Kid-friendly Way to Teach About Logic

Teaching what logic is to an adult is complicated enough...much less to teach it to a child. Here are a few videos that cater to teaching about logic to children ages 8 and up. Have fun with it!

Technology and the New Generation of Kids!!!! Awesome!

Innovation starts at a young age!

Design studio aruliden, together with Bernhardt Design, conceived Tools at Schools as an initiative to teach eighth graders the value of design as a problem-solving tool at The School at Columbia University. Forty-four eighth grade students were immersed in the entire design process, from research to ideation to 3D modeling and ultimately launch. What started as a simple effort to get involved in the community grew into a much larger realization that design has a role in the classroom. Their success was not only in their concepts, but in the awareness each student gained in the process. The result was a collaborative vision of today’s classroom – designed for kids by kids. Wouldn't you love to see programs like this at your local schools?


Tools at Schools : Introduction to Project from Tools at Schools on Vimeo.

Tools at Schools : Research and Big Ideas from Tools at Schools on Vimeo.

Tools at Schools: Final Design and Mockup from Tools at Schools on Vimeo.

Tools at Schools: 3-D from Tools at Schools on Vimeo.

Tools at Schools : Modeling from Tools at Schools on Vimeo.

Tools at Schools: Final Project Launch at ICFF from Tools at Schools on Vimeo.

Algebra on the IPad

Students in Riverside, CA are learning algebra on iPads and the school is saying their grades are improving.  Check out the video clip.  

Mental Math

One of the huge benefits from learning math using the abacus, is the ability to calculate mentally. Inception Learning is bringing all the benefits of abacus learning integrated with new online technology. The company will be launching their product this fall. Check out www.abacusprodigy.com and also check out our Facebook page for giveaways and latest news updates. In the meantime, check out these videos of children learning mental math utilizing abacus learning.

A World of Learning

This is an interesting short documentary about how technology is influencing our classrooms and affecting the way our children learn all around the world.  It mainly focuses on the use of the electronic white-board. Check it out.

A World Of Learning from David Betteridge on Vimeo.

KNO Tablet

There's a company named Kno that is creating a tablet for students.  It appears the textbooks are loaded onto the tablet and the student can take notes and highlight things right on the tablet.  It looks really cool!  Check out the videos.  www.kno.com

Changing Education Forever from Kno Tablet on Vimeo.

Life 360

I came across www.life360.com and thought it was a good product to share. It uses technology to keep track of important things in your life.  For example, it uses GPS tracking technology on smartphones to keep tabs on where your children are.  They have free and premium services.  Check out these videos and their website for more information.

Virtual Schools

Texas lawmakers are considering new legislation to make creating virtual high schools possible.  If it passes, students could enroll in these virtual high schools and go through 4 years of high school without ever having to sit in a classroom.  Current Texas law only allows high school students to enroll in a maximum of 2 virtual classes per semester.



Students wanting to use virtual learning is growing in Texas.  In other states, virtual schools are thriving.  In Florida, for example, there have been over 220,000 course enrollments in their virtual schools.  Check out this article for more information.



Would you want your child in a virtual school?

Toy, Tool, or Both?

Using games in the classroom to help students learn math:

Google to give $1 Million

According to this article, Google is planning on donating $1 million to local elementary and middle schools to help improve students math and technology skills.


According to the article,
"The district's statement noted that math is a key indicator of future academic success and that the grant would go toward helping socio-economically disadvantaged students in Mountain View's primary and middle schools.
"We really want to help level the playing field in math and make sure that all the kids in the district are getting a strong foundation in math," 

The grant is part of a broader Google campaign geared toward improving science, technology, engineering and math education -- often referred to as "STEM."
"There are a lot of jobs in technology, (and) there are going to be a lot of jobs in the future in technology," Spain said, explaining the importance of STEM education. "Not only that, but we will also all be using technology. We all need those skills."

Great to see a company like Google give back to the community!

GPS tracking in schools?

A county in South Carolina is testing out a program called "Right Back on Track" where 10 students get free cell phones and are required to keep it on them at all times.  "The students can only dial a few numbers, including an assigned mentor the students have never met. "They'll make phone calls."  "They'll do wake-up calls. They'll do curfew calls. They'll do goal setting calls, talk about strategies. The goal is to keep them in school."





