Through your eyes.....what do you see?

What do you see?, from the Connected Principals, is one of those posts that needs to be revisited regularly by today's educators. 
                                                         

Well worth being reposted....again and again

Posted by Justin Tarte on 11/20/11 • Categorized as Best Educational Practices,Leadership Essentials,School Culture
- This post is also posted at “Life of an Educator.” – Follow Justin Tarte on Twitter at @justintarte

Wonderful World of Wequests

Barbara Braxton explains : "For those of you who are unfamiliar with the concept of a webquest, this explanation might assist.  I wrote it some time ago (have been a webquest/Tom March fan for over a decade) ...

Webquests were originally developed by Bernie Dodge and Tom March about 1995 as a way of showing how the Internet could be used productively and the currency of the info posted on it could be exploited.  In the words of Tom March (who gave my definition the big thumbs up when I sent it to him after marking dozens of uni papers about webquests that were not) "Every car is not a Chevrolet, every flower is not a rose".  Since the concept first came into being, the name has been watered down to mean almost anything that requires web-based research.

A webquest is a strategy which allows a group of students to investigate a real-life issue from a number of different perspectives. The issue is multi-faceted with a number of possible solutions, each dependent on the purpose and opinion of the stakeholders. After acquainting themselves with the background of the topic, each student assumes the persona of one of the stakeholders and uses the facilities of the World Wide Web to explore the issue from that particular perspective. Using the WWW exploits the breadth or resources available, and because the issues are often topical and local, there is access to material not yet in print format - if indeed it ever is.

Students use their new knowledge and understanding to argue their case from the perspective of their persona and attempt to negotiate a solution to the issue that allows as much of a win-win situation for all as possible. These requirements to argue from an unfamiliar point of view and to achieve consensus and their subsequent demand to use higher order thinking skills that sets the webquest apart from other online strategies such as hotlists and treasure hunts. It also means that it is really suitable for those in year 6+ who have developed the ability to step aside from their own beliefs and argue objectively.

Critical elements include

·         the real-life nature of the issue being explored,

·         its multi-faceted nature that means there are a number of ways that it can be perceived and a number of feasible solutions

·         the need for students to co-operate and collaborate to solve the problem

·         the need for students to step beyond their own knowledge and beliefs to examine issues from a different perspective

·         the need for negotiation and consensus so that there is a solution which is acceptable to all

·         the need for resources, in whichever format, to be almost tailor-made for the situation so students can access and use it quickly, easily and efficiently

·         its capacity "to facilitate the transformation of information into a newly constructed, assimilated understanding" (March, 2006)

A webquest enables students to

·         explore real-life issues

·         understand there can be several sides to every story

·         access a broad range of current resources

·         understand perception, opinion and bias

·         work together to negotiate a solution that works for the majority

·         work at a higher level of thinking than we currently often demand

That doesn't mean that things like hotlists and scavenger hunts are valuable activities, it just means they are not webquests.

In my opinion, webquests are not really suitable for younger students because they lack the ability to be able to set aside their own point of view and see an issue from a different perspective.

Tom March has also written about webquests in a Web 2.0 world at http://greav.ub.edu/iem/index.php?journal=iem&page=article&op=view&path%5b%5d=122and has now re-branded his Web-and-Flow site, which guides you step–by-step through the creation of a number of online activities at http://edge-ucator.com/ "  

Reflections to ponder at report time.....

Let's really THINK about these gems:


If a child learns something but no one is there to test them, did they learn anything? @RobBower 


“Children should be given a voice not only about the means of learning but also the ends, the why as well as the what.” — Alfie Kohn


"It is not how much material we cover, it is how much we uncover that matters."  
@ToddWhitacker


Are you ready to be the “Guide on the Side” and not the “Sage on the Stage”?
STUDENT CENTERED CLASSROOMS and Student-Led Conferences @Cybraryman

Correction to above: "I hear and I forget, I see and I remember, I do and I understand."-Confucius

and last but not least: 

If education was really about learning 

Are your students "learning"? 

or 

are they just "being taught"?

