Music is often called the universal language, and in our modern world that may be true. But there was a time that music was an export product, and this postcard of the Royal Military Band of Kumasi, Gold Coast West Africa is a good example. The band, dressed in British style military uniforms, represents the way European musical culture was exported to foreign colonies in the 19th century. These 25 African musicians pose with a standard mix of European brass and woodwind instruments along with western style drums. The original sepia tone photo has been crudely colorized with swatches of red on their caps, yellow on the brass instruments, and brown on their faces.
The Gold Coast, or Ghana as it is now known, was once part of the collection of British colonies in West Africa. This small country, just beneath the immense territory of French West Africa, is on the Gulf of Guinea and adjacent to the French colony of Ivory Coast. After the Dutch left in 1874, it was made into a British protectorate, but the native Ashanti people objected to the need for protection. This led to a conflict in 1900 known as the War of the Golden Stool in which the British prevailed and the Gold Coast became a British colony. Independence would have to wait until 1957.
The publisher was the Basel Mission Book Depot of Accra, a Christian mission organization started by German Protestants who first came to the Gold Coast in 1828. They recruited both Dutch and English missionaries and established schools for teaching various trades, including printing, to the native people. They were also important for compiling the first translations of African languages in the region.
The name Royal Military Band may refer to the Ashanti Royalty whose capital was the city of Kumasi , which is inland from the coastal city of Accra. If you look closely, some bandsmen have medals, and the drum has regimental markings, so I suspect these may be awards from that 1900 conflict, or perhaps from the earlier Boer war. The postcard was never mailed, but I believe, based on other sources, that it dates from around 1905.
I found this short video of the Ghana Police Band on parade in 2011. Their website describes a musical tradition that goes back to 1918, and there are now 5 regional police bands providing ceremonial and festival dance music in Ghana. I would imagine that the Royal Military Band of Kumasi had a very similar sound and marching style.
If you have been following my posts on this blog, you will recognize the theme in this next video which I hope you will watch. When I was preparing this story, I made an exciting discovery on YouTube of a video that combines this notion of exporting musical culture with the older tradition of teaching children to take up a musical instrument. It also comes from Ghana.
The Kopeyia School Brass Band is a music education project run by Jo Junghans , a German pianist and trombonist, who has traveled to a rural school in the village of Kopeyia in Ghana's Aflao region. In this next short video you can meet Sena, one of his students, who explains the value of being in the brass band.
My collection has many early photographs of bands very similar to this one from Kopeyia. But these antique photos of boys and girls with their music instruments are always frustrating because they are forever silent.
Now for the first time we can see and hear the enthusiasm of children just like them, and meet their young band leader too. As you listen and maybe read about Jo Junghans and his Kopeyia School Brass Band , you will understand how the dream of a children's brass band in Africa is no different from that same dream held by thousands of American, British, and European communities 100 years ago, that true culture begins with teaching children the love of music. This is the real truth of the universal language of music.
UPDATE: As Jo Junghans explains in his comment below, the Kopeyia Brass Band is is an educational project about promoting peace through cultural exchange. By including their videos in this story, my intention was not meant to imply any connection to the colonial period other than geography. The connection I would like to make is that the excitement these young people have for learning and performing music was undoubtedly shared by the many children pictured in my antique band photos. That zeal is the very essence of what makes music a world language.
This is my contribution to Sepia Saturday
where you may encounter more uniforms and pill box hats.


University of Minnesota, Morris Division of Education’s conceptual framework for teacher education describes the discipline’s intellectual philosophy and institutional standards, which distinguish Morris graduates from those of another institution. It reflects the teacher education program’s vision and mission, and provides direction for programs, courses, teaching, candidate performance, scholarship, service, and unit accountability. The conceptual framework is knowledge-based, articulated, shared, coherent, consistent with the unit and/or institutional mission, and continuously evaluated.
Coursework in elementary education is designed to meet standards of effective practice required for licensure and provide prospective teachers with opportunities to:
- understand central concepts, tools of inquiry, and structures of disciplines taught in the elementary school;
- understand child and adolescent development theory, individual and group motivation and diversity among learners;
- create instructional opportunities adapted to learners of diverse cultural backgrounds and abilities;
- use instructional strategies and technologies that reflect personal knowledge of effective verbal, nonverbal, and media communication techniques;
- encourage development of critical thinking, problem solving, and performance skills;
- understand and use formal and informal methods of student assessment; and
- collaborate with parents/guardians, families, school colleagues, and the community in an ethical manner.


- Published: Edina, MN : ABDO Pub., 2011.
- Year Published: 2011
- Description: 24 p. : col. ill. ; 20 x 25 cm.
- Language: English
- Format: Book
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Super simple things to do with balloons : fun and easy science for kids
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Call number: J 507.8 Do
Available Copies: Downtown Youth, Traverwood Youth
Super simple science -- Balloons -- Work like a scientists -- Materials -- That's repulsive! -- Let's go nuts! -- A moving experience -- Jet balloon -- Stick it to it! -- Way cool water balloon -- Bed of nails.
Presents several fun science experiments one can do with a balloon.
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Teaching Strategies for the Slow-Learning Social Studies Student
- Reciprocal teaching of social studies in inclusive elementary classrooms. Lederer // Journal of Learning Disabilities;Jan/Feb2000, Vol. 33 Issue 1, p91
Reading comprehension relies on the use of metacognitive strategies. Reciprocal teaching has been found to be an effective comprehension technique to use with students with learning disabilities. This study examined the effectiveness of reciprocal teaching during social studies instruction with...
- The differential effects of two systematic reading comprehension approaches with students with learning disabilities. Rabren, Karen; Darch, Craig; Eaves, Ronald C. // Journal of Learning Disabilities;Jan/Feb99, Vol. 32 Issue 1, p36
Presents the results of a study which compared two highly dissimilar approaches for teaching learning disabled students to determine character motive when reading three types of narrative text. Comprehension measures used; Rule-based instruction; Results of transfer and maintenance tests.
- LEARNING--A MATTER OF STYLE. Dunn, Rita S. // Educational Leadership;Mar1979, Vol. 36 Issue 6, p430
Suggests teaching methods for slow learners. Definition of slow learners; Characteristics of slow learners; Materials used for teaching slow learners.
- Chapter 1: CONTEXTUALIZING MYSELF IN PRACTICE, THEORY, AND PLACE. Connor, David J. // Urban Narratives: Portraits in Progress--Life at the Intersectio;2007, p7
A personal narrative is presented which explores the author's experience of teaching the learning disabled (LD).
- Strategy Training and Reading Comprehension. Brailsford, Anne; Snart, Fern; Das, J.P. // Journal of Learning Disabilities;May1984, Vol. 17 Issue 5
Describes the application of a remedial strategy training program to improve the reading comprehension of learning disabled students. Comparison of the experimental group in cognitive strategy training and the control group in remedial reading; Results indicating greater experimental than...
- Best practices in promoting reading comprehension in students with learning disabilities. Mastropieri, Margo A.; Scruggs, Thomas E. // Remedial & Special Education;Jul/Aug97, Vol. 18 Issue 4, p197
Describes the best practices for facilitating reading comprehension for students with learning disabilities. Review of research in reading comprehension with students with learning disabilities; Analysis of relevant literature; High effects of some reading comprehension strategies; Description...
- Connecting Brain Research with Dimensions of Learning. Hardiman, Mariale M. // Educational Leadership;Nov2001, Vol. 59 Issue 3, p52
Suggests the best practices for teaching children, especially students with learning disabilities, based on a brain research and the dimensions of learning. Techniques for inculcating positive attitudes; Practice for making students acquire and integrate knowledge; Activities which allow...
- The SM rap -- or, here's the rap on self-monitoring. Rankin, Joan L.; Reid, Robert // Intervention in School & Clinic;Jan95, Vol. 30 Issue 3, p181
Focuses on the method of self-monitoring in the teaching of students with mild learning disabilities. Explanation of self-monitoring; Implementation of self-monitoring intervention; Illustration of the procedures used for a student with learning disabilities having difficulties in math.
- Teaching effective comprehension strategies to students... Swanson, Philip N.; De La Paz, Susan // Intervention in School & Clinic;Mar98, Vol. 33 Issue 4, p209
Summarizes several metacognitive strategies designed to improve reading comprehension in students with learning and reading disabilities and describes an instructional model showing how to teach comprehension strategies to students. Discussion of practical suggestions to help teachers implement...


