ebcue

Hot off the presses: New June East Bay CUE Newsletter

June 2012 – EBCUE News, Grant Winners, and Resources

 

EBCUE Newsletter

June 2012

11-12 Issue 3

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http://www.eastbaycue.org/

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Inside This Issue

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* From the President

* Cool Tools 2012 Recap

* 2012 EBCUE Doug Prouty Grant Winners

* Curriculum Links

* Money Savings

* Tips & Tricks

* Professional Development

* Dates to Remember

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EBCUE Board

President: Stephen Politzer

Vice President: Crystal Jensen

Eileen C. Walters

Anna Massi

Adrienne DeWolfe

Jim Freese

Stephen Politzer

Alberto Nodal

David Malone

Gerald McMullin

Theresa Gabor

Karen McMillan

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From the President:

Education in California has taken some huge hits these past few years, and the near future is looking bleak. Budget deficits, program cuts, increasing class sizes, and teacher layoffs are casting dark clouds over the coming school year in districts across the state. It’s hard to stay positive, BUT then along come moments of inspiration that give me hope. I’d like to share a couple to end this school year in a positive way.

Below, you’ll get to “meet” our 2012 East Bay CUE Doug Prouty Grant winners. They’ve got some amazing projects planned, and EBCUE is excited to be able to provide the funding to make them happen. You may think that funding these grants provided one of the moments that inspired me, but that’s not it. What inspired me is the number and quality of grant submissions we received this year. Hard decisions for the grant scoring judges? Absolutely, but it’s inspiring that so many teachers get it!

Another moment that inspired me was a professional development day held for Oakland Unified School District middle school teachers on a Saturday in mid-May as a part of their School2Home project. With a beautiful day outside, six teachers and a couple of classified support people sat indoors at my session for integrating technology tools for writing in English language arts and social studies. In the room next door, other teachers did the same with mathematics. You may think that these teachers, immersed in technology integration and excited for their students, provided one of the moments that inspired me, but that’s not it. What inspired me is that the school principal and assistant principal sat in on the sessions.

It’s inspiring to interact with educators who believe in integrating technology, who want to harness the motivation their students feel when using technology tools for learning, and who understand that students “powering up” can promote, not impede, learning… a glimmer of hope. See you in 2012-13…

Stephen Politzer
President, East Bay CUE

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COOL TOOLS 2012 RECAP
It was a great Saturday conference with many firsts. More than 200 attendees, many of whom were first-timers at Cool Tools, joined us at our new location of Head Royce School in Oakland. After registering in the library, attendees headed over to the Head Royce Cafe to enjoy the wonderful array of chef-inspired morning goodies. As participants came in and grabbed a bite, they were welcomed by our East Bay CUE President, Stephen Politzer, along with Mike Lawrence and Micheline LeBlanc from CUE. After the morning welcome, off people went to find their first session of the day. The morning was filled with two concurrent sessions that participants could pick and choose from (another first!) There were iPad sessions, grant writing, sessions about interactive websites, vendor sessions and many more. Since we were at a school, most sessions held 25 or fewer participants so the sessions were up close and personal. Then came a delicious lunch along with plenty of networking as participants prepared for their afternoon hands-on sessions. Participants were able to learn about Flip Video cameras, Going Google, Flip Teaching, Edmodo, Worthy Websites and much more. After the afternoon session, everyone walked down to the Community Room for our final wrap-up and prizes, prizes, prizes! Yes, iPads, Livescribe Pens, Kindle Touch, Snowball USB Microphone, iTunes cards, Gorilla Tripods, Flip Video Camera, and more were given to winning participants. Of course, everyone left with something. If you didn’t go home with one of the fabulous prizes, you went home with a whole new bag of tricks to try in your classrooms on Monday.

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2012 EBCUE DOUG PROUTY GRANT WINNERS
The Board of EBCUE extends a sincere thank you to all of the teachers who submitted applications for the 2012 Doug Prouty Classroom Grant Program. The Board congratulates all EBCUE teachers for doing such a fine job of integrating technology in the classroom and is proud to announce the following winners of the 2012 Doug Prouty Grant awards:

Linden VanWert – PK-8 English/Language Arts

Purpose – Create a podcasting station that students can use independently to create book reviews that are instantly uploaded to an online portal.

