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Change the World in 5 Minutes - Everyday at School

Front of the Class (Hallmark Movie)


"Front of the Class is inspired by the true story of Brad Cohen, a young man diagnosed with Tourette Syndrome who overcomes considerable odds to become a gifted teacher."

Six ways to exploit the “atheist bus” in class « Six Things

Six ways to exploit the “atheist bus” in class « Six Things:

"It’s another one of what the Spanish would call a “noticia insólita” (which means unusual news, but it sounds better in Spanish!): the atheist advertising campaign on London buses that is spreading to other cities. This is one of those things that just can’t be ignored. As soon as I saw the video on the news and the reactions it was provoking I started getting ideas on how it could be used to spark discussion in class. Six ideas, actually.

1. Play “Guess the word”. Write on the board the following: There’s probably no ______. Now stop worrying and enjoy your _____. Ask students to suggest different words that could go in the slots. At the end, once the words have been guessed or you tell them ask them what they think of the quote. Then explain the backstory.

2. Focus on word order. Give the following words jumbled up in two groups. no there’s God probably / stop enjoy and worrying life now your. Ask the students to form two grammatically correct sentences. Accept all grammatically correct sentences. Then ask them what they think of the quote. Explain the backstory, or give it to them to read.

3. Teach adverbs. Use the sample sentence to focus on adverbs like probably (sometimes called adverbs of certainty). The others"

Ad Campaigns in Buses... Start Walking

There's been an Atheist bus ad campaign in the UK, in response to an Evangelican one:

Embedded video from CNN Video


There're also been some atheist buses here in Spain, and some catholic ones in response to those... Is it time to start walking more?

Education and New Technologies

WHAT’S SHAKESPEARE EVER DONE FOR US? Educate Online: UK Education News & Reviews

» WHAT’S SHAKESPEARE EVER DONE FOR US? Educate Online: UK Education News & Reviews:

"The ‘STAND UP FOR SHAKESPEARE‘
NATIONAL SCHOOL ASSEMBLIES WEEK
26 – 30 January 2009
The Royal Shakespeare Company invites every Primary and Secondary school across the country to take part in a national Stand up for Shakespeare Assemblies Week from 26 - 30 January 2009 to explore and debate the importance of Shakespeare.

Schools will be able to download specially created assembly toolkits from the RSC’s Stand up for Shakespeare website www.rsc.org.uk/standupforshakespeare which tackle the questions ‘What Shakespeare Has Done for Us’ and ask ‘Why Do We Still Study Shakespeare?’ and will receive a short film of young people enjoying Shakespeare at schools with interviews and messages of support from RSC actors including Judi Dench, Patrick Stewart, Tamsin Greig, Michelle Gomez and David Tennant."

Planning the First Weeks of School

Google Certified Teacher

Google Press Center:

"K-12 Educators Put New Google Resource Center to the Test

We've been hearing stories from classrooms across the US where teachers at all grade levels are using Google products to bring assignments to life, shine light on new sources of information, and encourage sharing and collaboration. What we also heard loud and clear was teachers' desire for more information about our products and more connections to other educators who are using the web creatively. That's why we've launched a set of resources for K-12 educators today at www.google.com/educators.

A teacher in Virginia uses Picasa with his students to create picture collages of famous Americans. At a school in California, teachers use Google Calendar to schedule events and reserve resources such as the computer lab and projectors. One teacher in Chicago has her students practice graphing data using Google Earth, the spreadsheets in Google Docs & Spreadsheets, and earthquake data from the U.S. Geological Survey. And students across the country completing their English homework on the word processor in Google Docs & Spreadsheets will always be able to find that assignment, no matter what computer they're working on.

At the new site, you'll find teachers' guides for 12 Google products, including basic information about each tool, examples of how educators across the country are using them, and lesson ideas. The featured product"


http://www.edgateway.net/cs/google/create/ggl_app

Learning to Change - Changing to Learn

5 Most Embarrassing Writing Mistakes

5 Most Embarrassing Writing Mistakes:

"Have you ever read over a message you've sent or reviewed a paper you've submitted and realized you made some embarrassing and silly mistakes? Why do we only seem to notice when it's too late? These are some of those common errors you should look for (before you hit the send button)!

Here's a tip: As you read over any draft of your writing, stop on any word that has an apostrophe and do a mental check. Are you using the right word?

1. Their, There, and They're Confusion
Confusing they're, there, and their is one of those reputation-busting mistakes! Do you know the difference? Even if you do, it's so easy for fast fingers to hit the wrong keys. Look for this embarrassing mistake when you proofread your paper!"

