VSTE

Virginia Society for Technology in Education

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Big Deal Book, August 1, 2018

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Blue rectangle with words Maximizing Technology in the the 21st Century Classroom bright graphic on left side of rectangle displays words Big Deal MediaIt's a new year of Big Deal Book: contests, grants, apps, and resources curated with K-12 educators in mind. We highlight some of our favorites from each newsletter. The theme of the August 1, 2018, newsletter is Code with Music, Step into History, Develop Creative Expression & More.

American Revolution As a World War Told Through Primary Sources

A new exhibition at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History in Washington, DC, invites Americans to recognize another world war—one that has traditionally been envisioned as a confrontation between a ragtag army of rebellious colonists and a king’s mighty military force of red-coated Brits.

Virtual Tour of the World-Famous Secret Annex

The Anne Frank House museum has partnered with Force Field VR to recreate the Secret Annex where Anne Frank and her family lived in hiding from July 6, 1942, until their arrest on the morning of August 4, 1944.

Online Courses on Teaching and Learning with Technology

The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) has announced ISTE U, an ongoing option for professional development around teaching and learning with technology.

Big Deal Book, August 1, 2018

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VEPLN Summer of Survival

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Picture from MinecraftThe Virtual Environments Professional Learning Network (VEPLN) will be sponsoring the second annual Survive the Summer event at VSTE Place in Minecraft.

WHAT

Yes! We are doing this again! Shorter and sweeter, this summer, July 2 through July 31, VSTE Place will hold its second Summer of Survival! Participants will be able to warp to survival mode for a completely different Minecraft experience. We will discover why our students beg for survival mode at school.  It's challenging, but fun, and we will need each other to survive!

There will be specific tasks for participants to complete for a certificate from VSTE. You may be able to use that in your district for professional development points or recertification points, but managing that will be strictly up to each participant. We will be here to certify that you participated and to make sure we are all having fun learning about the gaming aspect of Minecraft. Kim H. and Lisa A. will run the course for VBCPS. Laura B. will be running a course for other teachers. Please contact one of us for details.

WHY

The VSTE VE PLN has enjoyed learning to build together in VSTE Place, our Minecraft server, for a while now. We meet there the first Monday of the month at 8 PM Eastern time for networking. We have had speakers, guest teachers, students as teachers, and fun activities. We do most of these things in creative mode.

Many of us have expanded our classroom practice to include teaching and learning with Minecraft. We have both after school clubs and create learning experiences for the instructional part of our students' day. During these activities, inevitably the students request, or rather plead, for survival mode. Therefore, we have decided to dive into Survival mode this summer to see what all the fuss is about.

JOIN US!

To join us  on VSTE Place, the VSTE Minecraft server and/or participate in VSTE's Summer of Survival! email K4sons@gmail.com with your PC Mojang Minecraft account name. minecraft.net

K4sons will reply with the server address after she has added you to the whitelist. Warp to SOS2018, /warp sos2018. our survival world, is at spawn. You will see it immediately. Veteran players have been building a safe area for you that looks remarkably like Jamestown!

Website https://sites.google.com/view/vstesofs17/

Big Deal Book, June 15, 2018

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Blue rectangle with words Maximizing Technology in the the 21st Century Classroom bright graphic on left side of rectangle displays words Big Deal Media

VSTE partners with Big Deal Media to bring you the "best of the best" of web-based resources, classroom competitions and teacher grant programs. The June 15, 2018, newsletter offers resources that Take Science into Summer, Hear Stories of Latinas in STEM & More.

Here are a few of our favorites...be sure to check out the whole newsletter!

Videos Exploring the Science Behind Summer Activities

Throughout the summer months, students can explore the science behind some of their favorite summer activities. On PBS LearningMedia’s Science of Summerwebsite, students will discover the physics of sailing, the chemistry of campfires, the mineral composition of sand, the forces that allow humans to ride bicycles and rollercoasters—and more.