Outcomes – Students will be actively involved in using the library, including regularly checking out books for “”free reading”" times. Books checkout for 5th – 8th graders will increase. Use of the library during free times (before school, after school, recess and lunch) will increase.”

Jann Geyer – 6th English/Language Arts

“I want my sixth graders to create podcasts and visual book trailers on iPads. Currently, students “book talk” live to a single audience—simultaneously celebrating and advertising a loved book. …Creating podcasts and visual book trailers on the iPads will establish a library of student recommendations, allow for re-dos and quality improvement, reach a wider audience, and entice a different type of student to give book talks.”

Lyn Goodness/Patricia Snyder – 7th/8th Science

“Our project intends to expose and engage students in the process of investigating, developing and employing engineering principles….Our project is to use Lego Mindstorms Education Robotics and their computer software to design, construct and operate functional robotic structures.”

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CURRICULUM LINKS
Summer reading for students:

Teachers And Families Summer Reading
http://www.teachersandfamilies.com/open/summerread.html
Summer Reading project from Network for Instructional TV, Inc. Pick a grade level, or search by author to get started.

Reading lists from TeacherVision:
Pick a grade span and get ready for find some great reading suggestions.
Pre-K through Primary
http://www.teachervision.fen.com/summer/reading/6084.html
Grade 4 through 5
http://www.teachervision.fen.com/summer/reading/6098.html
Grades 6 through 8
http://www.teachervision.fen.com/summer/reading/6099.html
Grades 9 through 12
http://www.teachervision.fen.com/summer/reading/6097.html

Reading Rockets Author Video Interviews
http://www.readingrockets.org/books/interviews
Watch Reading Rockets’ exclusive video interviews with top children’s book authors and illustrators. You’ll discover if Chris Van Allsburg is really as spooky as his books, where Jon Scieszka gets his wacky ideas, and why Patricia Polacco’s warm family tales seem so real. Browse through more than 70 interviews!

Summer Reading
Ah, summer! Time to relax and recharge those batteries for the next school year. It’s also a wonderful time to learn something new and avoid that “summer slide” for teachers. So, when you start making plans for the fall, check out some of these websites.

10 Simple Ways to Keep Your Kids Safe Online This Summer
From Common Sense Media
http://www.commonsensemedia.org/advice-for-parents/10-simple-steps-internet-safety
Add “first time on the Internet” to the list of milestones every parent tracks for their kids these days. But once your kid starts going online, the “firsts” come fast and furious. Some firsts are good — like the online game that taught your preschooler the ABCs. But some didn’t go so well. Here are answers to parents’ most common concerns about keeping the Internet a safe, productive, positive experience.

Blogs for Teachers:
http://ilearntechnology.com/
Kelly Tenkely writes this blog on innovative uses of classroom technology. She shares easy-to-read, to-the-point reviews of tools, and describes what it is and how to integrate it into your curriculum.

http://www.freetech4teachers.com/
Richard Byrne’s award-winning blog is among the most popular websites with teachers. Spend just a few minutes on this site and you’ll understand why. From his free downloadable e-books to his daily posts about sites and tools for education, you’re certain to find something you can use in your own classroom.

http://teacherbootcamp.edublogs.org/
Shelley Terrell’s blog includes her 30 Goals project in which she challenges educators to accomplish short-term goals related to education, especially where technology and social media are concerned. Her blog is also filled with many resources and ideas for using them with and for students.

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Summer Viewing
You don’t need to spend all of your summer vacation money to attend a conference this year. Why, you don’t even need to leave the comfort of your own home to hear from some of the leaders in education.

http://k12onlineconference.org/
The K12 Online Conference is held each year at a computer near you! The conference is completely online with all of the sessions being archived for future viewing. Visit the conference website to find archives for each year the conference has been held and learn from educators around the world, all at your own convenience.

http://www.youtube.com/edutopia
Visit Edutopia’s YouTube channel to find their videos all of which are education-related. Topics include: project-based learning, educational leadership, and classroom management. You will also discover all of Edutopia’s STEM videos for your reference.

Leading Edge Online and Blended Teacher Certification
Leading Edge Certification (LEC) for the Online and Blended Teacher is a national program to prepare instructional leaders for online learning. Content includes online pedagogy, moderating online discussions, building community in online learning environments, supporting diverse learners, and online assessment and evaluation. Time to complete the curriculum is estimated at 45-60 hours, including portfolio work, but will vary based on participants’ experience with the tools used. The recently revised curriculum is completed and has been vetted with a pilot group of teachers. We are happy to announce that we will be hosting our first round of LEC training beginning June 18th.

