Blog Posts Across Why Technology in Education Rocks in Virginia - Why Technology in Education Rocks in Virginia

A Must Read!

First, an apology for being AWOL for a bit. I've been following the action in Netvibes and am so happy to see many old and new faces joining the VSTE community. I haven't been absent from the world but been concentrating my efforts over at In Another Place. But, this morning, as I ate my breakfast before heading out for a workshop, I came upon a VERY interesting exchange between some grown ups and one of those digital natives we're all talking about. Fo… Continue

Posted by Karen Richardson on July 10, 2008 at 8:00am — No Comments

Streaming Video from NECC 08

I found these two sites that will allow us to virtually attend some of the NECC 08 sessions: http://edstreamtv.wikispaces.com/ and http://www.edubloggercon.com/Web+2.0+Smackdown For those of us unable to attend, let's check out these sites throughout the next few days and learn along with those attending! @SheilaT on Twitter Sheila Teri Trantwood Elementary School, VBCPS Continue

Posted by Sheila Teri on June 29, 2008 at 9:50am — No Comments

NECC 2008

Three us made the trek today and made it to San Antonio for NECC 2008. With all one has heard about air travel I was wondering how our flights would work out. Absolutely no problems. Within minutes of being on time...baggage all made....got a shuttle to the hotel...no problems checking in. Good but long day. After checking out where registration is for the conference, we headed down to Riverwalk for a cool beverage and dinner. Beautiful walk and pretty good Mexican food. I believe we are all t… Continue

Posted by Bill Johnsen on June 27, 2008 at 10:16pm — No Comments

Help for blog and podcast training...

I'm looking for suggestions/resources for blogging and podcast workshops with teachers. If anyone has resources or ideas to share, I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks, Tim Gardner ITRT Culpeper Continue

Posted by Tim Gardner on June 26, 2008 at 11:02am — 1 Comment

NECC 2008 in San Antonio

Going to NECC? Be sure to join the NECC 2008 group. I am attending and hope to try to share news, ideas, and resources here. In looking at my conference planner which at some times is triple and quadruple booked with sessions I want to attend, my interests this year are related to leadership, information literacy, professional development, and standards. Believe it or not, I feel like that is a fairly focused approach as compared to some years. Continue

Posted by Janene Gorham on June 23, 2008 at 8:37pm — 2 Comments

"New" Horizons

I have decided to accept a position as the library media specialist for the Wenonah Elementary School community (http://waynesboro.va.schoolwebpages.com/education/school/school.php?sectionid=5&sc_id=1186489337). I am very excited about my "new" role. I put new in parenthesese because I feel much of my job will be similar to that of the ITRT. However, I will have the perk of not… Continue

Posted by Kay Lera on June 23, 2008 at 10:00am — 5 Comments

07-08 Year Ending

The school year is over and my time at work is almost done. Moving computers, catching up on inventory changes, paperwork, etc. will fill my days until June 30th. It has been a very busy year full of surprises. I feel like I learned more than I ever thought I would, but still have much to learn. During my month off I hope I will have time to become better at blogging, Wiki's, etc. I want to make sure next year that more is incorported into several of our grade level plans. I have tons of ideas,… Continue

Posted by Lisa Alconcel on June 20, 2008 at 2:00pm — No Comments

Theme for VSTE Annual State Technology Conference - 2009

The VSTE Conference in 2009 will return to Virginia Beach. There is nothing better than February at the beach with the sand, breeze, sunshine, technology, and pirates. Our theme will be "i on the Future". Ayyy that is it. Start planning for your presentations, activities, and Monday e… Continue

Posted by VSTE World Headquarters on June 19, 2008 at 2:51pm — 1 Comment

Twitter Me Mates

I've got my own twitter account now called RodneyDog. Check it out and here what all the sniffing is about. Continue

Posted by Rodney on June 19, 2008 at 2:43pm — 1 Comment

Podcast Inservice

In an effort to get teachers in Culpeper podcasting, we are conducting an inservice on it. I am currently working on finding excellent examples of how it can be used in the classroom, both by the teachers and by the students. If anyone has projects they are personally proud of completing and want to share, please send me the link. Thanks in advance. Continue

Posted by Jack Glick on June 18, 2008 at 8:48am — 2 Comments

Free Smartboard Training August 21 in Arlington, VA

Mid-Atlantic SMART Board™ Users Conference Creating a community of SMART educators SMART Board interactive whiteboard users – you are invited to participate in our first Mid-Atlantic SMART Board Users Conference. At this free, full-day conference, you’ll attend a variety of concurrent, hands-on breakout sessions led by experienced SMART Board interactive whiteboard users. You’ll also have the opportunity to network and share lesson ideas with other educators. See for more information at http:/… Continue

Posted by Obe Hostetter on June 11, 2008 at 11:48pm — No Comments

LitFinder

Today Goochland High media specialist (and VSTE member) Deb Cross and I made a short video for introducing students this fall to LitFinder. It was the first time I saw the resource; it looked great!

