UPDATE- The First Book Club

One of the initiators of this innovative Book Club, Barbara Braxton, shares the latest update:
"The March 1st task for The FIRST Book Club has now been posted on the Club's
site  (While anyone can view the task only those registered as members can respond to it.)

Unfortunately, this site is very 'no frills' so I apologise for the lack of
formatting that might make it difficult to read.

However, in conjunction with this site, we have also established a wiki - The
FIRST Book Club Wiki 
The tasks will also be available there as well as extra information, like Lyndy's list of suggested apps that students might use for Task 1.  This is where students will also need to upload any digital presentations, although written responses are added to the comments section of the original site.  If you choose not to upload to the wiki, then put the link to the presentation in the comments box of the original site so others can view it.

     

                                                                                  





                                                                                                   Enokson

Participants will need to register for the wiki before they can upload any
presentations, and I'll approve these as I get the notification.

Students have till the end of this month to respond to this task.  

            wikimedia.org

Please encourage them to comment on what others have said or done 
but remind them of the rule to treat everyone with dignity and respect. 
Remember the purpose of the club is to connect kids so they can have greater enjoyment of their reading adventures."


If you are subscribing to The FIRST Book Club wiki so your students can share
multimedia responses please make sure you subscribe to
http://the-first-book-club.wikispaces.com/ There is another wiki called
firstbookclub which is run by someone else. Ours has 'the' as the first word and
I've now changed it so that there are hyphens in between the words.

You will know you are at the right one because there are a dozen little
calendars marching across the banner on a purple background.

Remember you don't have to join the wiki or the club
http://www.bookclubit.com/bookclub/default.aspx?id=700 to view the activities
but only registered members can upload their responses.  Each person wishing to
upload their response has to have their own account - neither is a site where a
teacher can create one a/c and then a host of 'sub-accounts'.  However, a
teacher can collate students responses and upload them in one post, although the
forum site has minimal formatting so responses may become garbled.

The FIRST Bookclub-an online club for students.

Recently Sue Warren, Lyndy Cracknell and Barbara Braxton announced the formation of an online book club for students in Years 5/6 

                                           Open publication - Free publishing - More reading

 There has been a lot of interest in this already but there are a couple of points that  Braxton  feels need clarification:
 1. The tasks and questions will be closely aligned to the outcomes of the English strand of the ANC for Years 5 and 6, which, I understand, are still Year 6 and 7 in Queensland. (Braxton  doesn’t know when education authorities are going to adopt the nomenclature of ACARA.) It is not limited to those students but because students will be recommending books within the context of the answers, these books need to be age appropriate.

2. The first task will be posted on March 1st under the Discussions tab.

3. There is no charge to join the Book Club and none of us are getting any payment or other reward for doing this. We just thought it might be a great way to connect kids, particularly those in isolated circumstances where there might not be a lot of other students of their age to discuss things with. “Isolated” may be their location, their situation or circumstance. So a student may be in a hospital school or the back of Bourke or in a large city school – we researched and chose a platform that was the most accessible that we could find.
 4. Our primary purpose is to get kids enjoying reading and offering them a way to share their enjoyment with others.

For further information download the information sheet.

Are you in it to win it?

With sustainability featuring highly in the Australian Curriculum it is wonderful to see a great new selection of teaching resources available to support teachers
 @ Sustainable Schools NSW hub.

Goodies up for grabs!

Welcome to our new-look Sustainable Schools NSW hub.

To celebrate our online makeover we are giving away three prize packs worth over $500 each!

Email us with your favourite education resource on the hub and you could win an annual NSW national parks and reserves pass PLUS a school visit from one of our rangers.

We look forward to hearing what you think!

Competition details:

• The deadline for entries is 31 May 2013.
• One entry per person is permitted.
• Entries are open to anyone with an interest in sustainability education.
• The draw takes place 3 June 2013.
• There are three prize packs to be won each consisting of one 12-month NSW National Parks All Parks Pass, and a NSW National Park Ranger visit to the winner's nominated school, including an assembly talk and an education session with one class. For remote schools, an alternative prize will be negotiated, such as a video-conference with the ranger.
• Winners will be notified via email.
• Employees and families of the Office of Environment and Heritage are not eligible to enter.

Writing workshops for wonderful wordsmiths!

