Virtual Teacher Newsletter No.88 March26th 2004 WIZARDS OF AAAHS!
THE FREE ONLINE FORTNIGHTLY IT TEACHERS' NEWSLETTER
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CONTENTS
1.
Welcome
2.
Mind Candy
3.
WWWinfo ATOMIC LEARNING
4.
New Printables - Life on Mars
5.
Technical Stuff Courses from Kerry- EDNA
6.
Web Site Focus - Maps
7. CD
COVER Solutions
8.
Great Sites
9. Readers' Requests/Comments
10
Next Issue
11.
Code of 'Netizens'
12.
Tips
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1.
WELCOME EVERYONE. I don't think we have as yet begun
to
realize the sort of freedoms use of technologies gives us as
teachers.
Once this begins to impact on our minds it will totally
change
the way we think about teaching. This newsletter is
designed
to provide ideas to do just that. Take a look at The CD
Cover
solutions, The Life on Mars PowerPoint, The Atomic Learning Opportunities and shake
it up.
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2.
MIND CANDY
By
the time you can make ends meet, they move the ends.
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But
words are things, a small drop of ink, / Falling like dew upon
a
thought, produces / That which makes thousands, perhaps
millions,
think.
-Lord
Byron, poet (1788-1824)
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Interesting
words:
Long word 45 letters:
pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis (a kind of lung disease)
Short words, 2 letters:
aa (a
kind of lava), os (bone, mouth), Rx (prescription)
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Seymour
Papert
³Another
example: kids are learning to despise schools. They
are
learning that the way schools do things is not the best way
and
they have many other examples to learn from. Society is
changing,
and the kids can see that, but the schools are not
changing,
and the gap is growing perceptibly larger.
http://www.downes.ca/cgi-bin/website/view.cgi?dbs=Article&key=1079472387&format=full
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To
save the schools, we have to break them. The current move
toward
standardization is a last gasp, "the last twitch of the
dragon's
tail" as the old system dies. It is natural, in such a
time,
for the bureaucracy to close ranks, to centrally impose
something
like standardization "instead of its direct opposite,
higher
standards." We're losing the chance now to have better
learning,
he argued, but not only that, because trying to be static
will
lead only to decline.
http://www.downes.ca/cgi-bin/website/view.cgi?dbs=Article&key=1079472387&format=full
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3.
WWWinfo ATOMIC LEARNING
Current
FREE Tutorial Mac OS 10.3 Panther
Kidspiration
FREE
http://www.atomiclearning.com/freekidspc.shtml
MovieMaker
2 FREE Tutorials
http://www.atomiclearning.com/
Atomic Learning provides software training using a unique,
just-in-time approach. Our library of
thousands of short tutorials on dozens of applications are
focused on answering the common questions teachers, students and anyone
else may have when learning software. We like to call them "atoms
of
learning" and they are easy to access whenever and where ever you
need
them. A subscription to Atomic Learning provides you access to all of
the
tutorials and other valuable educational resources
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4.
NEW PRINTABLES Life on Mars - The PowerPoint
http://www.virtualteacher.com.au/LifeonMars.ppt
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5.
TECHNICAL STUFF
Totally
free EdNA Online workshops throughout Australia,
first
ones in May in Canberra.
There
are 2 90 minute workshops.
Workshop
A is all about bringing people's understanding of
the
EdNA website up to date.
Workshop
B is about embedding EdNA tools and services in
your
school website, your professional association website or
your
own web pages.
Bookings
can be made on the form at http://www.edna.edu.au/edna/page2765.html
Monday
24 May:
These
workshops are all at the newly located (will be by then apparently) Teaching
and learning Centre, in rooms MR3&4, Canberra
College,
Stirling/Weston Campus, Fremantle Drive, Stirling
S17,
Workshop A, 11.15-12.45
S18,
Workshop B, 1.30 - 3 pm
S19,
Workshop A, 3.30 - 5 pm
Wednesday
26 May
These
workshops will all be at a location yet to be arranged by
Catholic
Education's Learning Technologies & Library Services
Cangoul
office, but I am expecting them to be in Canberra.
S20,
Workshop A, 9.15-10.45
S21,
Workshop B, 11.15 - 12.45
S22,
Workshop A, 1.30 - 3 pm
I
have an after school workshop arranged with a primary
school
3.15 - 5 pm for Tuesday 25 May, but nothing earlier in
that
day, and would gladly take up any offers to visit etc.
Similarly
I am not doing anything in the evening of Monday,
Tuesday,
or Wednesday and would be more than willing to
do
professional association pd with any one interested.
Kerrie
Smith
Schools
Information Officer
http://www.edna.edu.au/schools.html
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Online
resource for Microsoft Office users, includes tutorials, templates downloads
and media gallery.
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6.
WEBSITE FOCUS Maps
Some
Great Map and Atlas Sites at:-
http://www.virtualteacher.com.au/geog.html
Just
for Fun Map Game
http://www.rethinkingschools.org/just_fun/games/mapgame.html
Drag
and drop the names of Middle Eastern countries into
their
proper places on the map.