The course will run from June 18th through August 6th. To register for this training, please go to http://bit.ly/LEC-OT-June18.

DATES TO REMEMBER

Fall CUE Conference — October 26-27, 2012, American Canyon High School, Napa Valley, CA

East Bay CUE October 2011 Newsletter

EBCUE Newsletter
October 1, 2011
11-12 Issue 1
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http://www.ebcue.org
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Inside this Issue
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* From the President
* Curriculum Links
* Money Savings
* Tips & Tricks
* Professional Development
* Dates to Remember

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EBCUE Board
President: Stephen Politzer
Vice President: Crystal Jensen
Eileen Walters
Anna Massi
Adrienne DeWolfe
Jim Freese
Stephen Politzer
Alberto Nodal
David Malone
Gerald McMullin
Theresa Gabor
Karen McMillan
Crystal Jensen
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From the President:
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Have you ever gone to a conference, attended a speaker session, and said to
yourself, ³I could do that.² Me too! Really, it¹s true. I was one of those
people, the ones saying, ³I could do that.² I felt that I was doing some
interesting things in my classroom with integrating technology, but there
were (are) lots of reasons for being one of those people: not enough
confidence, too scared to get up in front of others, feeling that I wouldn¹t
measure up, not techie enough, no time to put together a presentation,
[UNSERT YOUR REASON HERE]. Does that sound like you? Guess what? You¹re
normal.

Some years ago, I realized that normal was.. well.. normal. Back then, the
first Cool Tools had hands-on workshops as well as concurrent sessions. The
concurrent sessions were one-hour times for normal people to share
interesting things they were doing with integrating technology. As a normal
person, I thought, ³I could do that.² Then I said, ³I can do that.² Finally
I decided, ³I will do that!² S and I did. That¹s how I started down this
path.

Now, for a number of years, Cool Tools has had only hands-on workshops.
However, for Cool Tools VIII in January 2012, EBCUE is bringing back
concurrent sessions, and we¹re reaching out to YOU. What interesting things
are you doing with integrating technology? How about the chance to share
with others? The first step is to click the Google form link below and
submit your proposal for a one-hour concurrent session. This is your
opportunity to decide, ³I will do that!²

SUBMIT A PROPOSAL for a one-hour concurrent session BY October 31, 2011:
http://goo.gl/PRKLy

On another note… CUE acknowledges one teacher each year as its Outstanding
Teacher. The Outstanding Teacher Award recognizes a classroom teacher who
has made a noteworthy contribution to educational technology in a classroom
setting. Creating standards-based curriculum using technology is the key
element in this award. Nominees must be classroom teachers and CUE members
in good standing. As an affiliate of CUE, EBCUE selects its own winner and
submits this winner to CUE for consideration as CUE¹s overall winner.

Do you know a teacher who deserves to be EBCUE¹s Outstanding Teacher winner?
Let us know who by submitting his/her name and other information using the
Google form below. For more information on the Outstanding Teacher Award
requirements, visit CUE¹s website at http://www.cue.org/awards/ and scroll
down to the Outstanding Teacher section. At the bottom of the section, you
can also click the Oview rubric¹ link to view the Outstanding Teacher
scoring rubric.

SUBMIT THE NAME and other information for someone you think deserves to be
EBCUE¹s Outstanding Teacher:
http://goo.gl/fBecE

We¹re excited to hear from you on both of these topics!

Stephen Politzer
EBCUE President

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Curriculum Links:
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Instructables
http://www.instructables.com
The Instructables web site provides step-by-step directions on how to make a
variety of items. The topics vary widely but teachers may like: How to play
Mancala, origami paper airlplanes, how to make dice from paper, and create a
Lego clock. Teachers can have students publish step by step How Tos they
create.

eLearning for Kids
http://www.e-learningforkids.org/
E-Learning for Kids is a great place for students to find courses on any
number of subjects. This site is geared towards kids ages 5-12 and the
courses are broken down by subject and grade. These online courses are easy
and fun for the kids to do and cover everything from math to computer
skills.

Clay Yourself
http://www.clayyourself.com
Here¹s a site for creating a clay avatar for you or your students. It¹s a
great site for times when you can¹t use a real photo. The site walks you
through creating a clay avatar of yourself allowing you to create and
customize your facial features. When you¹re done, you can download the image
file for future use.

