Welcome back to the Roundup!  I hope everyone had an excellent weekend!  Today we start with a post from Wesley Fryer at The Speed of Creativity.  In the past month, the Economist has written two articles about education and technology which have been, to say the least, a bit harsh.  Over the weekend Fryer posted hisexcellent response to these articles, outlining the multiple falsehoods and mistakes that the Economist published.  Fryer's post is definitely worth a read. Courtney Buell at EdCetera has a new article entitled, "Fighting Distraction in Online Courses."  While not as popular in K-12 education as in higher ed, online courses are certainly on the rise.  Buell's article discusses some of the new ways that online courses are working to keep students engaged in learning and some of the new tools that are available to help students fight distractions.   If your school is considering a BYOD policy (or has already implemented one) the Ed Tech Review's new article, "BYOD Successful Implementations From Around the World" might be worth a look.  The post discusses six different schools from around the US that have met with success in their BYOD policies.  Plus, for most of the schools, their BYOD policies are public, so you can see the framework they're working with. Free Technology for Teachers has four new posts to check out: 7 Ways to Use Video in Your Classroom Capital Toss - A State & Country Capitals Game Quest for Credit - A Personal Finance Lesson 5 Resources to Help Students Make Healthy Food Choices EduTech for Teachers has a guest post from the weekend entitled, "Transform Learning Potential with ExamTime."  The article discusses the free online learning platform, ExamTime.  According to the site, "we've created ExamTime with the aim to help students improve the way they learn through the use of proven techniques and tools: Mind Maps, Flashcards, Notes, and Quizzes."  You can check out the post for some examples of ExamTime in action! I'm a big fan of Twitter, but it took me a while to see and understand the full educational potential of the site.  At first it seemed like every other social networking site, and that it was just full of people tweeting about what they had for lunch.  But, as I came to find, and as this new post from Edudemic explains, "Twitter can help make you a better teacher." Edudemic also has a new post explaining "How to Teach Music and Art Online."  Many times, it seems that online learning is only focused on the core subject areas.  Or, if it's used for an elective, it's one that can "easily" be taught online (i.e. mostly fact-based, not skill-based).  So, it's nice to see that support is growing for online programs in subjects like art and music.  These can be incredibly beneficial for students who don't have access to these classes, or if their school has cut funding for those programs. Finally, Edudemic discusses"10 Innovative Educational Programs Run by Google."  Some of these programs I was familiar with (like the Doodle for Google award) but it turns out Google actually has quite the collection of educational programs up their sleeve. Educational Technology has three new posts to check out: iPad Basics for Teacher & Students (embedded below) iPad Apps for Autistic Students (embedded below) A Discussion of the MIT App Inventor Tool iPad basics from j_villis   Paul Roen at Getting Smart has a new article on"Carving a Place for Blended Learning in the Era of Teacher Evaluation."  The post discusses how new teacher evaluation systems need to include a space for blended learning.  The role of the educator in a blended learning setting is different than in the traditional setting, and evaluation tools should reflect that. Getting smart also their weekly roundup posted as well, in case you missed anything from last week. Lisa Nielsen at the Innovative Educator has a new post discussing "11 Innovative Strategies for Ensuring Device Equity."  The post outlines some excellent ideas for helping all students have access to technology, even in districts where budgets are an issues.  If you're looking to help increase the available tech resources in your school or district, Nielsen's article is a wonderful place to start. Teach Thought has three new posts up, the first of which discusses, "Why Teachers - Not Schools - Are the Real Institutions."  The articles argues that teachers are more than just instructors, they are also "value-generating institutions. And simply put, [teachers] are directly responsible for a student's partial accumulation of knowledge and skills."  The post goes on to further make the case for teachers as institutions. Terry Heick at Teach Thought also has a new post on "How Overly Academic Learning is Killing Education."  Heick makes the argument that too much focus on achieving proficiency is detrimental to our education systems.   