I am always amazed at the incredible pace at which new online applications and services get released. Each one seems to out do the other and provide a fantastic free service in exchange for your attention, and user information.

That was until I found Animoto.

Animoto takes the cake!

Click here to see what I created in less that 4 minutes!

Animoto.com is a web application that automatically generates professionally produced videos, each a customized orchestration of your images and music.

Amazing!

What a great way to show off our new library in a new and easy way.

Back to school parent night is coming up this week at ISB and no doubt many teachers will rely on Powerpoint or iPhoto to tell their class story. Who will dare go with Animoto?

I’ll find someone

Big thanks to our new 21st century literacy specialist Kim Cofino for the photos.

Hat tip to Robin Good and his “Be Smart, Be Independent, Be Good” blog for this resource. A fantastic resource on the world of online publishing. If you are looking for a web 2.0 maven, he is mine.

ANIMOTO is…………………….

Just finished watching “A Crude Awakening. A powerful documentary that provides an excellent overview of the current state of fossil fuel and energy consumption across the globe and the issues that it generates. The movie reminded me of just how powerful audio and visual media can be to teach others. In just under two hours I not only had a new and interesting perspective on the global energy crisis but more importantly I had new questions, thoughts and ideas that I had never had before. I was interested in more discussion and I wanted to share my perspective. The power of visuals , music and media to enhance teaching and learning is incredible. Of course balance and timing are key to the success of any teaching aid. Show them too often or too long, students tune out. We can all remember teachers who put movies on far too often and the effect it had on the class. That is not what I’m talking about. I am talking about the well time clip that ties in perfectly to your lesson and unit. The one that explains and shows things in way no image or written passage ever could.

Now with great screen capturing technology like the one that comes with SMART board notebook , Camtasia tor even just OS X (Apple + shift + 4) these moments can be captured and revisited. So many new and cool ways to make thinking and questioning go DEEPER!

I just had to share this one moment from the film by capturing this very important diagram.

Questions I would ask students to promote deeper thinking:

What does this diagram say about what we value?

Is the price per gallon proportional or disproportinal to the return on investment?

What questions would you ask? 

Geography, Social Studies , T.O.K and History teachers take note. This film is gold!

You can order a copy here.

Did you know that as a city Toront0, Canada has one of the largest Facebook penetration rates in the world. In a recent count the number has been said to be close to 700,000 members. Much has been written about Facebook recently. Big business scorns it; too distracting. Parents don’t like it; too distracting. Schools block it; too distracting. No matter what side of the fence you sit on with regard to this network you may find it interesting that the first Facebook camp was held this summer in T.O.

From what I understand, it was packed!
What is FacebookCamp?

FacebookCamp is an unconference for everyone with an interest in building on the Facebook Platform. FacebookCamp brings together developers, marketers, strategists, technologists, and students, in an open and collaborative environment of sharing and learning.

So now I ask…………

What makes applications and communities like this so compelling?

Why has this social network taken off while dozens of others have failed?

Knowing that close to all high school students are a part of some sort of online social network, what responsibility do schools have to teach literacy around these new mediums and skills to safely navigate them?

What do you think?

As educators around the world slowly wake up to the possibilities and opportunities that many of the new web tools afford, the world gallops ahead. It is always the business community that seems to be the early adopters  of tools that can increase and enhance collaboration, communication and creative thought. The global work-space has shrunk but the hours in the day have not and as a result any tool that can allow for collaboration independent of time and space has many appealing merits. One recent site caught my eye as a emerging resource for business, economics and math teachers: Wiki Invest.  What better way to get skeptical teachers on board to the virtues of collaborative technologies than to expose them to resources that will not only enhance their classrooms but their portfolio’s as well .  In all the in-services that I lead last year, the most well attended were for resources that helped teachers outside the classroom (itunes, iphoto, image editing, movie making etc.). Perhaps I should re-think our schedule of offerings this year?

This resource is new but gathering steam.  I especially like the concepts section of the site which at a quick glance provides an extensive resource of all of the current issues facing global business today.  Notice “sub prime lending” as one of the most popular?

Relevant, engaging and meaningful.  The way learning resources should be.

 Back from the summer and wondering where all the time went?

Back full of fresh ideas, thoughts and projects.

Last year left me exhausted and ready for a break but it also left me with a great sense of accomplishment that we were headed in the right direction. Fellow trail blazer Dennis Harter and I laid some great ground work that will help shape our version of Curriculum 2.0 that so many have been writing about.

I am really excited about this school year. There is so much potential and excitement in the air. Lots of new blood, ideas and possibility around.

I want to officially welcome Kim Cofino to the ISB Team. She is going to a fantastic new addition to the school and will be a crucial part of the critical mass that will help make “shift happen”.

The flag ship of this change has to be our new ES library. Pushing all boundaries of design and ideas around “what a library should be”, this new hub for learning will help us open minds to allow for deeper questions, critical thinking and 21st century literacy. You really have to see this place it is awesome. Much of my time last year was spent bringing this learning playground to the point you see it at now. In the words of A-Team leader Hannibal Smith: “I love it when a plan comes together!”

Last year was all about doing. I tried to write often but most of my efforts were focused on bringing the ES around to the level of the rest of the school. This year will be more about sharing and collaborating. I am committed to writing more and giving back a little to the community that has given me so many of the ideas and resources that I used last year. It’s only fair

Now all we have to do is get those books on the shelves!