Australian School Library Association (ASLA)
The school library is a vital teaching and learning environment in the school community. The school library and its staff are integral to empowering students to become independent lifelong learners. Student learning outcomes are enhanced through the teacher librarian’s acquisition and organisation of information resources, the dissemination and circulation of learning materials and collaboratively planned programs to integrate information and digital literacy.
Having access to a well resourced school library and the services of a fully trained and qualified teacher librarian is the right of every student in an Australian school. The provision of the school library facility and the employment of a highly qualified teacher librarian in every school is the responsibility of the federal and state governments of Australia.
Students’ success in today’s society depends on their ability to use information and communication technologies to access, evaluate, synthesise and present information to develop an understanding of the world in which they live and ultimately work. A teacher librarian is a significant contributor to the development and delivery of the school’s teaching and learning program through the distinct and overlapping roles of curriculum leader, information specialist and information services manager.
A teacher librarian implements the vision of the school community through advocating and building effective library and information services and programs that address the curriculum needs of the school and support the literacy development of every student.
Australian School Library Association and Australian Library and Information Association 2001, Learning for the future: developing information services in schools, 2nd ed., Curriculum Corporation, Carlton South.
Standards of professional excellence for teacher librarians
Statement on library and information services in schools
Statement on teacher librarian qualifications
Statement on teacher librarians in Australia
Adopted: February 2009


Welcome to our Resources Page! Here you will find things to help you make and lead music in your classroom. If you are a teacher looking for official copies of our curriculum or training guides, or there is something else you need that is not listed below, please feel free to request these in writing. Please contact email@example.com.
Every song gives a teacher a special way to convey and impart information to her or his students. By understanding the forms of different kinds of songs at a meta level, we can see which songs to use for which kinds of learning. For instance, a Blues song features repetition and a cause/effect relationship in every verse. This form lets teachers replace drill and kill exercises for rote memorization with singing the Blues! Another example is an anthem. An anthem expresses a clear, strong, unifying thematic message that uplifts singers and listeners and presents a summary. Teachers can help students write an anthem to conclude a unit of study and frame the most important lessons learned in a positive way. There are many great song forms to apply to lessons. This form gets us started considering how to use common songs for teaching students anything.
If you want to make a case for providing music in your school, it helps to have some tools- statistics, articles, testimonials, and studies. When music education programs fall because decision makers make budget cuts to the arts, everyone loses. Be an effective force for good in your school and community by preparing a strong argument for funding music education even in tough times.
Article with an External Link: The Benefits Of Music Education
Article with an External Link: How Does Music Stimulate Left and Right Brain Function
Need a little help tuning your guitar to Open G to play songs in our beginning approach? This video is very helpful. There are others out there, also online guitar tuners, but this one helps you HEAR the strings that have the same notes in different octaves as you tune.
No one knows guitar strings like D’Addario. If you need to change a guitar string- whether it is old or broken- this video will walk you through the process successfully.
This download will help a newcomer to zipper, copy change, or piggyback songwriting get familiar with the process.
Shopping for new song resources? This website offers wonderful music integration resources for teachers at every grade level.
External Link: Songs for Teaching. Using Music to Promote Learning
If you are preparing to lead an after school guitar club or class, the fun game-based guitar activities in this booklet will engage every participant in playing guitar and making music intuitively. Not your typical guitar lessons! If you are a classroom teacher who wants to lead some hands-on strumming and singing in your classroom as part of learning other lessons, these activities can also come in very handy.
Sometimes strumming and singing along with a recording can help us get better at playing. These tracks are simple, straightforward versions of some of the songs in our free educational materials. Feel free to download them and play along anytime!
Please check back. We will have our practice tracks available here in a few days!
If you are a teacher looking for a grant or some recognition for creative work well done, here are some resources for you.
External Link: Teachers Count! Teacher Awards and Competitions
Want to purchase a DVD of GITC’s founder Jessica teaching guitar with the approach we use in our Beginner classes? Homespun has this available along with a marvelous selection of musical instruction videos on all kinds of stringed and other instruments by a host of talented, passionate teachers. Browse and enjoy, here.
External Link: Homespun Music Instruction


ERIC Number: ED429556
Record Type: RIE
Publication Date: 1999
Reference Count: N/A
Barriers to Adopting Emerging Technologies in Education.
Rogers, Patricia L.
This article examines barriers to technology adoption based on the literature and data from two studies. A five-step hierarchical model (familiarization, utilization, integration, reorientation, evolution) of adoption of technology in the classroom is presented, and internal and external barriers to technology adoption are examined. The two studies are then described. In the K-12 study, 1,000 art teachers were surveyed to: ascertain current levels of technology adoption; characterize teaching strategies used for learning in computer-based art classrooms; identify barriers to technology adoption; and propose an instructional model. In the second study, information on the impact of a large-scale initiative, the Electronic Academy, implemented at two- and four-year institutions in a Midwestern state postsecondary system, was collected from instructional technology coordinators. A product of this examination is a visual representation of the interactions and interdependence of elements that contribute to the construction of barriers to technology adoption. The model is intended to clarify internal and external obstacles and to serve as an aid to pre-service and in-service teacher education curriculum designers and developers as they plan for the successful infusion of newer technologies in the curriculum. Three tables contain a summary of research on barriers to technology adoption and data on barriers to technology adoption at the elementary, secondary, and postsecondary levels. (Contains 28 references.) (DLS)
Descriptors: Adoption (Ideas), Art Education, Computer Uses in Education, Curriculum Development, Educational Technology, Elementary Secondary Education, Information Technology, Instructional Design, Instructional Development, Literature Reviews, Models, Postsecondary Education, Teacher Education, Teacher Surveys, Teaching Methods, Technology Integration, Use Studies
Publication Type: Information Analyses; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Sponsor: Virginia Commonwealth Univ., Richmond. Rehabilitation and Training Center on Supported Employment.; Minnesota State Colleges and Universities System, St. Paul.
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers: Barriers to Implementation; Technology Implementation; Technology Utilization


Note: To protect the privacy of our members, e-mail addresses have been removed from the archived messages. As a result, some links may be broken.
Is it not important to transmit what we know about the motivation for production
of art forms, connect it to a common demnominator(to give it relevance) to
enable the student to engage in a similar process.???? Would that be a viable
Carole O.______________________________ Reply Separator
Subject: Re: Pluralism & Storyteller Dolls
Author: "Nancy Walkup" <walkup> at EDU-INTERNET
Date: 2/10/97 11:43 AM
> To: artsednet
> Subject: Pluralism & Storyteller Dolls
> From: cecilia3 (Cecilia A Marks)
> Date: Fri, 07 Feb 1997 18:16:39 EST
> Have been reading the comments regarding this subject and thought I'd
> jump in with a few thoughts. Actually after reading Carla Harwitts last
> comments I felt comfortable enough to do so!
> I have been teaching art in a small (300 plus) parochial school for many
> years and have always incorporated the arts from many cultures in my
> lessons. We have children from many cultures attending our school and
> they share their art and customs with us. We do weaving, Kachina Dolls,
> paper cutting from many countries, batik, clay work as Mission & Native
> American pottery , African masking, plus much, much more. When I
> introduce the lesson of the Kachina Dolls I always tell the students that
> they are symbols or representations of the gods of the tribes and they
> are not "dolls". They are very much like the plaster statues found in
> our Church that represent certain saints. Our students have also made
> crosses from everything from nails, to clothespins, to beads, to sea
> shells.....The students learn by doing and experiencing. How can they
> know where they are going if they do not know where others have been? If
> I was teaching Science or Math I would not expect the student to relearn
> what others had learned before him/her. They need to have something to
> build on.
> Finally, having grown up in New Mexico I do not the understand the
> argument regarding the Storyteller Dolls. If I'm not mistaken,
> Storyteller Dolls were first made in the 1960's and have been remade as
> Storyteller Turtles, etc. I do not believe they are Kachina Dolls.
> SchoolArts did an article on them a few years back.
> It is so wonderful to read so many of your practical ideas and lessons.
> Cecilia (V)
Sorry, I didn't intend to imply that kachinas are storytellers; I was
presenting them as another example of a project often used in
the art class. You are right; storytellers are a relatively recent invention.
My concern is that too many students end up copying an art form
or object. Whether or not the students learn the context in
which the orginal objects were made, I still believe that we
should, as much as possible, encourage our students to produce original
works based on the themes of the work studied. If students can
also translate the theme in contemporary terms of their own
lives, they will, hopefully, create objects more meaningful to
I, personally, am uncomfortable using kachinas as an art
project. They do offer meaningful possibilities for aesthetic and
ethical discussions, but I know too much about how the Hopis
regard them to be comfortable with creating works based on their
forms. I think we need to respect the beliefs and feelings of
cultures different than our own whenever possible.
So, all of you out there, please, don't throw any tomatoes at
me. My intention is not to be judgmental, but to open discussion
about critical issues facing art education today.
I'll climb down from my soapbox now,
Nancy Walkup, Project Coordinator
North Texas Institute for Educators on the Visual Arts
PO Box 5098, University of North Texas
Denton, TX 76203
817/565-3986 FAX 817/565-4867


