Virtual
Teacher Newsletter No. 98 23rd October 2004 PROBE AWAY
THE
FREE ONLINE FORTNIGHTLY IT TEACHERS' NEWSLETTER
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CONTENTS
1.
Welcome
2.
Mind Candy
3.
WWWinfo -Dictionary
4.
New Printables/Viewables
5.
Technical Stuff Canon Camera History
6.
Web Site Focus Leadership Models and Change
7. ECOLOG
XL Data Loggers
8.
Great Sites
9. Readers' Requests/Comments
10
Next Issue
11.
Code of 'Netizens'
12.
Tips
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1.
WELCOME EVERYONE. Data Probes to the left of me, data
probes
to the right of me, fantastic.
Hereıs a great way to start
changing
education, use data probes. The
students feel like
scientists,
they ask their own questions, they collect their own
data
and they measure their own environment. Badluck you
wonıt
be the first to use an EcoLog XL data logger in NSW,
that
honour goes to Crown Public School. But you can get
moving
on this great technology. Read
about it below and
set
yourself up for some scientific fun and experimentation.
Graph
goes up graph goes down. Wonderful.
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2.
MIND CANDY
To
contemplate:-
The
Value of Persistent Dissonance
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boffo
(BOF-o) adjective
1. (Of a movie, play, or some
other show) Extremely successful.
2. (Of a laugh) uproarious,
hearty. noun
1. A great success.
2. A hearty laugh.
3. A gag or punch-line that
elicits uproarious laughter.
[Of
uncertain origin. Probably a blend of box office or an alteration
of
buffo, bouffe, or boffola. The term was popularized by Variety,
a
magazine for the U.S. entertainment industry.]
"His (Patrick Brown's) problem
seems to me to be the demands of the
production group of which he is a
part and which requires a boffo hit
every time in order to keep the
auditorium packed ..."
Norman Rae; Wheaties & Lilies
& Severed P's; Jamaica Observer (Kingston,
Jamaica); Aug 1, 2004.
............................................................................
Extraordinary
claims require extraordinary evidence. -Carl Sagan,
astronomer
and author (1934-1996)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"If
you are not criticized, you may not be doing much."
Donald H. Rumsfeld, American businessman
and 21st U.S.
Secretary
of Defense
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3.
WWWinfo
Find
It! First, Fast and Free!
English
Dictionary - With Multi-Lingual Search
=====================================
4.
NEW PRINTABLES/VIEWABLES
Data
Logger Experiment Archive
This
is just great check out how data loggers are used mini movies covering logger
use and experiments.
http://www.fourier-sys.com/teachers.html
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5. TECHNICAL STUFF
Canon
Site
Canon
Online Camera Museum
http://www.canon.com/camera-museum/history/canon_story/f_index.html
==============================================
6.
WEBSITE FOCUS Leadership Models and Change
Managers are
people who do things right, while leaders are people who do the right thing. -
Warren Bennis, Ph.D. "On Becoming a Leader"
Alpha
leadership
http://www.nlpu.com/Articles/AlphaLeader.html
Big
Dogıs leadership Page
http://www.nwlink.com/~donclark/leader/leadcon.html
Leadership
in the Civil Air Patrol
http://level2.cap.gov/Prof_Dev_Modules/cap_lesson_01/lesson1_html/lesson1.htm
There is
a crisis of leadership because there is a crisis in
decision
making. Great diagrams
http://www.metabridge.com/articles/leadership.htm
How
organizations, groups and
individuals change.
http://www.chimaeraconsulting.com/models.htm
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7.
ECOLOG XL
Data
Loggers BRILLIANT
I
love these things. Peter from
OZIntell came out and gave
a
demo of the EcoLog data logger the other day. What a
knock
out piece of equipment. The basic unit has 5 sensors,
temperature,
light, sound, humidity and air
pressure. The
software
is fabulous, simple to use and immediate.
The
Logger
can be used as a stand alone as well as plugged
into
the computer so that you can see immediate graphical
results
so cool. Take the hot water in
one glass, icey
water
in the other glass, put the probe in one then the other,
graph
goes up, graph goes down, graph goes up, graph
goes
down I loved watching it. Same
thing, turn the
lights
on, turn the lights off, measure the varying decibel
rate
of applause, the school choir or a drum kit. Take it on
an
excursion and measure the change in temperature, light,
sound,
and air pressure over time, for the whole excursion.
Download
into the computer on your return and look at the
variations
in relation to one another.
Measure the change
in
temperature and air pressure as a storm approaches,
over
several days a week or a month(goes for 41 days).
