LOCS Technology and Media Newsletter

Lake OrionCommunity Schools

May 2012

Cloud Computing ExplainedCloud computing provides you the ability to access allof your work, from anywhere, on any computer withan internet connection. If you strip away all of thejargon around cloud computing, it basically meansthat the software you use isn’t on your ownpersonal or work computer. Your data is storedsomeplace else. It could be anywhere. Youpretty much use it through a web browser, amobile phone, a laptop, or a tablet. This is how your personal email works if you useGmail, Yahoo, or AOL. It’s also how your online banking works. Your bankinginformation isn’t on your own computer. It’s stored in the “cloud,” so to speak, at yourbank. Is it safe? The misperception is that if you have your data stored locally, it’s saferthan if you have it stored in the cloud. In fact, it’s usually easier for a motivated personto get into your home network, or to pose as a cleaning person and take yourcomputer right off your desk. If your data is stored by reputable companies, it’s oftenmore secure than on your own computer. We used to worry about credit cardtransactions over the internet, and now most of us don’t worry about buying a productfrom Amazon, eBay or similar vendors. To really understand more about how cloudcomputing works; check out one of these helpful videos on YouTube.

1. Cloud Computing - How it all works (2:33)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TTNgV0O_oTg&feature=colike

2. Cloud Computing Explained (5:23)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJncFirhjPg&feature=youtu.be

3. Cloud Computing in K12 (8:01) – a little longer, but provides greatinformation in context of education.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hnlmdo0P6BM&feature=youtu.be

The first one is only two and a half minutes long, and provides an easy to understandexplanation. The others also provide nice explanations with additional information.

Where is Lake Orion Community Schools headed as itrelates to cloud computing and our email system?LOCS staff is already using cloud computing on a daily basis. Programs and software likeSchoolMessenger, Destiny, Moodle, Google Apps, NovaNet, and IXL, for example, are allcloud-based. However, one system that is not in the “cloud” is our email – GroupWise.GroupWise email is hosted on servers located in our district technology departmentserver room. The servers housing email are quite outdated, and provide users limitedmobile access to their email, as well as limited storage levels. Email is the next servicethat the district is planning to move to the cloud. By doing so, we will be providing ourusers access to their email from anywhere they have an internet connection via anOutlook interface. Users will also get increased storage space of 10 Gigs of or more.

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The Flipped ClassroomFlipping the classroom is one hottopic in education right now. As the2011-2012 school year draws to aclose, you may already be thinkingabout new ideas that you want to tryout next year. As you think aboutyour planning over the summer,maybe “flipping the classroom” isone new idea you want to thinkabout. EmergingEdTech.com recentlyposted links to 15 news stories thatshow examples of flipping theclassroom all over the U.S. Check outtheir posting “The Flipped Classroomis Hot, Hot, Hot” for more informa-tion. http://www.emergingedtech.com/2012/04/the-flipped-classroom-is-hot-hot-hot/

High SchoolPoetry ContestLake Orion High School IRC issponsoring a Poetry Contest. Allstudents were encouraged tosubmit a poem, and fifteen werechosen as finalists. Now, students,teachers, and community membersare invited to read the poems andvote for their favorite. The poemsand voting can be found athttp://www.lohspoetrycontest.org/. Voting will end on May 15th at 3 pm.

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iOS Fun (iPads, iPhones, iTouches)

Learn About Dollarsand SenseThe Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louishas released its first economiceducation and personal financeapplication for the iPad, iPhone andiPod Touch. The Econ Ed Mobile appallows students and educators to gainan understanding of how inflationand cost of credit can affect spendingand saving decisions. With the app,students can investigate the cost ofgoods and services purchased in oneyear compared with another year;use interactive graphs to compareinflation rates at various points in ournation’s history; examine howinterest rates, monthly payments andtime can affect the overall cost ofusing credit; and play two challengegames to see how well they canestimate the cost of credit and theprice of goods and services overtime. Download the app, at nocharge, in the iTunes App Store.

Website:http://www.stlouisfed.org/education_resources/

Download Free App:http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/econ-ed-mobile/id501425811?mt=8

Featured iPad Appof the Month

iPads in Education: Special EdudemicMagazine IssueAn easy-to-read guidebook for the basics of iPads in education.A helpful resource for only $.099. You can purchase the pdfversion or the iPad version. http://edudemic.com/2012/04/ipads-in-education-special-edudemic-magazine-issue-now-available/

Discover the Surprising Side of ColorWhen is yellow yellower than yellow? What color is a whisper?What’s missing from the palette of Renaissance painters?Students can explore the surprising side of color with ColorUncovered, an interactive book for the iPad, featuring illusions,articles and videos developed by the Exploratorium. A broadspectrum of colorful surprises focuses on the art, physics and

psychology of color. There are also a few color activities students can conduct ontheir own using the iPad and simple items they have at home. Download the app,at no charge, in the iTunes App Store.http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/color-uncovered/id470299591?mt=8

