Saturday, July 31, 2010

Leadership Day 2010

Just over 100 educational leaders from around the country used their blogs and responded to the challenge to participate in Leadership Day 2010.

Technology has change our world and has impacted in our schools in many ways. Best practice is being established and shaped by visionary leaders who realize the potential technology holds. To read the thoughts of some great educational leaders, click here.

Friday, July 30, 2010

Leadership Day 2010: Why Blog?

"Many of our school leaders (principals, superintendents, central office administrators) need help when it comes to digital technologies. A lot of help, to be honest. " Those are the words of Scott McLeod.

In an attempt to improve the situation, McLeod has invited bloggers around the country to step up to the plate with their suggestions, and for all of us to do so today. The initiative is being called Leadership Day 2010, and you can read about it here.

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

The Ant Philosophy

Over the years, I've been teaching kids about a simple but powerful concept: the Ant Philosophy. I think everybody should study ants. They have an amazing four-part philosophy. These are the words of author, entrepreneur, and motivational speaker Jim Rohn. With thanks to Kerry Palmer for introducing me to it, read about The Ant Philosophy.

Monday, July 26, 2010

What I Did on My Holidays


I look forward to the day when the answer would be "yes." What if children were interested enough in writing that they chronicled the events of their lives? What if they chose to share their writing with the whole world? What if they developed a sense that if the world will be reading their work, their work needs to be quality stuff? What if children got interested in writing that is interesting?

Yes, young lad, instead raising your hand to ask, "How long does it have to be?" and scrawling down just enough to get by, please do e-mail me that link to your blog. Let me read the vivid details of the days as they are unfolding. Share with me the pictures you take on your vacation and fashion into an Animoto presentation. Explain to me why some of those pictures are significant, realizing that of all the things I could be doing, I am choosing to read your work. So, don't disappoint me.

And young lad, I dare you to write so well and make your story so interesting that I add you to my RSS feed and continue to read your work, because you have the creative spirit for which this world longs. Yes, please e-mail me that link...

Thanks to Jennifer Malone, Principal of Eaton Elementary in Lenoir City, Tennessee for bringing this cartoon to my attention.

Friday, July 23, 2010

SDE Conference

ImageChef.com - Custom comment codes for MySpace, Hi5, Friendster and more Thanks to everyone who attended one of my workshops at the Staff Development for Educators National Differentiated Instruction Conference! Please stop by this blog often. In addition, you will see an option on the right-hand side where you can subscribe to this blog and bring all new posts straight to your e-mail. Just below that is a button that will let you sign up for my free monthly e-mail newsletter.

Thursday, July 22, 2010

Rubrics in a Fraction of the Time

Rubrics are great, but they are time-consuming to create. RubiStar is time-saving tool that makes rubrics easy enough you may actual use them! Check out this post from the Eye on Education Blog.

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Cell Phones Revisited



Look in any school handbook today, and you are sure to see some type of policy on the use of cell phones. The devices are generally banned, being viewed as a distraction from the educational process.

On the other hand, cell phones have become part of our culture. A generation ago, a student who needed to telephone a parent to pick him up after athletic practice went to a pay phone. Just try to find a pay phone today. Many would argue that a cell phone is a necessity in today's world, yet schools continue to ban them, and kids find ways around to still use them.

I think the key is not banning the cell phones, but eliminating the interruptions that they can provide. A year ago, I encouraged people to read a post written by Vicki Davis on her blog. Vicki is a computer teacher from Camilla, Georgia. In her post, she explains exactly how students use their cell phones in her class. She goes on to explain how she handles inappropriate use of cell phones in her class.

The big picture to me, however, is not the distraction cells phones may cause. It's the opportunity either seized upon or lost to teach kids how to use a common tool in a productive way. That's why I thinking reading Vicki's article is a must. It sheds a whole new light on what is possible for kids now. We are trying to teach them how to function in the 21st century, and we are going to have to use 21st century tools to do it.

As a next step, I am not saying everyone should allow students to use cell phones anytime, anywhere, or however they like. What I am saying is that as a next step, read Vicki's article. In light of her thoughts and the thoughts of others like her, begin the discussion of what is going to best help our students to be productive in the 21st century. Right now, it looks like using cell phones as a productivity tool is a pretty good component.

The post I have referring to can be found here.

What are the policies on cell phones in your school? What are your feelings on how we should be using them?

Sunday, July 18, 2010

Common Core: What States Have Adopted?

48 governors have endorsed the Common Core Standards, but how many states have actually adopted them? This map, courtesy of Education Week, shows the status of this movement as of July 9, 2010.

Saturday, July 17, 2010

SDE Conference in Las Vegas


For those attending the SDE Differentiated Instruction Conference, I invite you to attend three sessions I will be presenting:


Get Organized!: Time Management for School Leaders     8:50-10:05
In this workshop, we will examine the five keys necessary for an organizational and time management system.

