App-ening
Best apps: The American Association of School Librarians (AASL) Best Apps for Curriculum Task Force is accepting nominations for the best curriculum-based apps. From the ones nominated, the task force will compile a list of the top 25. “Apps and tablet technology add a tremendous value to educators and students, but today there are thousands of apps available with the list growing daily,” said Melissa Jacobs-Israel, task force chair. “Which apps are paramount? AASL’s newly created Best Apps for Curriculum task force will be developing evaluation criteria and assessing apps that encourage student engagement in teaching, learning, critical thinking, inquiry, and that support AASL’s Standards for the 21st Century Learner and Common Core State Standards.” It’s easy to recommend an app—just go to the online nomination form and answer a few questions about it. The top apps list will be presented as part of AASL’s programming at the American Library Association’s 2013 Annual Conference in Chicago.
You Have to Be in It to Win It!
Healthy school: If you want to make the kids in your school healthier, this is for you! To support National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month in September, some leading health and physical education organizations have teamed up for the Healthy School Makeover Contest. The contest is open to K-12 schools. Among the partnering companies and organizations are SPARK, Sportime, Skillastics, School Specialty, GenMove, The First Tee, and others. All you have to do is submit a short video explaining why your school needs a healthy makeover and how you plan to improve your students’ health. The videos will be uploaded online and your community will get the chance to vote for your entry. The finalists will be selected by the public. Then, the winner will be chosen by a panel of judges and golfer Annika Sorenstam will present the winning school with prizes worth $45,000, including the SPARK Curriculum and Taining package, Sportime’s equipment package, two Skillastics Let’s Move n School packages, and much more. Information about the contest and a list of rules can be accessed starting on August 1.
Awards
Art and writing awards: Students in grades 7 to 12 in public, private, and home schools can submit work to the 2013 Scholastic Art and Writing Awards beginning on September 17. Teens can apply in 28 categories. The art categories range from architecture to digital art to painting to photography and more. The writing categories are dramatic script, flash fiction, persuasive writing, poetry, short story, novel writing, among others. To register, student must create a profile. Then, after reading the guidelines for each category, kids can upload their work to regional programs administered by affiliates of the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers. Students who receive the Gold Key, the highest prize, at the regional level are automatically entered at the National level. Submissions are then juried by well-known individuals in the visual and literary arts fields.
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About Phyllis Levy Mandell
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