Online Tribute to Nelson Mandela

Information on the Nelson Mandela Memorial is available at mashable.com, where you can also see many world leaders who paid tribute to Mandela.

Best Learning Games of 2013

Larry Ferazzo, of Edublogs, lists what he considers the best learning games of 2013. They include World Geography Games, Inca Investigation, The China Games, Plan It Green Live, Broken Picture Telephone, Jay Is Games, Earth Picker, Lifesaver, Room Escape Maker, GR8CTZ—Great Cities of the World, and LocateStreet. This is the second of the 2013 lists. The first list features Wonderground, Pursued, GeoGuessr, Depression Quest, The Republica Times, Breakaway, Quandary, and Review Game Zone. The Edublog includes links to the recommended games. You’ll also find links to the best games of previous years.

iTunes Virtual Field Trips

Open new worlds of knowledge by going to iTunes Virtual Field Trips. There, you’ll find “trips” to museums, historic sites, historic site apps, National Parks, National Parks apps, Libraries, Library apps, Performing Arts, and Performing Arts apps. There are Mummy Chamber videos from the Brooklyn Museum, Musee du Louvre HD app ($2.99), Beyond New York Sight (audio, Manhattan), Garden Grounds New York Botanical Garden (free, audio/video), Guggenheim app (free), Smithsonian Mobile app (free), National Parks by National Geographic app (free), Treasures of the New York Public Library (audio), Today’s Document from the National Archives app (free), MoMA Audio: Kids (free), A Jazzy Day: Music Education Book for Kids app ($4.99), and much more. By the way, A Jazzy Day has garnered great reviews.

Connect Globally through ePals

Students love to connect with other students for global learning projects, but sometimes it’s difficult to find the perfect collaboration partner. You might want to look into ePals, since it could be called the standard when it comes to global communication. It’s easy to get started with global projects with ePals. All you have to do is to fill in the form, and you are ready to use this free global learning community. You’ll get help finding classroom matches according to the language you wish to use (English, Spanish, French, German, Japanese, or Chinese) and the age level of your students (1-7, 8-10, 11-13, 13-16, and 17+). You can create your own collaborative project or join projects started by other teachers and students. ePals’ Schoolsafe eMail, Web 2.0 tools, and resources are available to help you and your students connect and interact with other classes around the world.  ePals sponsors and partners include National Geographic, the Smithsonian, and Cobblestone & Cricket magazine. To learn more about ePals, watch the video available on the ePals opening page.

Make a Wall-sized Map or ....?

With National Geographic’s MapMaker Kits you and your students can download, print, and assemble wall-sized maps of the world, United States, Asia, Europe, American, Africa, Australia & Oceania, and the Polar Regions. What are called “Mega” maps can be assembled by your students on the floor or tabletop. There are also one-page outline maps for individual use.  MapMaker Kit Activities such as Mapping Watersheds, Mapping Blue Whale Migration, and Explorers of the Americas are available to give you suggestions for use of the MapMaker Kits. The free kits come with directions for assembly, but the maps can be assembled by students in minutes.

Follow Edutopia Pins

Looking for ideas related to geography, ePals, life in China, using Skype in the classroom, or understanding cultures? Try Edutopia’s Pinterest pinboard Around The World. Or how about information on edible schoolyards, project-based learning, design, art integration, technology, and loads of other topics?  There are 82 pins so far on the Students Like Tech board, some of which include information about using games for learning, tech tools with feedback for students, ultra cool educational sites, teaching with tablets, back-to-school apps, and where we are in digital learning. Other Pinboards target Common Core, school supplies, mobile classrooms, careers, Halloween, reading lists,  . . .

Cengage Learning—National Geographic Virtual Library

If you are one of many of us who love National Geographic, you might want to take a look at online resources and books available from National Geographic and GALE Cengage Learning. You’ll find National Geographic Magazine Archives from 1888-1994; National Geographic Magazine Archives from 1995-present; and National Geographic: People, Animals, and the World. Every page of the magazines is available along with full-text books, hundreds of videos, maps, atlases, and over 600 downloadable images. —It’s a perfect resource for engaging student assignments and course transition to online materials.

Apps for Special Needs Students

The TL (Technology & Learning) Advisor Blog has selected Common Core Apps for Special Needs students. Part I of the selections features Apps that meet all of the Grade One standards, and some for other grades as well. They include Explain Everything ($2.99), Popplet ($4.99), Feel Electronic (Free), MeeGenius (Free), Inspiration Lite (Free), Inspiration Maps (Free, Full Version $14.99), 1^st Fiction ($2.99), Wordweb Audio Dictionary ($3.99), Tumblebooks to go—Munsch-6 pack ($5.99), and National Geographic Kids (one free sample, individual magazines $3.99, subscription $19.99). Find out more about each of these Apps that can be put to work for Special Needs children by clicking on the TL Advisory Blog. Also make sure to look for Part II of the recommendations.

Britain from Above

Geography teachers should appreciate Britain from Above, a free gallery of over 16,000 historical aerial images of the United Kingdom, 1919-1953. To find images, you and your students can search by clicking on an interactive map or entering a place name. There are sections to help you with browsing through the photo galleries; finding photos you or your students would like to view; and adding comments, photos, and adding keywords. Why not explore the castles of England and Scotland, classical architecture, railways, canals, unidentifiable photos, coastlines, islands, ...?

Octopus Planet for Early Math

The iPad app Octopus Planet 123 ($2.99) takes children ages three and up on a trip around the world. While on the trip, they learn about animals, habitat, and number systems. Children have fun as they take on comparing, taxonomy, sequence, matching, shapes, ordering, classifying, adding, and counting. The app is available in the iTunes Store in fifteen different languages.

Octopus Planet 123 LITE is free and offers a good way to try out the app.