According to the article, "the phones are also rigged with GPS. If the students venture somewhere they shouldn't be at a particular time, the mentor can take action. "I think I'm going to learn a lot from the program," said student Ashley Whren.


Would you want this implemented in your schools?

Students and Technology

According to a recent survey, teachers believe that access to more technology would benefit students. “Teachers say that more opportunities for collaboration with other teachers and greater access to technology and other instructional tools would significantly improve their ability to help diverse learners succeed, both now and in the future.” 

A high school in Delaware believes in this concept, that next fall all of their students will be carrying IPads instead of textbooks.  "The goal is to prepare them for life after high school in a high-tech world, officals say."  





I would have loved to have that option when I was in high school.  What about you?

The Department of Education's Karen Cator Answers Your Questions about the National Education Technology Plan

Exergames

With all the new technology out in video gaming, it seems that some kids are having fun and getting their exercise from video gaming as well.





With games like the Wii Fit and Kinect Sports, kids are able to burn calories as well as have an enjoyable experience playing games.  
BYU recently did a study on this and found that "children of middle school age who played active video games like Dance, Dance, Revolution, and Wii Boxing, experienced moderate to vigorous exercise. In some cases, the energy burned was the same as walking a fast-paced mile."

According to another article, "Exergames became part of the P.E. curriculum at Sierra Vista Junior High in Canyon Country around 2003, when department chairman George Velarde decided to update the school's philosophy about gym. He added an exergaming room to the school's fitness center, complete with 16 Dance Dance Revolution games, 16 virtual reality bikes, and more.

"The kids don't even know they're working out," Velarde said. "But they are working out even more at moderate to vigorous levels because of exergaming."

A good thing to note is that although exergaming is fun, it shouldn't replace regular outdoor activity.  What are your thoughts on this?  

Technology in the Classroom

According to an article by Bob Wheaton of the Jackson Citizen Patriot, many schools in the Jackson area are embracing technology in their schools.  Quite a few of the local schools are "using high-tech gadgets such as Tablet PCs, Flip video cameras and document cameras. They’re podcasting, vodcasting and visiting teachers’ Wikipages."  14 teachers are also participating in a cell phone project where students can text their teachers questions with homework and get more personal feedback outside of the classroom.  

These are just some of the things the article states are happening in the school regarding technology:

A sampling of some of the technology being used in Jackson County schools:

• Columbia: Nook e-readers for cognitively impaired students at Columbia Central High School; iPad tablet computers for fourth-graders at Brooklyn Elementary School.

• Grass Lake: Interactive long-distance learning technology that allows students at Grass Lake to take advanced placement classes by communicating electronically with teachers at Stockbridge High School; touch-screen SmartBoards at Grass Lake High School.

• Hanover-Horton: Document cameras that interface between computers and multimedia projectors; e-readers for special education students; CAD software, Fischertechnik robotics and stress analyzers for bridge trusses for pre-engineering students.

• Jackson Christian School: NComputing devices that make computers more available at Jackson Christian Elementary School; mobile language labs at Jackson Christian High School that includes 24 netbook computers, headsets and a printer so students can study as many as 32 languages.

• Jackson Public Schools: Airliner wireless tablets; teacher Wikipages for use by students and parents; cell phone project in which students or parents can call or text participating teachers after school hours; document cameras; computer response systems that allow the class to answer multiple-choice questions on a handheld clicker, with the results calculated and displayed; hand-held Neo computers and document cameras at McCulloch Academy of Technology & Science; new media center at Sharp Park Academy that will focus on technology.

• Jackson County Intermediate School District: LifeSize video-conferencing system used for Springport and Jackson Public Schools advanced placement biology class; e2020 online curriculum used by Jackson Area Career Center.

• Michigan Center: iPod touches; iPads; podcasting; vodcasting; Macbooks/laptops; morning announcements that are edited and put on the website SchoolTube.

• Paragon Charter Academy: Document cameras in grades K-8; amplification systems used by teachers; Flip video cameras; Promethean ActivExpression Learner and Student Response Systems that allow students to answer multiple-choice questions and have classroom results displayed.

This is definitely the direction that schools need to continue going.  Technology, used correctly, can help teachers teach more effectively and students learn more efficiently.  Do you think technology in the classroom can make a difference?

Nick Dentamaro | Jackson Citizen PatriotAmanda Keinath, right, a teacher at Columbia Central High School, shows Stephanie Smedley how to use a Nook e-reader.

