Always On

Episode 12: Project Planning

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 20:56:18 -0700

This episode brings you tips and ideas for planning your next project.

Podcast and show notes are located at http://web.me.com/alwayson

Special Thanks to Josh Allen for the Episode 12 introduction! Check out his website at http://www.techfridge.com/

Also thanks go out to our audio contributions from:

Gordon Worley, Learning & Development Facilitator  Florida Center for Instructional Technology, University of South Florida

Denis Adamson, Apple Distinguished Educator

Katrina Gotschall, Teacher, O’Neill, Nebraska

Links for Learning

Intro Plugs
The Digital Learning Collaborative Project at St Vrain
Tami Brass 1:1 Educators on Twitter List

Pre-Project Planning Links
Teachers Connecting
Apple Learning Interchange
Drop.io

Project Implementation Links
Webspiration
Tech Chick Tips Podcast
Wall Wisher

Post Project Links
St. Vrain Blogs Homepage
Edutopia Articles on Project Planning
The Educational Technology Clearinghouse

Twitter Shoutouts on Project Planning

Katie asks “Most important things to do when project planning in the laptop classroom.... Always On needs your experienced advice! Please reply!”

digiduchess Put students and curriculum first. Then the technology second.

jburdo "Double jigsaw; 1st grp (they pick) does research; becomes expert. 2nd grp (I assign) does project with expert from each group"

We’d love to hear your thoughts! Leave a comment on our website, email us at alwayson@me.com, or leave us a voicemail at 1-206-600-5317

Follow the Always On Podcast on Twitter!

Episode 11: Creativity and Innovation

Fri, 9 Oct 2009 18:59:44 -0600

Episode 11 of Always On focuses on Creativity and Innovation, ISTE NETS•S Standard 1.

Podcast and show notes are located at http://web.me.com/alwayson

Special Thanks to Coach Hall for the Episode 11 introduction! Check out his website at http://coachhall.com

Links for Learning

Intro Plugs
Bedford Community Schools, Bedford IA
Digital Divas and Rock Our World 11: Tolerance
Flagstaff Academy Teachers and Technology

Creativity and Innovation
ISTE NETS•S Implementation Wiki for Creativity and Innovation
Sir Ken Robinson TED Talk "Do Schools Kill Creativity?"
Daniel Pink's Book "A Whole New Mind"
Peter Reynolds Website
Digital Learning Summer Institute (DLSI) III Outline
A Whack in the Side of the Head by Roger von Oech
ThinkerToys by Michael Michalko

Software Resources
ART Rage
Pencil
Scratch
Animation-ish
Blender
Alice

Hardware Resources
iPod Nano
Flip Camera
Kodak Pocket Video Cameras

Web Resources
Animoto
Xtranormal

Creative Lesson Resources
The Apple Learning Interchange (ALI)
Edutopia

Twitter Shoutouts on Creativity and Innovation

Katie asks “What is the easiest thing we as teachers can do to foster creativity in our students?”

digiduchess Get out of the way

jwindsor Easy way to foster creativity? Plenty of opportunities, no penalty for failure.

jburdo "Yes, and..."

imagemonki Observe & work closely with the best art teachers you can find.

daleholt Model creativity, help them to believe in their worth, and get out of their way

vbek Give children control over the direction of their learning and endless ways and opportunities to express themselves.

shupester Foster creativity by honoring silliness and over ambitiousness rather than being ‘too mature, serious, disdainful, practical.’

enessman To foster creativity: put THEM in charge of their project and encourage risk taking.

kwbenson The easiest thing? Give them ownership of their learning and pull education out of them w/o them knowing...works every time!

Michelle asks “What's a creative project example where students used tech to create products related to what they're studying?”

beverson Should have tons of good examples for you from Wired at Skyline. All will be published online too as we complete them. Stay tuned.

mrlosik For elementary schools, KidPix Deluxe 3x can do it all. Desktop Pub, slideshows, photo edit, podcast. Integrates w/ iLife.

sallybak -http://blogs.stvrain.k12.co.us/msgoerner - Sunset Middle school - Poetry project

Bonus! Matt Cauthron's The Student Creative

We’d love to hear your thoughts! Leave a comment on our website, email us at alwayson@me.com, or leave us a voicemail at 1-206-600-5317

Follow the Always On Podcast on Twitter!

