Instructional Techno Science 512

Volume 1, Issue 1

logy

August/September 2012

BVCPS

Inside this issue:

Feature Article: How to Teach with Technology: Science Technology Equipment Rental Instructional Technology Online Resources Discovery Education eMediaVA Internet Safety Technology Services 1

How to Teach with Technology: Science

By Sara Bernard

A Transformative Experience
"You could use movies or cartoons to teach students Newton's laws of motion. For example, a teacher could use the movie Transformers to demonstrate what laws of motion the movie follows or breaks. That movie is pretty popular, so the teacher wouldn't have to worry about students paying attention. When the students figure out which laws of physics are being broken, they could write down what would actually happen if the law hadn't been broken. This would make class a little more interesting because, for example, if Optimus Prime made a giant leap that is impossible, the students would probably have fun imagining the character falling."

about anything about globalwarming chemistry. A video project was so much more fun than a boring research paper!"

Animating Geography
"One way we can use technology is by using Xtranormal to teach geography. You get an Xtranormal account, and you can make movies by picking a character (or sometimes two if you want), a setting, and a voice for the character. You can teach geography with Xtranormal videos by having your character define geography words or describe what they are. If you want the character to say something, all you have to do is type the script in the script box. When you press Action, he or she will say everything you wrote."

script, add sounds and actions, and publish their work. In Lisa Parisi and Christine Southard's class, students have made Xtranormal videos as a part of the Time Zone Experiences Wiki and other class projects -- and they've been a resounding success. Says Parisi, "One student, who was typically an unmotivated writer, spent hours writing and rewriting her script so it would work well in the video."

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Testing For the Fun of It

"If I was teaching science, I would use the Java Gaming site to help my class learn with fun quizzes. One of my favorite games on there is a little bit like Jeopardy!. I first used this site when I was in fourth grade, and I liked it very much. You can use it for different subjects, and it is really fun with science." Java Gaming lists free online games that range from educational mind-bogglers to action and arcade favorites. Education-specific Java sites include JavaMath and Educational Java Programs.

Recommended Web- 4 sites

Visualizing Chemistry
"One of the coolest things that one of my high school teachers did was give us three months to work on a 20-minute video project on a specific topic in the class. The class was on chemistry, and our topic was the chemistry of global warming. To this day, I could tell you just

Credit: Xtranormal

Xtranormal is a moviecreating Web site that allows users to pick a scene, type a

Reprinted, in part, from an article on Edutopia, part of the George Lucas Educational Foundation.

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Instructional Technology

Technology Equipment Rental

We have a rental program for certain types of technology equipment. This equipment is available for shortterm checkout and can be used for field trips, special projects, etc. Equipment is available on a firstcome, first serve basis. Contact Sue Way to reserve equipment. 4 Garmin GPS units 6 iPod Touches* (gen2 which has a camera) 10 iPod Nanos* (record and play audio files) 1 Panasonic Digital Camcorder 4 Kodak pocket digital video cameras* 2 Canon Powershot digital cameras 1 Olympus digital camera 1 Avervision document camera *lapel microphones also available

Instructional Technology Online Resources

If you havent already done so, check out our two instructional technology resource websites. This sites will be constantly updated with links, lesson plans, how-tos and much, much more. We appreciate your ideas and suggestions. So let us know if theres something youd like to see on these sites. We would also like you to share your instructional technology activities, lessons, and links. So if you have a technology-infused lesson you wouldnt mind sharing, send it to Sue Way and shell post it on our wikispace. Maybe youve found a great website. Again, please let us know, wed love to share it. EdTech Wikispace ITRT Resources

Wi

kispaces and more...

