A Piece of My Mind

I recently came across several really neat podcasts that you might be interested in:

Science
60-Second Science – from Scientific American comes the latest science news each weekday

Spanish
Learn Spanish Survival Guide – self-explanatory

Geography
Travel with Rick Steves – 30 years of globetrotting for PBS has helped create this content

Language Arts
Grammar Girl’s Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing – one of the top podcasts regularly, great for everyone not just ELA teachers

To take advantage of these podcasts, do the following:
1. Open iTunes
2. Go to the iTunes Store (menu on the left side of screen)
3. Click on Podcasts in menu of iTunes Store
4. Click on Power Search in the right hand side of screen
5. Copy and paste the titles that are in bold print above into the Description box on the power search screen
6. Click the name of the podcast, and then click subscribe
7. If all else fails, call me to come help you out

If you find any great podcasts you want to share here, email them to me or leave the information about them in the comment field and I will make a post about it.

Technorati Tags: Scott_S_Floyd, science, geography, podcasts, esl, ela

What else can I say about the technology sessions offered in the k12online conference? Check out the poster below, and then check out the site. This is your chance to learn new technologies and the pedagogy behind them without having a class full of people sitting around you. No pressure to move on until you are ready. Yet, there is a ton of free support offered in this as well, so you are not left stranded. The conference is one I highly recommend.

Oh, did I mention it is free?

If you need help getting an RSS feed reader set-up so you can follow the conference happenings easier, let me know. I am always more than happy to help out.

Technorati Tags: Scott_S_Floyd, k12online07

Over the summer I joined the Teachers Teaching Teachers podcast with Paul Allison. It was an incredible experience to be a part of this very diverse group of folks. I can’t say teachers because we had the benefit and privilege of two students joining us.

One, a ninth grader, was about to become the most connected student in her county. Out of need, she is being given a loaded laptop that will allow her to be a seamless part of the classroom. Her goal in life is to be a writer. Good for her. Her district seems to be doing what needs to be done to help her in every way possible. I can’t wait for her to start honing her skills on her own blog.

The other student, an eighteen year old from Australia, was not shy in the least bit. She was asked hard questions about what teachers need to do to engage students with new tools. She fired back answers that made us pause and reflect about our own actions in our instruction and how they alter the learning environment. While she says her teacher, Jason Hando , is the best, she discussed how it was not an across the board feeling in all of her classes. Then she asked what it would take to teach teachers how to be more in tune with technology and integrating skills. Ouch. Can anyone say, PD Bingo?

Overall, the six of us that joined together for the podcast in Chico, CA, were very impressed with the student input. The chat room, as usual, provided some great questions and running commentary about the conversation. It bounces me back to the reflections from Karl Fisch and others about NECC: Where are the students at these events? Bravo to Paul and the TTT folks for including them in the webcast. We should all strive to include these most important voices in our tech planning.

Technorati Tags: Scott_S_Floyd, Teachers_Teaching_Teachers, Paul_Allison, teaching