The
possibilities are endless. This
makes the students feel
like
real scientists, gives them sophisticated tools, to make
accurate
records and observations using real data they
have
collected. There are also a number of probes that can
be
attached to this little gadget, to measure things like temperature
in
water, pulse rate, heart rate, voltage, salinity, distance etc.
Wonderful.
PC and Mac compatible.
Contact
Peter at peter@ozintell.com and tell
him you heard
about
it from VirtualTeacher.
Check
out the OZIntell EcoLog XL at http://www.ozintel.com.au
VERNIER GO! Probes
These
probes link directly into your computer and are also
fantastic. Each probe is a single use probe and
there are
a
great many of them (Light sensor, ph Sensor, Magnetic
Field
Sensor, force Plate etc). Each
probe comes with itıs
own
software and usb. Once again the software is brilliant
and
easy to use for both PC and Mac.
Temperature goes
up,
temperature goes down, I could do it for ages. Add cold
water
to hot what happens, add ice, what happens, add a
metal
spoon what happens?
Ed is
the guy to contact about these direct to computer probes.
For
some info about the probes goto
What
do I think is best, what should you purchase? Both
sorts
are great. Each has itıs usefulness. The single use
data
probes are particularly useful for lower primary as they
are
the simplest to use. They can of
course be used at all
levels
K-12, they provide the simplest starting point, single
use,
option. The EcoLog and itıs more
sophisticated brother
MultiLogPRO,
are great for more sophisticated users upper
primary
and High School, they provide the opportunity for
looking
at relationships between data.
My
recommendation, buy a selection of both, but most
importantly
start using them. They are hugely motivating
to
use, spectacular in their results and students just love them.
More
Logger ideas next newsletter.
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8.
GREAT SITES
HOT
SITES
The
Sea: Pollution and Conservation
http://library.trinity.wa.edu.au/junior/sea.htm
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This
website which covers both the sea and the sky.
From
Trinity College
Try
some of the links
http://www.seasky.org/mainmenu.html
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The
Biggest Polar Bear Site
http://www.polarbearsinternational.org/
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Faces
of Modern Science - Free Download Poster
http://www.scienceyear.com/sciteach/start.html
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Debating
http://www.scienceyear.com/sciteach/index.html?page=/sciteach/debating/index.html
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Aloha
Welcome to Science Planet take the Plunge into Science Paradise
Free
games and resources
http://www.scienceyear.com/home.html
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9.
READERS COMMENTS/REQUESTS
Hi
Cathy,
Please
note my new email address
Thank
you for your wonderful newsletter and for your ideas.
I now
know I am not alone with some of your concerns.
Regards
Gaby
Cathy,
I don't want to miss an issue. My
email provider quit
doing
business
leaving
me unknowingly without email!
Thankfully it only affected one day
of
service
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If
you would like to change or email address it would be great
if you
could use the subscribe ad unsubscribe options at the
beginning
of the newsletter. This is a quick way to change anything.
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Hi
Cathy,
I
always look forward to reading your newsletters. You always
have
something interesting to say about the "big picture" in
education.
Thanks also for giving my website a plug recently.
I
teach full-time in a primary school in Coffs Harbour and http://www.primaryschool.com.au
is
just a hobby. I am on leave at the moment lecturing in
Ed IT
at SCU. I would love to meet you some time.
Charlie
O'Sullivan
What
is SCU, goodluck with it, email me if you are ever in Sydney
------------------------------------------
Hi
Cathy
I was
looking at your website and surprised you hadn't mentioned ours!!
I am
a maths teacher who has spent 4 years writing texts and
designing
this website. It has so much stuff in it is hard to get it
to
one line!
Visit
the student area, games station 1 to start off with, but
trying
everything else out may take quite a few hours!!
Hope
you like it
Ian
Fisher
10ticks.co.uk
Hi
Ian,
It
may surprise you to know I havenıt been everywhere on
the
web. I rely on good folk, like yourself, to let me know about the great
stuff
out there. the site looks interesting. What do the rest of you think.
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Hi. I am thankful for my opportunity to be
a part of your Virtual
Teacher
listserv. I was wondering if the
lesson plans and other
educational
information that is included with this program are
allowed
to be copied for classroom use as long as the copyright
is
documented? Thank you. I look forward to hearing from you.
Hannah
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Hi Hannah,
Welcome
aboard.
"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!!!"
And
also send any great ideas you have along to share with everyone.
ciao
Cathy
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The
kids really enjoy this and it can be played at all different levels.
http://www.funbrain.com/brain/MathBrain/MathBrain.html
James
Cumming
North
Shore PS
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10. NEXT ISSUE - ROBOTS
Send
in your great ideas and websites as well.
Letıs
share everything. 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.
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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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