Presented in collaboration with the Association for Middle Level Education.

Jokes You Can Use:

Why was the archaeologist depressed?

His career was in ruins.

What's the most commonly misspelled blood group?

Typo.

What do you call Santa's helpers?

Subordinate clauses.

Why was the computer tired when it got home?

Because it had a hard drive.

What do you call dyslexic owls?

Slow.

Eileen Award:

iTunes: Busbyscience

Twitter: Joy Kirr, Paul Dunford, Don Wettrick, Kyle Mayer

Diigo:

Facebook: Christine Fleisher, Smoth John

Advisory:

Red Cross Baby Sitting Courses

Introductory Video -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7mIS1UQY2_Q

http://www.redcross.org/take-a-class/program-highlights/babysitting-caregiving

Middle School Science Minute

by Dave Bydlowski (k12science or [email protected])

Choice Eliminates Complacency

I was recently reading the March, 2013 issue of Science Scope, a magazine for middle school science teachers, published by the National Science Teachers Association. An article that caught my attention was:

"Choice: The Dragon Slayer of Student Complacency." It was written by Douglas Llewellyn.

The article focuses in on the the skills that middle level teachers have that help them capture student interest. The teacher skills are:

1. Differentiate instruction to suit the needs of individual students.

2. Provide intrinsic motivation for learning by offering choice.

3. Engage students in the learning process.

You can find it online at:

http://k12science.net/Podcast/Podcast/Entries/2013/6/24_Middle_School_Science_Minute-Choice_Eliminates_Complacency.html

From the Twitterverse:

Resources:

http://www.freetech4teachers.com/2013/08/100-tips-for-new-teachers-and-good.html#.Uhi6JmRASQk

47+ Alternatives to Using YouTube in the Classroom

http://www.freetech4teachers.com/2010/09/47-alternatives-to-using-youtube-in.html#.Uhi7nmRASQk

Lingualy.

http://lingua.ly/

Getty

http://blogs.getty.edu/iris/open-content-an-idea-whose-time-has-come/

Unsplash

Free (do whatever you want) hi-resolution photos.

10 new photos every 10 days.

Good for background images. Also useful for writing assignments.

http://unsplash.com/

40 maps that explain the world

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2013/08/12/40-maps-that-explain-the-world/

RIP, Elmore Leonard: The Beloved Author’s 10 Rules of Writing

http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2013/08/21/elmore-leonard-10-rules-of-writing/

Web Spotlight:

Moodle

Inspiring better teaching everywhere. Welcome to the first official Moodle MOOC (Massive Open Online Course). Our first course for teachers runs for four weeks, starting 1st September 2013.

http://learn.moodle.net/

A teacher's heart speaks on the first day of school

http://coolcatteacher.blogspot.com/2013/08/a-teacher-heart-speaks-on-first-day-of.html

How come officials could predict new test score results?

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2013/08/12/how-come-officials-could-predict-results-on-new-test-scores/