April 13, 1924–January 25, 2001
With a bent back and powerful hands, an African American man figures prominently in a large mural in Houston's Blue Triangle YWCA. To his left, Harriet Tubman leads weary slaves to freedom. To his right, Sojourner Truth stands while children march proudly into a schoolhouse.
Dedicated in 1953, this mural—titled The Contribution of Negro Women to American Life and Education—was a milestone in the career of artist John Biggers. A longtime Houston resident, Biggers found his voice by depicting the heroic survival of his people. He said, "I began to see
art . . . as a responsibility to reflect the spirit and style of the Negro people."
Biggers achieved recognition as an artist for his drawings and sculptures, but he is best known for his murals. These murals form a rich part of Houston’s visual and public landscape at Texas Southern University, the University of Houston, Tom Bass Park, and Christina V. Adair Park.
In 1949, Biggers was named chairman of the art department at the institution that would become Texas Southern University. Over the next thirty-four years Biggers trained the next generation of African American artists and teachers that form a vital part of Biggers's legacy.
John Biggers left behind a body of work that as Maya Angelou stated, "leads us through his expressions into the discovery of ourselves at our most intimate level."
Olive Jensen Theisen, author of Walls That Speak: The Murals of John Thomas Biggers and A Life on Paper: The Drawings and Lithographs of John Thomas Biggers, maintains a website dedicated to his work.
The University Museum at Houston’s Texas Southern University houses a collection of John T. Biggers's works.
The Houston Oral History Project includes the transcript of a 1975 interview with Biggers.
Biggers's papers are at Emory University.
Barr, Alwyn, and Robert A. Calvert, eds. Black Leaders: Texans for Their Times. Denton: Texas State Historical Association, 1990.
Biggers, John Thomas. Ananse: The Web of Life in Africa. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1996.
Biggers, John Thomas, and Alvia Jean Wardlaw Short. "Contribution of The Negro Woman to American Life and Education: A Mural." Callaloo 5 (February 1979): 127–134
Biggers, John Thomas, and Carroll Simms. Black Art in Houston: The Texas Southern University Experience. College Station: Texas A&M University Press, 1978.
Biggers, John Thomas, John Mason Brewer, and Alvia J. Wardlaw. Aunt Dicy Tales: John Biggers' Drawings for the Folktale. Austin: Ransom Center, 1999. Published in conjunction with the exhibition Aunt Dicy Tales: John Biggers' Drawings for the Folktale shown at the Harry Ransom Center.
"John T. Biggers (1924–2001)." The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education 31 (Spring 2001): 130.
John Biggers: My America, The 1940s and 1950s: Paintings, Sculpture and Drawings. Foreword by Whitfield Lovell. New York: Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, 2004. Published in conjunction with the exhibition John Biggers: My America shown at the Michael Rosenfeld Gallery.
Theisen, Olive Jensen. A Life on Paper: The Drawings and Lithographs of John Thomas Biggers. Denton: University of North Texas Press, 2006.
Theisen, Olive Jensen. "Two New Murals by John Biggers: Salt Marsh and Nubia, Origins of Business and Commerce." Art Education 54, no. 4 (July 2001): 20–24.
Theisen, Olive Jensen. Walls That Speak: The Murals of John Thomas Biggers. Denton: University of North Texas Press, 2010.
Wardlaw, Alvia J. The Art of John Biggers: View from the Upper Room. New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1995.
Wardlaw, Alvia J. "'Strength, Tears, and Will': John Biggers' Contribution of the Negro Woman to American Life and Education." Callaloo 5 (February 1979): 135–143.


Youth and adult literacy programs support young people preparing to enter the labour force, through to adults who have retired and want to maintain their skills. Literacy skills enable people to participate fully in their families, communities, and workplaces. In each situation, they need different forms of literacy, and different skills.
Youth and adults’ interests, needs and learning styles are different from those of children. As a result, we need to use different approaches to teaching and learning. The work we do in youth and adult literacy is community-based.
Youth literacy and adult education programs are vitally important in the NWT to support literacy development among people who may not have the skills they need for today’s world.
To support youth and adult literacy development, we:
- Develop a wide-range of learning materials for instructors and learners. (See our resources section.)
- Develop and deliver a range of workshops and training for youth and adult literacy development. These include: literacy and essential skills; youth literacy; financial literacy; digital literacy; health literacy; workplace literacy.
- Promote the value of literacy.
- Monitor government policy and funding for adult literacy.
Conduct research in the adult literacy field.
The NWT Literacy Council can help community-based organizations, including adult educators, to offer youth and adult literacy programs in their community, through our workshops, training and free resources.


How Hitler Helped Create Hollywood Music
The “Golden Age” of Film Music Ushered in by the Tragic Days of the Third Reich
Paul Chihara is a Japanese-American who grew up in a relocation camp during WWII, first in Idaho and later in Seattle. Even with the indignities suffered by so many Japanese-Americans during that period, Mr. Chihara says “far from the opera houses or concert halls of Vienna or of New York–to hear such magical music, married to equally magical images. That’s entertainment – and a lot more!”
Read How Hitler Helped Create Hollywood Music (The OREL Foundation)
The 12 Benefits of Music Education
Pianist Awadagin Pratt is committed to his craft. To hear him speak is to quickly understand that music is more than just something to listen to or perform. Rather, it is something to be breathed in, absorbed, tasted, and savored. He is also committed to education, so that the next generation has the foundation to appreciate music the way he does. To that end, the Pratt Music Foundation was established in his father’s memory in 1996. A paraphrase of Plato’s Republic is prominently displayed on their website…”I would teach children music, physics, and philosophy; but most importantly music, for in the patterns of music and all the arts are the keys of learning.” Mr. Pratt is currently on the faculty of the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music.
Read more about the Pratt Music Foundation
Watch Awadagin Pratt discuss Beethoven’s 4th Piano Concerto
Artwork to be Auctioned Off by Museum
Several years ago a young artist, frustrated with trying to get his art seen, sneaked into several New York art museums and hung his work. Inspired by that, a young Polish art student by the name of Andrzej Sobiepan managed not only to get his artwork into the National Museum in Poland, he also hung it.
So if you are an aspiring composer, maybe you just slip your manuscript into the conductor’s stack, drop parts on each musician’s stand, and see what happens!
Read Banksy Inspires Polish Art Student’s Stunt (bbc.com)
Watch Andrzej Sobiepan hang his work in the museum


Family Literacy Environment and Early Literacy Development
A battery of reading-related and reading measures was used to select samples of good (N = 30) and poor readers (N = 19) in Grade 1. Parents of these children completed a questionnaire about current and preschool home literacy practices and socio-economic status (SES). The 2 groups were compared with t tests and in a discriminant analysis. The t tests indicated that the homes of the good and poor readers differed in many characteristics, including several aspects of home literacy, numbers of books in the home, and mothers’ education. The 2 best unique discriminators of the groups were parents’ teaching of letters and mothers’ education. The limitations of the study and the implications are discussed.
For questions/concerns please email firstname.lastname@example.org (ISSN: 1918-5227)


An alphabet chart that you may print out and use for your classes to help them remember the sounds of letters.
I think that #engchat and reading teachers would be interested in downloading this list from Linda. She has shared a spreadsheet of reviews by graduate students of teacher books for teaching reading in the content areas. This is an example of how college professors can understand and share resources to help K12 teachers.
Reading rockets has a lot of resources for parents working to help their children improve their reading over the summer. I have a child with dyslexia and each summer, reading is one of our most important things we do. Every day I set the timer and my son and I both get our favorite book and get on the couch and read.I read too. If it is important enough to have him do, it is important enough for me to do too.
The updated 2006 copy of the National Reading Panel teacher's guide to give a framework for using the findings of the 200 national Reading Panel in the classroom. This is another guidebook for teachers and curriculum directors.
This guide is from Dr. Louisa C. Moats and the International Dyslexia Association. It bridges research into practice to create a "research-based tool for practitioners." These are the standards used by the IDI to guide teachers of reading, spelling, and writing.
I used this research in writing a grant for securing Amazon Kindle's and using their text to speech feature to help students with reading comprehension.
Sadoski, M. & Paivio, A. (2004). A dual coding theoretical model of reading. In R. B. Ruddell & N. J. Unrau (Eds.), Theoretical models and processes of reading (5th ed.) (pp. 1329-1362). Newark, DE: International Reading Association.
From a friend of mine at Scholastic - here is some research on fifth grade reading comprehension.
"Results after two years of using three reading comprehension curricula show gains from one program and no effects for the other two on reading comprehension for fifth-graders, according to a study released by the National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance in the Institute of Education Sciences. The study focused on whether 5th grade students in disadvantaged schools could be helped in making the transition from "learning to read" to "reading to learn" by bolstering the vocabulary and comprehension skills that allow them to organize and acquire knowledge from text.
Three commercially available supplemental reading comprehension curricula were used for a second year by school and teachers to teach explicit reading comprehension strategies-ReadAbout, Read for Real, and Project CRISS. The study included 182 teachers and 61 schools in 10 districts, with study schools within each district assigned by lottery to use one of the curricula or serve as a control group."
This is a cool opportunity for teachers who have smartboards -how about pulling this ebook up onto your screen to read together and then take the quiz. This one is free.
In my email:
"Each month, Sylvan Dell will feature a different eBook for free at www.SylvanDellPublishing.com! View the entire eBook in English and Spanish, absolutely free with no login required. Just click and read! April's featured eBook is one of our newest titles, Newton and Me, about a boy and his dog, Newton. Join them as they discover the laws of force and motion in thier everyday activities. After reading, take the quizzes and complete the For Creative Minds activities on the Newton homepage. Great for a fun, educational summer activity!"
Click in to find related links.


Music Education Curriculum
The music education curriculum is a balance of applied study, music history, theory and ear training, ensembles, and pedagogical exploration. Music education majors study privately with one of our accomplished private studio teachers. Private study culminates with the presentation of a recital in the senior year.
The music history, theory and ear training curriculum prepares students to have an extensive and well-rounded understanding of music. Students study major concepts of music and develop the aural skills necessary to effectively teach music over the duration of the music teacher education program.
We offer an extensive array of ensemble opportunities including concert choir, community chorus, camerata, jazz band, concert band, orchestra, and small ensembles. Students in ensembles enrich their understanding and develop the skills necessary to lead other students to high standards of musicianship. During the senior year, students are offered extensive opportunities to conduct and lead these ensembles.
Finally, the music education degree program provides extensive opportunities to develop pedagogical expertise. Students take coursework that is aligned with sequential field experiences that develop a thorough understanding of the classroom. Students at Elizabethtown College study learning theories, philosophy, general and specialized methodologies, classroom management, school law, and conducting among many other aspects. Instruction in these areas is aligned with sequential experiences that allow students to test and develop ideas and skills in the preschool, elementary, secondary choral, and secondary instrumental environments. At the cumulative student teaching experience, students engage in two 8-week experiences at the elementary and secondary levels.