Finally, for those interested in game-based learning, Teach Thought shares, "10+ Game-Based Learning Resources: From Practical Applications to Academic Theory."   Ed Reach has two excellent new podcasts up from the weekend: The Classroom: A Space Redesigned Five Options Upon Reading an Email And finally, we'll head over to EdSurge for the finale of today's Roundup.  First up, a new article by Katrina Stevens entitled, "What Real Collaboration Between Teachers and Techies Looks Like."  The post covers a recent gathering in Chicago between teachers, administrators, and techies, to learn about edtech startups and try out their products as part of the          Ed Tech Collaborative.   And speaking of edtech startups, Ben Stern at EdSurge also has a post on the "Role for Teachers in Every Edtech Startup."  The article discusses how teachers can get involved and help out with edtech startups that they are passionate about. The Lightning Round... Tech & Learning shares iPad Safety Apps Edudemic helps us Turn our iBook into a Video in 3 Easy Steps Getting Smart shares new STEM-related Tech Tools from Edshelf Teach Thought gives us 22 Ways to Use Twitter for Learning Based on Blooms' Taxonomy And that's it for the Roundup today!  Thanks for reading!  We'll close with a new infographic from Zintro, via Edudemic on How to Effectively Use the Top 4 Social Networks.  See you tomorrow! Courtesy of: Edudemic

Welcome back!  Today the Roundup begins at Education Week with a discussion over the current debate in congress on standardized testing, "Adaptive Testing Gains Momentum, Prompts Concerns."  The article discusses the overhaul of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (i.e. NCLB), new proposals that are in the mix, and how adaptive and standardized computer testing fits in the picture. Katrina Schwartz at Mind/Shift has a new post which asks "How Do Tech Tools Affect the Way Students Write"  The article is in response to a Pew Research report that was released yesterday and which shows that technology does in fact have aa effect on how students write.  Of the 2,462 educators interviewed, 50% said digital technologies make it easier to help shape student writing.  For more details and a great summary and analysis of the report, check out Schwartz's article. Amy Mayer at FriEdTechnology has a new lesson up on Gmail entitled, "Smart Gmail Lesson 9: Learn to use Tasks in Gmail and Google Calendar."  If you're a Gmail user and not familiar with how to create tasks, it's a built in feature with Gmail that can be found at the top left (click on the triangle next to "Gmail") It's basically a way to create organized to-do lists, but as Mayer explains, there are some great ways to integrate tasks with your calendar and emails.  Here's the video: Edudemic has a new review of "IWitness: A Free Way to Bring Educational Videos Into Your Classroom."  The relatively new service created by the USC Shoah Foundation brings first-person stories and interviews into the classroom.  The site has access to nearly 1,300 full life histories and testimonies and is an excellent resource for the history classroom. Educational Technology has two new reviews to share.  The first is for "Kidoodle.tv: Educational Video Content for Kids."  It's a Canadian-based video on-demand service for kids under 12 and it's free while it's in beta mode!  And if you've ever wanted to "Visualize your Tweets" check out their new review of Visible Tweets, which lets you do just that! David Mahaley at Emerging Ed Tech (and Franklin Academy Principal) has just posted part 2 of his "Teaching and Learning with the iPad" series.  The first post focused primarily on the administrator's perspective on iPad implementation, but in this new post we see things from the teacher's viewpoint and learn what worked and what areas presented challenges.   And finally, if you're thinking you want to do some serious classroom redesigning for next year, Teach Thought's new post, "How Should Your Classroom Look This Year?"  might be a good place to start.  The post walks you through the steps of designing the perfect classroom space with an eye towards creativity, "the illusion of classroom management,"  and creating a positive atmosphere for your students. The Lightning Round... Educational Technology shares 50 Educational Podcasts for Professional DevelopmentThey also have a new infographic with 20 Presentation Tips for EducatorsEdudemic shares the Ultimate Printable Guide to the Apple iPadAnd Getting Smart discusses the Flipped Class over Twitter with #EdTechChat And that's all for the Roundup today!  Hope everyone is enjoying these dog days of summer and catching a few more days at the pool before heading back to class in a few weeks (is it that soon already?)  Thanks for reading and see you tomorrow!

