Winter Olympic Shidonni Lesson

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What it is: The Winter Olympics is here!  There is so much learning to be done.  In my computer lab, my students will be completing the following assignment using Shidonni and various Olympic websites for research.  I have created a Weebly site as a research landing page for students.


Please leave a comment and share how you are using the Winter Olympics 2010 as a learning event in your classroom.

Win a month subscription to Wiglington and Wenks contest!

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What it is: Wiglington and Wenks is a rich virtual world for kids that I wrote about a few weeks ago here.   This virtual world brings together literature, history, and geography into one amazing learning experience for kids.  Wiglington and Wenks is a place for students to explore, think, discover, and grow.  I can’t say enough about this virtual world as a learning space, I wish every textbook company on the planet would move toward this type of model of presenting content and learning!  While Wiglington and Wenks is free for everyone, they do offer memberships that give students access to extra features, special areas, and extra privileges.  Wiglington and Wenks has provided 10 one month memberships for iLearn Technology readers! If you would like a free membership for your class or as a give-away to one of your students or children please leave a comment below.  In your comment, tell us your favorite feature of Wiglington and Wenks.  I will choose 10 winners randomly and send an email with instructions for redeeming your free membership.


How to integrate Wiglington and Wenks into the classroom: Wiglington and Wenks is based on a story book.  Read these stories with your students or include them in your classroom library for reading.  In this virtual world, students have the opportunity to travel to and explore real places.  Students can learn about the Amazon, Madagascar, Singapore, the Grand Canyon, the Great Barrier Reef, the Great Pyramid, Chchen Itza, the Bermuda Triangle, the Great Wall of China, Big Ben, and more.  As students travel through the worlds, they are presented with various quests and meet with famous historical figures.  Right now students can interact with Gandhi, Charles Darwin, Genghis Khan, Beethoven, Buffalo Bill, Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, Neptune, and Chief Joseph.  Many new characters are being released including Thomas Edison, Alexander Graham Bell, Cleopatra, Issac Newton John, Albert Einstein, Pocahontas, and Wilber and Orville Wright.   Send your students on quests to learn more about each of these characters and places.  Find more ideas for using Wiglington and Wenks in your classroom on my original post here.


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Tips: Make sure that you use a valid email address in your comment so that I can contact you!


Leave a comment and share how you are using Wiglington and Wenks  in your classroom.

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Stixy

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What it is: Stixy is a fun and easy way for students and educators to collaborate online.  Stixy reminds me of Wallwisher, but has many more options for sharing.  Start out with a blank virtual bulletin board.  Use the Stixy widgets to add content or functionality to your board, positioning them anywhere.  Users can add notes, photos, documents, or to-do items.  After content has been added to a board, it can be shared with others of your choosing.  Those that have been invited to the Stixy board can be given permission to add content, upload, or edit.


How to integrate Stixy into the classroom: Stixy is an excellent tool for the classroom.  Use it as a communication tool for your students.  Create a classroom board where you post homework, resources, to-do items, etc. for your students.  Students can, in turn, submit assignments via the document upload, add notes asking questions of the class, and participate in online discussions.    When working on group projects, students can create a Stixy board where they can collaborate virtually.  Here they can post ideas, research findings, and deadlines for the group.

Stixy can also be used as a virtual portfolio for students.  Ask each student to create a Stixy board for the year (or per semester, trimester, or quarter).  Throughout the year, students can add their content and learning to the board.  Teachers, other students, parents, and family members can be invited to view the board throughout the year.  Students can view their learning and progress in one place and parents, teachers, and other students can leave feedback and encouragement on the Stixy board.   This virtual portfolio can “travel” with students as a body of evidence.  I would prefer getting a virtual portfolio of learning over a report card of grades any day!


Tips: Stixy does require that users have email addresses.  If you are working with students that have not been assigned a school email account, you can use a service like tempinbox.com or mailinator.com to set up an account.  Stixy does not specify a minimum age requirement for use and does not require any personal information for use.


Leave a comment and share how you are using Stixy  in your classroom.

World Math Day 2010

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What it is: Hooray!! It is World Math Day time!   This year World Math Day will be held on March 3, 2010.  For those of you who are unfamiliar with World Math Day, it is a day when students from around the world compete in an online environment in live games of mental arithmetic.  Each game lasts for 60 seconds and students can play as many as 500 games, earning points for every correct answer.  The students who answer the most questions show up in the Hall of Fame. This is an absolutely free event to take part in.  Students can train for World Math Day every day leading up to March 3rd by participating in arithmetic competition. For those of you home school readers, World Math Day is also open and free to you!  The competition is designed for students 5-18 years old.  This year has a little bit of a new format (the change is fantastic!) with multi-levels for all groups.  Teachers, parents and media are also invited to participate for the first time.  Last year 2 million students from 204 countries participated and correctly answered more than 4 million questions!!

