Technology and Instruction

Group Presentation

Spring 2009
The Awesome Library is a fantastic
source for reviews of Educational
Websites, from content areas and
reference sources to links for everyone
connected with schools, staff, students,
parents and community members.
 History of the Awesome
Library

In May of 1997, the Evaluation

and Development Institute (EDI)
began offering the database
through the web portal
"Awesome Library".
EDI has objectives related to the
Awesome Library in each of its
 Program Area I

Programs and studies to promote

long term World Peace.
- To bring information to students,
teachers and librarians that will
broaden appreciation for different
cultures.
- To bring information to students,
teachers and librarian that will
promote world peace.
 Program Area 2
Programs to enhance
communication through the use
of web-based solutions.
- To promote communications
among students, teachers and
librarians through online
information.
- To improve access to online
information for students,
  
Social Studies 
 
Among the subject areas covered by the The Awesome Library ,Social
Studies could be highlighted.  An array of topics such as:
  . Ancient Civilization
  . Anthropology
  . Geography
  . Government
  . Lesson Plan
  . Social Networking
  . Terrorism
  . World Peace
have been addressed.
            
 World Peace
World Peace is defined as an
ideal freedom, peace and
happiness among  nations and
all peoples.

United Nations Homepage

Sub-topic  : Human Rights
 Lesson Plan
Classroom Resources
A World At Peace
Grade Level : Elementary (2-6)
Estimate Time : Three One-hour sessions.
Lesson Overview
Invite students to brainstorm the basic rights of people everywhere,
explore in basic terms the Declaration of Human Rights and UNICEF's
Committee on the Rights of the Child, and  the international
photography galleries as part of a multimedia creative writing
assignment on peace.
Materials: 
Computer (s) with Internet conncetion.
Powerpoint, Hyperstudio, or the multimedia software program
(optional) 
 
 Art Supplies
 Procedure
1. Begin by asking students about the Bill of Rights. What
is it? See if students can brainstorm some of the ideas prior
Bill of Rights.
2. Ask students if they think these rights should apply to
people everywhere they live.
3. See what international organizations like the United
Nations and UNICEF say about this subject.
4. Ask students to imagine a world at peace might like.
5. Use online photography galleries(or Have students
create their own multimedia composition about world
peace)
 Procedures Continued…

4. Finally, discuss why people commit

acts of violence like the ones that
occurred on September 11, 2001. What
might make individuals, groups, or nations
commit such violent acts? To have a
World At Peace, how can we prevent
conflict – at home, at school, in our
communities, and around the world?
 Assessment

Student understanding should be assessed

through :
1. Contribution to class discussion
2. Successful completion of multimedia
composition on world peace
3. Comprehension questions and related activities
connected to the UN Declaration of Human Rights
and other documents used during this lesson.
         Technology and Instruction

 
 
 

WIKIS
ANNEL MATTHIAS
 
 
What are wikis?

A wiki is a collection of web pages designed to enable

anyone who accesses it to contribute or modify content. It
allows users to add, delete, edit or change content.A wiki
enables documents to be written collaboratively, using a web
browser. The most commom uses of this database are
creating, browsing, and searching through information.
How to use Wikis in the Classroom
Science fair projects- brainstrom ideas for sciences projects.
Students portfolios- electronic portfolios where students can
display and discuss their work with others, it provides the
opportunity for peer editing and feedback.
Literature circles- students can post questions or ideas on wiki,
and respond to their peers thoughts and questions.
Exam review- encourage students to share review notes.
Correction competition- post documents with mistakes, then
have students compete to see who can fix the most errors.
Vocabulary list- encourage stidents to submit words that they
have trouble with, and the dictionary meaning.
Group projects
 
 
 
How to use Wikis in the Classroom

Classroom policies- encourage students to draft rules

and policices.
Classroom scrapbook- students can share news, photos,
and current achievement.
Calendar- students can add their own important dates.
Collabroative projects- collaborate with other
classrooms in the U.S.A and other parts of the world.
Write a new school song
Book reviews
Science journaling
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9hSzJ0Hj_eo
 
 
http://pbwiki.com/content/viewdemo
 
 
http://cerebrum.wikispaces.com/
 
 
 http://adamsnews.wikispaces.com/
 
 
 
How to use Wikis as Teachers

Connect with parents by publishing students work.

Share lesson plans with other teachers
post study guides for a test
Homework groups with students
Plan fundraisers or other activites with other teachers
Wiki ideas for Math in the Classroom

A geometry wiki for students to share and rewrite

problems.
A calculus wiki for those long problems. Students can
show different approaches to the same problem.
Applied math wiki where students write about and
illustrate places where they actually used math to solve
a problem.
Procedure wiki where groups explain the steps to a
mathematical peocedure, such as factoring polynominal
or converting decimal to fraction.
 
