From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] Sent: Friday, October 04, 2002 6:59 AM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Tech Tips | Linking Students with Online Experts
bigchalk's Tech Tips Newsletter October 2002 Issue http://www.bigchalk.com Welcome to this month's installment of Tech Tips, sponsored by Adobe. http://i.bigchalk.com/U/adobepack02 Technology changes every day. Let bigchalk help you do your homework to stay current! Every month bigchalk plugs you into the tech tools teachers are talking about, and more. Includes hands-on information to help you make the most of technology in your curriculum. *******************ADVERTISEMENT******************** NEW! The Adobe Education Print to Web Promotion: SIX Award Winning Products at a disounted price for students and educators! The Adobe Education Print-to-Web Promotion includes Education versions of six products plus a bonus GoLive/LiveMotion training CD, which includes step-by-step tutorials, templates, art files, stock photography, and other extras. http://i.bigchalk.com/U/adobepack02 **************************************************** ++ TECH TIP: Linking Students with Online Experts To many students, the world outside the four walls of their classroom is something of a mystery. Studying what it's like to rocket into orbit as an astronaut is interesting, but a textbook, video or Web site can offer only text and images of such a journey. What if students could ask a real-life astronaut about her experiences in space? http://i.bigchalk.com/U/TT-OCT02ASTRO Ask-an-expert projects have the power to take project-based learning to a whole new level in your Net-connected school. With a few clicks of your mouse you can break down the walls of your classroom and connect young learners to real-world experts. These professionals, working in hundreds of fields, are putting the things they learned in school to use everyday to solve complex problems, explore new realms and help make the world a better place for everyone. This month's issue of Tech Tips will help you plan and prepare a hands-on ask an expert learning experience that can be used with any subject area and grade level. Dozens of links to educator-reviewed expert Web sites are provided. --- Step One: Plan As with all successful classroom Internet projects, thoughtful planning is critical. Think about how communicating with an expert could enhance an upcoming unit of study. Ask yourself the following questions: * Does the unit bring up new, interesting or otherwise complex questions that would be best answered by a professional? * Can you wait several days, weeks or even months for an expert to respond? (Most experts answer questions within a few days or a week; others may take longer.) * Does the unit involve student generation of data that could be reviewed by an expert who could add her comments or offer a real-world application for the work? * Are one or more professions highlighted in the unit? Could you add classroom time to explore these professions by communicating with experts working in these fields? Once you've located an existing unit and answered these questions, you'll be ready to seek out an expert to lend a hand. Step Two: Find Experts Set aside 30 minutes to find the perfect expert using the links below. Be sure to read or ask for background information on her work. How long have they been working in this field? Does she specialize in any specific area? How many questions from students has she answered in the past? How quickly can she turn around answers to your questions? Pay close attention to any information experts provide about the types of questions they are willing to answer. Some provide sample questions to help you and your students write successful queries, while others offer collections of questions they have answered to date. bigchalk Ask an Expert Collection http://i.bigchalk.com/U/TT-OCT02BCEXPERTS AskA+ Locator http://i.bigchalk.com/U/TT-OCT02ASKA Pitsco's Ask an Expert Directory http://i.bigchalk.com/U/TT-OCT02PITSCO CIESE Expert Links http://i.bigchalk.com/U/TT-OCT02CIESE Ask an Expert Sources http://i.bigchalk.com/U/TT-OCT02ESOURCES Library Spot: Expert Sites http://i.bigchalk.com/U/TT-OCT02LSPOT Ask Dr. Universe (Science) http://i.bigchalk.com/U/TT-OCT02UNIV Ask Dr. Math http://i.bigchalk.com/U/TT-OCT02DRMATH Ask a Reference Librarian http://i.bigchalk.com/U/TT-OCT02IPLRL U.S. Census Experts http://i.bigchalk.com/U/TT-OCT02CENSUS Don't forget to look in your own local community for these experts! Although you may choose to communicate with a nearby expert via email, a classroom visit, video conference or even phone interview may be possible. Step Three: Introductions Now that you've identified one or more potential expert matches, it's time to say hello and ask for assistance. Introduce yourself and your class; ask if the expert would be willing to accept questions directly from your students to add a more personal touch, and what her current workload is so you can gague how long answers may take to come back. Give the expert a full week to respond. If you don't get an