Mount Vernon Digital Literacy News
September 16, 2011
September 16, 2011
| Digital Literacy Workshop Lots of changes taking place this year. And lots of new things to learn. I am revamping Digital Literacy Workshop and will soon be offering Digital Literacy classes throughout the district. Watch this space and check your emails for upcoming opportunities. Look for trainings on how to use our new website, blogging, social networks in the classroom and more. In the mean time, you can check out the Digital Literacy Workshop page to learn about new tools and refresh yourself with ideas on how to use older tools. Digital Literacy Workshop Links to Explore . Everything you ever wanted to know about using Easy Grade Pro and AIMS in the Mount Vernon School District: Tutorials and files to help you set up and use these tools to organize, record and communicate. 20 Tidbits for New Teachers 30 Days to Kickstart your Blogging PBS Learning Media : Videos on a variety of content areas sorted by grade level. The Best Websites for Learning about the Constitution | New Beginnings I love being a teacher. Each year, just like my students, I get to make a fresh start and have opportunities for new beginnings. Every year I look forward with great anticipation and usually some trepidation at the many opportunities that lie ahead to try new things and to keep learning fresh, new and exciting. For me, this year has started at a frantic pace. So many new and exciting things all at once. A new website, a new online report card, a new elementary technology curriculum and a new schedule. I look forward to the day when I can thoughtfully plan and prepare instead of frantically scramble. But I am excited about the progress we are making and the things that are already starting to take shape. I am a teacher through and through. In fact, I come from a family of teachers. I love learning and I love sharing my excitement for learning with others. I plan to continue to blog each week. In each post, I will share ideas and resources that you can use in your classroom. I hope that you will join me as we journey through a new year with many new and exciting beginnings to explore. Video of the Week A little inspiration to get you started on a great year. I hope that this is a year full of the delight of learning for all of us. Tech Triumphs There are many exciting things happening to provide more opportunities and access for students to use technology to enhance learning in the Mount Vernon School District. We have just launched Technology Lab Classes in each of our 6 elementary schools. Students K-6 will learn digital literacy skills such as keyboarding, word processing, digital drawing and painting, media creation, digital citizenship and more. In addition to the labs in each school, primary students at 3 of our elementary schools will participate in a pilot project using iPod Touch devices to improve reading fluency. These projects are in their infancy, but you can check out our humble beginnings by taking a look at the resource site created for the labs. I look forward to sharing many more triumphs as this project grows. MVTechSmart App Ideas Mobile technology is not only the wave of the future, but very much a part of our present lives. Smart Phones, iPodTouches, Wireless tablets and more are very much a part of our every day lives. I foresee in the very near future that students will bring their own devices for learning to school. Schools will provide a safe and speedy “highway” and students will bring their own devices ( “cars”). We’re not yet there as a district, although we are making great strides, but I have decided to make sharing and app or two a week a part of my weekly blog post for the many of you who are either using this mobile technology in or out of school. StoryKit: StoryKit is a free app for iphones, iPads and iPod Touches This app allows you to create pictures and text to build stories that can be read and shared. | |
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