Ed Tech Review

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2007-05-15T21:12:00.000-06:00

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Finding a Balance in Filtering

2007-05-15T06:51:00.000-06:00

It has been a long time since I last posted. I typically post from school after my work hours where I have a lot of my educational resources available for reference. Our district however has expanded the reach of there filtering software to block all Blogger sites because a few of these sites may be inappropriate. I am looking at other solutions, but any hosted service that is primarily for blogs is also blocked. I see a definite need for filtering software, but wiping out a powerful educational tool, because there might be a little swearing on a page is overstepping the bounds. No filtering software can protect from everything, but with a vigilant teacher and appropriate supervision most problems can be eliminated. The filtering software should be set to block only the worst of sites, rather than blocking huge blocks of content where 90% is good and legitimate, and of the remaining 10% most only have a few offensive words here or there.

Keeping Older Computers Running Smooth and Safe

2007-04-26T08:03:00.000-06:00

In an ideal world we would have a class with a laptop or tablet PC for every child, and we could update them every three or four years to keep current. Unfortunately in the real world we are fighting with trying to keep older computers patched together and running, so that our kids have at least some access to technology. In this and a few of the following articles I will discuss some of the ways we can keep these older machines running smooth.

The first concern is security. If you are not connected to the internet then this is really not an issue, but if you are there are some concerns that should be addressed.

First keep your operating system up to date. Windows 98 is no longer supported by Microsoft, so this is one situation where updating to a more recent version is necessary. As of now Windows 2000 is still supported, and can be put on donated pc's for free through the fresh start program from Microsoft. Microsoft Fresh Start
Mac computers support cycle is much shorter than Microsoft's, but because fewer people use macs they have not been a target for hackers. You are likely to be safe using a mac even if security updates are not being provided.
Use an antivirus. AVG still offers a free version of their antivirus, and it is more than capable of meeting your needs.

More to come...

Brain Pop Jr. is a great addition to Brain Pop

2007-04-25T14:36:00.000-06:00

website: http://www.brainpopjr.com/

Grade: A

Cost: $95 Annual fee for teachers (School, Parent, and other licensing options are available)

I have looked at Brainpop before and have given it a positive review. The addition of Brainpop Jr. which is targeted more to the primary grades, makes it even better. In addition to providing many great educational films featuring fun animated characters, it also contains many learning games and activities to solidify the concepts taught. Student can do Games, Writing, Drawing, read a comic book that teaches the concepts, as well as take a quiz on the subject. It also contains a link for teachers with suggestions of activities that correspond with the video. I can't say the animation is spectacular, but it is sufficient to keep students interested, especially with the well written scripts.

Is it worth the $95? With research you could probably find free resources to teach many of the concepts taught on this site. But if your time is at all valuable it is worth the $10 per school months to have all of these resources in one location. I personally think it is a bargain. My resource students have learned concepts on Brainpop with ease that they struggled to grasp in a traditional classroom setting. To me that is also worth a lot.

Ubunto Feisty Fawn Released/ Great School Solution

2007-04-24T16:11:00.000-06:00

Website: http://www.ubuntu.com or http://www.edubuntu.org/

Grade: A

Cost: Free

I have reviewed and suggested Ubuntu before, but with their new upgrade to Ubuntu Feisty Fawn, I felt that it was a good time to talk about it again as a solution for schools. Schools face many interesting challenges, but the biggest is lack of current technology, older computers, donated computers, and lack of finances for software to keep everything working and running smoothly. Although it can't fix everything Ubuntu can help us in some of these areas. Ubuntu is a free Open Source Linux operating system that includes a wide variety of software to get you started with most common tasks. Of all the Linux varieties out there Ubunto is probably the easiest to get up and running. It also includes great software that gets you going, including a word processor, a spreadsheet, presentation software, firefox, email, and much more. Edubuntu is the education or kid friendly version that comes bundled with the basic applications as well as many educational titles. If you have an older computer that needs something more secure that an unsupported version of windows, or a donated pc that your not sure about software licencing on, or you just want a fun alternative, Ubuntu Feisty Fawn, and Edubuntu are a great choice.

Murphys Law for Teaching

2007-04-20T14:57:00.000-06:00

Site: http://www.murphys-laws.com/murphy/murphy-teaching.html

This is just a fun list for teachers, because it seems to be true to life. I copies just a small portion, please visit the site for the full list.

The clock in the instructor's room will be wrong.
Disaster will occur when visitors are in the room.
A subject interesting to the teacher will bore students.
The time a teacher takes in explaining is inversely proportional to the information retained by students.
A meeting's length will be directly proportional to the boredom the speaker produces.

Continued at: http://www.murphys-laws.com/murphy/murphy-teaching.html

A Cool way to Multiply (Video)

2007-04-20T14:18:00.000-06:00

Website: http://www.glumbert.com/media/multiply

Grade: A

I found this video that teaches a new method of multiplication. It has worked time and again as I have tried it. Give it a try.

glumbert.com

100 posts which direction should I Go? User Poll

2007-04-16T12:29:00.000-06:00

Wow! I have reached the 100 post mark. I have recently been posting rapidly and the posts, are adding up quickly. I currently have about 60 regular subscribers, and I also receive between one and two hundred hits a day. I want to provide you the readers with the best information possible in a format that will benefit you most. My recent posts have been mostly short one or two paragraph reviews of cools sites, tools, and software I have found. I think this is good for teachers because it introduces you to useful tools that make teaching a little more fun. In the past I have also created guides to using technology. For example I did a guide to movie making in which I discussed the tools used and needed for this specific type of project. Which Direction would you like to see Ed Tech Review? Please answer the poll question, and leave comments on this post for your suggestions.

View MicroPollWeb SurveyFree Web Polls

Educated Earth for Edcuation

2007-04-14T13:08:00.000-06:00

Website: http://www.educatedearth.net
Grade: B+
Cost: Free

Educated Earth is a very nice site that brings you a wide variety of videos, photographs and articles about the science of our earth. I found a wide variety of videos from an octopus that attacked a shark, to a science demonstration of blowing up bathtubs with a chemical reaction of alkali metals and water.

The only real problem I see is that many of the videos are not hosted on the site, so if your district like mine blocks Youtube and Google Video you may not be able to view them.

NyeLabs Is a great place for hands on activities!

2007-04-13T16:05:00.000-06:00

Website: http://www.nyelabs.com/
Grade: B+
Cost: Free

I am always on the lookout for good science activities, and Nye Labs is a great site to find some of the many activities that they suggest on the television programs. The hands on science activities are well thought out, and most are very simple to implement. I enjoy the Bill Nye show and there is an episode guide to help you in selecting shows to go along with the activities. The site is done in flash and is well designed and works well.

On a personal note, which I rarely share on my site I do take issue with the loading page depicting evolution. It frustrates me that evolution theory is so widely accepted as fact when probability based on scientific studies really deem it next to impossible. Yet the scientific community totally dismisses the one thing that could make it a possibility, being divine design. I just think Science is about looking at many possibilities, and keeping an open mind to the many theories out there. It seems that the scientific community in general is moving away from the open-mindedness of the past and getting into a rut by totally dismissing other possibilities. OK, I over generalized, University Professors, and Government Funded scientist have fallen into the rut. There are many in private industry that keep an open mind. Maybe thats why most of the great discoveries in modern times came from private companies and not from Universities. Sorry about my soap box but it is my blog, and I needed somewhere to vent.

Science of Food

2007-04-12T21:45:00.000-06:00

Website: http://www.exploratorium.edu/cooking/candy/index.html
Grade: A-

This is just a quick post to let you know about this cool site. If you are teaching about chemistry, Chemical and Physical Change, or many other scientific processes, many of those can be seen and experimented with through food. Kids relate well to food because they love to eat, and it is something they relate to. This site helps you tie food to science to make great lessons that kids will love. Check it out.

The Spanish Verb Conjugator is a Great Tool for Language Classes!

2007-04-11T11:16:00.001-06:00

Website: http://www.123teachme.com/spanish_verb_conjugation

Grade: A

Cost: Free

Learning a Language is a challenging task. One of the most difficult tasks is learning how to conjugate or use verbs correctly. This task has become a little easier because of the release of the Spanish Verb Cogitator from the people at 123teachme.com. The addition of this powerful tool to their already robust website makes looking up verb and there many forms of conjugation a breeze. Simply enter the verb, and a chart of all of the conjugated forms of the word with a description of their usage and an English translation appear in a well organized layout. Common verbs are listed right on the main page for quick access, you simply need to click to see the results. The chart is well laid out and easy to follow if you have a little Spanish knowledge. Although it has an English translation of the , and English examples, the layout titles and sections are all in Spanish. This is okay, because Spanish Verb Conjugation is really a more advanced task, and for anyone ready for this they certainly have enough knowledge of Spanish for the chart to be effective.

The Spanish Word Conjugator is a great tool for any student or teacher of a Spanish language class. It is a quick and easy way to look up Spanish verbs and their conjugation, and belongs in the book mark of anyone involved in learning, teaching, or translating Spanish. The best part is that it is free to use.

(Sponsored Post)

Art Rage 2 is Amazing!

2007-04-11T09:55:00.000-06:00

Website: http://www.ambientdesign.com/artrage.html
Grade: A
Cost: $20 (Free Version is available)

Art rage is a powerful yet intuitive paint application that is really amazing. You can start with a variety of canvas styles and instantly start your painting. Your tools are found in the lower left hand corner and you have a great selection of paint brushes, markers, crayons, a painters knife, the ever important eraser, and many more. I was able to pick up the program and create my first painting within a few minutes. The textures the program creates while painting are true to real paint tools, you even get the brush lines when using the brush. I have to say that the texture qualities of the paint's are the best I have seen even in much more expensive applications. It did take me a few minutes to figure out how to change the brush size, but once I figured it out it was very well placed and made sense. If you need a little help to get started the websites they have a great video tutorial on the website. This application is well thought out, and can be a perfect creative engine for students from the middle grades up through high school. In truth this is a professional level tool, with the ease of consumer level use. Have fun and create using Art Rage 2.

A Wiki for Education with Curriki

2007-04-10T14:48:00.001-06:00

Website: http://www.curikki.org

Grade: A

Cost: Free

I love Wikipedia, and feel that it provides a valuable resource for all of us. Yes, there are some inherent pitfalls because the community at large can edit the information, but in general the information is very good and accurate. This type of media where the community provides the content can be very powerful and can be a great resource for all of us. This type of application is a perfect way for teachers around the world to get together and share lesson plans, resources, worksheets, video, and websites. The people at Curriki have developed and promoted a web site for educators that allow us to use this powerful WIKI technology.

Curriki is more than your average Website; we're a community of educators, learners and committed education experts who are working together to create quality materials that will benefit teachers and students around the world.

Curriki is an online environment created to support the development and free distribution of world-class educational materials to anyone who needs them. Our name is a play on the combination of 'curriculum' and 'wiki' which is the technology we're using to make education universally accessible.

Curriki is the result of work done for GELC - the Global Education and Learning Community - an online project started by Sun Microsystems to develop works for education in a collaborative effort. The leadership team consists of people with a long-time commitment to exploring the use of technology to improve education.

The power of Curriki is in it's members. The more people join and contribute to this site the better and more useful the site will become. This is a valuable resource and I believe the future of educational content on the internet.

