This SimpleK12 presenter interview is with Luis Perez. Dr. Luis Perez received his doctorate in the Department of Special Education at the University of South Florida. His research focuses on experiences of students with visual disabilities, disability studies, and the application of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles to improve access for all students. He is currently a technology integration specialist with the iTeach Initiative.  (If you missed the last interview with Melissa Mann, you can watch it here.)

Watch to hear what Luis has to say about implementation tips for ipads to meet special education needs.

Now let's take a look at what you all have been saying about Luis...

"Loved all the very useful tips provided and the passion from the speaker!" - ShellTerrell

"Wonderful overview of some of the awesome apps that are available for taking pictures. Also a lot of truth in the fact that you always have a camera on you if you have your phone. Great presentation!" - hrobison

"Awesome webinar! Packed with information and resources! It's great to learn about how to utilize the accessibility tools and learn how we as teachers can use IPads to give our Special Needs students more ways to help them learn." - jpesl

Click here to take a look at Luis's live and on-demand SimpleK12 webinars.

Imagine yourself...

• saving time and simplify your grading
• engaging students with 21st century tools
• increasing classroom participation and collaboration

Discover how to do all of the above (and more!) at our FREE Day of Learning - won't you join us?

==> FREE Day of Learning - Register Now

Google, Web Tools, Digital Storytelling - oh my! This special online event will cover all of your favorite topics.

==> Space is Limited - RESERVE YOUR SPOT NOW

See you there,

Kimberly

There are many quote collections online ... This one includes some of our favorite Science quotes.

Write them on your board... post them to your Facebook... Tweet them... or add them to your Teacher Learning Community profile page.

Hope you enjoy!  Be sure to add your own favorite Science quotes as comments.

20 Great Science Quotes

1. "As soon as man does not take his existence for granted, but beholds it as something unfathomably mysterious, thought begins." - Albert Schweitzer
    
2. "What is a scientist after all? It is a curious man looking through a keyhole, the keyhole of nature, trying to know what’s going on." - Jacques Cousteau
   
   
3. "As an adolescent I aspired to lasting fame, I craved factual certainty, and I thirsted for a meaningful vision of human life — so I became a scientist. This is like becoming an archbishop so you can meet girls."       - Matt Cartmill
   
   
4. "In the Middle Ages people believed that the earth was flat, for which they had at least the evidence of their senses: we believe it to be round, not because as many as 1 percent of us could give physical reasons for so quaint a belief, but because modern science has convinced us that nothing that is obvious is true, and that everything that is magical, improbable, extraordinary, gigantic, microscopic, heartless, or outrageous is scientific." - George Bernard Shaw
   
   
5. "Whatever the scientists may say, if we take the supernatural out of life, we leave only the unnatural."      - Amelia Barr
   
   
6. "What delights us in visible beauty is the invisible." - Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach
   
   
7. "A visitor to Niels Bohr’s country cottage, noticing a horseshoe hanging on the wall, teased the eminent scientist about this ancient superstition, 'Can it be that you, of all people, believe it will bring you luck?' 'Of course not,' replied Bohr, 'but I understand it brings you luck whether you believe of not.'”                          - Bartlett’s Book of Anecdotes
   
   
8. "Because we do not understand the brain very well we are constantly tempted to use the latest technology as a model for trying to understand it. In my childhood we were always assured that the brain was a telephone switchboard…Sherrington, the great British neuroscientist, thought the brain worked like a telegraph system. Freud often compared the brain to hydraulic and electromagnetic systems. Leibniz compared it to a mill…At present, obviously, the metaphor is the digital computer." - John R. Searle
   
   
9. "The scientific theory I like best is that the rings of Saturn are composed entirely of lost airline luggage."    - Mark Russell
   
   
10. "We especially need imagination in science. It is not all mathematics, nor all logic, but it is somewhat beauty and poetry." - Maria Mitchell
    
    
11. "The current state of knowledge can be summarized thus: in the beginning there was nothing, which exploded." - Terry Prachett
    
    
12. “An expert is a person who has made all the mistakes that can be made in a very narrow field.”                 - Niels Bohr
    
    
13. "If an elderly but distinguished scientist says that something is possible, he is almost certainly right; but if he says that it is impossible, he is very probably wrong." - Arthur C. Clarke
    