Today's Roundup begins at Education Dive with the news that Edudemic's founders, Jeff Dunn and Katie Lepi, have launched a new site designed to help teachers (and everyone) become better technology users.  The article, "Edudemic Founders Launch New Online Learning Platform: Modern Lessons," outlines the site's  goals and mentions that the majority of the site content is available free of charge! Ed Surge has a new post detailing "How Teachers, Entrepreneurs Can Create Common Ground."  The post covers Chicago's Education Technology Startup Collaboartive from last week.  The Edtech event was a "collection of roundtables where entrepreneurs could engage in small group discussions with educators."  No giant vendor booths, no flashy presentations, just conversations between teachers and product designers.  Check out the article for more info. Teach Thought starts off with a post outlining "The Defining Characteristic of Early 21st Century Learning."  The article argues that in order to be a successful 21st century educator you really only need to be a master of one skill: being open to possibility.  If you are able to run a "highly curious, question-based, connected and joyful" classroom that is open to possibility, and the rest will fall into place.Teach Thought also has a post on "20 Reflective Questions to Help Students Response to Common Core Texts."  The article discusses the basics of the new common core assessments and reflects on the questions presented in the image below (click for full size): Free Tech for Teachers has four new resources to check out:Use PDF4Kindle to Convert PDFs to Kindle FormatOrganize your Thoughts & Tasks with Thought BoxesCreate 100 Free Animations on ABCya AnimateCreate Flipped Assignments with Knowmia EduTech for Teachers has a new guest post up on "The Benefits of Multimedia Feedback for Students."  The post offers the excellent suggestion of using software like camtasia to record yourself (the teacher) going through a student's assignment, offering "live" feedback, and adding comments to your assessment.  It's an excellent (and speedy, once you get the hang of it) way to improve feedback. I'm a big proponent of offering coding and programming classes in school and learning how to code is a great way to practice problem-solving and critical thinking skills.  To that point, James Walker at Getting Smart has a new post up entitled, "Coding is Not Just for Computer Programmers."  Walker argues that in addition to skills coding can teach a student, the number of job opportunities available to those who know how to code is ever-increasing.  It's a subject should be taught in every school.Alison Anderson at Getting Smart also has a new article on "Transforming Special Educaiton with iPads in LAUSD."  The post focuses on the Los Angeles school district and how their special education program has been using iPads to transform their daily curriculum and intervention strategies.Finally, if you're not familiar with the SAMR (Substitution Augmentation Modification Redefinition) Model it is used to understand how computer technology might affect teaching and learning (here's a good video explanation)  To help make better connections between SAMR and 21st Century Skills, Susan Oxnevad at Getting Smart has a new post, "The SAMR Ladder Through the Lens of 21st Century Skills."  In the article, Oxnevad has an interactive image (via ThingLink) that helps explain the connections between SAMR and the 21st century skills. Finally, Ed Reach has four new podcasts up!Changing the World with Adam BellowThe Microsoft EducastSummer Teaching and LearningProductivity Hack - Tweeting from your Omnibar The Lightning Round... Teach Thought shares 10 Popular Blended Learning Resources Teachers Actually UseEducational Technology has a new Google Plus Cheat Sheet for TeachersEd Tech also has 5 Great iPad Apps to Explore the Human Body in 3DFinally, Educational Technology shares 5 Great Ted Talks for Teachers That's it for the Roundup today!  Thanks for reading!  We'll be back tomorrow and then on a short break until Tuesday.  See you tomorrow!

Welcome back!  I'll be out of town from tomorrow until Monday, so this will be the last Roundup until next Tuesday, and it begins with... Ed Tech Magazine and a new article on distance learning entitled, "When it Comes to Distance Learning, Schools Use What Works."  If your school offers distance learning (for credit recovery, or for electives, or maybe just for classes that aren't available) this article has some great tips for helping to select the best distance learning tech for your needs. Emerging Ed Tech has posted the conclusion to their three-part series on teaching with iPads, and this post focuses on the students' perspective (thefirst post was about administration, the second was about teachers).  The article offers three lessons that were learned throughout the three-year review as well as information on student engagement and success. Alley Watch has a new article about a pretty awesome edtech startup called Degreed.  The service aims to "jailbreak" the degree by scoring and validating your lifelong learning, and not just through universities, but also through sites like Khan academy and other MOOCS.  