77 Educational Games and Game Builders I'm often asked if I know of any games for subject "x," "y," or "z" for a particular grade level or age group. My answer is usually yes, but I need to search my archives. Therefore, I've gone through my archives and dug up many of games that I've mentioned over the last four years that are still active online. Consider this my humongous list of educational games. 1. 2.Spin and Spell has been featured on a number of blogs over the last year. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. the World Food Programme's website offers students a large selection of educational online games and activities. 40. 41. 42. 43. 44. 45. 46. 47. 48. 49. 50. 51. 52. 53. 54. 55. 56.
The Lilead Project | about school library leaders Plot Generator I-PICK Book Tasting | Tree Frog Blog! Before I get any farther with this post, I need to give credit where it’s due: thanks to Mr. Plemmons at Barrow Elementary for inspiring this lesson! You can read more about his I-PICK activity here. At our school, teachers use a framework called the Daily Five for literacy instruction in their classrooms. To help students build self-efficacy in choosing good-fit books for themselves, many of our teachers share with students a strategy called I-PICK: image from our-cool-school.blogspot.com (click to visit) I always do an I-PICK library lesson at the beginning of the school year with 1st and 2nd grades because their curiosity in the library often outpaces their ability to read everything independently. Rather than telling students that certain books are off-limits, we have a conversation about how the library includes books for everyone–including Pre-K kids who can’t read words yet and 5th graders who can read all kinds of really challenging material. image from demco.com (click to visit)
The Best Story Structure Tool We Know By Glen C. Strathy Of the various story structure models or theories that exist, we have chosen to focus mainly on Dramatica, which was developed by Melanie Anne Phillips and Chris Huntley. We chose to work with this model because it is the only one that... 1. 2. 3. 4. What's more, Dramatica embodies certain insights into story structure that no other theory does. The aim of this website is to present practical tips and exercises to help writers, while avoiding a lot of theory. Finding A Roadmap For Creating Your Novel The most important thing you need from any story theory is help creating a good roadmap for your novel. Specifically, you want help creating a plot that will keep the reader engaged and bring the story to an emotionally satisfying conclusion. You especially want a clear story structure that will guide you through those times when you get stuck and haven’t the faintest idea which direction to head next. Traditional Story Theory Is Too General 1. 2. 3. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Genres
Level the playing field Veteran journalist and documentary filmmaker Soledad O’Brien tells how technology can help overcome barriers and close achievement gaps. “Education is the next civil rights,” said Soledad O’Brien in her opening keynote address at ISTE 2015. This story appears in SmartBrief’s digital publication, SmartReport on ISTE 2015. To see more features, tips and our Tech Showcase, download it now. Seventeen-year-old Maria Castro had a dream: to attend Stanford University and study solar engineering. The sixth of seven children in a working-class immigrant family, Maria was a standout honors student at Carl Hayden Community High School in Phoenix. Determined, Maria set out to get the course she needed. Unfortunately, despite Maria’s hard work, her story didn’t have a fairy tale ending. This is “unfair” and “criminal,” said veteran journalist and documentary filmmaker Soledad O’Brien. “Maria should have access to online classes and high-speed wireless networks to do research,” said O’Brien.
The Golden Rules for a Good Plot Writing a novel can be a daunting task. Here are some helpful tips to ensure you write a good plot. Is it your dream to become a best-selling author? Plot Rule 1: Create a plot skeleton A plot outline will help you choose a complication and the steps to resolve it. Plot Rule 2: Flesh out your plot Fleshing out your plot with colorful characters and a vivid setting will enhance your novel and grab your readers’ attention. Plot Rule 3: Bring your plot to a powerful resolution Have you used each scene and story event to guide readers to a plot resolution? Plot Rule 4: End your story at a natural stopping place After the climax, wrap up the story as quickly as possible. Plot Rule 5: Make sure your characters resolve conflicts on their own Don't rely on an act of nature or an unknown hero to clean things up at the last minute. A final note on creating a good plot… Creating a good plot isn't as easy as it sounds.
Water May Erase These Pacific Islands but Not the Culture Boys on a seawall on Tarawa atoll watch a squall approach. The warming atmosphere is predicted to bring heavier rainfall to Kiribati and other island nations in the central Pacific Ocean. By Kennedy Warne Photographs by Kadir Van Lohuizen Published October 15, 2015 It was the time called itingaaro, the dawn twilight, when the island was just waking up and the roosters were vying to out-crow each other and the angel terns were twittering their love talk in the breadfruit trees. The tide was full and taut like the skin of a pregnant woman. I-Kiribati now live with the reality of marawa rising. As Ice Retreats, Greenland Natives May Have to Redefine Traditions 5 Ways Climate Change Will Affect You How can they not feel afraid when the world keeps telling them that low-lying island countries like theirs will soon be underwater? But many I-Kiribati refuse to think of their homeland as a “disappearing island nation,” its fate already out of their hands. But it is surely suffering.
How To Structure A Story: The 8 Point Arc By Ali Hale - 3 minute read One of my favourite “how to write” books is Nigel Watts’ Writing A Novel and Getting Published. My battered, torn and heavily-pencil-marked copy is a testament to how useful I’ve found it over the years. (Even if you’re a short story writer or flash fiction writer rather than a novelist, this structure still applies, so don’t be put off by the title of Watts’ book.) The eight points which Watts lists are, in order: StasisTriggerThe questSurpriseCritical choiceClimaxReversalResolution He explains that every classic plot passes through these stages and that he doesn’t tend to use them to plan a story, but instead uses the points during the writing process: I find [the eight-point arc] most useful as a checklist against which to measure a work in progress. So, what do the eight points mean? Stasis This is the “every day life” in which the story is set. Trigger Something beyond the control of the protagonist (hero/heroine) is the trigger which sparks off the story.
Creating a Classroom Library Here's how I organized my classroom library. There is no right or wrong way to organize your library and these ideas are simply how I choose to organize mine. Just below is a picture of my second grade library in progress. I have combined my library and my meeting area. Getting started Mark the books I highly suggest labeling the books as coming from your library. Decide on your sorting system One of the most difficult things to figure out is how to sort all of your books. In my classroom I have chosen to sort by books by topic and author. I am also a big fan of keeping books in books bins. Here is a close-up of my book bins (or book baskets): Decide on the book categories When I first started my classroom library, I did not have any preconceived categories that I wanted to use. Here are some of the categories into which I have decided to divide my books: Remember, this is what works for me. Decide if you want to involve students Catalog the books Organize and label the books Creating the labels
Story Arts | Storytelling in the Classroom Why Storytelling? Educators have long known that the arts can contribute to student academic success and emotional well being. The ancient art of storytelling is especially well-suited for student exploration. As a folk art, storytelling is accessible to all ages and abilities. Retelling Folktales Storytelling Lesson Plans and Activities Using Storytelling To Assess Listening and Speaking Skills Story Library Exploring Cultural Roots Through Storytelling Why Storytelling? Gaining Verbal Skills Becoming verbally proficient can contribute to a student's ability to resolve interpersonal conflict nonviolently. Imagination Both telling a story and listening to a well-told tale encourages students to use their imaginations. Passing On Wisdom Storytelling based on traditional folktales is a gentle way to guide young people toward constructive personal values by presenting imaginative situations in which the outcome of both wise and unwise actions and decisions can be seen.
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