The purpose of this newsletter is to share ideas, resources, and/or links with educators who may be looking...

• for creative avenues to engage students or
• to engage in partnerships with other educators/students.

The goal is to "enhance learning for students." If you have ideas/resources to share, feel free to send them my way and I'll include them in this eNewsletter.

Check out these Thanksgiving ideas and activities from We Are Teachers.

November 2024

Create custom content to honor Native American Heritage Month with Instant Pear Decks. Use these expert tips and resources for tailored lessons that deeply engage students in the histories and modern cultures of Indigenous peoples. Click here to access the resources.

November 2024

We Are Teachers shared this page full of November bulletin board ideas.

November 2024

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs offers a guide on how to honor our veterans.

October 2024

Fire Prevention Week™ is on the horizon! Why not get ready now with these fun fire safety materials? This week we have even more lesson plans and resources for you to integrate into your classrooms Oct. 6-12. Also, check out Sparky School House for additional resources.

September 2024

On June 17, 2024, Governor Shapiro signed into law Act 25 of 2024 (Act 25), which amended the Public School Code of 1949 to require school entities to hold a moment of silence for students and faculty to observe the September 11, 2001 anniversary. PDE has created a toolkit is designed to support schools in implementing Act 25.

Resources and additional information can be found at the PDESAS portal.

September 2024

Skip counts involve grouping and patterns, two other big ideas in elementary math. It also set a foundation for multiplication. Check out these skip-counting ideas from We Are Teachers.

September 2024

Check out these resources...

• Johnny Appleseed Day
• Hispanic Heritage Month
• Constitution Day
• September 11

September 2024

International Dot Day, September 15-ish, is almost here! Check out some of these resources to celebrate creativity, collaboration, and perseverance with your students! All of these activities are based on Peter Reynolds' book, The Dot.

• International Dot Day Web Site
  
• Register for Dot Day and get the FREE Educator's Handbook
• Don't miss the info for the live stream event featuring the author, Peter Reynolds!!
• Check out this resource from IU #6 with links to many resources.

September 2024

Get ready for a smoother start to the school year with Pear Deck Learning's exciting new features, including pre-session games in Pear Deck Tutor, Google Docs uploads to the Writing lab, and AI-generated passages in Pear Assessment. Plus, a new season in Pear Practice! Explore what's new!

August 2024

Explore Kami's upcoming and on-demand webinars for the latest tips and insights from education experts.

August 2024

From Coy.... To start the new school year off right, I’ve got a gift for you guys… a new clean up song made just for you and your classroom as well as a new video that your kids will love!

When a teacher asked if we could create a fresh new tune that would get kids excited about tidying up, we eagerly accepted the musical mission! You asked, we listened and delivered! Introducing “The Clean Up Song.”

August 2024

From Tech & Learning... Back-to-school time is here and it’s essential for educators to start building a comfortable and secure atmosphere in their classrooms from day one. One way to ease into the new year is with icebreakers – shared exercises and activities that help students shed their first-day anxieties and get to know their new classmates. Click here to access.

August 2024

Interested in learning more about the Science of Reading? If yes, check out this resource which contains recorded sessions from the PaTTAN Literacy Symposium. From the Web site... The 2024 PaTTAN Literacy Symposium will provide educators in all capacities with the opportunity to deepen their knowledge and skills pertaining to evidence-based practices in reading instruction in grades K-12.

August 2024

Looking to maximize your use of Kami? Why not check out the Kami Academy.

August 2024

We Are Teachers shared this Canva Hack for making bulletin board letters. No more tracing letters!

August 2024

Help fight summer slide by encouraging families to sign up for Camp BOOK IT! Details here.

May 2024

The folks at TCEA shared this... Explore a free, open-source web application, Doodle3D Transform! It takes 2D drawings and transforms them into fun, 3D creations. Learn how!

May 2024

IU #6 is offering a number of FREE PD sessions AND you can get paid to attend through that IU!! You may find the details here.

May 2024

Pear Deck teamed up with ClickView for Mental Health Awareness Month and created K-12 lessons to help students explore healthy habits, social skills, and more. Click here to access them.

May 2024

Dr. Thad Urban from Iroquois School District shared this.... "I was asked to share this grant information with all the districts in our area. The Pennsylvania Association of School Retirees (PASR) is offering a $5,000 Stock the Classroom Grant. This grant is a super easy one to write (I received it before). The grant can be accessed here: https://www.pasr.org/classroom_grant/

Please forward that link to any teacher you think would make something cool happen. The grant deadline is September 16th. Thank you and “may the odds be ever in your favor”!

May 2024

Registration is open for College for Kids. Click here to see additional information, including the schedule.

April 2024

Join us on an adventure in health and wellness. Experience a range of activities, receive exciting giveaways, access free books and resources for your family, and explore suggestions to keep both your mind and body engaged. Discover insights into health careers as well. Click here to register.

Begin your adventure at the Meadville Public Library at 6:00 p.m. at 848 N. Main St. on May 9th. Rain date is May 22nd.

April 2024

Acutec is hiring for the summer. Summer opportunities can include CNC Machining, Quality Inspection, and Production Support. Here is the link to the Contact Us form from their Web site.

April 2024

Explore the latest improvements and updates to Pear Deck Learning. Click here to access the April Newsletter.

April 2024

Checking for understanding in the classroom is crucial. Check out these 23 strategies from TCEA to gauge student understanding in your classroom.

April 2024

Plan for an exciting April with new, engaging resources — find content for Financial Literacy lessons, explore behind-the-scenes with the NBA, and more! See what's new for April at Discovery Ed.

April 2024

Make the most of your March lessons with materials and resources from Discovery Education! Check out this month's Blog by clicking here.

March 2024

Nature's greatest show will be here on April 8th. Check out these resources to help prepare you and your students:

• CCSD Prepares for the Total Solar Eclipse Presentation
• Dr. Noonen's Eclipse Resources Web Page
• Title I-sponsored Event at Acutec

March 2024

TCEA shared the link to these activities to help get "the green on" in the classroom.

• Digital Breakout Activity
• Two Connections Game
  
• "It's All About the Green" Activity

March 2024

How do we guide all students, no matter their developmental starting points, to become more productive and engaged learners? A few years ago, with the help of education visionaries Linda Darling Hammond, Pamela Cantor, and Karen Pittman, we dove in to find out.

The result was the How Learning Happens video collection—home to some of Edutopia’s most popular videos ever. By pairing research insights with actionable strategies from classrooms around the U.S., we helped educators see new ways to build students’ academic confidence, cultivate better learning conditions, and more.

Check them out here!

February 2024

Have you seen the Kami Library that contains free templates? Click here to access the Library.

February 2024

Amazon is providing Career Tours which are free, interactive virtual field trips that inspire students to pursue careers of the future by exploring Amazon’s technologies. Tour whenever, wherever on Kahoot! Click here for more details.

February 2024

Here is the link to Kami Academy a.k.a. the place to find self-paced training videos from Kami.

February 2024

With Valentine's Day coming up, here is a collection of some of Eric Curts' Valentine-related Google activities for students to practice writing, math, and creativity:

• 📊 Hearts and Charts Google Sheets Math Activities
• 😍 Valentine Emoji Rebus Stories in Google Docs
• 🧲 Valentine Magnetic Poetry with Google Drawings
• 💌 Valentine Cards with Google Drawings

You can get copies of all the templates, as well as detailed directions for use here.

February 2024

On Saturday, March 23, Ehrman Crest Elementary School in the Seneca Valley School District will host a half-day event featuring some of our region’s most extraordinary educators and programs. Ehrman Crest Elementary School was celebrated by TIME Magazine in late 2022 as one of the world’s best inventions for that year – in any field or discipline! The school alone is something to see and by which to be inspired.

The registration link is: bit.ly/frEDcamp24

February 2024

Check out this resource from Soar with Dyslexia that contains links to reading resources. AMAZING!! (Many thanks to Lisa Sheik for sharing!)

February 2024

Colleagues from TCEA shared this tool that makes it easy to find exactly the right template in Canva. It includes back to school, classroom, top 10, student templates, and how to teach with Canva. Check it out!

February 2024

Check out this collection of resources related to the April 8, 2024 total solar eclipse. If you have resources that should be included, please let Dr. Noonen know. She's glad to add them!

February 2024

From the Pennsylvania Game Commission: Let’s empower your students to bloom into environmental stewards with the Seedlings for Schools program.

The FREE Seedlings for Schools program provides each student with a tree seedling to take home and plant. The program is available to ALL Pennsylvania schools from kindergarten through 12th grade.

Seedlings are grown and shipped from the Pennsylvania Game Commission’s Howard Nursery, in Centre County.

This year’s seedling choices are Norway spruce, white spruce, red oak, ninebark, greystem dogwood, or silky dogwood.

This program is a partnership between the Pennsylvania Game Commission and the Wildlife for Everyone Foundation. Find more info on the program, classroom materials, and the order form here.

February 2024

February is Black History Month, and Pear Deck curated a set of lessons developed in partnership with Everfi and our African-American/Black Employee Resource Groups. Click here to access them.

February 2024

Celebrate Valentine's Day in your classroom with these PBS resources.

February 2024

Here is the link to the February newsletter from Discovery Education. You will find links to resources related to Black History Month, Career and Technical Education Month, and American Heart Month... and so much more!

February 2024

The 2024 PaTTAN Literacy Symposium will be held (virtually) June 11-13, 2024!!

All sessions will be recorded and hosted on the PaTTAN YouTube Channel and the PaTTAN Literacy Resource Hub.

Join keynote speakers, Dr. Holly Lane, Kareem Jabbar Weaver, and Dr. Anita Archer along with over 75 literacy leaders and expert practitioners! Learn more here: https://sites.google.com/.../2024-pattan-literacy-symposium

Registration opens February 28, 2024!

January 2024

Celebrate 100 days of learning and boost math skills at the same time! Engage your class with these fun-filled activities that are fun and challenging.

January 2024

The crossword creator from Discovery Education has three easy steps: enter a title, enter your words and clues, and check the box if you want instructions to appear below the puzzle. The big bonus here is the Discovery Education website has ALL these additional puzzle makers for free:

• Word search

• Double puzzle

• Fallen phrase

• Math square

• Mazes

• Letter tiles

• Cryptogram

• Number blocks

• Hidden message

January 2024

We Are Teachers offers this list of 102 incentives that motivate kids to work, behave, and cooperate, as well as how to use them to teach children what they should do.

January 2024

Dr. Galdon shared information about the Fund for Teachers Grant that was provided to her by Senator Michele Brooks. Here is the link:

https://fft.fundforteachers.org/applications/guideline/program_id:163/step:overview

The CCSD Grant Application Form is available here and should be returned to me no later than January 12th for a January 16th CMT review. The deadline to submit the Fund for Teachers application is January 18.

January 2024

Dr. Med Kharbach shared several resources he curated with the Educators Technology site. He writes “From interactive simulations to comprehensive lesson plans, these resources are designed to cater to various learning styles and bring the wonders of science to life.” You may access his list here.

January 2024

Check out this post from Brittany Washburn for some great ideas and/or reminders of how Google Classroom may be used.

December 2023

Check out this newsletter from ARIN IU!

https://www.smore.com/cpvbe

December 2023

Looking for a way to record your screen? Check out how to do so using Canva!

December 2023

December is full of holidays and observances—and we have resources for them all!

• Computer Science Education Week (Dec. 6-12)
• Hanukkah (Dec. 7-15)
• Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day (Dec. 7)
• Human Rights Day (Dec. 10)
• Bill of Rights Day (Dec. 15)
• Winter Solstice (Dec. 21)
• Christmas (Dec. 25)
• Kwanzaa (Dec. 26-Jan. 1)

Check out the This Month at Discovery Education blog post for details!

