March 2012 Volume 2, Issue 3

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Newsletter

Special Interest Articles

• EVSCeREVOLUTIONREGIONALeLEARNINGCONFERENCE

• NSTANationalConfer-enceinIndianapolis

Individual Highlights

• MathWorld• LearnZillionCCSS

BasedMathLessons• EmergentMath-Blog• IDOE29-DayWeb2.0

Challenge• Jing• ScratchEd• Sumanas,Inc.Multi-

mediaDevelopement• ExploreScienceOne

GameataTime• KidWind• MiddleSchoolChem-

istry• WatchKnowLearn• ScienceBuddies• ProfessionalDevelop-

mentOpportunities

EVSC eREVOLUTION REGIONAL eLEARNING CONFERENCE

July 11 and 12, 2012

Theworldisrapidlychanging,andourprofessionisnoexception.Ourabilitytoadaptourworktomeettheneedsofourstudentshasneverbeenmoreessential.Thiscon-ferenceisaboutenhancingourabilitiestomakeeducationrelevanttostudentsinthedigitalagethroughafocusonmeaningfullearninginmedia-richenvironments.

AtEVSCREV12,you’llfind:• Inspirationalkeynotespeakersfromtheforefrontofeducationaltechnologyand

learningdesign.• Practicalandentertainingbreakoutsessionsfacilitatedbyteachers,academic

coaches,administrators,andtechnologyspecialists.• Spotlightsessionsfeaturingeducationandtechnologyleadersfromaroundthe

region.• Hands-onworkshopsthatexplorenewtoolsandteachingstrategiesindepth.• Abrandnew,world-classfacilitythatoffersthelatestclassroomtechnologies.• Manyadditionaleventsthatsupportcollaboration,networking,andexploration.

Allofthesewillbefocusedaroundour5LearningStrands:InnovativeLearningModels,21stCenturyStandardsandSkills,ActivTeaching,BuildingYourToolbox,andLeadershipintheDigitalAge.

Ifyouareseekinganewapproachtoteachingandlearningthatwillengageandchal-lengeyourstudentsandwillpreparethemforsuccessinthefuture,thenyourpathleadstotheRevolution.

www.evscicats.com/erevolution/index.htmlTwitterHashtag-#evscrev12

NSTA National Conference in IndianapolisMarch 29–April 1, 2012AttheCrossroadsforScienceEducationJoinusatthecrossroadsforscienceeducationduringtheNSTA2012IndianapolisNa-tionalConferenceonScienceEducation.TheconferenceheadquartershotelsaretheIndianapolisMarriottDowntown,JWMarriottIndianapolis,andWestinIndianapolis.ConferenceregistrationandexhibitswillbeattheIndianaConventionCenter.MostsessionsandeventshavebeenscheduledattheConventionCenteraswellastheIndianapolisMarriott,JWMarriott,andWestinIndianapolis.

Registration:www.nsta.org/conferences/2012ind/?lid=hpfTwitterhashtags:#nsta12(2012conferences),#nsta(all-purpose).

PRISM News Page 2

MathWorld

LearnZillion CCSS Based Math Lessons

Seven (Sneaky) Activities To Get Your Students Talking Mathematically

MathWorldTMistheweb’smostextensivemathematicalresource,providedasafreeservicetotheworld’smathematicsandinternetcommunitiesaspartofacommitmenttoeducationandeducation-aloutreachbyWolframResearch,makersofMathematica.

MathWorldhasbeenassembledovermorethanadecadebyEricW.Weissteinwithassistancefromthousandsofcon-tributors.Sinceitscontentsfirstappearedonlinein1995,MathWorldhasemergedasanexusofmathematicalinformationinboththemathematicsandeducational

communities.Itnotonlyreachesmil-lionsofreadersfromallcontinentsoftheglobe,butalsoservesasaclearinghousefornewmathematicaldiscoveriesthatareroutinelycontributedbyresearch-ers.Itsentriesareextensivelyreferencedinjournalsandbooksspanningalledu-cationallevels,includingthosereadbyresearchers,elementaryschoolstudentsandteachers,engineers,andhobbyists.

MathWorldcontinuestogrowandevolvewiththeassistanceofthousandsofcon-tributors.

WestartedLearnZillionatE.L.HaynesPublicCharterSchoolinWashington,D.C.becausewewantedtosolveaproblem.Weknewwhatlessonsourstudentsneededbutwedidn’thaveenoughtimetoteacheachstudenttherightlesson.Tocreatemoretime,andtosharebestpracticesacrossclassrooms,E.L.Haynes’teachersbegantocapturetheirexpertiseonscreencasts.Wepostedthemonahomemade

websiteandcoupledthemwithashortquiztohelpustrackstudentprogress.Soontheideagrew.