Episode 10: Communication and Collaboration

Wed, 2 Sep 2009 21:55:27 -0600

Episode 10 of Always On focuses on Communication and Collaboration, ISTE NETs Standard 2.

Podcast and show notes are located at http://web.me.com/alwayson

Special Thanks to Francie Snyder (aka Digiduchess on Twitter) for the Episode 10 introduction!

Links for Learning

Intro Plugs

FullSail University, site of the 2009 Apple Distinguished Educator Institute.

Presentation by Steve Katz on managing technology in the classroom

Communication and Collaboration

ISTE's NETs Implementation Wiki for Communication and Collaboration

Randy Nelson of Pixar on “Teaching and Learning in the Collaborative Age”

Barry Bachenheimer video “42”

Wiki examples Animal Kingdom and Earth’s Composition
Alan November's "How information literate are you?" Resources and Quiz

Wetpaint's decision about no longer supporting AdFree wikis for educators

St. Vrain Valley School District's Virtual Campus created using Moodle

Angel and StudyWiz Learning Management Systems

HelpDesk and Instructional Technology Blog from St. Vrain Valley School District

Take2Video Project with Karin Muller and interview with Karin on EdTechTalk WOW 2.0 Episode 112 EdTechTalk: Women of Web 2.0

Saudi visit to PCHS showcasing technology tools for collaboration

Our City Podcast project by Tony Vincent

Google Docs and Etherpad for collaborative writing spaces

Katie's Collaboration website

Michelle's Collaboration blog post series and ideas for pairing students.

Building a PLN presentation by Katie, Michelle, and Colleen Glaude

Teachers Connecting website.

Twitter Shoutouts on Communication and Collaboration

Katie asks “What are your favorite communication and collaboration tools”

Art2Know @katiemorrow Don't forget voicethread and ning as collab/communication tools. : ) Oh and don't forget corank.com. Here's my site for art current events. Like Digg but on a specific topic. art2news.corank.com

Bonus! O’Neill 1:1 Website

We’d love to hear your thoughts! Leave a comment on our website, email us at alwayson@me.com, or leave us a voicemail at 1-206-600-5317

Episode 9: Research & Information Fluency

Sat, 27 Jun 2009 10:28:22 -0600

Episode 9 of Always On is all about helping develop research and information fluency skills with students. Listen in and learn more about how you can best teach students to evaluate sites and find good resources for learning.

Podcast and show notes are located at http://web.me.com/alwayson

Special Thanks to Ben Grey of The EdRevolution Podcast for the Episode 9 Intro!

Links for Learning

Intro Plugs

Katie's SmartTeach wiki for Smart Board training.

Tony Vincent's 21 Ways to Engage 21st Century Learners website.

Michelle's Beyond Digital Storytelling Workshop wiki

Research and Information Fluency

ISTE's NETs Implementation Wiki for Research and Information Fluency

Article "Is Google Making Us Stupid?"

Bernie Dodge's Web Quest website

Alan November's "How information literate are you?" Resources and Quiz

Hoax sites to use with students:
• All About Explorers
• Northwest Pacific Tree Octopus
• DiHydrogen Monoxide Research Center

Michelle's Hoax Bookmarks on Delicious

EasyWhoIs Site lookup to determine the owner of a web domain

Wayback Machine (http://archive.org)

21st Century Information Fluency website

Boolify search site to teach students boolean logic basics.

Google's Tutorial Page for Search Strategies

Wolfram's Alpha Search Engine

Google Squared Search Engine

PCHS Internet Research Unit

Twitter Shoutouts on Research and Information Fluency

Katie asks “Prep for 'Always On' Ep.9: Research and Information Fluency. Favorite resources, advice, or questions from Twitterverse?”

Digiduchess @katiemorrow Big fan of Big 6http://www.big6.com/. Really puts the responsibility in the students hands and gives them a framework.

BenGrey @katiemorrow I'm just so pleased they call it "Information Fluency" instead of "Information Literacy."

Michelle asks “@katiemorrow and I want your input for Always On: Share your ideas/resources/tips on teaching information fluency and research.”