There is an inherent downside to this type of system. It will likely become a site that will be invaded by special interest groups trying to push there message through biased lesson plans and materials, but there is nothing new with that. Nearly all current educational resources are already infiltrated with a significant Liberal slant. If you're a Liberal that may be OK, but for others that don't share that viewpoint it can be frustrating. The advantage to the WIKI format is that you may begin to see materials from multiple viewpoints and opinions.

The upside is that we will likely find a site with a wealth of lesson plans, materials, textbooks, and worksheets that are far better than any of the current generic worksheet sites on the web. Individual teachers create amazing things to teach there kids, and through this sharing system we can share and receive from the many brilliant teachers out there. This site is definitely the future of education.

Elegant Universe Availible in Free Full Screen Download

2007-04-09T06:02:00.000-06:00

Website: (Teacher Resources) http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/teachers/programs/3012_elegant.html
Website: (Video Downloads)
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/elegant/program.html

Grade: A

NOVA introduces string theory and Albert Einstein's dream of unifying the forces that underlie all phenomena in the physical universe. This television program is called The elegant universe. It is freely available for download from the above PBS Link. This program is very well done and is broken down into bite sized pieces that help you focus your lessons. The website also contains a teachers guide that provides you with with activities, lesson plans, and more to help you get the most out of this program. The video downloads are a very good quality full screen video so it does require the preprocessing power of a modern computer and high speed internet is recommended. If you want to avoid the hassles of the download, you can purchase the video from the PBS site but you can find Elegant Universe at Amazon for a little less. Following is a brief description about what the video contains.

The program:

reviews the quest for unification, the search for a single theory that describes all the laws in the known universe.
introduces string theory as a candidate for a unified theory and summarizes the theory's main idea—that all matter and forces are made of tiny strands of energy that vibrate in different patterns.
chronicles how, in 1665, Isaac Newton integrated the laws governing the heavens and Earth under the theory of gravity.
details Einstein's discovery that nothing can travel faster than the speed of light and reveals how that finding conflicted with Newton's laws that showed that gravity acts instantaneously across any distance.
explains how Einstein resolved the conflict with Newton's ideas by showing in his general theory of relativity that gravity travels at the speed of light.
describes how electricity and magnetism were unified in the mid-1800s into a single theory of electromagnetism and illustrates how electromagnetism works and why it is hundreds of billions of times stronger than gravity.
chronicles Einstein's quest to unite electromagnetism with gravity.
relates the rise of subatomic physics in the 1920s and reviews the development of the radical theory of quantum mechanics and the uncertainty that rules the quantum world.
conveys the discovery in the 1930s of two additional forces—the strong force and the weak force—and the eventual grouping of electromagnetism and the strong and weak forces under the umbrella of quantum mechanics.
discusses the challenge of unifying the force of gravity with the forces described by quantum mechanics and expresses the need for a unified theory to describe phenomena in the universe, such as the depths of a black hole, which is both enormously massive and incredibly tiny.
concludes with the idea that while string theory could unify general relativity and quantum mechanics, there is currently no way of experimentally confirming its predictions.

Where did math symbols come from?

2007-04-08T13:00:00.000-06:00

Website: http://www.roma.unisa.edu.au/07305/symbols.htm#Percent
Grade: B+

If you have ever wondered where the division symbol came from, or questioned the the origin of pi this website is great. This site has a tremendous amount of information as can be seen by their index:

The information is good but could be more organized and presented in a more entertaining way.

teacherxpress.com Directory for Teachers

2007-04-06T11:03:00.000-06:00

Site: http://www.teacherxpress.com/
Grade: B
Cost: Free

If you are looking for a vast collection of education related websites this site is perfect. Even with the vast amount of information available is is surprisingly well organized. The downside is that despite the vast volume there are things missing. Also it provides no detail as to what the pages in the directory contain, other than the category they are placed in. This is a good site to find difficult to find links, but is not perfect.

For the Ambitious School Tech, Radio?

2007-04-06T00:03:00.000-06:00

Have any of thought about starting a radio station for your school? I have thought about it a fair amount but was overwhelmed by the challenges that would prevent such a venture. The biggest challenge aside from acquiring the equipment is the costly and tedious task of acquiring a FCC License. The challenge of getting that license for educational purposes will get easier and cheaper for a few short days this year.
Radio for The People has important information for those interest in getting a FCC License for a FM Radio Station. There description of this event is as follows:
"We have joined together in anticipation of the upcoming FCC noncommercial license application window, to encourage the creation of more independent community radio stations. We know that the pending application window is an important one-time opportunity. We believe that a significant number of the radio licenses that will be available should be used for community radio. Community radio stations are priceless local community resources."

If interested please visit their site for more information.
http://www.radioforpeople.org/content/view/2/31/

Get the facts on the Civil War

2007-04-05T18:30:00.001-06:00

Website: http://www.civil-war.net/

Grade: A

Cost: Free

When teaching students about the civil war, there are few sites that have more information and photos that are well organized as Civil War .net. It is an amazing collection of information. Battles are outlined, politics are discussed, and historical figures are brought to life. This is a fun site that really sheds light on this significant struggle in our nation's history.

Adobe CS 3 Brings together Adobe's Assets

2007-04-05T07:13:00.000-06:00

Website: http://www.adobe.com/creativelicense/
Grade: ? Pending
Price: $489.95-$995.95 depending on version (Academic Pricing)

Later this month Adobe is scheduled to release it's CS 3 suites of creativity software. Adobe has made many acquisitions over the last few years including Macromedia with the most used web development software Dreamweaver and Premiere the popular Video Editing software. With the release of CS 3 now the interoperability of these industry standards will be paired with Adobe's dominant Photoshop software package that works seamlessly together. The way the programs work together is the most significant change, but each of the applications has many enhancements that significantly improve the user experience.

All the objects in our solar system

2007-04-03T15:44:00.000-06:00

Website: http://kokogiak.com/solarsystembodieslargerthan200miles.html
Grade: A-
Cost: Free

This website shows all of the known bodies in the solar system that are over 200 miles in diameter. They are arranged in order of size. There are many that I have never heard of, and I learned a lot through this site. This is great for those teaching about space.

2007-04-03T12:37:00.000-06:00

Program: Stellarium
Website: http://www.stellarium.org/
Grade: A
Cost: Free

Stellarium is a free open source planetarium for your computer. It shows a realistic sky in 3D, just like what you see with the naked eye, binoculars or a telescope. This application is available for Mac OSX, Windows, and Linux. A useful guide is also available on the site that provides you with all of the information you need to get started. The imagery is amazing and very accurate. This is a very powerful tool that is being used in many planetariums. This is a perfect application for any class studying space.

Back-up and share files online with dropboks

2007-04-02T12:10:00.000-06:00

Website: http://www.dropboks.com/
Grade: A
Cost: Free (They do ask for a $3 donation but it is not required)

DropBoks is a little website that allows you to securely upload and download your files as you please. No bells, no whistles, just an easy and quick way to store your files online.

Each account has 1 GB of storage space available. You can upload and download files (any format) as large as 50 MB

This type of setup is great for students that need a place to store files that are accessable from any computer.

The site is free but they do ask for a $3 donation. In return you get a great place to store data without ads.

Ride The Line for Physics Fun

2007-03-31T21:45:00.000-06:00

Website: http://www.official-linerider.com/play.html
Grade: A
Cost: Free

This amazing online application lets students create a track using simple line drawing tools for a little sledder to ride down. It is very easy to get started and create a simple coarse, but more advanced sledding including stunts and tricks are possible, but not easy. The neat thing about the site is that it also includes movies of some of the courses that show what is really possible. If the track does not work then the sledder crashes so being successful in track design involves planning understanding the physics of the sled and a fair amount trouble shooting and problem solving. This is a great site to get kids to really stretch there minds in an enjoyable exciting way. This is a great application for fourth grade on up.

How to Study

2007-03-30T14:44:00.000-06:00

Web Site: http://www.how-to-study.com
Grade: A
Cost: Free

How to Study.com is an well written site that gives very good instruction on the best study methods for a given situation. In addition to study skills it gives tips on how to improve your test taking skills. The instructions are broken down well and easy to follow. This is a site that I personally recommend to parents of my students. I also print out some of the skills to distribute to parents.

Hubble Heritage Gallery

2007-03-30T10:48:00.000-06:00

Website: http://heritage.stsci.edu/gallery/gallery_category.html
Grade: A
Cost: Free

This is simply a gallery of the amazing photos taken by Hubble. The images are stunning and well organized. There is even a wallpaper section to download these amazing images for your desktop.

Visualizing Math

2007-03-30T09:47:00.000-06:00

Web Site: http://dmc.utep.edu/mouratt/vis_math/misc.html
Grade: B
Cost: Free

Mathematical concepts are sometimes difficult to understand as we enter the world high school and college level math. This website makes understanding those concepts by giving a animated visual representation of the mathematical concept. The videos are simple and show the equation along with the visual representation. The downside is there is no detailed information or explanation. So using the site with students that do not already have an understanding of the concept, or without a teacher further explaining the concepts it is of little use.

Experiments Galore!

2007-03-29T22:23:00.000-06:00

Website: http://www.hunkinsexperiments.com/
Grade: A-
Cost: Website (Free) Book (£7.99 UK Only) I know I have a few UK Readers.

With over 200 experiments this website is full of useful activities to enhance learning. The experiments are easy to implement and fun. they span the curriculum covering math and a wide variety of science topics. If you are looking for hands on activities to enhance your lessons this is a great place to start.

Teaching about Fractals?

2007-03-29T22:13:00.000-06:00

Website: http://www.enchgallery.com/fractals/fracthumbs.htm
Grade: A
Cost: Free

If you are teaching about fractals in your math class, it is fun to show kids the amazing things that can be done with them. The Fractal World Gallery has an amazing collection of images that are simply amazing. It is well worth a look.

Google Earth Updated

2007-03-29T12:39:00.000-06:00

Ok this is just for personal gratification. I live in a small town in Southern Utah and the maps on Google Earth have not been that great for my town. Just recently I have found that my town has been updated with higher resolution images and it is very cool. If you have been disappointed in the past with the low resolution images of your area before it is worth checking back occasionally to see it your area has been updated. You might just be pleasantly surprised.

Online Multiplication Games at Game Quarium

2007-03-26T15:47:00.000-06:00

Website: http://www.gamequarium.com/multiplication.html
Grade: B
Cost: Free

I recently had a teacher ask me about multiplication games that can be used on older Mac computers. Although there are older programs out there it is getting more difficult to find. The solution is on the internet. Game Quarium is a good location to find fun online games to teach kids about many subjects. It is worth looking through the many available games. Not all of the games are that good, but some stand out and are interesting to kids. The downside is that these games are not very good at teaching new concepts. The games are essentially a fun way to do flash cards.

Keeping Kids Safe on the Net

2007-03-26T14:01:00.000-06:00

Website: http://www.ikeepsafe.org
Grade: B+
Cost: Free

The Internet Keep Safe Coalition group teaches basic rules of Internet safety to children and parents, reaching them online and in school. On this site you will find great free videos, online books, worksheets and more all aimed at teaching kids to be safe online. Kids are being targeted at astonishing rates through many different methods. The best way to protect kids is to teach them how to be safe. This site offers a powerful resource to help us reach kids in a way that is interesting to kids.

