Sometimes, someone just leaves a great impression. On the PowToon website, users have a way to request work/consulting from me. Many of the messages I get are either "please do this for me for nothing…", or personal insults. Last week, someone contacted me, wanting help with a school project - they wanted help adding "cool stuff" to a project. Normally, I would just reply with a pleasant reply, explaining it was not a support line, or a "fee help line", but this email was different. Apart from wanting "cool stuff", (which I suggested was not the right thing…), they obviously wanted some HELP, (and had also asked about my prices). So - I started an email exchange. During last week, that person and I exchanged ideas, concepts, and what I saw was someone GROWING, someone with an open mind willing to learn, and also being appreciative of the advice I was giving. I love working with people who show some enthusiasm: Thanks you so much! That really helped me Thanks for all the help !! I really appreciate it.  I added all your suggestions. Thank you!  In between each of these was another question, and I really hope that I helped someone grow in their skillset. Just occasionally, you FEEL that doing something for nothing is a good thing to do. It makes so much more sense than answering the emails that mean nothing. Today I got an email from the same online form that had 3 words in it - "Philosphy of Education". If they can’t be bothered to read the form, or use full sentences, and realise what it is for then why should I? I’d rather reserve my efforts for the Stephanies of the world, and Stephanie - I hope that project went brilliantly, it was fun working with you.

Jeff sits down with Patricia Hillyer and Richard Ginn of BlackRocket to discuss how BlackRocket is helping students create amazing video games and learn the art of coding! About Black Rocket This year Black Rocket served almost 20,000 students nationwide through their unique Creative Technology Programs offered during school, after school, and through summer enrichment. Engaging every student, easy enough for any teacher Black Rocket’s new universal game-based learning software is in use in New Jersey, New York, Maryland, Ohio and beginning in January in California. For any student, any subject  any grade and any ability, the company’s co-owner Richard Ginn, a teacher of the year award winner from a recent "Number One School in America" according to US News and World Reports, says: "If you can engage a child you can teach them anything. And if you can’t engage them it doesn’t matter what you are trying to teach." Empowering students to write their own video games about the learning goals their teachers establish is based on three decades of research from leading edge Stanford University and is the epitome of individualized learning as much as standardized testing is not. With six levels of assessment built in, this new software makes teachers lives easier! Imagine that. "Every student improved" according to the first teacher to use the software with her students, JoAnn Devito. For more information, visit www.blackrocket.com/edu or email bill@blackrocket.com. Links of Interest @BlackRocketLLC www.blackrocket.com www.blackrocket.com/edu thegrid.blackrocket.com About our Guests About Richard Ginn Black Rocket’s president, Richard Ginn, is a former teacher of the year from High Technology High School in Monmouth County, NJ. US News and World Report recently ranked "High Tech" as America’s number one high school, and as a school known for integrating technology. Richard is also a former administrator in Freehold. Today, Richard leads the company’s highly regarded Professional Development arm which specializes in mainstreaming Technology, Innovation and Game-ification into today’s classroom so that it is easy for the teacher to use and students to leverage. Richard recently returned from speaking to VTEAA, the Virginia Technology Educators Association which represents every Tech Coordinator in Virginia with high marks and he is scheduled to speak to leading California Superintendents in the Fall. Email Rich via rich@blackrocket.com<mailto:rich@blackrocket.com>. About Patricia J. Hillyer Patricia has been in education for over 25 years. She received her Bachelors of Science degree in Biology from Fairleigh Dickinson University-Madison and went on to receive her Masters of Arts in Teaching from Monmouth University. Currently, Patricia is teaching seventh-grade science at Matawan-Aberdeen Middle School, where she has been instrumental in training teachers in technology as well as in the forefront of bringing new technology to the classroom for her students.  Patricia has been performing physics and engineering research at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory for over 20 years. Patricia models her teaching by using project-based learning. She has presented her best practices at the New Jersey Science Convention, NJEA convention and at the National Science Teachers Convention. She has been awarded multiple grants and awards from PPPL and NASA for supplies and technology in her classroom. Through PPPL and NASA, Patricia flew in zero gravity, experimenting on the effects of microgravity on soap bubbles. Though her research experiences at PPPL, which included tracking tritium though the Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor, developing a plasma-based nanotechnology laboratory, using plasmas to convert biomass to biofuels and invented a way to increase solar panel efficiency through evaporative mist (patent-pending), Patricia has brought her research to her classroom. Seeing the importance of hands-on research for students, her students conduct their own research during the course of the school year. She currently is certified to borrow lunar rocks and meteorites from NASA.  You can find out more about her adventures at www.iHillyer.wordpress or follow her @iHillyer on Twitter or @mrshillyer on Instagram or like her Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/hillyerscience . The post Learn how @BlackRocketLLC teaches your students the art of VIDEO GAME creation! | #HourofCode appeared first on TeacherCast.net: Educational Blogs, Podcasts, App Reviews and more. … Read more

TeacherCast Needs Your Help! Dear Valued Educator, For the last 3+ years, I have built TeacherCast as a "Place for Teachers to Help other Teachers" and as a free resource to the educational community.  I am writing this blog post to ask that you please consider taking a moment to help us out.  I am thrilled and proud to announce that TeacherCast has made the final round for the 2014 EduBlogs Awards.  Please take a moment and vote for TeacherCast below and help us by tweeting to your PLN and sharing on your social networks.  Together we can show the world how valuable a recourse TeacherCast has become. Thank you for your time and consideration. Jeff Bradbury How to Vote You vote as follows: 1.  Log into List.ly using one of your social media credentials. 2.  Click on the  Thumbs Up icon on the blog, website or person you want to vote for. 3. If the boxes below do not work, PLEASE visit the official page to vote. That’s it! If you aren’t already logged in to list.ly, you can do so using a facebook, twitter, LinkedIn, or Google+ account.     Best Educational Use Of Media - 2014 Edublog Awards View more lists from Edublogs The post Please vote for @TeacherCast in this years @EduBlogs Awards for Best use of Media! | #Eddies14 appeared first on TeacherCast.net: Educational Blogs, Podcasts, App Reviews and more. … Read more

Jeff sits down with John Sessler from PBSLearningMedia to discuss this years Digital Innovators program and also learn how more than 1.5 MILLION educators and students are using their amazing FREE resources. About PBS LearningMedia As America’s largest classroom, teachers of children from pre-K through 12th grade turn to PBS for digital content and services that help bring classroom lessons to life. PBS LearningMedia, a partnership of PBS and WGBH Educational Foundation, is a free media-on-demand service offering educators access to the best of public media and delivers research-based, classroom-ready digital learning experiences to engage students in exploring curriculum concepts that align with National and Common Core State Standards. Nationwide, more than 1.5 million teachers have registered access to more than 87,000 digital resources available through PBS LearningMedia. More information about PBS LearningMedia is available at www.pbslearningmedia.org or by following PBS LearningMedia on Twitter and Facebook. Links of Interest Website/Social media: www.pbslearningmeda.org https://www.facebook.com/pbslearningmedia https://twitter.com/PBSLrnMedia About our Guests John Sessler serves as the Manager of Program Engagement for PBS LearningMedia, an award-winning and trusted destination for educators that aggregates the best of public media for the classroom. John designs professional development and engagement activities to support educators who are integrating technology and digital media into their teaching. Prior to joining PBS, John spent ten years teaching and managing literacy and arts programs that partnered with schools throughout the Midwest. John’s graduate coursework focused on the design and implementation of blended learning environments and digital curricula for pre-K - 12th grade students. He holds an Ed.M. from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and a B.S. from Northwestern University.       The post Learn how to be a @PBSLrnMedia Digital Innovator in 2015! | @TeacherCast App Spotlight appeared first on TeacherCast.net: Educational Blogs, Podcasts, App Reviews and more. … Read more