JeffMason @milobo @katiemorrow some resources here at IV. http://tinyurl.com/d4n4ah

We’d love to hear your thoughts! Leave a comment on our website, email us at alwayson@me.com, or leave us a voicemail at 1-206-600-5317

Episode 8: Critical Thinking

Thu, 4 Jun 2009 12:16:31 -0600

How do you incorporate the NETS Standards on Critical Thinking, Problem Solving and Decision Making? Katie and Michelle share resources and links as well as examples from their schools in this episode of Always On.

Thanks to Paviter Singh, St. Anthony's Canossian Secondary School, Singapore, for the Episode 8 intro.

Links for Learning

Intro Plugs
Digital Learning Summer Institute Wiki
Teach with Video by Steve Katz

Critical Thinking, Problem Solving and Decision Making Links 
ISTE NETS Description and Scenarios for Critical Thinking, Problem Solving and Decision Making

The Global Achievement Gap by Tony Wagner

UCLA News Brief “Is technology producing a decline in critical thinking and analysis?”

eSchool News article “Senate Bill Supports 21st Century Skills”

Google e-ART-h ALI Exhibit

Digital Lifestyles and Data Analysis Unit

Tony Vincent “Choice Affects Engagement” and Interactive Stories Resources.

Twitter ShoutOuts on Critical Thinking, Problem Solving and Decision Making

Michelle asks “Critical thinking, problem solving & tech. Have any good examples of activities and ideas to share with @katiemorrow and I for Always On #8?”

JeffMason @milobo touched on this with 4/5th gr. Fair use critical thinking process/activity. We did one together. http://tinyurl.com/ahdwlv

digiduchess @milobo same way you would w/ any other project based learning give them choices, options, some controls. Give guidelines not a manual..

We’d love to hear your thoughts! Leave a comment below, email us at alwayson@me.com, or leave us a voicemail at 1-206-600-5317

Episode 7: Digital Citizenship

Thu, 14 May 2009 18:19:09 -0600

What do students need to know in order to become good digital citizens? Katie and Michelle share their thoughts and the strategies they use to teach students to become responsible users of technology.

Thanks to Larry Anderson, NCTP founder and Think Like a Leader podcaster for the Episode 7 intro.

Links for Learning

Intro Plugs
PCHS Summer Maintenance Schedule
Article on Gayle Berthiaume’s Australia visit

Digital Citizenship Links 
Nine Themes of Digital Citizenship Website and ISTE Book by Gerald Bailey and Mike Ribble

Michelle’s PCHS Digital Citizenship Unit

NetSmartz Internet Safety Curriculum and Safety Pledges

Scott Meech’s SimplyBox on Cyberbullying

iKeepSafe Internet Safety Curriculum Resources

Digizen “Let’s Fight It Together” video

Katie’s YouTube playlist on Internet Safety and Saving Face Ning.

iSafe e-Safety Education program

TheEdRevolution Episode 1: Internet Safety and Smarts

Twitter ShoutOuts on Digital Citizenship

Katie asks “What is your best tip for students being better digital citizens when using laptops? AlwaysOn Episode 7 wants to hear your thoughts.”

Luv2ride @katiemorrow A contract signed by student and parent that outlines student responsibilities. Review contract periodically. Throughout year.

pclark448 @katiemorrow Just because you CAN do something doesn't mean you SHOULD do it.

Schmidtee90 @katiemorrow @katiemorrow Knowing when and where. Also, we drill the 3 R's: Respect, Responsibility, Resourcefulness.

Michelle asks “Digital Citizenship - what do you think is the most important thing that students know/demonstrate in their tech use?”

McTeach @milobo I had this conversation with 7th graders today! We boiled it down to "treat everyone with respect, no matter where you meet them."

digiduchess @milobo Where to find the information about Digital Citizenship. With new tech out there daily they need to know where to get good info.

digiduchess @milobo Spent a lot of time on it this year and the kids want to talk and learn about it. Agree with @McTeach

nctplarry @milobo Respect (for self and for others). Honor. Chivalry, in every aspect. Oops, you asked for just one.