Whatifteachersfromacrossthecountrycouldcontributetothesite?WhatifnewteacherscouldlearnthenewCom-monCorestandardsfromthewisdomofexperi-encedteachers?Whatifstudentscouldgetaplayl-istoflessonsthatmatchedtheirneeds?Whatif,over

time,thevideolessonsgotstrongerandstronger,asmoreteacherscontrib-utedandthedatashowedwhichlessonshadthebiggestimpact?ThankstofundingfromtheNextGenerationLearningChal-lenge,NewSchoolsVen-tureFund,AchievementNetwork,andothers,weareabouttofindout!

Twitter-@LearnZillion

Checkoutthisblog-EmergentMath.TheauthorisamathcoachfortheNewTechNetworkofSchools.Hesharessomegoodresourcesforfacilitatingmathinstruction.

Thispostwillintroducesevenofthesesneaky,math-talk-producingactivities.Notonlythat,buttheyarea)easilytranslatabletomanycontentareasandb)quicklyproduc-ible.Inmanycasesyoucouldcreatetheseactivitieswithaworddocumentandmaybe30minutestime.Youcouldbedoingthistomorrow.

Twitter@emergentmath

mathworld.wolfram.com/

www.learnzillion.com/

emergentmath.wordpress.com/

PRISM News Page 3

IDOE 29-Day Web 2.0 Challenge

Jing

ScratchED

The blog will remain open, so we encour-age educators to continue to use it as a resource for good web 2.0 resources.

Welcometothe29-DayWeb2.0Chal-lenge.Thisblogispartofour“LeapIntoDigitalLearning”initiative,celebratingNationalDigitalLearningDay(February1,2012).Theideaforthisamazingre-sourceprojectcomesfromtheEvansvilleVanderburghSchoolCorporation’siCATS’30-DayChallenge.WewanttothanktheiCATSforpartneringwithustoprovideexcellentwebtoolsforalleducators!YouwillseemanyoftheiCATS’blogpostsduringthe29daysalongwithotheredu-

cationalpartnerswhohavejoinedusforDigitalLearningMonth.Lookfortheblogauthornotedoneachpost.EachdayinthemonthofFebruarywewillblogaboutaweb2.0tool,adigitalresource,oredu-cational/productivityapps.Weencourageyoutoreadeachblogentryandthinkabouthowtheresourcecanhelpyouen-hancestudentlearningorbetterdoyourjob.Pleaseshareyourplansinthecom-mentssectionoftheblogentry.Ifyouarealreadyusingthetoolpleasesharehowyouareusingitandhowsuccessfulithasbeeninyourclassroom.We’relookingforwardtoafabulousmonthofdigitallearning!

What is Scratch?Scratchisaprogramminglanguagethatmakesiteasytocreateinteractiveart,stories,simulations,andgames–andsharethosecreationsonline.

What is ScratchED?AwidevarietyofeducatorshavebeensupportingScratchcreators,inbothformalandinformallearningenvironments:ateacherwhowantstosharestoriesaboutScratchandcross-curricularintegration;aresearcherwhowantsfeedbackonmaterialsdevel-opedforexploringScratchasparticipatoryliteracy;aparentwhowantsadviceonhowtointroduceScratchatalocalall-girlshighschool;amuseumprogramdirectorwhowantstoconnectwithothermuseumswhohaveintroducedScratch.

InresponsetothisgrowingcommunityofeducatorsworkingwithScratch,wedevel-opedScratchEd.LaunchedinJuly2009,ScratchEdisanewonlinecommunitywhereScratcheducatorssharestories,exchangeresources,askquestions,andfindpeople.

idoe29dayweb20challenge.blogspot.com/

www.techsmith.com/jing.html

scratched.media.mit.edu/

CaptureWhatYouSee

TheJingsunsitsnicelyonyourdesktop,readytocaptureyourscreenatamoment’snotice.Jingwillcaptureawindow,pane,orregionwithjustoneclick.

JingLovestoShare

Sendyourscreenshotsallovertheweb.WithJing,youcanaddanimagetoyourblog,orinstantlyshareyourcapturesthroughIM,emailandmore.Selectanywindoworregionthatyouwouldliketorecord,andJingwillcaptureeverythingthathappensinthatarea.Fromsimplemousemovementstoafullynarratedtutorial,Jingrecordseverythingyousee,anddo.AndthenletsyoushareyourSWFvideoswithanyone.