Jeff sits down with the creators of TouchCast, an AMAZING app that allows you to create awesome video projects on the iPad! About TouchCast TouchCast is the leading interactive video platform, selected by Apple as "App of the Year" for 2013. TouchCast is an authoring app for the iPad and PC desktops that thousands of educators and students have used since we launched in June 2013. It is a great content creation tool for teachers that elevate the flipped classroom concept, active learning and online learning to a new level. Different from prior examples, a TouchCast is not just a static video of a lecture. It offers a simple way for the teacher or the student to include a wealth of related content and interactivity within the video itself. A five minutes video turns into a one-hour session when the viewer interacts with the supplemental material such as webpages, images, pdfs, polls, quizzes, and much more. Educators and students around the world can now easily create comprehensive and engaging interactive videos and have fun doing it, using it for communication, active learning, and engaging instruction. You can find lessons plans aligned with the Common Core Standards, teachers training presentations, and an educator guide with examples of many best practices here: www.Touchcast.com/education About our Guests Charley Miller is a New York City-based game designer, software producer, and part-time teacher and consultant with a focus on helping non-game products develop long term user engagement strategies. He has led design and production on games that range from reimagining toys like Nerf Hoops, to 3D iPhone experiences, to training simulations, to urban games, to tabletop games. His projects have included work for Hasbro, the New York City Office of Emergency Management, and the Center for Health and Learning. His urban games have been featured in The New York Times and he was commissioned by New York University for their "No Quarter" Exhibition. Twitter: @Superfection @TouchCast Email: charley@TouchCast.com Dr. Ayelet Segal is Head of Education at TouchCast. With over 20 years experience in exploring problems in the realm of Cognitive Psychology, Education and HCI (Human Computer Interaction). Dr. Segal holds a Master and PhD in Cognitive Psychology, Education and Technology from Teachers College, Columbia University and a Master of Arts in Interactive Media from Middlesex University in London. Dr. Segal is the co-author of the chapter Embodied Cognition and Learning Environment Design of the book Theoretical foundation s of student- centered learning environments. (New York: Routledge. By D. Jonassen and S. Lamb). Her research on Learning with the iPad was recently published at Journal for Applied Research in Memory and Cognition. Twitter: @AyeletSegal @TouchCastEdu Email: ayelet@TouchCast.com Here is an example of a GREAT video created using TouchCast The post Learn how to create AMAZING Video projects using @TouchCast for iPad and PC | @TeacherCast App Spotlight appeared first on TeacherCast.net: Educational Blogs, Podcasts, App Reviews and more. … Read more

The TechEducator Podcast is a weekly round table discussion about current topics in educational technology.  For more information, please visit www.techeducatorpodcast.com. Many great ways to participate in the TechEducator Podcast. TechEducatorPodcast.com Follow us Live on Video: http://www.TeacherCast.tv Leave a Voice Mail: http://www.TeacherCast.net/voicemail Email: feedback@Teachercast.net Twitter: @TechEdShow (http://www.twitter.com/techedshow) Hashtag: #TechEducator Hosts: Jeff Bradbury - TeacherCast.net - @TeacherCast Jeff Herb - InstructionalTechTalk.com - @InstTechTalk Sam Patterson - MyPaperlessClassroom.com - @SamPatue Chris Nesi - Education the Nesi Way - @MrNesi David Saunders @DesignSaunders Josh Gauthier @mrgfactoftheday About our Guests: Crescerance: @crescerance Alefiya believes that involved communities result in higher academic and social outcomes, stronger values, and increased future success for students. Her degree in psychology and education from Emory University, along with her training and experience as a Montessori teacher, power her passion for wide-scale education improvement. It is this passion that led her to start her company Crescerance (cris-seer-unce) in 2011. In Crescerance’s short lifespan of just over 3 years, Alefiya has enabled over 150 educational institutions in America and throughout the world to better communicate with and engage their communities through the growing power of mobile. Alefiya is passionate about making mobile an easily available and powerful channel to thousands of schools worldwide. She is now focussing on brining the concepts and tools of app development to students as young as the 3rd grade by enabling them to build mobile apps with the newly launched MAD-learn program. In her spare time, she enjoys touring the world, meeting new people, learning new languages, and experiencing new cultures. She is also a closet adrenaline junkie who loves the occasional sky or sea dive expedition. Crescerance began its journey in 2011 with the simple idea of wanting to make it easier for schools to connect and truly engage with their parents, staff, students, alumni, and community at large. Through working with schools in creating their school apps (so that everyone could be connected through Mobile and have quick, easy access to the information they needed), we met students that had a keen interest in not just using the app that we created for their school, but in wanting to learn about the creation process of that app.  "How did you make our app?" was a question that we got asked through numerous in person or Skype calls from teachers wanting to bring an App Developer perspective to their students. This is where MAD-learn was born. It was born from the curiosity of our students. From their quest to know more and absorb more. From our passion to feed that curiosity. MAD stands for Mobile App Development and MAD-learn is a program that is teaching students how to be Creators of Technology, instead of just Consumers of it. To learn more about MAD-learn, watch this video: MAD-learn.com StoryboardThat: @StoryboardThat Aaron Sherman is the founder and creator of Storyboard That.  As the creator he loves watching people expand their creativity and problem solving skills as they create Storyboards.  Prior to starting Storyboard That Aaron worked in senior roles in both technology and marketing in Boston, Barcelona and Sydney. www.storyboardthat.com PledgeCents: @pledgecents Bio - Andyshea is a social entrepreneur from Houston, Texas. He attended Rhodes College for his undergraduate studies and later attended the Conrad Hilton College (at University of Houston) for his graduate degree. Andyshea worked over 8 years in the hospitality industry both international and domestic. He comes from a family that has always emphasized the importance of a great education and philanthropy. Andy’s mission in life to is to make a difference and leave the world a better place than he entered. Andyshea@pledgecents.com PledgeCents is Bake Sale 2.0. We are democratizing K-12 educational fundraising by allowing schools to raise funds faster, easier, and reach a larger audience. The secure platform has helped put over $115,000 back into classrooms in 27 states and impacting more than 26,000 students. The PledgeCents team has one focus - to help provide every student with more educational resources. JettPakk: @katherinejetton Katherine Jetton is the founder and CEO of Jettpakk, a education technology platform that will enable teachers to more effectively help their students learn Common Core material and offer grading tools. Katherine worked with middle school students through the Teach For America program and her students outperformed their peers on Dallas Independent School District Semester Exams by 25 percent during her second year of teaching. After experiencing first hand the difficulties of teaching students who have been previously underserved, Katherine saw the need for Jettpakk, a tool that can save teachers their time, money and energy. Katherine is actively involved in the startup and technology community in Raleigh, NC and is a project manager and product manager of Triangle’s Code for America. Katherine graduated from University of Virginia with a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and Psychology with honors. Jettpakk is a platform that will aide teachers in educating their students and set up a Culture of Achievement. Jettpakk provides teaching content such as quizzes and lesson plans through a Teacher Wiki in addition to an analytics platform which can help with grading and parent-student-teacher communication. Jettpakk won 3rd place in Raleigh’s Triangle Startup Weekend for Women. Jettpakk is currently in the process of incorporating with CT and seeking funding to build out additional features. Recommended Reading  The Lean Startup The Founder’s Dilemma http://www.amazon.com/The-Founders-Dilemmas-Anticipating-Entrepreneurship/dp/0691158304 Please join the TechEducator Podcast LIVE every Sunday night at 7:00 P.M. EST on http://www.TeacherCast.tv Please contact TeacherCast with any Questions or to become a guest on the show Host: Jeff Bradbury @TeacherCast Email: info@teachercast.net Voice Mail: http://www.TeacherCast.net/voicemail YouTube: http://www.TeacherCast.net/YouTube iTunes: http://www.TeacherCast.net/iTunes Watch LIVE: http://www.TeacherCast.tv | Broadcasting Schedule (http://www.teachercast.net/showcal) TeacherCast Broadcasting Community: http://www.TeacherCast.net/broadcastingcommunity Interested in starting your own podcast? Check out our Educators Guide to Podcasting today! | Video | Slideshare Presentation Hire TeacherCast to Speak or Broadcast at your conference Jeff Bradbury (@TeacherCast) is available as a Keynote Speaker, Presenter, or to Broadcast your conference LIVE!  Contact Jeff Today! Check out more TeacherCast Educational Broadcasting Network Shows TeacherCast Podcast (http://www.teachercast.net/education/teachercast-broadcasting/) TeacherCast App Spotlight (http://www.teachercast.net/education/teachercast-broadcasting/the-teachercast-app-spotlight/) The TechEducator Podcast (http://www.techeducatorpodcast.com) The post Learn how to create an #edtech startup w/ @PledgeCents @Crescerance @StoryboardThat| #TechEducator Podcast appeared first on TeacherCast.net: Educational Blogs, Podcasts, App Reviews and more. … Read more