Episode 6: Technology Operations

Thu, 30 Apr 2009 17:44:39 -0600

In Episode 6, Katie and Michelle discuss starter lessons for teaching students laptop basics. Katie talks about her pre-school BootCamp and Michelle shares the first 4 days of classroom instruction. During the discussion, we compare and contrast out two methods along with what we cover (and what we’ve learned we should cover!)

Thanks to Tom Woodward, author of the Bionic Teaching Blog for the Episode 6 Intro.

Links for Learning

Intro Plugs
Iron Teacher Contest description
The EdRevolution Podcast
Kent Manning’s Blog post on CBL

Technology Operations Links
PCHS Computer Applications Pre-Distribution Outline and Laptop Basics Lessons

OHS Boot Camp, Battery Video, and Online Announcements,
OHS Mac InSTALL News (they’re in the bathroom stalls at OHS...really...)

PCHS Housekeeping Lessons for laptop cleaning and file management

Battery Best Practices from Apple

Twitter Shout Outs
rhays (Holdrege, NE, Technology Curriculum Consultant) @katiemorrow Started with a care and feeding type activities, ie. how to care for the laptops. next should be file management

glovely (Gail Lovely, Texas, A teacher, learner, leader, but mostly a curious soul. Details? Speaker, PD leader, DEN Star, ISTE Mentor)
@katiemorrow open, boot, sign in, close, put away, charging, open file from server, save to HD & server and print... what? label for Laptop

brasst (Twin Cities, MN, www.tech4teaching.org/wpblog, Middle School Teacher & Technology Coordinator)
@milobo Talk about AUP and how it relates to them followed by hardware basics and navigating the machine; follow-up every week w/minilesson @milobo We always make sure the kids understand that the laptop is first and foremost a tool for learning, not a toy (however fun it may be)

ellsbeth (Liz Becker, Wyoming, Bio Instructional Coach and High School Social Studies)
@milobo 1:1 Always plug in after school, how to clean/care for them, DON'T leave in cars (temp & theft), school computer (not personal), etc

nctplarry (Larry Anderson, NCTP Director)
@milobo talk with students about responsible behavior, Ask students to journal about what they expect ethical behavior should be.

adamhoughtonnh (Adam Houghton, New Hampshire USA, District Tech Director in Northern NH, theemergingprincipal.com)
@milobo We use a script that each teacher reads that goes through the essentials for use. That way everybody hears the same message.
Download Adam’s script here: HCMSRolloutscript08.doc

julener (Tech Director, Tennessee)
@milobo We have summer laptop orientations--hand the laptops out, discuss policies (parents, too), then students-only 4 mini-classes w tchrs

thomasdaccord (Tom Daccord, Boston, www.edtechteacher.org, edtech consultant, author, teacher; webmaster of besthistorysites.net)
@milobo go over AUP, but don't teach tech. Instead, create small group skill activity: search, analyze, collaborate, create, present.

Episode 5: Starting Simple

Fri, 17 Apr 2009 13:53:02 -0600

Here are a dozen simple strategies for getting started with laptops in your classroom. Listen in as Katie and Michelle interview teachers in their schools and share suggestions from Twitter-using educators on first steps in laptop learning.

Thanks to Gayle Berthiaume for the Episode 5 Intro!
Gayle and Michelle blog as Scholastic’s Tech Tutors

Links for Learning

Check out the Always On wiki for more ideas!

Tip 1: Using a word processor to keep a daily digital journal

Tip 2: Searching for images related to a concept
Creative Commons Image Search
Pics4Learning Image Search
Katie’s Image Search Sites
PCHS Fair Use Resources

Tip 3: Using videos and maps to illustrate concepts
WingClips
TeacherTube

Tip 4: Creating comics for book summaries and concept review
ComicLife
Comiqs Online Comic Creator
More comic creation ideas from Katie

Tip 5: Creating and sharing assessment rubrics
Rubistar

Tip 6: Using concept maps to explore ideas
Inspiration Software
Concept mapping resources from Katie and Michelle

Tip 7: Creating portfolios of student work
VoiceThread example from Mary Anne Staples

Tip 8: Recording audio for fluency practice
QuickTime Pro

Tip 9: Creating photo cards with PhotoBooth and iPhoto
More ideas from Ted Lai in his book iLife in the Classroom

Tip 10: Blogging to set goals and practice writing
More ideas from Gail Lovely’s website

