Genetics resource

Learn Genetics and Teach Genetics are great resources from the University of Utah.

Learn Genetics has interactive videos and demos that explain different concepts of genetics. The web site is nicely designed and easy to navigate.

Teach Genetics is a beta preview teacher companion site for Learn Genetics. There are some resources now, with more coming in the future.

These are great resources for Biology and Genetics teachers.

My wife, a Biology teacher, found them and told me about them. She found them very useful and easy to use.

List of Discovery Education Training Resources

I found this great list of Discovery Education Training Resources on Jen Dorman's blog (she is a DEN Account Manager).

Most of the great resources Discovery Education has to offer for educators are listed here.

Training Resources

Discovery Educator Network

Discovery Education streaming - Links to service overviews, demonstrations, and efficacy research

Discovery Education streaming Getting Started Guide
Discovery Education Classroom Resources - Links to free resources, sponsorships, and competitions

• Puzzlemaker
• Lesson Plans
  
• Siemen’s STEM Academy
• Web 2010
• ReadyZone H1N1 - Continuity of Learning
• Ready Classroom - Emergency Preparedness
• ThinkGreen Classroom
• New Teacher Survival Guide
• Kathy Schrock’s Guide for Educators
• Curriculum Center
• Brain Boosters
• Worksheets to Go
• Learning Adventures
• NASA at 50
• Understanding Epilepsy
• Discovering Diabetes
• Parent Corner
• Discovery Student Adventures
• Scotch Science Fair
• Siemen’s Science Day
• Siemen’s We Can Change the World Challenge
• USADA True Sport Award Program
• Fuel Our Future Now - STEM resources, Dash+, and Automotive Xprize

Tutorials and Learning Resources

• Glogster
• VoiceThread
• Diigo
• Google Tools (Docs, Earth, Maps, Calendar, Reader, etc.)
• Digital Storytelling
• Digital Storytelling with Web 2.0
• Blogging
• Podcasting
• Wikis
• Digital Learning Networks
• Copyright and Fair Use
• Project Based Learning (Challenge Based Learning) / Why Teach With Project Based Learning? / EL Project-Based Learning / BIE PBL
• Discovery Education - My Admin
• Discovery Education -My Classrooms
• Discovery Education - The Builders
• Widgets for the DE Builders

Related Articles:

Discovery Education Resources for Educators

Web 2.0 Conquering Technophobia

New Teacher Survival Central

RefSeek - Reference Directory

RefSeek is a site that I found that is a great place to start when looking for information or links. The site's start page is just a simple listing of categories (see above).

The site has categories from dictionaries, encyclopedias, and health & medical to multimedia and teacher resources. When you click on a category, you are brought to another page that has a list of web sites and descriptions of them. There are some great resources for each category.

The site is in Beta and doesn't have a huge number of resources for each category, but it is a great starting point when you are looking for resources.

NASA - NASA eClips™

NASA eClips is another great site by NASA for educators. The site contains short video clips that can be used to engage students and excite them about different topics, explain a topic, or generate a discussion.

The videos are sorted by grade level (K-5, 6-8, 9-12) and have educator resources available. There is also a Teacher-to-Teacher blog and a teacher toolbox to help teachers use the video clips in class.

The videos are well done and relevant to many different subject areas. Give them a try.

Related Posts:

http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2009/05/nasa-educators-resources.html

Green Fluorescent Protein - The GFP Site

Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP) is a great site for science teachers. It talks about the discovery and uses of fluorescent proteins in science. There are some great applications as well as some controversial ones, so there are plenty of opportunities for classroom discussions.

There are some really impressive pictures, descriptions of the uses of GRP, links, classroom ideas and more. The college professor who runs the site is very approachable and will get back to emails and will help you use the material in your classroom.

It's an interesting topic and the pictures alone can get your students' attention.

List of Resources I've recently posted to Twitter

Here is a list of the resources I have posted on Twitter recently:

Tech Tip - how to mask your email address - http://trunc.it/5l6sb

Google Maps adds Lab features like aerial tilting view - http://trunc.it/5icy2

Tips on Using Google Buzz - http://trunc.it/5hyxi

Surf Dog promotes literacy in children of all ages. http://www.surfdogsunsetbeach.com/

Online Tech Tips - Google Buzz - http://trunc.it/5euvr

20 Free Apps for the Web 2.0 Student http://bit.ly/ckzSvH - and some more - http://trunc.it/5hfmc

Digital Textbooks - online resources to replace your textbooks - http://trunc.it/5hue5

Blogs as a teaching tool - some ideas for teachers and examples -http://trunc.it/5gjeh