You just cannot ignore the fact that when you think about searching online for your assignments and projects, the first name that comes to your mind is Google. However, when it comes to academic research, Google search engine does not serve the purpose as it does in most cases. Its search results are not perfect some times. This doesn’t mean that it is the end of the world for students trying to collect academic data online. Apart from Google, there are a number of search engines that are especially designed for the purpose of academic research. They can help you get your hands on relevant information without going through irrelevant or low-quality pages. Given below is a list of some of the best academic search engines that will help you get the research material you want quickly and easily, and without compromising on quality. Academic Info Academic Info contains an in-depth directory of the most useful links and resources within a specific subject area. You can browse through this website to get a list of useful academic websites for research. This site also offers online degrees, online courses and distance learning information from a selection of online accredited schools. iSeek Education iSeek is easily one of the best and widely used search engines for academic research on the internet. It has been especially designed keeping the students, teachers and scholars in mind. This search engine only shows reliable and relevant results that ultimately save your time and enable you to get your work done quickly. You can find safe, authoritative, intelligent and time-saving resources with iSeek. Virtual LRC Virtual LRC or The Virtual Learning Resources Centre allows you to explore educational sites with high-quality information. It has indexed thousands of academic information websites. On top of that, with custom Google search, you will be able to get more refined results, which will help you complete your research in less time. It has been organized by teachers and library professionals around the world to provide students with great resources for academic assignments and projects. In short, Virtual LRC is the best place to start looking for research material that can help you in your studies.   Refseek Refseek is an academic search engine which is simpler than Google even in appearance. Refseek does not claim to offer more results than Google. Instead, it removes results that are not related to science, academia and research. The best thing about Refseek is that you can search for information related to your subject without getting distracted by sponsored links.With a database of over 1 billion documents, web pages, books, journals, newspapers, online encyclopedias and articles, Refseek is your ultimate companion for academic research. Google Scholar As the name suggests, Google Scholar is an academic search engine from the house of Google. Especially designed to search for scholarly literature, it helps you find relevant information from the world of scholarly research. With Google Scholar, you can exploremany sources such as books, dissertations, articles and abstracts from various academic publishers, professional societies, universities and other websites. In May 2014, third-party researchers estimated that Google Scholar database contains roughly 160 million documents. Microsoft Academic Search Microsoft Academic Search is a great search engine from the software giant Microsoft. It gives you the ability to explore more than 38 million publications. One of the best features of this search engine is that it provides trends, graphs and maps for your academic research. It contains more than 40 million publications and 20 million authors. Conclusion If you want your work to be of high quality, then you certainly need to gather information from genuine and reliable sources. The sources mentioned above can be of great help to you in making your research powerful. Ultimately, they will enable you to submit quality projects and assignments. About the Author Liana Daren is a teacher by profession specialising in the field of Arts. Currently, she’s serving her expertise at Coursework Point offering arts coursework help to learners and educators around the globe. The post The 6 BEST Search Engines for Academic Research appeared first on TeacherCast.net: Educational Blogs, Podcasts, App Reviews and more. … Read more

Thanks for watching our video " An Introduction to Kidblog" from TeacherCast University. In this first video of a new Online Course from TeacherCast University entitled "Kidblog: An Introduction to Blogging with your students" we will take a look at the brand new Kidblog.org and discuss some of the reasons why your class and your students will enjoy creating their digital portfolios using Kidblog. Throughout this series of videos we will be looking at the newly redesigned Kidblog.org and demonstrating to you how you can sign up for this free blogging platform and teach your students how to be safe and secure digital citizens. How to find Kidblog The first thing we want to do is visit http://www.Kidblog.org.  Kidblog is the home to more than 5 MILLION student blogs. It is Safe and very simple to use and can be used by students of all grade levels and subject areas. In addition to being used a robust blogging platform, Kidblog is being used today as a way of teaching students about Creative Writing, Problem Solving in the Math Class, Digital Communication with Pen Pals across the miles, and so much more. About our Online Course The complete video series to this online course can be found on our website TeacherCast.net/LearnKidblog. I hope you take a moment to browse this and all of our online tutorials over at TeacherCastUniversity.com and TeacherCast.net I hope you liked this video and found it helpful.  If you did, click on the LIKE button below and leave us a comment.  If you wish to receive more videos from TeacherCast, please click the subscribe button on the top left of this video box and visit TeacherCast.net for more information about google and other great educational tools.  Don’t forget to catch TeacherCast LIVE every Sunday night at 7pm as we bring you the TechEducator Podcast on TeacherCast.tv. The post Learn how the new Kidblog teaches students create their digital portfolio! | (@KidblogDotOrg) appeared first on TeacherCast.net: Educational Blogs, Podcasts, App Reviews and more. … Read more

Thank you for watching todays screencast from TeacherCast University.  This is the second video in our online learning series called "Kidblog: An Introduction to Blogging with your students" Today we will look at Kidblog.org and show you how to create an account to get started using this amazing digital portfolio creation tool. Getting Started The first thing we want to do is visit Kidblog.org.  Creating an account in Kidblog is very easy.  There are two ways of creating your free account.  First, you can create an account by choosing a display name and providing a  password and email address.  The second method, and one that may be preferable to teachers using the Google Apps for Education system in their school is to sign up using their Google credentials. How to Log-in to Kidblog Once you have your Kidblog account created, there are two simple ways of logging into your account. The first method is for users to visit Kidblog.org… click the Log In button, and type in an email address. From here you will be given a list of all of the class blogs under your account. The second method is to enter the url of your class blog directly and you will be taken to your blog where you can then log in as either a teacher or a student. The complete video series to this online course can be found on our website TeacherCast.net/LearnKidblog. I hope you take a moment to browse this and all of our online tutorials over at TeacherCastUniversity.com and TeacherCast.net About our Online Course I hope you liked this video and found it helpful.  If you did, click on the LIKE button below and leave us a comment.  If you wish to receive more videos from TeacherCast, please click the subscribe button on the top left of this video box and visit TeacherCast.net for more information about google and other great educational tools.  Don’t forget to catch TeacherCast LIVE every Sunday night at 7pm as we bring you the TechEducator Podcast on TeacherCast.tv. The post Learn how to create an account and class blog using Kidblog | (@KidblogDotOrg| appeared first on TeacherCast.net: Educational Blogs, Podcasts, App Reviews and more. … Read more