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Money-Savings
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Free eBooks and Audio Books
http://www.openculture.com/2011/09/popular_high_school_books_available_as_fr
ee_ebooks_audiobooks.html
Teachers and students can access some of the most popular books for free,
mostly as free audio books and ebooks, and sometimes as movies and radio
dramas. Titles include 1984, Frankenstein, Grapes of Wrath, To Kill a
Mockingbird, and more.

Target¹s Daily Deal
http://dailydeals.target.com/
Visit the Target Daily Deal web site to find a variety of items all at a
reduced price.

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Tips & Tricks
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Top Ten Lists
http://web20-21stcentury-tools.wikispaces.com/top-ten
You may be the person who gets asked a lot of technology-related questions.
If so, then you’ll want to add this your arsenal. This wki collects all the
top lists related to education technology. The Top Ten lists covers images
and clip art, YouTube alternative, screencast applications, quiz creators,
file converters, word cloud creators, and online brainstorming.

Buncholinks
http://www.buncholinks.com
Input multiple links (“bunch”) and create a single short URL that takes
people to that bunch. You can describe and revisit a bunch to update it.
Share your bunch for users to comment on or contribute their own links to
the bunch. As the owner, you can control what links are approved. You can
also create your own custom URLs. Use a bunch widget to embed a bunch on
your site.

DocsPal
http://www.docspal.com/
Free online file converter/viewer that supports all kind of documents,
video, audio, images, e-books and archives like Microsoft Word (doc, docx),
PowerPoint (ppt, pptx), Excel (xls, xlsx), Open Office documents (odp, odt,
ods), and many others.

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Professional Development
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Cool Tools VIII
Mark your calendars for EBCUE¹s Cool Tools VIII on February 11, 2012. Don¹t
forget our new location at Head Royce School in Oakland. This will be a Cool
Tools you will not want to miss! More information to come.

MyCTAP!
http://www.myctap.org/
Looking for free technology professional development? Check out MyCTAP! at
the California Technology Assistance Project¹s website. Click on the
Professional Development tab and select from Live Online Workshops, CTAP
Technology Tutorials, Technology Quick Guides, and more.

Digital Citizenship Awareness Webinars
http://cocoschools.org/digital
These webinars are available at no cost to you through a partnership with
Contra Costa County Office of Education, AT&T and CTAP. Teachers, teacher
leaders and administrators who are interested in learning more about the
different aspects of Digital Citizenship are invited to participate from the
comfort of their computer. Topics covered include: Digital Dramatics,
Digital Duplication, Digital Tattoo, Digital Identities and Digital
Learners. Each webinar is 45 minutes and is accompanied by a listing of
resources and tools that teachers can use with their students and
administrators use with their staff. Registration is required.

Fall CUE Conference – Oct. 28 & 29
http://www.fallcue.org
Educators, technology coordinators, administrators and those who are looking
to see how technology can support student achievement should attend this
conference! Many sessions and exhibits will be of special value to those
involved in Title I, School Improvement Program, Eisenhower Program, Data
and Assessment, Enhancing Education Through Technology (EETT), English
Language Development (ELD), Special Needs, and GATE. Over 100 sessions to
choose from.  Register Now!

Simple K-12 Webinars
http://simplek12.com/tlc/webinars/
The Simple K-12 Webinar is a great way to learn some new technology skills
and practices. Free, after-school webinars walk you through a variety of
topics all related to integrating technology into teaching and learning.
There is no cost to participate. Upcoming webinar topics include: The
Flipped Classroom, Using Your iPad to Break Free, 30 Tools in 50 Minutes,
Digital Storytelling on the iPad

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Dates to Remember
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EBCUE Cool Tools VIII
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Head Royce School, Oakland

Fall CUE Conference
October 28 & 29, 2011
American Canyon High School
http://www.fallcue.org

CUE Conference
March 15-17, 2012
Palm Springs Convention Center
http://www.cue.org/conference

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Fine Print
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Do you know of an event, program or information that would be of
interest to EBCUE members? We would like to help you get the word out.
Please
submit all information in electronic form to ebcue@cccoe.k12.ca.us.

_______________________________________________
Ebcue mailing list
Ebcue@cccoe.org
http://cccoe.org/mailman/listinfo/ebcue