Day of Discovery - free educational conference

Free educational conference in CT in October

I am writing to invite you to the Discovery Educator Network Pre-CECA Conference Day of Discovery. This event will be held on Saturday, October 22 from 8:00 am - 3:30 pm at the Lincoln Middle School in Meriden, CT. This is going to be an interactive day of free professional development which will highlight creative ways to engage students and invigorate your curriculum using the latest 21st century tools.

Dr. Lodge McCammon, a specialist in curriculum and media at the Friday Institute for Educational Innovation at North Carolina State University will be the featured presenter, along with many other talented educators. There will also be opportunity for you to participate in the Discovery Education Fall Virtual Conference that day.

You can also find information about the Day of Discovery on our blog at http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/blog/category/connecticut/
The full agenda is still being worked on, but there will be some great sessions by some great educators.

There is NO COST to you to attend this event. Breakfast and lunch will be provided as well. Please check out the invitation and register today. You are encouraged to bring your own devices to the conference. Wireless access will be available.

There will be some great prizes and give-away's also.

You can register at: http://cecadod.eventbright.com/

And don't forget to register for the CECA conference on Monday, October 24. The theme for this year's event is eNGAGE! Teaching and Learning in a Digital World. For information and to register please go to http://www.ceca-ct.org/page.php?pid=119

I look forward to seeing you there.

Dave
CT Leadership Council Discovery Educator Network

Curiosity - from Discovery Education

Curiosity is a new site from Discovery Education that I really like. There is a show that goes along with it, but I haven't had a chance to view it yet.

The site has a huge amount of information and resources on a large variety of topics. You can search by topic or keyword for information. You can also submit a question about something you are curious about and then the answer, with links and other resources, will be posted (or something pretty darn close). They will email you when your question is answered. Many of the answers are from Discovery Education resources, but many are not. It's a great site for teachers to use to find out things, or let your students use it to discover new things and ask questions. Let them ask what every they are interested in and then have them do a project on it.

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Training Resources for Discovery Education tools and apps

Web 20.11 - Web 2.0 for 2011 - resources, tips, ideas from Discovery Education

DEN Blog Network - great resource for all educators

Discovery Education STEM resources

Free Clip Art from Discovery Education

Here's another great free resource from Discovery Education - free clip art. Discovery Education has a great Clip Art gallery in their Classroom Resources section.

The Clip Art Gallery has hundreds of original clip art, including animations, sorted into categories such as science, food, music, math, letters and numbers and much more.

All of the images are ready to use and many are available in black & white or color. You simply go to the image you want and then right-click to save the image.

If you are looking for free images for your project, blog, presentation, or website, check it out.

Related Articles

Top 10 Resources from Discovery Education - all free

Training Resources for Discovery Education tools and apps

Web 20.11 - Web 2.0 for 2011 - resources, tips, ideas from Discovery Education

DEN Blog Network - great resource for all educators

Discovery Education STEM resources

Energy Balance 101 - get, and keep, students healthy

Energy Balance 101 is a free resource from Discovery Education that provides resources for teachers and families in making healthy choices, nutrition and exercises and keeping their children healthy.

There are lesson plans, sorted by grade, links, resources, and much more to help students learn how to be healthy.

How I find the resources I share on this blog

Some of my readers and colleagues have asked me how I find the resources that I share on this blog, so I decided to tell you.

1. Google - I do Google searches for different things like "educational technology", "social networking", "web 2.0", "project based learning" and any other topic I'm looking for.

2. My PLN - my Personal Learning Network is a great resource. These educators share their resources, ideas, and tips on Twitter and on their blogs. Here are some of the people in my PLN.

3. Blogs - both by educators and technology and education companies. Check my PLN list for some of the blogs I follow and check out My "Great Edtech Blogs" Bundle on the right column of this blog. I use Google Reader to follow blogs, news sites, and more to keep up with the latest information, trends, and more.