SRA Distributes Free Science DVD

2007-03-26T12:50:00.000-06:00

Product: SRA Snapshots Video Science
Grade: B+
Price: Free (Demo DVD)
Website: http://www.sraonline.com/mail_downloads/sra_snapshots_vcab.html

SRA has developed a new science textbook that correlates directly to DVD based science videos. The new program is called "SRA Snapshots Video Science". Science is one area where seeing things in action can greatly enhance understanding. The way the program works is that you have a introduction video for each lesson, then students go to the book to get detailed information and assessment activities. This tight relationship between video and text is very beneficial. The down side is that there seems to be a lack of hands on activities built into the program.

Right now they are offering a free DVD demo of the program. It is worth looking at.

EdTechReview Released 1st Podcast

2007-03-26T12:37:00.000-06:00

EdTechReview is expanding the way in which we bring you technology information. We are now doing a weekly podcast to enhance our blog. This podcast is found at http://edtechreview.libsyn.com
The podcast will give you a first hand view of the software and technologies written about in this Blog.

5 Best web 2.0 Sites for teachers

2007-03-23T12:44:00.001-06:00

http://calendarhub.com/

This is an online Calendar system that allows you to make public the events that will take place. This is a great place post due dates for assignments, special events, school activities ect. You can post your calendar to your own website if you like.

http://www.google.com/google-d-s/intl/en/tour1.html

Google Docs and Spreadsheets seem to be the most solid choice for online office applications. They work very well and have an easy to use effective interface.

http://flickr.com/

This site is known as a great place for individuals to share their digital photos with family and friends. It is also a great place to keep your collections of educational photos and images in a safe location for students to view and use.

http://protopage.com/

Protopage is a start page that is easily customizable. I set up a protopage that has notes for the classes, all of the website links we will be using, the local weather, and any other relevant information and then set it as the default boot page for all of my student computers. This makes it easy for students to find what they need quickly.

http://www.wikipedia.org/

This is a very solid online encyclopedia that contains far more information than any paper based encyclopedia could dream of. Because it is constantly changing and being updated by it’s users the information is very current. You should also let students know that because it is editable by just about anyone, it is possible that articles may contain inaccuracies.

Constitution Day Lesson Plan at National Archives Website

2007-03-23T10:30:00.000-06:00

Website: http://www.archives.gov/education/lessons/constitution-workshop/index.html
Grade: A
Cost: Free
In the news we hear a lot about constitutional rights and privileges yet unfortunately many Americans do not truly understand the Constitution and far to few people have actually read it. According to the Associated Press In a contest between Americans' knowledge of "The Simpsons" and what they know about the First Amendment, Bart and Homer win hands down. About 1 in 4 Americans can name more than one of the five freedoms guaranteed by the First Amendment (freedom of speech, religion, press, assembly and petition for redress of grievances.) But more than half of Americans can name at least two members of the fictional cartoon family, according to a survey.
This lesson plan gives us a good start on changing future generation’s knowledge of the Constitution. It contains everything you need, including downloadable forms of all of the primary source documents. The down side is that is only designed to be taught in two hours where a more detailed study could be helpful but it’s a good start. It’s well worth your time, and the National Archives website is filled with valuable information and thousands of great primary source documents.

Adobe Digital School Collection Released

2007-03-23T09:23:00.000-06:00

Adobe Digital School Collection Released

Website: http://www.adobe.com/education/instruction/adsc/

Grade: A

Price: $159 Single License, Volume License Available

Purchase at: Academic Superstore

Adobe has released a new collection of software specially for the k-12 market. This digital school collection priced at $159 for a single license is a good value. Although, you do not receive the professional versions of Photoshop, and premiere the Elements programs are still very capable and provide students with powerful tools for image manipulation and video editing. This package has everything you need to create web pages, create and manage digital documents, work with digital photos, create images, and create videos. All the fun stuff that we like to do with our classes is in this package. The strength of this program bundle lies in the resources available from Adobe. On their website they have many lesson plans, tutorials, templates, and many other tools to help you get the most out of these applications.

Collection Includes

Adobe Photoshop® Elements 5.0
Adobe Premiere® Elements 3.0
Adobe Acrobat® 8 Professional
Adobe Contribute 4

Education System Report Card

2007-03-15T10:14:00.000-06:00

Website: http://www.uschamber.com/icw/reportcard/default
Grade: B
Price: Free
This is a quick post to let you know about a website that gives us a rundown on how your state stacks up when it comes to education. Unfortunately it doesn't let you drill down to specific schools, but it's fun and interesting, and a little eye opening. It is also fun to look at the irony in the system. For example Montana ranks an A for academic achievement, but a D in there data quality. Take a look, have fun, get mad, and then go back to teaching well.

Create Great web Pages with NVU

2007-03-14T10:28:00.000-06:00

Software :Nvu (pronounced N-view)
Website: http://www.nvu.com
Grade: A-
Cost: Free
Platform: XP, OSX, Linux

NVU is an open source software based on Netscape Composer from a while ago. It has been significantly improved and is now a very powerful and capable WYSIWYG (What you see is What you Get) web editor. With many powerful features that make it easy to build and manage a website. NVU is relatively intuitive and easy to use, however due to the complexity of the task managing links, menus, and web management takes a little effort to learn.

The support system for NVU is better than most open source projects, and has a wide variety of support options to help you learn the product. The manual and online guides are very helpful and cover most basic topics needed to create a great website. For more advanced help there is a forum, but it may not be active enough to get help for everything, or to get immediate feedback. Over all it is a very good program.

Audacity Free Digital Audio Workstation

2007-03-07T14:06:00.000-07:00

Software of the week, March 6, 2007

The power of music and audio recoding and mixing can bring a lot to lower and upper grade students alike. We have used tape recorders for years you record and playback lessons and for recording Readers Theater. In teaching music creation students can learn about fractions, rhythm, and patterns. Admittedly a tape recorder provides an easy to use tool any teacher can use. Now we have tremendous recording power through our computers, that can out perform any tape recorder available, and truly expands our students ability to create. Setting up a Digital Audio Workstation can be done for a very low cost now days. In fact, if your PC has a built in mike you can download a reasonably powerful and easy to use program for free. Audacity is an open source program that really built very well.

I was able to start recording immediately after installing by simply pressing the on screen record button. This actually surprised me because some of my professional audio applications require a little more setup than this to function. The recording quality was really good. I also learned to do basic cuts and edits without any trouble. The use of the program was very intuitive, and I have not yet needed to go to support documents to perform a variety of tasks. This program is not much more difficult than your tape recorder to operate, but is far more powerful. It is easy to apply effects, clean up noise and cut to create the perfect audio recordings.

Audacity gets an A because of the great features, easy to use interface, and the great price. This is a free application that really is worth much more.

Spice up your Power Point with PowerBacks.com

2007-03-05T10:15:00.000-07:00

Teachers site of the week March 5, 2007

As Technology toting teachers, PowerPoint presentations have likely become a part of our daily instruction routine. One way to make your PowerPoint stand out is to step beyond the typical background images and put backgrounds with a little punch in the slide show. Our site of the week http://www.powerbacks.com provides you with just the slide templates you need to make your slide show stand out. This site is free and the download is fairly efficient because you download whole sets rather than each individual background. Site Navigation and design could use some improvement, and installing and using the templates requires a little manipulation which is outlined in the included instructions. The themes located on the left of the screen such as education and technology did not impress me that much and many are not usable for much, but the more abstract sets on the right of the screen are very attractive and will receive a lot of use in my classroom. With a better site design and perhaps a revision of the education templates this site would be an A, but as it stands it receives a respectable B, and for free it’s well worth your time.

In my Video Pod Cast on Friday I will show you what the site has to offer, explain the site navigation, and take you through installing and using the templates. Please check back for details on how to subscribe to the podcast.

Saving Money on Teaching Materials Books and Software Part 2

2007-02-23T12:51:00.001-07:00

Yesterday I began this article to give teachers suggestions on how to save money by using internet resources. We will continue today with two more great suggestions.

Find the right forums. My wife actually uses a web site to save money on groceries and saves an average of $400 per month. But this site also lists sales for wide variety things including school and office supplies. The site she uses is http://www.pinchingyourpennies.com. She has found me deals on printers, office supplies, videos, software and more. There are other sites out there, but from what I have seen this is one of the best. The downside to shopping like this is you are likely to find exactly what you need right now, but if you periodically check the site you will come across many great deals.
Open Source is free. Open Source software has saved me a lot of money. It may not be the very best available but many applications are of very high quality. I have written articles about many Open source applications that I feel are of worth to teachers, but the offering are very vast, and do almost anything that you can think of. When you are in the market for a new program take a little time to search for an open source alternative, and in many cases you will be pleasantly surprised by what is available. I recently wrote an article about Blender 3D an open source 3d creation software. This application compares with programs like 3D Studio Max or Maya, which cost nearly $5000. For a school environment Blender 3D is more than ample power, and allows you to introduce students to creative power when using the high end $5000 applications are not in the budget.

Saving Money on Teaching Materials Books and Software Part 1

2007-02-22T16:35:00.001-07:00

Our budgets as teachers are very limited, so for me at least it is important to make every penny stretch as far as it can. Over the last year I have manages to save thousands of dollars on my purchases. I'm going to give you a few examples of how I saved money on some of my purchases, and hopefully you can use similar strategies to save money.

Use academic software dealers. I advertise two dealers on this blog and they can save you a significant amount of money on professional software. For example Adobe Creativity Suite retails for $1200 and on Academic Super Store it is $390. You do need to provide proof that you are either a student or teacher, but it is well worth the hassle. Even better I found that Adobe has a philanthropy arm that provides it's software at even a greater discount. This requires that you write a grant and you are limited to one suite, or four individual products. Our school received the Adobe Premium Production Suite for $140, the Academic version is $700 and the retail version is $2100. Information can be found at https://adobeprograms.giftsinkind.org
Look on eBay and Amazon. When you find a great product in one of those educational catalogs, or you see an infomercial on TV and think that it would be valuable take the time to shop around. I like to use manipulatives in my math instruction and I was looking at getting some reproducible books from ETA Cuisenaire. Because I teach Special Education k-6 I needed a full set for all grade levels. It was well over $500, but I noticed that they also had a cd-rom with all of the content so I could just print worksheets directly to my printer and it was only $200. Wow I can save $300 and I don't have to mess with the books and making copies what a bargain. Well I didn't jump to make the purchase, because I always check eBay, and Amazon. EBay did not have it, but Amazon did. It was on sale at Amazon for a whopping $24.95, For that price I was sure it couldn't be the same thing, but for $25 it was worth the risk, and it paid of. I saved $175 on this one product, and more than $475 of what I original intended to purchase.

Continued Tomorrow…

Norton System Works Premiere, A Pleasant Surprise!

2007-02-20T07:55:00.000-07:00

Norton System Works Premiere preformed very well during my testing period. I must admit I was a little weary of trying Norton again because in the past I have had trouble with the anti virus significantly slowing my system. An when I installed it, I experienced a very long boot time, and was afraid this program was much of the same if not worse. Fortunately the boot time issue was a one time thing, and now my system works very efficiently. I preformed some benchmarks before and after installing the system, and after running the system optimization tools. there was no loss of speed in most tests before and after the installation, and those that we lower were still very close to original benchmarks. After running the system optimization tools I noticed a boost in boot speed and application launch speed. The benchmarks showed some improvement in most areas, although it was not significant. The tools worked flawlessly, yet the interface could use some improvement. Over all I was pleasantly surprised with the improvement in antivirus performance, and the tools worked well. The price tag is somewhat steep but if you watch for rebates you may even find help in this department. For those of us dismayed by the poor perfomance of System Mechanic 7 this is a good alternative.

