Writing Fun by Jenny Eather - helping kids with how to write using text organizers - an interactive writing resource

Writing Fun by Jenny Eather - helping kids with how to write using text organizers - an interactive writing resource:

"An interactive writing help site that includes downloads to save for off-line use.

Writing Fun explains the types of text commonly written in schools with printable organizers and examples showing text structures, grammatical features and publishing ideas.

Writing text types covered include reports, procedures, explanations, expositions (persuasion, point of view), discussions, narratives, recounts, descriptions, responses (inc. reviews), letters, invitations, news articles and emails."

Stress Management Through Organization: Get Your Time and Your Life Back Under Control

Stress Management Through Organization: Get Your Time and Your Life Back Under Control:

"You know that getting your life under control will reduce the stress you endure every day. If you’re willing to make some adjustments, things can change. You’ll have to practice better self-management.

Improving self-management involves a process. It’s not complicated, but it’s not going to happen overnight. It requires you to stop digging yourself into a hole and figuring out a better way to get things done."

Stress Relievers - 25 Stress Relievers to Try

Stress Relievers - 25 Stress Relievers to Try:

"We all experience stress from time to time. When stress gets to be too much, it can take a toll on our health and wellbeing. That's why effective stress relievers are essential in restoring inner peace and physical health. Here is a growing list of stress relievers that can help you feel less affected by stress in your life."

Time Management - How to Improve Your Time Management Skills

Time Management - How to Improve Your Time Management Skills:

"Do you often feel like you have more things to do than you have time to do them? Here are tips to help you improve your time management skills both at work and at home.

* Keep Prioritized 'to do' Lists: List tasks you must complete in order of priority (most important to least important). Cross off items as you complete them.

* Schedule Breaks: Schedule breaks at regular times. You'll be less likely to goof off when you should be working.

* Learn to Delegate: Don't try to do it all yourself. Assign jobs to others.

* Get Organized: It's much easier to accomplish tasks if your work area is organized. "

Bright students to get £20,000 to train as teachers - Telegraph

Bright students to get £20,000 to train as teachers - Telegraph:

"Graduates with first-class degrees will be eligible for the most generous bursaries to teach shortage subjects such as science and maths, The Daily Telegraph has learnt.

In an overhaul of the system of teacher training in England, ministers will announce the introduction of new personality tests – combined with tougher English and maths exams – to weed out the weakest applicants.

Teacher training courses will be reformed to put more focus on behaviour management and reading. Ministers will also signal plans to train more students in schools – instead of universities – in a move seen as an attack on the Left-wing teaching establishment.

The reforms are designed to raise the profile of the teaching profession amid fears that English state schools are falling behind those in other developed nations.

It comes just days after Sir Terry Leahy, the former chief executive of Tesco, described the quality of education offered in many schools as “simply not good enough”."
http://jeffreyhill.typepad.com/english/2011/06/words-in-the-news-reward.html

Top note-taking apps for iOS | The Download Blog - Download.com

Top note-taking apps for iOS | The Download Blog - Download.com:

"Aside from games, some of the most popular categories of iOS apps in the iTunes App Store are note-taking apps. Whether you're a student taking notes for class or your workday requires that you take notes in meetings, a handy app that makes it easy to jot things down and organize them can be incredibly useful.

Apple's Pages ($9.99) is probably the most obvious choice here, having been around since the first iPad was launched (now a universal app for iPhone and iPod Touch as well), but there are several third-party apps that offer different features that might be more in tune with your style of note-taking.

This week's iOS apps are all about taking notes. The first is all about taking notes that autosync across all your devices; the second offers a sleek-looking interface with several themes to categorize your notes; and the last is an iPad-only app offering an elegant system for keeping your class and meeting notes organized."

Procrastination - Tips for Stopping Procrastination

Procrastination - Tips for Stopping Procrastination:

"Why We Procrastinate

Why do we fall into the procrastination trap time after time? Because procrastination becomes a way--no matter how maladaptive-- of coping with the emotions and physical symptoms that accompany depression. It may bring some temporary relief, but we eventually wake up the following day and find that no brownies have dropped in overnight and done our work for us.

Which style of procrastination fits you? "

Are you SMART online? - Langle land - An e-Safe place to be!

