Issue 11, Volume 10 October 29, 2009     Thought for the Week Nothing is a waste of time if you use the experience wisely. -- Rodin   Collaborative Learning Teams There’s more and more emphasis on the use of collaborative learning to build teams in schools. Also, school leaders recognize the value of structuring opportunities for teachers to work together to focus on learning. Blogs and Wikis are Web 2.0 tools that are designed specifically for collaboration and reflection. Using Blogs and Wikis within Blackboard is one way to support collaboration among school staff and provide professional development for adult learners. Furthermore, Blogging provides unique ways to differentiate and challenge professional learning. The article by ASCD located at http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational_leadership/feb09/vol66/num05/Learning_with_Blogs_and_Wikis.aspx gives us some content to think about. The author references several Blogs that have provided content for personal professional learning and reflection: 1) Characteristics of effective Professional Development with Patrick Higgins (http://chalkdust101.wordpress.com) 2) Elements of high quality instruction for middle grades students with Dina Strasser (http://theline.edublogs.org) 3) School change with Scott McLeod (www.dangerouslyirrelevant.org) 4) Connections between education policy and classroom practice with Nancy Flanagan (http://teacherleaders.typepad.com/teacher_in_a_strange_land) 5) Challenges of working in high-needs communities with John Holland (http://circle-time.blogspot.com) and Larry Ferlazzo, Brian Crosby, and Alice Mercer (http://inpractice.edublogs.org). Featured Blackboard Site The featured Blackboard site was created by Tevya O'Quain, a 5th Grade teacher from St. John Elementary. Join Mrs. O'Quain as she showcases her classroom website. View Video. Daylight Savings Time Ends November 1st – Fall Back! Spring forward...Fall back.... It's that time to turn the clocks back! If it seems later than usual, it is... for the third year in a row. Starting in 2007, daylight savings time began in the United States on the second Sunday in March and ended the first Sunday in November. This coming weekend, daylight savings time ends on November 1, 2009. The implementation of Daylight Saving Time (DST) has been fraught with controversy since Benjamin Franklin first conceived of the idea. Even today, regions and countries routinely change their approaches to Daylight Savings Time. In 2005, President Bush established the Energy Policy Act in an effort to save energy. So, remember, set your clocks back this Sunday morning (November 1, 2009). Calibrate! Good Times---Come on! If you have a Promethean Board, it is important that you calibrate it periodically. Calibration will allow your ActivPen to communicate more effectively with your Promethean Board. You will especially need to calibrate your board if the projector gets bumped or if the Promethean Board is moved. You may also be required to calibrate if the electricity has been turned off in your classroom for any reason. If your ActivPen is not drawing or clicking in the correct position on the board, you will need to calibrate. Calibrate your ActivPen by placing your pen over the upper left hand corner of the board where the Promethean logo is located. You should “hover” in this location for a few seconds until the board activates. It will ask you to click on the board. Click on the board once. It will then ask you to click on the cross-hares in different locations of the board. Happy calibrating! FREE Tools for Teachers This site, Tools for Teachers, was created and maintained by a classroom teacher. It offers a selection of quiz generators, worksheets, templates, games and free web tools for email and bookmark storage! There are many options for Web design, translators, and file converters. It is a one stop shopping for free resources. This site can be used to create materials for all grade levels. It is worth a look! The URL: http://www.suelebeau.com/freetools.htm  ssOverlay The ssOverlay (ss stands for Scotopic Sensitivity) is a tool that allows users to place a color overlay on the screen they are viewing on the computer. Many students benefit from placing a color overlay on pages they are trying to read and now with the ssOverlay you have the same ability on the computer. This free download comes with 8 color overlays that can be changed quickly and easily. The URL: http://www.fxc.btinternet.co.uk/assistive.htm Add an Application to the Quick Launch Menu in Vista The Quick Launch menu is one of the most useful features in Windows, and Vista makes it even easier to add a program to the menu. You can either drag an application to the quick launch bar… or you can right click, and choose Add to Quick Launch. If the option for “Add to Quick Launch” does not show up, you can hold down the Shift key while right-clicking on it to make the option show up.  Award for Reading and Technology The Presidential Award for Reading and Technology honors educators in grades K–12 who are making outstanding and innovative contributions towards the use of technology in reading education. The award is sponsored by PLATO Learning. There will be one grand-prize winner, seven U.S. regional winners, one Canadian, and one international winner. All entrants must be educators who work directly with students ages 5–18. Entries must be received by November 15, 2009. The URL: http://www.reading.org/Resources/AwardsandGrants/teachers_presidential.aspx Best on the Net!! -- Visit this site for hundreds of websites for teachers! We would love to hear from you about the best educational sites you have found on the web. Please submit, via email, the sites you feel merit inclusion. Send to tech.connect@cpsb.org. Please include the URL and a short sentence about the site.  Featured Sites: (These sites were submitted by teachers in Calcasieu Parish) Teaching the Epic through Ghost Stories from ReadWriteThink http://www.readwritethink.org/lessons/lesson_view.asp?id=225 In this lesson, which includes support for English language learners, students connect to epic storytellers by sharing their own oral tales of ghosts, goblins and monsters! It even comes with a Ghost Story Checklist!   Fall Fun With Shape Poems http://readwritethink.org/student_mat/student_material.asp?id=44 With this online tool, students brainstorm, write and revise shape poems. They can also take their finished poems and cut, color and display them in the classroom or at home. There are great fall themes to choose from: Nature, Sports, School and Celebrations. Shape Poems For Teachers (including 5 lesson plans) and for Parents & After School.   The Science Of Holidays http://www.accessexcellence.org/AE/ATG/data/released/0232-JeanineNakakura/index.php Find a compilation of science activities here to use throughout the school year. October suggestions include a research project on explorers and the diseases they brought with them, and a Halloween candy nutritional investigation.   An official publication of the CPSB Technology Department If you have any questions or comments please e-mail the Webmaster. For Technical Support:  tech.help@cpsb.org Calcasieu Parish Homepage  Technology Department  Tech Help Site  Best on the Net Tech Guides  Computer Purchasing Information  Tech Connect Archive