Calculate Students’ Eligibility for Federal Aid
On April 1, the U.S. Department of Education will roll out an Internet tool giving high school juniors and their families an early jump on how much federal aid they can expect for college. The FAFSA4caster instantly calculates a student’s eligibility for federal grants, reduces the time it takes to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid and eases the process when the students become seniors. The first version will estimate a student’s eligibility for Pell Grants worth up to $4,310. A Spanish version will come out on April 29. In September the department will release a version that will estimate a student’s entire financial aid package, including eligibility for federal student loans.
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Discuss a Book in Your Community
The Big Read is an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts designed to restore reading to the center of American culture by providing citizens with the opportunity to read and discuss a single book within their communities. The initiative includes innovative reading programs in selected cities and towns, comprehensive resources for discussing classic literature and an extensive Web site providing comprehensive information on authors and their works. Approximately 120 organizations in communities of varying sizes across the country will be selected through this selection cycle to participate in The Big Read from September through December 2007. The amount of award varies.
Deadline: April 12, 2007
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Foster Inventiveness
Lemelson–MIT InvenTeams grants foster inventiveness among high school students. InvenTeams composed of high school students, teachers and mentors are asked to collaboratively identify a problem that they want to solve, conduct research on the problem and then develop a prototype invention as an in-class or extracurricular project. High school science, mathematics and technology teachers—or teams of teachers—at public, private and vocational schools are eligible for the $10,000 award. Intra- and inter-school collaborations are welcome.
Deadline: April 27, 2007
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Join the All-USA TEAM
Four times a year, USA TODAY honors outstanding students and educators with the All-USA Academic and Teacher Teams. Students named to first teams receive $2,500; teachers receive $500, and $2,000 goes to the school for use at the teacher’s discretion. In the student programs, judges may select 40 more runners-up to the Second and Third teams, which receive certificates of achievement.
Deadline: April 30, 2007 for next round
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Support Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching
The Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching are among the nation’s highest honors recognizing highly qualified math and science teachers for their contributions in the classroom and to their profession. Teachers of grades 7–12 with 5 years’ experience teaching math or science are eligible for the $10,000 award.
Deadline: May 1, 2007
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Join the growing list of teachers enjoying the eBookDestination Rewards Program. On the first day of each month, a digital coupon (representing 5 percent of your total purchases in the previous month) will be added to your shopping cart. You’ll then be notified via email of the presence (and amount) of this coupon.

There’s no application to complete, no points to collect, no cards to carry, no codes to enter and (most important) no fees to pay. Quite simply, you are repaid for your loyalty with a 5 percent credit toward future purchases. It’s as easy as that!

Browse the eBookstore now! You’ll receive an automatic discount on some 3,000 ebook titles, many of which are bundled with downloadable audio MP3 files, from major educational publishers. Plus, there’s always a selection of the most popular titles on sale!

Get Youth Involved in the Community
“The Power of One,” the latest campaign by Country Music Television’s (CMT) pro-social initiative, CMT One Country, urges CMT viewers to get involved in their community through civic participation and volunteerism. CMT One Country is reaching out to CMT fans to let them know about the opportunity to get involved with National & Global Youth Service Day (April 20–22, 2007) events all over the country. CMT One Country also rewards volunteers for making a difference in their communities by giving them the opportunity to win awards for the good work they already do.
Deadline: Winning volunteers chosen randomly each month, from February 2, 2007 to February 1, 2008
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Help to Change Students’ Lives
The Turnaround Management Association is accepting nominations for the 2007 Butler-Cooley Excellence in Teaching Awards, which honor classroom teachers who have changed the outcome of students’ lives and the communities in which they live. All primary or secondary school teachers employed by accredited U.S. schools for at least five years are eligible for the $5,000 award.
Deadline: May 1, 2007
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Participate in Science Research
The National Science Foundation’s, Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC) at the University of Massachusetts Amherst is soliciting applications from middle school and high school teachers for this summer’s Research Experiences for Teachers (RET) program. Ten teachers will be selected to participate in team research at the Silvio O. Conte National Center for Polymer Research. Since research on polymers includes chemistry, physics, engineering and mathematics, the modules can readily fit into state-mandated frameworks. The program has a flexible duration, as teachers can participate from 6 to 8 weeks. Benefits include a salary of $1,000 per week, up to $1,000 to defray relocation expenses, six graduate credits and at least 135 PDPs.
Deadline: April 7, 2007 for applications
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Run a Presidential Campaign
Can you run a presidential campaign better than the pros? See how well you do with eLECTIONS: Your Adventure in Politics, a free, online, 3-D game. Developed by Cable in the Classroom in partnership with CNN and The History Channel, this nonpartisan election simulation game is also suitable for use in the classroom with middle school and high school students.
Click Here to Access Free Game

Plus: Cable in the Classroom also presents Shakespeare: Subject to Change, a multimedia, broadband journey that shows how Shakespeare’s words changed as they went from pen to printing press to stage and finally to screen. For tips on how to use the site in the classroom, follow the Teachers link under the Shakespeare “window.”
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Discover the Contributions of Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia’s diverse contributions in writing, mathematics, literature and law come alive in Discover Babylon©, a joint project of the Federation of American Scientists Learning Technologies Project, UCLA’s Cuneiform Digital Library, Escape Hatch Entertainment and the Walters Art Museum. Targeted at ages 8–14, Discover Babylon© uses sophisticated video gaming strategies and realistic digital environments to engage the learner in challenges and mysteries that can only be solved through developing an understanding of Mesopotamian society, business practices and trade.
Click Here to View Trailer and Download Free Game