Resources and tips for Using TV in the classroom - http://trunc.it/5jbpb

Evernote - note taking, web capture, image search & much more-great resource for getting organized- http://trunc.it/5htym

Aviary online graphics editors and web screen capture - http://trunc.it/5dqbg

Science Lesson Resources - some great material - http://trunc.it/5hti2

Alternative to Microsoft Office - OpenOffice - now with improved performance - http://trunc.it/5hq7g

Google Chrome Browser review and features - http://trunc.it/5dozu

Tech Tip - are you being recorded in your classroom? http://www.180techtips.com/100.htm

Great new Web 2.0 Resource from Discovery Education - http://web2010.discoveryeducation.com

Tech Tip - What Does "beta" mean - http://www.180techtips.com/98.htm

Some great PowerPoint tips and resources: http://goo.gl/SAbu , http://www.180techtips.com/99.htm

Enjoy.

Scribblar - online whiteboard - UPDATED

(originally posted 10/11/09)

Scribblar is an online meeting room / white board. Students can use it to collaborate on projects, teachers can tutor via the computer, and teachers can use it for collaborative meetings and projects.

Scribblar gives the users a virtual white board on the screen and writing tools to create text, lines and shapes. They can even add images.

There is also a chat window on the side bar so that users can talk to each other while working. There is even a live chat system if you have a microphone and speakers.

I see students using this to work on homework problems together. Teachers could use this to help students with homework after school or on the weekends.

Dweeber is another resource that has some similar functionality for students.

UPDATE: Scribblar can now support PDF files. Free users can upload PDFs with up to 5 pages. Your uploaded PDF will be turned into an editable image in Scribblar. Thanks to Free Technology for Teachers for the tip!

iSpring - Free PowerPoint to Flash converter

I just learned about iSpring Free, a free PowerPoint to Flash Converter from the Connecticut Discovery Educator Network. It is easy to use and free. What a great way to share PowerPoint presentations on the web or in other applications. (once again, my PLN comes through with great resources).

It is a free download from the site. Install the software, open your PowerPoint presentation, click Quick Publish, and you will get a .swf file from your presentation. It will install a toolbar in PowerPoint. The toolbar has the Quick Publish button, as well as the ability to insert Flash and YouTube videos into your presentation.

I converted a 162 slide PowerPoint presentation (32 MB) to flash in 5 minutes. Not bad at all.

Converted file:

Very easy to use, quick, and FREE.

British Broadcasting Company - Education Resources

The BBC web site has clips from some of their shows, news, history and tons of resources for educators and students.

BBC Learning - information and resources for adult learners and children.

BBC School - games, video clips, classroom resources and lessons and much more. I very quickly found some great resources to use in my physics classes.

The BBC also has a site with pictures, videos, and more about Mammals.

Digital Literacy Resource

Digital Literacy is an animated, interactive web site that teaches students about digital literacy, safe use of the internet and more. The site is hosted by the Northwest Learning Grid.

The site is beautifully designed with swirling graphics and minimal menus. It starts by asking the student to select one thing that they do on the internet. It then brings the student to a quiz about using the internet for that task.

The quiz asks some really good questions about the internet and it's usage for the task it selected. The site then "grades" the quiz with some feedback and brings the student to a menu of tutorials about internet use. Some of the tutorials go over analyzing web sites and blogs for relevancy, accuracy, and objectiveness.

I found the site to be fun and easy to use with some great information for students.

Discovery Box

Discovery Box is a tool to collect items in a virtual box. The purpose is to provide you the "tools to build up an argument or description of an event, person, or historical period". It is literally a virtual box with different compartments that you can use to sort items that you need for your argument, description, or project. You can display text, videos, audio, links, and more in your box and use different compartments of the box to organize things by different topics.

There are teacher resources, case studies of it in use, and a gallery of Discovery boxes that you can view.

I see it as a tool for students to use when working on a project to collect different resources and information in one place so that they can sort and organize it.

The boxes can be displayed as a project, or the materials gathered can be used in a different presentation format.

(Discovery box is not part of Discovery Education or Discovery Communications)

Creating a Personal Learning Network (PLN)

Graphic from http://blog.misterhamada.com/category/k12-learning-2-0/

What is a PLN? A PLN is a way for you to make connections and share ideas and resources. You have one with colleagues that you work with. You can also have one online where you can reach and connect with educators from around the state, country, and world. Talk about a great resource!