Drop.io: Simple Private Sharing

Drop.io: Simple Private Sharing: "Drop.io + Twitter = Tweet.io

Tweet.io is a way to feed content added to a drop.io 'drop' instantly into your twitter feed. You simply 'subscribe' your twitter account to updates from your drop.io drop by entering your twitter username and password... add items to your drop via any ‘input’, we convert it for you, we twitter a direct link for you. (any media --> drop.io --> twitter). So, add anything to your drop - pictures, video, audio, documents, files, notes, links - via almost any drop.io input - web, widget, email/mms, voicemail, fax - the items will instantly be placed in your twitter feeds with direct links. Your twitter 'followers' can in one click experience any media type on the fly... So, you can directly leave voicemail right into twitter or even fax all your followers.

Advanced Directions: custom tweets and email/mms

Customize your tweets when you subscribe your twitter account to your drop you can customize the way tweets are sent using our simple mini-language, using calls like [item url], [item type], etc. Sending in Email/MMS if you are sending in email or MMS to your drop, the resulting tweet will be automatically auto-formatted as ‘[email subject]:[email body] [direct link]’ this way if you send in photos, other file attachments, or just long notes, the tweets can b"

Sir Ken Robinson on Creativity

http://www.ted.com Sir Ken Robinson makes an entertaining and profoundly moving case for creating an education system that nurtures (rather than undermines) creativity.


TEDTalks is a daily video podcast of the best talks and performances from the TED Conference, where the world's leading thinkers and doers are invited to give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes -- including speakers such as Jill Bolte Taylor, Sir Ken Robinson, Hans Rosling, Al Gore and Arthur Benjamin. TED stands for Technology, Entertainment, and Design, and TEDTalks cover these topics as well as science, business, politics and the arts. Watch the Top 10 TEDTalks on TED.com, at

http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/top10

How to Write a Five-Paragraph Essay

How to Write a Five-Paragraph Essay:

"An essay is a literary composition that expresses a certain idea, claim, or concept and backs it up with supporting statements. It will follow a logical pattern, to include an introductory paragraph (make the claim), a body (support), and a conclusion (summary of statements and support).

English and Literature teachers use them on a regular basis, but essays are also a test tool used commonly in the social sciences, and even in math and science class.

Of course, essays play a big role in the college application process, as well. In short, there's just no avoiding essays, as long as you're in school!

Luckily, you can learn to craft a great essay if you can follow the standard pattern and write in a clear and organized manner.

Introduction

The introduction is the first paragraph in your essay, and it should accomplish a few specific goals.

1. Capture the reader's interest

It's a good idea to start your essay with a really interesting statement, in order to pique the reader's interest."

The Networked Teacher

http://klht20.wikispaces.com/

Bendable Grammar Rules

Bendable Grammar Rules:

"You might be surprised to learn how much language changes over time. One of my favorite shows is The Adventure of English. It’s a series that presents the history of English much like a biography. It is fascinating to see how the rules of English grammar changed over time. There’s a lot of drama in this journey, believe it or not!

Then again, some old habits die hard, and some grammar teachers cling to rules they learned in their grammar school days. Recently, I read a newly-published grammar book with a very catchy title. I thought it would be pretty up-to-date in its views, but I was wrong. I was surprised to see the old grammar myth:

“Never end a sentence with a preposition.”


"The author went on to name all the prepositions with which one should never end a sentence. With was one. I sure hope your English teachers aren’t actually subtracting points for this.

Another stubborn rule is the split infinitive principle. Sure, your writing would be pretty ugly and awkward if you started to brazenly split infinitives on a regular basis. But an occasional infraction can be quite lovely. Just look at the examples provided by the Guide to Grammar.

But that’s not all. The Grammar Guide also advises that the old rule about starting a sentence with and or but is perfectly bendable."

Web 2.0 Directory

go2web20.net Web 2.0 Company Directory

Mindmapping, concept mapping and information organisation software

Mindmapping, concept mapping and information organisation software:

"Vic's compendium of software that supports knowledge management and information organisation in graphical form. Includes mind mappers, concept mappers, outliners, hierarchical organisers, KM support and knowledge browsers, 2D and 3D. The opinions are Vic's but material in quotes that follows 'What they say' is quoted from the vendors' web sites. Product names used in this web site are for identification purposes only and trademarks are the property of their respective owners."

25 Tools You Should Have

25 Tools
View more presentations or upload your own. (tags: learning tools)

Research Note Cards - Taking Research Notes

Research Note Cards - Taking Research Notes:

"Your research note cards should include all the information necessary to write your term paper. You should take extreme care as you create these note cards.