AVG Antivirus still free and works great

2007-02-19T16:33:00.000-07:00

Grade:

AVG has been the go to for free virus protection for years, but recently I have seen many rumors that AVG would no longer be offering a free version of their software. It is true that AVG will no longer support previous versions of AVG free, but they have released a new version 7.5 of AVG Free available at http://free.grisoft.com. The new version has performance enhancements and is fully compatible with Windows Vista.
AVG has a few advantages over much of the competition in the antivirus market. First it has a relatively small footprint. This enables it to run effectively without causing much strain on your system resources. Second are the rapid updates. Grissoft Frequently updates the virus definitions so you can remain safe from new viruses. The free version still covers your basic virus scanning needs with mail scan, resident memory scan, and full system scans. For most people it is all you need. If you do need to step up with more features the commercial versions of AVG hold up very well against the competition.

Protecting Teachers from Jail Time.

2007-02-15T12:48:00.001-07:00

I read about the story below and was a little bit surprised that lack of knowledge and caution could lead to such big problems. The legal fact is that whether we intend to or not it phonographic material is shown to students we are liable. If you read further the material was left on the screen for some time because the teacher involved did not turn the computer off. As teachers we are responsible to take basic steps to protect our students and protect our computers from inappropriate content. Here are a few things that we can do help protect our PC's from unwanted intrusions.

Use recent windows software. The machine she was using was running windows 98 which is no longer supported by Microsoft which means it is no longer getting security updates. You may not need Vista but you should have a version that still receives support which is currently Windows 2000 and above.
Keep your Operating Systems security updates up to date.
Use anti virus software and keep it up to date.
Use spy ware software and run on a regular basis.
Turn of pictures in your email program. Many times we receive junk email or spam that have pornographic pictures. Most programs will let you download the pictures in individual emails that you approve when you turn photos off.
If problems arise turn it off and try to fix it when students are gone. If you get one pop up you will likely get more. It is best not to deal with it until students are gone.
Never leave students unsupervised!!!

There are a lot of technical challenges that arise when a machine gets infected, and it is impossible to stop everything, but if you are making the best effort possible to protect children and documenting your efforts you will likely avoid the challenges this teacher faced

This article is from http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070214-8850.html

Teacher faces jail time for porn pop-ups

2/14/2007 3:31:53 PM, by

Who is responsible for keeping the computers at school clean and child-safe? A Connecticut court is siding with the school system in the case of substitute teacher Julie Amero, who has been convicted for four counts of "risking injury to a child." Amero now faces up to 40 years of jail time for pornographic pop-ups that appeared on a computer she was using in a classroom—pop-ups that she and her lawyers argue were a result of spy and adware on the computer, out-of-date virus software, and an expired firewall license—the perfect storm for pornographic pop-ups, all on a Windows 98 machine running Internet Explorer 5.

Protecting Teachers from Jail Time.

2007-02-15T12:48:00.000-07:00

Use recent windows software. The machine she was using was running windows 98 which is no longer supported by Microsoft which means it is no longer getting security updates. You may not need Vista but you should have a version that still receives support which is currently Windows 2000 and above.
Keep your Operating Systems security updates up to date.
Use anti virus software and keep it up to date.
Use spy ware software and run on a regular basis.
Turn of pictures in your email program. Many times we receive junk email or spam that have pornographic pictures. Most programs will let you download the pictures in individual emails that you approve when you turn photos off.
If problems arise turn it off and try to fix it when students are gone. If you get one pop up you will likely get more. It is best not to deal with it until students are gone.
Never leave students unsupervised!!!

This article is from http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070214-8850.html

Teacher faces jail time for porn pop-ups

2/14/2007 3:31:53 PM, by

Utah Education Network for Utah Teachers and Students

2007-02-15T09:57:00.000-07:00

The State of Utah provides a great deal of resources to it's teachers and students over the internet. Most of these resources can be found of the UEN (Utah Education Network) website. UEN is funded and administered through the Utah State Office of Education.

Some of these resources include:

Free or low cost in service and training for learning Dreamweaver, Flash, Blogging, Microsoft Office, and more.
Utah teachers can develop their own web page with links, homeworks lists, and general information.
Free .pdf Conversion
a list of Multimedia resources for teachers
Interactive Learning games
EMedia a collection of educational videos ready to stream via the internet.
The Pioneer Library. World Book Encyclopedia, SIRS, Culture Grams, Utah Newspaper archives, State Archives, Visual Thesaurus and much more.

Many of these resources in the Pioneer Library are available commercially and would cost hundreds a month to have access to them. You have automatic access to the pioneer library when you log in through any state Library or School. On the site they have a password so you can log on from home.

Check your State Education for Resources!

2007-02-15T09:44:00.000-07:00

This Blog has a Worldwide audience, and I have hesitated to discuss a resource that is helpful to Utah only Teacher's when only a small percentage of my audience comes from Utah. Utah; however provides great resources for it's teachers through it's UEN (Utah Education Network) website. As I thought about this I decided to call upon the help of other teachers from many states so that we can create list of resources by state. As I receive information I will post it on this blog and hopefully we will be able to create a valuable resource that would have a list of resources for any state Providence or country. If you have some Knowledge of your states internet resources please send me an email at mike@expeditionproductions.com

My next post will provide a List of what Utah provides on it's network.

Cricut Daicut Machine Perfect for Teachers

2007-02-13T09:42:00.000-07:00

As teachers we have probably all used a daicut machine and were very happy with the effective way it cut letters and shapes. In my previous school we had what was considered a vast library of dais we had both upper case and lower case letters, and an additional stylized uppercase alphabet. In addition to the alphabets we had almost 50 shapes. This vast collection cost the school thousands of dollars, but it was a solid investment in a machine that will last years of heavy use.

I have discovered a machine that is truely an amazing that provides you with so much more power than a traditional daicut machine. It is the Cricut Daicut Machine from Provo Craft. This machine was designed for scrap bookers, but can be of great benefit to teachers as well.

Get one through Cricut Direct And save over other retail stores.

The Cricut machine offers portability. Just plug it in and turn it on, no computer or software required! Lightweight and compact with a comfortable handle that makes it easy to take to crops and parties. The Cricut machine can cut images up to 5.5" tall and up to 11.5" long. The cartridge-based system allows you to cut thousands of shapes, letters, and phrases in a variety of sizes and styles with the ease of a touch of a button. Package includes George and Basic Shapes Cartridge with Keypad overlay and manual, power adapter, cutting mat and quick start guide.

Cartridges can be purchased for around $65 that add a great deal of capability. The Machine retails for almost $300 but most craft stores are selling them for $250 Through Cricut Direct you can get a machine for just over $200.

The down side is that this is a consumer level product. It would not be adequate for a whole school to use, but would be perfect for 1-3 teachers to share. The versatility of this machine is well worth the cost and makes bulletin boards a breeze.

Computer Maintenance "Free Solutions"

2007-02-12T14:44:00.000-07:00

I have received a significant amount of response from my consumer alert regarding System Mechanic 7 Professional. Many others have had great challenges and problems with System Mechanic. The challenge we are faced with is how do we keep our XP systems running efficiently. I am currently looking at the other alternative of System Mechanic, from Norton. It is Norton System Works Premiere. I'll wait to post a review of this software until I have had time to sufficiently try it out. The problem with Windows systems is over time things happen under the hood that gradually slow the system down. It becomes necessary to preform a little maintenance to keep your machine running smooth. I like the idea of having an all in one location where I can fix these issues, but as we found out with SM7 that is not always helpful.

In this article I will cover the basics of keeping your computer up and running correctly. These solutions can be done using software included with windows or with free downloadable software. Here are the steps you should take and the recommended frequency of the tasks.

Run Disk Cleanup (once a month) run on computer by going to Start>All Programs>Accessories>System Tools>Disk Cleanup.
De fragment the hard drive. (once a month) run on computer by going to Start>All Programs>Accessories>System Tools>Disk Defragmenter
Remove unnecessary programs from Startup. (When new software is installed) Go to Start>Startup>Right click on unwanted programs and select delete. This does not uninstall or disable the program. You can still start it through the start menu all it does is keep the program from starting every time you start your computer.
Clean up your desktop. Remove all unessisary files and start buttons from your desktop. Files should be put in folders. I even group my applications in folders. The more icons you have the slower your machine boots up.
Install and run Spy ware software. (Weekly) I recommend Spybot Search and Destroy

One other major issue is registry problems. There is some fine software to assist you with this like Registry Mechanic, but you need to pay for it. Unfortunately I have yet to find a free tool to do this well

Blender 3D Free Raw 3D Creation Power

2007-02-09T16:20:00.001-07:00

Blender 3d is a very powerful 3D creation and animation software that rivals the big boys that cost thousands of dollars at the low, low price of FREE. The learning curve is steep as it is with any 3d software, but I was able to get a few of my interested 6^th graders to create a few very nice 3d models. Blender is a full functional integrated 3D creation software suite. It lets users create high quality 3D graphics, movies and replay real-time, interactive 3D content. Over the last decade, Blender has evolved as an in-house tool for a leading European animation studio. Blender is powerful technology used for creating broadcast quality 3D content.

Get Blender 3D Free at http://www.blender3d.org

YouTube in the Classroom?

2007-02-07T16:15:00.000-07:00

I recently read an article in Technology & Learning Magazine that proposed that we begin using YouTube content to enhance our lessons, and to improve educational practices. I must admit that my first gut reaction was somewhat negative due to the inability to ensure school appropriate content. Although YouTube does a pretty good job of keeping pornographic content off there are many things that still don't belong in our schools. As I read the article I began to change my mind. There are many videos that have very valid teaching points that are also of high interest to students. In fact my sons teacher frequently uses YouTube type content in many of his lessons, and my son has shown a remarkable ability to not only remember the video but also the teaching point that the teacher used in relation to it.

Our school blocks YouTube and many other sites as they probably should. I don't think there is any educational value in turning a 6th grade class loose in the lab to look at videos. But with carefully selected videos, it is possible to create very engaging lessons.

Google Mars is now in Google Labs

2007-02-06T09:31:00.001-07:00

The next time you teach about our solar system, you have a new tool that is very fun. Google who brought us Google Earth has teamed with NASA to bring us Google Mars. I mentioned this in a previous post and mentioned that it would be later in the year before we saw the results. Well we can now get a sneak peak into this cool tool through Google Labs. This tool allows us to Mars with three different views. You can also zoom and pan to see the planet. At the top you can click on several options that will take you to points of interest. This is fun.

Free Office Programs

2007-02-05T16:14:00.000-07:00

With the release of Microsoft Office 2007, there has been little attention given to other office applications. On my Primary PC I did shell out the cash for the new office application because it is a well thought out system. For student computers and donated computers I can not afford to pay the price for the upgrade and free applications are powerful and will meet the needs for these computers. Here is a list of applications that are free and do a good job of creating documents.

Openoffice 2.0: Open office is the most well known office system, and is a good full fledged office system. It is easy to learn, and is a very solid system.

Google Docs: Google docs is a online system that allows you to create and work on documents from anywhere with internet access. This system includes both a word processor and a spreadsheet application. There is no PowerPoint like presentation program at this time but I have heard that this will soon change. It provides good functionality and ability to format is good. For a class or school based system the downside is that each user would need an account.

