Technology Teasers for Teachers

I’m sure many of you are already thinking of ways to use the Discovery Atlas I showed you during this week’s Technology Teaser!  Discovery Atlas is part of the Discovery Education Streaming website, which includes United Streaming videos, and it is a resource that the South Carolina Department of Education pays for each year so that we can have access to it.  Here is the information you will need to use the site:

First you will need to login at the Discovery Education United Streaming website:  http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/  If you already have an account but you have forgotten your user name or password, you can request to have it emailed to you.  If you do not have an account set up yet, you will need to use our school’s eight-digit passcode to register as a new user.  I cannot post the passcode on a public forum like this, but I can provide it to you personally if you need it.  

Once you have logged in, you will see the “tv screen” in the middle of the page.  To the right of it is a menu titled Teacher Center, and the Discovery Atlas Interactive Map is linked there.  When you click the link, you will see a small version of the map.  Below the map is a button labelled “Launch ATLAS” that you can click to open the map in a new window.  Now you’re ready to begin using the map! 

As you use your mouse to hover over each continent, an outline of each country will light up.  Just click the desired area on the map to zoom in and see the menu of available resources.  On the left will be a list of topics (Culture, History, Government, and Natural World) and on the right will be a menu of related video clips you can click to view.  There is also a “Zoom Out” button above the list of videos.

 Don’t forget to leave your comments here letting us know how you are using the site with your students!  And please contact me if you have any questions.

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Filed under: Discovery Education, Maps tagged Discovery Atlas, Discovery Education, interactive maps, SC Education Dept, technology, United Streaming, video clips

What’s This Blog All About?

As the Library Media Specialist at Alice Drive Elementary School, part of my job is to help teachers integrate technology into instruction.  We have an amazing array of resources available to us at our school!  Some of them have been purchased with library funds, others were acquired through the Literacy Grant our school received last year, a few are provided to us free of charge by the State Department of Education, and a surprising number of things can be accessed for free on the Web.  Therefore, one of my goals this year is to provide more technology training for teachers to help you understand how these tools can expand and enhance your teaching.  

So What Are Technology Teasers?

Technology Teasers are designed to give you a quick peek at something new (or new-to-you) that is available at our school.  Mrs. Thomas is allowing me ten minutes at each faculty meeting to briefly demonstrate how a particular type of technology might be useful to you.  Then, if any of you want to know more about how to use any of the equipment, services, products, or websites that I introduce, I can schedule a more in-depth training session for all those who are interested.  

Well, How Does This Blog Fit Into The Program?

Anytime I introduce something new in a faculty meeting, I will post a message here containing all of the information, instructions, web links, etc to help you make the best use of the technology in your classroom.  The TTFT Blog will also keep you up-to-date if you miss a faculty meeting, and all the posts will remain archived here so that you can revisit a topic days, weeks, or months after I present it.  You can even sign up to receive automatic updates of this blog by email!

But Why a Blog?  Why Not Just Put This Information on an eChalk Page?

One of the most powerful tools we have at ADE is the energy, enthusiasm, and creativity of our faculty and staff.  By working together and sharing ideas, we can accomplish much more than we could alone.  I want to encourage each of you to provide feedback by posting your own comments to each of my blog entries.  Be a part of the community!  Let the rest of us know how you are using technology to make learning more meaningful for your students by telling us what you are doing in your classroom and how your students are responding to it.  Technology may at times be baffling or frustrating or even scary, but together we can use the best of it to prepare our students for the future.

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Filed under: Introduction tagged Introduction, Respond, Vision