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Posted by John Hendron on June 6, 2008 at 8:19pm — No Comments

WIIMOTE Inexpensive Smart Board

After a couple of fits and starts, the prototype WIImote interactive whiteboard is done. I got it all working today and think it shows great promise for little money. I confess, Ididn't make my own LED pen. Instead, I found a decent infrared miniature flashlight on the web for about 20 bucks. It's nicely constructed and seems to do the trick just fine. So, for the cost of WIImote (39.99)and a 20 dollar LED flashlight, I have what costs considerably more from the proprietary side. Still, it's not… Continue

Posted by Michael Scott on May 5, 2008 at 2:33pm — 2 Comments

Make Your Own Document Camera in Minutes!

OK.. A sixth grade science teacher shared with me an idea that made me slap my forehead and say, "Genius! Why didn't I think of that years ago!" Here's how to make your own document camera. Get a desk lamp with a flexible neck and a heavy base (or weight the base yourself), attach a web cam to the lamp, hook the webcam to your computer and presto ... you have a document camera. I thought if you got a USB extension cord, you could have even more flexibility as you might not always need the lamp f… Continue

Posted by Kay Lera on May 1, 2008 at 10:00am — 1 Comment

WiZiQ Virtual Classroom Technology

Link to March 17 Demo Replay. http://www.wiziq.com/Replay_Session.aspx?key=t&id=73125 WiZiQ is an online teaching platform, which provides a free virtual classroom environment for teachers to interact online and teach students in real time. Teach… Continue

Posted by Mark Cruthers on April 26, 2008 at 8:38pm — No Comments

Upcoming 3 graduate credit course - Designing Technology Infused Project-Based Learning Experiences (Mon, 4/28/08 to Sun, 6/8/08 / Any)

Do you need 3 graduate credit hours? Don't wait!! Class starts on Monday, and we need one more person to get this class going. Please help spread the word. Full details can be found here. http://www.whro.org/anl55/v.aspx?n=753 Designing Technology Infused Project-Based Learning Experiences - 3 graduate credits Online UED 502-71 Norfolk State University 4.5 CEUs / 3 graduate credits - The course will consist of an introduction to Project-Based… Continue

Posted by Annie Gilstrap on April 24, 2008 at 12:00pm — No Comments

Passport to Web 2.0 and Beyond

I am working on creating an educational web 2.0 site that will highlight some of the more or less popular interactive websites. Passport to Web 2.0 and Beyond Please post a comment on the site if you have any great websites or opensource software you would like to add. My goal is to update this daily. Thanks! Continue

Posted by Michael George on April 17, 2008 at 3:02pm — 1 Comment

WIIMOTE Inexpensive Smartboard?

OK. Here is a nifty perspective on creating interactive environments in the classroom. Johnny Chung Lee at Carnegie Mellon University has an amazing imagination! It appears he is able to use common objects to recreate expensive technology. For example, he has recreated interactive white board using a wii remote and a couple objects from Radio Shack. Check it out! Visit http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~johnny/projects/wii/ and scroll down to "Low-Co… Continue

Posted by Kay Lera on April 16, 2008 at 3:42pm — 6 Comments

Whats up with those little computers?

Our budget season has left us again characteristically gloomy about our power to acquire adequate amounts of technology for instruction. Happens every year at this time. We basically have had the same amount to spend since the state started SOL testing, and to meet that end, we are fine. To meet other ends is altogether another matter. The "other ends" means having enough technology to support instructional goals within your district. You'd think that if you spent a large sum of money on softwar… Continue

Posted by Michael Scott on April 15, 2008 at 2:00pm — 1 Comment

Let's Get Social!