    
14. "A new idea is delicate. It can be killed by a sneer or a yawn; it can be stabbed to death by a quip and worried to death by a frown on the man’s brow." - Charles Brower
    
    
15. "If I had thought about it, I wouldn’t have done the experiment. The literature was full of examples that said you can’t do this." - Spencer Silver
    
16. "Real progress in understanding nature is rarely incremental. All important advances are sudden intuitions, new principles, new ways of seeing. We have not fully recognized this process of leaping ahead, however, in part because textbooks tend to tame revolutions…They describe the advances as if they had been logical in their day, not all shocking." - Marilyn Ferguson
    
    
17. "One thing I have learned in a long life: that all our science, measured against reality, is primitive and childlike - and yet it is the most precious thing we have." - Albert Einstein
    
    
18. "Science…is part and parcel of our knowledge and obscures our insight only when it holds that the understanding given by it is the only kind there is." - Carl Jung
    
    
19. "OK, so what’s the speed of dark?" - Steven Wright
     
20. "My own suspicion is that the universe is not only queerer than we suppose, but queerer than we can suppose." - J.B.S. Haldane

This SimpleK12 presenter interview is with Melissa Mann. Melissa is a special education teacher with the Madison County School System. She has taught both self-contained and collaborative students in grades Kindergarten through 6th grade. Melissa is dually certified in Elementary Education and Special Education. She also has a Master's in School Counseling and is a certified school counselor. (If you missed the last interview with Gayle Berthiaume, you can watch it here.)

Watch to hear what Melissa has to say about ideas for teachers using a single ipad in the classroom.

Now let's take a look at what you all have been saying about Melissa...

"Thanks for a great webinar. I've watched several of yours and always see lots of new apps and information on how to use them. Great webinar." - jpesl

"Melissa, thank you so much for a great webinar. I learn about alot of new Apps today that I can share with my special education teachers." - lonihowell

"Thanks for a really terrific webinar! I teach ESL and have just recently received 1 iPad to use in my ESL Program. I didn't really know how to get started, so I appreciate the ideas about rules for using the iPad and teaching the apps, etc. Thanks for searching out the best blogs with information for 1 iPad classrooms as well. Very useful information in this webinar...." - jpesl

Click here to take a look at Melissa's live and on-demand SimpleK12 webinars.

 This Sunday is Mother's Day!

Help your students create something wonderful for their moms while teaching them.

...................................................................

• Twig Frame - By collecting twigs from around your school campus and using glue (carefully!), you can assemble a simple, cute picture frame! 
• Illustrated Acrostic Poem - Teach students a new style of poetry while creating something their mothers will adore.
• Paper Flowers - Attach bunched up tissue paper in bright colors to pipe cleaners for an adorable gift that won't wilt away.
• Mother's Portrait - Have students draw a picture of their mom! It might not be flattering, but they'll keep it close to their heart.
• Hand Print Bouquet - Children grow up too fast. By using paint and putting hand prints down in a floral pattern, help mothers have a keepsake of their children.

Here are some more ideas from Pinterest.

Our next iPad Day of Learning is coming up tomorrow - will I see you there?

Top 3 Reasons to Attend...

• This event is FREE (...and no, that's not a typo).
• Our expert presenters have the best iPad tips, strategies, and advice ... and they're sharing ALL of them with you.
• These webinars are online.  So feel free to sit back, relax, and learn from the comfort of your own home.  We prefer to wear bunny slippers, but your attire is up to you!

Click the image below and RESERVE YOUR SPOT NOW

Remember - this is a FREE event, so help spread the word and invite your friends and colleagues. Everyone is welcome to join us and learn how to get the most out of their iPads! 

See you there.

This SimpleK12 presenter interview is with Gayle Berthiaume. For 35 years, Gayle has taught K-2, Title 1 and Gifted clustered students in Becker, Minnesota. She is also a consultant and trainer, helping teachers nationwide learn about the internet, technology, and creative ways to use both inside the classroom. (If you missed the last interview with Jenna Linskens, you can watch it here.)

Watch to hear what Gayle has to say about how iPads can help students with special needs.

Now let's take a look at what you all have been saying about Gayle...

"Thank you to Gayle! She shared some great resources for those students needing extra help! I LOVE AppShopper! Wow! Didn't know it existed! It will save me a ton of time searching for apps!" - Andrea C.

