Do this BEFORE lunch--Watch Jamie Oliver's passionate award-winning TED speech "Teach Every Kid About Food"
How do we see the world? Before Google Maps there was ... Explore this concept with the fascinating new exhibit Magnificent Maps: Power, Propaganda, & Art from the British Library and read this interesting article about the exhibition Ten of the Greatest: Maps That Changed the World.
How about a little music? Experiment with rhythm and sound with Wolfgram Tones
If science is of interest check out this review of Six Free Websites for Learning and Teaching Science including a great site from Scientific American.
Discovering the Civil War is an absorbing new exhibit from the National Archives that takes our knowledge further about this violent conflict.
We feel strongly about Information Literacy in the Library and we welcome this call to action! Information Literacy: A Neglected Core Competency
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Who decides what students learn? What makes a good teacher? Fun facts to know and tell about the Internet and a handy photo resource.
During Black History Month our high school read Black Profiles in Courage by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and students learned about dynamic African-Americans who were never mentioned in their textbooks. One student told me their lack of inclusion was because, "the winners write the books." Who decides what our students learn? The Common Core State Standards Initiative just published a draft of standards for Mathematics and English Language Arts & Literacy in History/Social Science and Science. Check out this fascinating article from the NY Times Magazine about how history/social science curriculum is formulated in Texas--How Christian Were the Founders.
March is Women's History Month. Link to Women's History Month a resource that is "writing women back into history."
What makes a great teacher? Doug Lemov, a founder of Uncommon Schools is trying to find out. Read about his process and efforts of other researchers in the article Build a Better Teacher.
What are "18 Interesting Firsts on the Internet"? Read the Tech Reader's blog to find out. (A warning to those of us over 29-- this might make you feel old.)
Pictures offer powerful messages and are very useful for presentations when they are in the public domain. Check out the Flickr Commons for public domain image collections from public institutions such as the Library of Congress and many university and museum collections such as the Getty. Limit image searches to public domain photos using Yahoo Advanced Image Search.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nypl/3110117432/
March is Women's History Month. Link to Women's History Month a resource that is "writing women back into history."
What makes a great teacher? Doug Lemov, a founder of Uncommon Schools is trying to find out. Read about his process and efforts of other researchers in the article Build a Better Teacher.
What are "18 Interesting Firsts on the Internet"? Read the Tech Reader's blog to find out. (A warning to those of us over 29-- this might make you feel old.)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nypl/3110117432/
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Remembering 2000 Naught and Looking Forward to 2000 Teen
Is is just me or do people seem to be in a big hurry to leave 2000 Naught* behind them? Take a moment to read This Decade in Words from language columnist Mark Peters to find out why just about everyone is elbowing their way forward to 2000 Teen. Or perhaps you are a visual person like me and find this graphic reflection Picturing the Past 10 Years by Phillip Neimeyer more revealing.
The end of the year always brings a bevy of "best of" lists. Eudutopia, filmmaker George Lucas' website dedicated to "what works in public education" has a Year in Review featuring its best blog posts. If you don't have time to read many blogs (except this one of course) you might want to cut to the best and check out The Edublog Awards best of 09 list featuring blogs on education and libraries. If you'd like a smorgasbord of Top 10 lists check out Time Magazine's Top Ten Everything of 2009, but don't click on Top Ten New Species if you're squeamish.
But enough about the last year and decade, what about the history of the world? BBC Radio 4 is kicking off an ambitious project called A History of the World in 100 Objects by weaving together stories about 100 objects from the British Museum. Each object will get 15 minutes of erudite fame in true BBC fashion starting on January 17th. The whole enterprise will be captured on their A History of the World website. It's worth a bookmark, and I'll be checking back in with the venerable BBC to see if any of my favorite objects will be put on display. (I am a huge fan of the winged-lion and wish it were in front of my office to protect me from the "forces of chaos.")
And what about books? I started the New Year reading Stumbling on Happiness by Harvard psychologist Daniel Gilbert. It's a book about looking forward, and I recommend it to anyone who is thinking-----Onward!
*According to my handy dictionary the archaic phrase bring to naught means "ruin; foil" and set at naught means"disregard; despise" so the 2000 Naught moniker fits in more ways than one IF you're feeling cranky about the past decade.
The end of the year always brings a bevy of "best of" lists. Eudutopia, filmmaker George Lucas' website dedicated to "what works in public education" has a Year in Review featuring its best blog posts. If you don't have time to read many blogs (except this one of course) you might want to cut to the best and check out The Edublog Awards best of 09 list featuring blogs on education and libraries. If you'd like a smorgasbord of Top 10 lists check out Time Magazine's Top Ten Everything of 2009, but don't click on Top Ten New Species if you're squeamish.
