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We share evidence-based K-12 learning strategies that empower you to improve education.

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More School Time, Well Spent, Boosts Academic Achievement and Engagement at Edwards Middle School

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Blogs on Classroom Technology

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Twenty Ideas for Engaging Projects

Suzie BossSeptember 12, 2011

Tags Classroom Technology, Curriculum, Project-Based Learning, Teacher Development, Technology Integration, All Grades, Science, World Language Learning

The start of the school year offers an ideal time to introduce students to project-based learning. By starting with engaging projects, you'll grab their interest while establishing a solid foundation of important skills, such as knowing how to conduct research, engage experts, and collaborate with peers. In honor of Edutopia's 20th anniversary, here are 20 project ideas to get learning off to a good start.

K-5 iPad Apps for Analyzing: Part Four of Bloom's Revised Taxonomy

Diane DarrowSeptember 8, 2011

Tags Classroom Technology, Comprehensive Assessment, Game-Based Learning, Integrated Studies, Primary (K-2), Project-Based Learning, Upper Elementary (3-5)

When children look under the hood of a car, their perspective is one of pure curiosity. They immediately want to identify the parts, find out the location of major features, start to ask questions about how the various elements work together, and search to understand the organization of the car as a whole.

A New Model of Storytelling: Transmedia

Laura FlemingAugust 26, 2011

Tags Classroom Technology, Integrated Studies, Literacy, Media Literacy, Online Learning, Student Engagement, Technology Integration, Middle (6-8), High (9-12), English Language Arts

As a School Library Media Specialist, storytelling is at the core of what I do each and every day. Over the years, I have seen many children who struggle with reading because of a lack of engagement with traditional books and stories. The new media that surrounds educators and learners forced me to rethink the concept of storytelling for our 21st-century learners. After some experimenting within my classes, I found a way to successfully engage and capture the attention of all of my students. As a result of this, a new model of storytelling emerged for me: Transmedia.

K-5 iPad Apps for Applying: Part Three of Bloom's Revised Taxonomy

Diane DarrowAugust 24, 2011

Tags Classroom Technology, Game-Based Learning, Integrated Studies, Primary (K-2), Professional Development, Technology Integration, Upper Elementary (3-5), English Language Arts, Math, Science

Bloom's Revised Taxonomy breaks each learning stage (remember, understand, apply, analyze, evaluate and create) into four separate levels of knowledge. These levels include the factual, conceptual, procedural, and metacognitive. Together the levels of knowledge are making incremental movements from a factual understanding, to the personal command and realization of the learning process.

How My School Is Transitioning to Digital Textbooks: Building (Step 2 of 5)

Andrew MarcinekAugust 23, 2011

Tags Classroom Technology, Curriculum, Teacher Development, Technology Integration, High (9-12), Massachusetts

This fall, my high school is transitioning to digital textbooks through a 1:1 program. In this 5-part series, I am describing the process we went through to to make this transition.

Web Tools Blog Series: Tools to Help Students Collaborate

Eric BrunsellAugust 22, 2011

Tags Classroom Technology, Teacher Development, Technology Integration, Middle (6-8), High (9-12)

In previous blogs, we focused on web tools to collect and organize content and tools to help students create and present ideas. In this module, we focus on how to use web tools to foster collaboration.

Starting the Year on a Positive Note

Mary Beth HertzAugust 16, 2011

Tags Classroom Technology, Free School Supplies, New Teachers, Teacher Development, Technology Integration, Upper Elementary (3-5), Middle (6-8), High (9-12)

Back in May, I asked readers to think of five things they'd done well over the last school year. I followed it up with a post on my personal blog reflecting on what I thought I did well. Now it's time for the school year to rev up again, and I'm hoping to not only keep doing what I did well, but also set some goals for the coming year.

Google+ and Privacy: Better for Educators?

Audrey WattersAugust 15, 2011

Tags Classroom Technology, , Teacher Development, All Grades

One of the biggest ongoing concerns surrounding social networking continues to be questions of privacy -- users' private conversations or users' personal data exposed, whether as a result of error, negligence, or intent. So when Google unveiled its new social network Google Plus, it wasn't surprising to see the search engine position Google Plus as an antidote to the "sloppy," "scary," and "insensitive" sharing options -- in other words, the lack of privacy -- it pointed to on other social networks. Google actually never mentions "privacy" outright in its blog post introducing Google Plus, but that's certainly the subtext, as it positions itself as an alternative to Facebook, the dominant social network, but a site that has had a long string of privacy snafus.

Reinventing Education One Tweet at a Time

Elana LeoniAugust 11, 2011

Tags Classroom Technology, Education Reform, Game-Based Learning, Leadership, Online Learning, , Student Engagement, Teacher Development, Technology Integration, All Grades

Elana Leoni is Edutopia's Social Media Marketing Manager. Follow her on Twitter, @elanaleoni.

Last week I attended #140Edu, the first ever 140 Characters Conference (#140conf) dedicated to education, hosted by Chris Lehman (principal of the Science Leadership Academy in Philadelphia) and Jeff Pulver (thought leader, author, and social media advocate). #140confs are held all over the nation and explore "the state of now": the effects of real-time Internet. Pulver elaborates about the power of the real-time Internet: "There's something amazing happening on the Internet today -- right now. When enough people speak up, voices can be heard, and it can affect change."

Summer PD: Use a Web Site to Help Manage Your Classroom

Nicholas ProvenzanoAugust 9, 2011

Tags Classroom Management, Classroom Technology, Technology Integration, Upper Elementary (3-5), Middle (6-8), High (9-12)

Many view classroom management as how a teacher runs the day-to-day operations of the class. In the 21st century, classroom management goes beyond the classroom walls. To keep students working and focused on the tasks at hand, a Web site can be utilized to make class time more efficient.