The latest edition of the VSTE Podcast Edge talks about social networking and this very website. Be sure to share it with folks you still have to convince social networking can be for them, too! Continue

Posted by John Hendron on March 26, 2008 at 10:58am — No Comments

The River City Simulation Project -Scientific Inquiry and Design

Have any of you, or your teachers, participated in the River City Project? (see http://muve.gse.harvard.edu/rivercityproject/index.html) I saw on their website that it is being implemented in VA. I would really like to "speak" with someone who has participated in the program. It looks like a time commitment is involved and in this testing world, I have to make sure it suits the VA curricla. If you used it, were the students en… Continue

Posted by Kay Lera on March 16, 2008 at 1:00pm — No Comments

Famous American Voice Thread

Students in Ms. Dewease's Social Studies classes @ Cloverdale Elementary in Botetourt County wrote clues for all of the Famous Americans covered in Virginia SOLs, grades K-3. Feel free to use their creation as a fun way to review this content. Below is are links to all three of the versions. http://voicethread.com/share/71021/ http://voicethread.com/share/71014/ http://voicethread.com/share/71019/

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Posted by Karla Karr on March 15, 2008 at 7:30pm — 3 Comments

Preparing to present..

In an effort to involve more teachers in using technology with their students, my colleagues and I are preparing to talk to the superintendent about making 21st Century Literacy the district's theme for next year. Part of our presentation involves showing what is being done already in our district and another part looks at what other districts are Virginia and the U.S. are doing. We can certainly track some projects down, but I was wondering if anyone here has any Web 2.0 projects that you woul… Continue

Posted by Jack Glick on March 10, 2008 at 10:00am — 2 Comments

Moblogging

I must say up front that I start feeling my age when people talk about using cell phones in education. Prensky did not convince me at last year's VSTE keynote, especially when I read the article in Education Week about students using the phones to record teachers in less than flattering moments and then posting them to the YouTube. Then, Hall Davidson showed two great uses of cell phones, one using Gcast to have folks record their responses on a website and another using text messaging to tell… Continue

Posted by Karen Richardson on March 9, 2008 at 9:16am — 3 Comments

I am at the SVTC ITRT connection sponsored by the WVPT and NTTI...

Hi to all, Lucia Thomas and Laura Burdik, ITRTs for Fredrick County Schools, shared this awesome cyber-bullying video entitled, "Let's Fight It Together" found at http://www.digizen.org/cyberbullying/film.aspx . It highlights cyber-bullying from a teenager's perspective using powerful video production techniques. A must see! The ITRTs invited a police officer to speak about the legal implications of cyber-bullying. Language arts teache… Continue

Posted by Kay Lera on March 7, 2008 at 10:00am — 3 Comments

What have I gotten myself into...

This afternoon I am working with a class of second graders on Think.com. This is a free site that provides a secure setting for basic web 2.0 practice. I am excited to see how they take to this. We will be starting with a lesson on internet safety. I hope that their typing skills, or lack thereof, don't make this run so long that they become bored with it. Continue

Posted by Jack Glick on February 29, 2008 at 1:19pm — No Comments

RSS Widget from SpringWidgets

So, I tried sharing my netvibes tab via html, and we ran into some difficulties...a reminder that this is pretty new technology. Meanwhile, I've been intrigued by that text box on my ning page and what kinds of widgets I might use. I found one by SpringWidgets that allows you to add multiple RSS feeds and even organizes them for you. I posted it to my ning page and it's included in this post. While I prefer the netvibes layout this does seem to be a wa… Continue

Posted by Karen Richardson on February 29, 2008 at 12:31pm — 3 Comments

Blog feeds on Netvibes (again)!

For some reason when I clicked on Karen's post, it didn't work right, so I tried to add it to this post. Click on the Netvibes button below to add the blog feeds that have been collected so far to your Netvibes page. Thanks for the great idea on this Karen!

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Posted by Sean Sharp on February 28, 2008 at 9:00pm — 2 Comments

Debate Question

The web site for the Economist magazine has been running a series of debates on contemporary issues. Currently the proposition being discussed is "If the promise of technology is to simplify our lives, it is failing."