4. Discovery Education - the DE Network and many of their resources are great for using in school, but some of their resources share other resources with you and you can find a lot of great things on the DEN Blog Network.

5. Journals - there are two free educational journals that I subscribe to that have a huge number of resources: Tech&Learning Magazine and THE Journal. Check them out!

6. Conferences (and unconferences) - I attend 3-6 educational conferences each year. Not only do I learn some great things there, but I make more connections to add to my PLN.

Where do you find your resources?

Advice to new graduates that will be entering the teaching profession

Welcome to the hardest job you'll ever love!

As I think about the fact that most colleges will be holding graduation next month, I thought about all those new graduates that will be joining the education profession next year and thought I'd share some advice and resources for them. I'll be speaking to some from a few different area programs and I hope you will share these with new graduates that you know. I also figured this would be a good time because many seniors are still doing student teaching now.

Your best resource as a new teacher is yourself. Use what you learned in school. Seek out more information from colleagues and the Internet. Use your creativity. Remember what it was like to be a student yourself.

Ask for help. Don't be afraid to ask other teachers for help. Do not isolate yourself in your classroom. Make connections with other teachers, whether it is in person, by email, Facebook, Ning, Twitter, web sites, or blogs. Create a Personal Learning Network of people and resources that can help you.

Don't reinvent the wheel. Use the resources that are available to you. Most textbooks now come with instructor resource CD-ROMs and companion web sites. Use the resources that they have and then modify them as needed. Search the Internet for lesson plan ideas, activities, classroom management tips, and other tips and tricks. Check out Discovery Education's free resources.

Stay organized. You need to stay organized. Make sure you have a lesson plan guide and calendar of some sort. You can use a paper based planner and lesson planner or use an electronic or web-based system. Smartphones are great for staying organized. You can also use online resources like Google, Evernote and others to keep your files, calendar, tasks, and lesson plans organized.

Write things down and make sure you have your classroom materials organized and labeled.

Take advantage of professional development opportunities. Your district and school will run professional development sessions, but don't limit yourself to those. Look for free online sessions, webcasts, conferences, and sessions run by your local educational resource agency. Create your own, on-demand professional development using Twitter.

Join a professional society in your area. As a physics teacher, I have joined the National Science Teacher's Association (NSTA) and the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT). Find out what organizations are in your area and join them. You will find resources and contacts through these organizations.

Read journals. Subscribe to and read educational journals. Most are free, so you don't have to worry about the money. There are journals on general education, educational technology, pedagogy, assessment, and just about every other area of education. Here is a great, free journal: Tech and Learning Magazine - great magazine with educational and technology information and resources. Free subscription for teachers.

Be creative with your lessons. Think outside the box. Come up with new, fun ways to teach the students. Use projects and project-based-learning as a way to engage and teach your students. You can find a huge number of resources and ideas for projects on the web.

Read some books on education. My personal favorites to start with are "First Days of School", by Harry Wong, and "Your First Year as a High School Teacher", by Lynne Rominger, et al.

Don't pay for things if you can get them for free. There are tons of free resources, from software to web sites, that can help you in your classroom. Here are some tips for finding free resources.

Make connections with the secretaries and custodians in your building. They will be some of your best resources for supplies, ideas, and help.

Make connections with local businesses, especially those that are related to your subject area. They can be a huge resource for guests, supplies and equipment, and funding. Many local businesses, such as Staples, have Teacher Appreciation Days with discounts and free gifts. Find out about these. Remind businesses that instead of throwing out things, they can donate usable items to your school as a tax write-off.

Get to know the publisher's representative for your class's textbook. They can get you a lot of resources.

Be flexible. Remember Murphy's law. Have plans for when your lessons run short or long, to deal with interruptions and fire drills, assemblies, and days when much of your class is absent because of a field trip.

Have back up plans for everything and especially have backup plans in case of technology issues.

Know your local and State curriculum. Know what is expected of you. Know what is expected of the students.

Track your personal expenses and save receipts. There is a tax deduction for educators.

Keep up on your certification requirements.