How to integrate World Math Day into the classroom: World Math Day is a fun competition to involve your students in.  It helps build mental arithmetic and numeracy.  Students from around the world compete in this competition to find out which country has the top mathematicians.   Students have a great time working to get their country to the top (nothing like a little National pride!).  My students beg to be involved in World Math Day each year.  We spend extra time in the computer lab and on classroom computers preparing for the day.  Students answer mental math questions appropriate to their age level. This is a phenomenal way to get some fact practice in!

We make a big deal out of World Math Day and let students have an extended math period to compete on March 3rd.  You could use World Math Day as a Math Olympics for your class and have and opening and closing ceremony for your class, school, or representing your country.

Tie World Math Day into your social studies curriculum.  As students compete against other students from around the world, the other student is represented by a flag.  My students are always very curious to learn more about the other countries and cultures represented. It would also be fun to start a map in Google Earth where you put place markers on the countries that students have competed with.

The platform is open, register your students and start training today!

Tips: If you would like to find out more about past World Math Day competitions check out my posts 2009 here and 2008 here.  There are rumors of a World Math Day iPod App coming soon, check back with the official site for more information.

Please leave a comment and share how you are using World Math Day in your classroom.

Learning 2.0 A Colorado Conversation

What it is:

“Education is conversation. Conversation creates change.

The future of education does not exist in an isolated world of theory conveyed through abstract conference sessions. Instead, it exists in conversations that begin with a robust learning network that is ever-expanding and just-in-time. Learning 2.0 is not the beginning of this conversation, rather it is a stopping point; a time to talk about the visible difference that we all seek. We read. We reflect. We write. We share. We learn. Come join us for a day of conversation about learning and technology.”

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Learning 2.0 A Colorado Conversation is “ a conference/unconference/meetup for teachers, administrators, students, school board members, parents, community, and anyone else who is interested in education. There is NO COST for attendees to join the conversation.” Participants can attend in person or virtually.  This year Learning 2.0 takes place on Saturday, February 20 at Loveland High School.  Learning 2.0 is in it’s third year.  I attended for the first time in 2009 and throughly enjoyed the conversation, learning, and collaboration.  You can’t beat the price (free) and even luch is included (who says there is no such thing as a free lunch?!).  Sessions range from leadership, classroom practice, to professional development.  Round Table discussions end the day (I am hosting one of these).


Tips: Be sure to register for the event here and add your name to the attendee list here.  I look forward to the conversation and hope you will join us (in person or virtually).


Are you joining the conversation?

Wiglington & Wenks Virtual World

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What it is: I absolutely love when I learn about a new site, especially those that I immediately know will be a winner with students.  You know the sites that have incredible graphics, are easy to use, and involve kids in the story (instead of just drill and practice).  Wiglington & Wenks is one such site.  One of the creators of the site @aldricchang alerted me to the new site today via Twitter.

Students are dropped into the middle of a story where they become world travelers to places around the real-world, meeting historical characters, playing brain games, building culture inspired houses, exploring secret locations, and solving ancient mysteries.  There are 100 educational real-world and imaginary places for students to visit from the past, present, and the future.  Wiglington and Wenks was originally a children story book series written by Johan Bittleston.  It has exploded into an online world where students can learn and explore.

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Wiglington and Wenks is so much more than your standard virtual world, it has a rich story line with well developed characters, plot, mystery, and quests.  Students are dropped into the story and invited to participate, learning through exploration, problem solving, and critical thinking.  The world highlights famous real-world landmarks, historical figures, inventions, culture, nature, and wildlife.  Students are motivated to learn more about each as they complete a series of quests.

The story behind the virtual world is about two water rats from England, Wiglington and Wenks, who are in search of a legacy left by Wiglington’s great explorer ancestor.  A series of magic maps guide them as they travel through time and space.  Through a series of events, a time portal was accidentally created that transported famous figures from the past to the future.  All of the historical figures seem to have forgotten who they are.  Students embark on a quest to help Wilington and Wenks find the famous missing characters and recover their lost memories.

Wilglington and Wenks are the main characters of the story.  They are the heroes. There are a host of other characters that further enchant students as they solve the mysteries of this virtual world.

