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Living proof
This is a story of powerful teacher collaboration. It is the story of TeachersFirst. A comment by a colleague yesterday made me stop and think about what an amazing, living organism TeachersFirst...
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Feedback on feedback: screencasting
TeachersFirst is blessed with a wonderful team of reviewers. The challenge we face is maintaining a consistent voice among so many teacher-writers. This same challenge rises in any collaborative...
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Dead to Me: Avoiding the teaching resource “death sentence” in my classroom
I read a great post from Rian van der Merwe, a tech designer/dad in South Africa. He shares four essential guidelines for folks designing iPad apps for his young daughter. His requests make perfect...
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Snapped in a box: a story of teaching and tech
From a dusty basement into the palm of my hand comes the story of TeachersFirst, snapped into a plastic case. As one usually impatient to have “archives” of anything important in electronic format, I...
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Independence
Happy Independence Day/week to all. I am on hiatus from full blog posts as my own Declaration of Independence. Given the recent storms and resulting havoc for technology based in the Washington D.C....
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A digital raven’s footprint
‘Tis the season for the Raven. We have been watching our Google Analytics live as TeachersFirst’s Interactive Raven is hammered by traffic from around the world. I think it is kind of scary to think...
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If only: Three gifts I’d like to give
During the holiday season we seek ways to give, not only to our friends and family but also to those less fortunate than we. Teachers give of themselves all year, whether it’s giving extra time to help...
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Priority: Earning or Learning?
News Corp’s education division, Amplify, has announced a new tablet designed specifically for education. According to the story on NPR today, they are touting this new device as the tool to bring...
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Blowing out the candles for technology access
This is the second in a series of reflections as TeachersFirst celebrates its fifteen birthday this month. TeachersFirst’s non-profit parent company, The Source for Learning, has as its mission: … to...
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TeachersFirst’s Six Word Story
I love verbal challenges, so what better way to round out this series of “Happy 15th Birthday, TeachersFirst” posts than to use a six word story? Thanks to Jonathan Olsen’s Edutopia post for reminded...
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Awesome Foursome: Writing ideas with a twist
I must share this awesome foursome of writing resources that grabbed my creative eye as I prepare for an online OK2Ask session in August. Gone Google Story Builder (reviewed here). Layer writing on...
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A chosen few: A practical plan for personal PD BINGO
As the new school year begins, teachers attending OK2Ask® sessions are noticeably more stressed and overwhelmed. During these sessions, we share many, many resources and teaching ideas. We pack the...
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Funky Boxes: Embed widgets for learning
Unpack those funky little boxes. Embed widgets are a very handy tool for teachers. The What of widgets: Widgets are clever little gadgets you can add to your class web site, blog, or wiki using funky...
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A TechToy Story: Why tech geeks fail and edtech coaches succeed
This is a fable — of sorts. After sharing the joy of figuring out a new tech toy for online professional development sessions, the tech geek (TG) and the edtech coach (ETC) stopped for a quick chat....
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R U an ETC? U R not alone, Part 2
Last week I shared a list of ideas that came out of a recent collaborative OK2Ask® session. The participants, all edtech coaches or teachers who play a less formal “coach” type role with their peers,...
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Make ‘em laugh, make ‘em listen?
Forty five years ago, some educators complained that the people at CTW were ruining children’s brains by entertaining kids as they learned. The advent of Sesame Street and soon after, Electric Company,...
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Hold the Gravy: An opportunity
Almost nine years ago, I allowed myself to consider the unthinkable. I allowed someone to “pitch” the idea of my taking a new job. I had left teaching once – years before when I moved across a state...
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Of birth dates and houseflies: Gaining a new teaching perspective
Every once in awhile, an experience slaps us in the face, screaming. “Take a look at the big picture! Get some perspective!” It may be a reunion, a funeral, or even a web resource. Starting Sunday,...
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New flight plan
Take off. Soar. Land. Do it again. Such is the pattern of a teacher as we travel through each school year. Somewhere in the middle of each school year, the rest of the world celebrates the official...
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A Gift to You: My All-time Favs
As I approach the end of the year and the end of my time as lead “Thinking Teacher,” I am using my gift-giving powers to share my all time favorite TeachersFirst resources as the “Featured Sites” for...
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