Friday, October 19, 2012

Tumblebooks and Bookflix!


Tumblebooks are wonderful animated online picture books.  I have previewed a number of them, and I suspect our students will find them as engaging and fun as I do.
It is possible to access Tumblebooks through many local library systems including Fairfax County and DC. The link to access Tumblebooks through the DC Public Library site is here:  http://www.dclibrary.org/kids/videobooks

(you can also find the link to Bookflix there, which I describe below)

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Videos to Enrich the Mind


As I am a visual learner, and have a relatively short attention span, I have always loved educational videos. Schoolhouse Rock and I are old friends... and you all know how I love BrainPop.

This week, I discovered some neat new sources of educational videos on YouTube - to include Bill Nye the Science Guy and Schoolhouse Rock.  And I love the idea of Crash Course History and Biology.  Enjoy:

Crash Course History
This is a series of 37 fast-paced ten to twelve minute overviews of major concepts and themes in World History. These might be a fun way to kick-off or reinforce a unit in the Upper School.




Monday, October 8, 2012

A Pair of Great Guides for IPad Users - And a Prezi


Usually, I only post to the Summer Learning Blog during the summer, but I just posted the following entry to the blog for teachers that I maintain during the school year.  The items I mention below are fantastic, and I suspect parents that follow this blog might also be interested in these resources for educational iPad apps... so here goes.  Parents, comment below if you'd like me to continue to share items like this during the school year...

Earlier this week, I received a pair of super-cool guides in my inbox that I'd like to share:

First, Edutopia published a booklet titled:  Mobile Devices for Learning: What You Need to Know... Getting kids engaged with learning, focused on working smarter and ready for the future.  This guide is jam-packed with ideas - especially for our iPad users.

In his "GeekDad" Blog for Wired, Daniel Donohoo sums it up this way: "Along with the usual app recommendations, the guide offers some analysis that looks at the positives, but also the challenges, of using mobile devices to support learning. It presents a wide range of diverse resources for teachers and parents to access as they undertake a journey to using technology to support learning. The whole process can also be overwhelming, so the guide doesn’t feel like it has excessive information, but instead acts as a launching pad for those interested in exploring how these devices can be used with students both inside and outside the classroom."
Plus, it is free. Of course, free these days means signing up to the Edutopia site, but if you do you’ll find the complete guide at http://www.edutopia.org/mobile-learning.