They want to provide a complete picture of all the learning a person has accomplished through accredited and non-accredited sources.  The founder, David Blake, also has a great Ted Talk about the service. Free Technology for Teachers has two new resources up: 500 Political Cartoons Lesson Plans Coloring Book of the Future uses Augemented Reality            (This app is really, really awesome for kids) Anyone that has tried to introduce new technology in a school knows that there are usually some teachers who are either skeptical of new tech, or just not comfortable with it.  Edudemic's new article, "5 Ways to Support Teachers Skeptical of Technology," offers some tips on the best ways to help those teachers begin to integrate new tech into their classroom. Edudemic also has a new infographic on the "Facts and Figures Behind Education in America."  The infographic covers everything from the current US graduation rate (73.4%) to the total number of students enrolled in elementary and secondary schools (55,394,000) and more!  It's a well designed graphic with some interesting statistics that I think students would enjoy as well. Educational Technology has three new posts to check out: Google Books Provides Thousands of Free Books Storytelling For the Youtube Generation (Prezi below) 5 Powerful Tools to Try On the Kindle Alison Anderson at Getting Smart has a new post on "7 Social Media Tools to Tell your Classroom Story."  In the article, she outlines how to use Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Blogs, Podcasts, and Youtube, to connect with your students and share the story of your classroom.  She provides links to excellent guides for each of these social media tools as well as tips and ideas for how to get started. The Podcast machine, Ed Reach, has three new casts up: NCLB Renewal Brings Greater Political Discussion EdCeptional, Take 2 on The Myth of Average Organizing Our Stuff and Workflow The Lightning Round... Lisa Nielsen shares a new Infographic on Cyberbullying Teach Thought has 15 Literacy Apps to Create Books on the iPad Edudemic covers 10 Digital Resources that will Improve your School Library And, they've got 3 Reasons to Use Video in the Classroom Plus, a new infographic on How Students Use Smartphones Finally, edudemic shares an infographic on Why Teachers Quit And that's it for the Roundup today!  As I mentioned at the beginning, I'll be out of town until Monday night so the Roundup will return next Tuesday.  I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend and thanks for reading!  We'll end with a new flowchart to share with students on image use from the web...

And we're back!  Today we'll start at Emerging Ed Tech with a post on the "5 Ed Tech Resources I Used While Working in a Low-Income Class."  The list covers some great tools like Pinterest and Class Dojo that would work well in any setting, not just low-income classrooms.  The post also talks about HayStack Edu, a site for teachers to find resources and jobs. EduTech For Teachers has a new guest post on "Using Technology as an Effective Teaching Tool."  The post discusses the benefits of implementing technology in the classroom.  The article also covers simple steps that can be taken to begin integrating technology into lessons.  If you're looking for some good examples and explanations on how edtech can be useful, this is the post for you! The Ed Tech Review's new post,"BYOD: Useful Policy for Special Education" discusses how laptops and tablets can be effectively utilized in SPED classrooms.  The article outlines six ideas and suggestions for using a BYOD policy and talks about how student involvement and responsibility can improve through the use of technology. Lisa Nielsen at theInnovative Educator has a new guide to help teachers "Stay Connected to Parents with Google Voice."   If you've never used Google Voice, it's a free phone service provided by Google that let's you call, text, and send voice mails.  Nielsen offers some great suggestions on using Google Voice to save time and easily connect with parents. Edudemic has a new post on "How to Keep up with Education Technology News"  (aside from reading the Roundup, of course).  Ed Tech, and tech in general, is a tough field to keep up with.  As I've found while writing for this site, there are tons of new apps, reviews, and articles every single day.  They suggest subscribing to the Education Dive newsletter (it's definitely a great resource) to help stay on top of everything Ed Tech. Edudemic also covers: How to Actually Use Wikipedia in the Classroom 5 Amazing Ways to Collaborate with Another Class (excellent article) Free Tech for Teachers has four new resources to check out: Two Minute Geology Lessons Three Ways to Make Useful QR Codes for Students Instructional Tech Coordinators Need to Understand... Geodia - A Timeline of Mediterranean Archeology Susan Davis at Getting Smart has a new post on "Teaching Reading in the Digital Age."  In the post, she ponders on the idea of, "What does it mean to be a reader today?"  