1. Start with a fresh pack of research note cards. Large, lined cards are probably best, especially if you want to make your own detailed personal notes. Also consider color coding your cards by topic to keep your paper organized from the start.

2. Devote an entire note card to each idea or note. Don't try to fit two sources (quotes and notes) on one card. No sharing space!

3. Gather more than you need. Use the library and the Internet to find potential sources for your research paper. You should continue to research until you have quite a few potential sources—about three times as many as your teacher recommends.

4. Narrow down your sources. As you read your potential sources, you will find that some are helpful, others are not, and some will repeat the same information you already have. This is how you narrow your list down to include the most solid sources.

5. Record as you go. From each source, write down any notes or quotes that could be useful in your paper. As you take notes, try to paraphrase all information. This reduces the chances of committing accidental plagiarism."

Blog to Learn: The Lexical Evolution

Blog to Learn: The Lexical Evolution:

"Humans have been using a language to communicate for a long time. What started as non-verbal body language and gestures were later complemented by the existence of symbols to convey messages. Hieroglyphics were used by the Egyptians before 4,000BC to document religious scriptures. These symbols were later replaced by the Roman (also called the Latin) alphabet which we all know of - the letters A to Z. These letters are used to form what we call words. Just how many words are there now? The Concise Oxford English Dictionary (11th Edition) Revised 2008 contains over 200,000 words. That's a lot! Come to think of it, we use only a fraction of the number of words in any dictionary in our writings and daily conversations."

High Schoolers Take Online Classes During Bus Commute

High Schoolers Take Online Classes During Bus Commute:

"Some rural high schoolers have been learning in an unusual way: by taking online classes during their time-consuming bus commutes.

The Wall Street Journal reports:

'The project, known as the Aspirnaut Initiative, gives some high-performing students laptops or video iPods and sets them up with online courses and educational videos during their long bus rides to and from school -- a round trip that often starts before dawn and ends after dark.

A number of participants have dropped out, unable to focus on studying as the bus bumps along gravel roads. But for [some] students...the Aspirnaut Initiative has opened new worlds.'

This is certainly an unorthodox atmosphere for online learning, and not all students can be expected to thrive amidst the distractions. But, for those who have the concentration and self-discipline necessary to make online learning work during the long ride to school, the program has huge benefits."

MindMaps (Mapas Conceptuales)

Mind Map:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mind_map

List of mindmapping software:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_mind_mapping_software

List of concept mapping software:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_concept_mapping_software

How to MindMap:


How Mindsmaps can help you learn a language:


http://www.youtube.com/user/fmonteroarranz

Secondary ICT - Plagiarism - A Cut and Paste Generation | Teachers TV

Secondary ICT - Plagiarism - A Cut and Paste Generation | Teachers TV:

"A look at how staff combat plagiarism in schools, colleges and universities, following the rise of the internet and the cut and paste generation.

A schools plagiarism workshop shows the difficulty in defining and responding to plagiarism in schools, and students at the University of Leeds attend a compulsory study skills module to help boost their understanding of plagiarism.

At Ripon Grammar School, North Yorkshire, staff help students develop independent research skills using the internet in unexpected subjects such as PE and biology.

Hemsworth Arts and Community College, Pontefract, teaches a Harvard style referencing system and uses a plagiarism policy to demonstrate the small steps that can provide pupils with the awareness they need in internet research."

Book Report - Book Report in 10 Steps

Book Report - Book Report in 10 Steps:

"A book report should contain the basic elements, it's true. But a good book report will address a specific question or point of view and back up this topic with specific examples, in the form of symbols and themes. These steps will help you identify and incorporate those important elements."

How to Do Better Google Searches

Tips for New Bloggers: Hexadecimal HTML Color Codes and Names

Tips for New Bloggers: Hexadecimal HTML Color Codes and Names:

"Changing background and border colors will add a special identity to your site.

Under the Template tab, you see “Fonts and Colors”. Clicking that, you will be able to change the colors, font types, and font size. However the available colors on the screen are limited. If you cannot find the color you want, you may want to copy the appropriate hex codes of the colors below, and paste them into the “color hex code” box and press Enter. Try out different combinations, and change them as and when you like."

Basic English Curriculum for Teaching ESL - Grammar

Basic English Curriculum for Teaching ESL - Grammar:

"The follow grammar points will provide students with a solid base to build their English speaking and comprehension skills. Specific points are included in notes for the various grammar points.


