First and Third Graders Share Poetry in Radio Show

The 3rd grade students of Mrs. Bond at Glengary Elementary teamed up with first grade students of Mrs. Brossard at Commerce Elementary to share poetry in a radio show this afternoon.  Both schools are part of the Walled Lake Consolidated School District in SE Michigan.

The students celebrated the writing of original poetry with oral presentations in their own classrooms.  The radio show allows students to share their poetry with others outside of the classroom walls.  It is apparent that they practiced for the show and were proud to share their outstanding work with others.

Congratulations to the students and teachers for a job well done!  Click the play button below to listen to the 8 min 45 second Poetry Fest Radio Show.




Listen to internet radio with Celebrating Third Grade on BlogTalkRadio

Is there a difference between integrating technology and using technology?

I just read an interesting article from edudemic.com titled "12 Ways to Integrate (Not Just Use) Technology in Education."  This is something that I try to explain on a fairly regular basis. Usually asking a question that makes people think about the benefits of using technology is helpful, such as "Is it more effective for students to complete a worksheet using technology than with paper/pencil?"

The edudemic article includes a nice chart from Teachbytes (see below).   The chart could be used as part of a PLC discussion or staff meeting.   The facilitator could ask everyone to jot down on paper a list of how they used technology in their instructional practices over the past week.  The Teachbytes chart could then be distributed.  In small groups a discussion could take place about whether the technology was "used" or "integrated". This could be a very powerful discussion!



 

 

MACUL Conference Photo Contest

Are you going to the MACUL Conference this year?  If so, be sure to enter the 2013 MACUL Conference Photo Contest!  

Enter at http://tinyurl.com/maculphoto13. Submit up to five photos: some type of creative expression related to the MACUL Conference.

The contest is hosted on Photoscramble this year. For the first time ever, conference attendees will vote to determine the ten winning photos!   See details on the MACUL Photo Contest Photoscramble site. You must register for an account to enter the contest and to vote. Registration is free.

Grand prize is a FREE 2014 MACUL Conference registration. The next nine vote-getters will receive a MACUL T-shirt and a MACUL USB drive. Prizes will be given and photos shown at the Grand Prize Giveaway on Friday afternoon.

Submission and Voting Deadline: 10am on Friday, Mar 22.

 

Doctopus!

I just learned of a Google Apps script called Doctopus that makes it easy for teachers to manage and share documents with students or groups. After sharing a document with students, the teacher can keep track of when students last edited the document at a glance. The teacher can also "lock" all the student documents with one click on the due date so that grading can be done, provide feedback, and then "unlock" the documents so that students can revise.

Check out this video tutorial created by Jay Atwood.  Enjoy!

Nominate Your Favorite Tech Leader for a MACUL Award!

Each year, the Michigan Association for Computer Users in Learning (MACUL) recognizes exemplary leadership in classroom teaching with technology and building and district technology leadership.

Three categories are awarded:

• The Outstanding Technology-Using Educator


• The Outstanding Technology-Using Pre-K-12 Classroom Teacher


• The Outstanding Technology Coordinator

Do you have a colleague or staff member who stands out and should be considered for these awards?
The MACUL Outstanding Leader Program is a perfect opportunity to recognize great work and contributions to your school and district.

All winners will receive fabulous prizes.

Information and applications can be found at: http://www.macul.org/grantsawards/201213maculawardsinformation/

 Deadline for the 2013 awards is Monday, January 14, 2013.

Using Twitter to Create a PLN

The MACUL Journal is published quarterly and mailed to MACUL members, who attended the most recent MACUL Annual Conference, MACUL Friends, MACUL sponsors, ISD/RESA/REMC organizations, and every school district Superintendent throughout Michigan.

The Winter 2013 Journal was just distributed and articles relate to social networking in learning.  One of the articles, "Let's Travel with Twitter," by Tammy Maginity, is the first enhanced article.  the article is available on the MI Learning Channel on iTunesU and has video tutorials associated with it. Videos include how to create a Twitter account, and how to follow others.  Check it out!

View the entire MACUL Journal here.

 

Election Impact on US Educational Technology Policy

This post is copied word-for-word, with permission, from Hilary Goldmann's Voices Carry blog.  Hilary is the Director for Government Affairs, ISTE. She wrote this blog post on Nov 7, 2012, the day after Election Day.

After all of the dollars spent, countless advertisements and robocalls, we woke up today to elected Executive and Legislative branches of government that in composition appear very similar to the one we had prior to the election.  President Obama was re-elected to a second term, Democrats retain control of the Senate while picking up at least one seat, and the House remains in Republican control with several races still too close to call.  Nonetheless, when the new Congress convenes in January, there will be some significant changes afoot as committee assignments are made and leadership positions are filled.  These changes in leadership and committee assignments will have a direct impact on education policy.

There are rumors that House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi may step down, which would certainly shake things up on the House side for Democrats and would have implications for the workings between the two sides of the aisle.  Term limits will be in effect for eight House Committee Chairs, including Vice Presidential Candidate Paul Ryan, Chair of the House Budget Committee (though it is expected that he will be granted a waiver and continue as the Chair of that powerful Committee).  Several Republican Senators will be term-limited as Committee Ranking Members. Senator Mike Enzi (R-WY) the Ranking Member of the Senate Health,Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee will likely be replaced by Senator Lamar Alexander (R-TN). As with all elections, policymakers may choose to change committee assignments and serve on committees that are either perceived as more powerful or more in line with the needs of their district or state.  Therefore, it is likely that between retirements and shifting committee memberships we will have new leadership and members on many of the critical House and Senate committees with jurisdiction over education, broadband, funding, STEM and other important education policy areas.

Two  of education technology policy’s strongest advocates retired this year, Senator Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) author of the Achievement Through Technology and Innovation Act, and Senator Olympia Snowe (R-ME) a leading advocate for the E-Rate program and education technology.  Judy Biggert (R-IL) who co-sponsored of the Achievement Through Technology and Innovation Act was defeated in her re-election bid.  We will miss their leadership and strong support of digital learning.

Thus, while leadership of the Executive and Legislative branches of government remain the same, (even Secretary of Education Arne Duncan has indicated his desire to remain for Obama’s second term), the inner workings of the government will change.

ISTE will continue our bi-partisan advocacy efforts to support a 21^st century education for ALL students that ensures all high school graduates are college and career ready.