Tip 11: Creating songs to match a story’s mood

Tip 12: Taking a virtual field trip
VR Magazine

Twitter Shout Outs

podpiper (Ted Lai, California, http://podpiperproductions.com, Ed Tech Evangelist)
@katiemorrow We began with PhotoBooth. Kids took photos of themselves (some mangled), brought them into iPhoto, & made introduction cards

glovely (Gail Lovely, Friendswood, Texas A teacher, learner, leader, but mostly a curious soul - details? speaker, PD leader, DEN Star, ISTE Mentor)
@katiemorrow OH! I would have them write a blog entry about their hopes and expectations for their laptops... and revisit these later in yr.

digiduchess (Francie, Florida, http://tinyurl.com/onecogifted, K-5 educator, lover of ed tech, life long learner, school webmaster, christian......) @milobo Huge fan of student blogging. Open ended, see where everyone is at, gives an audience. Works on content, CT, writing all at once. Also easy and collaborative. @milobo Been reading different blog post on challenge interesting conversation. Agree the how is important.

jdog90 (Jamey, Nebraska, http://julius.centura.k12.ne.us, Father / Husband / Teacher / Coach)
@katiemorrow Creating a song for Lord of the Flies with GarageBand.

rmbyrne (Richard Byrne, Maine, http://freetech4teachers.com, Teacher and Web apps junky)
@katiemorrow the first activity I did was a virtual a virtual US Congress activity.

rhumgordon (http://www.kigluaitadventures.com/blog/musher, Musher and builder of all things crooked)
@katiemorrow http://bit.ly/qBAE (virtual sled dog race)

coov82 (Peg Coover, Nebraska, http://julius.centura.k12.ne.us/, Math and Science Teacher and Runner)
@katiemorrow probably graphing data collected in physics lab using excel; or an imovie demonstrating Newton's Laws of Motion.

ernieeaster ( Ernie Easter, New Sweden, Maine, http://meholocausteducation.ning.com, Middle school teacher, educator, local historian)
@milobo Use presentation software (I use KeyNote) & have students work in teams of 2 to develop Preso about <topic depends on curriculum) @milobo topics might be current events related, final book preso, current history or science study. @miloboWe use NoteShare Server (notebook program for Macs) for groups to collaborate in. Again, any topic that lends itself to group work.

Episode 4: Challenge Based Learning

Fri, 3 Apr 2009 15:34:07 -0600

If you're ready to move beyond the traditional classroom structure, to one where learning is embedded in real world application, then Challenge Based Learning is a concept to explore. In this episode, we invited Dennis Adamson, Mike Amante, and Bob Lee to join us in a virtual round table discussion on how Challenge Based Learning is providing a new way to engage secondary students.

Virtual Round Table Guests

Dennis Adamson
Social Studies Teacher
Apple Distinguished Educator, Class of 2007
Ankeny High School
Ankeny, Iowa 50023

Mike Amante
Technology Integration Specialist
Apple Distinguished Educator, Class of 2007
New Hartford Central Schools
New Hartford, NY 13413

Bob Lee
District Technology Director
Apple Distinguished Educator, Class of 2007
Pratt Unified School District 382
Pratt, Kansas

Links for Learning

CBL and ACOT Documentation and Research
Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow Today (ACOT2)
Challenge Based Learning: Explanation and Resources
Challenge Based Learning Group on ALI

CBL Pilot projects and Student Examples
O'Neill, Nebraska
Student Challenge Based Learning Videos
O'Neill High School CBL Ning
Pratt, Kansas
Freshman English Identity Blog
Social Studies Sustainability Blog
Student Interviews

Other Links
Learning Initiative Blog from Madison Schools in Nebraska
Always On is in the iTunes Store! Stop in and leave us a comment!

Episode 3: Laptop Management

Fri, 20 Mar 2009 20:05:02 -0600

If you’re a teacher in a laptop classroom, you know the challenges that come when every student is “Always On.” Listen in to hear tips and techniques that will help you plan for success.

Links for Learning:

KidCast Podcast

Art2Know Website

Practical Principals Podcast

Irving ISD Laptop Classroom Management Videos

Milobo's Musings: Managing the Modern Classroom