Digital Literacy & Citizenship Classroom Curriculum - Common Sense Media

Empower students to think critically, behave safely, and participate responsibly

https://www.commonsensemedia.org/educators/curriculum

Empower students to think critically, behave safely, and participate responsibly in the digital world. Access the K-12 curriculum in two ways:

1) iBooks Textbooks: Media-rich Teacher Editions and Student Workbooks including videos, interactive lessons, assessments, and more!

2) Printable Curriculum: downloadable and printable lesson plans (PDFs)

See also:

Decorate with Digital Citizenship Classroom Posters

Download colorful POSTERS to remind students about digital citizenship and device care and maintenance.

Digital Toolkits

Curricular TOOLKITS put topical resources at your fingertips. In each toolkit, you'll find lesson plans, activities, videos, and parent outreach materials.

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MiniTFO - Vidéo-clips de chansons pour les jeunes

Primary songs in French - video clips

http://www1.tfo.org/mini/Videos/Categorie/100319146

TFO features a number of short songs suitable for primary classes. Songs cover colours, animals, weather, etc. Hover your mouse over the thumbnails to see the video titles.

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▶ What is Genius Hour? - Introduction to Genius Hour in the Classroom

Help students explore their passion!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMFQUtHsWhc

"Founded on an innovation championed by businesses like FedEx and Google, "the genius hour" sets aside school time (at least an hour, every week) for students to work on something they are passionate about. This video outlines some basic tenets of implementing "genius hour" programming at your school and points to further resources (tutorials, lesson ideas, and connections to other educators) at www.geniushour.com. "

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LunaPic | Free Online Photo Editor

Turn images into sketches or paintings

http://www166.lunapic.com/editor/?action=surreal

Do you want your students' BookCreator stories to look more like the real thing? Try converting the images to drawings or paintings to give ithemt more of a children's book feel. Use LunaPic, upload the image, apply the effect you want, copy/paste. Voilà

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The Hat By Jan Brett - WeGiveBooks

Seasonal Reading

http://www.wegivebooks.org/books/the-hat/reader

WeGiveBooks is offering some seasonal favourites on their site. Great for projecting and sharing. Take a look!

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CK-12 Life Science Concepts For Middle School Textbook

Flexible, Free, Downloadable Science Text

http://www.ck12.org/book/CK-12-Life-Science-Concepts-For-Middle-School/

"What exactly does it mean to be alive? These concepts will serve as an introduction to life science, discussing the basics of studying the life sciences and addressing the question, "What is a living organism?"

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Sick Science! - Science experiments made easy

Hands-on Science

https://www.youtube.com/user/SteveSpanglerScience/videos

"Steve Spangler, known for his experiments on local TV station, acts as a science consultant for a local school district. He helps students get motivated and more interested in the hands-on aspect of science. Explore this Youtube CHannel filled with easy-to-try science experiments for home or school."

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Bibliotherapy for Teens: An Expanded Booklist

Fiction for growth, succor, and learning

http://www.slj.com/2014/12/collection-development/bibliotherapy-for-teens-an-expanded-booklist/

Ashleigh Williams has created an (expanded) booklist of YA fiction titles that address a variety of issues teens may be grapping with. (Realistic Teen Fiction and Mental Health Booklist.)

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Using QR Codes to Promote Your Library

Provide an engaging way to interact with your space

http://www.ebscohost.com/novelist/novelist-special/using-qr-codes-to-promote-your-library

Barb Zinkovich offers some QR code ideas.

"QR codes seem to be everywhere! For the uninitiated, QR codes are the square barcodes you find on just about anything today  --  from food labels to store coupons to visitor guide brochures --  accessible with a QR reader that can be downloaded to any smartphone or tablet device. Once scanned, the codes link to a source (a video or website, for example) that provides more information on a particular topic. For that reason, QR codes can make an effective promotional tool."

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Stenhouse Publishers: In Defense of Read-Aloud - Preview online

Reading aloud is best practice

http://www.stenhouse.com/html/in-defense-of-read-aloud.htm

"In Defense of Read-Aloud: Sustaining Best Practice" by Steven Layne

Preview link

"The practice of reading aloud to children may be viewed by some educators as an "extra"—a bit of fluff used solely for the purposes of enjoyment or filling a few spare minutes. But researchers and practitioners stand in solidarity: the practice of reading aloud throughout the grades is not only viable but also best practice."

Preview the title online: http://www.stenhouse.com/emags/1040/index.html

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It’s Not About the Books: Three Approaches for Serving Reluctant Readers

Solving the reluctant reader conundrum

http://www.ebscohost.com/novelist/novelist-special/its-not-about-the-books-three-approaches-for-serving-reluctant-readers

In this article, Heather Booth offers three strategies for pulling in reluctant teen readers.

"It's a perennial problem -- the reluctant reader conundrum. How can we convince these potential readers that there's something great in our collections just waiting for them? [...]  Here are three strategies to consider that are about the most important part of our library: our patrons.

• "Challenge!"
• "Made you Look!"
• "Rewind and Frame"
  

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5 Powerful Questions Teachers Can Ask Students

Start tomorrow with these five

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/five-powerful-questions-teachers-ask-students-rebecca-alber

"Many would agree that for inquiry to be alive and well in a classroom that, amongst other things, the teacher needs to be expert at asking strategic questions [...] With that in mind, if you are a new teacher or perhaps not so new but know that question-asking is an area where you'd like to grow, start tomorrow with these five:

#1. What do you think?

#2. Why do you think that?

#3. How do you know this?

#4. Can you tell me more?

#5. What questions do you still have?"

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