Spend this summer relaxing and getting ready for your new career. Once you get hired by a school, get a copy of the curriculum and review it over the summer. Think about the kind of teacher you want to be. Get yourself organized.

If you are still looking for a job, don't worry. Teachers retire, move to different school systems. There will be openings. If you can't find a job by August, keep trying. Sign up to be a substitute teacher in the towns nearby. That is a foot-in-the-door for a permanent job when one opens. Don't despair, you will find a job.

Ask for help, and look for help. Again, don't be afraid to ask for help.

Good luck and welcome to the profession!

Some more resources for new teachers:

New Teacher Advice - some good advice for new teachers (and old ones too!)

Discovery Education New Teacher Survival Central - a great resource for all teachers (and free).

List of Discovery Education Resources for Educators - very good, inclusive list of Discovery Educations resources.

Top 10 Free Resources for Teachers

Great Earth Day Resources for Educators

Earth Day, April 22nd, is a great time to talk to your students about the environment. Many schools, including most in Connecticut, will be on break during that time, but you can always talk about it after break.

Earth Day was started in 1962 as a way to bring attention to environmental issues. As polution increases, and the environment is continually affected by humans, it is a great time to get our students thinking about environmental issues.

Here are some resources you can use with your students:

National Environmental Education Week 2010

National Environmental Education Week 2010

National Environmental Education Week - This week (April 10-16) is Environmental Education Week. This site has an entire section with resources for educators that includes curricula, quizzes, professional development and more.

Home

Earth Day Network - this is another great resource for teaching about the environment and Earth Day. The educator resource page has lesson plans, Green your School guide, grant programs and more to help educators.

Science Museum Climate Science Info Zone - information and resources on climate change, carbon footprint, and more.

Think Green from Discovery Education - Think Green is another great free resource from Discovery Education that contains lesson plans, videos, and activities for teachers to use in their classroom. The resources are sorted by grade level and are interactive and educational.

You can also go to the Think Green Resource Page to search for more resources by grade, topic, or resource.

Discovery Education, Siemens STEM Academy (another great resource from Discovery) is hosting a webinar entitled Earth Day: The Impact of the Gulf Oil Spill One Year Later with Jeff Corwin on Tuesday, April 19, 2011, 1pm ET. Teachers can register for free and share it with their students.

You and your students are invited to join biologist, environmentalist, author and Emmy winner Jeff Corwin to take an in-depth look at the impact of the 2010 Gulf Oil Spill as we approach the one-year anniversary. Jeff, who hosts Animal Planet’s The Jeff Corwin Experience, will examine the intricate and wide-spread ecological effects of the spill on life in the surrounding ecosystem and beyond. As a defining moment in environmental history, the oil spill will forever change societal awareness of the relationship between humans and the environment. You and your students will walk away with a better understanding of the role we play in protecting the aquatic habitat of the gulf and the positive impact we can make on the environment every day

Every classroom can, and should, talk about Earth Day and the environment. We all need to help make sure that the Earth will be a healthy, viable, place for generations to come.

English classes could write about the environment, including persuasive essays and letters on different topics.

History classes could look at the history of Earth Day and the Environmentalist movement, along with the history of different environment events.

Science classes can delve into the science of the environment, energy resources, energy production and more.

What do you do for Earth Day in your classroom?

Some More Environmental Resources

Discovery Education Dawn Junior Wildlife Champions-free lesson plans about oil spills and wildlife

The Road Ahead - resources on electricity generation from Discovery Education

Discovery Education Turfmutt - environmental science lessons

Top 10 Resources from Discovery Education - all free

Discovery News - science news

Disney Planet Challenge - project based environmental contest with resources

Discovery Education on Twitter is now @DiscoveryEd - lots of great stuff

Discovery Education used to be @DEN on Twitter (standing for Discovery Educator Network). But, lots of people thought @DEN had something to do with Denver, so they decided to change it. Discovery Education on Twitter is now @DiscoveryEd.