While you can drop by the site and weigh in on one side or the other, I think this would also be a great starter for a discussion among a school staff. Maybe change it slightly to become s…

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Posted by Tim Stahmer on February 28, 2008 at 8:30pm — No Comments

For those who are interested, my VTSE musings and such

I kept a running VSTE diary at my personal blog . Continue

Posted by Stephen Orr on February 28, 2008 at 1:04pm — No Comments

Day 2 of Blogging

While I am always kidding that I am the most important person in my own personal universe, I have never really thought that anyone would find my thoughts all that interesting outside of my lovely wife and my dog. My dog well he would find anything I say interesting as long as I give him a greenie when I am done. And my poor wife loves me for some unknown reason and is thus blind to the pedestrian nature of my thoughts. Of course, she might just be humoring me and awaiting the day that the dog ca… Continue

Posted by Jack Glick on February 28, 2008 at 9:36am — No Comments

Netvibes Tab for VSTE Blogs

Sean had the very good idea to collect blog URLs and share them. I've grabbed all the ones that we're added to his blog entry along with a couple more and put them into Netvibes. I'm trying to share it using the html code feature. Figured it was easier than emailing everyone. There are plenty more great blogs out there but this will be a good start. I think you should be able to click on the button and add the tab to your netvibes.… Continue

Posted by Karen Richardson on February 28, 2008 at 8:40am — 6 Comments

Laura Kelly's Blog

Suggestions are always welcome! Please let me know what you are doing in your school districts and your classrooms so that I can share with my teachers! Continue

Posted by Laura Kelly on February 27, 2008 at 5:27pm — 1 Comment

Back from VSTE

Settling back into the routine at work today. Had a lot of teachers to catch up with after being out for VSTE, ice (what there was of it), and flu. As usual I am resolving to try and sort out all the great resources I saw at the conference and find teachers to use them, but as SOL fever hits my teachers I just hope to tread water until the fall when I can get some of this implemented. Continue

Posted by Jack Glick on February 27, 2008 at 2:10pm — No Comments

The Day After...

Tired, but with enthusiasm for increased use of technology for our 21st Century learners is Goochland, is how I would describe my feeling this morning. I am proud of our attendees this year. First timers, Bridget Parker and Rhonda Kass, as well as, those who returned to VSTE for more this year: Kim Bachmann, Susan Plowcha, Bea Cantor and John Hendron. Technology Rocks... in Goochland. Thanks to all those who made the VSTE 2008 experience Rock this year. Continue

Posted by Tom DeWeerd on February 27, 2008 at 11:30am — No Comments

VSTE 2008

This was a great conference. I am looking forward to seeing many of you at NECC 2008 in San Antonio. Continue

Posted by George F. Washington on February 26, 2008 at 11:45pm — No Comments

VSTE 2009

Well, VSTE 2008 is finished and I'm sorry that I missed it. BUT, i want to be the first..well, maybe the second after Danny, to invite you all to Virginia Beach for VSTE 2009. I promise good weather. :) Really..... Continue

Posted by Bill Johnsen on February 26, 2008 at 9:09pm — 2 Comments

Now that it is over for another year . . . . . .

I have been thinking about the conference, the sessions I went to, and mostly the great people I met. During a podcast session today with Meg Swecker and Tina Coffey, we were wondering how many of the attendees had blogs, or wrote blogs on a regular basis. If you do have a blog, would you mind posting the link so that folks who attended the VSTE conference can read what is on your mind? We thought it would be a nice set of links to add to our own list of blogs. If you don't have a blog, maybe yo… Continue

Posted by Sean Sharp on February 26, 2008 at 6:03pm — 6 Comments

Goodbye

:-( It is so sad to say to goodbye to all our new friends. However, the conference doesn't have to end just because we've been scattered across VA. The VSTE Blog is a great way to get a recharge of inspiration or share a story of technology success. Let's tell the world why TECHNOLOGY ROCKS IN VIRGINIA! Continue

Posted by VSTE princess on February 26, 2008 at 5:18pm — No Comments

Tuesday

Well, the conference is winding down, even still, sessions are packed, people are chatting, and inspiration is flowing. The greatest part about the conference will begin when you walk out those doors. It's the part where you get to take what you've learned and discovered and use it with your students or your teachers. It's the part where you feel so energized about technology that you are ready to dive right into something new and different. Don't forget that energy and inspiration are contagiou… Continue

Posted by VSTE princess on February 26, 2008 at 1:00pm — No Comments

When the Fairies Sing

I spent Sunday and Money volunteering and presenting. But, this morning I'm at a session...and, at 8 AM at that! We do have very intrepid presenters and attendees, don't we? I couldn't resist this session because of the title. And, I am not disappointed. Alice Hixson from Arlington did a very interesting project with her elementary school students. I really appreciate her approach. She started with the research, then described how she integrated the project into the elementary curriculum. Her s… Continue

Posted by Karen Richardson on February 26, 2008 at 8:00am — No Comments

Added Tuesday Vendor Session

Powerful, Easy, and SOL-aligned Data-Driven Instruction and Assessments By: Ernie White (Roanoke City, Media Specialist) Roanoke City Public Schools has recently experienced success utilizing assessments online, over a LAN and with response pads. Teachers can easily create a variety of SOL-aligned them using many different methods, and have them instantly graded for immediate analysis for improved instruction. A valuable surprise technology. Door prize to be given away. Continue

Posted by VSTE princess on February 25, 2008 at 4:11pm — 1 Comment

What ROCKS??