Online
Map Creation
http://www.aquarius.geomar.de/omc/omc_intro.html
Construct
your own map: choose coordinates for boundaries,
kind
of projection, and types of data.
Maps
That Teach
http://www.yourchildlearns.com/owlmouse.htm
Learn
the countries of different continents and their capitals with
these
fun and educational map puzzle games.
Earth
and Moon Viewer
http://www.fourmilab.ch/cgi-bin/uncgi/Earth?opt=-p&img=learth.evif
Viewing
the Earth: You can view either a map of the Earth showing the
day
and night regions at this moment, or view the Earth from the Sun,
the
Moon, the night side of the Earth, above any location on the
planet
specified by latitude, longitude and altitude, from a
satellite
in Earth orbit, or above various cities around the globe.
You
can view maps of the moon, too.
National
Geographic's Map Machine
http://plasma.nationalgeographic.com/mapmachine/
Examine
world themes, US themes, atlases, historical maps, flags and facts.
Zoom
Into Maps!
http://memory.loc.gov/learn/features/maps/index.htmlUsing
historic maps from the Library of Congress, help students
discover
the stories that maps can tell us. Site introduces
historical
maps from the American Memory collections. Categories
include:
Exploration and Discovery, Migration and Settlement, Travel
and
Transportation, Military, Pictorial Maps, Unusual Maps, and more.
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7. CD
COVER IDEA SOLUTION
Playing
around with the CD Cover program, Whatever it is Roxio,
Nero,
etc, they all provide options for producing labels and covers with some great
templates.
1.
Goto Your CD Burning program, there will be an option to design
a CD
cover and label for you CD.
2.
Goto the format menu and select a background that suits(in some programs these
backgrounds come up in the first selection window).
OR
select an image, colour or pattern to fill the background.
3.
Use a text box to insert the title and contents info.
4. Do
the same for the Front, Back and Inlay for you CD.
5.
Print it out a sticky label is needed for the inlay however as a design
exercise non- sticky is just fine.
What
else can you do with these???
These
are great for storybook covers for Primary Schools.
Hint:-
you can print them out do a percentage increase in size
to
make them bigger about 120% is pretty good.
The
Inlay is a great circle insert the childıs photo and type
in
the text box.
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8.
GREAT SITES
HOT
SITES
The
Attack of the 50 Foot Chicken - Special effects and the
Wizards
of Ahhhhs!
History
of Special Efects and Some great examples.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/specialfx2/
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The original
Skyway in the Blue Mountains of NSW is being
replaced with a
brand new cable car.
The SKYWAY will
reopen November 2004. Find out all
about
this historic
Blue Mountains Tourist Attraction at:-
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9.
READERS COMMENTS/REQUESTS
Hi
Cathy
Quick
question. Do you know of any sites
online that are to
do
with Possum Magic? Possum Magic
turns 21 on the 31st
of
June and thought it might be nice to do something with the
kids
(year 1/2). Any help or ideas
would be greatly appreciated.
Cheers
Annie
---------------------------------------
http://www.memfox.net/books/possum_magic.html
http://www.scholastic.com.au/corporate/cor_news_item.asp?NewsId=435
http://www.teachers.ash.org.au/ozreading/activities/possum.htm
Book
Rap
http://www.schools.ash.org.au/hillview/posind.htm
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Dear
Cathy,
I have
already emailed you but perhaps you didn't get it. I am a very keen
reader
of your newsletter and enjoy receiving it every fortnight. Last year
you
gave the web address to some excellent comments for writing reports. I
looked
this up and gained a great deal from it.
Unfortunately my computer
was
stolen and with it the report comments.
Could you please send me a copy
of
the website again.
With
sincere thanks
Anne
Munro
-----------------------------
Hi
Anne,
This
newsletter had a number of sites with comments for report writing.
http://www.virtualteacher.com.au/VT74.htm
To
find past articles and recommendations on the VT site just use the google
search engine on the directory page - works very well and only searches VT.
-----------------------------
I am
a mature age 2nd year education student who regularly
receives
your newsletter. I just wanted to
thankyou for your
wonderful
project, which keeps me enthused and looking forward t
o the
many more exciting resources you make available to educators.
My
only trouble is that I can get so absorbed in the materials you
provide
that I forget the time, and find that I'm not doing my
assigned
work from Uni!
Thanks
Leisel
Ward
-----------------------------
Hi
Leisel,
Thanks
for that. Maybe this Newsletter should be an assignment
for
UNI. Or perhaps your UNI people
should invite me to do a
guest
lecture there. At the moment I am
working on a seminar
on
Filmmaking - and how to make it actually work in the
classroom. Called - 'the Attack of the 50 ft
chicken and other
filmmaking
stuff'. No educational jargon
here. Stay tuned
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10. NEXT ISSUE Iıd like to get some
feedback on what is
happening
in schools with digital video let me know what
you
are doing.
Ciao Cathy
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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!!!
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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.
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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
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