Carto is the map creator who created the magic maps that keep track of geography, cultural evolution, and climate change over time.  Fragments of the map piece together to form a complete real-world map.

Sir Ordy Nace is the curator of the maps at the British Museum.

Filo rat is the head of the Traveling Academy in the town.  He is an inventor, code breaker, and skilled strategist- a genius in every way.  He loves a challenging game of sudoku or master mind.

Scuttle Butt is a search engine.  Ask him a question and he provides a useful list with the most relevant information at the top.  He is Filo Rat’s assistant. (This is an awesome way for students to familiarize themselves for using search engines to solve problems!)

Chacophonous is a crab who also happens to be a conductor.  He is reportedly connected by an ancestor to Beethoven.  He introduces students to classical music.

Walpole the whale makes cross-ocean transportation possible.  He has a terrible sense of direction so students have to give him directions and help guide him.

Every story needs a villain and the Count is the villain of this story.  He is known for using his knowledge of the magic maps for the destruction of the environment along with his side kick Warrior Wolf.

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Historical figures include Thomas Edison, Alexandar Graham Bell, Cleopatra, Confusious, Copernicus, Damo, Emperor Quin, Galileo Galilei, Issac Newton John, Marco Polo, John Rolfe, Nostra Damus, Pocahontas, Wilber Wright, Orville Wright, Vlad Dracula, and many more.

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How to integrate Wiglington & Wenks Virtual World into the classroom: The rich storyline alone makes this site one to bring into your classroom.  Students can do character studies, learn about plot, mystery, and suspense.  Use this site to teach your students about environmental issues such as global warming, forest preservation, protection of marine life, and endangered animals.  This is an immersive learning environment where your students will learn by doing.  As students travel the virtual world, they will learn geography, cultural differences, history, and inventions.  Students are encouraged to think creatively to solve the issues facing the world today.  Wiglington & Wenks would be a great site to introduce to students at the beginning of the year that is used throughout the year for learning.  Make it your goal to solve the mysteries of the magic maps before the end of the year.  Throughout the year students can visit the virtual world, learn about historical figures, famous inventions, and geography.  Hang up a world map in your classroom and keep track of the places that have been visited.  Encourage students to create character cards as they learn about new historical figures, and story characters.  Each student can have their own account but keep track of progress as a class.  Create PSA posters for the classroom as students learn about environmental issues.  Explore more about the inventors and inventions that students come across in the virtual world.  Have students keep a journal of discoveries (on or offline) as they discover new clues.  Have students write newspaper articles about the happenings of the virtual world and it’s characters.   This site can be tied into your curriculum for the year in a variety of ways.

I love the way this site encourages discovery of knowledge, teamwork, and critical thinking. This site will have your students excited about learning the whole year through.  Fridays would make a great day of discovery each week and give students something to look forward to.  Create a single class account and explore Wilington and Wenks as a class each week (or a little each day) using an interactive whiteboard or projector.  Give each student the opportunity to be the navigator of the world.  The other students can take observation notes in a journal about what they see and learn.  If you have classroom computers, cycle your students through the virtual world as a center activity.  In this model each student can have an account.  If you have access to a 1 to 1 environment (one computer for each child) or a computer lab setting on a regular basis, students can each have their own account and solve the mystery individually.  Form small groups where students can discuss their findings and give each other tips and tricks. (Hint: these groups will form whether or not you create them…it is that engaging!)

Wiglington and Wenks is the way that learning should be!



Tips: Read the Wiglington & Wenks books (Amazon link) as a class…the tie into the virtual world will have your students eager to read these books to learn more!

Your students will catch on to the virtual world environment quickly and know more about the characters, games, etc. than you could ever hope to learn.  There is a great guide that will clue you into everything the world offers so that you can keep up with your students. Check it out here.

Leave a comment and share how you are using Wiglington & Wenks Virtual World in your classroom.

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Volunteer Spot

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What it is: Volunteer Spot could be just what you need to coordinate classroom helpers and volunteers.  No more messy sign up clipboards, endless reply-all emails, reminder phone calls, phone tag, and weeks of scheduling to get parents actively involved in your classroom.   Coordinating volunteers is easy, just schedule activities, invite volunteers, volunteers sign up with a simple click, and send reminders.  You can easily schedule one day events like field trips, or multi-day sign up options for extended volunteer opportunities.  You can specify if your need is a supply that needs to be brought or donated, or the need for a helper. Did I mention this is a completely FREE service?


