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The Connected Classroom

“Information on and from Cooperating School Districts of Greater St. Louis' Learning Division”

Monthly Archives: August 2012

30/08/12 Teaching STEM with Google Tools

Getting young students excited about and involved in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) at the primary and secondary school level is critical – its one of the keys to shifting them from being a group that knows the basics of new technology to a group that knows how to harness technology to create and innovate.

Through a variety of programs and tools, Google hopes to make STEM learning engaging for primary and secondary students and inspire the next generation of big ideas.

Come learn about the various Google tools designed specifically to encourage students to study STEM subjects and learn about the various careers that await them in these fields. Topics of conversation will include:

• MIT App Inventor • Google Science Fair • YouTube Space Lab • Google’s Exploring Computational Thinking website • Khan Academy video library • Advanced Google Search • Google Scholar • Google Books • Google Earth • Google SketchUp • YouTube for Schools • Google+ for Educators •

​A wealth of Google tools, apps and websites are available at no charge to STEM teachers and their students.  Learn how to utilize these in your classroom to meet your curricular needs.

what you need to know for this workshop
Date offered: November 5, 2012
Time: 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Where: CSD 1460 Craig Road, St. Louis, MO 63146
Cost: $95 CSD member; $135 non-member
One graduate credit available through Lindenwood University for $60.
PRE-REQUISITE: You must have a Google Account and/or Gmail.
Registration required

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30/08/12 Meeting Common Core State Standards Using Google Tools

The Common Core State Standards call for technology to be integrated seamlessly into instruction, thereby empowering students to publish online, critically evaluate Internet resources and use and understand multimedia’s impact on instruction.

Did you know that you could use the basic abilities of Word, PowerPoint, and Excel in an online collaborative environment? Are you interested in creating a variety of online forms for assessment through surveys, quizzes, and questionnaires? Would you like to create classroom drawings or charts to access anytime or anywhere?

Come learn about the six Google Docs and discover how these online collaborative environments can expand your classroom, save you time and help students meet Common Core.  Learn Advanced Search techniques, develop a Custom Search Engine, and discover easier ways to find images, resources and websites. You’ll learn how Google Documents and other Google Apps can support learning 24/7.

what you need to know for this workshop
Dates offered: October 12, 2012 and  March 7, 2013
Time: 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Where: CSD 1460 Craig Road, St. Louis, MO 63146
Cost: $95 CSD member; $135 non-member
One graduate credit available through Lindenwood University for $60.
PRE-REQUISITE: You must have a Google Account and/or Gmail.
Registration required

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30/08/12 Climate Change Workshop for Educators offered by Challenger Learning Center-St. Louis

The Challenger Learning Center- St. Louis has a climate change workshop scheduled next month. The workshop is for 6th-10th grade teachers and is offered on two days: September 15 or 29th, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Each participating teacher will receive a $100 stipend.

The workshop, held at the Challenger Learning Center-St. Louis in north county, will show teachers how to access and use NASA tools and resources and will include hands-on activities. It will also provide educators a better understanding of Earth System Science and how to connect it to classroom activities.

Space is limited to 25 participants in each day. Please call (314) 521-6205 or email robert@clcstlouis.org to register.

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29/08/12 Educational Reform: The Future of Online Learning Symposium

Please join colleagues and network with other area educators on September 14 to hear keynote speaker Jane Swift, Former Governor of Massachusetts, talk about the future of online learning. Jane Swift has taken a lead in advancing accountability and high standards for schools, teachers, and students. As Governor she also continued to advocate educational reform and called for the state to provide a college education for foster children in its care. Jane is in much demand as an advocate for educational reform to ensure our students are prepared with 21st Century Learning Skills for their college & career pursuits.

This symposium is hosted by one of Cooperating School Districts’ online learning partners, K¹². In addition to Jane Swift’s keynote, you’ll become informed about the features and benefits that online learning brings to student engagement and achievement. All products and services discussed on September 14th are from one of District’s-Choice: online learning premiere companies:

• A+: Product Training and New Version Preview
• Aventa Learning: Blackboard 9.1 Training and Preview Built in Remediation
• Middlebury College Foreign Language Offerings
• K-5 Curriculum

Register today! This event is free and takes place from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.; lunch is included. For additional information regarding the content of this event contact: Ruth Block.

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29/08/12 Greg Lawrence is Making IT Happen

Making IT Happen is an internationally recognized awards program for educators & leaders in the field of educational technology integration in K–12 schools from ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education). The program identifies and rewards educational technology leaders around the world for their commitment and innovation.

ISTE affiliates, like the Missouri Educational Technology Community (METC), are able to nominate educators for Making IT Happen.

The latest area educator to receive the recognition from METC is Greg Lawrence. Greg is a Technology Coach in the Wentzville School District- the only one- and he helps over 900 certified staff integrate technology into their classrooms- he’s truly Making IT Happen for staff and students in Missouri’s fastest growing school district.