Comment here about great sessions that you have seen, things that you are excited about ! Continue

Posted by VSTE princess on February 25, 2008 at 2:41pm — 2 Comments

Day 2

Well, we're about half way through day 2. A few points of interest: First, we'd like to thank our bus drivers for carting us around from place to place (much better than driving yourself). Second, Be sure to stop in the exhibit hall and meet our vendors. Be on the look out for great give aways. While you are there, you can get a sneak peak at the list of door prizes for tomorrow's closing session. Third, if you haven't already been to the memorabilia booth (or if you have an… Continue

Posted by VSTE princess on February 25, 2008 at 2:36pm — No Comments

VSTE 2008...It does ROCK!!!!

For those of you who missed the VSTE conference this February you are really missing out. I have been to three concurrent sessions and not one has disappointed yet!!! Daniel Arkin gave a fantastic session on Web 2.0. I thought I knew a good deal about the "ins and outs" but he shed some light on some sites I had never heard of. Be sure and check out the conference C.D. and get his handout if you missed any part of the conference. Continue

Posted by Mike Dussault on February 25, 2008 at 10:12am — 3 Comments

Why are we here at VSTE?

http://www.teachertube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=b98842d2a1ef7b741c56 Continue

Posted by Sheila Teri on February 25, 2008 at 9:21am — 1 Comment

Can we two places at once?

As I look through the VSTE program, I am struck (again--this is not new) by how many sessions I'd like to attend during each time slot. Is there a way to be more than one place at a time? There are so many great sessions to consider attending this year, plus with the emphasis or inclusion of Assistive Technology, there are even more to choose from. Today and tomorrow will be fantastic. I hope that people keep adding to this site as well as to the del.icio.us site with the tag: vste2008 Enjoy the… Continue

Posted by Sean Sharp on February 25, 2008 at 5:54am — No Comments

How Embarrassed!

Today I was called on stage, unawares, to demonstrate Sketchup skills. Yowsa! I could have drawn anything, and I made silly shapes. I had a great time this evening meeting 7 folks who wanted to know how to use Sketchup. If you couldn't join us, I've made 4 how-to style videos if you're interested in getting started with Google's free and easy-to-use 3D drawing program. http://www.johnhendron.net/digest/google-sketchup/ I've been… Continue

Posted by John Hendron on February 24, 2008 at 11:28pm — 1 Comment

VSTE Day One

Today was the first day of VSTE 2008. I had planned to go solo (with the exception of Tim staying in the hotel with me) and as soon as I registered at the conference and Tim began to feel the aura of all that is VSTE... he caved in and decided to register to attend. We both attended the First Timer's session and after that we split ways. This will work to our advantage... we can share what we learn! I went to Innovative Uses for InterWrite Pads in the Classroom. Our county has three Smartboards-… Continue

Posted by Emalee Owens on February 24, 2008 at 11:15pm — 2 Comments

Sunday Recap and Monday Preview

Wow what a day! As I wondered around today, I saw and heard so many wonderful and exciting things. We had a wonderful opening session with Hall Davidson's energetic Keynote, great sessions, and DINNER. If you didn't go to the Hillbilly Hoedown, you missed a party. Our musical guests, the Carpenter Ants, really got people out of their seats! The exhibitors are in and setting up, the presenters are rarin' to go, and the attendees ... well those that aren't too tired are probably playing games with… Continue

Posted by VSTE princess on February 24, 2008 at 10:14pm — No Comments

Technology and Special Education

I teach a group of students that have very low motivation when faced with a challenge. My students have multiple weaknesses in regards to processing directions, staying focused, and completing tasks on time. Technology ROCKS because it allows me to differentiate with ease. I don’t have to spend a lot of time modifying my assignments and it is very easy for me to structure my class in a way that is tailored to each individual student. I like to call it structured flexibility. Moodle has really he… Continue

