, no more books…summer is right around the corner.

Attend the Day of Discovery in-person or virtually!

Date:
Saturday, June 7, 2008

Time:
9:00 AM – 3:00 PM

Location:
Linkhorn Park Elementary School
977 First Colonial Road
Virginia Beach, VA 23454

Join fellow educators and begin “Packing Your Virtual Suitcase” with great breakout sessions on GoogleEarth, DEstreaming, photostitching, green screens, and other cool tools.

The morning keynote will be delivered on-site by Matt Monjan (Account Manager, Discovery Educator Network) while the afternoon’s keynote will be presented virtually by Hall Davidson (Director, Discovery Educator Network).

The conference is free to any educator who is passionate about teaching with digital media, sharing resources, collaborating, and networking. Continental breakfast, snacks, and lunch will be provided for our in-person attendees.

To be a part of this awesome event, register online.

This event is presented by the Discovery Educator Network. With over 25,000 members providing professional development to over 250,000 educators worldwide, the DEN connects teachers both on-line and in-person. If you are not yet a member of this tremendous group, check out the DEN site for more information!

Please forward this email to anyone who may be interested!!

Questions can be emailed to:

Katie Knapp
Virginia DEN Leadership Council Chair
va.den.leaders@gmail.com

On Saturday, Feb 2nd, 30 educators got together for a great professional development event. The first DEN Virtual Conference went off without a hitch. I want to thank all of the educators that joined us in Silver Spring. Thank you for giving up your Saturday to be with us. In addition to the Virtual Keynotes, Silver Spring participants learned how to add Web 2.0 tools into DE Streaming builders, how to use Audacity to podcast and how to grow their professional learning network using Second Life. All keynotes can be found on the National Blog Site. We were lucky enough to have Lance Rougeux give his “Virtual Keynote” live for us in Silver Spring. Thanks for joining us Lance! I would also like to thank Matt Monjan, our DEN Manager, Dennis Swain - DEN Manager, Aron Sterling - VA LC Member, Katie Knapp - VA LC Chair and Fred Delventhal - SL LC Chair for all of your help with the planning, presenting, logistics, food and all the small details. It was great working with you all and I can’t wait for the next one. Please enjoy the photos from the conference in Silver Spring and S.L. and stay tuned for our next event.

Created with Admarket’s flickrSLiDR.

Join us for the first ever
Discovery Educator Network Virtual Conference
on Saturday, February 2nd!

Connect with educators from all over the country during this unique professional development experience where you can attend in-person, online, or both!

The DEN Virtual Conference is a national event that provides educators a unique opportunity to experience Discovery Education’s high quality professional development. Participants have the flexibility to attend the DEN Virtual Conference online or in-person at one of many regional events hosted by the DEN Leadership Councils.

Your Virginia Leadership Council is very excited to offer a Virginia/Maryland/DC in-person site…at the Discovery Education headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland!

Check out the National Blog and attached VA Virtual Conference Flier for more details.

Save the date folks for the FIRST DEN SL WebEx webinar on Tuesday, January 15th at 4 p.m. SLT (that would be 7 p.m. EST). More information about ‘Get a Life, a Second Life That Is!’ can be found on the DEN Second Life Blog.