Why not be Animated!?

I have found one thing about students in the classroom. They like to draw. Often they are not happy with the quality of their work, but I always encourage them to work at it and keep moving forward. They also have an interest in animation.

However, I have also found that most schools do not have the funding to provide animation software for their students. I have found an interesting site off my del.icio.us account that I have posted. Go Animate is an interesting animation program that students can use to get the flavor of creating unique animations. There is an account setup that must be gone through and there may be some student privacy/viewing issues that teachers/administrators will have to del with locally. It is still worth a look as students seem to be genuinely engaged in learning when animation is used.

Leaves are Gone...Where is the Snow?...

The fall semester is moving alone quickly and by all accounts this term is proving to the busiest of my time as a technology mentor. There is so much going on with technology integration and that integration is taking on many different faces. Here are a few examples:

-geocaching in various subjects
-a new on-line report card for teachers
-wikispaces as a communication tool
-google documents as collaboration tools
-1:1 laptop integration (year 3)
-digital storytelling
-interactive white boards(SMART Boards)

This is just in the last 6 weeks. I am working on a module on how to geocache in the classroom and I will upload it soon. There is so much going on!

Continuing on my last rant about 19th century practice I have added this video compiled by Apple distinguished educators in 2001.

Creativity and Education

OK, so this video from TED is not exactly new, but it does tell us something about creativity in education. If you haven't been to the TED site, you must go. It is full of inspiring and thought-provoking videos that challenge the mainstream ideas of many of today's toughest challenges. Sir Ken, does just that.
In this video he says that we are "educating kids out of creativity". Students today want to be engaged in activities that teach. I think every educator needs to listen to Sir Ken and then think of one way they can change their practice this year.
Our students need us to.