But enough about the last year and decade, what about the history of the world? BBC Radio 4 is kicking off an ambitious project called A History of the World in 100 Objects by weaving together stories about 100 objects from the British Museum. Each object will get 15 minutes of erudite fame in true BBC fashion starting on January 17th. The whole enterprise will be captured on their A History of the World website. It's worth a bookmark, and I'll be checking back in with the venerable BBC to see if any of my favorite objects will be put on display. (I am a huge fan of the winged-lion and wish it were in front of my office to protect me from the "forces of chaos.")
And what about books? I started the New Year reading Stumbling on Happiness by Harvard psychologist Daniel Gilbert. It's a book about looking forward, and I recommend it to anyone who is thinking-----Onward!
*According to my handy dictionary the archaic phrase bring to naught means "ruin; foil" and set at naught means"disregard; despise" so the 2000 Naught moniker fits in more ways than one IF you're feeling cranky about the past decade.
Friday, December 18, 2009
The Brain... The News... Fodder for the Curious... Best Books...That's all for 2009
How many times have you wondered: what is REALLY going on inside that teenager's brain? (Or your spouse or your friend or the crabby person standing in line in front of you ...) Here are a couple of articles that shed some light on this persistent quandary.
- Reading and the Brain--What happens in the brain when we read? READ this article and get an introduction to a fascinating new book: Reading in the Brain: The science and evolution of a human invention by Stanislas Dehaene
- "What is the Web Teaching our Brains?" Are we being re-wired? Is that a good thing? It seems that some tasks such as blogging (yeah) are actually beneficial...others promote anxiety.
- Check out this interactive website Play in the News that takes headlines and creates simulation games
- Some news about news from Google. Read about this proposal to limit how many articles readers can read using Google News. There are NO limits when you use Paly's online database EBSCO. See the Library Database page for information.
- Shakespeare Searched lets users type in themes or words and find quotes from the Bard's works as annotated by the Folger Shakespeare Library
- The power of images comes to light while searching The Bettmann Archive. Founded in Otto Bettmann's bedroom in 1936, this rich archive of photos and ephemera follows the history of the United States and the world from the mid-19th century.
- THE 100 BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR! according to the NY Times. My top Five are listed below:
- The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins-Wild dystopian fantasy for young adults and adults.
- Joker One by Donovan Campbell--A sobering memoir about a tour of duty in Iraq written by a Marine platoon commander.
- The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein--Told from a dog's point of view, this is a family story about love, loyalty, loss and redemption.
- Shiver by Maggie Stiefveter --If you are wondering what to get for an avid twilight reader, this story about a hunky werewolf and a teen girl will be a sure-fire hit.
- Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell--What does it take to be successful in this competitive world? Some surprising conclusions..
- Best TED Lecture-- Dan Gilbert asks, "Why are we happy?"
Monday, November 9, 2009
Armistice/Rememberance Day & Berlin Wall
1914 by WILFRED OWEN
War broke: and now the Winter of the world
With perishing great darkness closes in.
The foul tornado, centred at Berlin,
Is over all the width of Europe whirled,
Rending the sails of progress. Rent or furled
Are all Art's ensigns. Verse wails. Now begin
Famines of thought and feeling. Love's wine's thin.
The grain of human Autumn rots, down-hurled.
For after Spring had bloomed in early Greece,
And Summer blazed her glory out with Rome,
An Autumn softly fell, a harvest home,
A slow grand age, and rich with all increase.
But now, for us, wild Winter, and the need
Of sowings for new Spring, and blood for seed.
This heartbreaking poem and other reflections on World War I are found on The First World War Poetry Digital Archive. The Archive includes not only poetry but other fascinating and moving artifacts of "the great war" including photos, audio/video clips and educational timelines. See an overview of this resource on YouTube.
Voices of the Armistice are podcasts revealing the actual experiences of British soldiers during the war.
Guide to World War I Primary Source Materials details resources from the Library of Congress
In Europe days and months are reversed so the notation 9/11 has a different meaning, especially in Germany. November 9th is the day the Berlin Wall came down, and this year marks its 20 year anniversary. Check out information about this momentous event at Freedom Without Walls from the German Embassy and photos and video from visitBerlin.
War broke: and now the Winter of the world
With perishing great darkness closes in.
The foul tornado, centred at Berlin,
Is over all the width of Europe whirled,
Rending the sails of progress. Rent or furled
Are all Art's ensigns. Verse wails. Now begin
Famines of thought and feeling. Love's wine's thin.
The grain of human Autumn rots, down-hurled.
For after Spring had bloomed in early Greece,
And Summer blazed her glory out with Rome,
An Autumn softly fell, a harvest home,
A slow grand age, and rich with all increase.
But now, for us, wild Winter, and the need
Of sowings for new Spring, and blood for seed.