Present Simple / Present Continuous (Present Progressive)

Note: Contrast between habits and temporary actions


Past Simple


Past Continuous

Note: Focus on use with the past simple to describe 'interrupted actions' in the past


Present Perfect

Note: focus on use of present perfect for unfinished time - i.e. the duration form. Focus should also include adverbs commonly used with the present perfect: since, for, just, already, yet


Future with 'Will'

Note: Contrast this form with future intentions form - i.e. future with 'going to'


Future with 'Going to'

Note: Contrast this form with future predictions form - i.e. future with 'will'


Present Continuous (Present Progressive)

Note: Use for future intentions and plans, discuss similarities to future with 'going to'


First Conditional (Real Conditional)

Note: Used for probable or realistic situations


Modal Verbs of Deduction Note: Use of 'must be', 'might be' and 'can't be' use in the present


Some - Any

Note: Call to attention the irregular use of some in requests and offers


Quantifiers

Note: too, enough, a lot of, a few, much, many (in question and negative forms), etc.


Prepositions of Place

Note: in front of, opposite, behind, between, across, etc.


Prepositions of Movement

Note: straight on, on your right, past the house, into, out of, etc.


Common Phrasal Verbs

Note: get on with, look after, fed up with, put off, make up, etc.


Verb + Gerund

Note: like doing, enjoy doing, go swimming, etc.


Verb + Infinitive

Note: hope to do, want to do, manage to do, etc.


Basic Verb and Preposition Combinations

Note: listen to, arrive at, go through, etc.


Comparatives & Superlatives

Note: taller than, more beautiful than, as tall as, happier than, the tallest, the most difficult, etc.


Listening Skills

Listening skills should include the ability to understand and act on basic information in the following situations:

  • Personal Information: Name, Address, Telephone #., Nationality Etc.
  • Telling the Time
  • Numbers, Cardinal and Ordinal
  • Simple Directions and Prepositions of Place
  • Spelling
  • Simple Descriptions of People and Places

Vocabulary

  • Descriptions of people: looks and character, the family
  • Food drink and restaurants
  • Likes and dislikes
  • The home, rooms, furniture
  • Town & country
  • Shops and shopping
  • The weather
  • Time, the seasons, months, weeks, days etc.
  • Films and television
  • Leisure and interests
  • Holidays - travel - hotels

Language Functions

Language functions concern "chunks of language" which provide essential phrases for everyday use.

  • Introductions and greetings: How do you do? / Pleased to meet you. / How are you? , etc.
  • Asking for information: How do you spell ____? / How do you pronounce? / Where is the nearest bank? / What does "X" mean?, etc.
  • Offering: Can I help you? / Would you like some ...? etc.
  • Requesting: May I have a coffee? / Could you help me? etc.
  • Inviting: Would you like to come with me?
  • Suggesting: Shall we go out this evening? / Let's have some lunch. / Why don't we play some tennis? etc.
  • Asking for descriptions: What is he like? / What does it look like? etc.
  • Buying and selling: Which size are you? / How much does it cost? etc.
  • Asking for directions: Excuse me, where is the train station? / Where is the nearest bank? etc.
  • The language of travel: Hotels, restaurants, trains and planes, etc.
  • Giving advice: You should see a doctor / I think he should work harder. etc.
Grammar objectives for basic English courses."

How to Research a Paper

Toilet, Lavatory, Loo...

Media Monkey's Diary | Media | The Guardian:

"It's the end of an era at the Times. No, they are not moving the leader page again, it's more seismic than that. 'It is time, so to speak, for a relaxation of our style,' writes the paper's Richard Dixon in an email to staff. 'So henceforth lavatory can now be used interchangeably with toilet. Reserve the use of loo for informal contexts. This moves us on, so to speak, from the thinking described in A Passionate Man by Joanna Trollope: 'At least the children are told how to hold their knives properly and get walloped if they call the lavatory the toilet.'' The importance of this change cannot be overestimated, and should keep the Times letter page in business for days. 'Toilet is probably now the first-choice polite word of the majority in Britain,' continues Dixon. 'While lavatory and loo remain the preserve of the chatterati.' Vox populi, vox toiletries."

Resources for ESL / EFL Teachers

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CCSSO Teacher of the Year 2008

CCSSO Teacher of the Year 2008:

"The National Teacher of the Year Program, a project of the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), focuses public attention on teaching excellence and is the oldest and most prestigious awards program for teachers.