What is happening in your school libraries these days?

FREE ebook "School Libraries: What's Now, What's Next, What's Yet to Come" out now for ALL teachers and Administrators

Read my post @

School Libraries: What's Now, What's Next, What's Yet to Come

A crowdsourced collection of over 100 essays from around the world about trends in school libraries written by librarians, teachers, publishers, and library vendors.

Edited by Kristin Fontichiaro and Buffy Hamilton. 
Foreword by R. David Lankes. 
Photographs by Diane Cordell.
 or download available at http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/96705

SMART Search Engine for teachers.

SMARTBoard Notebook Search Engine 
This is a custom search engine designed to locate SMARTBoard Notebooks for teachers. Have fun!

Congratulations to Edutopia-20years and going strong.

Free Classroom Guides and Educational Downloads for 2011 | Edutopia
"Edutopia is a Web site published by The George Lucas Educational Foundation (GLEF). Founded in 1991 by filmmaker George Lucas and venture capitalistSteve Arnold, the Foundation celebrates and encourages innovation in K-12 schools." Wikipedia 


  EDUTOPIA: Empowering and connecting teachers, administrators, and parents with innovative solutions and resources to better education. 

New! Ten Tips for Classroom Management

Learn how to improve student engagement and build a positive climate for learning and discipline for grades K-12

Top Ten Tips for Teaching with New Media

Whether you're new to teaching or a classroom veteran, this resource-packed collection of 10 new media tips provides fresh ideas and easy-to-use tools to engage your students and make learning more collaborative. (Updated: 6/14/11)

Summer Rejuvenation Guide

Whether it's reading a good book or starting a new hobby, this resource-packed guide highlights ten fun ways to spend your summer. (Updated: 5/24/11)

Top Ten Tips for Assessing Project-Based Learning

This classroom guide is intended to inspire and expand your thinking about effective assessment for project-based learning. 

Home-to-School Resource Guide

Get tips, tech tools, and strategies for how to strengthen the bonds between schools, families, and communities.

The guides and downloads are easy-to-print guides that include useful tips for teachers, parents, and school administrators.

 

Create an account on their website and you will be able to download any of the guides.


The website facilitates access to MUCH MUCH more in the way of innovative educational projects and innovations.

Edutopia 10 Top Tips For Teaching With New Media

For even more Edutopia resources and support:

edutopia - Twitter

Edutopia | Facebook

edutopia's Channel - YouTube

Australian focus: 

Edutopia: Schools That Work - Wellbeing Australia

In need of some inspiration?

Look no further.... "Life is short, live life to seek the greatest value of our action "- Stephen Hawking. Life is short video Thanks to Virginia Pav.


What about a little awe? Try this LG Optimus It really is a most remarkable, incredible, awesome, creative....(if you can forgive that it is advertising at its most extreme.)
Thanks to my Mum for this gem. :)

Standards for the Australian Curriculum announced.

The Hon Peter Garrett MP

Minister for School Education, Early Childhood and Youth

14 October, 2011

Media release

First achievement standards for the Australian Curriculum

Some of the main points of interest from the release include:

The final achievement standards for the first four subjects in the Australian Curriculum were endorsed today at a joint meeting of Commonwealth, State and Territory Education Ministers.

“This means that as the new curriculum in maths, science, English and history is being taught, we will have a common understanding of the quality of student work across the country,” he said.


“We’re putting all the building blocks together: utilising technology, training our teachers, helping disadvantaged students and creating a national approach for the teaching profession. Providing more professional support for our school principals will ensure they can continue to lead the way.”


Ministers also announced the release of the Education and Care Services National Regulations for the early childhood education and care sector, part of the National Quality Framework. This is a major milestone which implements the first truly national regulatory system for early childhood education and care services.


“We want every kid in every school to be able to reach their full potential. At the moment, kids with disabilities are less likely to finish Year 12 and Australia is lagging behind other countries in the workforce participation of adults with disability.

