Instructional Technology Blog

DigiGirlz Day & 2 Free Microsoft Tools March 25, 2009

I had the pleasure to attend for the 2nd year the Microsoft’s DigiGirlz Day at the Microsoft Technology Center in Reston, Virginia. I took 3 high school girls this year and we had a blast! I want to share a couple of free downloads that Microsoft offers for robotics and programming that our girls actually particpated in hands-on sessions. The first one is MS’s Robotics Developer Studio 2008 Express Edition. This is a free download for those interested in creating robotics applications that is visual and offers a drag and drop of components with great tutorials. The second one is Microsoft’s Small Basic. This tech tool makes programming accessible and easy for beginners. It is very simple to use and great for elementary and middle school students. However, our high school girls loved it as well. It also has great quick-start guides to help you out. The girls who attended this day all used these programs very effectively and did not want to stop using them! Enjoy and please give me some feedback.

Have you used Wordle yet? March 10, 2009

Wordle is a cool tool for generating “word clouds” from words that you provide. You can make some words that appear more often than others to stand out more. You can also use different fonts, layouts, and color schemes. The end result is a page that is unique as you are. This cool tool allows you to express yourself with words. Check it out, creat one, print one, or even save it to the Wordle gallery to share with your friends. This would be great to use with students for them to have a place to display key content words and then share it with the class. Enjoy!

Are our students really digital natives or are we all immigrants? February 23, 2009

I recently attended the Virginia Society for Technology in Education (VSTE) Educational Technology Leadership Institute and had the pleasure of hearing again Dr. Tim Tyson, former principal of Mabry Middle School in Marietta, Georgia.  Dr. Tyson is a dynamic and motivational speaker - one that puts you on the edge of your seat to hear and learn more.  He models technology integration like no other principal I know of much less technology educators!  In his session he used his iPhone to control his presentation and also record his session as a podcast.  He used Screencast to record his presentation to share with others online as well as Ustream.TV which allows the user to broadcast live. He also showed a demo of Cooliris which is a way to transform your browser into 3D mode.  This man Rocks! However, what impressed me the most was two things. One was how he helped to turn his school and faculty around to become tech savvy and increase student achievement. Check out the archived website of the school to learn how they did it.

The second impressive idea Dr. Tyson shared was how we are all immigrants, including our students. He stated how with all the technological advances over the last few years, we are all immigrants. It is just that some of us are younger than others. None of us knew 10 years ago much about what we know today and that even goes for 5 years ago or even 1 year ago. Heck, 1 month ago! So, how can we say our 14-15 year old students are natives? Yes, using tech tools may come easier to them but we are all immigrants - all learning about these emerging technologies and way cool tech tools. I agree!

New Google Earth 5 Beta - Adding Oceans and Mars February 11, 2009

Google has released the Google Earth 5 beta adds the ability to explore below the oceans and also incorporates features for exploring portions of the surface of Mars. It includes a feature called “Ocean in Google Earth.” It offers users the ability to explore the world’s oceans using materials from several National Science Foundation-funded ocean and climate researchers. Version 5.0 also introduces Martian landscapes, adding new capabilities for exploring some areas of the Martian surface. Check out this video which shows an example of this new version and Mars. The new version also adds historical imagery that users can access, rather than simply the latest satellite imagery. Download Google Earth 5 beta today and try it for yourself!

Web 2.0, 21st Century Skills and Global Competitiveness - Are we there yet? February 3, 2009

There are so many awesome videos out there on Web 2.0 and 21st Century Skills but these two have stood out for some time. Are we there yet? . . . . What is your vision of K-12 students today?  What is your vision of high school seniors when they enter college today?  Check out these two videos.  They will make you think - literally! . . . Are we there yet? . . . . How close are YOU or YOUR School Division to helping ALL YOUR students learn 21st Century Skills to become Globally Competitive while using Web 2.0 technologies to prepare them for high school, college and beyond?