Mental health break: Ingenious stop-motion Coursekit is now Lore. What’s the Story? Art & Design Mental health break: Ingenious stop-motion animation made entirely of office supplies by Guillaume Blanchet – a lovely addition to this compendium of office supply art. (via Colossal) #stop-motion#animation#art 272 notes 20+ helpful professional development resources for teachers As a teacher, we encourage our students to never stop learning. But what about us? Do we try to learn new things or do we stick to the same teaching patterns every day, month, year? In this blog post, I’ll show you some handy website for teachers to develop their teaching skills. Professional development is necessary in every job. I divided the professional development resources for teachers in 6 categories: Professional development websites for teachers These websites have professional development resources for educators in many different categories. KQED Education is a ‘hub’ or website for learning and engagement for educators (and students). 2. Edutopia is a comprehensive educational website/blog and online community. 3. TeachThought’s mission is very simple: learn better. 4. BookWidgets is a digital lesson creation tool for teachers but also has a blog with inspiring articles, educational technology tips, and lesson ideas. Professional development about educational technology 6. 7. 8.
The Good Project All of us encounter challenges in our lives. Sometimes these challenges are quickly or easily resolved. Other times, it is not clear what to do, and there is no right or wrong solution. This is a dilemma. When we are faced with a dilemma, it is important to stop and consider our choices carefully. In this unit, you will listen to the stories of two people who encountered dilemmas. Click one of the options above to get started. Help us improve your module experience through this survey. Low Tech, High Gains: Starting a Maker Program Is Easier Than You Think A busy day at Darien (CT) Public Library’s LEGO Club. Has the maker movement taken hold in your library yet? Would you like it to? Fortunately, starting a maker space is actually much easier—and less costly—than you may think. Technologies such as robotics, digital video production, computer coding, and 3-D printing may garner the most attention, yet more traditional, hands-on activities can actually instill in kids the same spirit of invention, collaboration, and creative and critical thinking that’s at the heart of the maker phenomenon. Take your pick: Anything from building with LEGOs to arts and crafts, gardening, cooking, astronomy, knitting, weaving, crochet, jewelry-making, sewing wood working, metal working, bike repair, button making, and even paper airplane construction can be offered in a maker space. In fact, most youth services librarians already offer quite a bit of hands-on programming that could qualify as “maker” even if it is not being marketed as such, Kane says.
50 Incredible Stop Motion Videos Advertisement Stop motion animation is one of the hottest areas of film-making today. Stop motion is an animation art through which one can spring life in inanimate things and do the unnatural. It works by shooting a single frame of an object, then moving the object slightly, and then shooting another frame. Well, how can you make use of stop motion in web design? Below we present over 50 amazing examples of stop motion videos, a tribute to hard work of animators, artists and creative folks. You may be interested in the following related posts: Stop Motion Videos Fat City Reprise – Long Gone7 video by Cesar Kuriyama8 Music video was created entirely from 45,000 Photographs taken by a Nikon D200 DSLR. Human Tetris9 video by www.notsonoisy.com10 Super Mario Bros 3 LEGO11 video by jmehatesyou12 Human Skateboard13 video by SneauxShoesVideo14 Happy Thanksgiving15 video byMentalLapse16 Abstract thoughts17 video by Darryn ray18 A short love story19 video by Carlos Lascano20 Video by Kendall Hunt37
Professional Development Isn’t Just for Teachers When it comes to professional development, most of us think about the tools and techniques needed to train teachers. However, professional development for administrators is just as important, if not more so. Instead of learning about the ins and outs of teaching roles, administrators would benefit from professional development focused on changing human behaviors and transforming organizational culture. A principal’s ability to lead change is critical. Principals and other school leaders must understand how to create the conditions necessary for empowering teachers to take risks and to view failure as an opportunity to grow. School districts also must ensure that a clearly articulated and unified vision for the role of technology is communicated to educators. Are teachers required to integrate technology during classroom observations/evaluations? Have you ever walked into a classroom with an administrator while students are working on devices?
The power of a provocation… Whether it ignites an inquiry or shifts the gears of learning, if it’s fuelled by careful consideration and clear intentions, a ‘provocation‘ can drive powerful learning. Considering the ‘power of provocations’ with our Lana Fleiszig recently, teachers explored the purpose of provocations, what could be used as provocation and the teacher’s role in the provocation process. The most important question, though, is what might the provocation reveal about our learners, their thinking and learning and where to next? Our teachers collaboratively developed a list of questions to consider when designing provocations: Might the provocation excite/engage the learners and ‘hook’ them into learning? We’re looking forward to taking it further in the coming ‘ Reveal’ workshop with Sam Sherratt exploring ‘what it means to be aware of, receptive to and curious about what our students are revealing to us so that we can be constantly inquiring into our students and adjusting our planning accordingly.’
The Makings of Maker Spaces, Part 1: Space for Creation, Not Just Consumption Maker spaces in libraries are the latest step in the evolving debate over what public libraries’ core mission is or should be. From collecting in an era of scarce resources to curation in an era of overabundant ones, some libraries are moving to incorporate cocreation: providing the tools to help patrons produce their own works of art or information and sometimes also collecting the results to share with other members of the community. Maker spaces promote learning through play; have the potential to demystify science, math, technology, and engineering; and encourage women and underrepresented minorities to seek careers in those fields. They also tie in to the growing trend of indie artists in every medium—including books—who are bypassing traditional gatekeepers, taking advantage of new tools to produce professionally polished products, and going direct to the web to seek an audience. Libraries around the United States offer tools for patrons to learn by doingBy Lauren Britton R.