Wiki ideas for math in the classroom

http://am40s.pbwiki.com/
  

What is Skype? by Anna Caba

Skype ( : [skaɪp]) is software that allows users to make

IPA

telephone calls over the Internet. Calls to other users of

the service and to free-of-charge numbers are free, while
calls to other landlines and mobile phones can be made for a
fee. Additional features include instant messaging, file
transfer and video conferencing.
 
 
 
Internet connectivity in educational settings provides opportunities for
interactive exchange and collaboration between students living on other
sides of town or the other side of the planet. These synchronous, real-
time discussions using free software like “Skype” can tangibly expand
the walls of the traditional classroom and engage students to write,
share, and communicate with an authentic audience inaccessible just a
few years ago. Educators interested in helping motivate students to
develop both traditional as well as twenty-first century literacy skills in
the classroom can and should use audio conferencing technologies like
Skype to literally plug their students into collaborative exchanges with
global partners on a variety of projects.
 Skype
 
 One of the best and most established Internet resources for connecting
like-minded educators wanting to collaborate is ePals (http://www.epals.
com). Register for a free ePals account on their website, including
information about your school, it’s address, and phone number. Also indicate
the type of collaborative exchange you are interested in, For example; social
studies, history, language arts, etc.  including a specific reference to the use
of Skype software. If you want to connect with students and teachers in a
particular country, also include that information in your profile description.
After your ePals account registration has been reviewed and approved (it
may take 24 hours), use the FIND CLASSROOMS link in the left sidebar of
the ePals website to search for other classrooms with which you want to
connect. You can search for classrooms before having your ePals account
approved, but you will not be able to electronically contact other ePals
members until it is.
 How do we get started using
Skype?
LOCATING SAFE CLASSROOMS FOR COLLABORATION
 
1. VoIP and Skype are exciting technologies, but the Internet can be a
scary and dangerous place. How can a classroom teacher find other
educators who want to use Skype and communicate across the state or
the globe, and insure those communications will be safe and
appropriate.
2. After locating one or more classrooms you want to connect with, send
the registered teacher an email message using the CONTACT link
beside that classroom’s profile in ePals. All ePals users have access to
an internal messaging system, so you’ll need to log in periodically to
ePals and check if you have any new messages from other users. 
 
 
 Getting Started

 
A wealth of additional ideas for using the ePals website and the personal
connections you make with other educators and students around the world
is available on the “Teaching With ePals” webpage (http://www.epals.
com/media/67/default.aspx).
 
How can Teachers and Students Use Skype?

 Suggested Ways to Use Skype

Conduct collaborative research with students in another part of the world
Practice communication with another language or culture
Ask questions of experts or community resource people 
Communicate with family members abroad
Conduct parent conferences
Provide mentoring or homework help
Read, present or perform to a remote audience
Collaborate with other teachers
Participate in Professional Development
Technology in Classrooms
 Skyping in a Spanish Classroom

 
 
 An example of children in a spanish class skyping with other
students in a classroom from Caracas, Venezuela.  This was
an excellent example of teachers from two different
countries collaborating and helping students engage in
practicing another language.  It was motivating and kept
students focused and interested in the lesson.
Example;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvZdhahgUKE
 Websites Cited

 
lFryer, Wesley A.  "Tools for the TEKS Integrating
Technology in theClassrooms."  http://www.wtvi.
com/TEKS/05_06_articles/skype-in-the-classroom.html
 
Youtube.com
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvZdhahgUKE
 
Epals.com
ITunes University
By Christine Murphy
 Facts About Itunes U*
First announced in Cupertino, California on May 30, 2007

Created to manage, distribute, and control access to educational

audio and video content for students within a college or university
as well as the broader Internet
 
An online service, without cost to those uploading or downloading
material
 
Includes lectures, language lessons, lab demonstrations, sports
highlights and campus tours provided by many top colleges and
universities from the US, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada,
Ireland and New Zealand
 
 
* from en.wikipida. 
 Facts Continued*.....
Collection of material from a myriad of places around the
world including top colleges and universities (like Stanford
or the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill),
museums (like the Smithsonian or the MoMA), PBS stations,
and other cultural institutions of educational value (like the
New York Public Library).
 
Currently has over 75,000 files available to download.
  
· Individual universities can be visited through the
Universities & Colleges section, and other institutions can be
visited through the Beyond Campus section.
 