Quotes about PLN's:

@kylepace:Because of this PLN,not only do I grow professionally, but I have made professional connections and friendships around the world

@wmchamberlain: #edchat a PLN lets us access the best of the best, not just someone close by. "Dont I deserve the best?" Gaston

@djainslie: My PLN opened the world to me 'the world is open'

@JasonFlom: PLN's flatten the world, removing barriers to collaboration, corroboration, and general camaraderie.

@wmchamberlain: #edchat a pln gives me hundreds of intelligent people to solve my problem. Whats not to love?

@cybraryman1: A PLN is a collection of interconnected minds that share ideas and information.

Functions of a PLN: Connect - Collaborate - Contribute

Benefits of a PLN: Teachers become: Aware, Connected, Empowered, Confident, LEARNERS!

(oh, and everything listed here is FREE!)

How to get started with a PLN:

• Sign up for an account with one of the resources. Start looking around and find people and groups with the same interests as you.
• Ning-Classroom 2.0, Discovery Educator Network, PBS Teacher Connect and Google Educators Forum are great places to start.
• With Twitter - follow someone you know, like me (@daveandcori) and see who they follow.

Some other educators to follow on Twitter: @rmbyrne, @web20classroom.

• Search for blogs and web sites that cover topics you are interested in and subscribe to them via email or RSS feed. See who they follow and blogs they subscribe to also.

Resources for PLN:

• Ning - http://www.ning.com/ - host collaborative communities.

Classroom 2.0 - http://www.classroom20.com/ - Great site for 21st Century Learning

• Twitter - http://twitter.com/ - interact - 140 character messages.
• Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/ - create your own page - connect with others.
• Myspace - http://www.myspace.com/ - create your own page - connect with others.
• Blogger - http://www.blogger.com/ - create and search for blogs to read.
• Edublogs - http://edublogs.org/ - create and search for blogs to read.
• Slideshare - http://www.slideshare.net/ - find, read, and post presentations.
• Discovery Educator Network - http://community.discoveryeducation.com/ - over 100,000 participants, STAR educators, professional development sessions, blogs and more.
• Delicious - http://delicious.com/ - share web bookmarks with others (and find some).
• Google Educators Forum - http://www.google.com/educators/community.html - discussions about using Goolge's Applications in the classroom.
• PBS Teachers Connect - http://www.pbs.org/teachers/ - discussions, resources, and more.
• Professional Organizations - ex. National Science Teachers Association - http://www.nsta.org/ - most have resources, discussion groups, and more.
• YouTube - http://www.youtube.com - lots of great videos for educational use.
• TeacherTube - http://www.teachertube.com/ - educational videos, documents, audio, and more. Also has a community discussion group.
• Google Docs - http://docs.google.com/- share documents, presentations, and more with others. Create surveys.
• Google Sites - http://sites.google.com/ - create web sites and wikis to share with others.
• Wiki's - Wiki's are interactive web pages that multiple people can edit. It's a great way to have resources and ideas and let people add and comment on them.
• WikiSpaces - http://www.wikispaces.com/ - free wiki hosting
• PBWorks - http://pbworks.com/ - free wiki hosting
• (Google Sites can also be sued to create wikis)

• iGoogle - http://www.google.com/ig - custom, personalized start page
• Google Reader - - read RSS feeds - embed in iGoogle
• Twitter - via Twitter Gadget (works in school) - embed in iGoogle

Google Tools for Schools

Google Tools for Schools is a great web site created by Jennifer Dorman (using Google Sites) that has a tremendous amount of information, links, and resources for teachers who want to use Google's applications in their classroom.

There are tutorials, links to videos, downloadable information and more available for most of Google's applications that are useful in the classroom. I have added it as a resource to my professional development sessions on Google for Educators.

How technology can help improve education.

(picture from http://www.ipli.com/ini-edu.htm)

(cross posted at http://www.techlearning.com/blogs/25562)

Improving education is a huge issue (and always has been). Test scores, our perceived performance against other countries, and other factors have pushed education to the forefront of national politics, right behind healthcare reform. Technology can be used to improve teaching and learning and help our students be successful.

While smaller schools and class sizes are always desired, technology can not do that physically. However, technology can be a “force multiplier” for the teacher. Instead of the teacher being the only source of help in a classroom, students can access web sites, online tutorials, and more to assist them. Education doesn’t stop at the end of the school day because students have access to teachers, resources, and assignments via the web and access these resources at any time. Students can also get help and tutoring at any time, whether from the teacher via email or online collaboration, or from a help web site.