To help celebrate the amazing group of teachers from across the United States honored by this program, the Pearson Foundation hosts the Teachers of the Year in New York City—a visit that includes the opportunity for teachers to script, compose, and create their own personal video with the help of the Pearson Foundation’ s Digital Arts Alliance representatives.

The resulting personal films, each entitled “Why I Teach,” show why these exemplary teachers were honored by their students, by their states, and by the CCSSO National Teacher of the Year Program.

Congratulations to them all."

Top 10 Reasons to Become a Teacher

Top 10 Reasons to Become a Teacher:

"Teaching is a special calling. It is not a job well-suited to everyone. In fact, many new teachers leave within the first 3-5 years of teaching. However, there are many rewards that come with this oft maligned career. Here are my top ten reasons why teaching can be a great profession.
1. Student Potential
Unfortunately, not every student will succeed in your class. However, this fact should not keep you from believing that every student has the potential for success. This potential is so exciting - each new year presents new challenges and new potential successes."

Robert Burns - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


Robert Burns - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:
"Robert Burns (25 January 1759 – 21 July 1796) (also known as Rabbie Burns, Scotland's favourite son, the Ploughman Poet, the Bard of Ayrshire and in Scotland as simply The Bard[1][2]) was a poet and a lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland, and is celebrated worldwide. He is the best known of the poets who have written in the Scots language, although much of his writing is also in English and a 'light' Scots dialect, accessible to an audience beyond Scotland. He also wrote in standard English, and in these pieces, his political or civil commentary is often at its most blunt.

He is regarded as a pioneer of the Romantic movement and after his death became a great source of inspiration to the founders of both liberalism and socialism. A cultural icon in Scotland and among the Scottish Diaspora around the world, celebration of his life and work became almost a national charismatic cult during the 19th and 20th centuries, and his influence has long been strong on Scottish literature.

As well as making original compositions, Burns also collected folk songs from across Scotland, often revising or adapting them. His poem (and song) Auld Lang Syne is often sung at Hogmanay (the last day of the year), and Scots Wha Hae served for a long time as an unofficial national anthem of the country. Other poems a"

50 Great Widgets For Your Blog

50 Great Widgets For Your Blog:

"Widgets are a handy, easy and simple way to add some flare to your blog. Whether you’d like to display the number of currently online visitors to your site or simply the weather report for Los Angeles, you can do it with widgets. We’ve assembled a list of 50 useful or simply cool widgets for your pleasure. And remember, the first rule of widgetizing your blog is - don’t overdo it!

MyBlogLog’s Recent Readers - this widget can easily be called a hit amongst blog owners; its popularity even managed to convince Yahoo into buying MyBlogLog. The widget lets you see the avatars of recent visitors to your blog, provided they’re also members of MyBlogLog.

Mashable - get the latest social networking news from this very site.

Flickr Flash Photo Stream Badge - display images from your Flickr profile with a handy Flash photo stream.

Preview Anywhere - see a live preview of outgoing links in a small popup which activates on mouseover. Some find this annoying, while others might find it useful.

Twitter Badge - if your life is so interesting that everyone must know what you’re up to all the time, then a Twitter badge is the ideal counterpart to your blog. It’ll proudly displays your recent tweets.

Digg News - display the latest Digg links on your blog. Themeable and fully customizable."

How To Use Graphic Organizers To Enhance Learning

How To Use Graphic Organizers To Enhance Learning:

"Graphic organizers actually have the power and potential to enhance the learning ability of students in all age groups. Because the use of visual learning tools is becoming widespread, the introduction of graphic organizers from an early age has been pushed as a means of facilitating familiarity with these extremely effective tools as early as possible.

Graphic organizers aid in learning across all subjects by nature, and the processes involved with them are actually applicable in a myriad of different uses. However, the true effectiveness of these graphic organizers actually lies in the ability of the teachers, as it is their responsibility to show students how to efficiently make use of them.

When used in effective ways, graphic organizers have a great amount of potential for fostering learning in a variety of different areas in education. The most prevalent educational areas that are positively affected by the effectiveness of graphic organizers are comprehension, reading and vocabulary knowledge. A number of studies have been conducted that indicate that graphic organizers have the ability to improve reading and vocabulary knowledge and understanding exponentially.

This is because the child is not only being required to read a bunch of words, but instead is being allowed to learn the importance or lack of importance of these words in or"

Formatting a Research Paper in APA Style

Ease The Load - My Planning Rules My Life | Teachers TV

Ease The Load - My Planning Rules My Life | Teachers TV:

"In this programme, life coach Gladeana McMahon comes to the aid of a teacher who puts so much time into planning lessons that she has no time left for a personal life.