How to integrate Volunteer Spot into the classroom: Volunteer Spot is an excellent time saver for your classroom or school events.  It makes communication with potential volunteers simple and keeps you from back and forth communication that can zap your time.  Setting up activities and volunteer events is simple and intuitive.  It is much like setting up and sending an Evite.  Volunteer Spot will even give you a unique URL that you can display on your classroom or school website.  Inviting parents and community members into the classroom can be extremely enriching.  It gives your students a sense of the importance of education when others are involved.  Using Volunteer Spot makes it painless to coordinate volunteers in your classroom, no more excuses!


Tips: Be sure to tell your homeroom parents, coaches, and office staff about Volunteer Spot. It has the potential to make their lives easier and makes you look good in the process! 🙂


Leave a comment and share how you are using Volunteer Spot in your classroom.

Do you-want to form an alliance-with me?

Happy new year!  2009 proved to be a productive year of learning, sharing, and conversing.  I thank you all for being a part of that and look forward to doing it again in 2010!

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A few days ago I came across a blog post on Problogger titled “Let me Show You Inside a Secret Blogging Alliance.” The idea of an alliance between bloggers intrigued me.  To fully understand why I was so intrigued by the idea of an alliance, let me give you a little background about the slow beginning of iLearn Technology, and an article that made me angry enough to long for change.

The Beginning…

My degree is not in educational technology.  I started my teaching career as a second grade teacher.  I had two old computers (circa 1997) in my classroom and had stumbled on Starfall, Book Adventure, and Read Write Think.org.  We had no computer lab in our building, so I used these sites as center activities during my literacy block.  My students asked to use these sites constantly, loving when it was their day for the computer centers.

It was completely by accident that I became a computer teacher the following year.  I was looking for a change in schools and had applied to CHC for one of their classroom teacher positions.  I got a call from our office assistant informing me that both classroom teacher positions had been filled quickly.  She followed with, “I know this is a long shot, but we need a computer teacher to teach kindergarten through second grade. I noticed that you have used computers with students and wondered if you might be interested?”  My first thought was “no way, I can’t do it. I’m not qualified.”  What I told her was that I would think about it and get back to her.  I called my husband to tell him about this ridiculous job I had just been offered. He didn’t seem to think it was so ridiculous.   We were newly married and could use the money, even if it was only part time.  It was getting late in the year to be hired as a classroom teacher.  I wasn’t looking forward to the subbing circuit.  My attitude about the ridiculous job offer began to change.  “Maybe I can do this. It is only part time, I can used my days off to do research, surely I know more about computers than a second grader.”  I called the office assistant the next day to tell her I would take the job.

My hunt for lesson plans and websites was on.   I started a notebook (the paper kind) where I would jot down site addresses that I found, along with a few sentences about the site and ideas I had for using it in the classroom.  I barely made it through that first year, always staying just two steps ahead of my students.  It was in my second year that I started my first website.  I used FrontPage to create pages of links that were easily organized for students to access.  (I was tired of adding every new site I found to the bookmark bar of each computer.)  My notebook of web addresses had turned into three and I started using iKeepBookmarks to organize all of the sites I had found.  At the beginning of my computer lab teaching career, it was nearly impossible to hunt down a list of good educational links.  I was finding amazing websites but couldn’t find any one person who had collected, organized, and shared them all in one place.

I woke up one morning with an email from my husband (@jtenkely) in my inbox.  A single sentence stared back at me, “You should start a blog about technology in education.” Attached was a link to Tasty Blog Snack by @ijustine (not an education blog).  Although what @ijustine does is not easy, she made it look easy, it was just the push I needed to start blogging.  I would be the one to collect, organize, and share education links in one place.  But I didn’t want it to just be a list of links…I had found pages of links with no explanation as to what they were.  Teachers need it to be easier, they need to be able to see, at a glance, if a site will meet the needs of their students.  They also need an idea of what using the site would actually look like in the classroom setting.  This would be my blog.   I anticipated it being useful for the teachers that I taught alongside, they were my target audience. In my mind, even if they never read it, it would still be a useful way for me to organize my ideas about the websites I was finding.