Help the Lorax Regrow ForestsDr. Seuss’s 1971 classic, The Lorax, was recently released as amotion picture. With the Lorax Garden app for the iPad,iPhone and iPod Touch, students can help the Lorax regrow theworld’s Truffula tree forests. Students can design their owntrees and flowers, see them grow right before their eyes andshare with friends and family beautiful postcards they create. A

world map shows how many forests students have regrown and how many stillneed their help. The app includes 3-D artwork inspired by Dr. Seuss’s illustrationsas well as whimsical music and sound effects. Download the app in the iTunes AppStore for $0.99.http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/lorax-garden/id366510234?mt=8&ign-mpt=uo%3D4

Pocket (Formerly Read It Later)This is currently the App Store’s iPad App of the Week! Whenyou find an article on the web you want to read, or maybe avideo you want to watch, but don’t have time right at thatmoment, save it to Pocket. Start by downloading the Pocketbookmarklet tool from their website getpocket.com to yourcomputer. Next, download the Pocket app to your iPhone or

iPad from the App Store. Then when you find something on the web that you wantto view later, put it in Pocket. It automatically syncs to your iOS devices and is evenavailable to view later without an internet connection and the items you save arearranged in an easy-to-view layout similar to an online magazine.http://getpocket.com/

The Teacher’s iPad SpectrumThe Teacher iPad spectrum provides teachers ideas on how to use the iPadorganized around degree of difficulty: consume, collaborate, and produce. See thefull spectrum chart on page 3 of this month’s newsletter.

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Lake Orion Community Schools • Technology & Media Newsletter • May 20124

Teaching Video ResourcesBored with those dull story problems in your math or science textbooks? Are youstudents complaining they’ll never use what they are learning outside of school?See how Ben Rimes from Mattawan schools creates video story problems to tie thereal world into the classroom.

Video Story Problems:http://www.mistreamnet.com/vidflv.php?who=milearn.videostoryproblems.030512

The entire collection of REMC Connected Educator videos can be found at thefollowing links:

• REMC.org:http://www.remc.org/projects/connectededucator/

• REMC MIStreamnet:http://www.mistreamnet.com/catdetail2010.php?cat=it&sub=conn

• MACUL MI Learning iTunes U channel with more videos being addedthroughout the school year.http://www.macul.org/milearning/

Continued from page 1

Next steps and projected timeline forswitching to cloud based email:

1. Select a cloud email system byMay 18, 2012 – we have thisnarrowed down to two choices:Microsoft Live Edu and Google.Either of these will utilize theOutlook interface.

2. Communicate with staff byJune 1, 2012, the steps theywill need to make inpreparation for the emailsystem change.

3. Set up our new domain withthe selected email system byJune 30, 2012 – Our goal is totry to keep theLakeOrion.k12.mi.us extensionif at all possible.

4. Migrate to the new system byJuly 30, 2012.

Featured Websites

A FOCUS on TWiTTER

How to Use Twitter for Teaching andLearning“Are you still unsure about taking the plunge into Twitter?Worried it’s not actually useful for learning or teaching? Thinkit’s still just about people talking about what they’re eating?Whether you’re a newbie wondering the above questions or atalented tweeter, there are always new and exciting ways to useTwitter. Lucky for us all, Maggie Verster created an epic e-torial (e-tutorial!) that walks you through the A to Z of Twitter for education.” Check out herslideshare “How can we use Twitter for teaching and learning?”http://www.slideshare.net/maggiev/twitter-for-educational-purposes-a-tutorial-presentation

100 Ways to Use Twitter in Education,By Degree of DifficultyI know a list of 100 things might seem overwhelming, but the article organizes theresources to help you get the most out of Twitter into the following categories: Basic,Etiquette, Connecting, Classroom, Professional Life, Pro Tools, Who to Follow, andApplications to Emulate. This is a great resource for anyone interested in using Twitter,even if you’ve never tried it before!http://edudemic.com/2012/04/100-ways-to-use-twitter-in-education-by-degree-of-difficulty/

AdobeAcrobat X ProQuickly combineseveral documentsinto one using Acrobat.

• Place all the documents youwant to combine into onefolder.

• Select all the files you wantcombined into one document.

• Right click on one of theselected files and select“Combine Supported Files inAcrobat”

• A new window will pop up thatwill allow you to arrange yourdocuments.

• After arranging yourdocuments, make sure all filesare selected, then selectcombine files.

• Give your file a name and save.

