Happy Holidays!!

My students this year helped me to create this Macbook Christmas  tree.  Every student in class arranged their laptop and kept it from falling asleep in order to get this photo.  We had to work together, problem solve and had a great time in the process.  We have even bigger plans for next year!

The holiday season is generally a good time when it comes to technology.  For many of us, it is the one time of the year that we load up on new techno stuff and spend our days off trying to get them up and running.  Popular gifts this year included smart phones, gaming systems, television streaming devices, tablets and fitness bands.

My favorite use of technology, of course, is education, and you don't need to be in school to use it for that purpose!  I use my ChromeCast most often to watch documentaries and my tablet to read from (though I always prefer the paper copies).  One of the best new education technologies is the fitness band. They have gone from digital pedometers to tiny personal computers that keep track of sleep patterns, calorie consumption and activity. It takes a tedious and difficult task and simplifies it. For all of those New Year's resolutions involving health goals, there is no better investment than a fitness band! 

And now for a Public Service Announcement...

PSAs have come a long way!  The Public Service Announcements on television and the web are some of the most watched and most enjoyed forms of media.  What were once didactic and static are now surprising and poignant. PSAs have the ability to make a point stick like no other form of media...which is why they are PERFECT for education!

There are so many applications for PSAs in the classroom.  In history classes, students could create PSAs about wartime preparations, or ways to avoid the Black Plague in Sixteenth-Century London. In Science, they could propose conservation methods for water, or how to limit your carbon footprint. In English, students could do a PSA over an issue from a novel that needs to be resolved or to provide advice to a specific character. And, obviously, in Health and Phys. Ed, students could do PSAs over current health issues and the benefits of good nutrition and exercise.  Elementary teachers could use them to promote character education by having groups of students create PSAs about bullying or being trustworthy.

In order to create a PSA, a student must know how to effectively reach an audience through ethos, pathos and logos.  They have to understand the role media plays in society.  They must use solid writing and editing skills, have a clear understanding of their content and know how to use technology to solve problems.  PSAs encompass much of the learning we want students to achieve, and they do it in a way that works with all learning styles.  When it comes to assessments, PSAs could very well be the "perfect storm".

Check out this PSA I made for a class.  This one focuses on hunger, and focuses mostly on appeals to pathos.  For this PSA, I had to make certain that all of my content was original and that my music was not copyrighted.  It is much more challenging for students to create this way.  (Teaching students how to steal other people's work is never a good idea.)

Can you think of at least a million ways you could use these in your classroom?  I can't wait to get started!