December 2023

Application Deadline Dec. 15, 2023

Nonprofits and schools are eligible to apply for ALDI Cares Community Grants to support children through education, arts, athletics, or addressing food insecurity locally while supporting Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs. Grant requests can range from $250 to $5,000. Learn more.

November 2023

During the recent inservice, two AI tools that are great for differentiation were shared with K-3 teachers during our curriculum session. They are:

• Project Read - decodable story generator - https://www.projectread.ai/
• Diffit - https://web.diffit.me/

Check them out! If you have questions, please contact Dr. Noonen.

November 2023

Need an idea for a lesson that celebrates an upcoming November holiday? Discovery Education’s got you covered!

• Native American Heritage Month starts November 1 and is an opportune time to educate and learn about the original American inhabitants from past to present.
• Inspire students to explore science, technology, engineering, and math concepts on November 8 for National STEM Day! Discovery Education has a wealth of resources to help you create the next generation of STEM superstars.
• Veteran’s Day on November 11 is a chance to reflect how war has shaped the United States and honor those who have fought for freedom. In Canada, November 11 marks Remembrance Day, which honors the memory of fallen soldiers.
• Check out K-12 resources about gratitude and traditions to give thanks on November 23 for Thanksgiving!
• November 21-27, celebrate Canada History Week by exploring Canada’s role in world history.

October 2023

These Slides were designed to drop into your other lessons. You can use them as a bell-ringer, to check attendance, as a brain break, or as part of your class Halloween festivities!

October 2023

From Discovery Education.... Help us welcome an all-new ​K-5 original series, Need to Know! With high-quality videos and ready-to-use lessons, Need to Know helps educators guide students through structured learning activities that encourage collaboration while facilitating engaging classroom discourse on United States historical events.

October 2023

From Discovery Education... Join us on October 21st for VirtCon, a day of inspiration that showcases how members of the Discovery Educator Network are using DE’s compelling content to engage students and inspire curiosity in their classrooms. If you are attending these sessions for Act 48 hours, please let Dr. Noonen know in advance of the event.

https://www.discoveryeducation.com/info/virtcon/

October 2023

From Tara Lawrence... Check out the new Dream Team Web site that allows educators, and anyone else holding career exploration discussions with young people, request an appearance or experience with one of our young manufacturing volunteers.

October 2023

🎃 If you're feeling ready for spooky season, check out these fun Halloween activities for the classroom from We Are Teachers. Don’t miss the pumpkin STEM challenge!

September 2023

From Tara Lawrence, NWIRC Manufacturing Talent Stream Coordinator...

The day was created years ago to help change perceptions and create awareness of the career opportunities in manufacturing. Many organizations, including the NWIRC, now celebrate the entire month of October! I’m passing along a student Manufacturing Month activity presented by NWIRC and numerous community partners. We are hoping that teachers and students can take some time during MFG Month to explore the opportunities and the importance of manufacturing in our community. Teachers of students in grades 6-12 can do the activity with their class or can just pass the info along for students to do at home. This information and the essay contest submission portal can also be found at www.nwirc.org/mfgmonth. The materials also serve as an artifact for the PA education requirement for career exploration.

September 2023

Need Funding For A Project?

Do you have a terrific idea for a new collaborative project between Crawford Central School District and Allegheny College faculty, staff, or students? If so, the College-Schools Collaborative (CSC) can help you by providing funding to support your collaborative project. Guidelines and the application form can be found via this link. If you have any questions, please contact either Jennifer or me. (jennifer.galdon at craw.org or ann.noonen at craw.org)

September 2023

Whether you’re green or a pro, this Pear Deck Playbook is your ticket to a smooth start to the year with step-by-step tips and best practices. Grab the guide here!!

September 2023

The September releases of family-friendly newsletters for families and providers of children, ages birth to Kindergarten are now available. The newsletters feature fun early learning activities that align with the Pennsylvania Early Learning Standards, resources and information to help families as their child's first and most important teacher.

Take a look and share with families and friends, then subscribe to get the next release directly into your inbox.

• Learning is Everywhere
• Kindergarten Here I Come
• Kindergarten Here I Am

Here's another great resource:

• Bright Start, Bright Kids, Bright Futures

September 2023

This website was designed by math educators to provide a collaborative way to experience mathematics principles. They looked at research on the best ways to learn math and applied them in creating their math tool.

The amazing Eric Curts offers this Webinar on tips and tricks for using the free whiteboard. Check it out!!

September 2023

Have you checked out the PA STEELS Curriculum Alignment Channel in Discovery Education?

August 2023

Check out Discovery Education's September 2023 Updates Newsletter! The newsletter includes:

• Timely and Relevant Resources
• Ready-to-Use Activities
• Information on the first Virtual Field Trip of the year
• Creating Classroom Culture Choice Boards
• And much more!

August 2023

eaching strategies can help educators engage students, become mistake-friendly and build a thinking classroom, among other practices, writes former educator Andrew Boryga, who gathered several teachers' ideas. For example, brainteasers can pull students in at the beginning of class, while using checkpoints instead of tests reduces student stress and better guides teachers' efforts. Check out this great article from Edutopia here.

August 2023

It's almost that time again: the start of a new school year. What would it take, you might wonder, to make this one the best school year yet?

As usual, we can look to Mister Rogers for guidance. "Did you know?" he used to sing. "Did you know when you wonder, you're learning?”

Today, science is proving him right. We now know that when we're in a state of wonder, our brains are primed for learning. In fact, when it comes to children's success in school, curiosity may be just as important as intelligence.

So, how might we spark more curiosity, more wonder, and more joy in the school year to come?

Join this free, virtual event on Tuesday, August 29, 8pm Eastern/5pm Pacific to learn simple ideas for sparking wonder and joy this school year — wherever you and your kids learn. The curiosity kicks off at 8pm eastern. Register here!

https://bit.ly/SparkWonder

August 2023

Check out this shared Google Sheet that contains links to tech tutorials and resources that have been contributed by about 60 different educators! The topics include: Chrome Browser, Chromebook, Google Drive, Google Slides, Google Sheets, Google Docs, Google Drawing, Google Forms, Google Classroom, Google Calendar, Jamboard, Google Meet, Google Keep, and Digital Literacy.

Yes, free access!! Click here to find this incredible resource!

August 2023

As we welcome families back to school, we hope you were able to take some time over the summer to enjoy moments with your family and friends. As you are preparing your students to begin another school year, we want you to remember the importance of parental mental health. The August Mental Health Newsletter (English) (Spanish) emphasizes the importance of parents’ mental health and outlines steps for healthy coping strategies. As a caregiver to children, it is important that you take the time to care for yourself as well!

Check out the ParentGuidance.org resources where you can access free courses led by licensed therapists on more than 50 topics. Check out the course titled, How to Develop Self-Compassion, by Dr. Paul Parkin. To access the course, login by creating or using your username and password to ParentGuidance.org.

August 2023

Jessica, author of the What I've Learned blog, shared her document that includes ways to effectively teach classroom procedures and routines in elementary school. Check it out here.

July 2023

Summer is in full swing, and many children have a little more time on their hands now they are not in school. Their time may be spent outside or online. We wanted to take the time to remind you of the dangers around us all and how you can educate your child to keep them safe. The July Mental Health Newsletter addresses the importance of safety, especially teaching your child about “stranger danger,” online safely and making emergency preparedness plans. Please take a minute to review and implement some basic guidelines that will help keep your family safe as they enjoy the warm summer months.

Also, check out over 50 therapist-led courses on ParentGuidance.org where you can learn more about the mental health needs of your child and yourself.

July 2023

Check out all of the programming available at our local library! Click here to access the schedule.

June 2023

Explore these timely collections of ready-to-use resources and student activities.

• National Zoo & Aquarium Month: Bears will be Bears; Dolphin Doctor
• D-Day (6/6): D-Day Channel
  
• World Oceans Day (6/8): Oceans Channel; Sharks: Learning Adventure
• Flag Day (6/14): Celebrate Flag Day; Flag Day Channel
• Juneteenth (6/19): What is Juneteenth?
• World Refugee Day (6/20): Global Refugee Crisis Channel
• First Day of Summer (6/21): Seasonal Change Channel

June 2023

Available here.

May 2023

Arcademics Channel - Boost learning and engagement with 10 new learning games from Arcademics. Within the Arcademics channel, find skill-building multi-player math and language art games—and a brand-new geography game.

FUTURE U. by Boeing - Through hands-on, experiential learning, FUTURE U. inspires students to use creativity, collaboration, persistence, and problem-solving to change the world.

MAY 2023

Registration is open for College for Kids Summer 2023! Visit this Web site for details.

April 2023

Discover how “the Fred Method” is helping every learner thrive in this professional development workshop for formal and informal educators and parents/caregivers. Remake Learning is hosting a free professional development event for every kind of educator – and learn from fellow educators who make Mister Rogers matter still today. Details here: https://remakelearningdays.org/event/fred-camp/

April 2023

Goodell Gardens is offering a wide range of nature-based public programs for youth this year, including several that are free admission, thanks to grant funding! Check out their offerings on their education Web page and the newly released 2023 children's program flyer.

April 2023

We are teachers offers the following.... Hooray! April is National Poetry Month, and we've got so many suggestions for poems to share and read aloud:

1. 70 Must-Share Poems for Elementary School
2. The Best Short Poems to Share With Kids
3. 60 Beautiful Poems About Nature
4. 30 Poems About Music for the Classroom
5. Beautiful and Inspiring Spring Poems
6. Best Poems About Friendship
7. Fun Haiku Poems for Kids of All Ages
8. 38 Math Poems for Students
9. 50 Science Poems for Students of All Ages
10. 30 Silly and Fun Limericks for Kids

April 2023

Have you ever wished you could see into the minds of your students? The Smithsonian Science Education Center has partnered with FableVision Studios to create a new animated web series that helps teachers do just that. Good Thinking! The Science of Teaching Science is designed to support K–12 science educators through targeted short-format videos that explore common student ideas and misconceptions about a range of science topics, such as energy, chemical reactions, and natural selection, as well as pedagogical subjects such as student motivation and the myth of left- and right-brained people. Each episode is grounded in findings from peer-reviewed science and educational research vetted by experts, and was developed with national standards in mind.

March 2023

The Content Orchard makes it easy to discover and copy templates, quick-start activities, and ready-to-teach lessons directly from the Pear Deck home.

There's a new filtering bar in the Pear Deck Content Orchard that enables users to filter the content library in three ways: 1) grade 2) subject and 3) category (including both deck content and partner).

Users can select as many grades, subjects, and categories as they want and select the 'Search' button to view the decks relevant to their criteria. From the results page, users can view deck details, add the decks that they love most to their drive, and then present the decks to their classes.

This new update allows users to discover content in a simpler way! It also reduces the time it takes for a teacher to find the lesson they need and add the deck to their drive.

March 2023

Check out Discovery's March Newsletter for a curated list of resources that support timely events like Women’s History Month, Read Across America Day, World Wildlife Day, First Day of Spring, and more!

February 2023

Have you used the Google Classroom Add On for Pear Deck yet? Check out this video to see how it works.

March 2023

Not only does March come in like a lion, it also roars in celebration for two groups who have made invaluable contributions -- women and the hearing impaired. Here are some resources to help students learn more how these groups have contributed to history, the arts, science, and much more:

• Best Women's History Month Lessons & Activities
• National Deaf History Month Lessons & Activities

Now let's get to the warm weather!

