Volume 4, No. 8
12 November, 2004
[To view this newsletter on line:
http://www.emck.net/eline/04_11_12.htm] |
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...is winding down! Deadline for
submissions to this video contest is December 1st!
Attention, video teachers and
users!
KK '04 introduces The Video Forum, online
discussion about video production in the school and
classroom!
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What is a teacher?
 You'll
get as many answers as you find folks to ask. Our featured teachers for this edition of
The E-Line
give us a peak at how technology has expanded that
definition. Larry Johnson and Annette Lamb have been
brick and mortar teachers, library media specialists,
then professors of library and information science. In 1999 they left
their tenure positions, sold their home, and bought an
RV, and have been on the road ever since.
 Did they stop being teachers? No! They
teach courses in library media and information sciences
online through Indiana University-Purdue University
Indianapolis' School of Library & Information Science.
Annette continues as an educational consultant, while
Larry is responsible for maintaining their quirky but
rich EduScapes (http://eduscapes.com/)
educational resource website. The site is dedicated to life-long
learning, and there are lots of resources there...but the
most interesting resource is Larry and Annette, whose
teacher status now transcends time, space, and attitude!
Is this - any time, anywhere, across
distance and time, without physical presence - the
future of education? For most of our charges, no - our
students need physical access to us, and the things we bring
them. But what if...
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On-line lesson
planning |
 Teacher
Planet
http://www.teacherplanet.com/
Teacher resource
sites are popping up like
mushrooms after a good soaking
rain. This one is a re-work of an
old one, The Educator's Network,
and is actually an omnibus of
separate teacher interest domains,
including sites with lesson plans,
printable worksheets, and links to
other resources. The home page
uses links to themes laid out
as a calendar. A service of
Brampton Media Services (Ontario),
many free and commercial resources
are thrown together, so one has to
watch. There are also lots of ads.
Some of the web pages are under
construction and not yet
available. |
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Content Area
Resources |
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Practical Living (and Science too!) |
 The
Reconstructors
http://reconstructors.rice.edu/
Rice University's
Center for Technology in
Teaching and Learning, with
funding from the National
Institute on Drug Abuse,
is responsible for this very
complete pair of activities and
lessons aimed at middle and high
school drug use. There are
complete sets of PDF-format
materials, including pre- and
post-assessments. Intended as an
addition to NIDA Goes Back to
School (featured in the
October 1, 2004 edition of
The E-Line.
(Thanks to Fayette County's
Leanna Prater for this
recommendation.) |
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Mathematics |
 Digital
Classroom Resources from MathDL/MAA
http://www.mathdl.org/mathDL/3/
The Mathematical
Association of America (MAA)
provides this collection of
resources, links, and materials on a
wide range of mathematics topics, as
a part of its online e-zine Math
Digital Library. There's a healthy
mixture of high school and college
topics, and most are links to online
activities (rather than lesson
plans), but being able to browse by
exact topic makes this a good
resource for a teacher looking for a
specific online activity in support
of a specific curricular focus. |
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Reading/Writing |
 The
RhymeZone
http://www.rhymezone.com/
Doug Beeferman started RhymeZone
in 1996 (it was named Semantic
Rhyming Dictionary back then).
Besides a place to look up rhymes
for lyrics and poems, there are
links to the complete text of the
Christian Bible and U.S.
Constitution, online language
usage quizzes, and a few games and
puzzles. RhymeZone is a part of
DataMuse. |
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Science |
 The
Globe
http://www.globe.gov/
From a collaboration
of the U.S. Department of State,
National Science Foundation, NASA,
Colorado State University, and
others, comes this very rich science
education program. It is intended to
be a professional
development-supported, complete K-12
collection of projects and lessons,
but most of the materials generated
by the program are freely available,
including a complete set of videos
available from the site, and
teacher's guides in PDF format. The
focus is environmental science, with
an emphasis on hands-on data
measurement. |
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Social Studies |
 Flags
of the World (FOTW)
http://www.fotw.net/
Dr. Robert Raeside
of the University of Aberdeen
(Scotland) maintains this simple
and effective compendium of over
45,000 flags in support of "vexillology"
(the study of flags). Embedded in
this study is a wealth of
geo-political and historical
information...more than just a
place to get flag images! (The
above flag, designed by Mark
Sensen, was adopted as the
official flag of FOTW in 1996.) |
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Grant Resources |
 Intel
and Scholastic Schools of
Distinction
http://www.schoolsofdistinction.com/
More an award than a grant,
the deadline for this Blue Ribbon Schools
administered program is December 1st, so
hurry! Awards are given in each of ten
curricular foci, at two grade levels
(elementary and secondary). The awards are
for $10,000, with an additional $15,000
available if schools are selected as "Best
of the Best." Application is completely
online. |
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Professional
Resources |
 NetDay
Compass
http://www.netdaycompass.org
NetDay has
been an advocate, resource, and lightning
rod for technology integration into
education for nearly a decade, since the
first "Net Day" inspired a school wiring
movement in 1996. The focus in the new
millennium is on insuring access to
technology for underrepresented student
populations. NetDay Compass
http://www.netdaycompass.org/ is a
resource for educational technology use
strategies, policies, ideas, research, best
practices, and access to grants. |
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