GNOME Office: GNOME Office is another open source office system that is also very solid. It is easy to use and works well. It only has a word processor, and a spreadsheet application. If you are running Linux it also has a database application.

Each of these applications works on Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux

Elementary Advantage 2007 Review

2007-02-02T11:08:00.000-07:00

What it is:
Elementary Advandace is a collection of various educational software that covers a wide variety of subjects. Each subject has it's own disc and application for ten applications in all. The applications in general seem somewhat primitive, but are effective.
What it's not:
It is not a well thought out learning system where programs are tied together in an easily manageable system. It is not even interlinked in it's tracking system so that monitoring progress is a tedious task.

My Opinion:
Elementary Advantage 2007 is a reasoably priced collection of software, but because of the dated programs, and the lack of interactivity between the applications it is not a bargain. The 2007 on the box basically means that they reprinted the box from the 2006 version, but it appears that there are no significant upgrades to the software, with the exception of the encyclopedia. I purchased this product and for the price am satisfied, but hoped for much more.

Vista and Office Released

2007-01-30T10:37:00.000-07:00

Amid great fanfare and millions of ad dollars the new power players of Microsoft are released. Being in education it will likely be some time before these products trickle into our work flow. I have not experienced Vista yet, but judging by the reviews I can wait. Our district has informed me that they will likely wait for service pack 1 before upgrading district wide, which is likely a good rule to go by. Although there has been a great deal of testing prior to it's release it is still good to wait for a few of the kinks to be worked out before upgrading. Perhaps after I use it I may change my mind but this seems to be a wait and see product.

Office 2007 on the other hand is worthy immediate upgrade. It's new user interface provides powerful features that will instantly improve your productivity. Please see my earlier review for more information. To purchase either product avoid going to you retailer and spending way to much. As educators you are eligible for educational discounts. if you are on my site you can scroll down and on the left there are some links to some educational discount software vendors that can save you hundreds of dollars. For example Office Professional is $180 vurses the $500 retail price. The savings are huge, and if you click through this site it helps me keep this site up.

Tutor Vista is a Powerful online tutoring tool

2007-01-26T09:58:00.000-07:00

As a teacher I often get asked for recommendations of good tutors. Although we have a few moderately qualified tutors in our little town, the prices are expensive and out of reach for most parents. In small towns like mine effective online tutoring is the best option available. Up until recently I would recommend Sylvan Online, but the cost was high and although it was a good system, I do not feel it was the most effective. I recently discovered what I feel is the best deal in, not only online tutoring, but in tutoring in general. It is called Tutor Vista at http://www.tutorvista.com.

Tutor Vista is a very powerful online tutoring environment that allows students to schedule and work with tutors at any time 24 hours a day. The technology allows the student and tutor to communicate verbally, through typing, and through a whiteboard. The tutors are highly trained , with Masters degrees in the subjects they tutor. You can find tutors for almost any subject or test. The biggest strength lies in the price. It is about $20 an hour, or unlimited use for $100 per month. This is by far the most cost efficient one on one tutoring system available.

I am now excited to recommend this system to all of my parents. Even in locations where many tutoring options are available this is one of the best solutions, because of the high quality of instruction. The affordability of the system makes it a clear choice.

Note on Comment Moderation

2007-01-24T14:46:00.000-07:00

Just as a reference and so you know where I stand with comments, I do moderate all comments. I do this for a few reasons. First I like control over my site, second I do not want vulgarity or spam on my site, and third I am fed up with annoying comments that exist on other sites. An example of what I consider and annoying comment is "this product sucks" or using M$ for Microsoft, or any other personal attack that provides little helpful information. I will allow posts both positive and negative, so long as they are clean and provide useful information.

Touch screen Ipod on the way in 07

2007-01-24T07:59:00.000-07:00

The Apple iPod has now overtaken our society in a way that no one could have imagined. With the introduction of the iPhone It will likely continue to grow well into the future. Sources from inside say that Apple is about to introduce a full screen iPod, that uses a touch screen similar to the functionality of the the newly introduces iPhone. It could be announced as early as late February. As we look at the advancing technology we need to consider the implications it will have on our classrooms, and determine what place if any they have in education.

With previous versions of iPod there has been limited value because a portable tape or cd player could preform the same functions for a fraction of the cost. With the advent of the iPod Video the possibilities of a useful classroom tool significantly increased. Teachers can now target individual students with videos that will remediate, review, or reward. As a special education teacher I use the iPod Video to teach math concepts that need review. I can put a video on for a student to target a specific need and work with other students at the same time. If a student were absent it would be very easy to give him an iPod to view the video he missed the day before without interupting the rest of the class.

The challenge at this point is that there is a very limited amount of content available. This problem can be addressed in a few ways. With knowledge and the right hardware it is possible to encode your existing videos the problem with this is the consumer level hardware delivers poor results. The next option is to use a service that does the conversion. Expedition Productions is one company that provides a service that will convert video from VHS and DVD to various computer formats including iPod. These services deliver great results for a reasonable cost.

I have a source that has let me know that there will be a new educational video company that will release all of it's videos with the DVD, and a computer based disk with the video formated for the computer screen, iPod, PSP, and other devises. When they launch I will provide details about this amazing new company.

MS Office 2007 First Impressions

2007-01-23T16:11:00.000-07:00

Microsoft is releasing it's Office 2007 product to the general public within the next week. With an academic version priced at about $150 it seems a steep price point to upgrade on a product that basically types letters, and make Power Point slides. It is especially difficult to consider when there are free programs such as Open Office 2.0 that can accomplish the same thing. In my humble opinion if you are an active computer user or if your considering an office application for your classroom computers, Office 2007 is worth the cost and is a significant upgrade for most users.

The biggest strength in the new version of office is what Microsoft now calls the ribbon. This new feature and user interface makes it easy to find advanced features that were somewhat buried in menus in previous versions. It makes it easy for basic users to become power users. I have seen many articles that contend that the change in the interface is going to require a significant investment in retraining employees and teachers to use the new system. I don't agree! There will be some training necessary, however the intuitive nature of the new interface will make it easier to train and over time the need for training on Office products will be significantly reduced. Office 2007 will also make it easier for students to get amazing results on student projects.

There are many internal enhancements that allow for greater collaboration capabilities, and integration with other products. One example is it's new blogging features. You can create a blog post from within Microsoft Office and directly submit the post from within word. The collaboration capabilities will make it easier for students to work together on projects. Many months ago I looked at Open Office 2.0, and stated that it was a close toss up when compared with MS Office, well now now there is a clear winner. MS office 2007 is clearly the best Office application available.

Head Sprout where kids learn to read

2007-01-02T22:16:00.000-07:00

Heads Sprout is a great new website that makes learning to read fun. It is a solid program with good lessons and a logical progression. It is not a replacement for solid reading program, yet is a great supplement to any reading program. It does meet requirements of No Child Left Behind, and for a school based program it is reasonably priced. You can get more information and a free trial at http://www.headsprout.com

Google Docs & Spreadsheets

2007-01-02T11:25:00.000-07:00

If you've ever struggled to keep track of different versions of spreadsheet or word processor files sent over email, Google Docs & Spreadsheets may be right for you. Google Docs & Spreadsheets is a free web-based word processing and spreadsheet program that keeps documents current and lets the people you choose update files from their own computers. This Both applications work great for schools and students because it allows the student to work on assignments both at home, at the computer lab, or the library. It also allows for online collaboration and easy document transfer. Imagine each member of a group can work on the same document all from there own accounts. True this application does not have the capability of high end office application, but it is very solid and has more than enough features for most school applications.

A New Year In Educational Technology

2007-01-01T08:29:00.000-07:00

As I look forward to 2007 I see many things in the works that are very exciting on the education technology front. The largest area of promise to me seems to web 2.0 applications. From office applications that are increasingly becoming more useful, to online educational games to content that is more interactive, the web 2.0 arena is very exciting. Hardware advances are expected to have a major impact in the way we use technology. For example a new keyboard is coming out that is fully customizable, each key is a small screen that can be changed depending on the application it uses. This could be a big benefit for assistive technology and more, However I don’t foresee applications coming any time soon. I also thing we will find new and innovative ways to using existing hardware in new and exciting ways. The Ipod video and PSP provide exciting opportunities, because it is easy to create your own content for these systems. New software provides some promise of big improvements. Microsoft will release there new office application at the end of the month that offers amazing capabilities in collaboration. Open source projects are becoming more developed and more popular which will bring better and more cost effective solutions to our classroom. 2007 provides with great opportunities, and projects, and we hope to provide a guide for you through this digital landscape.

Google Earth Bringing the world to your classroom

2006-12-30T18:16:00.000-07:00

Google earth is one of the most amazing tools for classroom instruction since PowerPoint. Many of the things we teach are better understood in context of where it takes place, with Google Earth you can take your students on a virtual tour of your neighborhood, state, country, or world. No place is too far to travel, although your ability to zoom into locations are sometimes limited. Google Earth is fairly easy to use and is easily learned. When changing from one location to another it takes you through a flight that helps students better understand where thing are in context. Google Earth is an amazing tool that belongs in every classroom.

I mentioned in a previous post the Google has teamed up with NASA to provide similar functionality with tours of the Moon and Mars. I am excited to see thee results of this, because it will make my solar system unit much more exciting.

Google Pack Screensaver

2006-12-30T17:33:00.000-07:00

Perhaps I’m not the one to review a screensaver, because I have yet to find a reason to change the default screensaver that comes with XP. Well until now because I thought I should use it to review it. This screensaver is similar to other photo screensavers in that it’s primary function is to show a slide show of your photos. The Google Pack Screensaver goes a step beyond and generates collages of your photos which is pretty cool. It was easy to set up, and the instructions on Google’s website were very clear. I probably won’t even change back to the windows default, although I will need to delete a few poor photos of me if I leave it.

Gradebookwizard.com Online Grading Software

2006-12-29T17:11:00.000-07:00

GradeBookWizard is a powerful online gradebook, attendance tracking, and class website solution for teachers, schools, and districts. Teachers can access their gradebook from any PC or Mac with Internet access. They can use their class website to post assignments, instructions, grades, announcements, and handouts for students and parents to access through individual, secure logins.

GradeBookWizard allows teachers to spend less time on administrative tasks, parents to stay more informed about their children's progress, and students to become more motivated. Click on any of the topic areas above to learn more about how GradeBookWizard can help you!

The interface of GradeBookWizard is clean and easy to follow I had no problems setting up the classes and getting grades going. It seems to be more robust than Engrade which I reviewed earlier, but it is a paid product at around $50 per year. Overall it is a good product if you need more than what engrade can do.

Consumer Alert: System Mechanic Professional 7

2006-12-29T07:31:00.000-07:00

I recently purchased System Mechanic 7 Professional because I had some slowing of my machine and my Anti-Virus subscription ran out so I thought I would give it a shot. I made the mistake of purchasing the program without using the 30 day trial, and it turned out to be a big mistake. System Mechanic Professional is made up of 3 basic components, first there are the system tools, second an antivirus, and third a firewall. I will discuss the three basic components.

First the system tools are a set of utilities that help fix and optimize your PC. Many of the tools work very well, and do make a significant difference in PC performance. Purchasing the standard version includes all of these tools. I have had a little trouble with the disk defragmenter utility because it freezes halfway through the process. But with that exception it has worked well.