Hello there, thank you for watching todays screencast from TeacherCast University.  This is the third video in our online learning series called "Kidblog: An Introduction to Blogging with your students" About This Lesson In todays look at Kidblog.org we will examine the dashboard area and show you how to set up your class blog.  We will discuss some great new features to Kidblog and show you how to customize your Kidblog account to fit your individual class needs. Here I have my class blog. You can see that Kidblog features a very simple and easy navigational structure.  On the top we have our header featuring our class name and class avatar.  You can view your class posts and comments by clicking on these tabs.  To the right are three buttons where you can choose how you wish to view your student posts an to the right of that is a button where you can choose to hide or show your blogs customizable sidebar widgets. Once you have logged into your Kidblog account, access the dashboard by clicking on either the big K on the top left or clicking on the word SETTINGS in your blog header. The Dashboard In the Dashboard area, you will see your class information.  This information on top shows your class avatar, your blog title and tagline.  Below this you you can view the number of posts and comments your blog has as well as links to access your settings, privacy controls and the ability to add or modify users. We will first look at the settings panel Changing Your Avatar In the settings panel Kidblog provides assess to the inner workings of your blog. You can customize these features however is best for your class.  Here we will discuss the features that will allow you to create a visually dynamic learning experience for your students. The left of the screen presents you with the ability to change your class avatar.  To do so, click on the Choose Avatar button.  This will bring up your Media Library.  You may choose a new avatar from a variety of methods. You may select an Avatar from images that have already been placed in your Kidblog media library or choose from a selection of preset icon images provided by Kidblog. If you have an image you would like to add from your hard drive, you can select My Computer and either drag the image files into the screen, or click Choose File to select the appropriate image. If you are interested in using an image already on the web, you can find that image and copy it’s URL and past it in the LINK (URL) section. A popular feature for helping students choose photos is by using the camera built into their computers.  This is probably the most enjoyable method for your students. The can be as creative as can be. Lastly, Kidblog provides the opportunity to connect your account to your Google Drive.  This feature is one of the many options if you choose to upgrade your account. The box next to the Class Avatar is your User Accounts. When you sign up for Kidblog you are given a class size of 40 students.  If you wish to sign up for the amazing Teacher Premium account, you can unlock the great Unlimited Students feature for larger class sizes. On the right are your class settings.  Here you can modify your class name, class description, and add a location for your blog. Changing Your Theme After modifying the features in your General Settings tab, click on the Theme/Sidebar button to choose a visual cover for your blog. Kidblog provides students more than 20 visually pleasing themes.  Students can have fun changing these themes at any time without effecting their content. You can see here that the Retro theme is activated.  To change themes, simply click on another theme and hit the Activate button. To see your corrections, simply refresh your blog in a second tab. To the right of the themes are the controls for your blogs sidebar widgets.  There are several great features to the new Kidblog sidebar area.  Because this feature is so dynamic and robust, we will be discussing these options in a separate video in this course. Next to the Theme/Sidebar button on the top is your Users Menu Adding and Modifying Users The users menu allows you to create, edit, and remove the students in your class.  This menu is the heart of the Kidblog dashboard because it is the one menu you will be coming back to when your students need to have their passwords reset or if you need to add or delete students quickly throughout the year. The Users menu will be discussed in great detail in a future video in our online course. Customizing Privacy Next to the Users tab is the Privacy menu.  In this section, you have the ability to customize your Kidblog account for your students. One of the new features in Kidblog is the ability for students to choose their audience. Students can now select who gets to see their posts and comments. Once you have your privacy settings selected, scroll to the bottom and click on the Save button. To the right of the privacy menu is the Categories tab. Adding Blogging Categories In the Manage Categories section, you will have the ability to set up the various categories which your students will be blogging from. These categories can be for example: Homework, Classwork, Tests or perhaps Chapter 1, 2,3. To create a new category, select the New Category button and type in the name of a new category and hit the Create Category button. To the right of the Categories tab is the new Conections tab. Connecting to Other Classes Perhaps you and another classroom are both using Kidblog and you wish to share posts.  While logged into your Kidblog account, you can visit another users blog and click on the Follow button.  This is a great new feature that will help you teach your students about digital citizenship and digital content sharing. After hitting the follow button, you can choose which of your classes is attempting to follow that blog. You can then leave a message for the owner of that blog to say hello. The Class Connections tab works very similar to Facebook and Twitter in the respect that you can have the option of following another blog, but that blog’s class does not have to necessarily have to follow your class’s information. There are many new options available in the Dashboard section of Kidblog.  These options can be edited and modified at any point throughout the year. About our Online Course The complete video series to this online course can be found on our website TeacherCast.net/LearnKidblog. I hope you take a moment to browse this and all of our online tutorials over at TeacherCastUniversity.com and TeacherCast.net I hope you liked this video and found it helpful.  If you did, click on the LIKE button below and leave us a comment.  If you wish to receive more videos from TeacherCast, please click the subscribe button on the top left of this video box and visit TeacherCast.net for more information about google and other great educational tools.  Don’t forget to catch TeacherCast LIVE every Sunday night at 7pm as we bring you the TechEducator Podcast on TeacherCast.tv. The post Learn how to setup your new class blog in Kidblog | (@kidblogdotorg) appeared first on TeacherCast.net: Educational Blogs, Podcasts, App Reviews and more. … Read more