* from en.wikipedia.org
 How to Use Itunes U
http://www.apple.com/education/guidedtours/itunesu.html
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
Visit the above link for a brief, but indepth indroduction
 to using itunes U.
Access to premier education...for free!
Examples For English Language Arts:
Learn Shakespeare from one of the world’s leading Shakespearean experts
with podcasts from Warwick University.
Join in on a class discussion about gender in Old English literature at
Oxford University
Access a free collection of stories and poems, through Lit2Go Audio Files
for K-12, provided by University of Southern Florida
Examples for Other disciplines:
Learn about the world’s natural resources from a professor at UC
Berkeley
Be part of the Ethics and Corporate Responsibility series sponsored by
Georgia State University (a very timely topic)
 Ways to Use Itunes U in the
Classroom
Bring class discussions to a new level by accessing lectures
from first-rate institutions around the world. 
Benefits: engaging, adds a global perspective and
introduces top level college content to an audiece who
would not have had that opportunity in the past.
 
Ask students to use sources from Itunes U lectures while
writing a research paper. 
Benefits: creates more resources for gathering and
citing knowlege.  It is also a primary source, directly
from a lecture of an acomplished academic.  
 
 More Ways to Use Itunes U...
 Have students listen to itues U lectures that are related, but
outside the discipline of study.  For example, when
studying Mark Twain in an English class, do a "pre-reading"
activity that would include listening to a history lecture about
the Civil Rights Act of 1875 (or other major events of the time peiod).
Benefits: help to make lessons more cross-disciplinary.
Some K-12 schools are begining to utilize Itunes U for hosting their
own material.
Benefits: professional development, sharing knew knowledge,
reinforcing material covered during class, providing parents insight
to the classroom.
Drawbacks: there is a cost associated to be an institutional
member that can post material to itunes. There also may be a cost
associated with recording and editing.
Itunes for K-12 Education
 How Itunes U is Being Used
       in K-12 Education
 Maine Department of Education
        - To teach online AP Calculus (also a resource for the
              classroom teacher/student)
          -  To post interviews with former high school students  
              about thier college experience (called college talk).
Arizona State Department of Education
        - has widely used the itunes U platform for news sharing,
             professional development and for educational
             shows, such as "Ask a Biologist".  They also use itunes U
             to showcase student work.
Tennessee State Department of Education
        - has developed a "study partner" program to prepare
            students for tests and state standards.
 Alex Lipsky
Spring 2009
Class Power Point Presentation
Primary Functions of Jing
Screen Capture
    -With Simple Editing

Video Screen Capture

 How to use Jing
Step 1: Click on the sun
and choose the Capture
option.
Step 2: Use the cross
hairs to select the size
you would like your
photo/video to be.
Step 3: Choose either
Capture a Picture or
Capture a Video to
record.

All photos taken and edited using Jing!

Screen Capture
Image Editing
Screen Capture for Classroom Use!
Video Screen Capture
Advantages:
    -Audio/Visual Learners
    -Guaranteed Step-by-step Instructions
    -Wordy Screenshots can be confusing 
   

Example: How to Print on a Mac 

Uses for the classroom
-How To
-Collaboration
-Audio comments on an emailed report or assignment
-Maps
-Pictures/Video/Audio Memo
-YouTube/Blog/Wiki/Personal Website/School Website/Email
-ENHANCE PRESENTATION!
The uses are endless...
Download Jing 
 BrainPOP

BrainPOP

Featuring Moby & Tim

Brainpop
Brainpop is an instructional illustrated website that caters to
students in Kindergarten through eighth grade
Subject areas include: Science, Social Studies, Math, Arts &
Music, Health, Technology
Each subject area is broken down into Units, then broken down
further into specific sub-topics
Brainpop relies on visual stimulation as a learning method
Brainpop is also available in Espanol
 
 BrainPOP MATH
 Topics Covered for Elementary Students
 Include
Addition / Subtraction
Calendar
Data Charts
Bar Graphs
Fractions
Geometry
Measurment
Money

Time
Multiplication / Division
 
 
Different Math Applications
for Different Grades 
 BrainPOP Academic Tasks
Activities within specific content areas
Belly Up: ability to view a short comic strip based
on a specific area
Pop a Joke: user can view a joke about a topic
Word Wall: gives important key words along with
definitions
Read About It: Examples of books that relate to an
area of study
 BrainPOP Videos
Each content area includes a short video
Movies have option for closed captioning
– which could be excellent for children
with special needs, or if the teacher
would like quiet in the classroom.
Videos also come with questions for
teachers to assess students’
understanding of concepts shown
A big advantage of BrainPOP is that is has the ability to suggest: LESSON PLANS /
STATE STANDARDS / PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPENT /alsoso offers RSS
capability to send updates straight to YOUR EMAIL!!
Teachers can also choose between EASY & HARD QUIZZES to provide students
with quizzes that accommodate their learning patterns
One drawback of BrainPOP is CO$T… depending on what the needs
are prices can vary from reasonable to quite expensive….