The Children's Book Council NSW branch holds excellent writers workshop for high school students each year in partnership with the NSW State Library.

 Further details and flyers are found on the website.
CBCA NSW > Programs > Teen Writing Master Classes >
http://nsw.cbca.org.au/pages/writing-master-classes.html

Registration and scholarship details http://nsw.cbca.org.au/data/files/Teen_Masterclasses/2013/Teen_Writers_2013_Program_booking_form_20130208.pdf

They operate on 2 levels.  A Beginers course and an Ádvanced course is offered by each author.

Yes, they do cost $70 per student per session. Scholarships are available.

Bring your pen and imagination to one class or to the entire program; level 1 is for new students and level 2 is for returning students who want to develop their creative writing further.
 Please see below and make your selection.

March 18 - Anthony Eaton presents Level 1: Short Stories and How We Find Them

March 19 - Anthony Eaton presents Level 2: Getting Into and Out of Characters

May 6 - Ursula Dubosarsky presents Level 1: The Ultimate Challenge

May 7 - Ursula Dubosarsky presents Level 2: Delicate and Dramatic Novellas

July 22 - Michael Pryor presents Level 1: Write Like a Professional

July 23 - Michael Pryor presents Level 2: Supercharge your Writing

October 14 - The Bell Shakespeare Company & Tony Thompson present Level 1: If I Chance to Talk a Little Wild

October 15 - The Bell Shakespeare Company & Tony Thompson present Level 2: Fatal Flaws

These are top notch workshops and can be made more  financially accessible through a scholarship program. These provide invaluable writing experiences for your keen writers in the wonderful environment of the State Library.

I've gone to variations of most of these and am happy to share further info beyond the details on the website.

Cheers- Jackie Hawkes, for the Children's Book Council - NSW Branch


Shared with permission.

Share your GOOGLE journey.

Call for Presenters!

 Have a story to tell about your Google Apps journey or want to share classroom applications or technical know-how? 

Receive complimentary registration and apply here.

We invite you to join us for the first annual Google in Education Brisbane Summit to be held  at the Matthew Flinders Anglican College  on April 12 & 13, 2013.  This high intensity two day event focuses on deploying, integrating, and using Google Apps for Education and other Google Tools to promote student learning in K-12 and higher education. The program features Google Certified Teachers, Google Apps for Education Certified Trainers, practicing administrators, solution providers, Google engineers, and representatives from the Google education teams.  Register now to send teachers, administrators, tech directors, library media specialists, tech support staff, CTOs, and anyone who is interested in finding out more about leveraging Google Apps for Education to support student learning. Sessions include two keynote presentations, a demo slam competition, and a closing capstone session - plus two full days of informative breakouts, cutting-edge demonstrations, and hands-on workshops led by experienced and knowledgeable professional developers. Deployment & Management of Google Apps Google Apps Scripts Google Apps for Education Certification Chromebooks in Education YouTube for Schools Google Docs, Google Sites, Google Calendar, Gmail power tips, and... even more! All presenters are Google Certified Teachers, Google Apps for Education Certified Trainers, Google Employees, or teachers with local success stories!  via Chris Betcher on OZTLnet

Upbeat revamped!!

Mike Botham advised: Jeffrey Leask's fabulous music program, "Upbeat" has recently been revamped and is available direct from the creator.


Botham stated that "Whilst it is much more than just a singing/choir program it is chock-full of great songs that K - 2 will enjoy."

Prices and order forms 

Disclaimer: I have no association with this company and stand to receive no financial gain from informing you of its changes.

Explain a Website demo video by MorrisCooke

Re-use stock gallery images from google!

If you don't already follow this blog I highly recommend you do.

Every day Free Technology for Teachers provides teachers with free websites and resources that they can use in their classrooms. Richard also provides eight fabulous free guides for download.

This week Richard shared this great NEWS from GOOGLE! 

5,000 Stock Images for Google Drive Users 

 This week Google announced that the stock image gallery now has more than 5,000 images that are labeled for re-use. To access these images select "image" from the "insert" menu when you're working on a document or presentation. Then select the "search" option and finally select "stock images" to search for a stock image to use in your document or presentation. 