More Acrobat Tips:http://www.gwumc.edu/library/tutorials/PDF/Adobe_Acrobat_X_Pro_Intro.pdf

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Featured Websites

A Web 2.0 Store Justfor Educators

Edshelf is an easy-to-use directory of Web 2.0 appsespecially for educators that are rated andreviewed by educators. You can customize yoursearch by price (including free), grade, subject,platform, and category. You can also save all yourfavorite tools and share them with others.http://edshelf.com/

CollaborationRoom

Create a room, where you can collaborate livewith others for a few hours or up to two weeks.Allows you to connect with an audience,classroom etc. in real time. Participants can usethe live stream to make comments, ask questions,and give answers. The presenter can use the livefeedback to tailor the discussion or presentationbased on the needs of the group.http://www.todaysmeet.com/

Scoop.it is a content curationplatform, where users cancurate information about any

topic they want. Once you sign up, you will be ableto create a topic of your choice (no limits) and startcurating information. The site is geared towardsproviding users a very quick and easy way to“scoop” any information that you feel is relevant tothe topic you have chosen. There are several waysyou can do this, the easiest being via a drag anddrop tool that you add directly on your browser.The result is what looks like an online magazine.http://www.scoop.it/

Word Cloud CreatorCreate word clouds fast and easy. Tagxedo issimilar to Wordle, but with some added features.You can conform your Tagxedo into almost anyshape. Examples: A word cloud shaped like theface of Abraham Lincoln with the words to theGettysburg Address or one shaped like a starwith names of constellations. Another usefulfeature is the interactive capabilities of the wordclouds you create. As you move your cursor overthe word cloud, the words pop up and intoappropriate orientation, so if your cloud is a listof vocabulary words it’s easier to call attention tospecific words and discuss them. Tagxedo alsoprovides a simple interface for printing, saving,and linking your creation.Website: http://www.tagxedo.com/Example Cloud:http://www.tagxedo.com/art/52d74b0157884936

Facebook for School CounselorsFacebook has released a new resource, “Facebook for School Counselors,”intended to help counselors use the social-networking website and teachstudents how to use the site responsibly. The resource was released incollaboration with The Internet Keep Safe Coalition and The American SchoolCounselor Association. The guide includes information for considering schoolpolicies, responding to online incidents and identifying risky online behavior.Free Guide:http://www.schoolcounselor.org/files/FacebookforSchoolCounselors.pdf

Plus: If you’re looking for Facebook-related resources from other educators,check out the Facebook for Educators. http://facebookforeducators.org/

Bring an Author to Your Library orClassroom VirtuallySkype an Author Network is a directory of writers willingto arrange virtual visits with classrooms. The mission ofthe Skype an Author Network is to provide K–12 teachers and librarians with away to connect authors, books and young readers through virtual visits. Authors’names appear in alphabetical order on the scrolling navigation to the left of thehomepage. It is up to you to identify and contact the authors to set up a virtualvisit via Skype. If you’re not familiar with Skype, visit the Skype Overview page.http://skypeanauthor.wetpaint.com/page/SKYPE+Overview

Visit the Skype an Author website. http://skypeanauthor.wetpaint.com/

Model It in Three Dimensions3DTin is a free web-based program for creating 3-D models. The programprovides templates that you can use to develop the 3-D models, or you can buildmodels from scratch. The service is free to use as long as you allow your modelsto be labeled with a Creative Commons license and put in the 3DTin gallery. Thegallery is also a place to find examples of what can be created in 3DTin. Modelsthat you create can be exported for use in other modeling software.http://www.3dtin.com/

Spot the Dangers in theWild Web WoodsIn an effort to teach children about potentialdangers online and ways to avoid them, theCouncil of Europe offers a free online gamecalled Through the Wild Web Woods. The gameis designed for children aged 7–10 to help themlearn how to spot dangers on the Internet and what to do when they do spot adanger online. The game is available in 25 languages.

Access Free Game: http://www.wildwebwoods.org/popup_langSelection.php

Next Vista for LearningAt Next Vista for Learning’s website nextvista.orgdiscover all sorts of videos created by students toteach you about a topic. Topics can be found in almostany subject area and videos are no longer than fiveminutes. Students can also consider creating their ownvideos to submit to the site! http://www.nextvista.org/

Web 2.0 ToolsWeb Resources

Resources for Newsletter 

In addition to websites referenced throughout the newsletter, information was also curated and quoted 

from the following resources: 

1. Emerging Ed Tech – www.emergingedtech.com 

2. iTunes App Store – http://itunes.apple.com 

3. Simple K12 – www.simplek12.com 

4. The Big Deal Book of Technology Newsletter – www.bigdealbook.com/newsletter 

5. Cloud Computing – page 1 

Source: Information quoted from “Cloud Computing Simplified,” by Joe DiDonato – 

http://blogs.2elearning.com/