She discusses how tablets and digital books affect reading, the importance of reading for pleasure, and how should teachers teach reading in the digital age.  It's an excellent article, not only for Language Arts teachers, but for all subject areas. Alesha Bishop at Getting Smart also has a review of The Zones of Regulation, a "digital, interactive learning tool designed to help players successfully recognize and regulate their emotions and responses."  The app is an excellent tool to help students work on social and emotional skills and Bishop provides a complete review of the game (including potential drawbacks) for those interested. Finally, Getting Smart covers "3 Tech Tools for the First Day of School."  In the post they discuss The Answer Pad (which we recently reviewed), Educlipper (which we also recently reviewed) and Write About This, which is an app to help elementary students respond to visual writing prompts. Teach Thought has three new posts to check out.  The first covers "Wisr: Quizzes on Twitter by Content Area."  Wisr is a pretty fun (and useful) resources for those who like to tweet and be quizzed. Teach Thought also covers "10 Tips for Better Teaching with Tablets" a great article for anyone with tablets in the classroom.  Plus, they provide a brief look at the new app Brickflow, which we recently reviewed here at the Roundup. The Ed Reach Network has four new podcasts posted: All About Augmented Reality Live from DENSI (Discovery Education) The Makers of ISTE Peer Instruction with Eric Mazur Finally, Justin Reich at Mind/Shift has a new post on "The iPad as a Tool for Creation to Strengthen Learning."  This is Reich's third post in the four part series (part 1 and part 2) and in the article he focuses on using iPads as tools for creation.  He provides examples of how iPads are being used in the "best" classroom but also some great stepping stones to help teachers begin the journey towards creation. The Lightning Round... Edudemic shares 7 Time-Saving iPad Tips for Teachers Educational Technology has Visual Lists of iPad Apps for Teachers & Students They also cover 4 Important Graphics on Blended Learning for Teachers And Getting Smart gives us 40 Sources for Curated Educational Videos And that's all for the Roundup today!  It's good to be back!  Although, at the end of this week the Roundup will be on a week-long break while I move back to South America to start my next year of teaching down there.  Thanks for reading and we'll end with a new infographic from Edudemic on How Teens are Using Social Media.  See you tomorrow! Courtesy of: Edudemic

Today's Roundup begins with Dr. Jackie Gerstein's blog at User Generated Education.  She has a new reflection over her recent maker education workshop, which also discusses the importance of making, tinkering, and self-directed learning.  The article, "STEAM and Maker Education: Inclusive, Engaging, Self-Differentiating" is an excellent read and if you have a chance to lead, attend, or send your kids to a camp like this, it's a pretty wonderful experience. iLean Technology has a new review of Oxford Owl which is a collection of free children's books.  Plus, each book has an accompanying audio track, activities, and questions to see if students understand the story.  For the full review, including ideas for classroom integration, check out the article. Annie Murphy Paul at Mind/Shift has a new post which asks, "Can Playing Video Games Give Girls an Edge in Math?"  In the article, Paul reflects over recent research studies coming to the conclusion that "girls should play more video games." Turns out, gaming can lead to better development of spacial skills which in turn can lead to better development of STEM skills.  FriEdTechnology has a new review of "GeoGuessr: An Addictive Game with Educational Potential."  The game works through Google Maps and the player is given a random location, as much time as they want to look around, and then asked to figure out where they are in the world, based on what they've seen.  It's pretty fun (and addicting) and the article has more info and ideas on how to use the game. Free Tech for Teachers has five new resources up: RADCAB - Website Evaluation Framework for Students How to Create Your Own Custom Search Engine Cooking With Solar Energy - Hands-on Project Adam Savage Shares Lessons from Failure Two Video Guides to Website Evaluation Jessica Slusser at Getting Smart has a new post on "Finding the STEM in Sports with NBC Learn."  For all you sports fans out there, NBC and the US Golf Association have partnered up to create the Science of Golf, a new video series with some wonderful potential for the classroom.  The videos show students "how the principles of science affect everything about the game."  And you can check out the article for a full interview with the team and some integration ideas. Educational Technology has four new resources to check out: What Students Should Know about Copyright Open Educational Resources Explained (below) 3 Good Drawing Apps for Kids Learning Theories for the Digital Age Introduction to open educational resources 2013 from Michael Paskevicius Lisa Nielsen at the Innovative Educator has a new post covering "3 Great Reasons to Use Twitter in Your School."  