Living History Day Video

Living History Day Pictures

Here are some pictures from our wonderful Living History Day for our 4th Graders here in North Platte, NE. They all had an opportunity to spend the day at Buffalo Bill’s Scout’s Rest Ranch and visit the local historical museum and exhibits. Enjoy!

Digital Storytelling at My House…

My son Charlie created a claymation video yesterday. You can visit his blog to leave a comment about his project. I think it’s pretty good for a first time go at claymation; so, let him know what you think.

Charlie’s Blog: http://chokanson.wordpress.com

MLK “I Have a Dream”

I am remiss to post this a day late, but nonetheless I humbly and thankfully share the words of a great man:

Library of Congress Photos on Flickr

A visit to David Warlick’s 2¢ Worth tipped me off that the Library of Congress has some beautiful pictures posted in two collections on Flickr: 1930s-40s in Color and News in the 1910s.  What wonderful images and great subjects to use in the classroom!

The Electoral Compass USA

“Discover your position in the political landscape for the USA presidential election of 2008:  Electoral Compass USA.”

Webcams From Around the World

I have enjoyed this resource from the FOX News web site:  Webcams From Around the World!

Election 2008

The following are links to USA election 2008 resources:

CNN Politics Election 2008

FOX You Decide 2008

Some Videos

Video blocked!?!  Try this link!!!

NPHS Mixed Choir “Amazing Grace” (10/16/2007)

Great Platte River Road Archway Slideshow (11/2/2007)

Making Corn Husk Dolls 4th Grade Field Trip (11/2/2007)

Native American Pictographs Podcast (11/2/2007)

Native American Sign Language and Pictographs (View at TeacherTube)

What a great week!!!

This has been a busy and exciting week for me. I had the opportunity to teach another SMART Board mini class on Tuesday. We had parent teacher conferences last night and this morning and deployed the parent portal portion of our student information system. Many parents stopped by our display to gain their access code that allows them to view their children’s grades online. Special thanks to Connie, and it was a pleasure to work alongside her!!!

This afternoon I took part in a professional development with the staff from one of the middle schools in our district, and we learned about RSS and everyone left with a brand new blog added to their arsenal of teaching tools. I look forward to following up and supporting these great teachers in their pursuits of blogging, and I hope that it becomes a useful tool for many of them and their students.

This middle school staff is great, and I have to admit each time I am with them or in their building I wish I was teaching with them, sharing their students, and being a part of what is very special. Their instructional leader is superior and a person that I am honored to work with. They may not even recognize the excellent situation they all have, and if they do I hope they cherish it, nurture it, and hang on to it with all their beings. Madison Middle School, I am completely impressed with you all. Thanks for letting me be a small part of all you do!!! Peace!

“Journey of Mankind”

The Bradshaw Foundation has an interesting interactive online presentation called “Journey of Mankind: The Peopling of the World.” Their site states:

“The Bradshaw Foundation, in association with Stephen Oppenheimer, presents a virtual global journey of modern man over the last 160,000 years. The map will show for the first time the interaction of migration and climate over this period. We are the descendants of a few small groups of tropical Africans who united in the face of adversity, not only to the point of survival but to the development of a sophisticated social interaction and culture expressed through many forms. Based on a synthesis of the mtDNA and Y chromosome evidence with archaeology, climatology and fossil study, Stephen Oppenheimer has tracked the routes and timing of migration, placing it in context with ancient rock art around the world.”

Enjoy!

Online Interactive Mapping - Panoramic Maps Collection

The Panoramic Maps collection at the U.S. Library of Congress is an online resource that can be used to compare and contrast present day maps and landscapes with those of the past. A “collection connections” page gives ideas on how to use these maps in the study of U.S. History, the arts and humanities, and how to challenge critical thinking skills. This is a great social studies resource but has many possibilities in an interdisciplinary setting. Enjoy!

Who is it?

Sue Johnson’s class PowerPoints from the North Platte Public Schools!

Try this map game…

The Rethinking Schools web site has a fun map game to help students review North Africa and Southwest Asia (The Middle East). Give it a try and test your geography knowledge!

“Read Write Think”

Read Write Think is a repository of language arts/humanities resources sponsored in part by the International Reading Association and the National Council of Teachers of English.

“ReadWriteThink, established in April of 2002, is a partnership between the International Reading Association (IRA), the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), and the Verizon Foundation.

NCTE and IRA are working together to provide educators and students with access to the highest quality practices and resources in reading and language arts instruction through free, Internet-based content.”

Some particular resources that I found engaging include:

100 Best Books for Kids

Clickable Poems

Guys Read

National Writing Project

The National Archives on Google Video