Posted by Bridget Parker on February 24, 2008 at 9:29pm — 3 Comments

Hall Davidson's Keynote

His theme is thinking big as the world gets smaller. He suggests there is a geographic and a temporal shrinking in the world. Hall works for Discovery Education. The group is a virtual company so they've used blogs, wikis and other Web 2.0 tools to connect. He showed a snapshot of his desktop...Skype, IM, and other connection tools. When he was on the Board for the California ISTE affiliate (CUE) they started experimenting with video conferencing… Continue

Posted by Karen Richardson on February 24, 2008 at 4:59pm — 2 Comments

My Twitter Feed

OK, I saw Tina Coffey's twitter feed and had to add mine. I included my friends, too.

…

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Posted by Karen Richardson on February 24, 2008 at 10:53am — No Comments

Sunday AM

The conference committee is finishing up our preparations and awaiting the arrival of our fantastic attendees. If you could see inside the Hotel Roanoke right now, it would look much like a beehive. I wanted to take a minute to say a few things. First, WELCOME TO VSTE 2008!!!! You are the main reason that TECHNOLOGY ROCKS IN VIRGINIA. The excitement level of the attendees, the ideas shared at this conference, and the M&Ms is what draws me back into the grueling work (not really) of the conf… Continue

Posted by VSTE princess on February 24, 2008 at 9:36am — 2 Comments

Just a Blogging Request, Man

Just hit my play button Dude --

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Posted by Bill Johnsen on February 23, 2008 at 9:30pm — 4 Comments

VSTE First Timer

I have attended a number of conferences over the past several years but this is my first time attending a VSTE conference. I can see from the program there will be a wide variety of topics to choose from. As a 'first timer' I have been told to attend the first timers class. I have experienced lots of first over the past few years and I am looking forward to this one. Continue

Posted by Makalla on February 23, 2008 at 9:12pm — 1 Comment

Let's Get Started!!! and Thanks!!!

I went by Hotel Roanoke and the members of the conference committee were hard at work preparing for the upcoming events. There were people in constant motion, moving from task to task. Bags were being prepared, memorabilia sorted, volunteers organized, last minute strategy session discussions....just to name a few! As someone who has never served on the conference committee, I can't imagine the hard work and effort that has gone into making this conference a success. I would just like to take th… Continue

Posted by Beth on February 23, 2008 at 8:27pm — 2 Comments

New Videos

Last September, I had the chance to interview Glen Bull, Director of the Curry Center for Technology and Teacher Education. He was one of the founders of VSTE. I'll be showing a longer video during the annual meeting on Tuesday but thought this group would be interested in a few of the shorter clips. I've added them to the video database here at VSTEonline but they are housed at Teacher Tube: http://www.teachertube.com/uprofile.php?UID=2831 Now, I really need to put my bags in the car and get o… Continue

Posted by Karen Richardson on February 23, 2008 at 8:34am — 1 Comment

Here we are

Well, the committee members are converging on the Hotel Roanoke today and preparing for the 4 very busy days ahead. Even the nasty weather (ha ha) couldn't stop us. Tomorrow will begin the transformation of a quiet, stately hotel atmosphere into a bustling technology haven. Seekers of techno-inspiration will begin pouring in from all over the state and beyond. The amount of sleep for each committee member will drastically decrease, while adrenaline and caffeine flow freely. It’s a great place to… Continue

Posted by VSTE princess on February 22, 2008 at 10:39pm — No Comments

Getting Ready for the Conference

I am stil at work doing last minute prep work for the conference as well as getting things settled back here in VB for the days I will be in Roanoke. You would think it would be easier to be away now that I don't have to do sub plans. In the last few days I have communicated a lot with my fellow Virginia Beach VSTE members who will be heading to the conference! We are getting excited...and not just for the Casino night, M&Ms, and the hoedown. Personally I haven't been able to focus on selec… Continue

Posted by Janene Gorham on February 22, 2008 at 6:00pm — 2 Comments

Practice, Practice, Practice and Renaissance Learning

So me and my ITRT colleagues just finished sitting through yet another three days of training from Renaissance Learning. There was nothing wrong with the training or the requirement of our attendance. In fact, since we now exist in schools, we have an important role to play to support the technologies and instructional practices that will make these programs work. In our district , we take care of the technology that supports the software, train teachers to use these tools, and occasionally moni… Continue

Posted by Michael Scott on February 22, 2008 at 3:00pm — 4 Comments