Single mum Sophia Mahmood doesn't like the possibility of being caught out by pupils on a question she can't answer. She spends hours preparing her lessons at night as a result.

Sophia would love to read a book or exercise in the gym but there's simply no time. For 14 years she has taught at Brierfield Walter Street Primary in Nelson, and loves it there.

She knows she is working too much and wants help to identify shortcuts that won't compromise her obligation and commitment to the children in her class.

What advice will Gladeana have for this teacher who has spent her entire teaching career in the same school?"

Microsoft Word 2003 - Writng a Paper with Microsoft Word

Microsoft Word 2003 - Writng a Paper with Microsoft Word:

"To begin your writing assignment, open the Microsoft Word program. The screen that appears is actually a blank document. It is up to you to turn this blank page into your own work.

You can begin typing your paper when you see a blinking cursor on the white area of the blank document. If the blinking cursor does not appear automatically, simply click on the area on the top left of the blank page to make it appear.

Start typing your paper.

At the top of the page you should see a task bar with formatting codes. You will use these codes to edit your work."

100 Great Report Card Comments For K-6 Students

100 Great Report Card Comments For K-6 Students:

"Are you using the same comments on your report card, and starting to feel like it is mundane work? Here are some great report card comments that you might consider using. When writing comments on a report card, the most important thing to remember is to be honest about a student's progress.

1. _____ is showing enthusiasm in his work.

2. _____ is using his free time constructively.

3. _____ uses her time wisely.

4. _____ has progressed wonderfully.

5. _____ is showing signs of leadership in the classroom.

6. _____ has great potential in _____.

7. _____ is a good citizen.

8. _____ is working to his full capacity.

9. _____ needs to improve skills in _____.

10. _____ needs to pay more attention.

11. _____ is working diligently on his _____.

12. _____ is learning to be a better listener.

13. _____ participates very well in class.

14. _____ is showing signs of independence.

15. _____ is still struggling with _____.

16. _____ wants responsibilities and follows through.

17. _____ has a better attitude.

18. _____ is a hard worker.

19. _____ has a winning personality.

20. _____ follows directions well.

21. _____ is steadily improving in _____.

22. _____ is following suggests to improve in _____."

La Web 2.0: La revolución social de internet

S.M.A.R.T. Goals - How to set successful goals

S.M.A.R.T. Goals - How to set successful goals:

"S.M.A.R.T. Goals to Make a Change:

A goal should provide guidance and direction. Goals like ‘lose weight’, ‘eat better’, or ‘have less stress’ are far too vague and unspecific to help very much in making change. Use the S.M.A.R.T. criteria to help put more detail into your goal. Spending some time creating effective goals will be a huge help later on."

Holiday Insights : National Handwriting Day (23rd January)

Holiday Insights : National Handwriting Day:

"National Handwriting Day is an opportunity to reintroduce yourself to a pen or pencil and a piece of paper. In this day of computers, more and more information, notes, and letters are sent back and forth via a keyboard and cyberspace.

According to the Writing Instrument Manufacturers Association (WIMA) website 'The purpose of National Handwriting Day is to alert the public to the importance of handwriting. According to WIMA, National Handwriting Day is a chance for all of us to re-explore the purity and power of handwriting.'

Some of the available documentation we read, suggests concern by stationary, paper companies, and pen and pencil manufacturers that the electronic world will shrink demand for their products. But, indeed, statistics show that pen(or pencil) and paper are alive and well, with a growing demand.

Participate in National Handwriting Day by writing a note or letter to someone. Love letters are cool. Notes to people who are ill or incapacitated will be well received."

Linguistics

Linguistics - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

"Linguistics is the scientific study of natural language, encompassing a number of sub-fields. An important topical division is between the study of language structure (grammar) and the study of meaning (semantics). Grammar encompasses morphology (the formation and composition of words), syntax (the rules that determine how words combine into phrases and sentences) and phonology (the study of sound systems and abstract sound units). Phonetics is a related branch of linguistics concerned with the actual properties of speech sounds (phones), non-speech sounds, and how they are produced and perceived.

Over the twentieth century, following the work of Noam Chomsky,[1] linguistics came to be dominated by the Generativist school, which is chiefly concerned with explaining how human beings acquire language and the biological constraints on this acquisition. Generative theory is modularist in character. While this remains the dominant paradigm,[2] Chomsky's writings have also gathered much criticism, and other linguistic theories have increasingly gained popularity; cognitive linguistics is a prominent example. There are many sub-fields in linguistics, which may or may not be dominated by a particular theoretical approach: evolutionary linguistics attempts to account for the origins of language; historical linguistics explores language change and sociolinguistics looks at the relation between linguistic variation and social structures.

