Tag Archives: Edutopia

OER: Open Educational Resources primer

photo-1443745029291-d5c27bc0b562Leave it to Edutopia to give us an excellent primer on open educational resources or OER. OER has become quite the buzz acronym recently but did you know it’s basically FREE stuff you can use in your classroom or library?! Technically, “open educational resources include full courses, course materials, modules, textbooks, streaming videos, tests, software, and any other tools, materials, or techniques used to support access to knowledge.” We like FREE things too!

But OER isn’t just about consuming, it’s about contributing to the repository too! Edutopia has you covered there, giving you ideas on how you can get some of your lesson plans, ideas, and materials added to the network.

Read all the details about OER and how you can get started contributing to them!

Image credit: https://unsplash.com/photos/cF6fz9QwfrY (William White), licensed under CC0

Edutopia names top 10 education videos

time_alone2_hiresHere is a collection of Edutopia’s most popular videos from 2015. Learn some creative tricks and tips from around the country through these education videos (transcripts included). Various topics include: student-led conferences, recess for high school students, service learning with real-life applications (example: growing the salad greens that are served in the lunchroom), and more.

Edutopia’s most popular videos

Image credit: http://tinyurl.com/qzmpeb2

Are You on the Path to Burnout?

photo-1428891786829-23a17f38b8f0After attending the ITEM and MLA Conferences recently, I was struck by how often the word burnout came into casual conversations. I was also struck by how often I heard  phrases like, “taking a step back” and “regrouping”. The hot wave of tech integration has warmed in “early adopter schools” and some media specialists are recalibrating, re-examining their practice. Public librarians are licking their wounds after summer reading programs. Smart professionals know burnout is a hazard of the profession, but also know they don’t need to idly wait for total burnout to happen!

Our friends at Edutopia did a great blog post about 12 steps to prevent burnout. Even if one idea works for you, it is worth a read. Do Pinterest boards called Happy Thoughts or Things That Make Me Laugh sound appealing? Or how about creating a joy journal? A quick read with all the links you need await you! Peace.

Image credit: https://unsplash.com/ (Ryan Pouncy), licensed under CC0 1.0

Grants and Resources from Edutopia and Mackin

273/365: 09/30/2013. Money, Money, Money!Do you need grant information? Besides the CMLE Grant Page, another resource for grant seekers is the Grants and Resources page on Edutopia.

From Target Field Trip Grants to the Global Teacher Prize 2015 where one teacher is awarded a $1 million grand prize, Edutopia’s list has a great variety. From Edutopia about the listing:

“Get a roundup of educational grants, contests, awards, free toolkits, and classroom guides aimed at helping students, classrooms, schools, and communities. Check this page weekly to get the latest updates!”

Need even more grants!? Check out Mackin’s Grant channel for the latest funding opportunities for your school or library. They even have a newsletter you can sign-up for if you would like grant news straight in your inbox. They even offer grant writing tips. Check out this months 9 tips for writing effective grant proposals.

Image credit: http://tinyurl.com/kr5ka35, licensed under CC BY 2.0

A Day in the Life of a Teacher

We’ve seen GoPro cameras on ski slopes and used in extreme sports, but using them in the classroom? Recently Edutopia used them to document “A Day in the Life of a Teacher.” Then Amy Erin Borovoy of Edutopia edited the footage into the short video below. The video was made to celebrate National Teacher Day and is a fun look at a typical day from teacher’s perspective.