Resourcing the Australian Curriculum

At the heart of the Curriculum: Government maps plan for Asian Century success

The Australian Government has released its Asian Century white paper and outlined ways to take advantage of the region's boom in the areas of economy, education and skills, commerce, regional security and culture, but how has the road map been greeted?

For further understanding view the following video clips:
 "Where will Australia fit into the Asian Century?" 
  "Asian Languages."
 "China Connection."
 "PM's plan for every child to learn an Asian language."

What is Asia literacy?

The idea of Asia literacy is that by the time they leave school, a strong cohort of young Australians will speak an Asian language and all young Australians will have foundational and deep knowledge, skills and understanding of the histories, geographies, arts and literature of the diverse countries of Asia

The new Australian Curriculum includes the cross-curriculum priority of Asia and Australia's engagement with Asia in every subject from Foundation to Year 12.

Resources:

I have been collecting pins for my Australian Curriculum Resources board and on my library weblinks site: Australian Curriculum Resources  because not all pages are able to be pinned.

I have discovered that there are so many wonderful free, quality resources already available- You just need to know where to look!!

I hope my collections can help you find suitable resources to suit your school learning community.

You may also find some useful information at my recent past posts on New NSW Curriculum Updates ; Australian Curriculum update for NSW teachers and  Teacher Talk-: ACARA shape paper-Australian Curriculum .

NEW NSW Curriculum updates

NEWS from Primary Matters NSW 

Update on the new NSW K-10 syllabuses

Remember, you can access the syllabuses and support materials anytime, anywhere on a variety of devices using the Board’s NSW syllabuses for the Australian curriculum website.

The NSW syllabuses for the Australian curriculum website features icons that make it easier to identify these 13 areas.

The cross-curriculum priorities are:

• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures 
• Asia and Australia's engagement with Asia 
• Sustainability 

The general capabilities are:

• Critical and creative thinking 
• Ethical understanding 
• Information and communication technology capability 
• Intercultural understanding 
• Literacy 
• Numeracy 
• Personal and social capability 

ADVICE ON ASSESSMENT

Initial advice on assessment for the new NSW Syllabuses for the Australian Curriculum is now available.

Literacy support for Students with Special Needs

GOOD NEWS from: Primary Teachers' Network (PTN)

K-6 English Online Resource for Teachers with Students with Special Education Needs

The Board of Studies NSW has developed an online resource for primary teachers and special educators of students who experience difficulty with English and aspects of communication.
This resource is the first of its kind in Australia. Based on current research and theory, it was developed by the Board of Studies NSW in consultation with leading education professionals.
 In particular, the resource provides additional programming support and teaching strategies for teachers of students who experience difficulties in the areas of reading, writing, talking, listening and communication. Examples are included of how to identify and address these difficulties in the classroom environment.

The English K–6 Support Materials for Students with Special Education Needs can be accessed from the Board of Studies K–6 Educational Resources site at: k6.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au/go/English/registration

Australian Education Bill 2012 Have you had a read yet?

Australian Education Bill 2012 

National Plan for School Improvement 

Visit http://www.betterschools.gov.au/video/australian-education-bill-2012 to view the transcript of the video with Peter Garrett.

Australian Education Bill 2012 - – the legislation following on from the Gonski review into school funding – was introduced into the  Australian Parliament on November 28.

The Bill outlines a commitment from the Australian Government to a new way of funding schools, based on the needs of individual students, and includes two ambitious targets:

•   By 2025, Australia will be ranked as a top 5 country in the world for the performance of our students in reading, science and maths; and

•   All Australian children will go to a school in a nation which is ranked in the top five for a high-quality and high-equity education system.  

The Australian Education Bill also outlines the core elements of the National Plan for School Improvement, including:

•   Quality teaching;

•   Quality learning;

•   Empowered school leadership;

•   Better information about school performance; and

•   Meeting student need.