Are you SMART online? - Langle land - An e-Safe place to be!:

"Have you ever got an email, text or other things like that from people you don’t know? If you have, did you open it? And if you haven’t never open things from people you don’t know even if you are anxious to or really want to badly still… DON’T!

Because there might be an attachment with a virus on. If you replied to someone you didn’t know it would tell them what your email is to. Help us put a stop to cyber bullying and when you get an email from someone you don’t know:

* Block them.
* Tell a trusted adult.
* Delete it.
* Next time try to be safer online."

Let Google make mindmaps for you! | Işıl Boy's Blog

Let Google make mindmaps for you! | Işıl Boy's Blog:

"Pre-writing stage serves as a necessary step for writing, and students need to do brainstorming before they start writing to see that they can make it work without any magic. Both for searching effectively on the web and mind mapping, students can make use of google’s ‘wonder wheel’.

Here are three screenshots to show how it can be used:"

EdTech Toolbox: 20 Youtube Features You Need to Know

EdTech Toolbox: 20 Youtube Features You Need to Know:

"Almost activity task or activity has a how to video on Youtube. Any historical period, major event or art movement has a mini documentary uploaded. Almost any scientist or scientific experimented has been documented and shared. At this stage we should all be embracing the knowledge and shared information that is Youtube. This is a great article that shows you from Niall Harbison is from over at Simplyzesty


With over 3 billion Youtube videos watched every single day and 48 hours of footage uploaded every single minute to the world’s most popular video sharing website we wanted to produce a useful guide for getting the most out of the service. You’ll struggle to find somebody who uses the web and who doesn’t watch Youtube videos on a daily basis but there is so much more to Youtube than just little funny videos of cats. The list also provides tips and tricks for publishers who are the people who make the site what it is today. Over the coming years we can expect Youtube to continue it’s growth especially on mobile and possibly even on to our smart TVs in the future to form a core part of our daily entertainment experience. Here is how you can get much more out of Youtube…"

BBC News - Webscape - The app connecting you to people near by

BBC News - Webscape - The app connecting you to people near by:

"Web reviewer Kate Russell gets social with a proximity chat, photo and video sharing iPhone app called Color, with an Android version in development. Great for capturing multiple view points at a large event like a music festival.

If you are curious about the value of your network, Empire Avenue can help work it out, as you trade a virtual currency for shares in a person or company's social media profile. You will find a useful beginners' guide on how to play at The Next Web.

Life is a journey and if you want to share that trip, there is an interesting new edition to the web at iJourney. This free, flash-based social tool lets you add video, pictures, notes, social media feeds and more, to any day in the calendar you choose.

Sometimes your friends go on more interesting travels than you, but you can still follow their exploits with Feedkite . It is a Facebook plug-in that uses the built-in travel resources to extract albums from various locations, all wrapped up in a simple interface. "

Why virtual weight loss programs could lead to better health habits | SmartPlanet

Why virtual weight loss programs could lead to better health habits | SmartPlanet:

"We asked the question: Can you deliver a weight loss program through [a 3D virtual] environment that is at least as effective as a real world, face-to-face environment?

We had a group in the traditional face-to-face program. We compared them to two groups that were in the virtual program [Club One Island]. The program runs over 12 weeks. We did baseline measures of their bio-metrics and their behavioral perception. We did post-measures at the end of the program and collected other data along the way."

More Harry Potter Coming?

More Harry Potter Coming?:

"Excitement has been building since the announcement that J.K. Rowling, the author of the Harry Potter series, has a new Web site, Pottermore.com. The site landing page says, 'Coming Soon' and when you click on one of the owls pictured, it leads to a You Tube video stating to look for an announcement by Rowling in 5 days. From the first book through the seventh, the books in the Harry Potter series have been both praised and attacked. Depending on who you talk to, J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter books are either wonderful fantasy novels with powerful messages for kids, or they are evil books designed to promoted an interest in witchcraft. The Harry Potter Controversy has led to a number of groups speaking out against banning books and in support of the Harry Potter series. Share your opinion of the Harry Potter series by going to Readers Respond and posting a message. There you can also find out what others think about the Harry Potter series."

