Warren Sparrow: November 2013

30 November 2013

TED talk by Salman Khan

This is a 20 minute TED talk by Salman Khan from Khan Academy.

He focuses on how videos can be used in education.

Absolutely brilliant!!

29 November 2013

code.org

This is really awesome.

This is a free site that allows learners to learn how to code using JavaScript.

It starts off very easy and I really like the fact that the characters are from

Angry Birds so the learners can identify with them instantly.

There are very nice steps that take you through the different levels and

there is also video that assist you with the programming.

Click on the link below to start!

Click on the link below to see all of the different levels and concepts.

What schools don't teach

This is a really good YouTube video about computer programming.

I really liked the interviews with various people on how they got started

and the age that most of them started.

It is just under 6 minutes long, but definitively worth a watch!

Theoretical Probability

This is a really comprehensive site about probability.

It starts with a very nice introduction and then you can

go through all the different stages and see how different

things effect probability. I like the fact that they use

everyday things to show us about probability. There are

also parent notes, as well as activities for this that can be

found at the bottom of the screen.

If you click on the link below it will take you to the activity

handout that you can use in your class.

Click below to go to the website.

28 November 2013

FreeRice.com

Playing FreeRice.com allows you the opportunity to improve your mind while

earning rice that will be donated through the UN World Food Program.

There are several subjects that you can choose to test on, with Vocabulary

being the most popular. Correct answers progress the game to more challenging

levels. You can adjust the difficulty level back to Level 1 which is about a second

grade level.

Improve yourself and help feed the hungry.

Rainforest: making a walking track

The learners need to create walking trails using compass points in Rainforest:

making a walking track. It is really a good piece of interactive software where

the learners need to know the compass points and a little logic.

Very good

Zooburst

This is a really great little program. It is also available on the app store.

As a free user you can create up to 10 pages.
You can create a book that has popups.
It is really easy to use and the learners in foundation phase really love it.
Have a look at the story I made above and click on all the aliens with an
exclamation on their head to read what they have to say.

You can click on the link below for the manual.

Click on the link below to go to the site.

27 November 2013

dvolver moviemaker

You definitely need to check this out.

It is totally awesome

You can create a very quick online movie.

There is no registration required, just start making the movie.

You can choose your backgrounds, people, what sort of scenes you would like,

as well as music and you can add scenes.

Totally perfect for Foundation Phase and Senior Primary!!

Reading scales

This is a great website for reading different scales of measurement.

You can choose from capacity, mass and temperature scales.

This is aimed at foundation phase learners.

Very nice and easy to use!

Measuring Capacity in liquids

This is a very nice interactive website that allows you to measure 1 liter.

You can use the containers at the top and then try and full the 1 liter

container.

This is great for foundation phase.

Capacities of containers

This is such a nice program for Foundation Phase.

This program compares the capacities of containers and the

volumes of objects or substances using direct comparison.

There are also 14 other games that you can browse for Foundation Phase.

24 November 2013

29 ways to stay creative

Click the link below for the original document

23 November 2013

How does YouTube work and why do videos buffer?

This is very intersecting. Have a look. it is really worthshile!!

How does the engine work?

How cool is this interactive infographic!!

Click the link below for the original.

Google Sketchup

I cannot believe I have not blogged about this before!!

I have been using this fir years in my class and the learners

absolutely love it. I recently also showed this to the design and Tech

Teacher at our school and she has started using it in her classes as well!

It is a program that you can use, like CAD, to design and draw 3D models

Absolutely brilliant

22 November 2013

Seussville

Who has not heard of Dr Seuss?

This is Seussville, where you can find out so many interesting things!!

You can find out about the different books, find out more about the author,

as well as find out about all the different characters in the books.

There is also lesson plans and activities that you can use in your class!!

There is also a games and activities page which the learners will love!!

I really love this poster below. There are such good quotes here!!

Pastelink

Need an easy, quick way to share a file online? Then there's no reason

to email it to yourself or upload to Google Docs and from there share

out the link; when it can be done in less steps. Simply drag and drop

the file you want to share into Pastelink and that's it! A link will automatically

be generated for you to copy to your clipboard and share out. The website is

free but if you want to send files over 250 MB then you can sign up for a free

account and send up to 2GB. The link is good for seven days so use it for those

quick things.

Ever wonder what it is like to be in the International Space Station?

This is a really awesome YouTube video. It is 10 minutes long and goes

through the International Space Station.

Definitely worth a look!!!

NASA Johnson Style" ("Gangnam Style" Parody)

NASA Johnson Style

NASA astronauts and scientists are among those in this educational parody

of Psy's popular music video. "NASA Johnson Style" was created, written

and produced by the Houston center's co-op students who volunteered for

the project " to inform the public about the amazing work going on at NASA

and the Johnson Space Center."

Very Good!!

21 November 2013

Teacher pay Teachers

Go do yourself a favour and go and register with Teacher pay Teachers.

This is an incredible site. Although there is a great deal of things you need

to pay for, if you click on free, there are 136 790 documents, worksheets

and lesson plans that you can use for free!!

Click on the link below to see the free section.

Voki

I have seen Voki around for awhile and finally created

one today. It was a lot of fun!!

Go and create one for yourself!!

They even have lesson plans that you can use

Click on the link below to see the lesson plans.

The Alphabet Video

This is a really nice video learn the alphabet, letter sounds, vocabulary

words, and uppercase and lowercase letters.

It also goes through the different way the letters sound.

Perfect for Foundation Phase!!

Story Chimes

This is a really cool site for both Android and Ipad.

There are so many free books that you can download

and read. It is ideal for younger learners, especially in

Foundation Phase. The free books have advertisements,

but are definitely worthwhile!!

Have a look at the different book on the link below.

Giggle Poetry

This is such a nice site.

It is all about funny poetry. Your children will love it!!

There are different categories that you can choose from.

I really loved the section on teachers and headmasters!!!

Online Stopwatches

Ok these are so cool!!

There is a whole range of different timers that you can use here.

They are really fun and my learners love them!!

20 November 2013

Prior Knowledge

How do you test prior knowledge.

Click on the link below to see the original size infographic

18 November 2013

Human-Powered Helicopter

Although this happened in June of 2013, I stumbled across this today and I was really
impressed with it. There was Sikorsky Human Powered Helicopter Competition that
started in 1980. The requirements to win the AHS Sikorsky Prize included a flight duration
of 60 seconds and reaching an altitude of 3 meters, with the center point of the aircraft
hovering over a 10-by-10 meter square.

AeroVelo, comprising students and graduates of the University of Toronto won it on
the 13 June of this year!!

Really very amazing!!