Under the National Plan for School Improvement, every Australian student will be able to learn about our region throughout their schooling, including the chance to learn an Asian language from the first day of school

The Bill and Explanatory Statement are both available as a word doc or as a pdf.http://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Bills_Legislation/Bills_Search_Results/Result?bId=r4945
Introduction of the Australian Education Act 2012 FAQs on the Bill

Free to Mix: An educator's guide to reusing digital content

Defeat confusion with this handy guide from:

The guide gives you information, activities and ideas to confidently create a remix from material you know you have the rights to reuse. It shows students why copyright and licensing exist, how they work, and how they can apply licences to their own work through simple information, suggestions for activities, and links to more resources. By using it, you and your students will be able to participate in the global remix community while demonstrating creativity and integrity

Free to Mix: An educator's guide to reusing digital content

Also from the National Library of New Zealand site < http://schools.natlib.govt.nz/21st-century-literacy-inquiry/sources-resources/guide-reusing-digital-content#bottom> 
you can: 
* Watch a quick and engaging video from Creative Commons New Zealand to learn how to apply Creative Commons licensing to your work.

* Download a poster to use in your library and classroom to help learners and teachers to apply CC licences.

The Educator’s Guide to Google Calendar

The Educator’s Guide to Google Calendar

Have fun exploring iPads in Education

Not sure what iPads in Education is all about??
Unsure why so many schools are introducing iPads to their students?

 View the video below for some food for thought!
\ Starting out? 
Need support?
Visit My Pinterest boards  including iPad support for teachers 
iPad apps for school literacy            iP*ds in class     
iPad app Creative & Performing Arts (CAPA)   Toddler apps  Digital Storytelling Transforming Literacy Instruction With Technology If you are on twitter I suggest you follow: #edtablet #ipaded #mlearning 
To access a comprehensive collation of all things iPad visit
Kathy Schrock's iPad in the Classroom page.

Bullying Awareness Week Nov 12-17

>November 12 - 17, 2012 Theme: "Stand Up! (to bullying)"

The Official twitter hashtag will be #BAW2012

Play this for your students: Use your voice

TRUE COLORS November 7th, 2012 recent alarming events are calling for exceptional Canadian artists to speak up and stand out against bullying -create a song against bullying & to raise awareness . Jacob Hoggard, Lights, Pierre Bouvier, Fefe Dobson, Kardinal Offishall, Alyssa Reid, and Walk Off The Earth have taken the classic Cyndi Lauper song True Colors and revamped it to make it their own. True Colors will be released to air on radio in conjunction with Bullying Awareness Week. You can listen to it now by clicking on the image "Artists Against Bullying."

Source: blog.muchmusic.com via Audrey on Pinterest

This bulletin board was created at the community school in
St. Augustine River, Quebec from Bullying Awareness Week

Source: stopabully.ca via Audrey on Pinterest

Source: dictoot.com via Audrey on Pinterest

A selected reading listing on bullying-

Source: publishersweekly.com via Audrey on Pinterest   

Source: publishersweekly.com via Audrey on Pinterest

STOP TALK and WALK

You may like your class to read: The Bully from Oxford Owl Free on-line reader Suits K-3

Source: amazon.com via Audrey on Pinterest

               

Source: kidlutionsppa.blogspot.com via Audrey on Pinterest

For further resources visit my Pinterest board Antibullying

Australian Curriculum update for NSW teachers

Cathy Edwards shared this exciting news on Yammer: New! Studyladder is now aligned to The Australian Curriculum.
This is great news for parents and teachers wanting to quickly find material related to the curriculum. You can find this new feature by clicking on the ‘Resources’ tab and then ‘The Australian Curriculum’ button.

 Always remembering that we in NSW are implementing the Australian Curriculum via the BoS syllabuses and that there may be differences -
 The BoS page has this memo to principals that gives timeframes for the teaching of the Australian curriculum in NSW
The latest update is available

Google Apps are not far away for NSWDEC!!

A guide from Richard Byrne and Free for technology teachers. Google Drive and Docs for Teachers 2012 Google Apps Champion Educator Program – Expressions of Interest Closing Date: 15 Nov 2012 Are you passionate about Google Apps? Are you interested in supporting teachers across the state to use Google Apps?

Lost and Found Trailer by Oliver Jeffers

Stephen Boland - The Way Back Home by LiTV Channel

Please help keep ETIS opened!

I am sharing a message, with permission,  from Marjan , Manager, Education and Training Information Service (ETIS) Strategic Information and Reporting.

"A big thank you to all our clients who have provided feedback on the ETIS closure to the ETIS feedback email or have contacted the Director-General and the D-DGs.  

The feedback period ends this Friday November 2 so if you have not had the time to supply feedback, it is not too late to do so before the end of this week."

