In browsing the top 50 e-learning sites, FunBrain is a very simple website with both content and games for grade school children. The information is divided into basic categories for viewing books where you can sample a chapter or two online, follow comic strips and select from a variety of skill building games. It is just another tool that can be used to continue to facilitate learning. As a component of the Family Education Network, Pearson Education, it is a free resource that does not require registering a user name and password to access the online information.
This Free App from Educreations blends the functionality of a traditional dry erase board with standard presentation software. The user can easily create quick tutorials and how-to videos. With multiple applications in and out of the media center or classroom you might want to add this APP to your list of must haves!
Long gone are the days of thinking of Twitter as an utter and useless waste of time! Professionals are using it to search on hash tags affiliated with conference events, and there is also new interest in Twitter Chats. At the fall MEMO conference in St. Cloud, several presenters/keynotes mentioned Twitter Chats as a resource they used for learning and networking. Indeed, these chats allow educators from anywhere in the world to come together at appointed times on a regular basis to talk about what is important. If you are new to the field, Twitter Chats are also a nice way to get your name and face out there to gain authority and visibility with your peers. Get connected and stay informed! Want to try it out?
In reviewing the top posts of 2012 on the eLearning Site, I stumbled upon this one, which will appeal to our Pinterest addicts out there. Pinterest continues to gain steam in helping teachers and students alike to explore new ways to learn, share, teach, and grow. Read this blog post to visit 25 great Pinterest boards in EduTech. Many are maintained by major educational websites, key figures in edtech, and well-known bloggers, but others were created by teachers just like you who simply want to share resources and tips with others in education. The full blog post is at http://tinyurl.com/a23cvd6
Have you been hearing about a new (technically a few years old) way of doing conferences called the unconference? Admittedly, they are informal events, sometimes on a Saturday, and the success of them is based largely on who attends, who has knowledge of proposed topics, and the willingness of attendees to not only listen and learn, but contribute too. The popularity of Edcamps, a type of professional development for educators, originated from social media connections. Get an insider’s view of what makes these events tick, and what kind of usability we could consider here in Central Minnesota. Go to the full article on SmartBlog on Education, 10/30/2012.
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