VSTE

Virginia Society for Technology in Education

VDOE

Featured #GoOpenVA Resources, January 26, 2021

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logo for go open vaJean Weller, VSTE Board Member and VDOE Technology Integration Specialist, leads the #GoOpenVA initiative in Virginia. This collaborative initiative enables educators and others throughout Virginia to create, share, and access openly-licensed educational resources (OER, also known as open education resources). OER are free digital materials that can be used or modified to adjust to student needs; they are openly-licensed unhampered by many traditional copyright limitations.

The database is growing. Jean recently created a collection for resources specifically related to professional learning. Technology coaches from across the state have contributed and you can learn more here.

We asked Jean to periodically curate a few of the resources to give a sense of what is available. Start with these but stay for so much more! And be sure to follow Jean on Twitter.

Remixes, or adaptations of lesson plans, are one of the great strengths of OER.  Below are two remixes of plans from outside Virginia, but customized to our SOL by our own Virginia teachers. Then there is the learning object that is user-ready but which you can remix to make your own!

Viaduct on the Baltimore and Washington Railroad Lesson Plan, from Janet Page of Nelson, is a remix of an OER lesson plan which is not on #GoOpenVA currently. Her remix is excellent and includes all the information you need to implement a lesson in reading…using art!

Shopping Spree – Remix is an adaptation of an older lesson from our neighbors in North Carolina.  The lesson asks students to apply math to an everyday situation.  Laura Brown of Loudoun updated the lesson to use digital resources rather than print, and to adjust the activity for older students.

Parts of a Computer, developed by Dana Smith of Tazewell, is exactly what teachers need! Everyone will be working to address the new Computer Science standards and it’s nice to know you don’t have to create ALL of your own materials.  Dana put together a nice short presentation on the parts of a computer, along with clear illustrations.  Use it as is, or adapt it for your own students.

Featured #GoOpenVA Resources, January 19, 2021

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logo for go open vaJean Weller, VSTE Board Member and VDOE Technology Integration Specialist, leads the #GoOpenVA initiative in Virginia. This collaborative initiative enables educators and others throughout Virginia to create, share, and access openly-licensed educational resources (OER, also known as open education resources). OER are free digital materials that can be used or modified to adjust to student needs; they are openly-licensed unhampered by many traditional copyright limitations.

The database is growing. Jean recently created a collection for resources specifically related to professional learning. Technology coaches from across the state have contributed and you can learn more here.

We asked Jean to periodically curate a few of the resources to give a sense of what is available. Start with these but stay for so much more! And be sure to follow Jean on Twitter.

 

We’re starting the new year off with some great lessons contributed by Virginia educators!

“The Moth” Pod Activity lesson plan, from Virginia Beach educator Macy Pniewski, uses a storytelling podcast called “The Moth” to address several 9th grade English SOL.  Listening, of course, is a skill that needs to be practiced at all ages, as is the self-reflection built into the activity.

Domain and Range: To Infinity and Beyond is an Algebra 1 Desmos activity provided by Javier Cabezas of Henrico County.  The lesson link takes you to the Desmos teaching website so you can use this with your own Desmos tool. It is an exploratory lesson that leads students to understand how to describe domain and range with set notation and interval notation.

Regions of Virginia and Art was developed by a team of Chesapeake teachers: Jamie Marquitz, Jessica Brown, Candice Anthony-Cazenave, and Amy Erb.  This cross-curricular lesson addresses the study of the various regions of Virginia while introducing students to an intriguing art technique using colored pencils.

If you reuse or remix one of the lessons, please let us know. If your remix or other resources are featured, you will earn the #GoOpenVA badge!

GoOpenVA Badge

 

Featured #GoOpenVA Resources, January 11, 2021

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logo for go open vaJean Weller, VSTE Board Member and VDOE Technology Integration Specialist, leads the #GoOpenVA initiative in Virginia. This collaborative initiative enables educators and others throughout Virginia to create, share, and access openly-licensed educational resources (OER, also known as open education resources). OER are free digital materials that can be used or modified to adjust to student needs; they are openly-licensed unhampered by many traditional copyright limitations.

The database is growing. Jean recently created a collection for resources specifically related to professional learning. Technology coaches from across the state have contributed and you can learn more here.

We asked Jean to periodically curate a few of the resources to give a sense of what is available. Start with these but stay for so much more! And be sure to follow Jean on Twitter.