In the post she discusses how schools can use Twitter to send free text alerts to parents, create an instant news ticket to celebrate success, and host twitter education chats.  She's also created a great Prezi (which includes some further examples and explanations) which is embedded below: Teach Thought has a great new article on how teachers can use Twitter, YouTube, and Google+ for "A New Kind of Professional Development."  The post discusses how teachers can use these tools to instantly connect with other teachers in personal PD sessions.  What I really like about this idea is that it's not just watching videos on a topic (not a one-way street), you can actually communicate and collaborate with other educators, live, and it's pretty awesome. If you're interested,Ed Camp is a great place to start. Teach Thought also has a new post entitled, "What a Digital Native Needs to Know About Playing Outside."  The post is a comical and enjoyable piece that is directed towards kids, letting them know what this whole "playing outside thing" is really all about.  If you're having trouble getting your kids off the couch this summer, send them on over to this article before you kick them out of the house. Finally, Ed Reach has 3 new podcasts posted from today: 5 Project Building Websites Express your Thoughts with Visual Notes FlipBoard and Your iPad 1:1 The Lightning Round... Teach Thought shares 34 Learning Games from EdShelf They also have a new infographic on 3 Steps to Promoting Creativity in Education EdSurge has a collection of Tweets on How to Best Choose EdTech Products Edutopia discusses 18 Apps That Support the Creative Process Edudemic covers 7 Ways to Get more out of Twitter And they have a new infographic on The Biggest Concern For Schools Deploying iPads And that's all we've got for today!  Thanks for reading!  We'll end with a new infographic from Getting Smart on the Use of Social Media in School.  See you tomorrow! Courtesy of: Getting Smart

Hello!  I'll be on a short break for a family reunion and then my move back to Colombia to start the next school year, but I'll be back the first week in August!  In the meantime, if there are any awesome stories I miss, or apps you'd like to see reviewed, send me a message or a tweet!  See you in a week!-Mike

Despite my best efforts to slow down time, summer break is quickly drawing to a close.  And, while summer break is obviously one of the best things humankind has ever come up with, I am excited to get back in the classroom and try out some new ideas and resources. I'll be back to posting the normal Roundup tomorrow, but I wanted to start off this semester by covering some of the apps I'm really excited about, particularly those that can be used in a variety of subjects and grade levels.  So, without any further ado, let's begin! EduClipper - Clip Everything, Share Anything EduClipper, also known as the "pinterest for education," is an absolutely awesome tool for collecting, sharing, and organizing digital information.  It's great for students and teachers and it can be used to create a digital bulletin board of useful links, articles, pages, and you can even upload your own documents to share.  It's incredibly easy to use and to top it all off, it's free!    [ The Complete Roundup Review of EduClipper ] Class Dojo - Digital Classroom Management Class Dojo is a free classroom management app that can be used on the web, iOS, and Android devices. Within the app, you can store all of your student information and with the click of a mouse, you can easily award students negative or positive points for their behavior in class.  The app records and tracks all that behavior data so that you can view, graph, and analyze it whenever you want!        [ The Complete Roundup Review of Class Dojo ] TouchCast - The Web Inside a Video TouchCast is an awesome new iPad app that allows you to create videos with interactive web content inside of the video.  Within the videos you can integrate maps, images, links, polls, questions, and even live Twitter feeds.  Plus, it's free, fun, and incredibly simple to use.  If you've got iPads you can use in your classroom, definitely give it a try!      [ The Complete Roundup Review of TouchCast ] Metta - Flip Web Content into Video Lessons Metta (formerly Soo Meta) is a web-based tool for creating flipped video lessons.  Teachers can use the tool to take images, audio, and video from their computers (or the web) and easily mix it all into a video lesson that can be sent out to students.  You even have the option to create interactive polls and questions that students can answer while they're watching the lesson!         [ The Complete Roundup Review of Metta ] Brickflow - Hashtag Based Slideshows Brickflow is a web-based tool that instantly builds slideshows based on hashtags (#).  You can easily integrate content from YouTube, Instagram, Tumblr, and Twitter to create a slideshow in seconds.  And if you need to, you can also upload your own content as well, so you don't have to be connected to the social media sites.  It's a great, free tool that I think students will enjoy using!       [ The Complete Roundup Review of Brickflow ] Moby Max - Online Math & Language Curriculum The only reason Moby Max isn't at the top of this list is because I don't teach English anymore, so I won't be able to use this app this fall.  But, for the Language and Math instructors out there, you should absolutely check out the site.  Moby Max is a completely free, standards-based, online curriculum that even determines exactly what indicators your students have trouble with.  It's awesome.      [ The Complete Roundup Review of Moby Max ] EduCade - Find, Create, and Share Lesson Plans Despite being a relatively new resource, EduCade has a ton of free, standards-based, lesson plans to try out.  You can easily search by grade-level or subject-area to find any lesson you might need.  All the lessons come with the resources you need, a step-by-step lesson plan, and even reviews from other teachers who have tried it out.       [ The Complete Roundup Review of Educade ] Answer Pad - The Free Student Response System And last, but certainly not least, The Answer Pad a free web, iOS and Android app that is perfect for the BYOD environment.  Remember "clickers," where a question would appear on the board and then the students would press their answer on a remote?  The Answer Pad takes that idea and improves on it a million times over.  If you have a BYOD policy at your school, definitely check it out.[ The Complete Roundup Review of The Answer Pad ]

Welcome back to your regularly scheduled Roundup!  I've made it back to South America and our school year starts on Monday... yikes!  Before getting this thing started, I wanted to give two big "Thank Yous!"  First, to the Techlandia Podcast and Alison Anderson for the shout-out on Saturday night's episode.  If you haven't watched it yet, they cover some great tech tools and ideas (in their usual hilarious & rambly fashion).  Second, GettingSmart just posted their list of 50 Great Blogs & Blasts and the Roundup made the cut!  Woo!  So, thank you both very much, and to everyone reading the Roundup, I can't thank you enough for your support, feedback, ideas, shares, and encouragement! First up today, the always-awesome Dr. Jackie Gerstein and her blog User Generated Education.  Today, Dr. Gerstein continues her series on "The Other 21st Century Skills" with a post on Empathy and Global Stewardship.  In the post, she defines empathy and global stewardship and discusses what those skills look like in students and in the classroom.  As usual, it's a wonderful read. Jamie Forshey at EduTech for Teachers continues to show her love for Thinglink with her monthly special, "The Geeky Girl's Greatest Hits: Volume VII."  In the article she covers her favorite posts, tools and apps from the month including Jigsaw Planet (the free web-app to create online jigsaw puzzles) and Smoovie (an online tool that students can use to create stop motion animations).  Be sure to check out the post for more excellent resources. I'm not proud to admit this, but it took me a long time to get on board with Twitter (like only 4 months ago long).  I never really saw the use of it until I actually signed up and started exploring.  Now that I have signed up, I would never go back.  It can be an absolutely amazing educational resource and every single teacher should try it out.  To that end, Edudemic shares, "How Teachers Can Stop Being Scared of Twitter."And Edudemic also shares a new infographic from Knowledge Works on the 12 Changes Coming to the Future of Learning.  It's definitely worth a look and you can click the image to enlarge it.   Free Tech for Teachers has five new resources to share:Science 360 - A Good Collection of Science VideosWidgets to Add to your Classroom BlogWhy Historical Thinking MattersiPads Apps to Learn About a New SchoolSmart Kit - School-Safe Games and Puzzles Kelly Tenkely at iLearn Technology has a new review of the "Kids Picture Dictionary App."  It's the perfect dictionary app for young students and it includes a self record feature that lets kids record their own sentence examples.  It's an excellent tool for preschoolers and ESL students and you can check out the post for more tips and the full review! The Ed Tech Review has a new post covering the "Best Technological Ways to Increase Engagement in the Classroom."  One of the major benefits of classroom technology is that it can increase student engagement like few other tools can.  The ETR's new article discusses some great specific examples on tools and ideas for utilizing all the new technology options that are available to schools. Teach Thought has a great post over a new graphic they made about the "7 Most Powerful Idea Shifts in Learning Today."  The post (and graphic) discuss how teaching and learning (and schools in general) are making the shift into the 21st century.  The post covers gamification, blended-learning, self-directed learning, and all the usual suspects.  It's a good read and you can click on the image below for the full size. We've talked about Minecraft a lot here at the Roundup, and I'm a big fan of its educational possibility.  