Social Network for kids?? Good idea or bad idea?

According to Leena Rao at TechCrunch,

"Disney has just acquired Togetherville, a social network for kids 10 years of age or younger, we’ve confirmed with the company. Terms of the acquisition are not being disclosed at the moment.

Togetherville, which exited beta last year, mimics the experience of adult social networking sites, i.e. Facebook but in an age-appropriate and parent-monitored environment. Togetherville promises a safer, more secure environment, where parents can moderate who their children are connecting with. Parents approve each of their child’s friends, and can also connect with other parents using Facebook’s social graph.

Parents can easily interact with their kids in Togetherville, while kids have their very own social community and login to engage with friends, play games, watch videos, and create art. Children create “neighborhoods” from Facebook friends, and can connect through School Communities, which allows parents and kids connect with school friends without requiring the parents to be connected via Facebook."

Do you think this is a good idea or bad idea?  On one hand, kids this age shouldn't be spending all their time in front of a computer reading about what their friends are doing but should actually be out in person playing and socializing.  On the other hand, technology now makes it available for children to keep in touch with distant relatives and friends just like adults can with Facebook.  I personally wouldn't allow my child onto a site like this until they are older.  In the meantime actual play dates with other children and hanging out with family members will suffice.  

What are your thoughts about a social network for children?  Would you allow your child onto it?

A New Way to Learn

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

This is the direction our schools need to be heading. Technology is so vital in our society today! A recent research showed that in the year 2020, 123 million high tech, high pay jobs but only 53 million Americans will be qualified to fill those positions. We need to build a strong foundation in Math and Science in our children. However, they can't just learn the theory of how it works. We need them to be able to apply what they learn to current projects and their daily lives.

With my son, I love how excited he is about technology and how smart he is at knowing what to do with it. He's only one but already he nows that he needs to slide across the iphone to view other pictures. I would love to keep engaging him in things that are high-tech. How are your kids equipped to meet the needs of the future?

The art of strategy

I know...I know...a lot of people think chess is boring or it's just for "nerds" but I beg to differ. On the contrary, chess can teach your child some essential skills from a very young age. Chess can help a young child develop good memory, intuition, creativity, analytic skills, deduction skills, problem solving skills, while promoting patience and a sense of calmness. You don't have to be an expert at chess but it certainly helps when you try not to let your child "win" every single time. It's true that they may get frustrated if they can't beat you or throw a temper tantrum. However, you can combat this by teaching your child what he/she could have done differently. You can borrow chess strategy books from the library or buy them at your local bookstore. Teach your child to first mimic and mirror those strategies. From those first few steps, your child will slowly progress in the game and actually learn to form strategies of his/her own.  A cool website is Chess Kids Academy. It allows your child to learn chess while playing with a computer and offers a bulk load of tools such as strategy sheets and what you need to start your very own chess club!!! Plus, getting a fun chess set from the store may do wonders for your child. We personally have our very own set of Transformers Chess Set!!! Try this out for your child. Who knows, it may lead your child to be the next genius! After all, "Skynet" was developed from a simple game of chess! :)

Are schools embracing technology?

I found this news piece to be extremely interesting. In a society where apps, iphones, androids, and most of anything that has to do with technology has become more or less a norm, it is appalling to see many school districts still using traditional methods to teach our children. Kids today are more insync with technology than ever before. I remember I was probably 6 when my dad got us our first computer. Sure, perhaps it was a little later than most; but back then, technology actually cost a lot more. I remember it being a DOS platform computer - highly "ghetto"! Now, having a computer at home is second-nature to most households. Today's younger generation speak a different language from when we did when we were children. Leaving technology out of the classroom will disengage our children from learning and reaching the best of their potential. As I read this headline, the first thought that came into my mind was that this was probably the result of the lack of funding. It was great to hear from the panel that this was actually the opposite. It's only a matter of rearranging funds and redirecting them towards a technology-based classroom.  It makes sense that our school systems are shelling out more money by not embracing technology. Think about it...everything could be done electronically. Books could be downloaded, homework submitted online....we could even do away with purchasing school supplies. In reality, most kids will only need a netbook to begin with. The options are endless!!! I am so excited that MSNBC brought up this pressing issue. Hopefully, we will start seeing a change in our teaching methods! What about you guys? Are your kids adequately prepared for a technologically-infused future?