My 2010 EduBlog Award Noms

The 2010 Edublog Awards Nominations -

This is the first time I am trying this... to nominate people for Edublog Awards...

It's hard because I believe that competition in education should be kept to a minimum.  Shouldn't we all just be out to help each other?  But, in the blogging world, I don't think you ever write to win an award.  I think you write to reflect, to share, to vent, to collaborate...

And, it's always nice to get recognized for doing something well.

Here are my 2010 noms-

Best individual blog - What Ed Said

Best individual tweeter - Aviva Dunsiger- @Grade1

Best group blog - Irresistible Ideas for Play Based Learning

Best resource sharing blog - Free Technology for Teachers

Most influential blog post - Special Educators- Do We Do Too Much?

Best teacher blog - Teacher Tom

Best librarian / library blog - Cybrary Man's Educational Web Sites

Best school administrator blog - Taste of Tech

Best educational wiki - 21st Century Concepts

Best educational use of a social network - @techieteacher Jeremy Brown

Best use of a PLN - @tgwynn Tim Gwynn

Sharing My Toys...

While I have started this blog to reach out to the professional community and attempt to build a Personal (and/or Professional) Learning Network, I had started a blog about a year ago to improve communication with the parents of the students in my class with moderate to intensive special needs (autism, Down syndrome, cognitive disabilities, genetic disorders like 2q37 Deletion syndrome, hearing impairments, etc.).  My students currently range in age from 5 to 9, grades Kindergarten through Third.  I have been able to share articles, information, reminders, photos, and more with this Classroom Blog.  I'd like to share it here:

Miss Kolis' Room 5 Blog

While I feel that our classroom blog improved parent/grandparent communication, I was also searching out an easier way to communicate websites to my students and special education aides without continuously programming them into each computer's bookmarks, writing them in the lesson plans, posting them on notes near the doorway, etc., etc.  In order to do this, I created a homepage where our students access links (on the left side of the page) and our aides access links (on the right side of the page). I'd like to share that here:

Room 5 Homepage

Lastly, I created a page of links for a series of technology classes that I taught to our district's (Brecksville-Broadview Heights City Schools in Brecksville, OH) teachers this summer.  I'd like to share that as well:

Teaching (and Differentiating) with Technology 2010

Please use these links as you like!

Teaching (and Differentiating) with Technology 2010

Last week I taught a technology class for teachers in our district called "Teaching (and Differentiating) with Technology 2010."  While I was discouraged by the low attendance of these FREEEEEEEEEE classes, I was also encouraged that maybe the few people that attended might begin playing with and using the technologies that we worked on.  Also, one administrator came, so I was really encouraged by that!

Seems to me that, in a district where we boast about our high test scores and student successes, more teachers, administrators, and staff members would be interested in learning about tools that would help them become more efficient, effective teachers.

Regardless, here's a run down of the classes that we offered:

1. Blogging and Homepages (Setting up your own blog through WordPress or your own Homepage using Protopage).  What are the benefits of using a blog or homepage?  What are the differences?  Step by step set up.

2. A Re-Introduction to the SMARTboard (After 3 years of having SMARTboards in our classrooms, you'd think we've have the Basics down by now.  This was the most highly attended class.)

3.  Social Media for Education (By far, I was most excited about teaching this class.  6 people came.)

4.  Beyond the Basics: SMARTboard Tips and Tricks

5.  Flip Cameras (Even teaching this class seems silly because they are so easy and self explanatory, right?)

6.  Digital Storytelling

7.  Google Apps (Oh how I wish more people had attended this!)

8.  Where do you find this stuff?  Web Exploration time (I showed the 5 people that came how to use Wordle, then spent the next hour re-teaching Twitter and explaining our new email.)

9.  BoardMaker Plus v.6 (Mostly for Special Ed. teachers/ Intervention Specialists, but some reg. ed. folks showed too, thank goodness!)

10.  Grant Writing for your Technology Needs

Starfall- Learn to Read

Know about this little website?

http://www.starfall.com/n/level-a/learn-to-read/load.htm?f

Nice way to practice letter/sound blending.  Use this in Center Time or on your SMART Board or Interactive Whiteboard.

Interventions and such...

Along with some educational book reviews, I may start posting some Intervention Strategies on this blog page.  As an "Intervention Specialist" (more commonly known as a special education teacher), I think I have some valuable things to share.  Keep in mind that the Interventions that I will share are all research based (unless otherwise noted).  I did not create these interventions and I will not take credit for them.  I will however, share them.  :)

My most valuable websites for finding research based interventions are:

http://www.interventioncentral.org/-  While semi-hard to navigate and visually overstimulating, this site has GREAT resources.  They have research based interventions, curriculum based measurements, data collection charts, progress monitoring tools, etc., etc., etc.

http://www.fcrr.org/- The Florida Center for Reading Research now has a Search Tool!  This is so exciting!  Search by grade level and/or problem area.  My favorite by far.

http://www.touchmath.com/- I live and die by this math program.  I love it.  I should really work for this company.  I cannot stay enough good things about this program.