The Bamboo Project Blog: 7 Dangerous Things Every Adult Should Do

The Bamboo Project Blog: 7 Dangerous Things Every Adult Should Do:





"On yesterday's post about creative anxiety and risk-taking, Holly McDonald left me an excellent link to an article on risk-taking at the Open Education blog, which, in turn, led me to Gever Tulley's TEDTalk on 5 Dangerous Things You Should Allow Your Child to Do.

We learn as children to stop taking risks, but I think that as we become adults, we can be even more risk-averse, mainly because we also feel like we have more to lose.

Although I love Tulley's list, in some ways I think that these ideas (like naps) may be wasted on the young. I had some ideas of my own for a new list and put out a call to Twitter for feedback from my network. Some very cool people responded (credited below).

So here is our list of 7 Dangerous Things Every Adult Should Do. Note that none of these suggestions involve sharp instruments. "

Technology Tidbits: Thoughts of a Cyber Hero: Top 10 Teaching Based Movies

Technology Tidbits: Thoughts of a Cyber Hero: Top 10 Teaching Based Movies:

"W/ the start of summer upon us I decided to have a little fun and compile a top ten list of one of my favorite things, movies. There are are many top ten lists on a number of different topics surrounding movies but to keep in style w/ this blog I decided to focus mine on teaching. I'd love to read feedback and what movies you think should be on this list or in which order. The one film I which I'm sure to garner a lot of praise that I omitted on this list is, Mr Holland's Opus and that's because I've never seen it."
I have seen Mr Holland's Opus and it is a great film. Watch it if you can.

Hackers And Clouds: How Secure Is The Web? : NPR

Hackers And Clouds: How Secure Is The Web? : NPR:

"Protecting The Cloud

Another tech company hackers were watching closely this week was Apple. CEO Steve Jobs announced the iCloud, a new service that will allow Apple users to store all their email, photos, music and documents on one central server.

'By centralizing their data, they've really painted a target on their back,' says David Brumley, a computer scientist at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. He says Apple's iCloud is actually a bank of servers in a building the size of two football fields in North Carolina.

'From the reports, they have barbed wire around the building, they have guards and you're going to need an ID to get into those buildings,' he says. 'So the physical security is actually pretty good. It would be a lot like getting onto a military installation to actually get into Apple's iCloud data center.'

Though it may be tough to break into the server's headquarters, Mitnick says, breaking in online could be another story.

'I was hired to test this cloud infrastructure in South America. Literally in the 15 minutes that I was on the phone with the CEO of the company and one of the lead technical guys, I was able to get access that only system administrators should get access to,' he says.

Mitnick says there are things everyday Internet users can do to protect their information, like using a VPN client or more secure browsers like Google Chrome, but he adds, 'Anything out there is vulnerable to attack given enough time and resources.'"

Put a thousand books from the British Library on your iPad for free | TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog

Put a thousand books from the British Library on your iPad for free | TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog:

"The British Library has released 1000 books from its 19th Century collection into a free iPad app that includes novels, historical works, poetry, philosophy and scientific books.

The books have been scanned in high resolution and color so you can see the engraved illustrations, the beauty of the embossed covers, along with maps and even the texture of the paper the books were printed on.

You can search the collection, browse titles by subject, and even read commentary on some of the titles. The books can be downloaded for reading offline."

Seven stupid mistakes teachers make with technology - Home - Doug Johnson's Blue Skunk Blog

Seven stupid mistakes teachers make with technology - Home - Doug Johnson's Blue Skunk Blog:

"Stupid is not my favorite word. It sounds mean and harsh and ugly. But after reading that according to Newsweek that 25% of employees visit porn sites from work, and that the adult video industry claims hits on porn sites are highest during the work day*, it was truly the only term that seems to fit this sort of human behavior. I don't have any overwhelming objections to pornography per se. But perusing it at work? That's stupid.

I use stupid under fairly constrained conditions. To me, a stupid act has a degree of willfulness about it and is serious. Making an error once is ignorance; making the same mistake multiple times is stupidity. Unfortunately, I see stupid acts and beliefs related to technology in schools all the time."

Rename a user - Google Apps Help

Rename a user - Google Apps Help:

"A Google Apps user has two names: a display name consisting of a first name and last name, and a user name that appears before the @ sign in his or her primary email address. You can change either or both of these names.