PRISM News Page 4

Sumanas, Inc. Multimedia Development

Explore Science One Game at a Time

Kid Wind

Sumanas,Inc.wasfoundedin1994withacommitmenttodevelopingaccuratehigh-impactinteractiveproductsforhighereducation.Ourgoalistodesignandproduceinnovativeeducationalsolutions,usingCD-ROM,web,andothertech-nologies.Webelievethatbycombiningtraditionalcoursematerialwithenhancedgraphics,video,andanimation,amorecompellingpresentationofpedagogicalmaterialsbecomespossible.Sumanasoffersarobustselectionofcontentandservicesthataredirectedatenhancingthelearningexperience.

Sumanasoffersauniqueteamwithabroadrangeofskillsatboththeproduc-tionandeditoriallevel.TheSumanasstaffincludesacademicprofessionalswithadvanceddegrees,insuringattentiontodetailandscientificaccuracy.

InScienceinFocus,weuseanimationtobringtolifeimportantsciencetopicsinthenews.Thissectionwillbeupdatedperiodically,sopleasebesuretovisitusagainsoon.

WINDWISEAcomprehensiveinterdisciplinarywindenergycurriculum,developedwithNorman-deauAssociatesformiddleandhighschool.Lessonshaveinquiry-basedintroductionsandhands-onactivitiestodevelopanalyticalskills.

www.sumanasinc.com/webcontent/animation.html

webadventures.rice.edu/ed/Teacher-Resources/_games/MedMyst/

learn.kidwind.org/teach

WebAdventuresweredevelopedbyRiceUniversity’sCenterforTechnologyinTeach-ingandLearningwithtwoprimaryeducationalgoals:

1.Increasestudents’scienceandhealthknowledgethroughseriousgames

2.Inspiresciencerelatedcareersthroughseriousgames

Thissiteservesasavehicletodistributeourgrant-basedgameprojectstoengagestudentsandassistteachersinenhancingtheircorecurriculum.

AllgamesandcompanionmaterialsareFREE.

www.middleschoolchemistry.com/

Middle School ChemistryWhathappenswhensolids,liquids,andgasesareheatedandcooled?Whyisonesub-stancemoreorlessdensethananother?Whatcausescertainsubstancestodissolveinwater?Whathappenswhenachemicalreactiontakesplace?

ThesequestionsandmanymoreareexploredinMiddleSchoolChemistry,aresourceofguided,inquiry-basedlessonplansthatcoversbasicchemistryconceptsalongwiththeprocessofscientificinvestigation.

YoucandownloadtheentirebookforfreeinPDFformat.

PRISM News Page 5

WatchKnowLearn

Science Buddies

TheVisionbehindWatchKnowLearnissimple:

FreeeducationalvideosdeliveredovertheInternet.Viewedanytime,fromanywhere.

Webelievethateveryoneshouldhavethesameopportunitytolearn.Thebestwaytomakethispossible,webelieve,istoorganizeintoone,superdirectorythehundredsofthousandsofgoodvideoscurrentlyavailableontheInternet.Tomakethisareality,weinviteteachers,instructorsandeducatorstosuggestvideosforinclusionintoourdirectory,andthentoreview,approve,andassignthosevideosintoappropriatecategoriesusingawikiframeworkandphilosophy.ThevideosarethehighestqualityfoundontheWorldWideWeb,coverallmajoreducationaltopicsfromelementaryto

secondaryschools(oragerange1–18),andareKidSafe!

WatchKnowLearnhasindexedover33,000+educationalvideos,placingthemintoadirectoryofover3,000categories.Thevideosareavailablewithoutanyregistrationorfeestoteachersintheclassroomandtostudentsathome24/7.Userscandiveintoourinnovativedirec-toryorsearchforvideosbysubjectandagelevel.Videotitles,descriptions,agelevelinformation,andratingsarealled-itedforusefulness.OurWebsiteinvitesbroadparticipationinanewkindofwikisystem,guidedbyteachers.Wehavehadatremendouslypositiveresponsefromeducatorstothewebsite.Ifwecon-tinuetoworktogether,wecancreateanincredible,free,educationalresourceforstudentsacrosstheworld.

Takinginspirationfromthenews,fromthefrontlinesofuniversityresearch,andfromkidsthemselves,ourstaffscientistspublishnewcontentweekly.Theyoftencollabo-ratewithexpertsathightechcompanies,governmentlabsandagencies(likeNOAAandNASA)andtopuniversities.

ScienceBuddiesprovidesfun,intellectually-stimulatingandcutting-edgescienceedu-cationresourcessuchas:• Anonlinelibraryof1000+ProjectIdeas,whicharedetailedscientist-authored

outlinesthathelpstudentscreateaprojectinanyof30differentfieldsofscienceandengineering

• TheTopicSelectionWizardtooltohelpstudentsfindaprojectideathatperfectlymatchestheiruniqueinterests

• TheProjectGuideisanonlineencyclopediaforhowtodoscienceresearchandsciencefairprojects.Itincludesstep-by-stepguidance,actualsampleassignments,photosofsciencefairprojects,tipsforsuccess,andself-gradingchecklistsforstudents.Alsoincludestools,techniques,andreferenceinformationsuchassafetyguidelinesandasectionontheengineeringprocess.