March 2023

Ever wonder what life was like growing up as a young George Washington? Are you curious about what was entailed in a military officer’s duties in pre-Revolutionary times? Do you have an interest in the thoughts and ideas of our first president when he served in the French and Indian War? If so, you can take advantage of a free opportunity to pose those questions to George Washington himself (in the person of experienced reenactor Matt Gault of Fort Ligonier) for your students! Have your students meet George Washington from your classroom with whatever video conferencing software works for you! George speaks on his childhood, his life as a young military officer, and his time during the French and Indian War in Western Pennsylvania! Ask George a question! To schedule or for more questions contact Matt at mgault@fortligonier.org.

March 2023

Need a good refresher on all that is available through the district membership in Discovery Ed? Check out this article from Tech & Learning.

March 2023

This is a site, K-5 Technology Lesson Plans, provides technology lesson activities and resources for teaching elementary school children. Sooo many great ideas!

March 2023

Explore these timely collections of ready-to-use resources and activities.

• Music in our Schools Month: Working in Harmony
  
• World Wildlife Day (3/3): Animals Channel; Water Channel
  
• International Women's Day (3/8): Womanica Channel; Girls4Tech
  
• Pi Day (3/14): Pi Day Channel
  
• St. Patrick's Day (3/17): St. Patrick's Day Channel
  
• First Day of Spring (3/20): Seasonal Change Channel
  
• International Day of Happiness (3/20): Discover Your Happy Channel
  
• World Poetry Day (3/21): Poetry Channel
  
• National Agriculture Week (3/21-3/27): Cooperative Minds Channel
  
• World Water Day (3/22): Conservation Station Channel
  
• Ramadan (3/22-4/20): Ramadan Channel
  

March 2023

Teaching about U.S. presidents is a great way to scrutinize the larger U.S. history landscape. When we teach about presidents, we examine the crucial people, events, politics and culture of their time. These lessons and activities are all free, easy to access, and provide many different ways of teaching and learning about U.S. presidents. Check out this article from Tech & Learning with links to various resources.

February 2023

To help you honor Black History Month, Pear Deck assembled ready-to-teach lessons to introduce your class to some inspirational Black leaders, artists, scientists, and more. Explore the Decks and make your own copies to get started.

February 2023

Watch this video tutorial to learn the newest way to interact with content from the Ken Burns in the Classroom Collection. Organized thematically, these engaging classroom resources use video clips from across Ken Burns’ diverse film catalog to pose thought provoking questions for students and introduce new ideas, perspectives, and primary sources.

February 2023

Check out Discovery's February Newsletter for a curated list of resources that support timely events like Black History Month, Groundhog Day, National Inventor’s Day, President’s Day, and much more!

February 2023

TCEA (Texas Computer Education Association) shared this blog post containing six digital activities for Valentine's Day. Check them out here.

February 2023

Have you heard about Dollars & Decisions? It’s a free “Choose Your Own Adventure”–style interactive course designed to introduce basic financial literacy to students in grades 8-12. Before you have your students play it, you’re going to want to check out our Dollars & Decisions Teacher Guide. We’ll show you how to set your class up for success and get the most out of this awesome course.

Details may be found on this We Are Teachers page.

February 2023

Shared by Tony Vincent... "Practice your mental math skills by completing ten rounds. Enter a value that combines with how much I have to make one thousand."

https://sites.google.com/view/mm1000game

February 2023

All sessions are offered twice daily, Monday and Thursday.

• Collaborate with Colleagues
  
• Animate Ideas with Keynote
  
• Brainstorm and Collaborate with Freeform
  
• Develop in Swift
  
• Visualize Mathematics
  
• Tell Video Stories with Editing Effects
  
• Personalize Documents with Pages
  
• Document Learning with Clips
  
• Animate with Stop Motion
  

To learn more, and register, visit http://apple.co/apl.

January 2023

Help your students become Canva experts, thanks to this set of fun and engaging how-to videos and activities, tailored to a student audience.

January 2023

Save the date 4/20/23!!!

The Crawford County K-12 Career Education Alliance in partnership with NWPA chapter of NTMA, Crawford Central School District and Allegheny College are excited to announce our 2023 Educator In the Workplace event.

What: 2023 Educator In the Workplace

When: April 20, 2023, from 4:00-6:00

Who: All educators including teachers, college professors, administrators, school counselors, faculty, staff, and para-professionals in Crawford County are welcome to attend.

Where: Prism Plastics

1045 French Street

Meadville, PA

Theme: ”Legacy of Change” Plastics in Production, the connection to your future.

Why: This collaborative community event, is a great opportunity to bring educators into local manufacturers to explore and better understand the local industries that employ 1 in every 4 members of our county.

This evening includes a tour, and guided conversation in a casual happy hour environment, to bring employers and educators together to build awareness of local careers in Manufacturing and the many pathways to get there.

We hope our yearly event continues to create an open dialogue and foster school and workplace relationships that create strategies to work together, to help prepare our students for a successful future upon graduation.

Bonus: Adult beverages and appetizers will be served!

Earn two Act 48 hours!

Register here.

January 2023

Engage in real-world math problems with this exclusive selection of math interactives and games. Customize race cars using expressions, defend yourself from an army of skeletons using absolute values, find ancient artifacts by exploring a coordinate plane, and more.

Click here to explore!

January 2023

From Canva... Help teachers learn all about the basics of Canva for Education, with 11 self-paced video lessons and a collection of fully-guided resources. Click here to access the course.

January 2023

Explore these timely collections of ready-to-use resources and activities.

• Ratification Day (1/14): How Did the American Revolution End?
  
• Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day (1/16): Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
  
• National Penguin Day (1/20): Penguins Channel
  
• Lunar New Year (1/22): Lunar New Year Channel
  
• NASA Day of Remembrance (1/26): NASA's Missions of Exploration
  
• International Holocaust Remembrance Day (1/27): Teaching with Testimony – USC Shoah Foundation
  
• Data Privacy Day (1/28): Discover Data: Decoding a Future Where Everyone Counts
  

January 2023

Check out this page full of links to books, quotes, and ideas to help you and your students celebrate Martin Luther King.

January 2023

• Hour of Code + Computer Education Week (12/5–12/11): Read how Suzanne Casey, a DE Educator, engages her students during this exciting week! Then explore the Computer Science Channel.
  
• National Miners Day (12/6): Haul! An Interactive Learning Experience
  
• Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day (12/7): The Heroes Who Fought Back
  
• International Mountain Day (12/11): Weathering and Erosion Channel
  
• Wright Brothers Day (12/17): History Kids: The Wright Brothers
  
• First Day of Winter (12/21): Seasonal Change Channel
  
• December Holidays: Hanukkah (12/18–12/26); Christmas (12/25); Boxing Day (12/26); Kwanzaa (12/26–1/1)

December 2022

The Hour of Code takes place every year during Computer Science Education Week, December 5-11. It’s designed to get kids excited about coding via brief, enjoyable lessons, typically based on digital games and apps. However, you can also teach coding and computer logic with “unplugged” analog lessons. Check out this article from Tech & Learning, Best Free Hour Of Code Lessons and Activities.

December 2022

Celebrate your students’ power to create change through the power of play! Using the pillars of LEGO® Build the Change, students create solutions to real-world problems as they learn through play!

December 8 | 1:00 p.m.

Click here to register.

December 2022

Check out this week’s resources from Discovery Education.

11/6-11/12 Polar Bear Week: https://bit.ly/3DM88hH

11/8 National STEM Day: https://bit.ly/3flMPKs

11/8 Election Day: https://bit.ly/3NmnP2o

11/10 Sesame Street Day: https://bit.ly/3FucGuu

11/11 Veteran's Day: https://bit.ly/3DrrRBX

November 2022

Tech and Learning compiled a number of free Veterans Day resources. Check them out here!

November 2022

Check out this page with shortcuts to Canva templates for teachers! Thanks to Stephanie Sandrock for sharing! Love this!!

November 2022

Travel to Churchill, Manitoba with DE to learn about the polar bear’s environment and the people who share it. On this live Virtual Field Trip, we’ll discover what enables this unique species to survive in the arctic tundra, explore different ways you can work with polar bears, and identify how you can protect polar bears and our planet. Learn more and register today!

October 2022

Check out Discovery Education's November Newsletter for resources that support timely events like Native American Heritage Month, Election Day, Veteran’s Day, Thanksgiving, and much more!

October 2022

Check out these slides! You can use them as a bell-ringer, to check attendance, as a brain break or as part of your class Halloween festivities!

Click here to access them.

October 2022

Looking for resources for the third week in October, Digital Citizenship Week? If so, check these out...

• List of resources compiled by Coaches in Illinois
• Digital Citizenship Week Wakelet created by Lisa Whiteside from Michigan

September 2022

Check out these resources from Canva to help you get started or extend your learning with Canva.

September 2022

From our Discovery contact.... "DEN VirtCon is just around the corner! We hope you'll join us for this free professional learning event on Tuesday, October 11 from 6:30 – 8:30 PM ET.

Whether you’re brand new to DE or a seasoned veteran, we have a collection of sessions that will be sure to meet your needs! And, we’ll have a certificate of attendance at the end of the evening that you can submit for PD credit."

Click here for additional information and to register.

September 2022

Looking for a Web site to help with fluency? Check out Read Along by Google! Read Along has an in-app reading buddy that listens to your young learner read aloud, offers assistance when they struggle and rewards them with stars when they do well – guiding them along as they progress. Be sure to use your Chrome browser.

September 2022

Amplify has partnered with The Right to Read Project to create Brain Builders– a free, engaging, student-facing animated video series to help children understand what their brain does in order to read. Thanks to Cheryl Collins at Neason Hill for sharing this resource!

September 2022

Do you have a terrific idea for a new collaborative project between Crawford Central School District and Allegheny College faculty, staff, or students? If so, the College-Schools Collaborative (CSC) can help you by providing funding to support your collaborative project. Guidelines and the application form can be found via this link. If you have any questions, please contact me. (ann.noonen at craw.org)

September 2022

This collection features activities and video resources to help students get to know each other and their new school routines, and lesson plans to help you get your new class off to a great start.

August 2022

Tech & Learning has a great article about Vocaroo. This is the tool I used for the audio on the first slide of the presentation shared with teachers of grades 4, 5, & 6 for the August 2022 inservice day to put audio on a Google Slide. Check out the article here.

August 2022

Dr. Catlin Tucker shared a slide deck with 35 conversation starters that would be excellent for the start or end of a class.

August 2022

Check out the BTS (back to school) resources from Pear Deck to find Webinars, free templates, and a link to their Blog. Don't miss the form at the bottom to receive their emails about new features and functions. Click here to access.

August 2022

Check out this blog post from TCEA that contains links to many inspirational and educational posters that may be downloaded and printed at no cost.

August 2022

Need an easy way to edit a photo? Check out Image Candy at https://imgcandy.com. It is Web-based, easy to use, and FREE.

August 2022

May is a time to shine a spotlight on mental health. Pear Deck partnered with experts to create a collection of resources for managing stress, implementing SEL practices, and more. Learn more.

May 2022

AASL (American Association of School Libraries) announced their 2022 Best Digital Tools for Teaching & Learning. Check them out here!

May 2022

Did you know that the Crawford Central Community Foundation provides financial resources to enrich opportunities in Academics, Arts and Athletics for Cochranton and Meadville students in grades K-12 of the Crawford Central School District?

There are two submission dates each year: May 15 and November 15

Details are available on the CCCF Web site: https://crawfordccf.org

Remember to complete a CCSD Request To Apply Grant Award Form. Send the completed form to Dr. Noonen in advance of the grant submission deadline. She will review the grant proposal idea with the Administrative Team and let you know if the grant idea is approved. Reach out to her with questions.

April 2022

A letter from Frances Wolf, First Lady of Pennsylvania….