- Elementary Education
- Measurement Book Set - Grades 1-2
Measurement Book Set - Grades 1-2
Large View | Find Similar Items
These high-interest readers feature math concepts that really do measure up! These books are Standards based and perfect for young readers. Each reader features exciting nonfiction text, problem-solving activities, supporting graphics, highlighted content-area vocabulary, sidebars, photographs, graphs, and more. Set of 6 includes A Year in Our Lives, A Day in Our Lives, Day at the Zoo, Night at the Community Center, World Markets, and Farmers Market. 32 pages each.


Although many fans of electric-guitar god Jimmy Page only know the mandolin as the high-pitched, plucky sounding background instrument in Led Zeppelin’s “The Battle of Evermore,” the mandolin was largely responsible for the spread of the guitar in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and was itself a major musical phenomenon. The craze began in the 1880s, when a group of Spanish musicians took Boston and New York by storm playing bandurrias, an instrument that resembles the mandolin in several respects.
The mandolin was an easy instrument to popularize, given the role of music in society at the time. In an era before iTunes, CDs, 8-track tapes, vinyl records, or even radios, being able to play an instrument was a highly desirable social skill—those who could play at home would be able to entertain friends and family without having to go to an expensive show or concert.
People who grew up without a music education in working- or middle-class families knew that instruments like the piano and the violin required an early start, so they largely resigned themselves to musical illiteracy. The mandolin, however, promised a way out. Mandolin manufacturers like Gibson sent representatives called teacher agents out into towns to stir up interest. The teacher agents would find a few people who already played the violin and would teach them to play the mandolin, since the two instruments have the same tuning.
Teacher agents would then organize a performance to be given by those they had taught. These concerts were generally fairly impressive, which allowed the representatives to pitch the mandolin to audience members as something they, too, could learn—these performers had only been playing for a few weeks, and look at all they could do!
Soon, mandolin orchestras performing popular classical songs were widespread. These orchestras often included up to 50 or 60 pieces, including mandolins, guitars, mandolas (the mandolin equivalent of the viola), mandocellos (the mandolin equivalent of the cello), and mando-basses. In fact, one of these orchestras was still active in New York City into the 1950s.
For collectors today, mandolins made by Gibson are by far the most desirable. While still owned by Orville H. Gibson himself, Gibson began manufacturing mandolins in Kalamazoo, Michigan, in 1894 with great success, and in 1898 he received a patent for a mandolin design.
Gibson sold his company in 1902, but the Gibson Mandolin and Guitar Company (as it was then known), continued to manufacture mandolins. Instruments made from the 1890s to the late 1900s are most prized by collectors, though many musicians consider them lacking in volume and tone. For such aficionados, the 1909 Gibson F-style mandolins are the first ones with a good, “modern” tone...
The absolute zenith of mandolin design came in the 1920s, thanks to an acoustic engineer at Gibson named Lloyd Loar. His F-5 model is considered the best mandolin ever produced, and those with Loar’s signature on the label inside command the highest prices of any mandolins on the market, thanks both to their superb construction and their selection by the pantheon of famous American mandolin players, including the legendary Bill Monroe.
Aside from the F-5, Gibson’s F-7, F-10, and F-12 from the 1930s are rare, too, though less valuable. Gibson also manufactured mandolas, mandocellos, mando-basses, and even mando-lutes. Mandolas and mandocellas are quite rare, and collectors tend to value them more than their equivalent mandolin models, with the exception of Loar-signed mandolins.
Martin and Epiphone also produced mandolins, mandolas, and mandocellos, many of which were high-quality instruments and are quite sought after today. Martin’s Style 20 and Style 30 are rare and well made, but still not as collectible as the Gibsons. No company in the United States in the early 20th century could challenge Gibson’s dominance in the mandolin market.
Throughout the 1920s, though, even as Gibson was producing some of the best mandolins ever made, mandolins were falling out of favor. Once the accessible instrument of choice, the mandolin began to be replaced in the national spotlight by an exotic new instrument that was even easier to play—the ukulele.


Rahm's Readers: Full STEAM Ahead
Explore any of these interactive websites to see what you can discover online. There's just so much to explore! Keep coming back as we add even more sites throughout the summer. Want more? Check out the resources sites for activities parents and children can do offline. You'll find many fun experiments, crafts and projects you can do at home or with a group.
BrainPOP Jr. Science »
Explore everything from plants and animals to weather and space!
Children's Museum of Indianapolis: Science Games »
Make a virtual glass sculpture, take an online tour of Egypt and much more.
Lawrence Hall of Science: 24/7 Science »
Want to explore Jupiter's moons or go to an alien juice bar? Go to "Games and Activities" to try it out.
Peep and the Big Wide World »
Click on the "Games" tab for lots of games with Peep and his friends.
Science for Kids »
In the "Games" section and try the "Science Games for Kids" to learn how your eyes see, or how sounds change!
Zoom: Kitchen Chemistry »
Explore the virtual kitchen to do online experiments and solve a puzzle!
Comic Creator »
Create your very own comic!
Invention Dimension »
Test your invention IQ in the "Games & Trivia" section.
Invention Playhouse »
Play around and see what you can invent.
There are so many fun games and activities for you to discover!
Webonauts Internet Academy »
Do you have what it takes to graduate from the Webonauts Internet Academy?
Amusement Park Physics »
Learn all about how roller coasters actually work.
Building Big »
Check out the interactive engineering lab to explore how large structures are made!
The Artist's Toolkit »
Explore all the tools that artists use, then create your own composition!
Color with Leo: Art Studio »
Mix your own colors while recreating paintings by famous artists.
National Gallery of Art Kids Art Zone »
Create an interactive still life or a cool collage and much more.
Starfall: Learn to Read »
Check out cool stories and activities while you explore the world of reading.
Find fun games just right for your grade level!
Real Life Math »
Explore ProportionLand and Scale City!
Starfall Math »
Try the "Math" section for some number fun.
Activities to do Together
Crafts for Kids »
Find crafts especially for the summertime, like a flag suncatcher!
Design Squad »
Want to build a better lunchbox, or find out how joints work? The Design Squad is here to help.
Discovery Engineering »
Go behind the scenes to learn about the engineering of roller coasters and skateboarding.
Electronic Era Timeline »
Do you know how much the first computer weighed?
Kitchen Science »
Find out how to inflate a balloon without touching it or create swirling colors in a bowl of milk.
Math is Fun »
Math activities for all ages to encourage learning by doing.
The Mint »
Access a wide array of activities and challenges to help children learn to be smarter with money!
Robotics: The Tech Museum »
Learn all about the rise of robotics in the 21st century.
Sid the Science Kid: Adventures for Families »
Find more than 100 family science activities to do at home!
Sing Along Songs »
Learn some patriotic songs or just a classic tune, or play the "Guess That Tune" game!


Literacy and Humanities >
Fine Arts >
The Cobb County School District has more than 40,000 students
enrolled in the music elective programs additionally each elementary student receives music instruction. The elective programs include
band, chorus, orchestra, general music, music appreciation, piano keyboarding, AP music theory, and guitar. Our instrumental and vocal
ensembles are seen and heard throughout the United States and worldwide. Recent accomplishments have included BOA Grand National
Marching Band Champions – Lassiter HS Band, 7th place at BOA Competition – Kennesaw Mt. HS Band, and multiples of tours to Japan,
Italy, Bahamas, England, and Germany.
Performing groups have been selected to appear at the Mid-West Band Clinic, the American Choral Director's Association Divisional Conference,
the Music Educator’s National Conference, the Georgia Music Educator’s Conference, the National Concert Band Festival, and numerous other events.
The Cobb County School District has been named as one of the "Best 100
Communities for Music in America" in 2000, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010,
2011, 2012 and 2013.
CCSD also provides the Pebblebrook HS Center for the Performing Arts. This magnet performing arts school offers specialized instruction in voice,
drama, and dance. Students enrolled in the program receive a two-hour integrated performing arts block. Students are expected to present a recital
in their primary emphasis area and will also participate in repertory production involving all aspects of the performing arts. For more
information go to www.cccepa.com.
CCSD provides general music education for all students Kindergarten through fifth grade, as well as band, chorus, and orchestra instruction in
the sixth grade. In grades six through twelve a wide variety of music course offerings is available to meet the interest of students and their abilities.