This heartbreaking poem and other reflections on World War I are found on The First World War Poetry Digital Archive. The Archive includes not only poetry but other fascinating and moving artifacts of "the great war" including photos, audio/video clips and educational timelines. See an overview of this resource on YouTube.
Voices of the Armistice are podcasts revealing the actual experiences of British soldiers during the war.
Guide to World War I Primary Source Materials details resources from the Library of Congress
In Europe days and months are reversed so the notation 9/11 has a different meaning, especially in Germany. November 9th is the day the Berlin Wall came down, and this year marks its 20 year anniversary. Check out information about this momentous event at Freedom Without Walls from the German Embassy and photos and video from visitBerlin.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
A school library with no books? 21st Century Skills and Some New Tools for Research and Environmental Action
What are the skills and dispositions we need to teach our students to prepare them for the 21st Century? Route 21 is a collaboration among educational professionals policymakers and industry.
What happens when a school library replaces every book with Kindels? Read this article from USA Today and find out what the students think. (Thank you KB for this link)
Medpedia is a new medical resource using the Wikipedia model BUT with oversight from medical professionals.
What is a vook? Vooks combine text and video and can be downloaded onto a computer or smartphone. I can see if for cooking but romance???
The Library of Congress Teacher's Page has links to great collections of primary sources and great tools for analyzing them. There are also opportunities for professional development. Check out their page on veteran's stories.
Another new source for primary sources is Footnote. They have partnered with the National Archives to offer high quality digital copies of important historic documents. They also have a genealogy section using historic census information. Unfortunately there is a fee to do any deep searching using the census data.
Here's a website that encourages students to look at the environmental consequences of their purchases. Be Different. Live Different. Buy Different
What happens when a school library replaces every book with Kindels? Read this article from USA Today and find out what the students think. (Thank you KB for this link)
Medpedia is a new medical resource using the Wikipedia model BUT with oversight from medical professionals.
What is a vook? Vooks combine text and video and can be downloaded onto a computer or smartphone. I can see if for cooking but romance???
The Library of Congress Teacher's Page has links to great collections of primary sources and great tools for analyzing them. There are also opportunities for professional development. Check out their page on veteran's stories.
Another new source for primary sources is Footnote. They have partnered with the National Archives to offer high quality digital copies of important historic documents. They also have a genealogy section using historic census information. Unfortunately there is a fee to do any deep searching using the census data.
Here's a website that encourages students to look at the environmental consequences of their purchases. Be Different. Live Different. Buy Different
Friday, October 9, 2009
See a Film.. Read an Article.. Enjoy Books Photos Music
United Nations Association Film Festival comes to our neighborhood October 17th-25th featuring 50 documentaries from 50 countries with the theme Energy & The World. A special event aimed at students will be held at Eastside Prep on Tuesday, October 20th from 4:15-7:40pm with a discussion with the filmmakers following Speaking in Tongues and Prom Night in Mississippi What a great opportunity!!!
Geography is Destiny Read this short yet thought provoking article by NPR education correspondent John Merrow about the growing digital divide.
Inverting Blooms Taxonomy Here's a quote from this interesting article about teaching history for understanding: "That’s because in history, as in other disciplines, the aim is not merely to collect what is known, but to learn how to think about problems in a new way."
“Knowing the world means understanding the chaos and seeing the meaning.” This quote is from a talk titled Knowledge in the Age of Abundance given by David Weingerger from the Berkman Center for Internet and Society. Read a summary of his speech.
It's National Reading Group Month! Check out some of their suggested titles.
Explore this beautiful new interface for LIFE magazine's photo archives.
A recommendation to check out study guides on Shmoop has appeared in this blog before, and now they have a music section. Shmoop is a website that supplements popular high school curriculum and literature with breezy yet informative summaries. Unlike a lot of "educational" information on the Web, they source all their material and their ads aren't too intrusive.
Geography is Destiny Read this short yet thought provoking article by NPR education correspondent John Merrow about the growing digital divide.
Inverting Blooms Taxonomy Here's a quote from this interesting article about teaching history for understanding: "That’s because in history, as in other disciplines, the aim is not merely to collect what is known, but to learn how to think about problems in a new way."
“Knowing the world means understanding the chaos and seeing the meaning.” This quote is from a talk titled Knowledge in the Age of Abundance given by David Weingerger from the Berkman Center for Internet and Society. Read a summary of his speech.
It's National Reading Group Month! Check out some of their suggested titles.
Explore this beautiful new interface for LIFE magazine's photo archives.
A recommendation to check out study guides on Shmoop has appeared in this blog before, and now they have a music section. Shmoop is a website that supplements popular high school curriculum and literature with breezy yet informative summaries. Unlike a lot of "educational" information on the Web, they source all their material and their ads aren't too intrusive.
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