Hello there, thank you for watching todays screencast from TeacherCast University.  This is the fourth video in our online learning series called "Kidblog: An Introduction to Blogging with your students" About This Lesson In todays look at Kidblog.org we will take a look at the Users Menu and help you add your students into your class blog. Before we learn how to add students to your classroom account, lets first examine the concept of user roles in Kidblog. User Roles Kidblog offers several user roles including Administrator, Teacher, Moderator, Student, Parent and Guest Administrator Administrator role is available to users with Admin Pro site licenses Designed for school or district administrators setting up accounts site-wide Teacher Create student accounts Manage student passwords and profiles Moderate content based on class privacy & approval settings Moderator Available for Admin Pro subscriptions Moderate posts & comments in a class Cannot edit user accounts Student Publish posts and leave comments Request post audience based on privacy settings set by teacher Update their profile - avatar, display name, password Parent Connect to their child’s account via email invitation View child’s posts and comments Join class as a Guest (if enabled by teacher) Guest Join class with a Guest registration code (if enabled by teacher) View posts published publicly or for "Connections" Leave comments if permitted by the teacher Can be removed from class by Teacher Creating Student Users There are two ways of creating users in your Kidblog Dashboard.  First, click on the Users Tab and click on the Create New Users button on the top right. To create a new user, type in a Display name and select a password. To create a batch of new users click on the Bulk Create button and download the sample CSV file. You can open the CSV file into your favorite spreadsheet application such as Excel, Numbers, or Google Sheets.  After opening your spreadsheet, simply fill out the appropriate columns, save your work and upload your completed file. The second method of student registration is to create and enable a unique registration code that students can use to sign up for for you class blog on their own. To do this, click on the Registration Codes button on the top right.  This dialogue box provides 2 registration codes. One for Student Roles and one for Guest Rolls.  Click the enable button to active these Registration codes. Once created, these class codes can be emailed out to your student population, or shared on a class website.  Students can use this code by visiting Kidblog.org and selecting the Enter Your Class Code button on the front page.  We will show you how this works from a students perspective on a future video in this online course. Once a user is created, you can edit their account by choosing the edit button . . . . . from this dialogue box, you can change their Avatar, view their individual storage and update their email and password settings.  Additional options allow you to set the display type for their date and time and the ability to enable or disable Theme Animations. To remove a student, simply click the Remove button and the student will be deleted. About our Online Course The complete video series to this online course can be found on our website TeacherCast.net/LearnKidblog. I hope you take a moment to browse this and all of our online tutorials over at TeacherCastUniversity.com and TeacherCast.net I hope you liked this video and found it helpful.  If you did, click on the LIKE button below and leave us a comment.  If you wish to receive more videos from TeacherCast, please click the subscribe button on the top left of this video box and visit TeacherCast.net for more information about google and other great educational tools.  Don’t forget to catch TeacherCast LIVE every Sunday night at 7pm as we bring you the TechEducator Podcast on TeacherCast.tv. The post Learn how to add students into your Kidblog Classroom | (@KidblogDotOrg) appeared first on TeacherCast.net: Educational Blogs, Podcasts, App Reviews and more. … Read more

Building the plane while in flight - that’s the analogy I hear quite a bit from schools that self-admittedly say they may have jumped the gun on implementing a 1:1. Why did they implement it then? The reasons can vary from feeling pressure (from school board, parents, etc.) to seeing other schools go 1:1 and feeling a need to make themselves just as marketable or viable. However, through my own experience of going 1:1 in a school district and now helping other schools transition, I have come up with a very straightforward checklist of trainings for schools who wish to avoid the frustrations that can come with "building the plane while in flight." For the sake of this post, we are going to assume two things… That your school has already carefully researched which device is necessary for your 1:1 teaching and learning needs. I could go into which device I personally feel is the right fit for learning (not training), but that is something your district must research and decide for themselves. I will also assume that your school has researched what infrastructure needs there are in order to support a 1:1. So, if we are working under those two assumptions, here is a checklist that I would recommend (and I would go in this order). 1. Provide Teachers Training with Blended/Flipped Learning while introducing a proper Learning Management System. For whom: Teachers Recommended Duration: 1 year prior to 1:1 The biggest hurdle to overcome when moving 1:1 is getting teachers to understand "Why?". Teachers need the proper training in how pedagogy may (or should) change in order to better match how students are currently learning and interacting with the environment outside their classrooms. The classroom environment and the outside environment need to match, otherwise students see a direct disconnect and engagement will plummet. I recommend Blended or Flipped Learning simply because it puts a focus directly on purposeful instruction in order to allow students to operate at the higher levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy on a more daily basis. It’s also an instructional model that best utilizes the 1:1 environment for real learning and not just electronic worksheet/homework distribution. It’s also important to include a Learning Management System (LMS). If you wish to do true Blended/Flipped teaching, the LMS that you choose should… Allow for students to submit work electronically. Allow the teacher to easily organize content and resources for students to be able to access at any time. Allow for online discussions to happen through some kind of forum. Allow the teacher to give timely feedback to student work. Allow for asynchronous communication between teacher and students as well as students and students. Allows for electronic formative and summative assessment. Giving this training should take some time, but it’s the best way to get teachers to start buying in to the 1:1 idea. When you show them what the potential could be, they may even be begging to start the 1:1 sooner. 2.  Training on Digital Citizenship For whom: Teachers and Students (and Parents if possible) Recommended Duration: All the time. If you want to avoid misuse of the technology in your 1:1 (and possibly avoiding legal headaches), then Digital Citizenship training for teachers and students is a must BEFORE rolling out a 1:1. Students need to understand at any grade level what is considered appropriate and inappropriate digital behaviors. Even if your school is not 1:1, this training should start now. Even if you have students going to a computer lab or accessing the internet in any way, you should be explicitly teaching them about digital citizenship - like wise for teachers. The more you teach, re-teach, address, harp, hound, or nag students about it before you’re 1:1, the more likely they will understand it and follow the rules after you’re 1:1. However, don’t leave out the parents. Either during your rollout or before, parents need to also understand digital citizenship. More importantly, they will need tips and tricks on how to help their child manage the device when it’s at home. 3. Training on Classroom Management For whom: Teachers Recommended Duration: The semester before. For teachers that are self-proclaimed "not tech savvy," managing a classroom of technological devices can be the most overwhelming aspect of instruction. And 9 times out of 10 what ends up happening is the teacher just tells the students to put the devices away. If you do Step 1 first, you will hopefully avoid this, because the teacher will see the value of the device as a tool to make learning more efficient and engaging. But even if they see the value in it, managing is still a task best mastered before the devices enter the classroom. Management and instructional techniques can vary depending on the device your school chooses to go with as well as the layout of your classroom. 4. Training on Troubleshooting For whom: Teachers and Students Recommended Duration: The month before (maybe more for some) Let’s be honest, technology is great…only when it works. Even if you go through the checklist above, fluent teaching and learning cannot occur if the technology does not work. And if a teacher, or the students, don’t understand how to troubleshoot, the learning process can stop dead in its tracks. Both could become frustrated and easily give up on technology all together and quickly revert back to the "traditional" way of teaching. Have a clear idea of what kinds of tech issues could occur and train teachers and students on how to handle these themselves. Not only will the teachers and students feel empowered when hiccups occur, but it will prevent your IT Administrator from becoming quickly swamped with help requests. What about Administrators? Of course, the building administrators should be highly involved with the planning, training, and implementation. I have seen 1:1 thrive or struggle simply based on the level of involvement of the administration. Final Thoughts… I hope the above checklist helps in deciding how to properly prepare your district and all stakeholders for a smooth 1:1. Another analogy I like to use (and perhaps one that isn’t as dramatic as building a plane while in flight) is making sure your water is boiling before you put in the pasta. Pasta takes twice as long to cook if you throw it in before the water is boiling. By following the checklist, you want teachers and students feeling so prepared for the technology, that they are almost begging for it. Jarod Bormann #EdTech Rocks   P.S. Is there a training that you would recommend? Leave it in the comments below.   P.S.S. Maybe your school has already gone 1:1. But are there any trainings that you have missed in the process? What trainings do you need to start focusing on? The post 4 Amazing Trainings for those looking at going 1:1 by @jbormann3| #1to1techchat appeared first on TeacherCast.net: Educational Blogs, Podcasts, App Reviews and more. … Read more