Hello Teachers, Families, Librarians, and Students:

I am delighted to announce this year’s virtual Governor’s Residence Earth Day celebration, Investing In Our Planet. On Friday, April 22, 2022 from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., middle and high school students are encouraged to watch our live-streamed event to learn more about Pennsylvania’s environmental efforts and enjoy fun activities.

The event will be streamed on the Governor’s Residence website at www.residence.pa.gov and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/governorsresidence. Additional learning materials will also be available at the Governor’s Residence website.

Earth Day is a time to celebrate and appreciate all that Pennsylvania’s environment has to offer. With over 2.2 million acres of lush forest, rugged mountain trails, and roaring rivers, Pennsylvania offers a diverse display of natural beauty and wonder that needs to be protected. Additionally, it is vital we work together with you, the younger generation, to ensure the future success of our commonwealth.

Pennsylvania’s resources are common property to us all, including generations to come—and with climate change effects on the rise—we must do what we can to maintain the beauty it holds. I hope you can join us in this opportunity to acknowledge the importance of Earth Day and come together to celebrate our commonwealth’s natural bounty.

Thank you,

FRANCES WOLF

First Lady of Pennsylvania

April 2022

What: Educator In the Workplace

Where: Acutec Precision Aerospace, Inc.

13555 Broadway Drive

Meadville ,PA

When: Thursday, April 7, 2022

Time: 4:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Who: K-12, Teachers, Administrators, Counselors, Post-secondary faculty and staff

Theme: Manufacturing Resilience: Embracing Change and Recognizing Adversity as Opportunity

Why: EIW is a shop tour of a local manufacturer with happy hour adult beverages and refreshments as well a guided conversation afterword discussing workforce development concerns as it applies to K-12. The purpose is to create awareness of available jobs in our county and to help build a bridge of communication between manufacturers and educators to better prepare our students for their future (particularly future careers in manufacturing) whether it be college or workforce bound.

Incentive : Two Act 48 hours are offered for attending this event.

Registration: https://acutecprecision.com/education/

March 2022

The 3M Young Scientist Challenge application is open until April 26. This is a unique opportunity for middle schoolers to submit a solution-seeking idea and work with scientist and mentors to bring their idea to fruition. Check out this video to learn more and if you have questions around the challenge, there will be an Office Hours on April 12 at 6pm ET.

March 2022

Note the March 31st Deadline

WQLN PBS Kids Writers Contest is designed to promote the advancement of children’s literacy skills through hands-on, active learning. The contest invites kids to experience the hands-on process of developing their own stories and illustrations, which builds language skills such as reading, grammar, and syntax and encourages creativity. WQLN PBS Kids Writers Contest runs from January 1 through March 31 and is open to children in kindergarten, first, second, third, fourth, and fifth grades. First, second, and third-place prizes are awarded in all grade levels.

WQLN Writers Contest Web page

Flyer is here.

Contest Rubric is here.

Entry Form is here.

Writers Contest Rules are here.

March & January 2022

We Are Teachers is calling the inner math geek in all of us! Check out these ideas for Pi Day, March 14.

March 2022

If you or your students need to edit a video, you won't want to miss this free, online video editor!! Click here to access Video Candy.

February 2022

Family and friends of all ages are invited to explore STEAM with Penn State Behrend, Wabtec Corporation, and other companies in the region. Plan now to attend 7th Annual STEAM Fair at Penn State Behrend on March 14, 2022.

Join us for a night of hands-on fun and learning complete with prize giveaways, music and more...

See the flyer below for additional information.

February 2022

This year’s #DoodleForGoogle contest wants to know how you take care of yourself. Share how you nurture your mind, body, and spirit. Details are here.

February 2022

PA’s Promise for Children has book recommendations to celebrate Black History Month with young children. Check out this list.

February 2022

Google Guru Eric Curts shares technology activities for students that tie into the holiday theme while also promoting creativity and writing.

February 2022

Valentine's Day Lessons & Activities

Presidents Day Lessons & Activities

Black History Month Lessons & Activities

February 2022

Plant Camp is a hands-on workshop focusing on those teaching high school students in 9th – 12th grades. The workshop will explore a variety of water resources in Northwestern PA and participants will be immersed in aquatic ecology lab and field experiences. ACT 48 hours will be available.

Here is the flyer for the educator workshop based at Pymatuning State Park this summer from July 26 - 28, 2022.

January 2022

Check out all of the resources from Scholastic to help celebrate World Read Aloud Day!

https://www.scholastic.com/worldreadaloudday

January 2022

Click here to access some timely and relevant January resources from Discovery Education to kick off the new year. Featured January Resources include:

• National Science Fiction Day
• Martin Luther King Jr. Day
• National Thesaurus Day
• National Holocaust Remembrance Day

PRO TIP: 😊 Be sure to log into your Discovery Education subscription through ClassLink BEFORE clicking on the links.

January 2022

You might give one of these a try if you are looking to remove the distracting sidebar when sharing a YouTube video with your students:

• Watchkin - Richard Byrne created a video to showcase this tool.
• SafeShareTV allows you to paste the YouTube URL and view the video. It also allows you to share directly to Google Classroom.
• VideoLink is another way to do this. (Thanks, Marci Rhoades, for sharing this one!)
• Another trick is to insert a hyphen (-) in the YouTube address after the letter "t" and hit enter/return. The video will play, taking up the entire browser window, and won't show any ads.

January 2022

Scholastic is sponsoring this year's World Read Aloud Day on February 22, 2022. You will find information, resources, updates, and registration here.

https://www.litworld.org/worldreadaloudday

Join the millions of readers, writers, and listeners from communities all across the world coming together to honor the joy and power of reading.

January 2022

Check out all the resources in this awesome newsletter from PA DCNR (Department of Conservation & Natural Resources).

January 2022

I learned about this awesome QR Code Generator from Richard Byrne: QRtoon.com Turn any link into a QR code without having to register. Upload a portrait of a single face for it to cartoonize!

January 2022

Check out this article from Edutopia! The article provides seven standout teacher-sourced tech tips.

January 2022

Why not use the Digital Snowflake Maker to practice drawing types of angles? "The Techie Teacher" offers some tips for doing so. Check them out here.

Paper Snowflake Maker Web site: https://dangries.com/rectangleworld/PaperSnowflake/

January 2022

Click here to read about the Google Meet upgrades, some of which include:

• Students can't join a Meet unless a teacher is present.
• Co-teachers automatically become Meeting moderators.

January 2022

Happy New Year! Episodes 22 - 26 feature some outstanding educators, including the Keynote Speaker from our Summer Teacher In The Workplace Conference, Tom Murray. Check out these podcasts!

January 2022

Begin your new year with wonder and kindness. Join the authors of When You Wonder, You're Learning for this Book Study. Gregg Behr and Ryan Rydzewski are hosting a free Book Study beginning on Tuesday, January 11th. Details are here. Hope to see you there!

January 2022

Calling students in grades 6-12! Students may submit paintings during business hours at WQLN PBS 8425 Peach Street, Erie, PA 16509. Art show will take place at WQLN on a to be determined date during spring.

Contest Flyer here.

Contest Entry Form here.

Art Show and Contest Rules and Requirements here.

January 2022

Check out these digital tools and resources shared by Librarians from all across the country. Click here to access!

December 2021

You and your students might want to explore Google's Santa Tracker to track Santa this month. Click on Play to play and learn with Santa and the Elves!

December 2021

Click here to access the Google Docs poster for keyboard shortcuts from Alice Keeler.

December 2021

Lindsay Fox shared these links to Grinch Movement Break Videos…. Just in case you or your students need a break before the break! Thanks for sharing, Lindsay!

The Grinch Dad Jokes This or That

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRsUiA5J5uE

The Grinch Workout

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAKxx0Uiilo

The Grinch Run

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88Kwmm-_0h8

December 2021

Experience the immersive wonder of 3D Augmented Reality, with creative coloring experiences that let your creativity run wild! Print and color this Augmented Reality Gingerbread House Sheet and then scan it to bring it to life! You will need the Quiver – 3D Coloring App on your device.

December 2021

The Tech and Learning publication offers these holiday lessons and activities.

December 2021

Be sure to be logged in to Discovery Education and then click on this link to access these Virtual Field Trips. Each video is available on-demand and comes with a companion guide.

December 2021

From new activities and cross-curricular content to CodeBytes and fresh tunes on Dance Party, Hour of Code 2021 has something for everyone! Check out some ideas here!

December 2021

Did you know that the Crawford Central Community Foundation provides financial resources to enrich opportunities in Academics, Arts and Athletics for Cochranton and Meadville students in grades K-12 of the Crawford Central School District?

There are two submission dates each year: November 15 and May 15

Details are available on the CCCF Web site: https://crawfordccf.org

Remember to complete a CCSD Request To Apply Grant Award Form. Send the completed form to Dr. Noonen in advance of the grant submission deadline. She will review the grant proposal idea with the Administrative Team and let you know if the grant idea is approved. Reach out to her with questions.

November 2021

Could be fun, yes!?! The state technology organization, PAECT, is hosting a Goosechase (think scavenger hunt with technology) from November 14 - November 24. Would you like to join? You may register here: https://www.paect.org/events Scroll down to find Thankful for Technology Goosechase on the calendar and click on it. You will need to be a member of PAECT, which is free, so you will be prompted for that, too.

If you aren’t sure about Goosechase and would like some assistance getting started, join me at East End after school on Monday, November 15th around 3:30 p.m. I’ll help you get registered, get the app and get you started.

Want to know more about Goosechase? Here’s the Web site: https://www.goosechase.com

November 2021

This Wakelet includes resources to support families and their children on their literacy journey.

Why not check out all of Dr. Kastner's Wakelet collections?

October 2021

Apple's Professional Learning Team offers helpful resources, an opportunity to practice new skills, and reflect on ways Apple technology can support great learning and teaching. Hosted by Apple Professional Learning Specialists, these hands-on sessions are offered twice daily — Tuesday through Thursday — and run for approximately 60 minutes. Check out the schedule here.

October 2021

Looking to sharpen your Google Classroom skills? Register for weekly training lessons to learn new and exciting ways to use Google Classroom with your students. Lessons are delivered directly to your inbox and take less than 10 minutes to complete. Click here to sign up today!

September 2021

Looking for new tips on getting the most out of your Google for Education tools? Learn more about how you can use popular tools like Google Classroom and Chromebooks this back to school season with Google for Education’s Back to School Guide.

September 2021

This article in Tech & Learning highlights ways educators can use Google Earth. Click here to access the article.

September 2021

Pennsylvania PBS has curated free content for educators that align to state standards. You can access the Learning At School page here.

September 2021

It’s time for the 2022 National School Bus Safety Week Poster Contest and PennDOT needs your help to spread the word. This is a great opportunity for students to learn about school bus safety while promoting it to others.

Details for entering this fun and educational contest are found at the following link.

September 2021

Thanks to Arryn Cumpston for sharing the link to this Google Slide Show that includes the entire first semester and a way to write (and share) your lesson plans. Click here to make a copy for yourself.

August 2021

Looking for some brain-based bell ringers to improve retention and engagement? TCEA included these links in a recent blog post:

• 20 Digital Bell Ringer Activities to Kickstart Class
• 17 Bell Ringer Activities for Remote Learning
• 250 Bell Ringer Ideas
• 40+ Bell Work Ideas For Every Class

August 2021

Support your class activities, stimulate engagement and help your students get to work by using the intuitive tools of Classroomscreen. The Basic plan is free.

August 2021

We will kick off the 2021-2022 school year with a presentation by Gregg Behr, author of When You Wonder, You're Learning. He's coming to Crawford Central!! You can meet him on August 27th in North East, PA. The details are here. Hope to see you there!

