Virtual
Teacher Newsletter No. 82 A LITTLE BIT OF MAGIC November 15th
2003
THE
FREE ONLINE FORTNIGHTLY IT TEACHERS' NEWSLETTER
==============================================
CONTENTS
1.
Welcome
2.
Mind Candy
3.
WWWinfo - Norad
4.
New Printables - Christmas Star
5.
Technical Stuff Clean-up
6.
Web Site Focus - Project Gutenberg!
7.
Christmas Links
8.
Great Sites
9. Readers' Requests/Comments
10
Next Issue
11.
Code of 'Netizens'
12.
Tips
==============================================
1.
WELCOME EVERYONE. The year is
drawing to a close
and
all too soon it will be Christmas. End of year concerts,
end
of year parties. This newsletter
has lots of Christmas links for
all
ages, as well as ideas for Christmas concerts and the latest links
to
intel on SANTA himself. A little
bit of magic, a little bit of mystery
and
lots of fun. Exams are over, or nearly over, so kick back and
enjoy
it.
==============================================
2.
MIND CANDY
Life
is not an answer it is a question.
GLEF
Video http://www.glef.org/schoolthatdid.html
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Late
night TV is very educational. It teaches you that you
should
have gone to bed earlier." - James Dent s
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"What
[most schools] don't teach is, 'How do you create your
own
knowledge? How do you merge your own ideas and the
ideas
that are already out there to create even more powerful
ideas?'
That's the piece that expeditionary learning really helps
with."
- Hae-Sin Kim, principal of ASCEND, in Oakland, California.
The
Little School that Did. http://www.glef.org/schoolthatdid.html
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"I
think there's a switch in all of us, something that turns us on..."
The
Little School that Did. http://www.glef.org/schoolthatdid.html
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sennight
(SEN-yt) noun
A
week.
[From
Middle English, from Old English seofon nihta, from
seofon
(seven) +nihta, plural of niht (night).]
Fortnight
is a cousin of today's word. Twice as long as a
sennight,
it's a compressed form of "fourteen night". -Anu
==============================================
3.
WWWinfo Norad
The
Real Truth about Santa Stay Tuned
http://www.airforce.forces.ca/news/2002/12/23_e.htm
=====================================
4.
NEW PRINTABLES
Make
your childrenšs STARS. Copy on A4
or do a fit to
page
on A4 if you can in colour or Black and white. Ask your
children
to draw, or photograph themselves, for the middle of
the
star. Clever/Older folk can import
the image and place a
digital
photo in the centre circle. This
is a great activity for
budding
high school photographers and end of year liaisons
with
primary schools.
http://www.virtualteacher.com.au/xmasstar.pdf
http://www.virtualteacher.com.au/xmasstar.pdf
==============================================
5.
TECHNICAL STUFF computers slowing down browsers
merely
dawdling
Clean-up
your computers for 2004.
FREE
Computer Software Programs including Clean-up programs.
Clean-up
your programs, get rid of unwanted files and spyware
ready
for the new year.
http://www.a1b2c3.com/free/index.html#comp
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ADAWARE
http://www.lavasoftusa.com/software/adaware/
What
could be wrong??
http://www.computing.net/windowsme/wwwboard/forum/38432.html
http://www.annoyances.org/exec/forum/winme/r1043993952
==============================================
6.
WEBSITE FOCUS -Project Gutenberg!
Project
Gutenberg is the Internet's oldest producer of FREE
electronic
books (eBooks or
eTexts).
Project
Gutenberg is the brainchild of Michael
Hart , who in 1971
decided
that it would be a really good idea if lots of famous and
important
texts were freely available to everyone in the world.
Since
then, he has been joined by hundreds of volunteers who
share
his vision. Now, more than thirty
years later,
Project
Gutenberg has the following figures (as of November 8th 2002):
203
New eBooks released during October 2002, 1975 New
eBooks
produced in 2002 (they were 1240 in 2001) for a total
of
6267 Total Project Gutenberg eBooks. 119 eBooks have been
posted
so far by Project Gutenberg of Australia .
WOW
does this one get you out of trouble with late night last
minute
quotes or WHAT!!!
==============================================
7. Christmas
Links
Virtual
Teacher Christmas Links
http://www.virtualteacher.com.au/christmas.html
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dear
Cathy,
Love
the regular ideas & info in your e-mag!
Some
ideas for Xmas Templates:
http://www.forsyth.k12.ga.us/sbeck/christmastemplates.htm
(this
one has a few options & all of the links may not work,
but
lots of fun
ideas
to get the creativity flowing)
http://www.henry.k12.ga.us/pges/projects/around.htm
(good
one for scavenger hunting)
http://cybersleuth-kids.com/sleuth/Society_and_Culture/Holidays/Christmas/Activites/
(a
variety)
http://www.technteach.net/holidays.htm#Christmas
http://www.onestopenglish.com/News/Magazine/children/younglearners_elt_celebrate.htm
Hope
they're helpful!
Megan
Berkeley
PS
-------------------------------------------------------------
Songs for the End of Year Concert
Marvelous Toy
http://www.brownielocks.com/marveloustoy.html
Site packed with everything, and I mean everything.
http://www.brownielocks.com/contents.html
http://www.brownielocks.com/marveloustoy.html
==============================================
8.
