Category: learning objects

learning objects, Open Source - Open ContentLeave a comment

Online video resources

wenmothd

Last week I attended the KidzattheCentre conference in New Plymouth, hosted by the Taranaki APs and DPs association. It was a most enjoyable time amongst a group of people with an obvious passion for what they do and a desire to learn more to improve and develop what is happening in their schools. One of the delegates shared with me some exciting things that had happened in his school with one of his staff who had introduced some of the Khan videos to his students to help them understand a range of mathematical concepts when they were finding it difficult … Continue reading Online video resources

Curriculum, environmental, learning objectsLeave a comment

Adventure in your community

wenmothd

it's always useful at the start of a school year to come across resources that might be useful in the school programme. This one from National Geographic Education came to me through TES Online, and is intended to support Geography Awareness week (which I wasn't aware existed).  The parent guide provides an excellent overview of the sorts of activities and challenges you can set kids to do – it would make a superb resource for teachers also to incorporate some of these activities into a classroom programme.  The resource is designed to invite individuals or teams of students, families, or … Continue reading Adventure in your community

emerging technologies, learning objectsLeave a comment

Sifteos are coming

wenmothd

http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf At the 2009 ULearn conference I presented some thoughts on what we might be seeing in the future of eduction, and referred at one point to MIT grad student David Merrill’s work with Siftables — cookie-sized, computerized tiles you can stack and shuffle in your hands. These future-toys can do math, play music, and talk to their friends, too. (see TED video above). After my presentation I was approached by several teachers who wanted to know whether it was possible to get their hands on these devices – and it appears that very soon it will be. It seems … Continue reading Sifteos are coming

eLearning, learning objects1 Comment

Useful mapping tool for learning

wenmothd

Looking for some more interactive, online resources – here’s one that will keep your and your students engrossed for hours. Titled Change the world one map at a time, this resource lets you select a subject from the top menu and watch the countries on the map change their size. Instead of land mass, the size of each country will represent the data for that subject –both its share of the total and absolute value. I can see heaps of potential for this in classes – another good example of data visualisation for the classroom. Apart from the obvious approach … Continue reading Useful mapping tool for learning

learning objects, News & current events2 Comments

Earthquake Shakeup – learning from the experience

wenmothd

The earthquake after shocks continue to rock us here in CHCH, but people appear to be getting on with things. For CORE staff in Christchurch, however, that means getting on with things from home, as our offices in Kilmore Street have been officially closed until further notice. While our building is simply awaiting a structural clearance, the Repertory Theatre directly over the road isn’t so lucky. Proof that there’s a learning opportunity around every corner has been provided by some of my CORE colleagues in other parts of the country. Jill Hammonds and Tessa Gray have worked with others to … Continue reading Earthquake Shakeup – learning from the experience

emerging technologies, learning objects2 Comments

Time Zones made easy

wenmothd

As someone who has trouble from time to time keeping up with figuring out the time zone difference between different countries when trying to make arrangements for international skype calls I was happy to come across EveryTimeZone – a great interactive online app that provides you with an ‘at a glance’ view of time zones across the world in relation to where you live. It automatically adjusts to the time on your computer – and shows the hours of daylight and darkness. It is also adjusted automatically to the  daylight saving variances in different countries. In addition to being a … Continue reading Time Zones made easy

learning objectsLeave a comment

Online resources for teachers

wenmothd

I attended the CORE Breakfast in Christchurch yesterday morning, and thoroughly enjoyed the presentation by Helen Cooper from the Ministry of Education and Simon Evans of CORE about two exciting sites. While these sites have been around for a little while now, this was my first real tour of each of them, and I was impressed with how far they have come – and what the vision is for their future development! I was particularly impressed with the ‘learning journey’ feature of the Digitstore site, providing teachers with the ability to develop collections of resources that can then be made … Continue reading Online resources for teachers

eLearning, learning objects, Web2.0Leave a comment

Historypin

wenmothd

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FdT3eKdto4w&hl=en_US&fs=1&w=320&h=192%5D Some years ago now a colleague of mine and I put an idea to a potential funder to develop an online timeline for people to contribute photographs and stories that could be tagged to specific locations – linked to collections in museums. The proposal wasn’t successful and so our idea languished. So it was with interest I explored HistoryPin today, after the link was sent to me by Malcolm. Created in partnership with Google, HistoryPin allows anyone to contribute photographs and stories, linked to a specific location, building up a visual history book. Viewers can search for and … Continue reading Historypin

Curriculum, learning objects2 Comments

Animated guide to the orchestra

wenmothd

I’ve just been playing with this wonderful resource after spotting a tweet from Paula Jamieson from the Te Whakatipuranga Hou ICTPD Cluster. As someone who used to play second violin in the school orchestra, I’ve always enjoyed introducing young learners to the delights of the orchestra and the ways in which all the different instruments can combine their unique voices to produce such wonderful symphonies of sound. This animated guide to the orchestra from animatedscience is a really fun and easy to use introduction to the orchestra for students. Combining the full sound of an orchestra playing with a number … Continue reading Animated guide to the orchestra

Curriculum, learning objectsLeave a comment

Secret Life of Scientists

wenmothd

I just came across this interesting site that began last week caled The Secret Life of Scientists. It’s a web-based series  from NOVA on PBS that will spotlight two science and engineering stars every month. In a selection of three to six short videos, each person reveals his or her passions—both in and outside the lab. You can ask these scientists your questions and find out how their surprising secret lives fuel their science. Coming up over the next few months will be a pole-vaulting engineer, a rock ‘n’ roll physicist, and a juggling climatologist, just to name a few. … Continue reading Secret Life of Scientists