Outside of the Wentzville School District, Greg is active in the Educational Technology Association of St. Louis. ETA provides a forum for collaboration on educational issues, information about hardware and software and a means to communicate with other members on best practices. Greg also serves as a member of the Midwest Education Technology Conference Advisory Committee; he attends meetings in person at Cooperating School Districts, or via Skype, so he can always be part of the conversation. He is key figure on the team, and a top notch presenter at the conference itself.

Congratulations to Greg, and congratulations to the Wentzville School District.

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21/08/12 See the Learning Division’s Academy Options for 2012-2013

CSD is pleased to announce our professional development academies for 2013 through our Learning Division! These academies are sessions that meet throughout the school year. Visit our website at www.csd.org/pd to see all of our listings. Click on the image above to see information on Blended Learning Academies, Bullying Prevention Series, Distance Learning Academy, Emerging Teachers Academy, Integrated Technology Educators Academy, plus more. Most academies include optional graduate credit through CSD’s partnerships with local universities.

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21/08/12 Options for MO Edcampers

Missouri has three edcamps taking place this fall and winter! Edcamp is free, participant-driven professional development for teachers. Upcoming locations and dates:

Springfield: September 22, 2012
Kansas City: November 10, 2012
St. Louis: February 9, 2013 (the weekend before the Midwest Education Technology Conference)

Edcamps bring together those interested in learning & sharing more about best practices in education in an unconference format. This format allows the knowledge and interests of those in attendance to lead the conversations. All are welcome to join for a great day of conversations about solutions on how to build the best classrooms, schools and communities for the future.

While the edcamps are free to attend, organizers of each would like preregistration. Click on the logos included in this post to go to the specific edcamp website. If you are not able to attend an edcamp in person, you can follow the conversation by reading tweets with hashtags like #edcampsgf, #edcampKC, #edcampSTL.

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21/08/12 More Online Resources to Try this School Year

Last week, we shared some great online resources from coolcatteacher.blogspot.com. Today we’re sharing even more, focusing on math & history. Take a look at these select lesson plans, compiled and commented on by Georgia teacher Vicki Davis:

Math
• Common Core Math Index of resources (via @sharemylesson #mathchat)
An incredible set of indexed Common Core lesson plans by standard for grades Kindergarten – 6 in math. Share and get ideas. Every math teacher using Common Core should peruse this list.
• Assessing the Common Core Standards: Real Life Mathematics | Edutopia
An excellent set of resources about common core standards and assessment from Edutopia.
• Numberphile Videos
A collection of more than 100 videos that help you explore the world of mathematics. Just about any math topic is covered including probabilities Kaprekar’s Constant and more. These videos will be useful if you’re in the process of working towards flipping your classroom.

History
• World War 1 Lesson plans
June 28 is the anniversary of the outbreak of World War 1. As you discuss this topic, here are some activities and lessons to help you. There are some “causes” activities to introduce World War 1 that may interest some social studies teachers.
• Veterans History Project (Library of Congress)
Veterans History Project Home page — GREAT PROJECT!!!!
• Maps of War ::: Visual History of War, Religion, and Government
A website that takes maps and uses them to teach all kinds of amazing history. These maps are excellent for demonstrating events that unfolded and trends and will allow for great conversation.

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13/08/12 Is Your Head in the Clouds Along with Your Data?

Be sure to read this story on CNN.com on ‘How to protect your cloud data from hacks.’  Within the article, security experts offer tips on how to use the cloud safely, including:

•  Backing up your files in multiple places, including in on-the-ground hard drives
•  Turning on Google’s and Facebook’s two-factor authentication features

To find the five tips they feel everyone who uses cloud-based computing should know and utilize, click here.

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13/08/12 Online Resources to Try this School Year

We wanted to share some great resources from coolcatteacher.blogspot.com. Take a look at these select lesson plans, compiled and commented on by Georgia teacher Vicki Davis:

What did you learn online today?

• Resources for Understanding the Common Core State Standards | Edutopia  Edutopia’s guide to websites, organizations articles relating to the common core. I do think they are missing “Share My Lesson” from the AFT and TES, but this may have been written before that site launched. A great overview.
• Film as a Great Motivator | Edutopia  The right film and the right moment can create mood and meaning. Today in the Olympics, the swim coach was talking about how he had shown a clip from Saving Private Ryan and team members took on a different air of brotherhood and working together as a team. Film can be a great motivator and teacher in the classroom when well done. It can also be a boring “beuller” moment if not picked well. I like how this blog post deconstructs the use of video and how it can be used effectively in the classroom. I think it is a great read for all teachers.
• Pinterest- Search results for classroom door-  Cute ideas for classroom doors.
• Wikis in the Classroom-  A lovely website about wikis and the use in the classroom.

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