You may need to make sure your glasses are on 🤓, but if you look on the left hand side of the blog under “Library Links” there is a link called “Symbaloo.” Go ahead! Click it! (Or just click right here 👇)
This is a list of some of my FAVOURITE websites for learning. Here’s how they’re organized:
Yellow tiles = Books, reading and story websites 📚 Orange tiles = Need information? Doing research? These sites are for you! ℹ Green tiles = Presentation tools. Need to do a project? Make a quiz? A poster? You’ll love these 👌 Blue tiles = Tired of working? Ready for some fun? These sites are games that I THINK you’ll enjoy and might still learn something too. 🎮 Red tiles = Don’t even bother, those are for teachers!! 👩🏫
Happy Friday friends! This symbaloo should keep you busy for a WHLE!
What is digital literacy? Information literacy? It all relates to the idea that with content and information so accessible to students these days, it’s just as important to be teaching them the skills to acquire this information as it is to teach the content itself. Some of these skills, such as these outlined by the National Council of Teachers of English include the ability to:
– develop proficiency with the tools of technology
– build relationships with others to pose and solve problems collaboratively and cross-culturally
– design and share information for global communities to meet a variety of purposes
– manage, analyze and synthesize multiple streams of simultaneous information
– create, critique, analyze and evaluate multimedia texts
– attend to the ethical responsibilities required by these complex environments.
So how do we even begin? Where do we even start? If this all seems daunting….then slowly! Start by reading an article, maybe try something new. Ask your colleagues what they’re doing and using. Visit the Librarian 😉
He’s also the creator of Ipad Apps for Schools and has numerous other helpful links on his page, such as Google tutorials (there’s SO much more to Google than the search engine!), how to create blogs and websites and much more. In the words of Demiris, be a browser 🙂
References:
Richardson, W. (2012). Why school how education must change when learning and information are everywhere / Will Richardson. New York, NY: TED Conferences.
Ever wondered about Twitter, what a Tweet is or what on earth it’s possibly for good for?
I did. I imagined a Facebook or Instagram without the pictures. And I mostly only like the pictures 🙂 So what’s the point?? I recently caved in June and created an account to stay current on all our job issues over the summer, but here’s what I discovered.
1. There are many amazing teachers on Twitter, from all across the globe, who use it as a virtual staffroom for sharing resources, pictures, links and other relevant professional materials.
2. There are chats about EVERYTHING and anything to do with education. Interested in talking to other teachers about technology, ipads, special ed, Edmodo…..literally, there’s a chat for that. See the schedule below for just a SAMPLE
3. Professional Development doesn’t just happen on Pro D. As teachers we need to be more cognizant of our PLN’s (Personal Learning Networks). Who do we learn from? How can we access the information we need? How do we share information that we’ve learned? Twitter is a great way to start expanding our PLN’s. Find a few colleagues or professional accounts. See who they follow. Start to network!
4. You can connect and communicate with leaders in the field in ways you never could before or otherwise. I follow Will Richardson, author of the book “Why School?” I recommended, which enables me to ask him questions, make comments and learn from him in ways more meaningful than just reading his book. Did I mention @Raffi_RC is a prolific tweeter? And who doesn’t love Raffi.
Here’s a few of my favourites I follow:
I’d be happy to help anyone interested in setting up an account or wanting more information! #bced #edchat #edtech
I know this year we’ve spent a fair bit of time thinking about and implementing more inquiry based lesson and units. While the point of inquiry is for students to discover their own learning and interests, we still do have curriculum and they still need guidance and some kick starts to get them going. Here’s some great resources I’ve found to support the inquiry interested inquisitors (try saying THAT 3x fast!)
With these new Digital Literacy Standards very near on the Horizon, it’s important to always be trying new ICT (information and communication technology) resources, implementing new tools into our practice and thinking how technology can enhance our teaching. One great asset I’ve found helpful is EdTechTeacher. Some highlights of the many great ideas you can find on their website are:
– Reviewed tech tools by subject or skill. For example websites or apps for math or timelines, creating books, connecting with other classrooms etc. Also rates all tools for usefulness and ease of use.
– Live and archived webinars on varying tech topics. For example there was a webinar in January called “Creating and Collaborating on E-books: How you can use e-books to enhance teaching and learning.” I’d be very happy to host a viewing party of some of these in the library if there’s any interest.
– Innovative projects and lessons. Like this one on creating Non-Fiction riddles. See Ben’s riddle using the Explain Everything app (also a great app I saw showcased at my last Pro D)
I recently read a great book (really more of a long essay for you time-strapped non-readers 😉 ) by former teacher, current blogger, presenter and author, Will Richardson called “Why School?: How Education Must Change When Learning and Information are Everywhere.”
First off, it was my first e-book ($2.61 on Amazon) which I read on my newly downloaded free Kindle app on my very old iphone. So you can do it too. It was a really insightful read on the importance of inquiry and how we teach in this technology driven world. I would highly recommend swapping out your morning starbucks for this one.
A few powerful quotes:
“We have to stop delivering the curriculum to kids. We have to start discovering it with them.”
“Remaking assessment starts with this: stop asking questions on tests that can be answered by a google search.”
“What if…at least half of the time {kids} spend on schoolwork must be on stuff that can’t end up in the Friday Folder? That the reason they’re doing their schoolwork isn’t just for a grade or to be pinned up in the hallway? It should be because their work is something they create on their own, or with others, that has real value in the world.”
A quote within a quote from psychologist Herbert Gerjuoy, “the illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write. The illiterate will be those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.”
And lastly, “We can raise the teaching profession by sharing what works, by taking what the best of what we do and hanging it on the virtual wall.” Hence this book review and this blog!
If you have 14:05 this is great intro into some of his insights.
Moberly Library 