BUT knowing that a school can share a LOGIN (Ssssshhh!) may

mitigate the $ticker $hock!!!
 Students can email the website characters, Tim & Moby, to ask them
  questions
BrainPOP can be used to reinforce lessons that have just been taught or
used as a tool to introduce students to a new topic
BrainPOP can be used to leverage student use of technology in the
classroom by using a reliable and trustworthy website!
 The NYS Virtual Learning System

http://eservices.nysed.gov/vls/welcome.do? Shannon Piccione

fmid=1
The NYS Virtual Learning System . . . What
Type of Technology Is It?
Instructional: Every student can benefit from this
technology.
 
Links include:
Cultural Education (NYS Cultural Education
Department)
EMSC (NYS Elementary, Middle, Secondary and
Continuing Education)
NYS Learning Standards
NYS Museum
VESID - Special Education (Office of Vocational and
Educational Services for Individuals with
Disabilities)
 The NYS Virtual Learning System . . . How
Does It Work?
There are links to assist teachers in incorporating the
use of the internet in their classrooms. There is an
abundance of information located in the following
areas:
 
Arts
CDOS (Career Development and Occupational Studies)
ELA (English Language Arts)
HPEFCS (Health, Physical Education, Family and
Consumer Services)
LOTE (Languages Other Than English)
MST (Math, Science, Technology)
SS (Social Studies)
 
 
The NYS Virtual Learning System . . . How
Can It be Applied in the Classroom?
Under each subject area there are the following tabs:
Assessment
Information
News
Toolkit

Educators can use these tabs to research NYS Learning

Standards with their main ideas and performance
indicators (including special education), as well as
learning experiences and lesson plans.
The NYS Virtual Learning System . . . How
Can It be Applied in the Classroom?
(continued
Below is what the Social ) like. All of the content
Studies page looks
areas have similar pages.
The NYS Virtual Learning System . . . How
Can It be Applied in the Classroom?
(continued)
 
Teachers can obtain graphic organizers through
searching this website.
The NYS Virtual Learning System . . . How
Can It be Applied in the Classroom?
(continued)
Teachers can find appropriate websites to enhance the content they are teaching,
through searching this website.
The NYS Virtual Learning System . . . How
Can It be Applied in the Classroom?
(continued)
There are also suggestions for creating interdisciplinary
connections. Below is an example of how to create
interdisciplinary connections in a Western Hemisphere,
grade 5, social studies unit.
 The NYS Virtual Learning System . . . Final
Thoughts and Reference List
The, NYS Virtual Learning System has many useful resources for
classroom teachers. Children will benefit from the wealth of
information and activities that their teachers have compiled from
this website.

The information that was used in the, NYS Virtual Learning

System portion of the PowerPoint came from the following website:
(2003). Retrieved March 14, 2009, from New York State Education
Department Virtual Learning System Web site:
http://eservices.nysed.gov/vls/welcome.do
 Computer Based Tools for Teaching and Learning
1. Making a Wiki page - used for convenient collaboration  as a means of
sharing real time information / ideas for parents, teachers, and
students. Information, links to many websites, and videos can all be
accessed on one "wiki page".
 
  2. Microsoft Word - a popular program which also has 
      capabilities unknown by most users. It has a "speech to text"
      feature, which converts speech into text ! Teachers can also
      check content and documents' levels of readability in order to
      adjust their lesson plans to better fit all students' capabilities,
      ie: differentiation.
 
  3. Microsoft Excel - a program which converts written content
      to speech. Simply copy and paste your written content and let
      the computer speak it with a computer generated voice.
 
 
How to Make a Wiki
 
 
Vi's Page

 
 Microsoft Word Readability Levels
 
Vi's Page

 
i

i
 Installation of Speech Feature

 
 Using Microsoft Excel to Read Text
To get text into Excel:
1. Open a Word Document and Highlight the entire text
2. COPY the text (right click on the highlighted text) and choose “copy”
3. Open a blank Microsoft Excel Document
4. Left Click on the first cell (upper left hand corner)
Select PASTE (right click in the cell and choose “paste”)
The text should appear in the document (sometimes the format is a little off because of graphics; if the graphics are
overlaying the text, click on the graphic and drag it to a different place)
Accessing the Text to Speech Feature :