Creative Compulsive Disorder: Remembering Zina Nicole Lahr This short clip about artist and maker Zina Nicole Lahr may be as tragic as it is beautiful. Earlier this fall Lahr approached her friend Stormy Pyeatte and asked if they might shoot a quick video for her portfolio. The video was shot and edited in just two days and demonstrates Lahr’s insatiable desire to build, invent, and “bring life to something inanimate,” a process she called her “creative compulsive disorder.” Almost unthinkably, Lahr was killed in a hiking accident in Colorado on November 20th, a few weeks after this was shot. I didn’t know Lahr, but if this brief glimpse into her life is any indicator it’s clear she possessed an extremely rare spirit that feels completely genuine and infectious. It seems she was involved in practically every genre of creativity we normally cover here on Colossal.
Personalizing for Teacher Needs The idea of personalization in education abounds in so many ways. We want to know and understand our students as individuals, as well as personalize their instruction according to the nuances of their learning. This makes sense because, after all, educators are individuals, too, and just like our students, our unique attributes are gifts. However, what educators may want at certain stages in their careers may not be as evident. In my work as an instructional coach, I've discussed this topic many times with teachers, and their desires vary based on how long they've spent in education. Beginning Teachers Beginning teachers have three or less years of classroom experience. 1. Put logistical information in an easily accessible place. 2. Know your veteran teachers' personalities, strengths, and challenges. 3. One challenge for beginning teachers is a drastic shift in mentoring after their first year in the classroom. Middle-of-the-Road Teachers 1. 2. Veteran Teachers 1. 2. Notes
Thinking: Shaken Not Stirred prov·o·ca·tion (pr v -k sh n) n. 1. 2. Our brain needs it. In an inquiry-centered environment learning provocations abound. The recipe? What are some ways to put that into practice in a classroom? 1. Because they are worth a thousand words. Use various strategies: – I See / I Think / I Wonder – Silent Conversation – Musical Tables etc. There are millions of photos available that can be used in inquiry on various concepts – poverty, conflict, power, gender, multiculturalism, pollution – basically anything and everything. Where is this beautiful city with skyscrapers? It is in Africa, more exactly in Congo. The power of photography. 2. I always use high quality photographs and add intriguing, confusing, or simply powerful words. 3. Whenever I use posters I am looking for simplicity…even minimalism “because it eliminates the obvious and adds the meaningful”. *You can print your posters in a really big format here. 4. Need I say how important they are in triggering thought and emotion? 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.
Color-Coded Clean Up: Organizing Your Makerspace | Making in School During the holiday break the Creativity Lab decided to take advantage of the student-free time by transforming the already awesome makerspace we’ve built, to an even more student-friendly place. The golden rule in organization is this: in the end everything has a place, within the place it functions. To break this down a little, here are a few things to ponder when organizing your space: (1) Everything should have a place. What do we have? (2) Try to arrange things by process or within in a place where it functions. Are stations necessary? (3) Adjust as you go. Are things working? Draft a little plan, do a sketch, talk to other teachers that use the space and go for it. Excellent things to have on hand during the process: Plastic Storage Bins – Large and SmallLabels (I love and swear by Post-it Label Rolls, 1” wide) OR Tape and Index Cards, anything to help you sortMulticolored Duct Tape (see our pictures, I found Duck Brand to be the brand with the most variety)Measuring Tape Mr. Like this:
NOW AND THEN: Paper Crafts « Decor Arts Now By Lynn Byrne. How cool are these dresses! They are constructed of paper! I spotted them in the window of an Anthropologie store. Earlier that weekend, I stumbled across this display up in Stamford. What are those things hanging on the wall in the back of the booth? Then there was the David Stark pop up paper store at West Elm last spring. Paper crafts are having a moment. Of course, people have been crafting with paper for centuries. Photo from the California State Univ.website (no photographer credit) The blog Style Hive posted this collage showing orgami-inspired fashion and home furnishings (note ottoman in bottom left) back in 2007, but in this instance, the paper craft is interpreted with fabric! Back in Victorian times, many families decorated their trees with paper ornaments. Photo from Family Christmas Online Finally, since we are talking about paper crafts, I can’t forget the fabulous Mrs. Are you ready to get crafty?
How To Plan Outstanding Tech Training For Your Teachers | Cult Of Pedagogy Listen to this post as a podcast: Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 18:27 — 25.7MB) Subscribe: iTunes | Android | I recently got an email from a guy who had just been hired as a tech specialist for a school district. I think it’s safe to assume that this guy is not alone in his wondering. So today I’m going to share with you what I wrote back to the tech integration guy, the advice I gave him for planning and executing the best tech training possible for teachers. The tips we are all going to provide here are for two different groups of people. Just like knowing our students helps us teach them more effectively, knowing the skill levels, interests, and needs of the teachers will help you better customize training for them. The Pre-Training Survey Before I start planning any kind of training for a group of teachers, I like to send out a survey on a simple Google form to learn more about them. Rodney Turner Sarah Thomas Craig Badura App Task Challenges