One of the most common job areas involving work with children is education. Preschool through elementary education levels offer a variety of job opportunities. Not surprisingly, the highest earners who work consistently with children more commonly are in the health-care and mental-health arenas.
Medical doctors are among the highest paid professionals who work with children. Pediatricians specialize in the diagnosis and treatment of childhood illness, disease and injury. It takes about eight to 10 years of school and residency experience to become a pediatrician, but the financial rewards are significant. Average annual pay in 2010 was $168,650, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Pediatricians who work in private practice often earn significantly more than those who work in hospitals or clinics.
Psychiatrists play prominent clinical roles in the mental health field. A child psychiatrist works specifically in the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of mental illness and disorders of children, including depression and attention deficit disorder. Psychiatrists are often active in psychotherapy or counseling to help offset challenges of mental health disorders. While the BLS doesn't list separate salary data for child psychiatrists, it reported average annual pay in 2010 for all psychiatrists at $174,170.
Closely related to child psychiatrists are child or school psychologists. These are mental-health professionals who diagnose and treat a broad range of disorders that include learning disabilities, autism, cognitive delays and behavioral problems such as personality disorder. Child psychologists focus on analyzing troubling behaviors and developing modification programs to improve thought processes and behaviors. In a school setting, the psychologist helps to develop an individualized education plan to help a child best fit into the school environment. This may include classroom strategies and special needs assistance. Median 2009 pay for clinical, counseling and school psychologists was $72,310, according to the BLS.
Public School Teacher
Public school teachers educate children on age-appropriate social skills and academic curricula. Teaching is notorious for its modest pay, but teachers with advanced degrees and years of experience raise the average income for the profession. Public schools normally pay teachers on a schedule that provides incremental bonuses each year with more education and time served. The BLS reported the average public school kindergarten and elementary school teacher earned $51,380 in 2010.
- Bureau of Labor Statistics: Pediatricians, General
- Bureau of Labor Statistics: Psychiatrists
- Bureau of Labor Statistics: Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2009: Clinical, Counseling, and School Psychologists
- Bureau of Labor Statistics: Kindergarten and Elementary School Teachers
- Bureau of Labor Statistics: Child, Family and School Social Workers
- Jupiterimages/Creatas/Getty Images


Tackling poverty and inequality
Some 16.3 million Brazilians (8.5% of the population) live on less than $1.50 per day, which by most international definitions indicates extreme poverty. However, thanks to the efforts of successive governments, including that of the current president, Dilma Rousseff, the country has made tremendous progress in reducing that poverty and tackling income inequality too.
In fact, income redistribution has become one of the pillars of Brazil’s growth model. While the bottom decile of Brazilians have enjoyed very fast annual income growth rates, comparable with China’s for instance, the top decile have had slower income growth, close to that of Germany.
A commonly used measure of inequality is the Gini index. According to this measure, inequality has declined at an average rate of 1.2% per year, and experts suggest that even without any growth in GDP per capita, the Millennium Development Goal of reducing poverty by half between 1990 and 2015 would have been met on time. Put differently, the economy would have had to grow by an extra 4 percentage points per year to achieve the same reduction in absolute poverty without this improvement in redistribution.
So, why the shift? It reflects changes in both wages and non-labour incomes such as transfers. One answer is education. Indeed, so-called “education premiums”— the gap between the remuneration of skilled and unskilled work—fell markedly as the supply of skilled labour increased. At the same time, better access to education has allowed more households to earn higher wages.
But arguably a bigger factor has been the effective use of social policies, and in particular a conditional cash transfer programme known as Bolsa Familia (or family grant). That measure provides small transfers to low-income families on condition that their children attend school, are vaccinated, and have regular health check-ups. It is a targeted programme, with each family’s eligibility re-assessed every two years through personal visits by social workers. These regular assessments have resulted in the establishment of an almost exhaustive register of poor families in the country called Cadastro Único. The programme covers almost 13 million families, and while the cash transfers alleviate poverty in the short term, the eligibility requirement that children attend school fosters the acquisition of literacy and numeracy skills, with clear long-term social and economic benefits. And, at only 0.4% of GDP, Bolsa Familia is very cost-effective.
Old-age pensions have also reduced poverty and inequality. Rising pension benefits have been effective in reducing inequality because pension beneficiaries tend to have below-average incomes. In fact, Brazil redistributes a larger share of national income to the elderly than any other Latin American country. Much of the sharp rise in pension benefits over the last decade was due to the fact that minimum pension benefits are indexed to the minimum wage, whose real value has jumped by over 70% in ten years.
Notwithstanding these successes, the transfer system has not done enough for youths, whose poverty rates remain visibly above average.
Fighting poverty remains a top priority in the government’s agenda. It has recently launched a new social policy programme called Brasil sem Miséria (Brazil without Poverty), which builds on and extends Bolsa Familia and aims to eradicate extreme poverty in Brazil by 2014. One focus of the programme is to provide poor families with more than just income transfers. In particular, the extensive information about the living conditions of poor families that has been acquired through Bolsa Familia and is collected in the Cadastro Único will be used to make other social services available to poor people according to their specific needs. This may include services like care for children and the elderly, training, assistance in finding employment, or the provision of loans. The new measure will extend the reach of transfer programmes into regions where they are currently underdeveloped, improve their targeting and help young people. If the success of the Bolsa Familia can be further expanded, then President Rousseff could move closer to her vision of eradicating extreme poverty and forging a fairer society in Brazil.
Barros, B., M. de Carvalho, S. Franco and R. Mendonça (2010), “Markets, the State and the Dynamics of Inequality: Brazil’s case study”, in L. López Calva and N. Lustig (eds.), Declining inequality in Latin America: a decade of progress?, Brookings Institution, Washington, DC.
OECD (2011), OECD Economic Surveys: Brazil, OECD, Paris.
©OECD Observer No 287 Q4 2011
Will the world economy brighten in 2014 compared with 2013?


Note: To protect the privacy of our members, e-mail addresses have been removed from the archived messages. As a result, some links may be broken.
You will find a clear step-by-step description of -a- in chapter 8 of Dr. Betty Edwards's Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain (Tarcher, 1979). Historically, -b- was derived from the empirical discovery of -a- in the 1430's by Italian Renaissance scientists/artists.
Pedagogically, it makes a lot of sence to introduce perspective in the same developmental order in which it was discovered, starting with visual perception and direct experience, and moving on to the general constructive method, aka "laws of perspective".
Of course this inevitably raises the larger question: is it possible to teach the average student how to draw? Betty Edwards and the people who apply her technology answer yes, but the consensus in most of the art education field is no.
Please let me know if this helps.


The Drawing Teacher Brochure (Partial Transcript)
The Drawing Teacher
A Little Folder of Teaching Projects for the Art Teacher
Harry W. Jacobs, Editor
Director, Art Education, Buffalo, N.Y.
Binney and Smith Co., New York
Each month we shall offer to the drawing teachers a complete lesson plan of an art project that has proved successful. These projects will place in the hands of each art teacher the method presenting art problems.
INTIMATE COMMENTS IN THE FIELD OF ART
In the development of design, plant form was the last to suggest motifs to the worker. The early designs were derived from animals and symbols related to their activities of home and life. To conventionalize nature is to adapt a nature-derived motif to the structural demands of the problem, keeping in mind the material, the tools and the processes involved in executing the problem. It is necessary that the pupil know some of the elementary laws of design before an attempt is made to adapt nature in a conventional form to various projects. In order to acquaint pupils with the many beautiful shapes found in nature, one must learn to express nature forms thru the mediums of crayon and water color.
LESSON PLAN, NO. 63, ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
1. PROJECT: Nature Drawing
2. AIM: To draw in pencil, crayon, and watercolor, plant and flower forms. In the primary grades draw in silhouette and color, emphasizing growth and arrangement. In the intermediate grades, draw in line and local color nature forms to illustrate growth and proportion of parts. In the junior grades drawing in the line and color emphasizing the decorative quality of nature and an appreciation of the beauty of form, line, and color in nature growth.
3. PREPARATION: Teacher: Ability to draw before the class to illustrate aim of lesson, examples of pupil's work. Working material: Pencil, perma or crayola crayons, artista water-color, manila or toned paper.


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Recently mathematicians have tried to get away from this by
advocating "Mathematics THROUGH History" (a bibliography by John
Fauvel), rather than "history of mathematics". Similarly "Art THROUGH
Multiculturalism" would teach the ESSENCE of art using the richness
and diversity of multiculural ideas.
One ethnocentric comment from the UK: multicultrual writings from the
USA seem to us to have an awful lot of Navajo and Northern Indian
culture, surprisingly little from Central America, and virtually
nothing from the Indian subcontinent. French writings have lots on
North Africa and Vietnam. British writings are no doubt full of OUR
ex-colonies. Thus multicultural writings are THEMSELVES cultural
products of imperialism (stand up Lenin!)
On 11 Jul 97 at 8:31, Kathrine Walker wrote:
> The article is in reference to an excellent book by Graeme Chalmers
> - you should read the whole book to really understand the issues -
> it is called CELEBRATING PLURALISM and is available from the Getty.
> The idea of not just copying another culture's art is really quite
> important - I just held a teacher's workshop at the museum on this
> topic in conjunction with an exhibition of Native American Art from
> the Santa Fe Indian Studio School.
> One point speaker made is - children copying Kachinas which are
> not part of their culture would be like someone drawing Christ on
> the cross without understanding what they are doing. Cultural
> objects are often laden with meaning and are sacred to a particular
> group. They are not just designs or patterns.
> Looking at and UNDERSTANDING (why was it made, where was it made,
> how was it used, who used it) the objects of another culture is an
> important part of multi-cultural art education. Recreating or
> copying these objects is a different matter.
> The suggestions had been made for the children to draw parallels to
> their own lives. For example, if you were looking at storyteller
> "dolls", who tells the stories in this particular child's life.
> Chances are it is not an Indian grandmother!
> When we worked with the paintings from the Studio School - we wanted
> the children to understand what the students were doing. The
> subject matter was required to be of the Indian students
> culture/daily life. It was not appropriate for our student to copy
> pictures of Kachina dancers. On the other hand, they could do
> paintings of daily events or special ceremonies in THEIR own lives.
> In most cases, with some careful thought, a teacher can help
> students understand cultural objects and create new/original
> objects that reflect the cultural objects usage within our societal
> Sorry for the longish post.
> Kathrine Walker
> Education Coordinator
> Beach Museum of Art, Kansas State University
"Alice in Escherland": a proposed conference and celebration of Lewis Carroll and MC Escher:
see the Times Educational Supplement (23/5/97, p. VI)
QED of York qed
1 Straylands Grove
York YO3 0EB, England Tel/Fax: +44-1904-424381
As the "one-stop maths shop", we aim to stock EVERYTHING
worthwhile in mathematics. E-mail us for details of Geometer's Sketchpad, Cabri, Derive, Minitab,
laminated posters, ALL Tarquin books, or whatever you want.