"This was a bit of freshness, I tend over look apps like these and need to use more. Thank you for the resources." - seawink

"This was a wonderful webinar - so many great apps and ideas for using them. The resources page is so valuable for continued learning. THANK you!" - reader

Click here to take a look at Gayle's live and on-demand SimpleK12 webinars.

The following is a guest post by Sam Gliksman, one of SimpleK12's presenters.
Click here to watch Sam's Webinars inside the Teacher Learning Community.

Everything I Need To Know - About Education - I Learned In Kindergarten

I was recently giving a workshop at a local elementary school. Walking around and speaking to teachers and children it suddenly dawned on me that several of the "revolutionary" educational changes we've been calling for have actually already been around for quite a while - just talk a stroll down to the Kindergarten classes.

If only the rest of school looked a little more like those classrooms. In fact, eight important pillars of a 21st century education can be found in most Kindergarten classrooms every day of the week:

1. PLAY

The first rule of Kindergarten is to have fun. Our youngest students love coming to school, and if any child doesn't seem happy then we make it a high priority to find and remedy the problem. Play is a highly effective method of informal learning that requires imagination and creativity. Happy, playful children are not daydreaming and clock watching - they are engaged and absorbed in their activities. As children get older however, play starts taking a back seat to "academics" ... which are usually priorities determined by people in offices far away from the students' actual classroom environment.

2. CREATE

Creativity is becoming lost in the shuffle of the current "back to basics" school movement. While certainly required in any artistic endeavor, creativity is also a highly essential coping skill for our rapidly changing lives in the 21st century. Our toddlers are constantly being encouraged to think and play creatively. We even structure the classroom physically in an attempt to stimulate creativity - using bright colors, informal seating and allowing children ample room to move. Contrast that to the staid colors and fixed rows of desks found in most upper school classes where "follow the norm" has replaced "think out of the box".

A couple of years ago I attended a lecture by American artist, Erik Wahl. As part of his presentation he splashed paint around a canvas while creating a portrait on stage. Afterwards he turned to the audience and asked, "How many of you consider yourselves artists?". Out of an audience of several hundred people only a couple of hands were raised. He then related how he often goes into pre-school classes and asks the very same question. The difference is that almost every hand in the room immediately shoots up. The sad fact is that school squashes our inner sense of creativity as we get older. Instead of inspiring our students to be imaginative and create we tell them to follow the rules - "Do what I tell you to do ... and make sure do it exactly the way I asked you to do it".

3. SOCIALIZE

We understand that young children are social by nature and encourage them to mingle. We don't seat them alone in fixed desks facing the front of the room. Instead we allow them appropriate time to roam and socialize. Importantly, we recognize the value of getting them to work together in small groups. When they get older and try to work together we often label the activity "cheating". They're usually told to sit alone, face the front and work quietly on their own. Socializing is considered an extra-curricular activity that has no place in serious academics ... well, not until you get out into the workplace!

4. DISCOVER

Children are curious and love to explore the world around them. They naturally observe, ask questions and demand answers. Kindergarten class might be spent exploring a bug brought in from the playground or listening to a story from a parent with an interesting profession. Their world is a playground that they constantly explore.

As they get older we tell them that their world is divided into nicely delineated courses with predetermined content. Important questions and issues that would normally require discussion and explanation are shelved because they don't fit into some arbitrary course curriculum. How many times do you hear "we don't have time for that today"? If coursework is completed then there might possibly be some time left to explore a topic of interest. In the meantime, exploration is put on hold.

5. EXPERIENCE

Effective learning occurs when children build new understandings based on experiences that help them construct new knowledge. Kindergarten teachers help provide a myriad of experiences for their students. We don't read about hamsters - we keep a pet in class and observe how they eat. We might even allow each child to take the pet home for an evening. We encourage children to bring things into class so that others can feel, taste, experience and learn from them. Their experiences provide a scaffolding for the children to build upon and extend what they already know. We understand that children learn most deeply and effectively through experience.

However, content is king when they get to the older grades. It seems that the only valid experience for learning is reading from a text book or listening to a teacher.

6. EXPRESS

Mixing different forms of media and communication is an essential component of Kindergarten class. Children look at photos, listen to music, watch video, tell stories and of course, read books. We understand that people communicate in a variety of manners and we bring them into play in our classrooms.

