As intelligent people in the business world, be it hedge funds, like Salman Khan, or computer programmers, begin to give back more and more free online tools are becoming available to teachers.  Since these folks are intelligent, they actually work with teachers to design the interface that students and teachers or parents use.

Hello Everyone, 

In order to give you a better idea of the differentiation planning pyramid I posted about earlier I wanted to attach a sample of how I used it with a fifth grade class for a reading/writing lesson about poetry. 

Some background about the lesson: 

I am currently in the stages of creating a curriculum web for a masters class. It has been a great experience because I am learning html writing and creating a webquest with inquiry based questions. I have been considering the idea of using this experience in future interviews. My question is what do other teacher think of this possibility of me handing in the information I have been creating in my class to a principal would they be impressed or uninterested in the excess load?

Most colleges don't efficiently prepare graduates to take on the job market, thanks to under-funded, under-staffed, under-motivated college career centers. University students and mothers and fathers must band together to make professional connections when academia fails, as it so often does. The role of mothers and fathers can't be overstated here, argues Fox Business. With active involvement, the road toward student internships can be easier to travel. Article source - Parents can help college grads secure internships by MoneyBlogNewz.

Having recently been exposed to digital storytelling, and also the various factors detering teahing from using the medium in their classrooms, I have decided to combat those obstacles here and persuade you to try it out. 

First, you may be asking, what is a digital story?

One of the main reasons why teachers do not incorporate digital stories in their classrooms is they simply have not been exposed to them. This is where I come in! In short, a digital story is any narration constructed with digital technology. This can take many forms, including: photographs with voice-over, short videos, documentaries, and student created productions. 

Next, you might be thinking, okay now I know what it is, but why should I use it in my classroom?

Hello Fellow Bloggers!

I am so happy to have this space to both share resources and gain resources. Let's get started...

When writing a formal lesson plan have you ever felt it unnecessarily lengthy? Or on the flip side, when you write your weekly block plans do you find yourself cutting out too much information about your lessons?

My school was involved in a three-year collaboration with a local, Seattle museum. We, the teachers, learned about and taught a program called VTS (Visual Thinking Strategies), a K-5 program that uses fine art images of growing complexity that encourage our youngest learners to describe what they see.

This year I am even more determined to move and teach abroad than last year.  Last year and this I have been applying to jobs and contacting recruiters, getting letters of recommendation and updating my CV.  However, this year I am determined to focus on everything I need to do to prepare, especially getting rid of a house full of stuff.  Like many people, the less clutter that I have around me the more focused and happier I feel, the easier it is to find things and focus on the important stuff in life.  

On Christmas Eve, I read many inspirational blogs and a magazine article about people living a minimalist lifestyle.  Two days later I got started.  Here are the strategies I followed:

Hi there:

I have joined this teacher blog website for myself! I have my students blogging and discussing their thoughts and ideas!  I want to share with other teachers and come up with resources and content together! I am looking forward to this new format of sharing with fellow teachers and educators! It extends the collaboration and sharing to a whole new level!

My school is in it's third year of implementing writer's workshop.  Each year, our students know more about writer's workshop and have improved stamina and skills, which is really exciting.  In kindergarten, however, it's a different story; with a large free and reduced lunch population, our students come with a huge range in pre-academic skills like drawing, letter formation and recognition and knowledge of sound letter recognition.