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TF Update 4/24/2016
Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers®
For Your Classroom
This week’s update features “Just in Time” resources for you and your classroom! Explore our featured sites all related to time: clocks, times tables, time management, time savers, timelines, and more. We will also share some timely events and classroom happenings. We hope wherever you are located, you are finally having some nice weather... just in time for Spring!
MySciLife—Seeking Science Teachers
MySciLife®—SFL’s social learning environment for middle school science—is recruiting interested teachers for next year. If you or one of your friends is a creative middle level (grades 6-9) science teacher who enjoys student-centered learning, please read the details, then submit the interest survey. Spaces are limited.
Just in Time—May Happenings
Next week is Choose Privacy Week. If you aren’t familiar with this annual event, learn more here. This Thursday is Take Your Child to Work Day. Share our many resources about careers with your students. National Inventors Month is only a week away. Why not plan a final research project for your students about an inventor or invention. TV Turn-off Week is also next week. Explore our many tech projects to keep young minds active and away from the television. What would May be without Cinco de Mayo and of course, Mother’s Day. Manic May is almost here. Strap on your seatbelt and enjoy the final month of this academic year.
Professional Development
FREE Virtual Workshops—Spring OK2Ask Sessions
Come and join one of our FREE online workshops offered on Tuesdays at 7pm Eastern. Read our FAQ for general information about certificates, etc. Please be sure to read the detailed descriptions and suggested technology comfort levels BEFORE you register for the best match for your learning needs.
Timely Topics Coming Soon:
Tuesday April 26th - Differentiating the K-8 Classroom
Tuesday May 3rd - Use Google to Enhance the 4 C’s (creativity, communication, collaboration, or critical thinking)
Tuesday May 10th - Using Social Media to Build Your PLN
Tuesday May 17th - Quick & Easy K-8 Math Projects to Demonstrate Understanding
Tuesday May 24th - Technology Integration Made Easy with ThingLink
Tuesday May 31st - More Tools for Game-Based Learning
Attending the MSET Conference?
If you are attending the Common Ground—Maryland Conference MSET (MD ISTE Affiliate), visit the session offered by Source for Learning. Presenters, Ruth Okoye and Karen Streeter, will present the topic Build Your Digital Age Learning Toolkit on Friday April 29th at 2:30pm. We hope to see you there.
TeachersFirst Exclusives
Most Popular Poem Ever
If you missed it around Halloween, Poetry Month is a perfect time to try TeachersFirst’s MOST popular exclusive content, the Interactive Raven. Even the most reluctant readers enjoy navigating the poem on their own as they discover literary terms and help with tough vocabulary. The Interactive Raven functions just fine on mobile devices or tablets. Dry poetry lessons? Nevermore!
Math Fair
Looking for ideas to make math a little more lively this spring? Now is the time to plan an end of year math celebration (designed for grades 4-8). Since this event requires some judges and other help, why not make it a grade level-wide activity and include some parents or the principal?
Election Projection?
This week’s Teacher Poll asks: Do you discuss the presidential election in your class? Place your vote on the teacher poll on the TeachersFirst home page.
TeachersFirst Features
This week in our Featured Sites find resources all related to time: a trio of timelines, time-savers, virtual timers, time management tools, and more
- Embed.ly
- Just Flip a Coin
- Hstry
- Virtual Number Rack
- Capzles
- Remember the Milk
- And more
IMPORTANT NOTE: If you are reading this May 1st, or later, the link above will take you to the Featured Sites for the current week. Find the archived April 24th Features here, and don’t miss our many other recent additions from the link at the bottom of the Featured Sites page.
Time continues to tick closer and closer to summer break. Embrace these final few weeks of school and let TeachersFirst be your roadmap to learning for both you and your students!
Make this week a “time” to remember.
Melissa Henning
Educational Content Manager
TeachersFirst/Source For Learning