August 2021

Pennsbury School District in Pennsylvania has created an online, searchable database, containing lesson plan template resources and treasures. There are more than 2,600 resources available for grades K-12 in a variety of subject areas. And each one features an already-created template or website or interactive to begin using immediately.

June 2021

From the awesome Eric Curts.... Free one-pager calendar templates to use for next school year. Click here to access.

May 2021

Remake Learning Days in Pennsylvania are occurring May 6 - 16, 2021 with pre and post festival events from April 22 – May 23, 2021. There are many in-person and virtual events to engage families, students, and educators, and celebrate innovative education across our Commonwealth with our amazing community organizations! Click here to access the Web site. Flyer below.

April 2021

To celebrate the 51st anniversary of Earth Day, Discovery is showcasing a fresh collection of 51 impactful activities and ready-to-use resources that inspire teachers, students, and communities to make a collective difference for our planet.

"51 Ways to Earth Day" includes engaging videos, sustainability challenges, Virtual Field Trips, and fun family activities, many of which feature partners like MLB, Polar Bears International, World Wildlife Fund, and Girl Scouts of America.

Click here to access.

April 2021

Holocaust Remembrance Day is Thursday, April 8. Learning at Home from Pennsylvania PBS recognizes this important date with programs that help students reflect on the historical significance of the Holocaust.

Resources, including videos and lesson plans, are also available from PBS LearningMedia and can be selected by grade level so you can find age-appropriate materials to use with your students.

April 2021

The Museum of Science, Boston is offering FREE synchronous presentations online via Zoom that run from April 5, 2021 through June 17, 2021 (excluding 4/19-4/23) . To book your classroom call: 617-723-2500.

Overview of MOS at School Programs (Hyperlinks will take you to page specific details on days and times of each program).

• GK-2: Life Sciences: Habitat Explores
• G3-5: Life Sciences: Built for Survival
• G3-5: Universe: The Changing Sky
• G6-8: Life Sciences: What’s in the Water
• G6-8: Amazing Adaptations
• G6-8: Universe: Seasons and Phases
• G6-8: Virtual Earth: Systems

April 2021

If you are looking for rhyming words, this site is exactly what you need: Rhymer.com. (You just have to love the name.) Type in a word and the site generates word groupings in one, two, three, four, five, and six-or-more syllables. You can also find rhyming words by beginning and first-syllable rhymes.

See what you think. Here's the link.

March 2021

The two-statement scenario spurs debate, discussion, reasoning, and writing in the math classroom. The questions are separated into four grade levels: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12. Check it out here.

March 2021

Lysol is helping to support schools by promoting healthy habits through resources and educational materials. Click here to access the Welcome Back Hub where you will find digital versions of posters, decals, stickers, and large-format signs to help teachers reinforce key COVID-19 Healthy Habits such as: Handwashing, Social Distancing, Wearing a Mask, Cover Coughs & Sneeze, and Germ Spread.

March 2021

The Library of Congress, National Archives and Records Administration, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Gallery of Art, National Park Service, Smithsonian Institution and United States Holocaust Memorial Museum join in commemorating and encouraging the study, observance and celebration of the vital role of women in American history. Click here to access the resources.

March 2021

Explore the history and impact of the nation's chief executives through innovative virtual field trips as we celebrate Presidents' Day this year.

February 2021

In this month's Learning Is Everywhere publication, there are suggestions for books around specific topics. Those include:

• Learning at the doctor office
• Books to celebrate Black History Month
• Groundhog Day books
• World Read Aloud Day

February 2021

The National Informal STEM Education Network published a calendar of STEM-related season events and holidays. Check it out.

January 2021

Black History Month is a time to reflect on the contributions of African Americans to history. Find a number of resources to help you and your students.

January 2021

From Eric Curts... For those using Google Meet, I came across an easy and free extension called "Meet Transcript" that allows you to save a Google Doc transcript of all the chat messages and live closed captions from the Meet, as well as screenshots from the Meet. I put together a short 6-minute video to explain the process, along with detailed written directions here:

https://www.controlaltachieve.com/2021/01/meet-transcript.html

You can also see all of the videos in my Google Meet series (currently 19 videos) at:
https://www.controlaltachieve.com/meetvideos

I am working on adding more and will share those out as they get done. As always feel free to share with others who may benefit. Take care!

January 2021

Register to watch a virtual discussion with @josh_dobbs1 & astronaut @AstroVicGlover live from the @Space_Station (ISS)! They'll answer questions, discuss their passion for engineering & Victor will discuss his mission & work in space.

Register now: http://bit.ly/3nuGryM

January 2021

WQLN PBS Kids Writer's Contest runs from January 1 through March 31 and is open to children in kindergarten through fifth grade. Please see the flyer here.

January 2021

For those using Google Classroom, if you have never tried out the Originality Report feature or just want to learn more about it, Eric Curts has recorded a short 8-minute video that covers all the details for how you and your students can use this tool to identify possible areas of plagiarism or passages that may need proper citation. You can access it here:

www.controlaltachieve.com/2021/01/...

You can also see all of the videos in his Google Classroom series (currently 11 videos) at:

www.controlaltachieve.com/classroomvideos

January 2021

Use these lessons, activities, and reading passages on AI, cybersecurity, privacy, and more to help students hone their STEM skills.

www.scholastic.com/tech4innovation/index.html
www.scholastic.com/tech4innovation/contest/index.html

December 2020

Teachers: You can request a free monitor for your home classroom.

Donors: You can purchase monitors for teachers.

Click here to access the site.

December 2020

Are you ready for Hour of Code 2020? The Hour of Code takes place each year during Computer Science Education Week. The 2020 Computer Science Education Week is December 7-13. Check out this list of Hour of Code resources compiled by a group of Coaches in Illinois.

December 2020

Calling all Art Teachers!! Check out the new template in SlidesMania for a virtual art show that can be used to showcase the work of your students. Click here to check it out.

December 2020

Check this out from Richard Byrne!! In this video, he illustrates how to convert physical, handwritten notes into Google Documents that you can edit and share.

November 2020

Steve Wyborney is posting a new math resource every school day for the rest of the school year. Here is his plan:

• Every Monday – Brand New Estimation Clipboard (suitable for all grade levels)
  
• Every Tuesday – Brand New Esti-Mystery for Grades K-2
  
• Every Wednesday – Brand New Esti-Mystery for Grades 1-3
  
• Every Thursday – Brand New Esti-Mystery for Grades 3-8
  
• Every Friday – Brand New Mystery Number Sense Resource
  

Here is the link.

November 2020

Explore these resources for ideas you can use to connect classroom curriculum to Veterans Day. Find resources to focus on the holiday and its history for one class period or as a special curriculum project to honor veterans for an entire unit.

November 2020

The folks at Left Brain Craft Brain are offering a Color By Coding activity in time for Halloween! As stated on their Web site... this worksheet "uses ASCII binary and decimal codes as the key to the colors. It’s your basic color by coding made even more cool! And even more fun for Halloween."

October 2020

From the code.org Web site... Let's use code to join Anna and Elsa as they explore the magic and beauty of ice. You will create snowflakes and patterns as you ice-skate and make a winter wonderland that you can then share with your friends! Click here to access the site.

October 2020

Eric Curts created a series of videos on how to use Google Meet. You can access them on his Web site, Control Alt Achieve.

October 2020

Read about the PBS Learning At Home initiative through WQLN here.

Here are the October and November schedules (+ Spanish versions).

Fall Elementary Programs & Weekly Activities for October

https://www.wqln.org/portals/0/files/kids_elem_activity_10-2020.pdf

https://www.wqln.org/portals/0/files/kids_elem_activity_10-2020_span.pdf

Fall Kindergarten-Readiness Weekly Activities for October

https://www.wqln.org/portals/0/files/kindread_activity_10-2020.pdf

https://www.wqln.org/portals/0/files/kindread_activity_10-2020_span.pdf

October PA PBS Learning at Home Programming and Resources for PreK to Grade 12

https://www.wqln.org/portals/0/files/PAPBS-LAH_ENGLISH_OCT2020.pdf

https://www.wqln.org/portals/0/files/PAPBS-LAH_SPANISH_OCT2020.pdf

November PA PBS Learning at Home Programming and Resources for PreK to Grade 12

https://learningathomepa.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/PAPBS-LAH_ENGLISH_NOV2020.pdf

https://learningathomepa.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/PAPBS-LAH_SPANISH_NOV2020.pdf

October 2020

Want to learn some fire safety tips? Meet Frankie the Fire Hall as he teaches you how to stay safe in your home!

https://youtu.be/WiIGMWRKfQI

October 2020

Sparky® Says: Join My Fire Safety Club is a fun, animated video that teaches kids to use their senses of sight, touch, smell, and hearing to stay fire safe!

https://youtu.be/gHrPLeKzLg4

October 2020

Fire Prevention Week is October 4-10 this year, and the National Fire Protection Association has all the resources you need: videos, ebooks, anchor charts, games, and more. Check out the Sparky School House Web site.

September 2020

Use the online quiz tool Kahoot! to engage with students and enhance the teaching experience in class and beyond. Tech & Learning is sharing these tips and tricks.

September 2020

Digital ice breakers help teachers get to know students during remote learning. Tech & Learning compiled this listing.

Here are some other ideas.

Summer 2020

In this FREE course, Remote Learning 101, educators will get lots of practical tips, ideas and resources to make a plan for remote learning. They'll think through some of the key parts of it. They'll take practical steps toward building the remote learning class they need -- and their students need.

Offered by THE Matt Miller!! Click here for details.

April 2020

Here are some ideas to continue to engage students in STEM activities.

Girlstart has compiled activities that you can do at home.

dailySTEM offers a listing of simple STEM activities for families.

STEM project-based learning activity ideas are available from Wabisabi Learning.

April 2020

Looking for a different template for your Google Slides/PowerPoint/Keynote presentation? Check these out...

• Slidesgo
• Slides Mania
• Slides Carnival
• Slides Gala

April 2020

Attention all young storytellers and promising wordsmiths! Barnes & Noble is calling on children ages 6-12 to share their original short stories for a chance to be published in a book!

Click here for details.

April 2020

Here is the collection of links that was shared with CCSD staff on Friday, March 13. Since then, several links have been added. They include:

• Giant list of ideas for being home with kids - Ideas for Quarantine/Social Distancing
• The Kastner Collection: The Padlet of Padlets - Great info on the Science of Reading
• Sample student schedule using Kahn Academy
• Free Heggerty Resources
• High-quality sites and apps
• Scholastic Education remote learning resources and strategies
• Coding for kids: Free classes, Websites, and Apps
• Mystery Science - Free, easy science lessons
• Principal’s List of Things to Do During COVID Closures Is Going Viral for All the Right Reasons
• Tips for Enabling Distance Learning through G Suite
• List of Children’s Authors Doing Online Read Alouds & Activities
• Learning At Home With PA Public Television
  

  
  

• How to Use Google Classroom

• Free Audio Book Resources
• Check out your public library online resources
• Rivet - Made by Google
• Audible

March/April 2020

Here are some tips and tricks to consider when using Zoom to connect with students and colleagues. If you know of others, please send them to me.

March 2020

Talk about app smashing! Check out the 70+ applications that integrate with Google Classroom.

March 2020

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) will conduct the National Summer Teacher Institute (NSTI) on Innovation, STEM, and Intellectual Property July 12-17, 2020 on the campus of Saint Louis University (SLU) in Saint Louis, Missouri.

Click here for details.

March 2020

Newsela and the Pennsylvania Department of Education collaborated to build two instructional exemplar units of study for middle level classrooms: Reading Elements and Text Analysis. These state-standard aligned resources are available to every Pennsylvania public educator at no cost. Login or create a Newsela account to access these units in the “Collections” section of your Newsela homescreen.