In upper grades our entire world is expressed through text. For whatever reason, it seems that the only valid form of expressing knowledge is through text. Out of class they constantly interact and create video, music and more. In class, we have students read from textbooks and almost exclusively require them to respond in writing.

7. MOVE

Children need to move. We all need to move. It's healthy for both body and mind. We understand that in Kindergarten. The furniture is arranged to facilitate movement and we often have children move around to different parts of the room depending on the activity. Outdoors, it's essential to provide time and equipment for play.

The mantra of upper school is to sit still and face the front. Classes are designed for quiet, motionless, obedient activities. That can be excruciatingly difficult for many students.

8. RELATE

Finally, in Kindergarten we strive to make learning as meaningful as possible. Learning has meaning as defined by its relevance to the lives of students. If children can't relate to it then it won't hold their interest.

On the other hand, the vast amount of bleary eyed, daydreaming students in upper grades is testament to the fact that they don't relate to much of what passes for learning in class. It's usually a predefined package of content defined by an "authority" sitting far from the lives of our students - physically and emotionally. Just as importantly, this predefined content package is becoming increasingly inadequate in preparing our students for their lives after school.

So if you have a few moments I'd strongly encourage you to take a stroll down to the lower grades in your school. In fact, the lower the better. Spend a few minutes observing the dynamics in class. Note the energy, laughter and enthusiasm ... the genuine thirst for learning. Then ask yourself why it can't be that way throughout school.

About the Author

Sam Gliksman has been leading technology applications in business and education for over 25 years. He is recognized as a prominent expert on technology and educational reform and speaks at educational conferences both nationally and internationally. 

Sam has also been very active in promoting the use of mobile technology in education and has consulted with small schools all the way up to districts and even governments. Most recently, he was invited to personally consult with the Prime Minister of Greece about the use of mobile education in their country’s education system.

Sam is the author of the recently released “iPad in Education for Dummies” book published by Wiley Press. He also founded and manages the very popular iPads in Education Ning community website - www.ipadeducators.ning.com - that has a membership of many thousands of educators worldwide.

Click here to view Sam's original article.

This SimpleK12 presenter interview is with Jenna Linskens. She's a full-time assistant professor for the educational technology department in the school of education at Marian University in Wisconsin. (If you missed the last interview with Sam Gliksman, you can watch it here.)

Watch to hear what Jenna has to say about the unique learning advantages that implementing ipads into classrooms offer students...

Now let's take a look at what you all have been saying about Jenna...

"I thought this was great. I look forward to more of Jenna's webinars. A lot of really good information here. I loved the Talk'n Photos app." - iPadEdTech

"Super informative and tons of resources!!" - bcapwell

"Great Apps! This is an area I haven't done much exploration on. You gave me some great info to get started." - Deborah Gaskins

Click here to take a look at Jenna's live and on-demand SimpleK12 webinars.

The following is a guest post by Sam Gliksman, one of SimpleK12's presenters.
Click here to watch Sam's Webinars inside the Teacher Learning Community.

Making the Case for Student Controlled Devices

One of the benefits of getting older is that you can reflect back on a time when things were done differently. Similarly, you can also clearly see when other things are essentially the same. Although the world around our schools is dramatically different, many of the pillars of our educational systems remain unchanged. Given the dramatic and accelerating transformation in the world around us, it's certainly time to reflect upon how we conduct the business of schooling.

Many have already started down this path. We acknowledge the clear need to move from "sage on the stage" teaching to student empowered learning. We realize that our old content delivery models of education need to be replaced with more experiential and discovery based processes. We understand the limitations of a text only approach and try to integrate different forms of media. Now it's time to revise another sacred cow that has been symptomatic of institutional education since its inception.

It's time to let go of the notion that we need to control student behavior. It's time to realize that we cannot and should not dictate the manner in which students learn. One area where the desire for control is clearly manifested is our use of technology in school.

Now before you fire up that impassioned response let me clarify that I'm not advocating a complete hands-off policy that gives students the freedom to do whatever they desire. There's a clear distinction between "protection" and "control". Protecting students from accidentally getting a computer virus or being routed to a pornography website is important. Deciding what apps they use; preventing them from managing their devices; undue censorship of internet activity; using software to watch their screens during class - these are control issues.

