As I’ve previously posted, filtering information and maintaining focus may be one of the most critical new literacies. Emails are at the top of my “needs better filtering” list.
And no, I’m not talking to spammers. Friends, family, clients – I’m talking to you. To begin with, why don’t you at least consider updating the subject lines of our emails after a reply or two.
OK enough venting. I thought you’d enjoy this infographic which offers guidance for email hygiene in the work place.
Actually its more of a decision tree than infographic, but it does have a cute kitten.
The folks behind TED talks have just launched TED-Ed to serve the mission “of capturing and amplifying the voice of the world’s greatest teachers.” More
They’ve put out a call to teachers everywhere to submit lesson ideas for inclusion in the new YouTube Channel – TED-Ed: Lessons worth sharing. (Hey, it’s your chance to satisfy your inner Sir Ken Robinson!)
Suggest a lesson and and nominate a teacher (or yourself) on this form. TED will review submission to find the great lessons. They will work with the educators to refine the lessons and make sure they are under ten minutes long. Then a team of animators will work with the educator to visualize the lessons and create a new video for posting on the TED-Ed channel. In anticipation of growing the initiative, TED-Ed is also looking for talented animators.
Right now there’s a gifted educator delivered a great lesson to their class. TED-Ed is looking for your help to find that educator, team them with animators, and amplify that lesson for all to see.
Here’s a few sample lessons to get you thinking (both animated by Sunni Brown). “Symbiosis: a Surprising Tale of Species Cooperation” Lesson by David Gonzales and “The Power of Simple Words” Lesson by Terin Izil
Recently, in an iBooks Author post, I noted “I look forward to the day when a student asks a teacher if it’s OK to turn in that project as an iBook.” Not long after, I received a comment from Jon Smith, a 5th grade teacher at Gibbs Elementary School in Canton, Ohio. He noted “I have used iBooks author with my special education students. We were able to publish the book in the iBooks store a few weeks back.” Download the free iBook here. After you download a “The Two Kids and The Desert Town,” send along your comments via iTunes or Jon’s Twitter account. The students will love to hear from you.
I wrote back to Jon and asked him for more information that I might share as a guest post with my readers. I’m pleased to see that he packaged his student reflection as an iMovie for all to see.
Jonathan noted that
We need to globalize our teaching. Kids need to understand that there are other people in this world who care about their work than just their teachers. Special Ed kids are much more capable than people give them credit for and I wanted to show that to people including the kids. … We wanted to squash stereotypes about special education students and showcase their successful work. … Our kids are really touched by the fact that nearly 400 of their iBooks have been downloaded by people from all over the world .. and they’ve received great comments on their work via Twitter.
Title: The Two Kids And Desert Town
Platform: iPad only
Cost: free
Download: here
Of course I couldn’t close this post without a book review and some screen shots. [Spoiler alert]
The Two Kids and the Desert Town is the heroic tale of Marvin and Ashley, a brother and sister who responded to a digital distress call for help. Bravely they set off to Desert Town to use their language skills to rescue the residents from a variety of linguistic perils.
Among their accomplishments – they settled a long running conflict at the intersection of Antonym Avenue and Synonym Street. At the Simile Cafe they lectured customers on the power of positive similes. Before leaving town they even manage to instruct the mayor and assembled town hall meeting on how to properly use abbreviations. Triumphantly they return home to big hugs from their anxious parents. The book is fully illustrated with hand drawn images, photographs and engaging video clips. I look forward to the sequel.
A great clip from this week’s Colbert Report profiles Dawn Quarles, a Florida high school teacher, who faces voter fraud fines for registering her students to vote. Quarles, a teacher at Pace High School in the Panhandle, could receive a $1,000 fine for violating Florida’s new law which places strict limits on the voter registration process.
For years, I’ve posted pdf versions of my lessons and made them available for free. Here’s some screenshots of a document based question (DBQ) I’m working on that explores the American Homefront in WWII. To see more of my free pdf lessons click here.
Click to enlarge thumbnails
I’ve download iBooks Author and I think it’s time to turn some of my PDF lessons into iBooks. Apple’s new authoring program, certainly lowers the barrier for doing that. I look forward to the day when a student asks a teacher if it’s OK to turn in that project as an iBook.
While searching the internet for some how to guides, I found this great video introduction to the process made by Jeremy Kemp.
