Lessons by Mathalicious My Two Left Feet Should shoe companies sell left and right shoes separately? Students collect survey and measurement data, construct bar graphs, and discuss distributions and measures of central tendency in order to figure out whether shoe companies should necessarily be selling their products in same-size pairs. Solving the World - Serious Games Require Serious Gamers Every day gamers go into fictional spaces to save the world. They go on quests to save the Mario Galaxy, battle evil in Azeroth, and improve their lots in Farmville. Millions of gamers spend in the area of 3 billion hours a week solving the difficult and challenging problems of hundreds of fictional worlds and thousands of quests. Until lately that didn't really have much of an effect on the real world. However with the rise of Serious Gaming, a movement that explores the uses of games beyond "entertainment", video games and the real world have become entwined.
How big is the ocean? - Scott Gass Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, one of the world’s foremost centers in marine research, has a fantastic array of ocean materials and content. Including extensive coverage of topic areas such as climate, ocean chemistry, ocean circulation, ocean life, deep sea environments, tools and technology, and even underwater archaeology, current, in-depth features make this a must use resource. See all that they have to offer. Through their Ocean extension of the Google Earth platform, Google provides a breathtaking opportunity to explore the World Ocean. Get a sense of the what’s available and download the application. National Geographic maintains an excellent ocean resource which includes exciting updates in underwater exploration and research, stunning marine photos from around the world, and inspiring opportunities for greater stewardship of the World Ocean.
Fun Kids Online Math Games "Sheppard offers everything from early math to pre-algebra. The lessons include interactive activities to practice concepts. Students can shoot fruit, pop balloons, and even play math man (the math version of pac man!). Fractions, place value, money, and basic operations are some of the areas that are covered. Squashy Boxes* Here's another versatile (and often overlooked) resource. Squashy Boxes enable children to quickly generate 'random' numbers. They are a simple but effective tool for practising a range of rapid recall and mental calculation strategies. Squashy Boxes are easy to make, 'pack flat', have hundreds of uses and are easy for children to manipulate; children can also store them in their own drawers or book bags.
Game Theory, Popular Science On test day for my Behavioral Ecology class at UCLA, I walked into the classroom bearing an impossibly difficult exam. Rather than being neatly arranged in alternate rows with pen or pencil in hand, my students sat in one tight group, with notes and books and laptops open and available. They were poised to share each other's thoughts and to copy the best answers. As I distributed the tests, the students began to talk and write. All of this would normally be called cheating. Beyond the Book: Infographics of Students' Reading History A high schooler's reading history infographic. Photo credit: Sarah Mulhern Gross I'm an evangelist. A book evangelist, that is. I hand out books to students and colleagues, booktalking them in class, at lunch, and even in my email signature.
Math Learning Center The Math Learning Center offers a variety of free products for all grade levels. Unless otherwise noted, all of these resources can be used with any math curriculum. Lessons & Activities, Grades K-5 More than 130 activities sets and worksheets organized by grade level and topic. theconversation New research has found some teachers mark boys' primary (elementary) school maths tests more favourably than girls, impacting girls' uptake of advanced mathematics and science subjects in high school. Entrance rates into maths and science degrees at university level can also be traced back to the impacts of teachers' gender bias in primary school. Higher levels of mathematics and science education have been linked to greater employment opportunities and higher earnings, meaning a primary teacher’s attitude towards maths can have a serious impact on a child’s future success.
Learning Analytic for Digital Game-Based Learning There is an overlooked opportunity in games – big data generated in the interactions through gaming. Game based learning is great, it’s learning-by-doing with lower costs in many cases, it’s focused on problem solving, it improves students motivation. But when we suggest teachers to use serious games to teach their students, the first question that it comes to their minds is: “Well, I like the idea, but… How do I assess this?”, or “How do I know it works for everyone?” Learning Analytics for Serious Games should step in now.
The Literacy Shed - Visual Resources for Writing Lessons While researching tools that promote digital storytelling, I came across The Literacy Shed. It is a collection of visual resources that teachers can use as a stand-alone lesson, be the basis of a literacy unit, or enhance a unit already in use. The creators of The Literacy Shed has categorized the clips and images in thematic “sheds”. They share details of each, with a little historic background, places the clip in context, and then offer numerous lesson suggestions.