Books About the Immigrant Experience

June is Immigrant Heritage Month, and Brightly, an online resource to help educators grow lifelong readers, features 15 books for children about the Immigrant Experience in America. One of the books suggested for children in prekindergarten/kindergarten is The Name Jar, a familiar immigrant tale of having an unfamiliar name and feeling like an outsider—until someone kind or brave or both makes a gesture of inclusion.

Initiative Encouraging Young Latinas to Pursue Careers in Technology

TECHNOLOchicas is an initiative of the National Center for Women & Information Technology (NCWIT) and Televisa Foundation designed to raise awareness among young Latinas and their families about opportunities and careers in technology.

Big Deal Book, June 15, 2018

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Leading Ed Forum 2018: Creating Vision & Value

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Conference logo with theme

The Third Annual Leading Ed Forum will be held October 8 and 9, 2018, at Daniel Technology Center in Culpeper, Virginia. Sponsored by VSTE and the Virginia Department of Education, this event focuses on division level issues faced by instruction and technology leaders from CTOs to Superintendents.

We are still finalizing the schedule but you can take a peak at the draft here.

Join your fellow leaders for two days of learning and sharing. We will feature a nationally known keynote speaker and breakout sessions presented by VDOE and state level leaders. Attendees will have opportunities to share their school division's challenges and successes and connect with other division decision makers and selected corporate partners and sponsors.

Strands will be organized around the CoSN Framework of Essential Skills. This framework designates 10 specific skill areas organized into three primary professional categories and outline the responsibilities and knowledge needed to be a viable educational technology leader. You can learn more here at the CoSN website. The VSTE CoSN Council is the Virginia chapter of CoSN.

smiling man in blue shirt We are pleased to announce that Jeff Mao, former Learning Technology Policy Director for the Maine Department of Education, will provide Monday's opening keynote as well as a breakout session. Jeff brings a wealth of experience to our event: he has been a classroom teacher, school technology coordinator, district technology director, state education technology director, and education technology consultant over his 25+ years supporting kids and learners. He served on the Board of Directors of the State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA) for six years including two as Chair of the Board.

Jeff was directly responsible for the Maine Learning Technology Initiative (MLTI). He oversaw all aspects of the program including vision, implementation, policy, professional development, procurement and contract management. He was a lead author of the State of Utah’s Master Plan: Essential Elements for Technology Powered Learning. Additionally, he is an advisor for Future Ready Schools and has moderated and presented at almost all of Future Ready’s Summits and Institutes. Jeff was a Senior Director for Common Sense Media’s education division (2014-2018). He is currently a Senior Strategic Education Outreach Manager for Wonder Workshop.

Dr. James Lane, Superintendent of Instruction for Virginia, will keynote on Tuesday, October 9.

Meanwhile, early bird registration is open now through September 8. We offer both one- and two-days tickets for $65/day. This will include breakfast, lunch and access to all sessions. We have not reserved a room block. for this event but you can find a suggested hotels list here.

Register Now

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Big Deal Book, June 1, 2018

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Blue rectangle with words Maximizing Technology in the the 21st Century Classroom bright graphic on left side of rectangle displays words Big Deal Media

 

 

 

 

 

VSTE partners with Big Deal Media to bring you the "best of the best" of web-based resources, classroom competitions and teacher grant programs. The June 1, 2018, newsletter offers resources that Merge STEM & Literacy, Sharpen Media Skills, Coach New Teachers & More.

Here are a few of our favorites...be sure to check out the whole newsletter!

Science Journal for Collecting and Recording Observations

Google’s Science Journal transforms students’ mobile devices into a science laboratory, encouraging students to conduct authentic experiments, collect and visualize data, and record observations from the world around them.

Lesson Challenging Assumptions About Others

Facing History and Ourselves offers a lesson that challenges students’ assumptions with curiosity. In the lesson, students practice being thoughtful about fellow citizens’ values, identities, and perspectives by reflecting on a video featuring voices of young people from across the country.

Astronauts Reading Stories to Children from Space

If you’re looking for a way to take story time up a notch with the children in your classroom, why not turn to astronauts? That’s the premise of Story Time from Space, a project from the nonprofit Global Space Education Foundation that features astronauts reading children’s books from the International Space Station.

Big Deal Book, June 1, 2018

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