I recently have the pleasure of sitting down with Cameron Evans, the Chief Technology Officer for Microsoft Education to discuss how the new Microsoft Imagine platform is being deployed to help students achieve their fullest potentials in the classroom.  For more information, please see the official Microsoft Press Release below.   Also appearing on the program are teacher Michael Braun and principal Glenn Robbins.   Please contact TeacherCast with any Questions or to become a guest on the show Host: Jeff Bradbury @TeacherCast Email: info@teachercast.net Voice Mail: http://www.TeacherCast.net/voicemail YouTube: http://www.TeacherCast.net/YouTube iTunes: http://www.TeacherCast.net/iTunes Watch LIVE: http://www.TeacherCast.tv | Broadcasting Schedule (http://www.teachercast.net/showcal) TeacherCast Broadcasting Community: http://www.TeacherCast.net/broadcastingcommunity Interested in starting your own podcast? Check out our Educators Guide to Podcasting today! | Video | Slideshare Presentation Hire TeacherCast to Speak or Broadcast at your conference Jeff Bradbury (@TeacherCast) is available as a Keynote Speaker, Presenter, or to Broadcast your conference LIVE!  Contact Jeff Today! Check out more TeacherCast Educational Broadcasting Network Shows TeacherCast Podcast (http://www.teachercast.net/education/teachercast-broadcasting/) TeacherCast App Spotlight (http://www.teachercast.net/education/teachercast-broadcasting/the-teachercast-app-spotlight/) The TechEducator Podcast (http://www.techeducatorpodcast.com) The post Learn how the new Microsoft Imagine will allow your students digital ideas become reality! | @Microsoft_EDU appeared first on TeacherCast.net: Educational Blogs, Podcasts, App Reviews and more. … Read more

Jeff sits down with Cameron Evans from Microsoft Education and educators Glenn Robbins and Michael Braun to discuss how Microsoft and Code.org are transforming the lives of more than 20 million students through code. About Microsoft Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq "MSFT") is the worldwide leader in software, services, devices and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential. Links of Interest Microsoft in Education Microsoft Educator Network @Microsoft_EDU Microsoft in Education (Facebook) YouthSpark (Hour of Code) Show Topics Hour of Code There’s been lots of buzz and student participation in the Hour of Code during Computer Science Education Week which was 12/8-14. Over 77 million globally have tried coding. Microsoft believes that every young person should have the opportunity to learn coding and it’s proud to be a founding partner of Code.org. Microsoft is working with the industry on a grassroots effort to inspire 100 million young people around the world to try coding and empower them to do more and achieve more. Satya recently visited the Laboratory School of Finance and Technology in the Bronx and encourages employees to participate in the Hour of Code Some of the many ways Microsoft is supporting educators and their students around the Hour of Code/Code.org effort include: Technology Education and Literacy in Schools (TEALS) places Microsoft employee volunteers and experts from across the industry into high schools across the U.S. to teach computer science to students and help address an urgent need to jumpstart computer science education during the K-12 years. Microsoft partners with Code.org to bring computer science professionals from Microsoft to students as guest speakers through Skype in the Classroom.  Teachers can access volunteers who are experts in a range of topics from design to coding and more. Student Created Coding Projects   Catching Eggs http://apps.microsoft.com/windows/en-us/app/849c776b-e075-4c94-bfe1-c935be880c55 Where’s Waldo? https://www.touchdevelop.com/ymqc Teddy Bear https://www.touchdevelop.com/lhmi Swimming Angry Bird https://www.touchdevelop.com/mfsr Sun Collector https://www.touchdevelop.com/wasy Microsoft Education On 12/8, Microsoft launched Microsoft Imagine, a new cornerstone of Microsoft’s global YouthSpark initiative that connects aspiring student developers of all skill levels with the tools, resources, and experiences they need to turn their innovative ideas into reality. Whether it’s building a game, designing an app or launching a project, Microsoft Imagine strikes a balance between fun and learning, encouraging students to create, code and develop their ideas throughout their educational journey. This is another resource teachers can use to pull from for their lesson plans. Microsoft’s support of Hour of Code/Code.org is a part of a broader purpose…MS EDU’s goal is to provide the programs and technology to educators that can help ensure kids have 21st century skills. Explore how technology in the classroom can help students, teachers and administrators be successful beyond just the classroom. Microsoft IT-Academy: http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/education/training-and-events/it-academy/default.aspx About our Guests Cameron Evans Cameron Evans serves as the National and Chief Technology Officer of Microsoft Education, responsible for shaping and leading Microsoft’s empowered learning agenda in US Education. A 20-year veteran for education and training, Cameron has been apioneer and leader of education transformation in public schools and universities across the nation.  Cameron focuses his expertise on sustainable education initiatives that improve individual learner outcomes and the productivity of people with technology. Cameron is a sought-after speaker and frequent lecturer on issues impacting learning, the academic enterprise, and school innovation. As the US spokesperson for Microsoft in Education, Cameron conferences and writes on literacy, STEM, entrepreneurship, gaming, leadership, and innovation monthly. Cameron is a US Air Force veteran. He holds a bachelor’s degree in management-computer information systems from Park University and a Masters in Business Administration specializing in Global Leadership from The University of Texas at Dallas. He enjoys all forms of creative work, fitness tech, eating dessert first, and travel with his bride and daughter. Michael Braun Michael Braun’s innovative approach to teaching Computer Science has been highlighted by the New York Times, the Seattle Times, GeekWire, Code.org, Microsoft Research, TEALS, and the Daily Edventures blog. Washington State’s Governor Jay Inslee also recognized the computer science program. A former Computer Science teacher, Michael Braun currently serves as an Instructional Coach. His focus is in the integration of technology, problem-based learning (PBL), and 21st Century Learning in the public school system. Braun supports curriculum in Common Core State Standards while mentoring teachers on innovative education. Braun co-founded, organizes, and manages middle school and high school "hackathons" called App Day. The goal of this coding event is to give public school students a taste of computer science and basic programming over the course of a single day. Students use a web app called TouchDevelop to create their own apps on their Windows phones, Androids, iPhones, iPads, laptops, whatever device they are carrying in their pocket or backpack. App Day has received support from Microsoft TEALS, Microsoft Research, Microsoft Citizenship, Seattle Public School’s Career & Technical Education Department, the University of Washington Computer Science Department, the College Success Foundation, and individual IT professionals. The hackathon concept has been a terrific success, as a result of which, Braun has been invited to lead various other coding events and "Teacher Training" computer science workshops across the West Coast of the United States and abroad. Full bio: http://michaelebraun.weebly.com/ Glenn Robbins Glenn Robbins Is currently the Lead Learner at the Northfield Community Middle School.  He is a digital leader who embraces Twitter (@Glennr1809) and Voxer (Grobbi143) to connect with educators from across the globe to better his students, staff and school as a whole.  As a digital leader it has allowed him to bring amazing changes to a school, such as: creating and implementing a 100% secure WiFi building to allow staff and students to use BYOD (Bring Your Own Device), creating a schedule that increased instructional time by an additional sixty minutes per day, designed an APP and school Twitter account to promote more transparency within the community and lastly, developed a mentoring program that allows selected eighth graders to work with fifth grade students throughout the year to ease their transition to the middle school. He has an undergraduate degree from Rider University and a Masters in Educational Leadership from Jones International University.  He is currently pursuing a Ed.D at the American College of Education in Educational Leader.  He was recently named Top 40 Under 40 in Atlantic City. He also is a member of the Edcamp Leadership organizing committee which was held at the University of Pennsylvania in August.  He was an organizer and keynote speaker for NJPAECET2, which was by invite only for 150 educators from NJ and PA for professional development and celebrate great teaching.  Lastly, he was 1 of 50 people selected out of 1000 to attend Edcamp USA, which was held at the Department of Education in Washington D.C., this past June. Please contact TeacherCast with any Questions or to become a guest on the show Host: Jeff Bradbury @TeacherCast Email: info@teachercast.net Voice Mail: http://www.TeacherCast.net/voicemail YouTube: http://www.TeacherCast.net/YouTube iTunes: http://www.TeacherCast.net/iTunes Watch LIVE: http://www.TeacherCast.tv | Broadcasting Schedule (http://www.teachercast.net/showcal) TeacherCast Broadcasting Community: http://www.TeacherCast.net/broadcastingcommunity Interested in starting your own podcast? Check out our Educators Guide to Podcasting today! | Video | Slideshare Presentation Hire TeacherCast to Speak or Broadcast at your conference Jeff Bradbury (@TeacherCast) is available as a Keynote Speaker, Presenter, or to Broadcast your conference LIVE!  Contact Jeff Today! Check out more TeacherCast Educational Broadcasting Network Shows TeacherCast Podcast (http://www.teachercast.net/education/teachercast-broadcasting/) TeacherCast App Spotlight (http://www.teachercast.net/education/teachercast-broadcasting/the-teachercast-app-spotlight/) The TechEducator Podcast (http://www.techeducatorpodcast.com) The post Learn how @Microsoft_EDU and #HourOfCode can help your students prepare for their futures | @TeacherCast Podcast 113 appeared first on TeacherCast.net: Educational Blogs, Podcasts, App Reviews and more. … Read more