Browse Free Digital Materials—From Algebra to Zoology
A new learning portal has made more than 8,000 digital classroom materials developed by top university faculty available free of charge. In the weeks before the site launched publicly, more than 10,000 people visited Open Educational Resources (OER) Commons, established by the not-for-profit Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Education. The network of shared materials ranges from kindergarten through college, from algebra to zoology. Browse Categories or Collections to find what interests you. With a free membership, you can add tags, ratings, reviews, comments and favorites to your own portfolio. You can also post to discussion, blog and wiki areas and see how others are using OER.
Click Here to Access Free Materials

Get free unlimited online access to all the print content in The Big Deal Book for Educators of Struggling Students, Middle School Through High School, The Big Deal Book for Teachers of English Language Learners and The Big Deal Book of Technology for K–12 Educators. Explore the many opportunities to fund your special programs, access timely reports and articles, locate free and inexpensive resources and identify engaging interactive Web sites.

Spread the Message of Earth Day
The Earth Day Groceries Project is an easy, cost-free environmental awareness project that teams up youth and grocers to spread the message of Earth Day. To participate, teachers simply borrow paper grocery bags from a local grocery store. Students decorate the bags with environmental messages about reuse, recycling, wildlife and so on. The bags are then returned to the grocery store, and on Earth Day, April 22 of each year, customers receive their groceries—along with the message that kids care about our environment—in the decorated bags.
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Celebrate National Poetry Month
Inaugurated by The Academy of American Poets in 1996, National Poetry Month (NPM) brings together publishers, booksellers, literary organizations, libraries, schools and poets around the country to celebrate poetry and its vital place in American culture. On the NPM site, teachers and librarians will find creative and inexpensive suggestions for making poetry a more important part of school life during April and throughout the year.
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View a Special on the Post–9/11 World
On six consecutive nights in April, PBS will air a special titled America at a Crossroads, focusing on the post–9/11 world as viewed from the United States, Europe and the Middle East. The Sunday, April 15 program will launch the series with a two-hour “how did we get here” approach, examining the history of jihad and the role of Al Qaeda. The next night’s segment documents the U.S. ground soldier’s perspective, as well as “Operation Homecoming,” the National Endowment for the Arts project to collect the written experiences of soldiers who have fought in Iraq and Afghanistan. Tuesday’s segment is a look at “The Gangs of Iraq” and a treatise on the U.S. case for war. And Wednesday’s segment examines the European outlook and Muslims in America. Hosted by journalist Robert MacNeil, the series has an extensive companion Web site that provides a complete description of all six segments along with a broadcast schedule.
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Making the Grade: Online Learning in the U.S.
A new report from the Sloan Consortium predicts rapid growth in online education. The nationwide survey, conducted during the 2005–2006 academic year, finds that almost two out of three (63 percent) school districts had one or more students enrolled in either a fully online or a blended course, which combines online learning with traditional face-to-face instruction. The new study estimates that 700,000 K–12 students were engaged in online courses in the 2005–2006 academic year.
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Examining the Effectiveness of Educational Technology
Recently released by the U.S. Department of Education, State Strategies and Practices for Educational Technology: Volume 1, by the National Educational Technology Trends Study (NETTS) group, examines the first two years of the federal Enhancing Education Through Technology (EETT) program. The report draws on data from surveys completed by 50 state technology directors and 916 district technology coordinators, in addition to case studies of six states. Volume 2 of State Strategies and Practices for Educational Technology discusses supporting mathematics instruction with educational technology.
Click Here to Download Volume 1 Report
Click Here to Download Volume 2 Report

Using Technology to Support NCLB
Recently released by the State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA), the National Trends Report 2007, based on a study by The Metiri Group, observes an “emerging sophistication” among states in the use of research and evaluation related to technology. The report also details how the Enhancing Education Through Technology (EETT) program is supporting NCLB goals in four key areas: access to software, online resources and virtual learning aligned to academic standards to raise academic performance; increased levels of access to technology and robust connectivity; expanded professional development opportunities for teachers through online courses, instructional coaches and consortia offerings; and the use of data systems capable of generating real-time data to inform instructional decisions.
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Go Up Against a Fifth Grader
Can you name the colors of a rainbow, the five Great Lakes, the location of Mount Rushmore? Any fifth grader would know, but how about you? Take this online quiz and find out how you match up against a fifth grader.
Click Here for Online Quiz

Conjure the Demise of Harry Potter
Even if you can’t wave a magic wand and find out what lies in store for Harry and friends in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, MuggleNet.com’s “What Will Happen in Harry Potter 7?” is an authoritative attempt to conjure some answers. The experts behind the site lay out facts and predictions on everything from Hogwarts to horcruxes, including the most heated debate of all: Where do Severus Snape’s loyalties truly lie?
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Prepare Youth for the 21st Century
Educators, policymakers, cable network personalities and cable industry leaders can discuss how new technologies and content are being used to help better prepare young people for the 21st century via Kids. Cable. Learning., the official podcast channel of Cable in the Classroom.
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Test Their Tech Knowledge
At Test Your Tech, students can find out just how much they know about science and technology. After they answer each question on the tech quiz, students get immediate feedback and an explanation of the science behind the correct response. Then they can check out related careers, such as robotics technologist, environmental engineer and mechanical drafter/designer.
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Plus: Do your students know what a flying quibit is? What a nanonewton is? Invite them to test their knowledge by taking the What’s Your Nano IQ? quiz.
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