Parental involvement is another factor that can increase student achievement. Most parents these days have extremely busy schedules, work different hours, and can’t always help their child with homework or come to school for conferences. Technology can help. Parents can go to a class website and see what their child is working on, they can contact teachers via email and web sites, and they can even check their child’s attendance and grades through online systems. They can also talk to their children from work via email and instant messaging.

Inquiry based projects are another way to get students to think rather than memorize. These group projects also help students build important skills such as communications, team work, critical thinking and problem solving. Technology can help with these projects and skills. Students can create things such as web sites, blogs, and multimedia presentations as part of their project. They can use the web for research and as a resource. They can connect with students at other schools and do collaborative work with them. They also learn technology skills while doing these projects.

Money is always an issue in education and technology can help. Virtual field trips, electronic forms instead of paper, email instead of printed memo’s, virtual labs, electronic textbooks, and the thousands of free online resources can all save schools money and give students excellent educational experiences.

Teachers can use technology to find resources and attend virtual professional development seminars and conferences (most are free). They can also create personal learning networks (PLN) with Ning, Twitter, and other resources to find and share ideas and resources, and get support from their colleagues. Technology can give teachers and students great resources, new opportunities for learning, ways to collaborate and create, and save money.

Technology is a very powerful tool for education.

Some resources that can help:

http://www.google.com/options/

http://www.evernote.com/

http://www.zoho.com/

http://www.techlearning.com/

http://www.freetech4teachers.com/ http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2009/10/scribblar-online-whiteboard.html http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2009/10/calculus-lifesaver.html http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2009/08/resources-for-students.html http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2009/10/21st-century-skills-and-education.html

http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2009/05/how-to-get-started-with-project-based.html

Share your ideas on how technology can help improve teaching and learning.

WatchKnow - educational video search

WatchKnow is a new site set up by the creator of Wikipedia. The site collects all the best free educational videos for students and indexes them for easy searching and you can watch them on the site.

The videos are links and are actually hosted on their home sites, so some of the videos will be blocked by internet blocking software.

The best part about WatchKnow is that it has done the work of sorting through the millions of videos on the web to find the ones that are good for education. Do a search and see how easy it is to use and find great videos for your classroom.

Interactive Periodic Table of Elements

I just learned about a great interactive Periodic Table of the Elements from my PLN (personal learning network) on Twitter.

This interactive Periodic Table of the Elements is great and loaded with features. As you move your cursor over an element, the information for that element is shown larger above the table. If you click on an element, a pop-up window launches with more detailed information about the element (courtesy of Wikipedia). When you move your cursor over a category of elements (halogens, alkali metals, etc.), those elements highlight, and the rest fade to grey.

It will also show the properties, electron orbitals, and isotopes for each element. And, you can adjust a temperature slider and it will color code the elements based on their phase at that temperature (solid, liquid, gas, or unknown).

This is a really useful, informative, and fun periodic table to use with your classes.

PreK-12 Engineering

PreK-12 Engineering is a site with free resources for educators to integrate engineering concepts and activities into preK through 12th grade classrooms. The activities are linked to the Massachusetts Science and Technology/Engineering Curriculum Framework.

The activities are really well thought out and developed and I have used many of them.

Things are sorted by grade level for easy searching.

For more resources on engineering: http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2009/10/engineering-resources.html

Edheads - online projects

Edheads is a great web site that has online projects for students to do. These projects help students explore and learn about a variety of topics.

Some of the projects include - design a cell phone, virtual knee surgery, simple machines, and more.

I found it fun also! Try it out yourself and you will find that it is a nice resource to use in your classroom. The crash scene project was fun and is great for a physics class.

The Differentiator

Byrdseed, a site I just learned about today, contains ideas to use in gifted classrooms. I've already found some great ideas to use with any class.

On the site is something called the Differentiator. The differentiator makes it easy to come up with lesson objectives following Bloom's taxonomy and other guidelines.

You pick a thinking skill, such as explain, describe, or criticize, then pick the content it is about, the resources students will use, and the product that they will create and the site creates a one sentence objective. It is very easy to use and will help you plan out lessons and make sure you are doing different things in your lessons for different types of learners and different levels of understanding. An example of one I did is below.

The Best Web 2.0 Resources for Relevant Integration

The Web 2.0 Guru has a great site, The Best Web 2.0 Resources for Relevant Educational Technology Integration.

On the site, there are tons of resources, sorted by different categories, that can be used in the classroom to help improve teaching and learning.

21st Century Learning, Blogging, Web Sites, Literacy, Copyrights, Ethics, Tutorials, and more.

This is a great place to start your search for tips and ideas on Web 2.0 resources.

There is also another page from the Web 2.0 Guru about Web 2.0 resources.