GREAT SITES
HOT
SITES
smART
Kids helps students, particularly 7 to 12 year olds, look
at
art, learn art vocabulary, explore
materials, and find out about
historic pieces of art. Students can visit an
artist's studio, create art,
and
are prompted to use a journal to record ideas and answer
questions
about art. Created by the
education staff at The David
and
Alfred Smart Museum
of
Art, University of Chicago.
http://smartmuseum.uchicago.edu/smartkids/index.html
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What
exactly is a folk tale? A folk tale is any story that has been
passed
down through the generations. Folk tales are so familiar
to us
that we can tell them without having the written text in front
of
us. This WebQuest would be
especially meaningful after a brief
study
of familiar folk tales, fairy tales and fables.
http://schoolweb.missouri.edu/nixa.k12.mo.us/sullivan/tales/intro.htm
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Beetle
Science
"We
live in the age of beetles," claims a group of scientists devoted
to
the study of this diverse and
abundant insect order.
http://explore.cornell.edu/scene.cfm?scene=Beetle%20Science
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LEARN
Information Literacy Initiative
http://www.tafe.sa.edu.au/lili/index.html
Created
by South Australian TAFE Libraries, this interactive tutorial
provides
an online learning opportunity for students to gain useful
skills
in locating and using information based on the Australian
Information
Literacy Standards. The main sections are: Introduction,
Analyse
your assignment, Identify needed resources, Identify keywords,
Search
the library catalogue, Find it on the shelf, Search the Web,
Evaluate
and cite your sources. Although created for Australians
students,
it can be used by anyone.
K-12
==============================================
9.
READERS COMMENTS/REQUESTS
I
have been searching for a webquest for a gifted grade 5 student in the area of
drawing or painting. Could be a
study of an artist or techniques of drawing. Anything arty.
Can you help?
Love
your site
Cheers
Diana Michalek
Hi
Diana,
Try http://smartmuseum.uchicago.edu/smartkids/index.html
VT
has some great links
http://www.virtualteacher.com.au/art.html
For
this age group I quite like
also
http://www.sanford-artedventures.com/index.html
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cathy,
I
received my first copy of the Virtual teacher around the 18th October but not
one since. It was a great publication. Am I getting pushy in looking for the
next?
Hi
Charles
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Last
VT sent out on Saturday. You are
on the list - however
if
your hotmail box is full it will bounce - check this out
also
empty your trash.
link
to latest newsletter
http://www.virtualteacher.com.au/VT81.htm
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dear
Cathy,
Although
I was a secondary teacher, I love your newsletters.
Many
of the links you provide, nicely categorised into themes,
suit
my purposes also.
Cheers
Jenny
http://www.knowledgecollegetutors.com
Knowledge
College Tutors
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hi
Cathy,
Is
this the program mentioned on Today Tonight?
Regards,
Isidora
Carpenter-Rowland
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hi
Isidora,
MathsPOWER
was mentioned about the middle of the year in
one
of these programs. They
interviewed some students.
Probably
was Today Tonight. This program is
a great program to
look
at with the view to implementing school wide. At the moment
the
marketing is directly to parents not so much to schools however
one
school, St Clair High School, has taken the plunge. This is the
way
of the future for schools. A rigorous software program that can
cover
the basics for all students at their own pace. Allowing the
teachers
to get on with the more important tasks of teaching
mathematical
thinking, discussing mathematical ideas and encouraging enthusiasm. Greater benefits for the teacher in
that he/she is not
re-teaching
the same things over and over again, greater benefits
for
the students as they can learn at their own pace and repeat lessons
when
they require, as well as fast track lessons they find easier.
==============================================
10. NEXT ISSUE A little more
Christmas a lot of vacation,
send
in your ideas about the best vacations for the Christmas
Holidays.
Ciao Cathy
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
11.
Code of the 'Netizens'
This
Newsletter is not free, despite the misleading advertising
above.
The Fee is now due. Each week you must help one
colleague
on the Internet who has less knowledge than you.
Help
that person even if you have to visit their classroom or
do a
little research and get back to them. Trust me, this will
help
a lot of people get their computer classrooms running better.
OK
I'm trusting you!!!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
12.
TIPS
1.
Double click on highlighted URLS to open in browser.
2.
Send in your Questions, Questions will be published with
Answers,
send in your Answers, if you have expertise to share.
3.
Nominate a brilliant site for review and inclusion in this
newsletter.
4.
Nominate a fantastic school site for review and inclusion in
this
newsletter.
5.
Make contact with other schools using fantastic programs.
6.
Prepare and innovative article for this newsletter.
7.
Tell 2 colleagues about this newsletter.
==============================================
The
opinions expressed here are purely those of the editor,
Cathy
Brown. All other small print clauses apply. Such as:
Use
at your own risk. Nothing in life
is guaranteed. If it doesn't
work
for you send me an email.
Editor:
cathy brown mailto:cathy@virtualteacher.com.au
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Delivered
FREE to your e-mail box every fortnight.
Online
Lesson Plans, Great Sites, Free Stuff, Tips, Time savers,
and
templates.
Computer
Solutions for Teachers. Subscribe today! It's
totally
Free! Just type subscribe in the subject and send it to me.
==============================================
Reach
a growing audience of teachers, by
advertising in the
Virtual
Teacher Newsletter or on the Virtual Teacher site.
For
more information contact,
For
information about inservice and training contact me at
==============================================