The Antivirus is the worst I have used. It hogs system resources and is very slow and tedious. The worst component is the email scanner. When it would start it would run for hours using %90 of the processor resources and when running would not allow us to send and receive email. I have since uninstalled the Iolo antivirus and loaded AVG Free and all of my problems disappeared. In fact the AVG antivirus found 2 viruses that iolo missed.

The firewall is very effective at blocking all traffic on the internet. It requires manual configuration for any interactive web sites, so for a blogger and techie like me it would have taken hours to get it set up so all of my web applications would run correctly. It was just to impractical to use.

If you need system tools to tune up your PC the standard version is capable and I reluctantly say may be worth the $39, however the Professional version that includes the antivirus and firewall should be avoided at all costs. Even with the system tools you should take advantage of the 30 free trial to make sure it works well for your system. Iolo will not issue refunds after the purchase for any reason, But that’s to be understood. I would have a hard time standing behind the product too.

Google Desktop

2006-12-22T16:06:00.000-07:00

Google Desktop is a very nice little application that is on the verge of obsolescence for the PC. Google desktop has two very handy functions, first it indexes your hard drive to make your files, email, and visited web sites quick and easy to find, second it allows you to integrate widgets on your desktop. If you are using XP and you manage many files I feel the Google desktop is a must have. Simply start typing the title or keyword, and your options quickly appear. It is very fast and effective. Gadgets are fun little things that count down to the new year, show you the weather forecast or countless other things. Although they are handy they seem to clutter things up so I just use the search. But the great thing about it is that Google Desktop can be customized to work the way you like it.

Google's Picasa 2 Photo management Tool

2006-12-21T11:48:00.000-07:00

Picasa was originally developed by a California based digital photography company named Picasa. At that time they offered the software for a very reasonable price considering the quality of the product. If my memory serves me correct it was near $29. in 2004 Google purchased Picasa and began offering this very capable software for my favorite price, free.

Picasa is a program that manages most aspects of your digital photos, and videos. It creates and index of all photos and videos stored on your pc and organizes them according to your existing file structure, you can quickly scroll through many photos and get a good idea of what you have. It also will import your images from most cameras. As a photo management tool it is the best that I have seen. It is quick and easy to find photos. When viewing individual photos you can quickly ad a caption that is searchable. The search feature is most effective when you take the time to add captions.

In addition to the powerful photo management tools Picasa also offers an array of editing tools that are really quite effective. You can crop, rotate, reduce redeye, enhance, add effects, and more. No, it’s not Photoshop, but it can handle many of the quick fixes that are needed for many applications.

Picasa is also tightly integrated with other Google apps, like Blogger, and Google Earth. You can actually geo-tag to the location they were taken on Google Earth. The applications of this in the classroom can be amazing. You could take or download pictures and integrate them into Google earth so students can not only see the picture, but see it in context of the geographic location it was taken.

Picasa is not the only maker of this type of software, but it is one of the easiest to use, and is very effective. For the price, I don’t even think there is a close second.

Online Professional Development @ Learner.org

2006-12-19T11:18:00.000-07:00

http://www.learner.org is the site of the Annenberg Foundations teacher resource site. Annenberg describes there mission as follows:
Our mission is to advance excellent teaching in all disciplines throughout American K-12 schools. Former names of Annenberg Media are: Annenberg/CPB, The Annenberg/CPB Project, and The Annenberg/CPB Math and Science Project.
We pursue this mission by funding and broadly distributing multimedia resources for teachers to help them improve their own teaching practice and understanding of their subject. Annenberg Media makes use of telecommunications technologies—the Internet, including broadband video streaming, and satellite television broadcast—as well as hard copy media to disseminate these multimedia resources, ensuring that they reach as many teachers as possible.
There are a wide variety of programs available through this program that covers a vast array of teaching skills and practice. They also provide a student section that is very helpful. This site is a great resource for those teachers willing to put in the time for professional development.

Google Earth plans Mission to Space

2006-12-18T16:02:00.000-07:00

Google has teamed with NASA to use NASA data, and Google earth tools to create virtual fly threws of the Moon and Mars, as well as weather system data. The details are still coming in, but it is a very exciting prospect. We will have to wait. They expect it to take 6 months before we start to see the results of this agreement.

Google Tools

2006-12-18T14:29:00.000-07:00

This week we will be reviewing many tools that are available from Google, through their Google Pack bundle. The Google Pack bundle is a valuable collection of software that is very helpful to any teacher. It includes the following:

Google Earth- 3d earth browser (highly recommended for geography teachers)
Picasa- Photo Organization and editing software (Very helpful for large amounts of photos)
Google Pack Screen saver- Screen saver that uses your photos (Fun but not necessary)
Google Desktop- search files and email on your PC (Very useful and fast, may not be necessary with new Windows-Vista)
Google toolbar for IE (somewhat helpful but not necessary)

Additional Software

Mozilla Firefox with Google tool bar (Great Browser for teachers, not necessary if you already use Firefox.
Norton Anti virus (Remove from download unless you have no other anti virus, it is not good for system to run more than one anti virus, and chances are the one you have on your pc is better than this one.
Ad-Aware- A good ad-ware removal program. (Keep this and run it)
Adobe Reader 7 (If you don't have this version it is worth the time to upgrade)

Optional Software

The Google folks may disagree, but none of the optional tools are very helpful. I would especially avoid Real Player, if you need to play Real content I'll provide an alternative. in a later post.

Brain Pop

2006-12-18T09:41:00.000-07:00

Brain Pop

The downside is definitely price. It is somewhat reasonable for a whole school ($850) implementation as compared to other resources, yet the $150 price tag for English only and over $200 for bi-lingual versions put it a little bit out of reach for a single resource. Even with the price tag it may be worth looking at.

Engrade Free Online Grade Book

2006-12-14T07:59:00.000-07:00

http://www.engrade.com

Engrade is a free online grade book that allows teachers to manage their classes online as well as post grades, assignments, attendance, and upcoming homework online for students and parents to see. Engrade is free and easy to use. It took me about 15 Minutes to register and set up my first real class. Adding classes or subjects are easy. The interface is simple and straight forward, and I had no problems entering grades. Because this program is online you can enter grades from home or at school. Parents also have access to their child’s grades, missing assignments, and calendar. This Free solution is definitely a blessing for teachers that do not have district or school based systems like Powerschool.

http://www.engrade.com

Hover Snap Screen Capture Utility

2006-12-13T08:17:00.000-07:00

Have you ever wanted to take a picture of your computer screen so that you can show students how something should look, or just capture a window with important information. I am searching for programs that do just this. There are many commercial software vendors that do this, in fact I use a screen capture tool that makes movies of everything that happens on the screen called Camtasia Studio. Techsmith the maker also creates a program called Snagit that takes still images of your computer screen. But I have been introduced to a free program that has similar functionality.

Hoverdesk creates a free application called Hover Snap.
Hover Snap is a simple to use screen capture utility that allows you to take a snapshot a your entire screen, a specific window, or a user defined area. Unlike the commercial versions it lacks image editing capabilities, but that can easily be done in other applications. It has a very small file size, and is easily configured.

Circumvent Copy Protection on DVD Legal

2006-12-12T14:08:00.000-07:00

The US Copyright office in conjunction with the Library of Congress has implemented a temporary measure that allows teacher to use software to circumvent copy protections to create educational material. This basically allows us to copy video from dvd's to use portions of the movie in our lessons. The material must meet fair use guidelines, and you must meet fair use guidelines. We will be releasing a guide to fair use for teachers shortly.

Quizdom Remote Audience Response System is Cool

2006-12-08T17:02:00.000-07:00

When I first came across an ad for Quizdom products I was very intrigued. This system is great for getting instant feedback regarding just about anything. But the possibilities extend way beyond classroom polling. Quizdom is great for pinpointing students that may need additional help, and it can help us as teachers know when we need to review concepts long before the final test or even the pop quiz. We can now see the effectiveness of our instruction in real time and adjust and revise to ensure that students are learning key concepts.

The set up of the system is simple and we can easily move it from classroom to classroom, which will likely be necessary, as the $4000 price tag is typically more than what we can implement in individual classrooms; however is still reasonable for a school purchase.

I was a little disappointed to find the site store was unavailable and some of the links were broken, yet by clicking on the site map at the bottom of the page I was able to find the information I needed. They said that the store should be up soon, but they offer a phone number to contact sales for immediate help.

Our new look

2006-11-28T10:28:00.000-07:00

We are changing our format and site to better serve the needs of teachers. Finding information about the best tools available is a time consuming task. I have found many sites that contain large lists of options, but the quantity of options are so large that it would take a month to sort through all of the options. Our site will narrow down the lists in a specific category to what we feel are the top five tools. We will provide key information on those tools, so that you can quickly make an informed decision on which tool would best fit your needs. We consider freeware, open source, and commercial software, and websites so you are likely to find a solution even without a budget. Once our evaluations are complete we will produce a pdf guide so that you can download, share, and print this valuable information. We will also produce a Podcast that will highlight the key features of each item. Individual product reviews will be posted on our blog as they are completed. Our Goal is to produce a new guide each month, however time and budget limitations my make that difficult. If you would like to help you could make a donation via PayPal, or you can support our sponsors.

A Few of the planned guides include:

Clip Art Sites-
Worksheet Sites-
Browsers-
Reading Software-
Drawing Software-
Image Software-
Lesson Plan Sites-
Web Quest Directory-
Video Software-
Math Software-
Web Encyclopedia-
Grading Software-

FireFox 2.0 The Browser for education!

2006-11-17T12:17:00.000-07:00

Firefox 2.0 has recently been released and under the hood there are some marked improvements. You will not see as drastic of change as that of Microsoft's IE 7; however Microsoft was playing a major catch up game with Firefox and other modern browsers. Even though the face did not change much there are some cool new features.

My personal favorite is the built in spell check. I was constantly copy and pasting information for forms into word to check the spelling, not we have a very powerful spell check built into the browser, so there is no longer a need to fire up Word just to make sure your spelling is Correct.

Here is a brief list of some of the new features:

Improved Tabbed Browsing
Spell Checking
Search Suggestions
Session Restore
Web Feeds (RSS)
Live Titles
Integrated Search
Live Bookmarks

You can get more detailed information about these great new features at the Firefox website

Even prior to the update Firefox was my choice for student computers, and now it has solidified a strong lead for use in this category.

http://www.internet4classrooms.com/

2006-11-01T20:30:00.000-07:00

Internet4Classrooms.com is a great resource for finding information on the web. They have an extensive list of website links for all things education. One section that I found particularly useful is the Online-Practice Modules. It had tutorials for many applications used in our schools. The content had enough detail to get you started, but not so much that it was overwhelming to get started. The also had a great section on test preparation resources for all grade levels. Internet4Classrooms.com definitely deserves some real estate on your book mark list.

AOL@School

2006-10-31T11:03:00.000-07:00

http://www.aolatschool.com/ provides educator-reviewed classroom resources for K-12 students and teachers in math, science, language arts, social studies and more. Here you can quickly find activities, research materials, educational games, multimedia resources and lesson plans for primary, elementary, middle school and high school classes.

This site takes a little getting used to but it is loaded with helpfully lesson plans and resources. It can get you started with many web based activities. It contains printable worksheets for students participating in the activities and lesson plans for the teachers. It also has many relevant education related links.