Changing a user's display name changes the way the name appears in the Gmail interface, for example in the contacts list and during auto-complete.

Changing a user's user name changes his or her primary email address, which Google Apps uses to identify the user. Google Apps uses the primary email address as the unique identifier for a user's account: it is the name the user enters to sign into Google Apps, to sync with his or her mobile device, and to share Google Docs and Sites.

If a user simply needs an alternative email address, consider creating an email alias for the user instead of changing his or her user name and primary email address. "

How to move your blog from Blogger to Edublogs | Işıl Boy's Blog

How to move your blog from Blogger to Edublogs | Işıl Boy's Blog:

"1. Create a new blog at on your Campus site
2. Log into your Blogger Dashboard
3. Go to Settings > Export blog
4. Click on Download blog and save onto your hard drive
5. Go to Blogger to WordPress converter http://blogger2wordpress.appspot.com/ convert your file into XML and save onto your computer
6. Log into your new Campus blog and click on Tools > Import
7. Click on WordPress
8. Browse to locate converted Export file 9. Click on upload file and importThis will import all pages, posts, comments, files. But you will need to manually set up your blog theme and widgets. We recommend that you have both blogs open in separate browser tabs or windows and work between the two blogs to change the theme and add in the widget. "

Personal Web Site (and Online Diary) 101

Personal Web Site (and Online Diary) 101:

"Personal Web Site (and Online Diary) 101

When you finish this five week course you will understand the basics of Web site design. Along the way you will be able to ask questions of others in the course to get help with any design question. You can go at your own pace or you can follow along with the syllabus.

These are a few of the things you will learn:

* Different programs you can use
* Lay out your site successfully
* Choosing a great title
* Writing a compelling description
* Linking
* Creative writing
* Adding pictures
* Updating
* Archiving
* Promoting

Classes start every week. You will receive the weekly syllabus along with the first lesson soon after you sign up. For the next four weeks you will receive a new lesson.

Sign up and receive weekly courses. This course is free. You have nothing to lose except the time you spend learning to create a great Web site. "

Rel=author Authorship Markup in HTML5

Rel=author Authorship Markup in HTML5:

"Why Defining Authorship is Important

Including authorship information on your web articles helps search engines provide better search results to their users, but it also helps you get more of your content in front of people. Because as the verified author of a document, your article will have more credibility than an article without a verified author. "

PowerPoint Heaven - The Power to Animate

PowerPoint Heaven - The Power to Animate:

"PowerPoint Heaven is a PowerPoint entertainment portal for PowerPoint animations, games, artworks, showcases, animation templates and tutorials. The focus of this site is to maximize the use of Microsoft PowerPoint and go beyond its capability. Our goal is to show users that PowerPoint is not simply a presentation tool, but is also capable on leveraging into other areas such as creating games, artworks and animations."

21st Century Fluency Project

21st Century Fluency Project:

"This resource is the collaborative effort of a group of experienced educators and entrepreneurs who have united to share their experience and ideas, and create a project geared toward making learning relevant to life in our new digital age. Our purpose is to develop exceptional resources to assist in transforming learning to be relevant to life in the 21st Century. At the core of this project are our Curriculum Integration Kits - engaging, challenge based learning modules designed to cultivate the essential 21st Century Fluencies within the context of the required curriculum.

In today's world, it's easy to see just how vital the internalization of these fluencies really is. They are the essential methodology by which the students of today will transform into the architects and leaders of tomorrow. Working together, we will make the future great.

In addition to the various resources we have crafted, we have strived to make our site just as engaging and informative. We hope you enjoy your time with us as you move forward in to C.H.A.N.G.E. in your classroom."

Soaring school meal prices threaten to wreck 'Jamie effect' - News, Food & Drink - The Independent

Soaring school meal prices threaten to wreck 'Jamie effect' - News, Food & Drink - The Independent:

"The price of a school dinner has jumped 10 per cent this year, an Independent on Sunday investigation has found, sparking fears that the financial crisis and rampant food inflation could jeopardise the 'Jamie Oliver effect' of healthy eating for pupils.