ETIS CLOSURE

INVITATION TO PROVIDE FEEDBACK

We have been informed that the Strategic Information and Reporting Directorate, Office of Education, has identified that the Education and Training Information Service (ETIS) will be closed in December because of current staff cuts. The information and library services ETIS provides will no longer be available.

The Department will lose a service providing principals, teachers and counsellors as well as regional, state office and executive staff with specialised literature searches, alert services, historical services and cost-efficient supply of published research. Access to the archival collection of departmental publications dating from 1848 will also no longer be available. ETIS is a unique service in the Department used for decision making, policy development, professional learning, quality teaching and evidence based practice.

We invite you to give feedback during the 4 week consultation period which began on 8 October.  This is your opportunity to provide information and examples about how this closure will affect your work. 

You can use ETISfeedback@det.nsw.edu.au and/or forward your feedback to your D D-G until Friday November 2.  Please forward this email to your colleagues.

Feel free to contact me if you would like further details.

Marjan McKeough, Manager - on behalf of the ETIS team

Education and Training Information Service (ETIS)

Strategic Information and Reporting

Locked Bag 2006, Strathfield NSW 2135
P: (02) 9715 8357  F: (02) 9715 8292  E: marjan.mckeough@det.nsw.edu.au

NSW Department of Education and Communities

Only 1 month left to enter....RSL ANZAC Art Competition

 RSL ANZAC Art Awards *DEADLNE EXTENDED* 09/11/12 @ 5pm

"The RSL ANZAC Art Award Council has carefully prepared the new RSL ANZAC Art Awards with the aim of encouraging all young people to think about what previous generations of soldiers, sailors and airmen have done to serve and defend this great country of ours."

Open to all NSW school students from Years 1-12, the long-running art award acknowledges the values of ANZAC, such as respect and remembrance in a visual context.

Shared from School Biz: "RSL NSW developed the ANZAC Art Project for all schools in NSW in the 1970s to encourage all school students to research, learn and appreciate the historical and cultural significance of Australia’s traditional links to ANZAC Day.

The ANZAC Art Award offers a colouring competition to primary students and a painting competition to secondary students.

Each of the six categories has an award certificate of Bronze, Silver and Gold for winning contestants along with cash prizes in each category. There is also The RSL Lifecare Award chosen from schools who submit at least five entries.

A special award and medal will also commemorate the outstanding service and commitment of the late President of the Teachers Sub-Branch of the Returned and Services League, Geoffrey William Falkenmire OAM.

The NSW Premiers Kokoda Prize will be awarded to an 18 year old student who will get to experience a true ANZAC tradition walking the Kodoka Track in Papua New Guinea.

 The competition closes on 2 November 2012 with the winners being announced before the end of term."

For further information: 

Art award does homage to Anzac

Please note to register:

- an individual registration is required for each student. Under 16's must provide a guardians name. 

Prizes

See the gallery for the entries submitted so far. Students can also rate each of the entries using a star rating.

NSWDEC and Google Apps!!

Google Apps is rolling out for teachers and students

Google’s suite of online collaboration, creation and presentation tools will soon be available to students and teachers in all DEC schools!

the old man and the sea by Marcel Schindler

TODAY is World Teachers' Day

On this day, we call for teachers to receive supportive environments, adequate quality training as well as ‘safeguards’ for teachers’ rights and responsibilities...We expect a lot from teachers – they, in turn, are right to expect as much from us. This World Teachers’ Day is an opportunity for all to take a stand.    

       Irina Bokova, UNESCO Director-General

Check out more news and facts and figures on World Teachers' Day from UNESCO.

 Take a stand for teachers is the slogan for this year's World Teachers' Day (today !) Follow the tweets on  #wtd2012 :)

World Teachers’ Day, held annually on October 5th since 1994 - when it was created by UNESCO - celebrates teachers worldwide. Its aim is to mobilise support for teachers and to ensure that the needs of future generations will continue to be met by teachers.

The International Council on Education for Teaching (ICET) is an international association of policy and decision-makers in education, government and business dedicated to improving educational experiences and outcomes in all parts of the world. In their newsletter they wrote about "TAKE A STAND FOR TEACHING!" All teachers are welcome to join the association.