250,000 Free Wikis for K-12 Educators

If you haven't heard, Wikispaces.com has committed to offering 250,000 free wikis for K-12 educators on their website. They had previously offered 100,000 and had such a good response that they have agreed to offer 250,000 more. Check their site to see what teachers are saying about this unprecedented offer.

Podcasting Ideas

When using technology we want curriculum to be the most important aspect. I want teachers and librarians to see how technologies such as podcasting can be integral to curriculum at all grade levels and subjects areas. Go to http://socpodcasts.wordpress.com/2007/07/10/podcast171-brainstorming-k-12-curricular-uses-of-podcasting/ and listen to a podcast where educators suggest a myriad of ways that they plan to use podcasting in their classrooms. At least one or more ideas will be useful and perhaps initiate ideas of your own to use with your classes. Try it and send your comments with new ideas!

Teacher Resources

Have you “tapped in” to the website known as “Tapped In”? This website manned by library media specialists with special sessions provided by teachers is a site that gives you teaching tips and focus on a variety of topics including ESL, math, language arts, and more. All month long you can sign up for special sessions on topics of interest to you. Check the calendar for Tapped In at http://tappedin.org/tappedin/do/CalendarAction.

Watch for a new book!

My third book--Using Web 2.0 Tools in the K-12 Classroom--designed for K-12 educators will be published by Neal-Schuman this Fall. Bev's Website will accompany the book with a link to my blog.

I have created this blog so that K-12 librarians and teachers can find tips and tricks related to the Web 2.0 technologies in my book--podcasts, wikis, blogs, VoiceThread, Google Tools, digital storytelling, and social bookmarking. I want you to send your comments so that all educators can benefit from the experiences of others.

Share your ideas with your colleagues and I'll try to find educational sites where teachers and library media specialists are using technology to improve student learning to give you new ideas too.

For example, have you gone to Teacher Tube? http://www.teachertube.com/ Here you can find videos on a variety of subjects from Marco Polo or Ben Franklin Flies His Kites to the transcontinental railroad. Check out this site to see if there is a video that your students might find interesting.

Cuba: Then and Now

This social studies topic is the focus of one of the units from my book Using Web 2.0 Tools in the K-12 Classroom. The island nation of Cuba, which recently changed its leadership after over 40 years under Fidel Castro, close to United States' shores, has for a long time been out of touch with the U.S. politically and economically. In the unit plan you will review the history of Cuba, take a virtual tour around the island, research political and economic issues. Add comments and suggestions for other activities to use in the unit plan on this blog.