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BDB's Biweekly E-letter
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March 17, 2008
Timely reminders, fabulous freebies, best sites & more "worth the surf"
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In Partnership With:
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In
partnership with CDW-G, Discovery Education will
award five grand-prize wireless labs, valued at more than $50,000 each,
through its “Win A Wireless Lab” sweepstakes. Each
lab includes 20 laptop or notebook computers, an interactive
whiteboard, mobile cart, projector, printer, wireless access points,
portable document camera, digital camcorder, digital camera and a
$5,000 Discovery Education digital media grant. In addition,
there will be drawings for five interactive whiteboards, one per month
through May 2008, and more than 20 additional secondary prizes.
Deadlines:
May 1, 2008 for grand prize; monthly through May 2008 for drawings
Click Here for More Information
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Captain
Planet Foundation Education Grants fund and support hands-on
environmental projects for children and youths that encourage
innovative programs and empower children and youth around the world
to work individually and collectively to solve environmental problems
in their neighborhoods and communities. Generally, the range of
grants awarded by the foundation is from $250 to $2,500.
Deadline: March 31, 2008
Click Here for More Information
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The
Motorola Foundation is partnering with the Chicago History
Museum to commemorate the 200th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s
birth by identifying and funding projects developed by civic,
educational and cultural organizations that actively engage the
public in the lessons from Lincoln’s life. Grants will be provided
on the basis of three themes: Bringing History into the Future;
Engaging in Current Events; and Leadership Skills. The amount of the
award varies.
Deadline: March 30, 2008
Click Here for More Information
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Microsoft’s
DigiGirlz High Tech Camp works to dispel stereotypes of the
high-tech industry and gives girls in grades 7–12 a chance to
experience firsthand what it is like to develop cutting-edge
technology. During the camp, girls are exposed to executive speakers,
technology tours and demonstrations, networking and hands-on learning
workshops. To be eligible to attend the camp, girls must be at least
13 years old at the time of attendance. There is no cost
associated with the camp; Microsoft provides the camp free of
charge for attending girls.
Deadlines:
Because the camps are offered in multiple locations, the due dates
for the application vary; see Web site for details
Click Here for More Information
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EBOOK DESTINATION
NEW
Look! MORE Savings!
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 thousands of 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!
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Sign
up at The Big Deal Book Web site for hELLo!,
a free monthly ELL e-newsletter that
includes information about new grants, upcoming contests, the latest
educational research and a wealth of information on interactive print
and online resources for students, teachers, librarians, principals
and others involved in the education of English language learners.
Click Here to Sign Up for Free Newsletter
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Nominations
are being accepted for the Tech Museum of Innovation’s 2008
Tech Museum Awards: Technology Benefiting Humanity.
The intent is to honor innovators from around the world who are
applying technology to benefit humanity. Following the nomination
period, eligible nominees will be invited to submit applications in
five categories: Environment; Economic Development; Education;
Health; Equality. In September 2008, 25 Laureates will be selected by
an international panel of judges led by the Santa Clara University
Center for Science, Technology and Society. Five of the 25 Laureates
will each receive a $50,000 prize at a gala event, when
Silicon Valley luminaries and technology philanthropists gather to
celebrate the ways in which these Laureates have applied technology
to address the world’s most pressing issues.
Deadline: March 24, 2008
Click Here for More Information
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Canvastic
LLC is searching for school districts that are technology leaders
nationwide. Districts that meet the qualification criteria will be
awarded licenses of Canvastic version 3, a
student-focused graphics/text publishing tool for K–8. The company
will award one unlimited building site license ($949 value) for every
two elementary and middle schools in the district. This is a pure
gift, valued from $10,000 to $200,000 or more, with no obligation
beyond installation of the program.
Click Here for More Information
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After
60 years of delivering holiday joy to millions of disadvantaged
children, the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation has announced
its first year-round initiative, the Toys for Tots Literacy
Program.
This new
initiative will offer the nation’s most economically disadvantaged
children the ability to compete academically and to succeed in life
by providing direct access to books and educational resources that
will enhance their ability to read and to communicate effectively.
The national network of The UPS Store and Mail Boxes
Etc. franchises will serve as exclusive sponsors of the
initiative.
To help support
this initiative, Scholastic will offer a selection of
children’s titles to the Toys for Tots Literacy Program at a
special, discounted nonprofit rate. As a long-standing partner of
Toys for Tots, Scholastic will help the Toys for Tots Literacy
Program select age-appropriate books that will not only teach a child
how to read but instill a passion for learning.
Click Here for More Information
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The
halls and spires of Oxford are familiar to followers of Inspector
Morse and other such PBS characters. Now you can join Anglophiles
from all over the world for a summer week studying,
living and dining at Christ Church, one of the
most prestigious of the Oxford Colleges. With five sessions starting
on Sundays, June 29–July 27, the weekly courses cover topics
ranging from “Romantic Jane Austin” to “Castles in Britain.”
The Oxford Experience is designed for non-specialists.
Participants do not need any formal qualifications to take part, just
an interest in their chosen subject and a desire to meet like-minded
people. Classes meet in small, friendly
groups, usually of 10 to 12 people.
Deadline:
The closing date for enrollments is April 1, 2008; however, until May
1, 2008, places may be available on some seminars. Visit the site
linked below for more information or contact the Oxford Experience
Programme Administrator for details: ipoxexp@conted.ox.ac.uk
Click Here for More Information
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Developed
at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, Project Zero’s
Visible Thinking is a research-based approach to integrating
the development of students’ thinking with content learning across
subject areas. Thinking Routines loosely guide learners’
thought processes and encourage active processing. These short,
easy-to-learn mini-strategies extend and deepen students’ thinking
and become part of the fabric of everyday classroom life. Thinking
Ideals are easily accessible concepts capturing naturally
occurring goals, strivings or interests that often propel thinking.
