Summer Professional Development Blog Series

We know how important it is to relax and recharge after a long school year, but we also know that many of you use the summer months to learn and grow and improve your craft. Our team of bloggers are going to help you with this mission.

Each week, we'll be adding more tools and tips to help you improve your practice. (So bookmark this page!) If you have any additional suggestions, please log in and post them in the comments below.

Virtual Workshops

New Teacher Boot Camp: Facilitated by Lisa M. Dabbs

• Week 1: How to Use Wordle in the Classroom
• Week 2: How to Use Voicethread in the Classroom
• Week 3: How to Use Storybird in the Classroom
• Week 4: How to Use Wetoku in the Classroom
• Week 5: How to Use Blogs in the Classroom

The Web Tools Collective Workshop: Facilitated by Eric Brunsell

• Part 1: Learning About Web 2.0 Tools
• Part 2: Ground Rules
• Part 3: Collecting, Organizing and Making Sense of Information
• Part 4: Tools to Help Students Create
• Part 5: Tools to Help Students Collaborate

Innovation Workshop: Facilitated by Andrew Marcinek

• Talking Education: A Virtual Workshop for Innovations

Tools and Resources

Project-Based Learning

• How to Get Projects Off to a Good Start by Suzie Boss
• Project-Based Learning Made Easy by Bob Lenz
• Tips for Using Project-Based Learning to Teach Math Standards by Andrew Miller
• How to End Projects on a High Note by Suzie Boss

Social and Emotional Learning

• Five Simple Techniques to Incorporate Social and Emotional Learning by Mary Kate Land
• Want Better Project-Based Learning? Use Social and Emotional Learning by Thom Markham

Brain-Based Learning

• Understanding How the Brain Thinks (Part 1 of 5) by Judy Willis MD
• The Brain-Based Benefits of Writing for Math and Science Learning (Part 2 of 5) by Judy Willis MD
• Improving Executive Function: Teaching Challenges and Opportunities (Part 3 of 5) by Judy Willis MD
• Three Brain-based Teaching Strategies to Build Executive Function in Students (Part 4 of 5) by Judy Willis MD

New Tools to Try

• Making Lessons Come Alive with the Xbox Kinect in the Classroom by Dan Jones
• A Primer on Compiling Digital Resourcesby Mary Beth Hertz

Service Learning

• A Formula for Creating Successful Student-Run Service Learning Projectsby Rosemary Owens

Blended Learning

• Blended Learning: Combining Face-to-Face and Online Education by Heather Wolpert-Gawron

Literacy

• Techniques for Teaching Vocabulary to Elementary Students by Gaetan Pappalardo
• Implementing Mutuality in the Composition Classroom by Kerri Flnchbaugh

More Resources from Edutopia