Sound Approach Using Phonemic Awareness to Teach Reading and Spelling
A Sound Approach presents a logically sequenced method for teaching reading and spelling using phonemic awareness. The book is based on real classroom experiences, a synthesis of contemporary research, and teacher feedback. This resource provides More...
Buy it from:
List Price: $45.00
Publisher: Portage & Main Press
Binding: Comb Bound
Size: 9.25" wide x 11.00" long x 1.25" tall
A Sound Approach presents a logically sequenced method for teaching reading and spelling using phonemic awareness. The book is based on real classroom experiences, a synthesis of contemporary research, and teacher feedback. This resource provides the knowledge and skills you need to effectively assess and teach crucial reading skills to your beginning and struggling readers.The authors offer:a variety of simple, effective activities that appeal to visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learners engaging, easy-to-follow lesson plans appropriate for whole-class, small-group, or individual instruction that easily fit into a readers-workshop or literacy-centre approach enlightening research-to-practice sidebars that respond to common questions and concerns reproducible assessments, sound cards and word cards, short-vowel cue cards, pictures pages, words-and-pictures pages, story starters, and riddles
Heather Kenny, M.Ed., is a former classroom teacher who has worked intensively with both beginning and struggling readers. During her tenure as an elementary teacher, she co-authored literacy curriculum, served as advisor to the Ontario Ministry of Education, and acted as a teacher-trainer and professional development facilitator. In her role as Educational Consultant (specializing in phonemic intervention and remediation), Heather worked privately with struggling readers identified with learning disabilities, and students who were at-risk for reading difficulties. For the past decade, she has been extensively involved in the professional development of teachers, facilitating in-service sessions for practicing teachers across North America, and speaking at national and regional literacy conferences. Heather has served as a part-time instructor at the University of Toledo, teaching graduate and undergraduate students in her literacy courses. She is currently a full-time doctoral student at the University of Toledo, focusing on literacy development, and is the recipient of a University Fellowship, the highest student award made by the College of Graduate Studies at the University of Toledo.
Laura Robbins has over 25 years of primary-school, junior-high-school, special-education, and early-literacy teaching experience. She holds a master's degree in education, having specialized in literacy. She has been active in the professional development of teachers, having served as an adjunct professor for York University in Toronto, as a professional learning community facilitator at the school and board levels, and as a literacy coach for the Halton District School Board. Together with Heather A. Kenny, she wrote Phonics in Action: A Balanced Early-Literacy Program, published in 1999, and a balanced literacy curriculum for Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board. Both she and Heather acted as advisors to the Ontario Ministry of Education, where they contributed to the document entitled Helping Your Child Learn to Read: A Parent's Guide, published in 2001. Heather and Laura offer literacy seminars and workshops for educators across North America.


Summary: This book provides the most complete source of information available to help teachers and instructors implement research-based word study in classrooms with students from varied language backgrounds. Educators will appreciate the clear, comprehensive directions for integrating word study into a dynamic and comprehensive literacy program that builds students' language skills. There's a concise outline of a research-based model of literacy development that English learners follow towar ...show mored understanding how words work in English, chapter by chapter examples of students' work, hands-on sample learning activities, illustrative graphics and tables to support the text, a variety of word study activities, references to multilingual language-learning materials and websites, and more. Accompanying this volume is a DVD that includes video clips from four classroom programs that implement word study with English learners; electronic forms for managing assessment, planning word study groups, and creating your own sorts, hundreds of prepared sorts and games that match the instructional activities described throughout the book; and foreign language spelling assessments for Chinese Korean, and Spanish speakers. The book is modeled after the widely popular original book,Words Their Way, but is a stand-alone resource designed primarily to support teachers working with students from a wide range of home languages as they learn to read and write in English. ...show lessEdition/Copyright: 2ND 12
More prices and sellers below.


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Three questions that can determine your wealth
If you and your spouse can correctly answer three simple math questions, a recent study suggests you'll have plenty of money in retirement. Financial commentator Greg Heberlein gave the quiz to KPLU's Dave Meyer, and you can take it, too. Patricia Sabatini of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette obtained the questions from the RAND Corporation. They are:
1. If the chance of getting a disease is 10%, how many people out of 1,000 would be expected to get the disease?
2. If five people all have winning numbers in the lottery, and the prize is $2 million, how much will each of them get?
3. Let's say you have $200 in a savings account. The account earns 10% interest per year. How much would you have in the account at the end of two years?
You'll find the answers at the end of this post.
The study was conducted by researchers at the RAND Corporation, the University of Southern California and the University of Michigan.
It found when couples over the age of 50 were able to correctly answer the three questions, their household wealth averaged $1.7 million. If neither spouse correctly answered any of the questions, their total wealth averaged $200,000. The more questions answered correctly, the greater their household wealth.
RAND's James P. Smith says:
"We examined several cognitive skills and found that a simple test that checks a person's numeracy skills was a good predictor of who would be a better family financial decision maker."
The findings are published in the November edition of The Economic Journal.
Warning: Researchers did not study the effectiveness of the quiz in settling disputes over household finances. Use at your own risk!


Fundamentals of XAML and Microsoft Expression Blend (cours 10553)
Cours disponible en français ou en anglais - Training available in French or in English
Durée: 3 jours
Objectifs du cours :
This 3-day course covers core and essential XAML skills. The learner will gain valuable experience developing XAML code in both Visual Studio 2010 and Expression Blend 4.
The course teaches the beginner and intermediate tasks that enable the learner to build the foundational skills required to develop professional Silverlight 4 and WPF applications (for the Web, Windows desktops, and Windows Phone 7 devices). The course will include hands-on labs that comprise approximately 50% of the classroom time and enable the student to learn the essential XAML programming tasks that are the building blocks of real-world applications.
Compétences acquises :
Les stagiaires seront à même d'effectuer les tâches suivantes :
- Describe the benefits of XAML-based applications.
- Explain the tools that can be used to create XAML-based applications.
- Describe the structure of a XAML-based application
- Create Vector Graphics with Expression Blend 4.
- Create Vector Graphics with Expression Design 4.
- Import Vector Graphics into Expression Blend 4
- Organize the controls used in the user interface of a XAML-based application.
- Add and manipulate the controls used in XAML-based applications
- Develop WPF applications.
- Develop Silverlight applications.
- Host a Silverlight application in an HTML web page.
- Debug a XAML-based application
- Create and use controls programmatically.
- Work with media files
- Use Resources in a XAML-based application.
- Work with Styles and ControlTemplates.
- Add and configure behaviors by using Expression Blend 4
- Apply transforms in your XAML-based applications.
- Create different types of animations in your XAML-based applications.
- Provide visual feedback to users based on the state of a control or a group of controls
- Implement property binding in XAML-based applications.
- Implement binding to external data objects in XAML-based applications
- Create application prototypes by using SketchFlow.
- Package prototypes for distribution to your customers.
- Review feedback on your prototypes from your customers
Connaissances requises :
Pour suivre ce cours, les stagiaires doivent disposer des connaissances suivantes :
- 1-3 months of professional programming experience with Visual Studio 2010.
- Some professional experience in developing either ASP.NET Web applications or Windows Forms desktop applications.
Copyright © 2012 Colombus.com - All rights reserved
Tel : +41 21 661 1675 - Fax : +41 21 661 1673 - Email : firstname.lastname@example.org


|English||Supporting Early Literacy in Natural Environments||4.2 MB|
|Spanish||Supporting Early Literacy in Natural Environments||4.2 MB|
Support materials for Language is the Key --
Free, reproducible language and early literacy activities.
Supporting Early Literacy in Natural Environments:
Activities for Parents, Caregivers and Young Children
These materials include forty-six home and community activities for adults and children that encourage early language and literacy development in young children. They are appropriate for children with disabilities as well as children who are developing typically.
Each of the forty-six activities includes three pages: 1) An activity description, 2) Hints for making the activity fun and developmentally appropriate, and 3) A brief self-evaluation form that cues parents and other caregivers to notice their children’s skills, and also cue adults to examine and grow their own interactions with children.
The materials are specifically designed to address the three key skills of 1) language development, 2) phonological awareness, and 3) general print awareness.
The files are in PDF format to allow easy and secure downloading. Five files for each language (Spanish and English) include:
Developed by Angela Notari-Syverson, Ph.D. and Kristin Rytter, Ph.D, with Judy Challoner, Faith Haertig Sadler, Young Sook Lim, Ph.D., Marilyn Sturm, and Rodd Hedlund (2005).
Dr. Notari-Syverson and colleagues allow the materials to be reproduced and distributed as long as the materials are not sold.
The development of these materials was supported by Grant H324M020084 from the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs.
Language is the Key videos provide multiple looks at effective ways to engage children in conversation. The narration is excellent and appropriate for parents, child care providers, and PK teachers.
Iowa Parent Information Resource Center
Early Childhood Team Leader
Cedar Falls, Iowa