Four Ideals—Understanding, Truth, Fairness and Creativity—are
presented as modules on this site. There are associated routines for
each ideal, and within each module, there are activities that help
deepen students’ concepts around the ideal. The Visual Thinking
Web site provides in-depth descriptions of the ideals, routines and
activities developed from research in K–12 schools. The six
sections of the site are Visible Thinking in Action; Getting Started;
Thinking Routines; Thinking Ideals; School Wide Culture of Thinking;
Additional Resources. Each of the illustrated boxes on the left side
of the homepage link to one of these areas.
Click Here to Visit Web Site
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Big
Universe, Inc., has launched BigUniverse.com, a Web site
where children, parents, teachers, librarians and authors can read
and create quality children’s picture books online.
The site also includes a blog section that allows educators,
students and parents to connect with children’s book authors and
other professionals.
Click Here to Access Free Online Children's Books
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Eye
On Education’s Tales From a Teacher’s Heart is a free
video series that features heartwarming stories about
students, teachers and schools. Each month, one of Eye On America’s
best-selling authors presents, online, a true story that chronicles
the real work educators do and demonstrates their commitment and
strength.
Click Here to View Free Online Video
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FableVision’s
SmartMoves, a DVD designed for students in grades 3–12,
leads students through a series of increasingly complicated body
movements that function as a kind of calisthenics for the brain.
Forty Body Puzzles at varying levels of difficulty (Simple,
Simple Too, Tricky, Challenging and Formidable) are included
in the SmartMoves DVD. The Body Puzzle movements call on a
synthesis of the visual, auditory, motor planning and thinking skills
that are at the core of learning. A supplemental Teacher's Guide
is also included.
Click Here to View Free Video Demo
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The
NOS Education Discovery Kits describe the basic scientific
principles underlying the applied science and activities of the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s
National Ocean Service (NOS). Designed for educators and
students at the high school level, the Discovery Kits are written in
nontechnical language and focus on the themes of oceans, coasts, and
charting and navigation. Each Discovery Kit, which contains a
tutorial, a roadmap to resources and a series of lesson
plans, incorporates many multimedia features (audio, video and
animations).
Click Here to Access Free Discovery Kits
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The
State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA) has
released its 2008 National Trends Report. Fifty states
and the District of Columbia completed the survey on the impact of
NCLB’s Title II D, Enhancing Education Through Technology (EETT)
program, representing 99 percent of the federal dollars for
educational technology allocated across the country.
Click Here to Access Free Report
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Within
a generation or two, English will become the dominant or only
language among Latinos, just as it did for newcomers during previous
immigration waves, according to English Usage Among Hispanics
in the United States. Although only 23 percent of
foreign-born Latinos speak English “very well,” 88 percent of the
second generation are fluent. That number rises to 94 percent in
later generations. The figures are part of a four-year series of
surveys conducted by the Pew Hispanic Center, a nonpartisan
think tank that studies Latinos’ impact on the nation.
Click Here to Access Full Report
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Congress
for Kids offers an interactive three-tiered self-quiz about the
civil rights era from 1954–1968. The challenge includes a
vocabulary quiz and two multiple-choice quizzes. Participants must
pass each quiz to advance to the next level of questioning.
Click Here to Take the Quiz
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Thirteen/WNET
New York has announced GREEN SQUAD, a new national
multi-platform initiative that will engage middle school–aged
students in the quest to make and keep America “green.”
In GREEN SQUAD, teams of 12- to 14-year-olds from around the
country will challenge friends, families, neighbors and one another
to make their community the “greenest” in America. From creating
new ways to recycle and planting trees to hosting “green” car
washes and organizing eco-themed social events, the teams will engage
in a fun, exciting competition to raise awareness about the need to
reduce carbon footprints and keep the planet healthy. The GREEN SQUAD
teams (chosen from a nationwide search) will share their progress
with America through videos, photos and blogs they upload to a rich,
highly interactive Web site, where viewers can support their favorite
team while also learning along with them. Visitors to the GREEN
SQUAD site will also discover news and features about
improving the environment, a place to add their own content and
instructional material for educators on global
environmental issues.
Click Here to Visit Web Site
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Most
students feel right at home in cyberspace. They already know how to
have fun online, but do they know how to play it safe and protect
themselves from online dangers? Web Wise Kids empowers today’s
youth to make wise online choices. Through state-of-the-art computer
games, based on real-life scenarios, Web Wise Kids creates a safe,
friendly Internet experience. Encourage your students to take the
“Know It All?” challenge
and find out how they score. They can also read through the safety
tips or share them
with friends who may not know as much about online safety as they do.
Or they can impress they parents by filling out an Internet
Safety Plan.
Click Here to Visit Web Site
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Immersion
Presents, an interactive educational program led by Dr.
Robert Ballard and a team of NOAA scientists, uses telepresence
technology—a combination of satellite and Internet connections—to
transport young people to a real-world scientific expedition.
The
program features live broadcasts and hands-on science
activities correlated to the National Science Education Standards
(NSES) for grades 5–8 and the Ocean Literacy Essential Principles &
Fundamental Concepts. The program also inspires students with an
engaging Web site that includes interactive multimedia resources.
Click Here to Visit Web Site
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