March of the Penguins Educator Guide

2006-10-27T15:56:00.000-06:00

Hallmark Channel will be airing The Academy Award Winning film March of the Penguins Saturday, Nov. 25 at 9 p.m. (EST/PST). The have also created an educator's guide for this event. Click for the lowest price on dmnobieblanktelevision');" onmouseout="hideAd();">

It can be downloaded at: http://www.hallmarkchannel.com/data/bin/MOTPEdGuide.pdf

Among topics covered by the guide -- which is currently available on the network's Web site (www.hallmarkchannel.com) are: the Antarctic and the Emperor penguins found there; how penguins physically and behaviorally adapt to their environment; how penguins develop and rely on interdependent community skills; how prospective penguin parents get together and communicate; the parenting skills and responsibilities of male vs. female penguins; and the early months of baby penguins.

So get our your DVRs, VCRs, Betas, DVD-Recorders, or whatever method you have to record and download the study guide for this event. The lesson plans in the study guide are very good.

Just remember under fair use guidelines you may only show recorded broadcast programs within ten days of the airing, and your copy must be erased or destroyed within 45 days, for more on Fair Use Guidelines visit: http://www.pbs.org/teachersource/copyright/copyright_fairuse.shtm

Brain Pop

2006-10-27T08:39:00.000-06:00

Brain Pop

Free Web Hosting for Teachers

2006-09-08T16:22:00.000-06:00

Free Web Hosting for Teachers

Your Class Website (Part 2)

In looking back at many of the links I had collected for free teacher web hosting over the years I was disappointed to see that many of them are no longer free. These sites are specifically made for teachers and have a pre-made template that allows you to fill in information and it posts it to the web. One that is still available is Teacherweb.com. For simply putting basic information on the web it’s a great system. It is easy to sign up and it even gives you the option to print a flyer out with your web site address to distribute to parents. Then it is a matter of going to the pages and editing the content. Step by step directions are on the screen, and are clear and easy to follow. The site is simple and attractive, with the ability to customize the colors in the setup. For posting basic information about homework, calendar, announcements, teacher information, or websites, this tool is great.
If you want to post student work, or upload documents for parents to download you are out of luck. The template is set and there is little you can do to customize. Although this may not be a problem for some I like the idea of being able to change my site around to a way that it fits me. Despite the disadvantages of limited customization it still may be a good idea to set up a page. My page can be found at: http://teacherweb.com/UT/EnterpriseElementary/MrYardley/index.html
The advantage is that if parents happen to find teacher web on the internet, which is likely because of there high ranking in search engines, it will be easy for teachers to find you. I then put a link on my link page, and the announcement page to my primary web site for parents. If I’m going to take the time to create a website, I want my parents to be able to find it and this is one way of helping that happen. It took me about 20 minutes to register and set up my teacherweb.com site, so the process is well worth your time. If this is your primary site upkeep is quick and easy.

There is another class of free web hosts out there that allows you a much greater degree of control, that have great design tools that may better fit your needs. These are common free hosting sites that allow just about anyone to create web pages and post them on the web. They are paid for by advertising that is automatically placed on your site. To me having a bunch of advertising on a teacher site is not that good of an idea but that is just me. The problem is that you have no control over what advertising is placed on the site. I just don’t thing it would be good for a gambling ad to come up on my class website. But if you are willing to overlook this small disadvantage, these tools provide a great and easy way to create a great website. Although most have space limits they are able for most websites, unless you start adding a lot of video, or audio files to the site. Following is a list of the most common free hosts:
Angel Fire
Geo Cities
Tripod

Your Class Web Page

2006-08-30T12:51:00.000-06:00

Having a classroom web page is a great way to keep parents informed, to showcase your students work and to make links for lessons easily accessible. Setting up a web page can range from simple to very daunting based on what your goals for the page is, the control you want over the page, and the tools you use. Based on these factors the best solution for you and your class could vary greatly. In this and the next several articles I will try to give guidance on the many options available to enable you to make the best choices for your classroom.

Later in this post I will try to give you a little guidance in planning your web site, we will then look at a variety of hosting options. Hosting simply refers to where your site will be on the web. We will then look at software tools to make your site and talk about maintenance. We will also take some time to discuss legal issues regarding posting student work.

Planning:

Our first task in designing a web page is to make a wish list. What thing’s do you want your page to do? For example do you want it to have a calendar, an assignment list, a gallery for student work, downloadable forms and worksheets, or a web link list. At this point it’s OK to dream without worrying about how to do these things. Your final web page may be limited by the tools you use, but you are capable of a lot more than you think so have fun.

Second we need to look at structure. My preferred method of determining site structure is using Inspiration 8. It is a visual mapping tool I reviewed last year and has many powerful capabilities. I simply create a web starting with my home page with a list of things I want on it, and then link all of the other characteristics I want on my site and I outline what each page will contain. Then I can move around and change my links to my hearts content until I find a logical structure. This can be done in a lo-tech way with index cards. Just write a description of the content of each card, and arrange in a logical order.

With a site structure finalized or at least planned with the option to change, we are ready to consider hosting options. In the next few posts we will consider hosting options, first free hosting, and then paid hosting options. What you choose at this point has a big impact on what you are able to do in the future with your site.

Your class ought to be in pictures (Part 3 of 3)

2006-08-25T10:33:00.000-06:00

When looking at professional level software there are many things to be considered because the investment is large. First I would not suggest professional level software for elementary students; the free software mentioned in part 1 is more on there level and should be ample to meet any of their needs. When working with professional level software there is a rather steep learning curve that will require some training even to do a basic editing project. That is the downside; the upside is that when you jump into this level of software there are no boundaries to what you or your students can create. They can produce everything from a basic video to Matrix like special effects. The only limit is time and imagination. I will discuss three programs that I think are worthy of and budding professional. Yes there are many capable options out there; I spent a day in Las Vegas this spring looking at hundreds of very powerful and very capable products at the NAB show (National Association of Broadcasters). But in my opinion these are the only three that I would recommend and I will explain why as I discuss each.

First and my favorite because of price and capability is Vegas 6 from Sony Media Software. Could you guess that that was coming from the previous post? Vegas is a very capable and powerful editor. It has a very effective visual format that is easy to use and follow. I can often do things in one quick step that take two or three steps in other programs. When it comes to audio editing most other applications are not that capable so professionals turn to specific audio software, but in Vegas there is no need. Vegas has the best and easiest to use audio capabilities of any video software available. Yes that even includes software that is priced thousands more. For a reasonably priced software package that will do almost anything you need, Vegas is a great choice.

The next option is with a program that is very established in the movie and television industry. Avid Xpress Pro is a great solution. Avid is the industry standard with there many lines of products, and they have products that span the full range on the price scale, from Avid Free mentioned in part 1 to hundreds of thousands of dollars. They have obtained this market dominance by doing what they do very well. They create very powerful and amazing software and hardware that makes magic happen on the screen. The biggest advantage to using avid is that if you have students that have potential to move into the Movie or TV industry they will be learning and perfecting there skills they can use to get a job. Special effects are no problem, and editing workflow is very smooth. If you started using Avid Free, and are ready to step up to a professional product this in the natural program.

My third option is Adobe Premiere Pro 2. Adobe is a great program but its real strength is when it is paired with it’s many other studio partners. It integrates seamlessly with Photo Shop, After Effects, Audition, and even Acrobat. When paired together you have a program that can do anything, and you have many stand alone products that are very useful for much more than editing. One really cool feature is that you can export movies including the timeline to a .PDF file. This can then be saved to a disk or emailed. As a teacher you can open the file and view it. You can pause at any point and add comments or suggestions to a student project and the student can import you comments directly to the timeline. I personally am considering making the switch to Premiere but am waiting to see what Vegas 7 has to offer when it is released later this year.

As you start to shop around you will quickly find that these professional solutions are not cheap they range from $500 to well over $1000 just for the editing application. The Premiere bundle mentioned is $1699. You can save significantly by purchasing your software at an education reseller, that can offer educational discounts. My favorite is
Academic Superstore. I have also included links to some other options. One example is the Adobe Premiere bundle mentioned before that retails for $1699, at Academic Superstore for $589. There are other academic resellers that I have used and have been very happy with there service. I have included links to those sites below.

Your Class Ought to Be in Pictures (Part 2 of 3)

2006-08-22T13:02:00.000-06:00

For mid range (under $100) products there are a wide variety of choices available. I can not say that I have tested them all and therefore there may be many choices not listed here that are great products. I only hope to provide a program that I can recommend as a great product.

My personal favorite is Sony Vegas Movie Studio + DVD Platinum Edition primarily because of its ease of use to learn, and it’s very powerful editing features. I’m a little biased because in my very extensive search for professional video editing software I selected Vegas Video. Vegas Movie Studio has a similar interface and features yet it is somewhat scaled down from it’s big brother. The biggest strength that Vegas has over the other formats is that it was designed from the start to be an effective computer based editor, whereas many of the other software packages were initially designed to be used by people familiar to the old style linear editing for film or from tape to tape editing. These programs then try to add features but are still tied to this archaic structure that just doesn’t make that much sense. The downside to this or any other advanced software is that when you add specialization features you also increase the level of difficulty involved in learning the program. I highly recommend that you get a book or training course to teach you the basics. Getting a solid footing will help you unleash the power of this amazing program. The best book I could recommend is by one of my favorite Vegas Video Trainers Douglas Spotted Eagle Instant Vegas Movie Studio +DVD

In part 3 we will look at professional level tools, as well as training options.

Your class ought to be in pictures (Part 1 of 2)

2006-08-21T14:59:00.000-06:00

As we approach the New School Year we may think of the many new ways that we can approach curriculum. One great activity made possible by advanced technology is movie production. Movies can be made on a specific topic in the form of a report, or as a culmination of a screen play writing unit. One thing is certain, that you can create a learning activity that your students will never forget.

So if we decide we are going to make movies as a class what software should we use? Although there is not one single answer to this question, I hope that in this post I can shed some light on this subject so that you can make an informed choice. We will first look at free solutions, and then a few paid solutions for more advanced needs.

For basic easy to use video editing software the choices are pretty clear. Movie Maker 2 for the PC and iMovie for the Mac are both very capable programs for basic editing and fairly easy to use. They both allow you to drag and drop clips in the time line and add music and titles. Although they lack in composting special effects aside from a few transitions, you can learn to create a simple movie in minutes. For Elementary grades it is likely to meet most of your needs. Although basic operation of these programs is straight forward there are some advanced capabilities that with a little know can really improve the movies and the learning experience. I recommend reading Microsoft Windows Movie Maker 2: Do Amazing for Movie Maker 2 and iMovie HD and iDVD 5 for Mac OS X for iMovie

If you want to start your students on the right foot but still need a free solution Avid Free DV is feature-streamlined, standalone software which includes basic video and audio editing capabilities, up to two streams of real-time effects and support for both Windows XP and Macintosh OS X platforms. Although it is a stripped down version of it’s professional sister software it introduces students to a professional interface that is very effective. Avid also provides you with some downloadable training videos that get you up and running quickly at http://www.avid.com/freedv/tutorials/index.asp

Visit us tomorrow as we look at commercial software choices.

Edubunto the Linux Solution for teachers.

