Sing-along Songs
One of the most fun group participation activities for family and friends is to engage in sing-along songs. The essence of a sing-along song is that it has a simple enough melody and memorable lyrics for everyone to easily learn. Many of these popular songs have been around for over a century and are taught to children as part of their grade school music education. She'll Be Comin' Round the Mountain Not many songs over a century old are still as popular as "She'll Be Comin' Round the Mountain," which originated in the late nineteenth century by an unknown composer. What A Wonderful World The song "What A Wonderful World" was first popularized in 1967 by Louis Armstrong and in 1999 was inducted in the Grammy Hall of Fame. Louis Armstrong enjoyed one of the longest recoding careers of any singer in history. Don't Worry, Be Happy One of the biggest and more memorable hits of the 1980s was "Don't Worry, Be Happy," recorded by Bobby McFerrin.
What a 21st-century science classroom should look like
By Tim Magner, Special to CNN Editor’s note: Tim Magner is the executive director of the Partnership for 21st Century Skills (P21), a national organization that advocates for 21st-century readiness for every student. He has had an extensive career in education, serving most recently as the vice president of Keystone for KC Distance Learning (KCDL) as well as the director of the Office of Educational Technology for the U.S. (CNN) – Whether it’s technology, the global economy or the changing nature of work itself, we are tasked with preparing our children for success in college, career and citizenship in a world that looks very different from the one we grew up in. 21st-century readiness – having the knowledge and skills to pursue further education, compete in the global economy and contribute to society – demands much more of all of our students, and our education system must change to meet these demands. Where I wish the standards were stronger is in creativity and innovation.
1000s FREE Primary Teaching Resources & Printables - EYFS, KS1 and KS2 - SparkleBox
Technology Integration Research Review
Editor's Note: This article was originally written by Vanessa Vega, with subsequent updates made by the Edutopia staff. Technology integration can be one of the most challenging topics to find quality research on. The term itself is a broad umbrella for numerous practices that may have little in common with each other. In addition, technology tools change rapidly, and outcomes can vary depending on implementation. Edutopia's tech integration review explores some of the vast body of research out there and helps you navigate useful results. In this series of five articles, learn about three key elements of successful technology integration, discover some of the possible learning outcomes, get our recommendations on specific practices and programs by academic subject and promising tools for additional topics, find tips for avoiding pitfalls when adopting new technologies, and dig into a comprehensive annotated bibliography with links to all the studies and reports cited in these pages.
Teaching 2 and 3 Year Olds
10 steps technology directors can take to stay relevant SmartBlogs
The role of the typical school district technology director has become obsolete. Speak with your average teacher in many school districts in the U.S., and you’ll find the technology department is better known for getting in the way than for serving the educational needs of both staff and students. Many technology departments, led by obsolete tech directors, are inadvertently inhibiting learning. The mantra of “lock it and block it” no longer works in a 21st century digital learning environment. Do how can technology directors avoid becoming obsolete? 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. Students and staff need technology directors that have not made themselves obsolete. Tom Murray serves as the director of technology and cybereducation for the Quakertown Community School District in Bucks County, Pa.
The PYP Library
8 Things to Look For in Today’s Classroom
As I think that leaders should be able to describe what they are looking for in schools I have thought of eight things that I really want to see in today’s classroom. I really believe that classrooms need to be learner focused. This is not simply that students are creating but that they are also having opportunities to follow their interests and explore passions.1 The teacher should embody learning as well. Will Richardson recently wrote this in a comment on one of my recent posts on what teachers need to be like in our current day and the focus that needs to be on learning: …we need teachers who are masters at developing kids as learners who are adept at sense making around their own goals. Although technology is not the focus, it does give us many opportunities to magnify the opportunities I list below. 1. Finally, let’s start to really tap into the wisdom of our rooms and have students not only learn, but teach each other. What I have missed?
Five Free Web 2.0 Tools to Support Lesson Planning
"Teachers need to integrate technology seamlessly into the curriculum instead of viewing it as an add-on, an afterthought or an event." -- Heidi Hayes Jacobs, Educational Consultant, Curriculum Designers, Inc. Web 2.0 tools are online software programs that allow users to do a number of different things. They can be used to teach curriculum content, store data, create or edit video, edit photos, collaborate and so much more. The question then becomes: are educators prepared to use these tools? Embracing the use of Web 2.0 tools in lesson planning may still be new to many educators. As we talk about Web 2.0 tools, here's one point I want to stress. With so many free tools available on the web today, how do we decide which will be the best fit for our use? 1. If you've not heard of Pinterest, what rock have you been hiding under? Pinterest lets you organize and share all the beautiful things you find on the web. 2. Edcanvas is a fairly new free Web 2.0 tool. 3. 4. 5.