5 Habits to Help Students Get Their Act Together     10:35-11:50
We have the opportunity to go beyond personal and professional organization. We have the opportunity to give the gift of organization to our students. This workshop examines how.

Your Own Blog in 10 Minutes or Less     1:15-2:45
Blogs are easy, free, and a great way to get your message out to other people. Learn what they are all about and how you can create your own.

Friday, July 16, 2010

Education Grants

Tech &Learning has published a list of education grants available for the coming year. The list can be found here.

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Quizlet...Helping Students Learn Material

Quizlet is a free site which helps students learn terms and their definitions. This demo walks you through the various capabilities offered.

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Phone Numbers Available on Facebook...Good Thing or Bad Thing?

I found out today, through a post from a Facebook friend, that you can see the phone numbers of all your friends. Go to the top right of your screen, click "Account" then "Edit Friends." Go to the left side of your screen and click the link that says "Phonebook."

Is this a good thing or a bad thing? Personally, I think this is a pretty neat feature to have and will make getting in touch with my friends by phone easier. After all, publishing phone numbers is nothing new. If it were not for phone companies publishing those phone directories, what would people tear in half to show off their strength?

The thing for us all to think about is whether we want our phone number visible to others. To edit this information, go to "Privacy Settings." Click "Customize Settings." Scroll to "Contact Information." beside each drop-down menu, scroll to "Customize" and choose "Only Me" to completely hide phone numbers from everyone, if that's what you want to do. It's sort of the same thing as having an unlisted phone number in the directory. Of course, if you never put your phone number in Facebook to start with, Facebook is not going to be able to give it out anyway.

Actually the people I would really like my phone number from are all of the political candidates with their recorded messages, but that's another story for another day.

Sunday, July 11, 2010

Help Needed

Eye on Education is planning a second printing of Organization Made Easy! As carefully as we proofread before the book went to press, there remains the likelihood that a typo slipped in here or there.

For those who have purchased the book, have you found any typos? We have a short window of time where we can fix them before the second printing. If you have found a typo, simply click here and let us know what you found. We have until July 22 to identify errors. Thanks!

Saturday, July 10, 2010

Need Help With Memorization?






If you need help in memorizing a speech, a poem, or any other text, check out a great site called Memorize Now. It's free, and you don't even register.

The idea is that you paste the text you are trying to memorize into a box. Controls on the website allow you to hide progressively more and more words. You can scroll over the "blanks" it inserts to see the first letter of a hidden word or click to the see the entire hidden word. By clicking another icon, you are shown only the initial letter of each word. Here again, controls allow you to substitute blanks for those initial letters. In other words, you can supply yourself with just he right amount of memory jog.

Since there is no registration, each time you go to the site, you are starting fresh. The site provides instructions on how to download the project to your own computer as an html file, allowing you to review it anytime, even if you are not connected to the Internet.

Just one way to make memorizing those poems for high school English class a little easier! Have fun with it.

Friday, July 09, 2010

Receiving the Monthly E-Mail Newsletter?

One of the perks of attending a workshop I have conducted over the last several years is receiving my monthly e-mail newsletter. Twitter  users who follow Eye on Education are today receiving invitations to sign up for this free publication.


Would you like to sign up as well? Click here and complete the information.

Want to see a sample? Click here to download the July issue.

Eye on Education Insights

The article on this blog was listed as one of the top 8 posts on Eye on Education's blog this past month. Read more here.

Thursday, July 08, 2010

Two Questions

I have enjoyed reading Daniel Pink's book, A Whole New Mind, as well as hearing him speak in person. This video is a promotion for his new book Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us.

Daniel Pink asks us to ask ourselves two questions:
          1. What's my sentence?
          2. Was I better today than yesterday?
Both questions will make more sense after watching the video.


Two questions that can change your life from Daniel Pink on Vimeo.

Tuesday, July 06, 2010

Understanding Facebook Privacy Settings

Facebook's privacy settings seem to be ever-changing, yet staying on top of them is naturally of concern to most of us. This video explains the latest in Facebook's privacy settings.


Sunday, July 04, 2010

Fife and Drums for the 4th

This is the 3rd U.S. Infantry (The Old Guard) Fife and Drum corps (filmed in 2007). Enjoy their music on this Independence Day!

Friday, July 02, 2010

Staff Development for Educators Differentiated Instruction Conference

For those attending the SDE Differentiated Instruction Conference, I invite you to attend three sessions I will be presenting:


Get Organized!: Time Management for School Leaders     8:50-10:05
In this workshop, we will examine the five keys necessary for an organizational and time management system.

5 Habits to Help Students Get Their Act Together     10:35-11:50
We have the opportunity to go beyond personal and professional organization. We have the opportunity to give the gift of organization to our students. This workshop examines how.

Your Own Blog in 10 Minutes or Less     1:15-2:45
Blogs are easy, free, and a great way to get your message out to other people. Learn what they are all about and how you can create your own.