Discovery Education
Discovery Education offers a breadth and depth of digital media content that is immersive, engaging and brings the world into the classroom to give every student a chance to experience fascinating people, places, and events. All content is aligned to state standards, can be aligned to custom curriculum, and supports classroom instruction regardless of the technology platform. (Discovery Education, 2012) Once again, we have a subscription to Discovery Education, or as some remember it, United Streaming. More than videos, DE offers lesson plans, worksheets, assessments and more, all aligned to VA SOLs. If you dont have an account, it only takes a few minutes to register. Visit http://www.discoveryeducation.com/ and use your school passcode to activate your account. Enderly Kling Parry McCluer Middle Parry McCluer High 79A4-A6AF 47EE-C974 947F-71A2 240B-8333

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eMediaVA
eMediaVA is Virginia's premier statewide digital media distribution system featuring the best "purposebuilt" educational content available. Brought to you by the Virginia Public Media Stations* and PBS, eMediaVA is constantly evolving to better meet the needs of Virginias teachers and students. Whats even better, eMediaVA is free for Virginias teachers and students!
* Blue Ridge PBS, Roanoke; Community Idea Stations, Richmond; WETA, Arlington; WHRO, Norfolk; and WVPT, Harrisonburg. (eMediaVA, 2012)

able to offer this subscription free to teachers and schools in Virginia. Use this in place of or to supplement Discovery Education. As eMediaVA increases their library, this service should actually replace Discovery Education and make it easier to find resources since all resources match VA SOLs instead of SOLs for other states which might not be useful for us. http://www.emediava.org/

You will receive an email from eMediaVA with your log-in information. This service is being given to us free of charge for the next two years. eMediaVAs hope is that, with grants and other funding, they will always be

Internet Safety
Did you know that the VA DOE mandates that every teacher include Internet Safety as part of their content instruction? This isnt as difficult as it might seem. There are numerous resources available to help you including VA DOE guides with content activities correlated to the SOLs: Guidelines and Re-

sources for Internet Safety in Schools. and Ideas for Integrating Internet Safety into the Curriculum. The DOE has also partnered with a variety of organizations to provide teachers with quality online activities such as Professor Garfield which has activities on Cyberbullying, Online Safety, Fact or Opinion, Forms of Media as well as activities to help students in other areas of their lives.

Diversity, Giving Back, Self-Control, Peer Pressure, Listening, and SelfEsteem. Another great partnership with a local law enforcement agency provides Virginia schools free access to the NetSmartz Workshop and all of its resources on Internet Safety. Links to these resources and many more may be found on the VA DOE Internet Safety website.

Technology Services
BVCPS underwent a lot of technology updates and changes this summer. I know that there have many instances where things didnt work quite the way we wanted them to as we began our school year, but our technology staff worked hard over the summer, and is continuing to work hard, to provide you with updated laptops, better Internet connections, and more. Please be patientthey have many demands on their servicesand use the proper method to request assistancethe Technology Support Ticket. A link to this service may also be found on BVs home page.

Our Technology Staff

Mark Buckhalt Information Technology and Network Manager Robin Williams Technology Specialist/Database Kathy Jennings Technology Specialist/Webmaster

Contact Information District ITRT: Sue Way sue.way@bvcps.net 540.817.8632 Office located at Parry McCluer Middle Schoo l

www.bvcps.net

Websites: https://sites.google.com/a/bvc resources/ ps.net/itrtcom/

BVCPS

http://bvcpsedtech.wikispaces.

Recommended Websites
From the DOE:
Snapshot of a Modern Learner Use Technology to Upend Traditional Education Blooms Taxonomy: The 21st Century Version ARKive Free science resources suitable for ages 5 and up. Copyright New ruling about copyright and textbooks in schools. Educational Technology Role of technology in our schools.

Online Activities and Instruction for Students:

Cover Orange 2 Make physics fun with this game. EdHeads Fantastic online activities from learning to predict the weather to nanoparticles and brain tumors to compound machines to crash scene investigation. Most activities have teacher resourcesquizzes, tests, lesson plans, etc. Amusement Park Physics Design a roller coaster. The Atoms Family A series of interactive puzzles hosted

by famous monsters. Various energy concepts are taught as the students solve the problem. Strange Matter Discover the secrets of everyday itemsstructure, processing, properties and performance. Interactive Physics Modules Basic instruction in mass, volume, density; electricity and magnetism; matter; energy; and nuclear fusion. The Particle Adventure Fundamentals of matter and force. Bitesize Chemistry Everything you need to know about chemistry broken down into bitesized sections.