2006-08-19T10:51:00.000-06:00

In a previous post I mentioned that I would share with you what I thought was the best distribution of Linux for schools. I expected to try a few that had been recommended to me and perhaps look at a few others to determine the best. As you can see by the time that has been since the previous post that this has been a time consuming process. And you can see by the title Edubuntu won. Rather than doing a side by side comparison of the vast array of possible Linux choices I will focus on what features sold me.

The fist key that was a requirement for me is that I could load it on a PC machine or a Mac Machine. Edubunto loads easily on either machine, and runs well on both systems. There is a downside however because some software that is written for Linux does not operate on both platforms. The other issue is dealing with a dual boot machine. I’m pretty tech literate, but I did have some trouble loading Linux on my PC while still wanting to preserve my windows so that I could boot to both. I must admit that it is easier than some, however I only recommend loading this software if you intend to commit the entire machine to it.

The second factor is ease of use. Edubunto was easy to figure out quickly. Within minutes of loading I was opening applications and working with files with ease. It is not piggy backing of Windows or OSX but it is very intuitive.

Third is bundled software. This program comes with many applications that cater directly to the needs of teachers and students. It includes Open Office Video Applications, Learning Games, Graphics Application, 3d Animation software, and more. It has everything you need for the creative and intuitive to create and explore. One Note although the operating system is easy to use many of the applications are very powerful, and require some time to learn.

If you are looking for something to load on student computers, and Windows or Mac software does not meet your needs, or is just plain to expensive, then Edubuntu is a powerful and viable solution.

Donated and Older Computers

2006-06-26T07:04:00.000-06:00

What do we do with our mix and match of older computers that are donated or just hand me downs fro the labs. Even though they may be older and slower they can be beneficial in the classroom. It does not take much of a computer for word processing, and many of the educational games were designed for these older systems.

If we are using donated computers, it is important to ensure that you hold all of the proper licenses for the operating system and software you are running on the system. If you are using a PC Microsoft offers the fresh start program, they will provide you with a full copy of Windows 98 and Windows 2000. It is important to note that Windows 98 has a security hole, and Microsoft is ending support on it. If you will not have the computer on the internet there should be no problem but if it will be it is highly recommended that load windows 2000. To get this software check with your schools tech person to see if you are already enrolled, if not go to Microsoft Fresh Start to get enrolled.

If you want to avoid the licensing hassles, or if you have a mix of Macs and PC's and you want them all to look and run the same, you can load a Linux operating system on all of them. In my next post I will tell you about my pick for the best distribution of Linux.

http://www.childrenslibrary.org

2006-06-24T10:03:00.000-06:00

It would be fun to let children look at books and stories from the many worldwide cultures that we study over the course of the year. Yet developing that sort of library could get very expensive. Well this is where http://www.childrenslibrary.org becomes very helpful. It is a very broad collection of children's books from a wide range of cultures and languages. The site is well designed and allows to browse based on a variety of methods for example age based or topic based. It also has powerful search capabilities.

Admittedly it is not a substitute for a quality collection of real books, but at the price of free it is a way to introduce books language and culture to our classroom without paying hundreds of dollars. Although it is free if you use it a lot, I recommend making a donation.

If you are looking to add international real books to your collection here are a few suggestions.

Find many more at:

Web- Based Science Portfolios

2006-05-04T14:29:00.000-06:00

Exploring the Influence of Web-Based Portfolio Development on Learning to Teach Elementary Science

Full Article

Journal Information
AACE JournalISSN 1065-6901Volume 14, Issue 2, April 2006AACE Chesapeake, VAMore Information on AACEJ
ISSN: 1065-6901Table of Contents
Authors
Lucy Avraamidou, King's College, London, UK; Carla Zembal-Saul, The Pennsylvania State University, USA
Abstract
This qualitative case study examined web-based portfolio development in the service of supporting reflective thinking and learning within the innovative context of Professional Development Schools. Specifically, this study investigated the nature of the evidence-based philosophies developed by prospective teachers as the central part of the web-based portfolio task and the ways in which the technology contributed to it. The findings of this study illuminated the participants’ understandings about learning and teaching science emphasizing a student-centered approach, connecting physical engagement of children with conceptual aspects of learning, becoming attentive to what teachers can do to support children’s learning and focusing on teaching science as inquiry. The way the task was organized and the fact that the web-based format provided the possibility to keep multiple versions of their philosophies gave prospective teachers the advantage to view how their philosophies were changing over time, which supported a continuous engagement in metacognition, self-reflection, and self-evaluation. Built on these findings we suggest that future research be directed in the area of teachers’ knowledge and beliefs about science teaching and learning and the kinds of experiences that influence their development. The ways in which technology tools can contribute to supporting prospective teachers in developing personal theories consistent with current recommendations of reform focusing on supporting learning through inquiry should also be explored.

Full Article

What's Next for Ed Tech Review

2006-05-04T14:14:00.000-06:00

As the Blogger for Ed Tech Review, I apologize for the long delay in posts. I have been re-looking at what direction I would like to go with this service, to provide the best information for my readers. Although I will post some during the next few months, my primary focus is to launch with vigor in August. Look forward to up to date exciting news on a daily basis that will improve your ability to integrate and use technology in the classroom.

Brain Pop

2006-03-24T15:56:00.000-07:00

My Primary job is as a Special Education teacher. I really enjoy working with the students I have despite the learning disabilities. The challenge is in scheduling. It is difficult to help students an individual level, addressing the individual needs of each students. Enter Brain Pop. Brainpop.com Brain Pop offers a vast series of flash movies that cover topics across the curriculum. the movies I have used are fun and entertaining while covering key facts and information. The movie is followed by a quiz that students can print out results to turn in. The movies and quiz take from five to ten minutes. This has become a valuable tool that I use daily in my instruction.

The downside is definitely price. It is somewhat reasonable for a whole school ($850) implementation as compared to other resources, yet the $150 price tag for English only and over $200 for bi-lingual versions put it a little bit out of reach for a single resource. Even with the price tag it may be worth looking at.

Download an informational brochure

BrainPop.com produced a great book Popular Science: Almanac for Kids that can be found on Amazon.com

AOL to pay bulk eMail fees for nonprofits eSchool News

2006-03-24T14:02:00.000-07:00

Responding to sharp criticism about a proposed bulk-eMailing fee, America Online Inc. said nonprofit organizations will not have to pay to send mass messages to their members after all. The Dulles, Va.-based company on March 3 said it would offer qualified nonprofits--including school systems and education groups--a bulk eMail service comparable to one that will be available to commercial eMail senders. It also said it would pay the fees for the nonprofits and advocacy groups. The company's original plan would have required all bulk eMailers to pay a small fee ranging from 1/4 cent to 1 cent per message to route their eMail directly to a user's mailbox without first passing through junk-mail filters. AOL, a unit of Time Warner Inc., said the system would help reduce spam, because only legitimate groups would be likely to pay the fee. Click this URL to read the rest of this
story: http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showStory.cfm?ArticleID=6179
"Reprinted with permission from eSchool News. Copyright 2006, eSchool News. All rights reserved. For more information, please visit:
http://www.eschoolnews.com"

Where are the e-textbooks? (Primary Source)

2006-03-15T11:19:00.000-07:00

I came across an article written by CNN back in 2002 about colleges beginning to adopt e-textbooks. The article stated that this move would save students money, and provides publishers an opportunity to update content easily as new information becomes available. You would think with the cost effectiveness schools would be looking at making a mass migration to e-textbooks, but aside from the occasional school that tries a pilot project here or there, there is certainly not a mass migration to this medium. In my opinion we will likely never see this spread across the country in a large scale in k-12 schools.

What I have been seeing and what I expect to see significant continued growth in is in two web based information sources that will significantly reduce print book use in public schools. One is primary source materials, and the other is wikipedia, and similar technologies. A great book for using primary sources in history can be found at Amazon.com
First, are primary source materials. Why should we study the documents of our founding fathers through the biased view of a textbook author, when we can go directly to the source and read not only the founding documents, that are published in most textbooks, but also the personal and public letters of the founding fathers, something rarely found in textbooks.

It is often frustrating to have a report and find that the country you have a report on doesn't exist in your 1980 encyclopedia. We live in a rapidly changing society. To meet the evolving political and societal changes we need a source of information that can adapt and change quickly. This is where resources such as Wikipedia come in. Wikipedia is created by it's users and includes a vast amount of information that is constantly updated. Not only is it good because it's current, it is not limited by space, and therefore I can even find an article on my home town Enterprise UT Population 2,000. Try to find that in any print encyclopedia.

I will have more on both these great tools in upcoming articles.

Our Plans "Video Podcast"

2006-03-13T12:23:00.000-07:00

We are considering adding a video podcast to our review site. It would be a 20 minute weekly show, that covers the software and hardware, and education related news. If you are interested in subscribing to the podcast check back often for updates on the process. Also suggestions are appreciated, Simply click on the comments, and let me know what you would like to see.

Inspiration 8 (2of2)

2006-03-06T21:42:00.000-07:00

Inspiration 8 Continued (Diagram View)

Version 8 Diagram view appears much the same as previous versions with a few noted and welcomed changes. The first and most exciting is the addition of symbols. With an internet access you now have access to over 1 million symbols. There is no longer a need to make do with a picture that just doesn’t fit. In order to accommodate this capability a search bar is located at the bottom of the symbols library. The diagramming is intuitive and simple to use. Simply click on the screen and a new symbol and it’s ready to add the text. Linking symbols is as simple as clicking on a symbol and dragging it to the symbol you would like to link to. As with previous versions you can label links to identify relationships between symbols. It is possible to add hyperlinks to symbols to provide instant access to more detailed information. Inspiration also includes a word guide that is like a dictionary and thesaurus in one that is very easy to use. Simply highlight the word you would like to look up, and click on the word guide in the toolbar.

This tool is great for brainstorming, creating flow charts, concept mapping, organizing information, classifying, and much more. I realize this article may be a little difficult to understand if you are not familiar with the Inspiration interface. But there is a simple remedy to that. Inspiration offers a free download that includes some very good instructional videos to get you up and started with this fun tool.

Download Inspiration 8

Or Buy Inspiration 8 at Amazon.com

Inspiration 8 Preview (Post 1 of 2)

2006-03-05T16:48:00.000-07:00

Inspiration 8 is out as mentioned in a previous post, and it is actually an upgrade to get excited about. I have been using inspiration in my personal instruction for years, and have been very happy with the results. Inspiration and it’s younger sibling Kidspiration, is essentially a visual mapping tool, that helps organize information into a logical interlinking format. It provides students with a tool to organize and brainstorm for writing, list steps in a process, create effective visuals for reports, and even organize notes in a way that makes sense. This method also known as concept mapping, is very effective because it works in much the same way our brains do. We don’t naturally remember a bunch of random bits of information; we learn new information by linking and tying that information to previous knowledge. By linking to previous knowledge we create a vast web of information that is easily recovered if that web structure is good. As a resource teacher, this type of tool is especially valuable because many of my students have trouble with this natural linking system, and thus they are served by me because of learning disabilities. By creating these visual maps for the concepts I teach it supplements there natural abilities or disabilities, and gives a good structure for memory. I have been very happy with the results. Inspiration has been primarily known as a writing tool but it is so much more.

Note: If you are wondering this is not a paid advertisement. I received no compensation for the writing of this or any of the following articles. It just happens to be a product I really like and use regularly.

Download Inspiration 8

Or Buy Inspiration 8 at Amazon.com