The world's largest reviewer of books, multimedia, and technology for children and teens
A peek behind the scenes of Sesame Workshop, which is negotiating the digital shift with care. The venerable brand has conducted more than 76 tests over two and a half years to understand how children, ages three to five, adopt and adapt to touch devices in their learning.
Teacher librarian Joyce Valenza reflects on the 2013 Best Websites for Teaching & Learning, the highly anticipated list chosen annually by the American Association of School Librarians (AASL).
The central theme of year’s lively ISTE conference encouraged educators to take away limits that hinder their students’ learning, and let students build something that matters.
Discovery of ebooks in K-12, particularly worthwhile fiction, has been tough going. A new site, Here Be Fiction, will attempt to remedy that, enabling users to identify quality ebooks accessible to schools on library-friendly licensing terms. Featuring ebook previews and reviews, HereBeFiction.org will enable librarians and others to discover fiction from a wide variety of publishers made available for both individual and multi-user access.
The ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education) Conference in San Antonio from June 23-26 offered unique opportunities for educators to interact, learn about the latest ed tech resources, and hear new ideas from education leaders. At a conference this size, it’s impossible to see and do it all, but here are some highlights that librarians can take back to their schools in the fall.
The American Library Association (ALA) this week launched a preview version of Digital Learn, a free online resource for librarians working with digital literacy learners. The new hub, which will be fully available June 30, follows recommendations released this month from ALA’s Digital Literacy Task Force.
An exploration of New Orleans’s hurricane-ravaged Ninth Ward and a student-driven study on how to conserve energy in a school are the winners of this year’s SIGMS Technology Innovation Awards bestowed at ISTE, the annual ed-tech conference held in San Antonio, TX, June 23–26.
A couple of weeks back I shared a survey that asked the following: As this school year comes to a close, I’d like to call on you to share your discoveries and your wisdom and to help me reflect. Which edtech goodies, tools, apps, platforms, and strategies worked so well for you in 2012/2013 that [...]
Starting later this year, Bing For Schools will offer schools in the U.S. the option to tailor the Bing experience for K-12 students by removing all advertisements from search results, enhancing privacy protections and the filtering of adult content, and adding specialized learning features to enhance digital literacy.
June 24 marked the debut of Graphite, a free, online guide to digital learning products compiled by and for educators. Created by Common Sense Media, a national nonprofit, the new resource reviews and rates digital products, including apps, games, websites and digital curricula for K-12.
Amazon Kindle’s FreeTime Unlimited, a subscription service geared for parents, has added 1,000 books, games, educational apps, movies, and TV shows to its offerings for children since its launch six months ago.
Andrew Carle, a technology educator at Flint High School in Northern Virginia, scurries about the classroom, rearranging desks and chairs, strategically sprinkling around wires, batteries, transistors, and clocks—all the while a video camera whirs in the background. A few seconds later, 10 seventh graders saunter in and the room becomes a hive of activity. Students [...]
The White House’s announcement last week of the ConnectEd initiative, President Obama’s urging of the FCC to overhaul the E-Rate program, is only the first step in what must be a larger, committed effort to fully fund technology in our nation’s schools and libraries, the International Society for Technology in Education says.
When it comes to presenting resources to students and teachers, librarians have been as guilty as any regarding information overload. But in this digital age of abundance, our real value is being able to discern quality over quantity.
This month, librarians are gearing up for the American Library Association annual conference in Chicago. But some question whether “annual” really serves their professional development needs. In a time of contracting budgets, layoffs, and demands for tech expertise in the library, is ALA still the must-attend event for all? Or is ISTE (the International Society for Technology in Education conference) in San Antonio a better choice?
Ideas about social media, teens, and the future of libraries were shared in a dynamic online exchange sponsored by the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) and Connected Learning.
The iPad has been the tablet of choice for schools, thanks to volume purchasing, volume management, and the vast selection of apps. But that may be about to change. With the recent launch of Google Play for Education, Google is set to challenge the iPad’s dominance.
While the future of Barnes & Noble’s hardware division is still playing out, the Nook line of ereaders boasts a quality user experience and library-loan friendly features. Jeff Hastings provides a rundown of the Nook Simple Touch with Glowlight and the Nook HD tablet in his video review.
Gone are the dioramas of yesteryear. Times have changed, and students can ditch ancient techniques for new cool tools that can give them a deeper understanding of what they are studying. Here are a few resourceful ways to create and implement multimedia presentations that educators should explore during the summer.
Featuring a time-traveling duo, Cognitive Kids’ “Ansel & Clair ” apps have garnered an impressive list of awards for their winning combination of information and game play.