Major student learning goals/objectives for Mathematics Majors/Minors, Secondary
Education Mathematics Majors/Minors, and Applied Mathematics Majors/Minors
Objectives: Students should be able to perform complex tasks, to discern patterns, to apply intellectually demanding and rigorous mathematical reasoning to formulate organized and cogent mathematical arguments.
Objectives: Students should possess an understanding of the breadth of mathematics and its interconnecting principles. Students should understand the interplay among applications, problem-solving, and theory. Students should be able to appreciate the different areas of mathematics and understand the relevance of mathematics to other disciplines. Students should be aware of the historical and contemporary context in which mathematics is practiced.
Objectives: Students should be able to apply their mathematical knowledge to a broad spectrum of complex problems. They should be able to solve multi-step problems and utilize current technology in so doing. Students should be aware of the process by which mathematical principles are applied to serve society.
Objectives: Students should be able to read, write, and speak mathematically. They should be able to work effectively in a group setting. They should have library and research skills sufficient to locate, analyze, synthesize, and evaluate information relating to their area.
Major student learning goals for Elementary Education Mathematics Minors:
(These learning goals are adapted from requirements of the Michigan Department of Education for certification of elementary teachers and elementary teachers with a minor in mathematics.)
Accreditation/Certifying Body: The Department of Mathematical Sciences’ program for Secondary Teacher Certification (major and minor) and minor for Elementary Education follow NCATE/NCTM guidelines as well as requirements of the State of Michigan Department of Education. Other courses, such as the Calculus sequence, conform to ABET(Accreditation Board for Engineering & Technology) specifications.
Professional Organizations/Standards that informed development of learning outcomes:
Major and Minor programs of the Department of Mathematical Sciences follow guidelines developed by CUPM (Committee on the Undergraduate Program in Mathematics) of the Mathematical Association of America and guidelines of CBMS (Conference Board of the Mathematical Sciences) of the American Mathematical Society in cooperation with the Mathematical Association of America.


Why should we expose children to different cultures at the pre-school level? After all, one might say, by the time children reach adolescence they will have forgotten everything they learned when they were three to six years old. Quite on the contrary, during the pre-school years children are forming the concepts (laying the foundation, so to speak) for the way they look at things, and the way they learn, the rest of their lives.
If we make learning enjoyable at the pre-school level children will develop a love of learning that will last throughout their lives. By the same measure, if we expose children to different cultures by introducing them to other languages, dances, foods, art, etc. then we prepare them for a life of curiosity and acceptance of other people and their backgrounds. By developing this understanding of other cultures early they will be able to more effectively relate to other people, of all backgrounds, later. This will be increasingly important in the future when our communication channels broaden and the people that use to be half-way around the world begin to seem like our next door neighbors.
Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it, this will be our world of tomorrow. Multi-cultural education, then, is one way to prepare children for the continuing change of society as we know it. By increasing children’s awareness of others and the different ways in which people are simply people we prepare them for this change.
On the other hand, of course, there is the prominent view that we should teach a child his own culture first, then we can worry about other cultures and peoples. It is true that a society’s primary means of communicating and advancing itself is through a similar language and culture. However, in today’s environment of ever-increasing technology and easier means of communicating people have to adapt quickly. In order to tie different cultures and societies together people need to be aware early of others’ differences before these differences are able to distort their views. Otherwise, prejudices and lack of awareness to “other ways” will begin to cloud the judgement of those who are not culturally enlightened. The easiest way to prevent this from happening is to begin by working from a broader base of knowledge at an early level.
So why multi-culturalism in pre-school? Perhaps we should ask why not? If we would like ours to be a more open and understanding society we will want to begin by opening the eyes of those who are most receptive to other cultures. Those who are just learning what culture is all about. Those, indeed, who are just learning what life is about. Eventually these children will also be the ones who take our places in society. And we would hope that we have them well prepared for the task.
This was written by our owner, John Weinacker. Mr. Weinacker has a Masters degree in Early Childhood and Elementary Education as well as a Masters in Business Administration. He has operated Weinacker’s Montessori School since 1990 and was one or the original students when it opened in 1969. In addition to his formal education, Mr. Weinacker also holds American Montessori Society (AMS) certifications at the Early Childhood, Lower and Upper Elementary, and Administrative levels.


Raised as a Quaker, Olive Rush studied at Earlham College, the art school associated with the Corcoran Gallery of Art and at the Art Students League before becoming an illustrator in New York in 1895. She was well known for her portraits and paintings of children and women, many of which were featured in magazines such as Woman's Home Companion and St. Nicholas. In 1904 she moved to Wilmington, Delaware, to study with Howard Pyle, and she stayed until 1910. She spent the next year in Europe studying British and French painters, and finished her art education at the Boston Museum School in 1912. In 1913 Rush returned to Europe with her friend, the watercolorist Alice Schille, visiting Belgium and France.
In 1914 Rush, with her father, visited New Mexico and Arizona, and she had a one-person exhibition at the Palace of the Governors in Santa Fe. She made several visits to New Mexico over the next couple of years and moved permanently to Santa Fe in 1920. Despite the relative isolation of Santa Fe, Rush continued to contributed to national and international shows over the next thirty years, which activity culminated in a retrospective at the Museum of New Mexico Art Gallery in 1957.
Her former studio on Canyon Road in Santa Fe is now the home to the Santa Fe Quaker Meeting, as well as having guest house facilities available on the site.
Rush considered her major influences to be early Chinese art, Japanese art, and El Greco. She painted murals for several public buildings in Santa Fe including the Public Library, the Post Office and La Fonda hotel on the plaza, as well as elsewhere in New Mexico. She taught mural painting to students at the Santa Fe Indian School, which is now the Institute of American Indian Arts.
- Rush, Olive (1957). Olive Rush Paintings. Santa Fe: Museum of New Mexico Art Gallery.
- Cuba, Stanley L. (1992) Olive Rush: A Hoosier Artist in New Mexico, Minnetrista Cultural Foundation, Muncie, Indiana. ISBN 0-9623291-4-2
- New York Sun, March 17, 1933, p. 14.
- “Women Artists of Santa Fe” by Michael R. Grauer
- Newton, Judith Vale and Carol Ann Weiss. (2004) Skirting the Issue: Stories of Indiana's Historical Women Artists, Indiana Historical Society Press, Indianapolis. ISBN 0-87195-177-0
- Media related to Olive Rush at Wikimedia Commons
- Olive Rush Papers Online at the Smithsonian Archives of American Art
- Santa Fe Friends (Quaker) Meeting at the Former Olive Rush Studio
- Santa Fe Hillside at New Mexico Museum of Art


Classrooms, hallways, and grounds of Palisades Episcopal School are alive with learning. Palisades Episcopal School lower school students are engaged in vibrant learning opportunities provided by experienced teachers whose enthusiasm for teaching is reflected in the joyous smiles of their learners. Palisades Episcopal School offers a rich classical elementary education designed to build students’ foundational skills while fostering their creative and spiritual development. Integrated studies extend learning beyond classroom and subject boundaries, inspiring students to live learning for life.
Literacy: Palisades Episcopal School offers a comprehensive elementary literacy curriculum. In addition to rich opportunities for students to read a variety of literature, from classics to Newbery winning novels, the Palisades Episcopal School’s literacy program provides foundational instruction in phonics, spelling, handwriting, and grammar. Students are also regularly engaged in authentic writing and speaking opportunities, nurturing students’ communication skills and developing them as effective readers, writers, and communicators.
Mathematics: Palisades Episcopal School provides a dynamic mathematics curriculum combining a variety of outstanding resources and technology to ground its students in essential computation skills and mathematical problem-solving. Mathematics study is differentiated to challenge students’ diverse abilities and learning styles.
History / World Studies: History and world cultures are critical components of the Palisades Episcopal School curriculum. Even the youngest Palisades Episcopal School students engage in regular geography and global studies, developing students’ sense of our world and its origins. Social Studies is an interdisciplinary study at Palisades Episcopal School as literature, music, art, and the cultural arts bring history to life. Across the campus, Palisades Episcopal School students can be seen “playing” with history – dancing the Meringue, cooking Libyan stew, and performing Chinese shadow puppet plays.
Science: Scientific studies are an essential part of the Palisades Episcopal School curriculum. Lower school students participate in regular investigations fostering their scientific reasoning and observational skills. Hands-on experiments enliven all branches of science. From creating “blood” to dissecting owl pellets, science “fun” is evident in every Palisades Episcopal School classroom.
Devotions: Students engage in daily devotions emphasizing bible studies, character development, and spiritual wisdom. Weekly Chapel service focuses on the “Fruits of the Spirit.” Students who have personified these fruits are honored monthly for their exemplary character and faithfulness. Christian faith defines Palisades Episcopal School – it is evident in the school’s Student Commandments, rehearsed in daily morning prayer, and embodied in the students’ interactions with each other.
Enrichment: Palisades Episcopal School provides exceptional opportunities to enrich the diverse talents and interests of its students. Lower school students attend weekly art, music, physical education, and technology classes. In art and music courses students hone their artistic techniques and develop an appreciation of music and art history. Physical education classes encourage students’ physical activity, gross motor development, and sportsmanship. In addition to the technology infused in regular classroom instruction, technology classes provide students with an opportunity to hone keyboarding skills, utilize multi-media and educational software, and refine web-based research techniques.
Languages: Latin study is a hallmark of a classical school. Palisades Episcopal School students in grades 3 – 8 participate in regular Latin class emphasizing Latin word origins and classical Greek and Roman studies. All Palisades Episcopal School students are taught Spanish class in which they engage in conversational Spanish and learn the essential skills to speak, write and read Spanish.
Service: Palisades Episcopal School students are involved in service learning opportunities designed to deepen their sense of responsibility and citizenship. Lower school students collaborate together to on various service projects. As part of Palisades Episcopal School’s commitment to the International Audubon Society, lower school students also participate in weekly outdoor bird club in which they learn about the adaptations and habitats of local birds.