I had no idea what I was doing.  I would type up a blog post, publish it, and hope that someone, somewhere, was reading it.  I had no way of tracking or finding out if anyone was actually viewing any of my ideas.  I needed some direction and decided to find out if there were any other educators who were blogging (I was naive enough to think I might be the first one!).  I found TechnoSpud (now Jenuine Tech) by @jenwagner and 2Cents Worth by @davidwarlick.  They were big.  They were well known.  I was nobody.  I started finding other educators who blogged through the blog rolls on TechnoSpud and 2Cents Worth.  I have never felt so small.  Here were a group of educators who “knew” each other and had debates and conversations about education on a regular basis.  I tried to join in the conversation but got discouraged when my comments weren’t responded to.

iLearn Technology exists today for one reason: I am stubborn.  I believed that I was doing something worthwhile and decided that I didn’t care if no one seemed to notice.  Blogging did something else for me, it made me a better teacher.  I understood the learning process better because I was engaged in it on a daily basis.  Even though I didn’t consider myself “one of them” I started reading other education blogs religiously.  I would occasionally engage in the conversation but for the most part I was happy to sit on the sidelines and watch.

It was around this time that I started Tweeting (@ijustine was Tweeting, I should too).  I had NO idea that educators were Twittering.  I was there to keep up with @jtenkely‘s funny observations, keep track of @iJustine, and keep a watch out for new Apple products that were coming.   I started following @davidwarlick and @jenwagner and a few other edubloggers that I was reading.  I can’t pinpoint when it happened, but suddenly I was getting comments on iLearn Technology, I had regular readers, I was getting emails asking for advice, I was involved in the conversation.  I was a real blogger.

It isn’t easy to become a blogger, there is a habit that needs to be formed, a commitment to stick with. It is really hard when you are the newb, the nobody.  It is hard to keep that commitment when you are painfully aware that you are the sole reader of your writing.  @janwebb21 reminded me of this as she told me about her own blog.  She has been at it for about a month, has had a few visitors and a comment or two. But it is a slow process. I would have given anything for the PLN, ideas, and resources I have now when I started teaching.

And Now For Something Completely Different…

Since joining Twitter, I have enjoyed conversations with people from all walks of life.  I have been introduced to new ideas, resources, and have been forced to think in new ways.  I have developed a PLN (Personal Learning Network) and have engaged in numerous discussions about education, technology, and learning.  I have been surrounded by greatness and others who are passionate about learning and teaching others to do the same.  I have become convinced that those educators that I connect with virtually are among the smartest, most innovative people on the planet.

On Friday I clicked on a link that someone shared on Twitter, it was a story about the use of iPods in Education (I always want to read more when Apple products are mentioned in the same sentence as education, my inner geek comes pouring out.)  The article was okay, basically just a short story about how a school is using the iPod Touch in education.  What stopped me in my tracks were the comments left in response to the article.  Most were negative comments about the state of education and what a waste of money iPods are for the classroom.  The comment that really made my blood boil was, “Teachers get to press the learn button, kick back, and think about their next week long vacation.”  It became increasingly clear to me that the general public has NO idea what we as educators do.  We are not seen as professionals.  We are viewed as babysitters with a cushy job.  My knee jerk reaction was to respond to each and every one of these misinformed individuals and inform them.  Instead I posted the following on Twitter, knowing that you all would be equally enraged by the comments: “Getting all fired up reading the comments after this article http://bit.ly/51RJsk general public doesn’t understand education even a little.” The comments regarding education made me want to stand up and shout about the brilliance that is my PLN.  I wanted the misinformed to understand just how misinformed they are.  I kept thinking of how different education could look if we were louder.

The Alliance…

After reading the alliance article an idea began to take shape.  What if we, educational bloggers, were to form an alliance.  No need for the secrecy.  This alliance would be a group of educational bloggers who are committed to working together for the mutual benefit of all the members in the alliance.  We all have something valuable to add to the conversation of education and learning.  Each of us has a unique voice, outlook, approach, skills, strengths, and focuses.

The goal of the alliance is two fold:

1. To encourage educators in their blogging endeavors whether they be new, established, or otherwise.  There are so many valuable additions to the conversation that are being overlooked.

2. To create a united network of educators working toward the larger goal of being heard by those not in education.  It is time for the general public to see us for the highly qualified professionals that we are.

How the Alliance could work…

1. Commenting on each others blogs– in the Problogger article, those in the alliance committed to commenting on each others blogs at least once every week day.  The comments should stimulate interesting discussions, and encourage those involved that someone, is indeed, reading their blog.

2. Linking to One Another- This could be linking to related posts on another educational bloggers website, adding them to your blog roll, or naturally as a result of subscribing to one another’s blogs.

3. Social Bookmarking and Tweeting- This is my personal favorite suggestion, Twitter has done wonders for iLearn Technology as my PLN passes on my posts to others.  Promoting  posts on Twitter, Digg, Delicious, and StumbleUpon increases awareness of what educators around the world are doing that works.  It also connects those new to educational blogging.

4. Guest Posts- Guest posting could be an opt-in option for the alliance.  I know that it isn’t always possible to find time to write a blog post for your blog, let alone polish it enough for someone else’s blog.

5.  Thank You Page Promotions- When someone signs up to receive your RSS feed, they are generally taken to a page thanking them for subscribing.  This Thank You Page could also be used to promote other education blogs.  For example: “If you like iLearn Technology, you should also be sure to check out blog A, B, C, and D.”

Do you-want to form an alliance- with me?

So the question stands, do you want to form an alliance?  If you are interested, leave a comment linking to your blog with your first name (or Twitter username), and a short description of your blog.  Please also fill out this short form so that I can be in contact with you.  Lets make our voices louder through a shared vision and mission, lets encourage each other in our blogging and teaching endeavors, lets make this year a year of real change.

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Secret Builders Update

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What it is: I have reviewed Secret Builders virtual world before, but some new additions and features deserve another post.  Secret Builders is a virtual world for kids (8-12) that introduces them to fictional characters from history and literature.  Secret Builders has added a host of new historical characters that students can interact with including: Jane Austen, Bach, Alexander Bell, Emily Bronte, Confucius, Marie Curie, Thomas Edison, Hafez, Magellen, Omar Khxyam, Motzart, Issac Newton, Rumi, and Lao Tzu just to name a few.  Students can actually visit the historical figures house, learn more about them, interact with them by asking questions in a virtual chat (answered as the character would answer), and take a quiz to find out how much they know about the historical figure.  Secret Builders allows kids to get up close and personal with history in ways not previously possible.  It allows them to gain a better understanding of historical figures than a textbook offers.  Secret Builders has additional school friendly features like areas for students to write, collaboratively draw and share, and play educational puzzle games.  Secret Builders also has a great Internet safety quiz that tests students on their knowledge of what online behavior should look like.  Secret Builders has just added a Teacher’s Console where teachers can add and manage their students from one central location.  Teachers can also set up an online reward system for students where they can unlock special Secret Builder features by completing “quests” that you assign.  For example, you may be studying Thomas Edison in class.  You could send students on a quest to find and learn about Thomas Edison and give the reward to those students that correctly complete the quiz.


How to integrate Secret Builders into the classroom: Secret Builders is an excellent way to bring history to life for your students.  They will understand historical and literary figures better as they interact with them in this virtual world.  Secret Builders is best in a lab setting where every student has access to a computer.  Be sure to sign your class up under a teacher account where you can control and monitor what students are expected to do in Secret Builders.  Encourage students to interact and “interview” the historical figures that they encounter.  They can then write an article about the historical figure for the Secret Builders virtual newspaper.  Secret Builders is a great first stop for learning about important figures in history.  It will leave them wanting more and excited to learn more about these interesting people in history.


Tips: Secret Builders also has a program that is connected called “One for All” students can raise money for their school by answering math, logic, geography, and vocabulary questions.

Leave a comment and share how you are using Secret Builders  in your classroom.

eduperience

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What it is: eduperience is an easy blogging tool for students and teachers based on the WordPress platform.  “Start a blog in seconds with unlimited storage, bandwidth, premium themes and plugins.  It is too easy to publish Your academic calendar, newsletter, video, podcast, and photo.”  You can choose to use an eduperience sub domain or your own domain hosting.  Automated weekly and monthly backup of your blogs ensures safety.  You can choose to earn up to 90% revenue on advertisements shown on your blog.  eduperience is a great blogging platform for both students and teachers.

How to integrate eduperience into the classroom: eduperience is an easy way for you to get a classroom blog up and running.  Use a classroom blog to post current assignments, class discussions, calendars, links to other websites relevant to classroom learning, and notes to your students.  Students can use blogs as writing journals, an online portfolio of written work, or to collaborate with other students.  Students tend to write more and with higher quality in an online environment.  This is due in part to a greater sense of audience.  Students know that teachers, students, and parents may be reading their writing.  Blogs are also a great addition to the science classroom where students can reflect on experiments and labs.

Tips: eduperience offers outstanding 24/7 support.  This makes it simple to get started with blogging, even if you haven never done it before!

Related Resources: think.com, Live Binders, edWeb 2.0, Weebly, Word Press, Blogger,

Leave a comment and tell us how you are using eduperience in your classroom.