A variety of intellectual disciplines are relevant to the study of language. Linguistics — like other sciences — is highly interdisciplinary and draws on work from such fields as psychology, speech-language pathology, informatics, computer science, philosophy, biology, human anatomy, neuroscience, sociology, anthropology, and acoustics."

http://web.mit.edu/linguistics/

The Green Children

"Chasing Cars" by Snow Patrol

Twitter in Plain English

Unhealthy Responses to Stress - Bad Habits and Unhealthy Coping

Unhealthy Responses to Stress - Bad Habits and Unhealthy Coping:

"If you tend to deal with stress in less-than-healthy ways, you are compounding the negative impacts of stress on your health by exacerbating the stress levels and creating new problems in your life and health. The following are some common unhealthy ways of coping with stress, along with some of the negative effects of each, and ideas on how to curb or change the bad habit itself or lessen its impact.

Bad Habit #1 - Consuming Too Much Caffeine:
Multitudes of people enjoy a daily caffeine intake, as evidenced by the extreme popularity of Starbucks and other coffee houses. And while the occasional coffee isn’t going to do you great harm, it’s important to remember that caffeine is, in fact, a drug, and it’s possible to have a full-blown caffeine addiction. More likely and common, however, is caffeine dependence, where people use caffeine to jump-start their energy in the morning, use it throughout the day to stave off a ‘caffeine crash’, and then find their sleep disturbed by caffeine, causing them to wake up tired and need the caffeine jolt to get going again the next day. As the cycle continues, caffeine affects stress levels as well. If this sounds a little too familiar, here are some resources to help kick the caffeine habit."

Paradoxical Updates

Campaing for Real Beauty

The Dolve Self-esteem Fund:


http://www.campaignforrealbeauty.com/

Yes, We Can

I'm sorry I haven't had the time to comment on the new president, I've been very busy, but I think this video says it all.

Yes, We Can

The English Blog: Caroline Kennedy repeats 'you know' 142 times in interview

The English Blog: Caroline Kennedy repeats 'you know' 142 times in interview:

"I find that one of the most annoying verbal tics is the repeated use of the expression 'you know'—or y'know—by interviewees on TV or the radio. But the champion has to be Caroline Kennedy, who used the offending phrase 142 times in a single interview."


http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/28/nyregion/28kennedy.html?_r=2&ref=nyregion

Hugging Day - January Fundays (21st January)

Hugging Day - January Fundays:

Are You a YouTube Tourist or a Resident?

How to Make Your First Vlog

Think Different: Mac vs. PC

1984 - Apple Macintosh Commercial:


Apple ads 1997 - 2001:


Mac vs. PC:


Should I get a Mac? I wonder...

Creación de una unidad didáctia (vídeo guía)

Mr Bean - iTunes Ad

Why Take Notes?

Why Take Notes?:

"Taking notes is a great way of helping you identify important concepts in class. Even if you have a great memory, you won't be able to remember everything that the teacher says, unless you have a permanent written record for your reference.

The purpose of a literature lecture is often to offer important background information about the literature you're studying, including: biography, literary history, period and movement details, discussion of relevant literary terms, details about the author's style, thematic relationships between works, critical perspective on the works, important quotations, or other relevant material related to the work, time period, etc. The content from literature lectures usually has a way of appearing in mysterious ways in quizzes, in-class writing assignments, essay assignments, and other testing situations. Even if the lecture material doesn't reappear in a testing situation, you may be asked to draw from the knowledge you gained from the lecture for a future in-class discussion, and it's just a good idea to have a record of what you've covered so far in the class. So, here are a few tips about what to think about as you take notes in your literature class..."

Taking Notes - How to Take Notes in Class

Taking Notes - How to Take Notes in Class:

"Good class notes are essential to good study skills. If you study bad notes, it's pretty clear that you won't perform very well on tests. But what are good notes? Good notes capture the most important facts and enable you to understand how every fact fits into a larger puzzle.

Many students fall into the trap of attempting to write down every word the teacher speaks. This is unnecessary, but even worse, it's confusing. The key to good notes is identifying the most important things to write down."