If you already follow @DEN, you will be moved over to the new @DiscoveryEd automatically. You should make changes to any bookmarks you have though for future reference.

Discovery Education has a ton of free resources and posts information and resources beyond their own products and resources. The Discovery Educator Network and the Blogs are also great resources for educators.

Here are a list of some great Discovery Education Twitter accounts:

@cbrown426 – Cynthia Brown, DEN Account Manager

@halldavidson – Hall Davidson. THE Hall Davidson.
@teach42 – Steve Dembo, Chief Twitter Officer for DE
@teachersurvival – Inspiration and practical advice for new teachers, from the New Teacher Survival Center
@wmihoulides – Whitney Mihoulides, Director of DEN Account Management

And of course, to visit this list to follow other STAR Discovery Educators on Twitter.

Discovery Education Dawn Junior Wildlife Champions-free lesson plans about oil spills and wildlife

Dawn Junior Wildlife Champions is another great resource for Discovery Education, in partnership with Dawn.

The site has three lessons, recommended for grades 3-5, available for download. The lessons contain investigative research, hands-on experiments, and even at-home activities. There are also teacher resources and tools. The lessons are about the issues relating to oil spills and the environment and wildlife.

These lessons can be adapted for use with other grade levels also.

The Road Ahead - resources on electricity generation from Discovery Education

The Road Ahead is a resource from Discovery Education and General Motors Education that explores how electricity is generated and how it will change how we live.

There is a digital magazine that interactively teaches about electricity, energy sources and new ways to power vehicles. There are also a teacher's guide, worksheets, and a classroom poster you can print.

Materials and resources are divided up into two groups: Grades 3-5 and 6-8. There is a link to GM's education site with lessons for grades 9-12.

There is also a link for getting ideas and resources for teaching about the environment.

This is a great resource for science teachers and any teacher that is teaching about electricity, the environment, and more.

The General Motors Education site has a lot of other resources for teachers for all grade levels in a variety of subjects and topics. Check it out too.

Free resources for emergency preparedness education and planning

With all that's happened in the world lately, between blizzards, floods, earthquakes, and tsunami's, there should be a renewed focus on emergency preparedness. Most people do not have any emergency supplies or plans ready. Each household, business, and school should have an emergency plan, emergency kits and people trained in emergency preparedness and response.

I started my training in emergency preparedness while on my trail to Eagle Scout. Emergency Preparedness is a required merit badge and the Boy Scouts emphasize emergency preparedness among the scouts. I am also a paramedic, special operations paramedic and FEMA trained in Emergency Preparedness and Emergency Management. Here are some of my favorite resources for learning about Emergency Preparedness.

Ready Classroom is a free resource from Discovery Education that has lesson resources for teaching emergency preparedness for teachers, students and families. It has teacher and administrator tools, lesson plans, family resources, dealing with pets in emergencies, and much more. There are checklists, planning resources, lesson plans, information about different emergencies and disasters, videos, links, and more. It's a great way to teach emergency preparedness.

Ready.gov is the US Government's web site for information and resources on emergency preparedness and response. There are resources for making a plan, an emergency kit, and how to stay informed. Information is included for individuals and businesses.

The Boy Scouts of America, who train all their Scouts and Adults in Emergency Preparedness, has partnered with the Department of Homeland Security to provide resources for the public on getting prepared. The site has planning resources, how to make an emergency kit, and other resources.

The American Red Cross website also has information for creating an emergency plan and how to prepare for different emergencies. They also sell emergency kits (they are very good and a decent price). You can always make your own using their lists though. There is a full section on preparing schools and students. The Preparedness Fast Facts page is an excellent, one stop resource.

FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) Emergency Management Insitute
The FEMA EMI offers free, online courses for anyone to take. The courses are well done and there are plenty of downloadable materials to help you. If you pass the test at the end, you even get a certificate.