Digital Storytelling: Inanimate Alice

 Inanimate Alice is a gripping digital, interactive, story of Alice and her imaginary friend Brad, set in the early years of the 21st Century and told through text, sounds, images, music and games. 

 ‘Alice’, a transmedia story, connects technologies, languages, cultures, generations and curricula within a sweeping narrative accessible by all.              

The education resources that accompany the series have been developed by Dr. Jess Laccetti, one of the visionaries and leading educators in this rapidly emerging field. The resources are available by registering for the free download at 

The downloadable Education Pack directly involves teachers and learners in the Inanimate Alice experience. The pages include lessons on using a digital story to explore character development and paragraph structure and making connections with the story and the medium. Students apply knowledge though high-order thinking skills and emphasize the value of collaboration in a real-world context.

Educators like how Inanimate Alice can take an audience unfamiliar with multimedia fiction with them and because of this; students from primary to post-graduate level find the work engaging.

These resources are being used by teachers in over 80 countries and also available in four other languages-French, German, Italian and Spanish.

Originally designed for university schools of education they are being further developed and adapted by teachers of children as young as eight years. They are equally a stimulus to those teaching children with engagement and learning difficulties as they are an inspiration for the gifted.   

The series and the associated resources have been designed as a reading-from-the-screen experience providing students with a high-quality literacy text that is delivered in a simulated multitasking environment that young people inherently connect with and understand.

Visit the Inanimate Alice Facebook page for further information.

Students are encouraged to co-create developing episodes of their own, either filling in the gaps or developing new strands. 

Free children’s ebooks for ages 3-7+ | Oxford Owl

Teachers enjoy exploring these free ebooks.
Free children’s ebooks for ages 3-7+ | Oxford Owl

Wacky ways to get your students reading.....

Wacky, but true....

Wacky ... but true is a monthly magazine format mix of freaky, fun and fascinating facts produced in the Hunter region,NSW. 


Now in its fifth year of production the magazine is proving to be a winner in homes and schools across Australia and overseas.


Research has shown that 73% of Australian youngsters prefer reading 
magazines to any other type of reading, and this magazine is sure to 
be a winner with its short, pithy items and eye-catching artwork. The magazine is edited and published by Michelle Down, an experienced primary teacher/ librarian. She says she loves doing the writing and research and feels the magazine is filling a gap in providing children with reading material that increases their general knowledge in a fun way.
  
Wacky, but true is one of the few quality children's magazines published in Australia.

 Any two magazines from this series may be read as Premier's Reading Challenge books; up to five more can be read as personal choice   See Series lists for individual titles. 

If you have not had this magazine previously you can access back copies of the Wacky, but true magazine to order.

Wacky, but true.... is now available online as an e-mag. Check out a sample of the online mag below.

Super specials  for school site licences are available now.

Unlimited numbers of students can read the magazine on any computer at any time while at the school and:

- Teachers can enable a class to read Wacky together and work through the question sheets
- Individual students can access the magazine at any time for remedial or extension work while at the school
- Great opportunity for comprehension work.


A site licence that allows your school to place the magazine on your server and allow full student access  for only $149.
Teachers can apply to receive FREE activity sheets based on stories in the magazine. These will be emailed to you each month to be used in conjunction with the magazine.
Do you have students who love to write and would love a wide audience of their peers? YES? Then check out the INKROOM.

Michelle has recently begun the InkRoom, which is an avenue for budding authors to submit their work. Children send their stories and poems to the InkRoom website for others to read and comment on, and the best are published in the Wacky magazine each month. Prizes are awarded for the best submissions.

The InkRoom is a subsidiary of Wacky … but true magazine. 
Use of the InkRoom will:

• Provide students with an incentive to write
• Encourage and inspire group participation
• Provide examples of quality writing
• Encourage the development of writing skills
• Inspire students through peer review of their work
• Publish articles and win rewards for gifted students
• 
  
• Disclosure:
• I have no personal affiliation with the author of this magazine nor will I gain any financial benefit from bringing this  site to your attention.