I recently have the pleasure of sitting down with Cameron Evans, the Chief Technology Officer for Microsoft Education to discuss how Microsoft and Code.org have teamed up to teach millions of students the art of coding and app development.   Also appearing on the program are teacher Michael Braun and principal Glenn Robbins.   Please contact TeacherCast with any Questions or to become a guest on the show Host: Jeff Bradbury @TeacherCast Email: info@teachercast.net Voice Mail: http://www.TeacherCast.net/voicemail YouTube: http://www.TeacherCast.net/YouTube iTunes: http://www.TeacherCast.net/iTunes Watch LIVE: http://www.TeacherCast.tv | Broadcasting Schedule (http://www.teachercast.net/showcal) TeacherCast Broadcasting Community: http://www.TeacherCast.net/broadcastingcommunity Interested in starting your own podcast? Check out our Educators Guide to Podcasting today! | Video | Slideshare Presentation Hire TeacherCast to Speak or Broadcast at your conference Jeff Bradbury (@TeacherCast) is available as a Keynote Speaker, Presenter, or to Broadcast your conference LIVE!  Contact Jeff Today! Check out more TeacherCast Educational Broadcasting Network Shows TeacherCast Podcast (http://www.teachercast.net/education/teachercast-broadcasting/) TeacherCast App Spotlight (http://www.teachercast.net/education/teachercast-broadcasting/the-teachercast-app-spotlight/) The TechEducator Podcast (http://www.techeducatorpodcast.com) The post Learn all about Microsoft Education and the Hour of Code for your students @Microsoft_EDU #HourOfCode appeared first on TeacherCast.net: Educational Blogs, Podcasts, App Reviews and more. … Read more

I recently have the pleasure of sitting down with Cameron Evans, the Chief Technology Officer for Microsoft Education to discuss how school districts are utilizing Office 365 and the Windows System in their schools.  In this video, Cameron shares the many advantages students have by working on Windows Tables and working on it’s great touch based mobile classroom solutions.   Also appearing on the program are teacher Michael Braun and principal Glenn Robbins.   Please contact TeacherCast with any Questions or to become a guest on the show Host: Jeff Bradbury @TeacherCast Email: info@teachercast.net Voice Mail: http://www.TeacherCast.net/voicemail YouTube: http://www.TeacherCast.net/YouTube iTunes: http://www.TeacherCast.net/iTunes Watch LIVE: http://www.TeacherCast.tv | Broadcasting Schedule (http://www.teachercast.net/showcal) TeacherCast Broadcasting Community: http://www.TeacherCast.net/broadcastingcommunity Interested in starting your own podcast? Check out our Educators Guide to Podcasting today! | Video | Slideshare Presentation Hire TeacherCast to Speak or Broadcast at your conference Jeff Bradbury (@TeacherCast) is available as a Keynote Speaker, Presenter, or to Broadcast your conference LIVE!  Contact Jeff Today! Check out more TeacherCast Educational Broadcasting Network Shows TeacherCast Podcast (http://www.teachercast.net/education/teachercast-broadcasting/) TeacherCast App Spotlight (http://www.teachercast.net/education/teachercast-broadcasting/the-teachercast-app-spotlight/) The TechEducator Podcast (http://www.techeducatorpodcast.com) The post What are the Advantages of a Microsoft Education in your K-12 District | @Microsoft_Edu @GlennR1809 appeared first on TeacherCast.net: Educational Blogs, Podcasts, App Reviews and more. … Read more

Hello there, thank you for watching todays screencast from TeacherCast University.  This is the fifth video in our online learning series called "Kidblog: An Introduction to Blogging with your students" My name is Jeff Bradbury and I am the host of the TeacherCast Educational Broadcasting Network. About This Lesson In todays look at Kidblog.org we will talk about the new Post system and show you how to create dynamic content for your classroom portfolio. Create New Post To create a new post, we must click on the blue button on top that says NEW POST+.  Kidblog now supports a brand new, dynamic visually stimulating post editor.  Students now have complete creative control over the look and feel of their post.  Lets take a look at some of these options. We first want to give our post a title. For this post, we will call it: TEACHERCAST TEST POST The next thing we can do is ad a unique Header Image by clicking the button that says Add Header Image.  Once clicked, Kidblog will open the new Media Library as described in our previous video.  In the media library, either choose an existing image, or import a new one for your post.  Under our Blog header and Post title, we have the dynamic Kidblog post editor.  Lets add some content to this section and discuss how your students can use this area to create dynamic digital content. When creating your blog posts and importing text into Kidblog, you want to make sure you are using the VISUAL tab.  In a separate video, we will be discussing the HTML tab in great detail to show you how to embed great content such as videos, audio, and other Web 2.0 content. The Post Editor Menu Lets look at the menu items from left to right.  By highlighting a selection of text, you can use the SIZE tab to adjust the size and height of your text.  This is the best way to create blog headers and separate your various paragraph sections. To the right of the Size button is the Text Color button. To change the color of your font, simply highlight the text you wish to transform and click the Text Color button to adjust the color. To the right of the Text Color button, you will find the buttons for Bold, Underline a Italic.  To clear these and any other font styles, simply highlight your text and click the "T" for to Clear the Text Style. Next to the Clear Text Style button we have our buttons for bullets points and numbering. Further to the right, we have our justification buttons.  To justify a paragraph to the left right or center, simply highlight the entire paragraph and click one of these buttons. Next we have these two buttons which look like circles with arrows pointing to the left or right. These are your Undo and Redo buttons.  Remember to tell your students where these buttons are and how they work as it may save them time and energy if they make a mistake. To the right of the REDO button is our LINK TO URL button. To create a hyperlink, simply create or highlight your text and then enter the URL of a website you wish to link it to. Integration with your Google Drive accounts is available for Teacher Premium account subscribers.  This type of premium account provides a great marriage between Google Apps for Education, and Kidblog and allows teachers and students to find and use materials they have already saved on their cloud drives. The last button in our menu is the UPLOAD button.  This button is useful for uploading images you wish to use in your blog post, or for retrieving your images already placed in the Media Library. Saving and Publishing Your Blog Once you have your blog post complete, students can change the background color of their post, the texture, and adjust the font of the title and post text. Lastly, no blog post should be complete without adding two pieces of meta data.  It is important to teach you students all about Tagging and Categories when sharing Kidblog with them. There are three options at the top of the blog editing screen that are important to know about. These buttons are DRAFT, REVIEW, and POST. The DRAFT button is the most important of all these buttons.  It is a good idea to teach your students to hit the DRAFT button several times during the creation of a blog post to save your work.  You never know when a page might need to be refreshed and content might be lost.  I generally get my students into the habit of saving their post every few minutes. The REVIEW button is a last minute, final check of your blog post.  This is going to show you what the post will look like as soon as you hit the PUBLISH button. Finally, when your blog post is ready for prime time, click the PUBLISH button and you are good to go. Once the publish button is hit, you are presented with a variety of Audience choices.  Blog posts can be selected to be seen by only the Teacher account, the Classmates account, blogs who have connected with your class blog, or the entire internet at large. Once your selection has been made, hit the PUBLISH button to release your blog post. We can see here that our blog post is now published and on your homepage for viewing. About our Online Course The complete video series to this online course can be found on our website TeacherCast.net/LearnKidblog. I hope you take a moment to browse this and all of our online tutorials over at TeacherCastUniversity.com and TeacherCast.net I hope you liked this video and found it helpful.  If you did, click on the LIKE button below and leave us a comment.  If you wish to receive more videos from TeacherCast, please click the subscribe button on the top left of this video box and visit TeacherCast.net for more information about google and other great educational tools.  Don’t forget to catch TeacherCast LIVE every Sunday night at 7pm as we bring you the TechEducator Podcast on TeacherCast.tv. The post Teach your students how to create dynamic content using Kidblog |(@KidblogDotOrg) appeared first on TeacherCast.net: Educational Blogs, Podcasts, App Reviews and more. … Read more