Here are a list of the courses that I think all educators should take: (I've taken these, and more)

IS-7 A Citizen's Guide to Disaster Assistance
IS-22 Are You Ready? An In-depth Guide to Citizen Preparedness
IS-55 Household Hazardous Materials - A Guide for Citizens
IS-100.Sca Introduction to the Incident Command System for Schools
IS-362 Multi-Hazard Emergency Planning for Schools

Education Administrators should also be involved in community emergency planning because schools are on the top of the list as emergency shelters and field hospitals and the building administrators know their buildings.

You can even join your local Community Emergency Response Team. These are teams of citizens that are specially trained to help out in major emergencies, sort of like the reserves. Find out more here. Here is a list of CERT's by State: http://www.citizencorps.gov/cc/CertIndex.do?submitByState

Emergency Preparedness is everyone's responsibility. The Japanese know this and that is one reason why the disaster over there is not worse that it is. Share these resources with your students, colleagues, and family.

Discovery Education Spring Virtual Conference Agenda/Session Descriptions

Agenda and Session Descriptions listed for
Discovery Education Spring VirtCon 2011

(free, online conference)

(reposted from Discovery Education blog)

Spring VirtCon 2011

Spring Virtual Conference
April 30, 2011
9 AM to 3 PM ET

Think Outside the Book with thousands of educators from all over the world as we connect during this unique professional development experience where you can attend in-person, online or both!

Learn powerful ways to integrate digital media and Web 2.0 tools into your instruction as well as discover an abundance of resources to expand your own personal learning network.

Download and share the flyer.

Attend one of these in-person events (MORE coming soon).

Kansas City, MO
Richmond, VA (Register here.)
Virginia Beach, VA (Register here.)
Verona, WI

Virtual Sessions
(All times are eastern)

9 AM
Time, Differentiation and Online Publishing
Dr. Lodge McCammon
Dr. Lodge will discuss practical strategies that can be implemented to increase valuable classroom time while meeting the needs of diverse learners. He will show samples of how low-barrier video creation and publishing can result in an educational paradigm shift where collaboration and differentiation are part of the daily lesson plan.

10 AM
Project-Based LearningTim Childers, DEN Guru
With all the emphasis on standardized testing, Project-Based Learning (PBL) is the hidden gem of the curriculum. In this session, we’ll look at the elements that make up a PBL activity, explore projects already being used in the classroom, and answer the age old question “How much soda can you get in that can?”

11 AM
Alphabet Soup
Lance Rougeux, Discovery Education
Teaching today is a veritable alphabet soup with ingredients full of acronyms and buzz words, Web 2.0 sites with unusual names, and a student language comprised of characters and symbols. And every time we take a hearty spoonful the letters move around and new words appear. In this session, we’ll discover together how to make all these ingredients into a recipe for student success.

12 PM
The Pedagogical and Professional Magic of Digital Media
Rushton Hurley, Founder Next Vista for Learning
You have access to all manner of amazing media. How do you use it to develop your perspective on what’s possible in your classroom? How does digital media provide professional opportunities that previous generations could barely imagine? How can content focused on students connect us with our students, our communities, and each other? Join Rushton for an exploration of the world of teaching and learning as it is unfolding before us!

1 PM
WHERE Are You Headed?
Jannita Demian, Discovery Education
They say “Life is a Highway” but where’s the road map?!? In a world bombarded with different media types, educators are asking WHERE do we go from here? Join us to learn new and impactful ways to increase student engagement in your class starting next week. See examples of how teachers across the nation are utilizing media to help transform their teaching from the hook at the beginning of the unit to the summative assessments at the end.

2 PM
Geo huh? What’s Geocaching in the Classroom?Porter Palmer, Discovery Education
Did you know that you can use GPS receivers to play high tech hide and seek? It’s called geocaching, and it’s a fun activity that you can do with students of almost any age. Come explore how to use geocaching in the classroom and as a great outdoor hobby. You’ll leave this session ready to participate in DEN Geocaching Day on May 21st!

Check out the DEN Blog for more announcements of in-person get togethers for this event too.

Come and Join Us!