A survey of more than 80 UK local education authorities has found that, after years of minimising rises in the cost of school meals, scores of town halls have been forced to impose increases of up to 16 per cent. The cost of a school dinner is now almost £2, with many parents having to pay an extra 50p a week to ensure their child gets a nutritious meal in the middle of the day."

Twitter Engages Students In Enrique Legaspi's L.A. Classroom

Twitter Engages Students In Enrique Legaspi's L.A. Classroom:

"When L.A. teacher Enrique Legaspi asks his students a question about World War I, they pull out cell phones and computers and type off 140 character answers on Twitter.

Legaspi uses the popular social networking site to make his classes energetic."

Configurar Moodle free. Moodle gratuito para clases. « David Escribano Blog

Configurar Moodle free. Moodle gratuito para clases. « David Escribano Blog:

"El desarrollo de la sociedad ha llevado a los docentes a requerir utilizar herramientas que faciliten la gestión de la materia docente así como a permitir la disponibilidad de esta de forma gratuita y permanente, para todo esto utilizaremos un Moodle, para aquellos que no conozcan el CMS Moodle pueden visitar su página oficial. Pero, ¿Cómo iniciarnos en Moodle de forma gratuita? El sitio KeyToSchool nos ofrece está posibilidad a coste cero, en concreto hosting gratuito hasta total de 500 usuarios activos y 500 MB de almacenamiento, además nos ofrece un subdominio gratuito.

Para crearnos un sitio Moodle nos dirigiremos a la página de sign up y seguimos los siguientes pasos:"

Financial Times reta a Apple con una aplicación en HTML5 que obvia iTunes

Financial Times reta a Apple con una aplicación en HTML5 que obvia iTunes:

"Financial Times ha anunciado hoy el lanzamiento de una aplicación construida con tecnología HTML5 a la que se podrá acceder directamente a través de un navegador web, además de estar adaptada para dispositivos móviles.

Se trata de un movimiento interesante por varios motivos: en primer lugar, es un órdago velado a Apple, puesto que la app del Financial Times no estará disponible iTunes (cabe recordar que el próximo 30 de junio Apple empezará a aplicar un servicio de suscripción conforme el cual se quedará con un 30% del valor de algunas de las aplicaciones de revistas y diarios que se descarguen a través de su tienda online); por otra parte, está construida con el lenguaje de programación llamado a imponerse en la web a corto o medio plazo, lo que además dota a la aplicación de una mayor velocidad de descarga; adicionalmente, será gratuita durante la semana de lanzamiento.

La aplicación presenta los contenidos de FT en modo de recortes de prensa. El usuario podrá registrarse gratuitamente y acceder a diez artículos al mes a través de cualquier dispositivo; para disponer de acceso a más de diez piezas será necesario suscribirse.

En principio, la app está adaptada para el iPad y el iPhone; próximamente, también estará disponible para dispositivos basados en sistemas Android -tales como la gama de Samsung Galaxy y Xoom Motorola- y para la BlackBerry PlayBook."

Infographic: Is Anything Private on Your Phone Anymore? « I2fly

Infographic: Is Anything Private on Your Phone Anymore? « I2fly:

"We people today are more concerned about privacy on mobile phones than ever before, but are unclear about what is at risk and how they can protect their privacy. Have a look at the range of personal information on your phone, explain the top privacy concerns and give simple steps you can take to put your mind at ease."

The Teacher Report: Tips for Packing Up Your Clas... - WeAreTeachers

The Teacher Report: Tips for Packing Up Your Clas... - WeAreTeachers:

"1. Pack in Zones: Pack everything that goes in your desk in one box, everything that goes on the bookshelf in one box and everything that goes in your technology center in one box. Seems like a simple concept, but a lot of exhausted teachers just toss everything into boxes and end up with a huge organizational milestone when back-to-school hits.

2. Plan Ahead: Set aside all of the things you'll need first when school starts again—scissors, your stapler, your computer password—and put them into a box. Place that box in an easy-to-find spot so you'll see it first thing when you come back to school. "

Read the whole thing here:
http://community.weareteachers.com/t5/WeAreTeachers-Blog/The-Teacher-Report-Tips-for-Packing-Up-Your-Classroom-Quickly/ba-p/6143