Technology And The Classroom Technology has become an increasingly important part of the teaching armory.  Children now learn to use computers and other educational technology from a very early age, and most teachers incorporate technology in some form into their learning and teaching resources too. There can be no doubt that technology in the classroom… The post Are we too dependent on Technology in the Classroom? appeared first on TeacherCast.net: Educational Blogs, Podcasts, App Reviews and more.

This is the sixth video in our online learning series called "Kidblog: An Introduction to Blogging with your students"  My name is Jeff Bradbury and I am the host of the TeacherCast Educational Broadcasting Network. About This Lesson In todays look at Kidblog.org we will discuss the media library and demonstrate how to add photos and video… The post Learn how to add Images and Video into your Kidblog blog posts | @KidblogDotOrg appeared first on TeacherCast.net: Educational Blogs, Podcasts, App Reviews and more.

This is the seventh video in our online learning series called "Kidblog: An Introduction to Blogging with your students"  My name is Jeff Bradbury and I am the host of the TeacherCast Educational Broadcasting Network. About This Lesson In todays look at Kidblog.org we will discuss the newly designed Sidebar area in Kidblog and demonstrate how you…

Learn how to use Final Cut Pro X in less than 30 minutes. Jeff Bradbury @TeacherCast takes you through the basic steps of importing, organizing, editing, and publishing your video content using Apple’s Final Cut Pro. Please contact TeacherCast with any Questions or to become a guest on the show Host: Jeff Bradbury@TeacherCast Email: info@teachercast-net.jeffreybradbury.com Voice Mail: www.TeacherCast.net/voicemail… Completely redesigned from the ground up, Final Cut Pro adds extraordinary speed, quality, and flexibility to every part of the post-production workflow. Revolutionary Video Editing • Assemble clips in the Magnetic Timeline without clip collisions or sync problems • Use Clip Connections to attach B-roll, sound effects, and music to the timeline • Reduce clutter by grouping clips into a Compound Clip. • Perfect your pacing right in the timeline with the Inline Precision Editor • Cycle through different shots, graphics, or effects at one place in the timeline with Auditions • Edit multi-camera projects with automatic sync and support for up to 64 camera angles Powerful Media Organization • Organize your work within libraries for efficient media management and collaboration • Work natively with a broad range of formats including RED, AVCHD, H.264 from DSLRs, and more • Content Auto-Analysis captures camera metadata and analyzes shots in the background • Create and apply custom keywords on the fly as you select ranges in clips • Smart Collections let you dynamically organize content and find any shot in a few clicks Incredible Performance • Final Cut Pro uses all the GPUs in your Mac for superior real-time playback performance and fast background rendering • 64-bit architecture uses all the RAM in your system for larger projects and richer effects • Background processing lets you keep working without interruption • External monitoring lets you route video and audio through HDMI or third-party Thunderbolt and PCIe devices Compelling, Customizable Effects • Preview effects to see how they look with your footage before applying them • Change the look of titles, transitions, and effects using intuitive controls • Control effects with precision using a keyframe editor that appears directly in the timeline • Use third-party FxPlug plug-ins with custom interfaces and dual-GPU support Integrated Audio Editing • Expand and edit multichannel audio files directly in the timeline • Let Final Cut Pro repair significant audio problems such as hum, excessive noise, and more • Sync DSLR video with separate audio in a single step, with instant audio waveform matching Intuitive Color Grading • Improve the look of any clip with the single-click Balance Color feature • Apply the Match Color feature to match the looks of two clips shot under different conditions • Manipulate color, saturation, and exposure with the Color Board • Fine tune color for a specific color range or area of the screen using keying and masks One-Step, Optimized Output • Deliver projects for playback on Apple devices and websites such as Vimeo, YouTube, and Facebook • Use themed menus to quickly author and burn a DVD or Blu-ray disc • Export customized audio stems and multiple versions of a finished video using Roles metadata • Import and export XML to support third-party workflows System Requirements: OS X v10.9.2 or later, 4GB of RAM (8GB recommended for 4K), OpenCL-capable graphics card or Intel HD Graphics 3000 or later, 256MB of VRAM (1GB recommended for 4K), 3.5GB of disk space. Some features require Internet access; additional fees may apply. Blu-ray recorder required for burning Blu-ray discs.

Jeff sits down with Mik Tholfsen and Ari Schorr to discuss how Microsoft OneNote is being used in classrooms to help teachers and students stay digitally organized.   About Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, that develops, manufactures, licenses, supports and sells computer software, consumer electronics and personal computers and…

Are kids’ attention spans shrinking? It’s a question many teachers find themselves asking. The rise of technology inside the classroom and out means that it’s easy for children to find themselves bombarded with huge amounts of information at the touch of a button. With such resources available almost instantaneously, teachers and parents are increasingly worried:…

The TechEducator Podcast is a weekly round table discussion about current topics in educational technology.  For more information, please visit www.techeducatorpodcast.com. Many great ways to participate in the TechEducator Podcast. TechEducatorPodcast.com Follow us Live on Video: http://www.TeacherCast.tv Leave a Voice Mail: http://www.TeacherCast.net/voicemail Email: feedback@Teachercast.net Twitter: @TechEdShow (http://www.twitter.com/techedshow) Hashtag: #TechEducator Hosts: Jeff Bradbury - TeacherCast.net - @TeacherCast Jeff Herb - InstructionalTechTalk.com - @InstTechTalk Sam Patterson - MyPaperlessClassroom.com - @SamPatue Chris Nesi - Education…