Yes, today’s Website Wednesday features a two-for deal! In addition to the MyRocketbook.com site you see below, I’ve also found a couple of great sites for free Social Studies videos — John Stossel’s 20/20 segments and izzit.org.

Enjoy!

I’m not sure if I would share this resource with students, unless you want them using the resources available here to ”read-up” on the classics rather than reading them first hand. Having said (written?) that, however, this is a really cool site–MyRocketbook.com. If either you or your students want to review classics like The Scarlet Letter, 1984, The Great Gatsby, or more, everything you need can be found here! I was especially intrigued by the video study guides, but downloading the MP3s sounds like a great alternative, too.

Did you know you can create a backup copy of all the information on your class webpage? SchoolFusion makes it easy! Then, you can keep the date as a backup or even import it to any of your other pages.

1. On you class webpage, click Update Class Configuration.
2. On the bottom left, click Export.
3. Select the content you wish to save and click Export to Zip File.
4. Click Click here to download the zip file.
5. Click Save and choose a location to save the file.

Here is a wonderful song from educator Barry Lane honoring his favorite teacher, Miss Foley. Like Taylor Mali’s video, Lane emphasizes just how big a difference teachers really do make.

I know who my “Miss Foley” was. It was Mr. Dineen, my 9th grade World History teacher. For those of you who’ve been around a while, you know I started out my career in education as a History teacher.  That’s because Mr. Dineen taught me that the study of History was not just worksheets and textbooks, but adventure-filled stories–the types of stories that fascinated the mind of a goofy little freshman like the one I was. I’ve been a History-geek ever since.

I know who my “Miss Foley” was. Who was yours?

Ode to Ms. Foley

This week’s featured website is courtesy of one of our wonderful librarians, Connie M.!

From Connie:

The Library has just added a new database called BrainPOP. It has short, animated, videos on seven curricular subjects: English, Math, Social Studies, Technology, Art & Music, and Health. They are short, colorful, entertaining, and educational!

You don’t need to have your class in a computer lab to use them. You can show them right in your classroom if you have a projector or PC/TV connection and Internet access!

Our license allows for 35 simultaneous logins during school hours. For the user ID and password, please see one of our friendly librarians!

Last week I was speaking with one of our English teachers, JJ, about an extra credit assignment he’d given his seniors for their study of the Iliad. JJ asked them to create a “myspace-like” page for one of the characters, writing an appropriate profile and communicating with other characters from Homer’s epic. He did not tell them they had to actually use MySpace to create their page. They could have used another software application or even hand-drawn the page.

What happened? Most students opted for the cyber-approach and the Iliad is now alive and thriving on MySpace!

Most of us have heard about MySpace and Facebook, but do you know what they are? They are social networking sites that many (if not most) of our students are using to find and communicate with friends.

Social Networking in Plain English

Are these sites sometimes used inappropriately, with students making inflammatory comments and posting questionable photos? Absolutely. Are they home to predators hoping to befriend minors for unspeakable purposes? Yes.

When used appropriately, though, these sites are not evil. Humans, and most especially the teenagers we teach, are social beings. Social networking is just another way to socialize. We can embrace this technology and strive to use it to make learning relevant for our students, in the process teaching them how to responsibly and safely utilize this resource. Or, we can ignore it.

But one thing is certain — it’s not going away.

A day in the life of a parent, to the tune of the William Tell Overture. It may be called “The Mom Song”, but it’s really about what Moms and Dads alike might say to their kids curing the course of one day.

The Mom Song

As I listened, I though about what the “Teacher Song” might say. Here’s a challenge for you–I’ll start it off, but can you come up with what you think the rest of the lyrics should be?

Get to class. Get to class.

Get to class right now.

Come on in. Take a seat.

Time to teach you now.

Where’s your work and your pen?

Here today? Oh wow!

Get to class. Get to class right now!

Take a seat. Here’s your test. Take off that hat!

Where’s your books and your notes and your homework at?

Get you pencil and your paper and all of that.

Don’t forget. You gotta finish that!

Blue Web’n is a really nice site chocked full of teaching resources!

I showed Karl Fisch’s original Did You Know video at the start of the year. Scott McLeod later re-did the video with new music and graphics. Here is the updated version.

Did You Know 2.0

Edulink–love it or hate it, our parents and students are using it to check academic progress online. Ten thousand of our almost 30,000 hits last month came from students and I think that is awesome! As young adults, we want our students to be responsible for their own learning rather than depending on us or their parents to “make” them learn.

With the end of the 1st Marking Period upon us, it will soon be time to switch our gradebooks to the 2nd Marking Period (I recommend making this switch a few days after the report cards go home). In order for the grades to show on Edulink, the 2nd Marking Period spreadsheet name must be displayed in italics. That is what tells Edulink to “grab” those grades each night and post them online.

To make this change:

1. Select Setup/Classes. The Classes window displays.
2. In the Classes window, in the field for Current Grade Spreadsheet, select the new marking period from the drop-down list.
3. Repeat this process for each of the classes listed on the left side of the window.
4. Click Close.