Details here.

March 2020

The Interactive Periodic Table of the Elements, in Pictures and Words provides chemistry students of all ages and levels with instant facts about each of the elements it illustrates.

March 2020

Schools, public libraries, and nonprofit organizations who help students that are below grade level or having trouble reading are eligible to apply. Grant funding is provided to assist in the following areas:

• Implementing new or expanding existing literacy programs
• Purchasing new technology or equipment to support literacy initiatives
• Purchasing books, materials or software for literacy programs
  

Details here. Deadline to apply is May 21, 2020 at 10:00 p.m. CST.

March 2020

Brought to you by PDE, this collection of evidence-based strategies was curated to help educators make evidence-based decisions and implement strategies, interventions, and activities that are best fit for their needs and local context.

Click here to access.

February 2019

The Smithsonian has released millions of pictures that are free to use for anyone. Click here for more information.

February 2019

Jamie Forshey has done it again! Here’s access to a new resource she just created: Winter Poetry Magnets. It is a Google Slides activity containing 100+ words and phrases that can be manipulated into a wintry themed poem, story, etc.

February 2020

Started in 2012, Digital Learning Day has provided a powerful venue for education leaders to highlight great teaching practice and showcase innovative teachers, leaders, and instructional technology programs that are improving student outcomes. This grassroots effort blossomed into a massive nationwide celebration as teachers realized that Digital Learning Day is not about technology, it’s about learning. It’s not about laying off teachers for laptops, it’s about enhancing the role of the teacher in America’s classrooms. Digital Learning Day promotes the effective use of modern day tools afforded to every other industry to improve the learning experience in K-12 public schools.

Check out this Web site for ideas to use on Thursday, February 27th for Digital Learning Day.

February 2020

Check out these templates from SlidesMania for Google Slides or PowerPoint. Did you see the Harry Potter-themed template?

February 2020

A colleague shared the following listing: (Thanks, Ed McKaveney)

Liberty Bell VR explore

https://historyview.org/library/liberty-bell/

Constitutional Walking Tour Virtual Field Trip

https://www.theconstitutional.com/field-trips-constitution-day-essay-contest/virtual-field-trip

Philadelphia PA virtual tours

http://www.tnhistoryforkids.org/history/virtual-tours/virtual-tours/philadelphia-pa.2456616

National Park Service liberty bell (link to images and resources at bottom of page)

https://www.nps.gov/inde/planyourvisit/libertybellcenter.htm

Another interesting idea (not the virtual tour) is on the Captiol website. Along the lines of this Design a Statue idea, you could have students design/recreate symbols of their choosing.

https://www.visitthecapitol.gov/sites/default/files/documents/resources-and-activities/CVC_DesignaStatue_Activity.pdf

Virtual Capitol and other Multimedia resources they have might be good for this.

https://www.aoc.gov/multimedia-gallery

https://www.capitol.gov

Not sure if your library would have this book or if this is even still active, but Scholastic was working with the Smithsonian Museum of American History on this Virtual Field Trip that targets grades 3-5.

http://decodinghistory.scholastic.com

The Library of Congress has some resources for US Symbols. This teacher guide mentions creating posters of varied symbols. You could place them around the room and have student use Flipgrid to record themselves talking about what they learned about a particular symbol.

http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/primarysourcesets/symbols-us/pdf/teacher_guide.pdf

The bottom of the LOC tour page also has virtual tours.

https://www.loc.gov/visit/tours/

https://www.loc.gov/visit/online-tours/

Education World article on Virtual Field Trips for Presidents Day

https://www.educationworld.com/a_lesson/virtual-field-trips-united-states-presidents.shtml

February 2020

Check out the new features of Google Sites. You can add a table of contents or an image carousel and more! Read about the enhancements here.

February 2020

Do you have a terrific idea for a collaborative project between Crawford Central School District and Allegheny College faculty, staff, or students? If so, the College-Schools Collaborative (CSC) can help you by providing funding to support your collaborative project. Guidelines and the application form can be found at this link: https://tinyurl.com/y8nury62 .

For more information, contact...

• Lisa Whitenack (lwhitena@allegheny.edu)
• Ann Noonen (ann.noonen@craw.org)
• Jennifer Galdon (jennifer.galdon@craw.org)
  

January 2020

ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education) unveiled 28 videos illustrating how real teachers address the ISTE Standards for Students indicators in their classrooms. Watch them all on the ISTE Standards playlist.

January 2020

Kasey Bell has done it again! She is offering a four-part podcast and blog series on doing new things with Google Tools. She states that it isn’t about Google; it’s about learning. The focus of the series is how you can use G Suite tools to support dynamic learning experiences for your students!

Click here to access the resources.

January 2020

Use your imagination to create a Google Doodle based on what kindness means to you.

From the Doodle For Google Web site... We're excited to see some kind doodles this year! Students can work with any materials they want, but all doodles must be entered using the entry form. Parents and teachers can mail us the completed entry form or submit it online as a .png, or .jpg. The contest is open for entries until March 13, 2020 8:00pm Pacific Time (PT).

Click here to get info to get you started.

January 2020

PISA (Program for International Student Assessment) scores were recently released, and results of the international test revealed that only 14 percent of U.S. students were able to reliably distinguish between fact and opinion. Educators and parents can teach students how to tell fact from opinion.

January 2020

From the TCEA (Texas Computer Education Association) site... "Nearly everyone uses Google. Here's our 2019 roundup of the latest tips, tricks, and updates for Google Docs, Earth, Chrome, and more! Make sure to take advantage of all our Google resources from 2019."

Click here to access the Roundup.

December 2019

Thanks to Zee Poerio for sharing information about Math Game Day. According to their Web site.... "This is a unique event and exciting experience for your students!

Math games are hosted online and all participants play in real-time! Students can join from all over the world by using a smart device and WiFi connection."

Click here to access the site.

December 2019

Eric Curts has done it again! Fun project for creativity, writing, and tech skills!

Click here to access the Decorate A Tree activitiy OR

Click here to access 7 Googley Wintertime Activities for Kids.

December 2019

Mary Hauser, Speech Language Pathologist at Neason Hill, shared a calendar that she found. It is a "Countdown to the Holidays" calendar with 24 days of language-building conversation starters. Check it out here.

December 2019

Check out the December STEAM Calendar from Left Brain, Craft Brain. All the projects, printables, and recipes are perfect for adding a little science, tech, engineering, art, or math to your day!

Click here to access the calendar.

December 2019

In addition to being able to listen to sound effects like sleigh bells, Discovery Education Experience also provides access to over 550 podcasts. Learn ideas and strategies for using these resources.

Join the conversation. If you need help with your Discovery log in, let me know.

December 2019

Looking for some virtual dissection resources? Check these out...

• Free Online Dissection Resources
• ClassZone - there is an online Owl Pellet link on this one.

December 2019

First airing more than 35 years ago, Eat 'n Park's Christmas Star commercial has since become a beloved tradition shared by generations. With a timeless message of goodwill for all, it’s a classic that has stood the test of time.

Click here to watch it. Here's hoping you get a special lift this Holiday season that lasts all year long!

December 2019

Aaron Maurer, STEM Lead from the Mississippi Bend AEA, is offering a FREE online course beginning in December 1, 2019 and ending in May 2020. Each month the class will focus on a new goal with lots of exciting challenges infused into the learning.

Schedule is going to follow this flow:

• December: Creativity
• January: Critical Thinking
• February: Communication
• March: Collaboration
• April: Assessment
• May: Subject Specific

Along the way there will be fun build challenges that will be woven in just for fun and global sharing. Are you getting excited yet? Check out all the details here.

November 2019

The Hour of Code takes place each year during Computer Science Education Week. The 2019 Computer Science Education Week will be December 9-15. The Hour of Code started as a one-hour introduction to computer science, designed to demystify "code," to show that anybody can learn the basics, and to broaden participation in the field of computer science. It has since become a worldwide effort to celebrate computer science, starting with 1-hour coding activities but expanding to all sorts of community efforts. Check out the tutorials and activities.

Left Brain Craft Brain shared a site that includes 20+ Easy Ways To Get Kids to Code. Here is the link.

November 2019

Everyone Can Code Puzzles is an all-new student guide to Swift Playgrounds that reinforces problem-solving strategies and critical-thinking skills through over 40 hours of flexible activities. Each chapter helps students build on what they already know, experiment with new coding concepts, apply their understanding, and creatively communicate how coding impacts their lives. Check it out here.

November 2019

Check out this idea from Jamie Forshey... Google Drawings activity containing 80+ words that can be manipulated into a story, poem + more!

November 2019

Hour of Code: Dance Party inspired tens of millions of students in classrooms around the world to dance and code last year, and we can’t wait for you to discover all the exciting new updates we have this year!

New to Hour of Code?: Check out this How To guide.

November 2019

THE Anita Archer talks about the importance of explicit instruction in this YouTube video. Those involved in the Dyselxia Pilot will recognize her name as a leader in the field of reading/writing instruction. The contents of this video are a great reminder of the "why" behind explicit instruction.

November 2019

Check out this ThingLink. Hover over the interactive image to find tons of Thanksgiving-themed games and interactive learning activities for students.

November 2019

A collection of STEM-related Thanksgiving activities that are simple, yet fun. Pick up all the materials you need when you do your Thanksgiving dinner shopping!

November 2019

Zoom is hosting two streaming programs per month on CILC (Center for Interactive Learning and Collaboration). Check out the program descriptions here. Feel free to contact Ann in the Curriculum Office if you need assistance.

October 2019

Check out this spook-tacular collection of digital resources that blends the seasonal theme with learning.

October 2019

Check out this online resource packed with ideas and resources designed to teach fire safety to students in grades K - 5.

October 2019

We Are Teachers highlighted classroom crafts, activities, and games with a Halloween/fall theme. Check them out here.

October 2019

Vooks is the first-ever streaming service that brings children's (ages 2-8) books to life with illustrations, read-along text, and animations. You are invited to register for a free one-year subscription. Click here for more information.

September 2019

The Novel Effect: Read Aloud Books app contains music and sounds for over 200+ children's books and poems and they add to it weekly. It now works with over 30 titles in Spanish! This invisible technology follows along as the user reads a story aloud. It plays music and sounds throughout the story turning the reader into a master storyteller. Smart voice recognition stays in sync with your reading style even if you skip ahead or reread a certain part. Read more about the app here.

September 2019

The "We Are Teachers" Web site shared.... "All learners need time to process new ideas and information. They especially need time to verbally make sense of and articulate their learning with a community of learners who are also engaged in the same experience and journey.

In other words, kids need to talk!!

Problem is, sometimes it’s hard to stay on subject without a little guidance. That’s why structured discussions really work best with children, regardless of their maturity level.

These ten discussion techniques (and a little purposeful planning) go beyond the traditional Turn and Talk/Think-Pair-Share to give students an opportunity to deepen their understanding while practicing their verbal skills."

August 2019

Looking for some plans to kick off the new school year? If so, check out the Diary of a Public School Teacher Beginning of the School Year Activities.

Summer 2019

Calm is offering every teacher free access to their mindfulness app. Their aim is to empower teachers with mindfulness tools and resources that can be used to help kids learn this new skill. Teachers will get free access to Calm’s paid subscription service available on Android, iOS, and the web – a $59.99 value!

Teachers will have unlimited access to the growing library of guided meditations and mindfulness exercises, including Calm Kids, the program tailored for age groups from Pre-K through high school.

Click here for more information and to access the registration form.

Summer 2019

Build classroom community during those all-important first few weeks of school by reading with your students. To get started, check out this collection of read-aloud suggestions, books are divided by grade level.