answer, track down another candidate and attempt to establish contact. *****************ADVERTISEMENT******************* Visit OfficeMax.com for guaranteed low prices on your back-to-school needs. Don't miss special offers like 10 Mead color folders for $1, new low prices on select PDAs, HP printers starting as low as $49.98 and Microsoft's latest educational software, Microsoft Office XP for Students & Teachers (only $129.99). Plus, OfficeMax.com has free shipping on orders over $50. Visit OfficeMax.com today! http://i.bigchalk.com/U/officemax02 ************************************************** Step Four: Student Prep Once you bring an expert on board, it's time to get your students involved. Tell them that you've found an expert who's willing to answer their questions related to an upcoming lesson, and that you need their help to plan the exchange. Have them write out what they already know about the expert's profession, then have them come up with three questions to expand their knowledge. After collecting the questions, ask students to identify the queries that could be easily answered at the library or on the Internet (or with a simple yes or no response) until about 10 remain. Be sure these remaining questions will help everyone get more out of the upcoming lesson by focusing on the central theme and allowing the expert to focus on passing along knowledge that's directly related to her profession. Write out the questions and ask students to pick their favorites. If you're planning a single exchange, have students vote on the top five queries as a group. If your schedule permits it and the expert agrees, you may save all the questions and ask for answers to small sets of questions on a monthly basis. Step Five: Send Questions & Wait Compose a new email message to the expert, reintroducing yourself and your students along with a brief overview of your unit of study. Include your questions along with open spaces for the expert to fill in her answers. Ask for an acknowledgement to be sure that the questions arrived. Check your email every day for a response. Consider assigning students this task to add to the excitement while waiting. If you're working with young students, be prepared for them to ask you daily about the status of their questions. To ensure a successful outcome, consider generating a few questions that the expert has already answered on her Web site. That way, if more than a week passes without a response you can pull an existing answer from her site and read it as if the expert had answered. Step Six: Thanks! Once you've received your answers, take a few minutes to have students write thank-you notes to the expert. Send them inside a single email message, being sure to include only the first name of each student. Send it from your school email account. You may also want to send her copies of any related projects or photos of bulletin boards, etc. to illustrate how you put her answers to work in your classroom. This will encourage the expert to work with other classes in the same manner, or may open the door to future exchanges with you and other students in the future. BONUS: Experts for Educators Finally, keep in mind that there are experts waiting to help educators just like you. If you have an education-related question about learning standards, assessment, rubrics, lesson planning, year-round schooling, etc., send your query to the staff of the federally-funded Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC). Be sure to check their archive of recently answered questions before you send your questions. Most queries are answered within 48 hours! http://i.bigchalk.com/U/TT-OCT02ERIC *****************ADVERTISEMENT******************* New at VeryBestKids.com is Teacher's Corner, a unique educator's resource created by teachers, for teachers, to provide quality lessons and fun activities for Grades Pre-K, K-2 and 3-5. Click here: http://i.bigchalk.com/U/verybestkids02 ************************************************* TECH PRODUCT BUZZ If teachers, parents or students are raving about a new product, we hear about it. Our 'reviews' don't come from a testing lab; instead, they are derived from actual feedback and the real-world experiences of classroom users. Has a tech product made a huge impact on your teaching or learning? Tell us about it! Send email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] ++ REVIEW: Video Conferencing | QuickCam ++ Price: $59.95 Publisher: Logitech Info: http://www.logitech.com Before you begin your next online expert exchange, inquire about adding online video conferencing to the project. Put your students face-to-face with astronauts, business leaders and authors in minutes with a Logitech QuickCam! Just hook the camera to any USB port, load the included software and start communicating in real time with anyone, anywhere. A high-speed LAN Internet connection works best. Be sure to check with your technology coordinator to guarantee that your school can allocate enough bandwidth to enable a video conference over your network. ++ REVIEW: Play It CyberSafe ++ Price: FREE Publisher: