Teach Web 2.0

Where do we begin to praise this treasure trove of online resources for educators? Teach Web 2.0 is "a group of curious teachers who explore and brainstorm ways to integrate Web 2.0 technologies into our teaching," and their mission is to "safely steer our students through Web 2.0 tools and technologies."

Through practical SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis, Teach Web 2.0 researches different Web 2.0 tools and social-networking sites to come up with educational applications. This site is not to be missed!

Rubrics Made Easy

Rubrics help teachers maintain organized and consistent grading scales, but they can often be time consuming to create. Next time you need to create a rubric, try using RubiStar.com.

RubiStar is a helpful teacher tool that lets teachers create customized rubrics without starting from scratch. Using the site's convenient template, teachers can create their own rubrics with individual categories and grading criteria. Just register on RubiStar for free and save your rubrics to the site, where you can return to update and edit your rubrics anytime. You can also choose from a variety of saved rubrics, or browse the lists of project rubrics to find ones that fit in with your curriculum.

LiveBinder

LiveBinder.com is a site that allows you to create virtual three-ring binders for free (up to 100 MB of storage).

There are many ways you can use LiveBinder in the classroom:

• School Computer Labs
• Class Presentations
• Class Assignments
• Learning at Home
• School Team Sports
• Class Projects and Research

Still not convinced? See what one teacher did here. So how is this like a binder? LiveBinder lets you:

• View links like pages in a book instead of URLs on a page
• Combine PDFs and Word docs with the links you collect
• Organize your links and documents into tabs and subtabs

• Conveniently update information without having to resend links
• Avoid the hassle of finding links in old emails and long bookmark lists
• Update LiveBinders from one place

• Build a library of livebinders
• Allow others to view your public and private binders
• Embed livebinders on blogs, web pages and desktops

• Add the "LiveBinder It" Bookmark Tool to your browser toolbar, find a link you want to save, and then click on"LiveBinder It" to automatically add the link to a new Live Binder

Halloween in the Classroom

"Educational" is probably not the adjective that comes to mind when you think of Halloween. But teachers can certainly integrate "fun" holidays like Halloween into their classrooms. Crayola's Happy Halloween webpage offers educators fun, free, and easy crafts, activities, and lesson plans to help celebrate the Halloween season!

We like the lesson plan for the Boo! Creative Writing Banner, in which spooky stories and poems come alive in your students' imaginations as they craft unique Boo! Banner representations of the plots and characters in the stories.

Students love variations in their daily routines, and Halloween provides a wonderful opportunity to introduce some festive fun to their day!

Are teacher colleges teaching well?

Secretary of Education Arne Duncan is calling on teacher colleges to improve their programs and be held accountable for teacher effectiveness. According to TIME Magazine, in a recent speech at Columbia University's Teachers College:

To that end, Duncan said, "I am urging every teacher-education program today to make better outcomes for students the overarching mission that propels all their efforts." He suggested that more states mimic a model currently being used in Louisiana in which student test scores in grades 4-9 are traced back to their teachers, who are in turn traced back to their place of training, whether it be an ed school or an alternative certification program like Teach for America.

As teachers, what are your thoughts on your own education and how it has affected your ability to educate your students? What would you change about your training? What did your school do well? Are you happy to hear about increased federal funding, such as innovation grants that provide money for teacher "residencies"? Do teacher education programs need to be held accountable to a greater extent than before? Please share your thoughts and comments on this blog and, as always, let Maupin House know what we can do to make your job easier.

Don't forget our contest!

Don't forget to enter Maupin House's Name Our E-Newsletter Contest! Entries are due November 30!

Put your thinking cap on. You know our audience, our mission, and our passion. Have a great idea? One lucky winner will receive a $150 Maupin House credit! With so many great titles already in stock and so much buzz about the upcoming ones, this is one contest you do not want to miss! Be sure to pass the contest info on to your peers. We'll be sure to remind you up until the cut-off date through our blog, Twitter, and Facebook.

To enter, e-mail up to three (3) suggestions with your contact information to tmorgan@maupinhouse.com. Should you submit more, only the first 3 will be considered.

ENTER TODAY!

Solving the mystery: How do we help children choose books that feed their love of reading?

Thursday, October 29, join a unique collaborative in the form of a FREE webinar co-hosted by one of our newest Maupin House authors (Cathy Puett Miller) and Audrey Borden, director of My Gifted Girl. This webinar will have a family focus but will also contain information valuable to educators as well. When both home and school work together, the result is incredible.

The topic will be "just right books." We often see this term used when referring to leveled readers, but the idea goes beyond that. Not only do we want to help children select books they can easily read (on their instructional level), but we must also consider interest, the power of choice, and books that scaffold children to higher reading levels and provide a challenge.

We'll also be talking about finding time to read with your child, understanding the benefits and challenges of collaboration between home and school, and real-life reasons to read.

Join this important discussion by visiting Audrey's Facebook page for a special invitation. There are limited slots available, so we encourage you to sign up early. Additional resources from this special event will appear on Cathy's blog after the fact.

Come be a part of an exceptional learning opportunity on the Worldwide Web. We'd love to have you!