Summer 2019

The Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) has launched an initiative aimed at promoting literacy, even when school isn’t in session. Beginning May 16, 2019, PDE will unveil a new video on a weekly basis featuring a well-known Pennsylvanian reading a children’s book to an at-home audience. Learn more about this initiative: http://bit.ly/PDEBookNook.

Here is the first video.

May 2019

Scholastic is offering a downloadable mini magazine and teaching guide, plus links to coding videos. Check it out here. Students are able to create their own animated story using code!

May 2019

Eric Curts shared this... FYI... A couple years back I had put together a list of end-of-year Google Classroom clean up tips to help close out the year and get ready for the next. Of course Classroom has changed quite a bit since then, so I went ahead and updated it with new directions and screenshots. This time I also added a video and podcast version of the info.

You can get all the details here.

May 2019

Just a reminder to check out the eBook resources available to CCSD educators and students via PowerLibrary.

POWERLibrary resources are available through the Symbaloo page on the District Web site. Here's the path to get to these resources while on the District network:

• Head over to http://www.craw.org
• Hover over the Parent/Student Resources Tab and click on the Symbaloo link in the menu
• Click the PowerKids link for your building
• Let's check out support materials for BookFlix and TrueFlix

BookFlix

• PreK- Grade 3
• An interactive, online literacy resource that pairs nonfiction eBooks with classic video storybooks.
• Full listing of BookFlix titles
• BookFlix Implementation Guide
• BookFlix Tutorial Overview
• Title Library, (includes Lesson Plans are available for each paired texts). You may search by Lexile, too.

TrueFlix

• Grades 3-6
• Nonfiction eBooks on a variety of topics.
• TrueFlix Implementation Guide
• TrueFlix Demo
• TrueFlix Tutorial Video

If you have questions, please let me know.

April 2019

Looking for ways that students can demonstrate their understanding? Check out this list of ideas from Edutopia.

March 2019

One of the things that Kasey Bell from Shake Up Learning loves about Google is that they play well with others!

Google Classroom is no exception.

Every year she updates her list of applications that integrate with the Google Classroom platform. This list now has more than 60 Apps that Integrate with Google Classroom, making it even easier to create lessons and announcements with your favorite apps and resources.

March 2019

Top 'O The Day! Thanks to Jamie Forshey for sharing the links to these resources!

Pi Day Digital Collection

St. Patrick’s Day Poetry Magnets – A Google Slides Activity

March 2019

Happy Read Across America Day! Below find a special Dr. Seuss-themed video from Governor Wolf and the First Lady celebrating Read Across America Day.

Streaming link
High Quality download link

March 2019

Fluency is an integral measure of a competent reader. A review of the DIBELS data underscores the need for work in fluency at CCSD. We Are Teachers posted 17 fluency anchor charts. Check them out here.

February 2019

Read Across America Day, March 2, in the nation's largest reading event for schoolchildren and the celebration of beloved author Dr. Seuss' birthday. Get into the spirit of the day by sharing these Dr. Seuss activities and read-alouds.

February 2019

We Are Teachers posted twenty-one awesome ways to build background knowledge. Click here to check them out! One of the ideas centered around using video. Remember that all CCSD educators have access to Discovery Education. If you need help accessing the amazing Discovery resources, let me know.

February 2019

THREE EGGS!! Click here to view the first nesting pair of Bald Eagles in Pittsburgh in over 150 years. According to info on the Web site, egg #1 is expected to hatch on March 19.

February 2019

Presidents Day in 2019 is February 18. On this day, students celebrate the lives of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, their contributions to the United States, and the lives and contributions of all 45 US Presidents. The National Education Association provides resources (lessons, games, videos, and more), organized by grade range (K–5, 6–8, 9–12), which teachers can use in the classroom.

February 2019

West End Elementary School @WestEndCCSD is joining Second District Elementary School @SDES_Eagle on Twitter. Links below. Be sure to follow both!

February 2019

Over the MLK Holiday I caught up on some email and came across this gem! Did you know you can use a school Google account (crawfordsd.org) to set up appointments that others can reserve? So, perhaps you could use this feature to invite parents to schedule Parent Conferences (or any other appointments) with you.

Here are the directions. If you need help, let me know.

January 2019

A conversation on the WeAreTeachers HELPLINE group on Facebook focused on the best math websites for teaching and learning math. What a treasure trove! They gathered all the links and included a short description of each math website, along with a grade level recommendation and the cost, if any. The list covers grades K–12 and is full of resources, games, freebies, and innovative programs.

Check out the list here.

January 2019

Eric Curts recent blog post pulls together a number of ideas for using Google in fun and creative ways with young students. Here is the link.

January 2019

Happy New Year! I found this to be an interesting read and thought some of you might enjoy it, too. eSchool News asked 49 ed tech executives to look into their crystal balls and share their thoughts about what will happen in 2019. In addition to the usual suspects — more augmented reality and virtual reality apps — a lot of people believe this will be the year that social emotional learning and interoperability become part of the mainstream. There are also a lot of predictions about improving safety and security. Read more.

January 2019

Join Hana Koral as she shares stories of persecution and survival living through the Holocaust as a young adult. Don't miss this opportunity for your students to connect with a survivor and learn from her experiences. Appropriate for grades 7–12 or ages 12 and older.

January 25, 2019 at 12pm CST

www.nationalww2museum.org/programs/webinars

January 2019

Feeling festive? Google Earth launched a fun and quick quiz that will test your knowledge of how holidays are celebrated around the world. Other quizzes cover ocean marine life, global soccer stadiums, haunted places, and of course, natural wonders.

December 2018

Ho! Ho! Ho! CCSD Kahoot!'ers! There are new Holiday Kahoots added each day. Click here to access them.

December 2018

Eric Curts shared the following with a listserv to which I subscribe.... With the holiday season and winter coming soon, here is a collection of several fun activities for students that combine tech skills, creativity, writing, math, and more:

www.controlaltachieve.com/2017/12/...

Some of the activities include:

• Build a Snowman with Google Slides
• Drag-and-Drop Winter Poetry with Google Drawings
• Holiday Greeting Cards with Google Drawings
• Pixel Art Ornaments with Google Sheets
• Wintertime Emoji Rebus Stories in Google Docs

If you want to try any of these and have questions, please let me know.

December 2018

Hour of Code Lessons by Grade Level

• Check out the Ask A Tech Teacher Blog for ideas by grade level to prepare for the upcoming Hour of Code event.
  

Hour of Code Participation Guide

• This looks like a great guide to help you get started.

November 2018

Celebrate and learn this holiday season with these curriculum-aligned history, math, ELA and science games, as well as fun trivia. Click here to access the Thanksgiving-themed Kahoots.

November 2018

According to Rick Stiggings, “Teachers who use, “Assessment FOR learning,” involve their students in ongoing self-assessment in ways that reveal to those learners (a) where they are headed in their learning, (b) where they are now in relation to those expectations, and (c) how each student can close the gap between the two.”

There are many digital tools to help with formative assessment. Kasey Bell include some of them in a post that is available here.

November 2018

Time to plan for the Hour of Code scheduled for the December 3-9. Check out these resources:

• Libraries Ready to Code
• Microsoft MakeCode Microbit Simulator
• Tynker Hour of Code Activities
• Disney Hour of Code
• Khan Academy Hour of Code
• Kodable Hour of Code

November 2018

Wanted to share a couple of resources for integrating Halloween, tech, writing, and/or creativity!

Eric Curts shared the following....

• Build a Jack-O-Lantern with Google Slides www.controlaltachieve.com/2017/09/... Use this Google Slides template for students to create a Jack-O-Lantern, practice tech skills, and improve their writing.
• Halloween Rebus Stories with Emojis and Google Docs www.controlaltachieve.com/2018/10/halloween-rebus.html Use this Google Doc template to have your students do creative writing with Halloween-themed emojis.

Jamie Forshey from Bellwood-Antis School District, shared this via email....

• If you’re in search of some really neat Halloween activities for your students, check out this link: Tech or Treat: Spook-tacular Halloween Resources for the Classroom II Whether it’s writing prompts, science experiments, STEM projects, Halloween candy math, Edgar Allan Poe videos or haunted vocabulary, there’s something ghostly awaiting you right here, right now…

Dare to Play These Tricky Halloween Kahoots?

• To add to the special mood, they spookified Kahoot! with a new logo, haunting music and chilling decorations!
  

October 2018

Here is an opportunity to scare up spooky excitement of Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween with your students in grades 3 - 8! Bring STEM lessons and resources to life in your classroom then tell Scholastic your thoughts on "What Gives You Goosebumps?" program.

September 2018

Do you have a terrific idea for a collaborative project between your school/class and Allegheny College staff or students? If so, the College/Schools Collaborative can help you by providing seed money and facilitating contacts between you and the college.

A project request can include, but is not limited to, covering transportation costs, purchase of supplies, expenses associated with guest presenters, or recruiting college students for service.

The request process is quite simple. First, develop the idea by speaking with as many individuals as possible who can assist in the project. Second, complete this project proposal form. Third, submit the form. (A PDF of the form is posted below so that you know the info that is required n the proposal.)

The criteria used by the C/SC Committee to determine project approval will include:

• The project will enhance learning of the participants and supports its principle goals.
  
• The number of individuals that will participate to equate to the funds solicited.
  
• Collaboration will be utilized between Crawford Central School District and Allegheny College.

The C/SC is charged with the responsibility of facilitating projects benefiting Allegheny College and Crawford Central School District. The Collaborative Group will review all project proposals and assist in the development (but not the operation) of the project.

If you have questions, please contact Ann Noonen or Jennifer Galdon.

September 2018

Click here to access dozens of interactive, online virtual math manipulatives including geoboards, pattern blocks, counters, fraction bars, tangrams, base ten blocks and more.

September 2018

Discovery Education is offering a virtual field trip on October 5th at 1:00 p.m. ET.

Celebrate Manufacturing Day October 5th with a virtual tour of the Arctic Plant in Austin, Texas! Explore how 3D printing is revolutionizing aerospace manufacturing and bringing exciting STEM careers into the classroom with this Manufacture Your Future Virtual Field Trip.

Details are here.

September 2018

As you head back to school and this about tools to support teaching and learning, you might check out this blog post as it outlines 8 tech tools to use in the teaching of math.

August 2018

Eric Curts writes.... When Google Classroom launched in 2014 it was immediately a valuable tool to save educators time and increase connection with students. Since then Google has continued to make updates to Classroom, bringing new features and improvements.

Google has been very busy over the summer for the start of the new 2018 school year. Classroom has received nine updates, and has three more to come in the near future. In this blog post we will take a look at each of these updates, how they work, and what impact they will have on teaching and learning.

Click here to access his blog post.

August 2018

What is the Global Read Aloud?

(From the site...) The premise is simple; we pick a book to read aloud to our students during a set 6-week period and during that time we try to make as many global connections as possible. Each teacher decides how much time they would like to dedicate and how involved they would like to be. Some people choose to connect with just one class, while others go for as many as possible. The scope and depth of the project is up to you. While there are commonly used such as Skype, Twitter, WriteAbout or Flipgrid, you choose the tools that will make the most sense for you. Teachers get a community of other educators to do a global project with, hopefully inspiring them to continue these connections through the year.

When is it? For more information, visit https://theglobalreadaloud.com.

Once a year, starting in early October and running through mid-November.

For more information, visit https://theglobalreadaloud.com. If you want support to get this set up, please let me know.

August 2018

Richard Byrne outlines three ways that you could have your students record and share video reflections.

Click here to access his blog post.

May 2018

Thanks to Richard Byrne for his work to post tools to create review activities. Click here to read his post.