Business Software Alliance Info: http://www.playitcybersafe.com/toolsteachers.phtml While the Internet can be a useful educational resource for children, it's important that your young students learn how to use this powerful tool safely and responsibly. The goal of this new Web site is to empower teachers, students and parents to prevent cyber crime through knowledge of the law, their rights and how to avoid misuse of the online world. Free educational curriculum, a teacher's guide and a classroom poster are available in Adobe Acrobat (.PDF) format. ++ REVIEW: "Web Feet K-8" Online ++ Price: $63/Year Publisher: Rock Hill Press Info: http://www.online-offline.com This special Web site archives the past five years of content from "Web Feet K-8" magazine. The publication explores a monthly theme from all angles, seeking new and exciting ways to approach it that will inspire students to think creatively. A team of contributors take time to examine a range of resources that can be used in classrooms or independently by students who want to investigate further. Experts carefully select Web sites, CD-ROMs, videos, books, audio and CDs, and magazine articles that excite students' imaginations, stimulate discussion and lead to interdisciplinary activities. *******************ADVERTISEMENT******************** Know a college fund that could use a $5,000 boost? bigchalk has teamed up with A&E's "Biography" to challenge students to explore the life and times of a famous figure, then write a short biography. Sponsoring teachers could win special classroom prizes. Find out more! http://i.bigchalk.com/U/biographyc02 **************************************************** ++ BIGCHALK TECH LINKS ++ Let bigchalk help you integrate technology into your classroom. Take an online course, read a hands-on tutorial to help you make better use of your PC, connect to the latest tech news, and even find online projects to integrate into your curriculum. It's bigchalk to the rescue! bigchalk Calendar Did you know that the term "dinosaur" originates from the Greek words deino and sauros, meaning "terrible" and "lizard"? Yikes! Scientists think that dinosaurs arose in the Middle or Late Triassic, about 235 million years ago. Find out more about these fascinating creatures during October, the month of the dinosaur! http://i.bigchalk.com/U/octdino bigchalk Web Site of the Month In mid-October each year, American's pause to reflect on the life and work of Spanish explorer Christopher Columbus. To many students, Columbus' journey to the Americas is the most well-known and studied aspect of the European voyages of exploration. However, there is a far richer tale to be told about the countries, events and people who populate the history of these fifteenth and sixteenth century journeys. Many historians point to these trips as the triggers to the process of globalization, linking once distant countries and peoples for the first time. In addition, while many believe that the seeking of profit was the primary motivator for sea exploration, these early explorers were equally interested in expanding Europe's knowledge about the world. Find out more about this special era of exploration. http://i.bigchalk.com/U/oct02site College Zone Read advice about getting into the college of your choice from myFootpath's admissions counselor in bigchalk's College Zone. http://i.bigchalk.com/U/czone01 And don't forget to get help paying for college with bigchalk and wiredscholar! http://bigchalk.wiredscholar.com bigchalk Portal Web Site Our Web site is home to four special pages -- WebExplore, TechKNOWlogy, Connect and Daily Bulletin. Each contains links to our most popular features, from fresh news scoops and a calendar of seasonal activities and timely observances to our widely acclaimed virtual field trips and online expeditions created in collaboration with leading research and cultural institutions. http://www.bigchalk.com/main/Teachers.html Search Box Want an easy way to give students and parents instant access to the Internet's largest, most up-to-date directory of learning sites? Add a free bigchalk search box to your Web page. Users can search our collection by keyword and filter their query by grade level. http://i.bigchalk.com/U/bcsearchbx Technology Tutorials Don't let technology get you down! Build your tech skills. Learn more about your Mac or Windows PC, master the latest software and more. http://i.bigchalk.com/U/techtutstt Internet Projects Don't miss out -- new online projects are accepting participants this month. Integrate technology into your daily lessons. Get started here: http://i.bigchalk.com/U/netprojectstt *******************ADVERTISEMENT******************** Attention Teachers! Start Something is a free ready-to-go curriculum that promotes character development, leadership, and community stewarship brought to you by Target and the Tiger Woods Foundation. Click here to learn more: http://i.bigchalk.com/U/targetstart02 **************************************************** Thank you for reading bigchalk's Tech Tips Newsletter. 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