A new study says that babies born to obese mothers have lower iron levels at birth which can result in slower motor skill development.
"The chronic low-grade inflammation that can result from being obese triggers an abnormal immune response, increasing production of proteins that increase hepcidin levels. Because iron plays a crucial role in the formation of the central nervous system, children born with iron deficiency are at a greater risk for delays in motor and cognitive development," said Maria Carlota Dao, first author and a doctoral student in the Nutritional Immunology Laboratory at the USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging (HNRCA) at Tufts University.
For the study, researchers analyzed levels of hepcidin, a hormone that helps in keeping iron levels balanced in the body, in obese and normal weight mothers. Hepcidin levels are generally kept at low levels during pregnancy so that iron transfer from mother to infant happens easily.
"When there is excess hepcidin in a cell, it binds to and inhibits the function of ferroportin, the protein that allows iron to pass through the cell membrane and into the bloodstream," said Simin Nikbin Meydani, director of the Jean Mayer USDA HNRCA and senior author of the study.
The research included 15 obese pregnant women with body mass index (BMI) greater than 30 and 15 healthy weight pregnant women with BMIs between 20 and 25 were controls. Blood samples from the mothers were taken during the second trimester and the iron level of the newborn was measured in cord blood.
Researchers found that babies born to obese mothers with elevated hepcidin levels had low blood iron levels.
According to researchers, high levels of hepcidin might be the reason that babies have low blood iron levels. Obese people tend to have higher levels of hepcidin than normal weight people.
First author Sarbattama Sen said that earlier research on the subject has been done mostly on undernourished population. "Ours is the first study to demonstrate that obesity might hamper iron transfer from mother to child and offers some insight into the mechanism of how it occurs," Sen said," future studies, however, are needed to confirm the role of obesity associated with inflammation during pregnancy on hepcidin and iron status of the newborn." Sen is a neonatologist at Tufts Medical Center and an assistant professor of pediatrics at Tufts University School of Medicine.
Previous research suggests women should lose weight before they plan to get pregnant because even if a mother eats healthy during pregnancy, she will be raising the child in an unhealthy, obese environment.
"During pregnancy, women should try to eat a varied, healthy diet while taking the standard prenatal vitamins recommended by their doctors. Weight gain goals should be based on a woman's BMI prior to becoming pregnant. In 2009, the Institute of Medicine issued new guidelines on weight gain during pregnancy," Sen added


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Ethnomusicology, or comparative musicology, is an academic discipline that focuses on the unique ways in which music has evolved in cultures across the globe. Combining archeological, sociological and musical study, this field involves becoming adept as describing the musical traditions of numerous cultures as well as an expert on certain foreign cultures. To become an ethnomusicologist, one must complete an advanced degree and have an interest in learning as much as possible about the many ways that people make and enjoy music.
To become an ethnomusicologist in 2011, you must first acquire an undergraduate degree in a related field. This could be a general music education or even a performance degree. Other ethnomusicologists come to the field by way of undergraduate learning in cultural anthropology, sociology or even psychology. In 2011, a long list of reputable universities within and outside the United States offer ethnomusicology as master's and doctorate degree programs. To be accepted in the academic circles of this field, one must typically achieve this ranking.
In order to achieve an advanced degree and become an ethnomusicologist, you will need to write and publish field studies. Not only do students need to exhibit the knowledge of music and the way it is made across cultural divides, but also the ability to express those differences in papers that will further illuminate the discipline. This writing could involve holistic analyses of musical differences among various cultures, or it could delve into the specifics of how a particular people express themselves through music and even dance.
Teaching could be part of a student's quest to become an ethnomusicologist as well. Teaching basic components of a subject is often a prerequisite of achieving any advanced degree, ethnomusicology included. Posting yourself in front of a class of music history undergraduates just might inspire young ethnomusicologists with the desire to become a true expert in the field.
Researching the origins of ethnomusicology will help students know whether they truly want to become an ethnomusicologist. Though an interest in the world's different musical traditions likely has existed for nearly as long as music has been made, many credit the advent of advanced recording technology in the mid-20th century for the academic need to catalog that music in a way that accentuates its cultural significance. One of the first official ethnomusicologists was the Dutch music expert Jaap Kunst, who coined the term based on the Greek words ethno, or state, and musico, or music.
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Raising Attainment in GCSE Science
Date: Tuesday 25th March 2014
Time: 09:00 AM to 03:30 PM
Location : Hunterhouse College, Upper Lisburn Road,Belfast BT10 0LE
Cost : Free for ASE Members/Non-members £30
The day will include a series of hands-on CPD workshops will look at the many ways in which a wide range of strategies can be employed in the classroom to help raise attainment at GCSE including:
- Effective revision strategies: this workshop will explore how teachers can plan for the periodic revisiting of topics and provide students with opportunities to refresh their understanding of key ideas.
- Developing literacy skills: this workshop features a number of practical classroom strategies to support students in producing extended written responses that are both more detailed and of higher quality.
- Developing numeracy skills: Students are expected to be competent and confident in using and applying numerical concepts, this workshop will explore some practical classroom strategies that can be used to develop these skills; participants will be able to try some approaches out that they can then take away and use.
- Developing practical skills for assessments: This workshop looks at the skills being assessed and effective ways of developing these. It looks at how practical work often focuses on a narrower range of skills than is needed and may limit access to higher marks.
Ed Walsh will be presenting the course and providing a wealth of resources to take back and use in your classroom.
How to register
To register for this CPD course please email ASE Region Secretary, Lorna Monroe firstname.lastname@example.org Please include your name, school, contact email and contact phone number. For more information on ASE membership please visit www.ase.org.uk/membership Membership for schools as well as individuals is available. For more details and booking information download flier
About the Presenter:
Ed Walsh is a curriculum developer, author, CPD provider and school improvement worker. He taught Science for twenty years in Manchester, South Wales and Cornwall and was a team leader for twelve years. He became a Science consultant in 2002 supporting schools and LAs in several parts of England. Ed is Series Editor for the Collins 21st Century Science GCSE and KS3 Science resources, a Regional Development Leader for the Science Learning Centres and Regional Adviser for AQA. He has developed and provided training for the ASE, BETT, Triple Science Support Programme, Second Level Support Service in Ireland and the English Schools Federation in Hong Kong. His current areas of research and development include assessment and progress tracking and the use of iPads in the teaching of Science.


Earth Science for Elementary Education Majors
This is the second part of a 2-semester sequence on the physical sciences required for Elementary Education and Early Childhood Education majors. The first course in the sequence covers principles of chemistry and physics, while this course addresses principles of Earth science.
For Dr. Bickmore's reflections on the course and its design, see Earth Science for Elementary Majors: Role in the Program
- Students should be able to explain and apply basic principles of earth systems science, corresponding with state and national standards for elementary school earth science education.
- Students should show that they can verbalize earth science concepts at an elementary school level.
- Students should be able to identify common rocks and minerals, and understand their genesis.
- Students should be able to prepare and present various demonstrations or teaching aids that reinforce concepts learned in class, and that will be useful in an elementary school classroom setting.
- Students will begin to make a difference right now for elementary science education.
- Students should learn the nature of science, and how to think clearly and critically about science-religion conflicts.
- Students should come out of the class with an improved attitude toward science.
Syllabus (Microsoft Word 41kB Apr16 07)
For an example activity from this course, see Science as Storytelling for Teaching the Nature of Science
- Tests include questions that require application of principles learned, as well as concept mapping exercises that require the ability to explain connections between the principles. The level of success at these tasks varies widely among students in the class.
- Lab activities require students to explain earth science concepts. Most of the students are fairly good at this, as long as they can get the concepts straight in their heads.
- The lab also includes a rock and mineral identification final. Almost all of the students do very well at this if they put in some practice time outside of class.
- The mini-lesson activity requires students to teach science concepts in a setting where it really matters. The students really put a lot of effort into this, and they have usually been very successful.
- Surveys and test questions are given to assess student understanding of the nature of science, and in-class essays are assigned where the students are asked to express their thoughts about science-religion issues. They show significant gains in their understanding of the nature of science and begin to express much more sophisticated and nuanced views about science-religion issues.
- Surveys for measuring attitudes toward science are given before and after the semester. The students (especially the ones who initially had very poor attitudes toward science) show significant gains by the end of the semester.
References and Notes:
Textbook: Fundamentals of Earth Science, by Lutgens and Tarbuck.