May 2018

Teachers know the importance of summer reading. Here are a few resources that you might want to share with your students and/or parents:

• ReadWorks.org is providing a way for you to provide curated summer reading packets to your students on a variety of levels. You may choose packets with and without question sets. There is a letter to send to parents, too ~ Word version or Google docs version.
• We Are Teachers - Color-As-You-Go Summer Reading Challenge - Includes printable Summer Reading Challenge bookmarks.
• TeachersFirst weekly message contains tools for practicing math and reading skills. They also tools to create books, images, and more! Click here to access the page.
• The Association for Library Service to Children created Summer Reading Lists available in a brochure format The lists are available for Birth=PreSchool, Grades K-2, Grades 3-5, and Grades 6-8.
• This year's Scholastic Summer Reading Challenge is called "A Magical Summer of Reading." Click here for details.
• WeAreTeachers posted a link to information about 17 picture books to celebrate summer!
• WeAreTeachers shared "from irresistible family read alouds to can't-put-them-down titles for road trips and rainy afternoons, these are our top choices for K-8 students. Click here to access the summer reading list for families.

What about Teacher Reading/PD?

• Do you have an Educator Summer Book Club? If so, you might be interested in the summer reading recommendations from Jennifer Gonzalez on her blog, Cult of Pedagogy.
  
• Matt Miller from Ditch That Textbook offers 12 Ways To Grow and Learn in this post. Don't miss the list of podcasts.

May 2018

Please plan to join families from the community as we celebrate literacy, books, and reading! Local literacy resources and experts will be there to share information and strategies to promote literacy.

Details are available here: https://www.smore.com/bj5re

Agencies may register here.

April 2018

An Educator In The Workplace event is scheduled for April 26th from 4:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. at Starn Tool. The flyer below provides the details. Click here for the link to register to attend. This will work, too: http://bit.ly/EWPStarn

This event provides an excellent opportunity to connect your subject area with the challenges, new technologies, and use of academic skills and knowledge in a manufacturing setting.

If you have questions, please let me (ann.noonen at craw.org) know or reach out to Eileen Mullen (emullen at crawfordctc.org), the event coordinator.

April 2018

ASM Materials Camp and Allegheny College are looking for students in high school who are highly motivated, inquisitive learners with math and science aptitude.

ASM Materials Camp is a three-day day camp (non-residential) utilizing hands-on learning principles of applied math, physics, and chemistry. A very unique team-based, intensive problem solving science experience under the direction of distinguished industry leaders and college faculty. The Camp includes a combination of mini-demonstrations and field trips with extensive involvement in laboratory facilities to actively explore materials science & engineering principles in practice with local industry.

Details are available here.

April 2018

Spring is here, and April is National Poetry Month, so what better time to have your students work on their creative writing skills with a Springtime-themed writing activity.

Here is the latest from Eric Curts....

In the past I have shared Google Drawing templates for students to create drag-and-drop "magnetic" poetry with a winter-theme as well as for Valentine's Day. This time I have updated the template for Springtime. You can get a copy of the Springtime Magnetic Poetry template to use with your students (or yourself) however you want, as well as directions on how to use it here:

www.controlaltachieve.com/2018/04/spring-poetry.html

April 2018

Join like-minded colleagues as we explore Google tools and best practices for the classroom. This certification training will help better prepare you to take the Google Certified Educator Level 1 exam which is offered on day 3 of the training.

June 13, 14, and 15, 2018

Details are here.

March 2018

How are you and your students celebrating Pi Day? Here are a few resources to consider...

Discovery Ed Resources (You will need to log in)

Official Pi Day Web site

Best Pi Day Activities for the Classroom

March 2018

Julie Clements shared this with the staff in her school.... "Here is a site that has the Pittsburgh eagle nest if you want to show the kiddos one closer to home. This nest has 3 eggs in it due to hatch March 20.

http://www.pixcontroller.com/eagles/"

Streams and audio from two cameras at the nest site went live on January 3. One camera a side angle and the other a view from above, which also has infrared capabilities for night viewing. View the site here.

January 2018/Updated February 2018

If you are looking for a fun Googley activity for Read Across America and Dr. Seuss' birthday, feel free to check out Eric Curtis' Google Slides template for a "One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish" Sorting activity.

You can get a copy of the template and all the directions at:

www.controlaltachieve.com/2017/02/...

February 2018

What is on the five-year horizon for K-12 schools worldwide? Which trends and technologies will drive educational change? What are the challenges that we consider as solvable or difficult to overcome, and how can we strategize effective solutions? These questions regarding technology adoption and educational change steered the collaborative research and discussions of a body of 61 experts to produce the NMC/CoSN Horizon Report > 2017 K-12 Edition, in partnership with the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) and made possible by mindSpark Learning.

Important Developments in Educational Technology for K–12 Education

• Time-to-Adoption Horizon: One Year or Less
  
• Makerspaces
  
• Robotics
  

• Time-to-Adoption Horizon: Two to Three Years
  
• Analytics Technologies
  
• Virtual Reality
  

• Time-to-Adoption Horizon: Four to Five Years
  
• Artificial Intelligence
  
• The Internet of Things
  

AR/VR

• Merge Cubes
• How Augmented Reality Is Shaping the Future of Play
• 10 Best VR Apps for Classrooms Using Merge VR's New Merge Cube
• An Educator's Guide to Augment Learning with Merge Cube

February 2018

Sent to FIM Contacts and Elementary Principals:

Have you noticed a new “world” when you logged in to First In Math? The new Computational Thinking World was recently added.

Please share the following news about an update to First In Math with your colleagues who teach grades 2 - 6:

New Computational Thinking + Intro to Coding Module: I was totally enthused to see they've taken one of their existing game structures, Rock Paper Scissors Chess, and developed an amazing world to build computational thinking + introduce rudimentary coding skills. This new CT world should be live on student screens this winter and will be freely included with the full FIM bundle for next year.

When students log in to First In Math, they should see a new world. I’ve attached a screen shot of what they will see. Clicking on the pink CT World will take the user to the Computational Thinking World where the problems require coding skills in order to solve. Check it out with your students.

February 2018

TIPSbyTEXT is a free text-messaging program for parents of preschoolers designed to help them prepare their children for kindergarten. Each week during the school year, parents receive three texts about important kindergarten readiness skills. TIPSbyTEXT’s text messages were developed at Stanford University’s Center for Education Policy Analysis. They are based on child development research and linked to state educational standards.

Click here for the details.

February 2018

Stacey Walsh shared the following..

Below is a link to a set of graphic organizer templates all created with Google Drawings. Click on the one you want to see, click make a copy (it will save directly to your Google Drive) and it is then yours to use. Check out Google Drawings (drawings.google.com) to make your own...lots of options to create timelines, annotate images, drag and drop activities, etc.

Click here.

February 2018

I'm often asked about what are some current resources that people are reading or accessing. So, I thought I would start a listing of some of the books, blogs, video and podcasts that I use or that have been recommended.

Books:

• Braving the Wilderness by Brene Brown
  
• Innovator's Mindset by George Courous
  
• The Smartest Kids in the World: And How They Got That Way by Amanda Ripley
• The End of Average by Todd Rose
  
• Learning Transformed: 8 Keys to Designing Tomorrow's Schools, Today by Eric Sheninger and Thomas Murray
  
• Hacking Leadership by Dr. Joe Sanfelippo and Tony Sinanis

Podcasts:

• The 10-Minute Teacher Show by Vicki Davis
  
• Cult of Pedagogy by Jennifer Gonzalez

February 2018

Where do I find resources to teach digital literacy.....

• Code.org - Curriculum
• Common Sense Media - Digital Citizenship
• Google's Curriculum - Be Internet Awesome

February 2018

The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race is scheduled for March 4, 2018. Heidi Sloan is a 5th grade teacher from Virginia who will be the 2018 Teacher on the Trail.

Lessons

Paw Prints

January 2018

In some classrooms, the mere mention of the phrase “book report” brings groans of dread. Visions of endless writing and tedious presentations feel overwhelming to students. But reading an awesome book and telling others all about it can be one of the great pleasures in life! Here are 12 creative book report ideas that will be sure to get your students excited about their assignment.

January 2018

An extensive list of 65 digital tools, apps, and platforms that can help teachers use formative assessment to elicit evidence of student learning. Click here.

January 2018

Wanted to share a Web resource that I learned about yesterday. Here’s the URL: https://classroomscreen.com

Check it out. Best to use Chrome. Click on the icon on the bottom of the screen to turn the features on and off.

You can…
- choose a background
- type your instructions in the textbox
- choose a work symbol
- set a timer or show the clock
- use the traffic light
- pick a random name
- display the noise level in your classroom
- draw in-screen or full-screen
- generate a qr-code
- drag and drop the icons in the right place
- use the duo widget option if your class works in two groups on a different assignment

January 2018

Sent the following to BLTs...

Wanted to be sure you were aware of this resource from Eric Curts, The 12 Days of Tech-Mas 2017

Here is the text he posted to one of the listservs…

With the holiday season here, I am excited to share some of my favorite things in educational technology! I will be doing this in a series of blog posts throughout the month of December that I am calling "The 12 Days of Tech-Mas". Each blog post will provide a list of useful resources corresponding to the number of that entry, from 1 through 12. (Not all of them will be Google related, but quite a lot of them will be.)

Enjoy!!

December 2017

Shared this link that highlights new features with Kahoot! Web page is linked below, too.

November 2017

Web-based resources that provide examples/samples of question stems that target higher order thinking skills were shared.

Google has launched a fun, educational "20-Questions" style game called "Mystery Animal". It is all done through speaking, so no typing or reading is needed, so this works great with little ones as well.

Google's artificial intelligence picks a random animal, and then you and your students ask it "Yes" and "No" question to try to guess the animal. It is a fun way to build critical thinking, questioning, communication, and science skills.

See all the details and the different ways to access the activity here:

www.controlaltachieve.com/2017/11/mystery-animal.html

As always, feel free to share with others. Take care!

November 2017

Catch up on everything new in G Suite for Education from October 2017, and see great ideas and resources!

Shared the following Web sites with CCSD educators.

Shared info about the 2nd Annual PETE&C Student Inventors’ Competition with the Superintendent via email. Text of the mail message...

I received information about the Student Inventors’ Competition and wondered if you would approve sharing it with the secondary principals. Basically, middle and high school students are invited to come up with an invention. They have to create a 60 second video to “sell” their invention - think shark tank presentation. We (the PETE&C Board) will score the submissions. If selected, the team will bring a prototype of the invention to PETE&C. Attendees vote on their favorite invention.

I’m running this by you for approval…. Thinking what if…. Would the District send the invention team to Hershey if they are selected to present?

Here is the link to the flyer.

October 2017

An application was submitted for elementary schools to participate in the Google Expeditions AR Pioneer Program. Google has partnered with content providers like the American Museum of Natural History, The Smithsonian, The Planetary Society, the National Museum of Korea, Frontiers of Flight Museum, Alchemy VR, PBS, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and others to create virtual reality experiences for students. Google is also partnering with Subaru to bring these virtual field trips to schools.

The company says that it plans to bring Expeditions to “thousands” of schools. That’s definitely an ambitious program, especially since it plans to have a team visit every school to show teachers how the system works.

Let's hope that Second District and the other elementary buildings are selected to participate!

October 2017

Students draw a monster according to the teachers's specs (i.e. use all geometric shapes) and then they write a descriptive paragraph describing the creation. Classes exchange descriptive essays. Each student receives an essay from a student in another class and uses this paper to draw the monster described. The event culminates in a Skype call in which students hold up their drawings for the original artist/writer to see how closely they were able to recreate the monster.

October 2017

Email: ann.noonen@craw.org
Website: https://sites.google.com/view/anoonen/
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Phone: (814) 724-3122
Twitter: @anoonen