 

Our Collections are growing!  We have lots of new lessons added to the VDOE Science and VDOE Fine Arts Collections.  And many new lessons for all grade levels have also been added to the Virginia K12 Computer Science Pipeline.

Here’s a sampling of lessons added.

Ways to Bond: How Elements Become Compounds is one of the lessons created by the VDOE Science team to help teachers integrate the 2018 Science SOL. This particular lesson is focused on HS Chemistry, and includes comprehensive instructional support for the teacher.

Instructional Plan: Music Career Exploration comes from the VDOE Fine Arts team, and is a very timely activity for students in middle school. Students pursue their own paths, with guidance and feedback from the teacher. The plan can be easily implemented during remote learning.

Do You Want to Build a Snowman CS Digital Slides Activity was created through the GO Virginia grant in partnership with Chesapeake Public Schools, Loudoun County Public Schools, and the Loudoun Education Foundation. This is a fun elementary student activity to help students learn about algorithms, and can be used by students in or out of the classroom.

If you reuse or remix one of the lessons, please let us know. If your remix or other resources are featured, you will earn the #GoOpenVA badge!

GoOpenVA Badge

 

Featured #GoOpenVA Resources, December 14, 2020

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logo for go open vaJean Weller, VSTE Board Member and VDOE Technology Integration Specialist, leads the #GoOpenVA initiative in Virginia. This collaborative initiative enables educators and others throughout Virginia to create, share, and access openly-licensed educational resources (OER, also known as open education resources). OER are free digital materials that can be used or modified to adjust to student needs; they are openly-licensed unhampered by many traditional copyright limitations.

The database is growing. Jean recently created a collection for resources specifically related to professional learning. Technology coaches from across the state have contributed and you can learn more here.

Featured Resources

One of the best things about OER is that you can take an lesson created for one content area and edit it to address additional activities to address another content area.  Here are some lessons that can easily be edited to include English SOL, making them cross-curricular.

Comparing the Layers of the Atmosphere is a short science activity from Tanna Mezacapa of Virginia Beach.  This lesson involves having students make comparisons between the layers of the atmosphere and any other layered thing with which they are familiar. Can’t you see a great way to extend this lesson to English studies on similes and metaphors for a cross-curriculum lesson?

Boston Massacre: Propaganda is a primary source lesson from Michelle Carr of Hanover. Focusing on the use of propaganda during a historical time period can also be a great lesson for English regarding writing persuasively or studying media literacy.  Can you write a cross-curricular remix to incorporate English SOL with the History and Social Science SOL?

Map Symbols Unplugged is a lesson created by the Virginia K-12 Computer Science Pipeline project.  Why not add an extra dimension by including writing directions, or creating a story to go with the map(s)?  Such a cross-curricular lesson would give you extra value for the time the students spend on the lesson!

Featured Resources from #GoOpenVA, October 13, 2020

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Swirl with word Go Open VASince its debut in January 2020, #GoOpenVA has been building its collections with the help of Virginia educators. This collaborative initiative enables educators and others throughout Virginia to create, share, and access openly-licensed educational resources (OER, also known as open education resources). OER are free digital materials that can be used or modified to adjust to student needs; they are openly-licensed unhampered by many traditional copyright limitations.

Jean Weller, VSTE Board Member and VDOE Technology Integration Specialist, leads this effort. We asked her to periodically curate a few of the resources to give a sense of what is available. Start with these but stay for so much more! And be sure to follow Jean on Twitter.

Virginia K-12 Computer Science Pipeline: This new Collection in #GoOpenVA has just been started, and includes lessons developed in a partnership between Chesapeake and Loudoun. Over time, new lessons will be added to help teachers at all grade levels integrate Computer Science. This is an example of how school divisions can share their burden of developing new resources with each other!

https://goopenva.org/curated-collections/30

Poetic Forms 9-10th Grade English: April Hobson of Giles added a lesson plan in which she shares her love of poetry with her students.  She notes how poetry can help address not just academic goals, but provide social-emotional outlets for students struggling with big emotions.

https://goopenva.org/courseware/lesson/2061/overview

Equitable Teaching Resources: this Google Doc, created by Kim Wilkens, is a starting point for teachers who want to know more about equitable teaching, whether they want to address CRT or gender equity (or both!).  Add the resources you have found to be helpful and share your knowledge and experience.  With all of us mentoring each other, the journey will be much more beneficial!

https://goopenva.org/courseware/lesson/1320/overview