Edgar Allan Poe (200th Anniversary)

Edgar Allan Poe - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:
"Edgar Allan Poe (January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American poet, short-story writer, editor and literary critic, and is considered part of the American Romantic Movement. Best known for his tales of mystery and the macabre, Poe was one of the earliest American practitioners of the short story and is considered the inventor of the detective-fiction genre. He is further credited with contributing to the emerging genre of science fiction.[1] He was the first well-known American writer to try to earn a living through writing alone, resulting in a financially difficult life and career.[2]
He was born as Edgar Poe in Boston, Massachusetts; his parents died when he was young. Poe was taken in by John and Frances Allan, of Richmond, Virginia, but they never formally adopted him. After spending a short period at the University of Virginia and briefly attempting a military career, Poe parted ways with the Allans. Poe's publishing career began humbly, with an anonymous collection of poems, Tamerlane and Other Poems (1827), credited only to "a Bostonian".
Poe switched his focus to prose and spent the next several years working for literary journals and periodicals, becoming known for his own style of literary criticism. His work forced him to move between several cities, including Baltimore, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and New York City. In Baltimore in 1835, he married Virginia Clemm, his 13-year-old cousin. In January 1845, Poe published his poem "The Raven" to instant success. His wife died of tuberculosis two years later. He began planning to produce his own journal, The Penn (later renamed The Stylus), though he died before it could be produced. On October 7, 1849, at age 40, Poe died in Baltimore; the cause of his death is unknown and has been attributed to alcohol, brain congestion, cholera, drugs, heart disease, rabies, suicide, tuberculosis, and other agents.[3]
Poe and his works influenced literature in the United States and around the world, as well as in specialized fields, such as cosmology and cryptography. Poe and his work appear throughout popular culture in literature, music, films, and television. A number of his homes are dedicated museums today."

Edgar Allan Poe Society of Baltimore:
http://www.eapoe.org/
http://hellnotes.com/poe-19-new-tales-inspired-by-edgar-allan-poe/
"Edgar Allan Poe will turn 200 on January 19th, but his spirit lives on in more ways than one, appropriately enough. Poe’s writings have become ingrained in our culture, even when we don’t realize it. Few people can think of slightly archaic term “Nevermore” without conjuring the image of a raven, or consider tasting a particular fortified wine called amontillado without hearing it spoken by Boris Karloff in their mind’s ear. To celebrate Poe’s birth, The New York Review of Science Fiction Readings will present a star-studded lineup of writers and performance that will get your tell-tale heart a-beating. There will be a brief perspective on the history and impact of Poe and American gothic writing, a performance of “A Cask of Amontillado,” and a book launch party for a new Poe-inspired anthology celebrating the occasion, featuring some of the top writers today.
January 6, 2009 (doors open at 6:30 pm, program begins at 7:00), The South Street Seaport Museum’s Melville Gallery (213 Water Street, New York, NY) will host this celebration of Edgar Allan Poe’s 200th birthday. Admission is free, but $5 donations are encouraged to offset costs and buy dinner for the readers.
Readings will be done by Veronica Schanoes is an assistant professor of English at Queens College; Simon Loekle, producer/host of As I Please (WBAI 99.5 FM, NYC), a weekly radio program that often presents literary readings; and Ellen Datlow has been editing short science fiction, fantasy, and horror for over twenty-five years. Her latest release is Poe: 19 Tales Inspired by Edgar Allan Poe (Solaris). There will also be four contributors from the Poe anthology doing readings: Gregory Frost, a writer of fantasy, horror and science fiction who has been publishing steadily for more than two decades; John Langan, the author of several stories, including “Mr. Gaunt,” and “On Skua Island,” which were originally published in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction; Barbara Roden, who has been published in a number of anthologies and is being collected in Northwest Passages, which will be out in 2009 from Prime Books; and Delia Sherman, who has had short fiction in F&SF, Fantasy Magazine, and numerous anthologies, the most recent of which is The Coyote Road (2007).
On the other side of the ocean, the British Fantasy Society will host the UK launch of Poe, a new anthology from Solaris. The book features “remixed and reimagined” versions of Poe’s tales by such talents as: Pat Cadigan, Sharyn McCrumb, Kim Newman, Lucius Shepard, M. Rickert and Nicholas Royle.
This free event will be held Saturday, January 31st at the historic Ye Olde Cock Tavern on London’s Fleet Street. Ellen Datlow will be on hand to present readings by Pat Cadigan and Kim Newman with copies of the book available for purchase and signature.
It all happens at 2 pm at Ye Olde Cock Tavern, 22 Fleet Street, London, EC4Y 1AA."
"The Raven" performed by Vincent Price:
"The Raven" narrated by Christopher Walken:


The story behind "The Raven" and "Annabel Lee":


The death of Edgar Allan Poe: