Sept. 24, 2012 Weekly Tech Tip

This morning, I finished talking with pre-service teachers at Peru State College. One of the questions they asked me is where do I find iPad apps that I can use for education. I gave them three resources that I use regularly to find apps. I do not use the iTunes store as it is full of apps that do not relate to education.

So, here are my top 3 sites to find apps and useful information about iPads. Oh, by the way, iOS 6 came out last week. If you have an ipad and you want to update it, please log onto your iPad, choose "Settings", click "General" and then select "Software Update"

http://appitic.com/
Appitic is a collection of apps for education. Across the top is an easy to read menu that list themes for pre-school aged kids to teacher tools. Scroll across the top to find apps that work for you!

http://www.iear.org/
iear is a website of Educational apps that have been reviewed by educators. A little different to navigate, you can choose your grade level in the yellow box on the right or you can use the tag cloud (below grade levels) to select apps that work for you. I really like the "App of the Week" links. I browse through those to find apps that may be useful in the classroom.

http://esu3ipads.wikispaces.com/
This is a great resource for Ipads brought to you by my friends at ESU 3. There are tons of iPad resources here as well as a lists of apps for different classrooms.

I hope you find these sites useful. You can bookmark them to keep them for future reference. And, most of the apps listed will also work on iPod touches.

Learn360 and ESU 4

As an ESU 4 educator, you are entitled to a free login to Learn 360. Some of the ESU's across the state have partnered to provide video streaming content for schools. What that means is simply that you can view videos on this site for your classroom use. Learn 360 has over 70,000 resources to enrich your classroom. Give it a try today.

ESU 4 Learning Web

Very proud of the ESU 4 Learning Web Team from Johnson-Brock and Nebraska City. Please be sure to visit the page they created about the Missouri River Flood of 2012.

http://esu4learningweb.wikispaces.com/

2012 Statewide Internet Safety Winners

The Internet Safety Contest for 2012 has wrapped up. Below is a link to the state-wide winners from each category. I want to thank all the schools across the state that participated, but especially those from the ESU 4 area. If you want to use content rich resources for Internet Safety, I would recommend you check out Common Sense Media. It is filled with many teacher resources to use with students.

 

http://blog.esu10.org/internetsafety/2012-winners/

Internet Safety Contest Winners Announced

On my last blog post, I mentioned that the ESU Internet Safety Contest was getting underway. ESU 4 had a winner in the K-4 and 5-8 Poster Contest as well as the 9-12 Video Public Service Announcement. Many thanks to the Johnson Brock Public Schools staff and students for their participation in the Internet Safety Contest 2012. Each of these entries were sent on the state contest for final judging. Those entries that win at the state level will be announced on a later date. Please check back on this blog for an update. Below are the winning entries from ESU 4.

K- 4 Poster Contest:

5-8 Poster Contest:

9-12 Video PSA:

2012 Internet Safety Contest

Internet Safety and Digital Citizenship

Poster and PSA Contest Guidelines 

Sponsored by the

Nebraska Attorney General and Educational Service Units

The ESUs of Nebraska in partnership with the Nebraska Attorney General’s Office are sponsoring an Internet Safety and Digital Citizenship Poster and Public Service Announcement (PSA) Contest for students in K-12 Schools in Nebraska. 

1. Eligibility

Any public or private school/district within an ESU may participate.

2. Categories

Each school or district may submit one entry in each category from each grade grouping:  K-4, 5-8, 9-12, i.e. three entries per school for each of the five categories.

3. Entry Formats

Poster              high quality computer generated (pdf, tiff, jpg, or png);

Poster              hand drawn

Audio PSA       submit on labeled CD (mp3, aiff, or wav format).

Video PSA       submit on labeled VHS, DVD, or CD (QT, WMV, or RM format).

Open               a submission which does not fit a poster or PSA category above—could be a brochure, video documentary, etc.

4. Rules

·       No real names used on posters or in audio or video PSAs.

·       Copyright laws must be followed, i.e. images, sound, etc.

·       29 second target time on PSAs (audio and video).

·       Label CDs and DVDs with ESU Internet Safety Entry Form info. (See next page.)

·       Put ESU Contest Entry Form on back of posters

·       Poster Size:  minimum – 8.5” X 11”, maximum – 16” X 22” (recommended delivery in protected mailer, such as tube or flat box. Do not bend.)

5. Deadline

Entries must be submitted to ESU #4 by March 9, 2012.

            Send entries to:

                        Educational Service Unit #4

                        Attn: Gregg Robke

                        919 16^th Street

                        Auburn, NE 68305

6. Award

One entry in each grade grouping from each ESU will be selected and given state ESU recognition. Winning posters and PSAs, audio and video, will then be eligible for awards and/or use by the ESUs and the Nebraska Attorney General’s Office. A winning entry in each category will be selected and sent on to the Attorney General’s office for special recognition.

Click here to download the entry form (on the 2nd page)

Using LiveScribe in Education

When new technology comes out (which seems like everyday), I have to consider how it would be used in education. I go to conferences and ask questions, listen to suggestions, and try to find out how and where it could be used in education.

Recently, I was able to sit in on a LiveScribe training with Engaging Technologies. I was able to follow along and think of ways to use this pen that I've heard about. When LiveScribe first came out, I was cautious thinking that it would be great for special education. After seeing the new features, I now know that it can be used in any educational setting (including college).

So, what's new? As with any technology, if it doesn't get frequent updates, then it gets outdated. LiveScribe has built into it's technology, connectors. Connectors allow you to quickly take pen cast you've created and upload them to various sites such as Google Docs and Google Sites. You can also upload them to MyLiveScribe, which gives you free storage. How cool is that?

If you see below, you have the option of embedding pen cast into webpages created for your classroom. All I did was click one button once I registered my pen, then linked it to my computer, and was given some html code. Oh, and as updates come out, your pen gets automatically updated. You can also install apps on your pen found at the LiveScribe store.

ESU4
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Happy LiveScribing!