It's ironic that we insist on censoring and controlling technology use. Outside school technology is characterized by freedom and empowerment - the ability for anyone to easily access or publish information, connect with people across the world and utilize media for new forms of creative expression and knowledge expansion. Innovation leads to new technologies which in turn can nurture further innovation. However that can only occur if we allow it...

• Technology empowers students to explore and create. In schools however it's often used in the pursuit of efficiency where we require students to use technology in the same manner and with the intent that they produce similar results.
• We understand that they have vastly different talents and distinctive learning preferences. At home some use technology in more structured, logical ways while others gravitate to more visual or creative pursuits. Technology empowers them to find their own space as learners. In school we decide what applications they must use and we dictate exactly how they will use them - step by step - even in the face of our full understanding that students are far more expert at learning and using technology than teachers.
• The internet has enabled the democratization of information - publish, discover and learn anything. Anyone can publish. Everything is available. In schools we attempt to strictly control what they can see and do (yes, I used the word "attempt" - try Googling "ways to get around school web filters" and see what you get).

Technology is a product of change however we often design our implementations in manners that latch onto the comfortable old structures we've always used. Teachers control the class and it's always been heretical to suggest otherwise. We therefore decide what technology students use and more importantly, how they will use it - even though they represent the first generations in history that are mastering many of the essential tools of everyday life before the adults that came before them.

If we know anything about the world outside school it's that it requires an ability to adapt to change. We insist that modern life requires graduates that are experienced, independent learners. School is the time to start developing those skills. When we enable the use of technology in school we should also grant students the independence and freedom to use it their own way.

• We can and should allow students to manage their own devices. Help them learn the relevant technical and organizational skills, especially as this has become a vital part of life outside school.
• Loosen the Parental Controls. Allow them the freedom and responsibility to manage their school apps, set up their school email and more. Have someone instruct them on best practices.
• Allow them the freedom to find and use other apps as appropriate to their activities in class.
• You can purchase some apps centrally but otherwise ask parents to purchase the apps. There is an abundance of inexpensive choices.
• A "Responsible Use" policy should clearly state what is allowed and disallowed. The policy should be signed by child and parent alike.
• Freedom and responsibility come with consequence. Define a clear outcome for inappropriate use and act upon it as required.
• Use a web filter but set restrictions loosely and only block categories of sites that are potentially harmful. Ensure you have monitoring in place so you can track web usage if needed. The only skill strict filtering develops is the ability to find ways to work around it ... and they do. Rather than acting as "big brother", set an expectation of personal responsibility and take action when the standards aren't met.

Most importantly, encourage creative, independent and innovative use of technology.

• Allow students the latitude to express their knowledge in different ways and with different tools wherever possible and subject to your prior approval. The process of learning should be more personally meaningful and motivational.
• Let them find and bring tools that they are most comfortable using.
• Give them the latitude to be teachers as well as learners - when they invent, discover or master something new have them teach others and create tutorials that you post online.

Our desire for controlling the use of technology is emblematic of a deeper problem. Top-down institutional control isn't a workable model in an era where the marketplace requires graduates to have skills for learning anything, anywhere and at any time. Following instruction is important but there's also an urgent need to develop personal innovation - the sort of flexible, creative thought and action that's required to deal with a world of tumultuous change. Innovation requires that we open the metaphorical classroom windows and doors. Instead we still feel more comfortable keeping them closed. Is it about control or are we more concerned with efficiency? Are we making decisions based on their needs or ours?

Whenever I discuss iPad or BYOD implementations in schools one of the first issues raised usually revolves around problems associated with management and control. iPads are difficult to manage on an institutional level. That could be a blessing in disguise. Maybe it presents us with the right timing and opportunity to finally allow students to manage their devices and develop their skills as independent and responsible learners.

About the Author

Sam Gliksman has been leading technology applications in business and education for over 25 years. He is recognized as a prominent expert on technology and educational reform and speaks at educational conferences both nationally and internationally. 

Sam has also been very active in promoting the use of mobile technology in education and has consulted with small schools all the way up to districts and even governments. Most recently, he was invited to personally consult with the Prime Minister of Greece about the use of mobile education in their country’s education system.

Sam is the author of the recently released “iPad in Education for Dummies” book published by Wiley Press. He also founded and manages the very popular iPads in Education Ning community website - www.ipadeducators.ning.com - that has a membership of many thousands of educators worldwide.

Click here to view Sam's original article.