• ArobustTeacherResourcesareawithacurriculumforteachingthescientificmethod,printableclassroomhandouts,gradingrubrics,andenrichmenttools

• TheAskanExpertonlineadviceforumwherescientistsandengineersguidestu-dentswhoaredoingscienceandengineeringprojects

• CareerInformationincludes100+CareerProfilestoinformstudentsaboutsci-ence,technology,engineering,andmathcareers.CareerProfilesaretiedintoourlibraryofProjectIdeassostudentscaneasilyseehowthescienceintheirprojectisusedinreal-worldcareers.

www.watchknowlearn.org/

www.sciencebuddies.org/

PRISM News Page 6

Professional Opportunities

What PRISM Can Do For You!

FREE SUMMER BIOLOGY LABORATORY COURSEAlaboratorycoursewillbeofferedthissummerinthedepartmentofBiologicalSciencesatPurdueUniversity.These10laboratorieswillrunMonday-Fridayfrom1:00-5:00pmonJune18-June29.Duringeachofthesesessions,ProfessorJohnAndersonwillpresentabackgroundlectureforthelabsanddiscusshowthelabsmightbeusedattheirschools.Participantswillstudytopicsinproteinbiologyandbiochemistrysuchasproteinstructure,function,isolation,molecu-larevolutionandthedetectionandmolecularbasisofhumandisease.Theyalsocarryoutexperimentsontheproper-ties,functionandstructureofDNA.Techniquesusedfortheseexperimentsincludeelectrophoresis,chromatography,cellfractionationprocedures,restrictionnucleasemappingandbasicDNAcloningtechniques.Adviceonstatisticalanalysisoftheirdatawillbealsobeprovidedduringthistimealongwithinstructionsonreadingandwritingpapersfromthescientificliterature.Formoreinformation,contactIsidoreJulienat765-494-4983oratjulieni@purdue.edu.

The National Science Teachers Association is hosting Science Rocks!FREEcommunityeventtoelectrifyparents,teachers,andstudentsabouttheexcitingworldofscience—from6:00to8:30p.m.,Wednesday,March28,attheIndianaConventionCenter.Weinviteyoutobringsciencetolifeforyourchil-drenthroughthisexclusiveopportunitytointeractwithaccomplishedscientistsastheysharetheirjourneytosuccessinScience,Technology,Engineering,andMathematics(STEM).www.nsta.org/conferences/2012ind/sciencerocks.aspx

Professional Development at The Children’s MuseumOurteacherworkshopsandinstitutescanprovidetheopportunityforeducatorstoreceivegraduatecredit,CertificationRenewalUnits(CRUs),andProfessionalGrowthPointsforlicenserenewal.Severalneweventsandsummerprofes-sionaldevelopmentopportunitieshavebeenadded.www.childrensmuseum.org/professional-development

• Easilyfindtheperfectteachingandlearningresourcesfromourlibraryofover3,500.

• Savealistofyourfavoriteresourcesforquickretrieval.

• Createandsharelessonplansthatteachyoursubjectsutilizingyourfavoriteresources.

• Developonlineclassroomswithinteractiveassignments,lessons,quizzesandmore!

• Joindiscussionswithstudents,parents,orother

teachersinsidechatsandforums.

• Storeyourclassroommaterialsonlinesothattheyareavailabletoyoufromanycomputer.

• Reachyourstudentsmoreeffectivelybyusingwebmediaforthedigitalage.

• EarnCRUsbycompletingPRISMledonlineMoodlecourse–eitherBeginningMoodleorIntermediateMoodlecoursesareavailabletoyouatnocostseveraltimesthroughouttheyear.

• Selectfromfreelearningresourcesthatemphasizevisualization,richcontext,staged-problemsolving,andelectronicallyenabledcollaboration/communication.

• Augmentyourowndynamicpresenceintheclassroomwithteachingtoolsthatmirrortheskillsneededforsuccessinhighereducationandthe21stCenturyworkplace.

Through our strong support from the Lilly Endowment

and others, we are constant-ly growing and improving. Check our site regularly to

see what new resources you can use in your classroom.

www.rose-prism.org

www.rose-prism.org

PRISM isa freewebsite thatprovidescollectionsofonline resourcesforIndianaeducatorsinthefieldsofscience,technology,engineering,and mathematics (STEM). The primary collection of digital teachingmaterialsisindexedaccordingtotheIndianaAcademicStandardsfor6th,7th,and8thgradeandsecondaryeducationcourses.