If you're not familiar with Minecraft (or you're still not sure it can be used for educational purposes) Wes Fryer at The Speed of Creativity has an outstanding student example in his new post 4th Grade Virtual Tour of a California Mission.  The video example comes courtesy of Holly Clark and it is wonderful! Ed Reach has four new podcasts to check out:Google Chromecast - It's Only $35Summer Acronym Summary - ADE, DEN and GTAThe EdAdmin Minute: Touch and EffectGamers & Learning with Heather Robertson And, for our grand finale, Pearson shares their vision of the future of education with a collection of videos entitled, "School for Thought."  The collection includes an introduction, an overview of the research that went into the videos, and three different "student stories" that represent the direction Pearson believes education is heading.  Here's Rey's story: The Lightning Round... Edudemic shares How to Use Your iPad in Music ClassThey also cover 5 Educational Websites to Keep Kids LearningAnd Edudemic has a new infographic on The Biggest Online Learning Trends of the YearEducational Technology discusses 9 Great Back to School Resources for TeachersTeach Thought gives us 21 Common Core-Aligned Math AppsMind/Shift talks about 10 Ways to Boost Your Game for Back-to SchoolLisa Nielsen has 8 Easy Tips for Starting a Personal Education BlogAnd of course, don't forget to check out GettingSmart's list of 50 Great Blogs & Blasts That's it for the Roundup today and again, thank you for reading!  Based on the success of yesterday's     8 Apps To Try This Fall post, I'll try to start writing more articles like that to include in the Roundup as well! See you tomorrow!-Mike

Welcome back!  Today we begin at Hybrid Pedagogy with a new post on MOOCs (massive open online courses) in K-12 education, "MOOCifying K-12: Relationships, Collaboration, Risk-Taking."  The post follows Verena Roberts, an educator working to design hybrid online learning systems.  She writes about her experience in creating a system as well as the problems, challenges, feedback, and final reflections. If your school was lucky enough to get a set of iPads for this year, you'll probably want to check out this new article from Edudemic (after you beat Angry Birds, or course) "A Practical Guide For Teachers Who Just Got iPads."  The post opens with the most important tip (in my opinion) "Don't Start Collecting Apps!"  Find a few that you love and work with those!  Then slowly grow from there.  It's an excellent post with lots of advice. Blogger, speaker, and consultant, Annie Murphy Paul has a new post on her blog that asks "Can Data Predict the Future? And What Should We Do About It?"  Paul discusses the growing ethical dilemma of student data collection and analysis.  More and more, schools are collecting information (often without students and parents knowing) and using that information for all sorts of predictive purposes.  Check out Paul's excellent article for a more in-depth analysis of the issues at hand. Mind/Shift has a great article that I missed during the Roundup's break last week, "From Toy to Tool: How to Develop Smart Tablet Habits in Class."  The post raises an important issue: most students see iPads and tablets as toys or, at the very least, devices for entertainment.  How can teachers change that perception and get students to see tablets as a tool for learning? This post offers some great ideas on how to get started! Free Tech For Teachers has five new resources to check out:5 Places for Students to Find Public Domain Images3 Good Advanced Search Options for StudentsWhat is Needed for 7 Billion People?Class Dojo is Giving Away Free iPad Minis!3 Ways to Look at the World as a Village If you're like me, you're probably starting to write (or at least think about writing) some new lesson plans.  Emerging Ed Tech has a great post to help us out with that, "A Few Free Lesson Planning and Classroom Resources for Teachers."  The article discusses how tools like Planboard App and My Lesson Planner can help create lessons and even find new resources! Ed Reach has three new podcasts up to check out:EduWin Weekly: Something to Write the World AboutMarzano Weighs in on Teacher EvaluationWould Curriculum Changes Improve the Dropout Rate? Finally, Monica Burns of Class Tech Tips has a guest post at Edutopia entitled, "The Simple Power of a Screenshot."  It always surprises me how many times teachers will attempt to teach something about computers or applications without ever once using a screenshot.  They're so simple and so useful!  To that end, Burns' article discusses the many, many practical uses for screenshots in education.   The Lightning Round... Edudemic shares a new infographic on Why Should You Try Game-Based Learning?Educational Technology covers the 10 Most Used Smartphone Apps in 2013Getting Smart has Fun New Apps for Learning from EdShelfThe Ed Tech Review discusses 7 Great EdTech Incubators Helping Startups to Succeed And that's all for the Roundup today!  Thanks for reading!  We'll end with a new graphic from Busy Teacher (via Ed Tech Magazine) that I'm pretty sure every teacher will want to hang in their room and hand out to all of their crazy friends who think we only work 3/4ths of the year.  See you tomorrow!