Check out Ars Technica

For those interested in a little more in-depth understanding of the "art of technology" check out Ars Technica.

Ars Technica covers a wide range of technology articles from video games to Internet policy to new gadgets. The articles are both in-depth and easy to understand.

Educators interested in educational technology should include Ars Technica on your "must read" list to keep up on current technology and trends.

Even for those simply researching new gadgets, computers or Internet topics, you will find a wide variety of useful and informative articles.

This is a great site to add your your bookmarks:

arstechnica.com

Do you use Edutopia for ideas and resources?

Edutopia is the organization and web site created by the George Lucas Educational Foundation to provide free information and resources to educators, parents and students.  Yes, that George Lucas, of Star Wars fame!

Edutopia covers many topics and ideas related to using technology in the classroom, in addition to sharing research, lesson ideas, resources, videos, blogs and classroom guides.

Edutopia is a great resources to learn more about topics such as the Common Core, assessment, flipped classrooms, digital citizenship, presentation tips, STEM education, social media and much more. Many topics are covered by grade levels.

You can find the Edutopia web site below. Make sure to bookmark this site and check back often!

www.edutopia.org

Have you tried Atomic Learning?

The Harper Creek Community Schools has a license to one of the best online resources for learning new software and other skills through a huge library of tutorials at:

www.atomiclearning.com

The topics range from Common Core, to 21st Century Skills to tutorials on a long list of popular software titles such as MS Word, iMovie, GarageBand, PowerPoint and Keynote. You may get the log in information from your building Technology Committee or the Technology Director Dan Hubbell. All staff and students are welcome to use Atomic Learning under our license.

Software tutorials are divided by version, platform and often skill levels too. This is a great resource to use for staff training or with your students on class lessons.  There is an Atomic Learning iPad App also for using your iPad for tutorials or in class lessons.

If you are not already using Atomic Learning, check out this valuable resource!

Using the Cloud: Google Drive and Apple iCloud

What is the Cloud? "The Cloud" is simply a way to access your information, apps, storage, calendar, e-mail, etc by using a web-based "Cloud" service that can be easily accessed by most any computer or many current web-enabled handheld devices.

This fall the Harper Creek schools started implementing "Google Apps for Education," which are free Google applications for such uses as word-processing, spreadsheets, online storage of files, presentations and much more!

To log into the Harper Creek version of Google Apps go to the "Google Apps" link on the district or building web pages and click to access a special log-in page. You can bookmark this page for easy future access. Then just log in with your Harper Creek e-mail and you can start using the Google Drive, which feature easy online storage and access to the various Google applications.

The Harper Creek Google Apps login: https://drive.google.com/a/apps.harpercreek.net/#my-drive

Learning about Google Apps for Education: http://learn.googleapps.com

Another free online "Cloud-based" service for those who use Apple computers and devices, such as iPads, MacBooks and iMacs is the Apple iCloud service. If you have an Apple login account, you can log into iCloud using any web browser and on many current devices like iPads and access iCloud storage, mail, contacts, Reminders, Pages (word-processing), Numbers (Spreadsheets) and Keynote (presentations) for free!

The Apple iCloud log-in (requires an Apple login in account): www.icloud.com

What is TED?

What is TED? TED is a non-profit organization that was started in 1984 to bring thinkers and doers together from the worlds of technology, entertainment and design for the purpose of sharing great ideas!

There are many excellent "TED Talks" presentations that can be found on the TED web  site, TED podcasts, the TED Channel on YouTube and elsewhere. There is also a separate web site targeted at education called "TED-ED."

For both your personal learning or to share with your students, all educators need to check out TED and learn from some of the most fascinating people who present on everything from music to technology to science to education, and much more!

The main TED web site: www.ted.com
The TED-Ed web site: ed.ted.com

Do you use TED in the classroom? Any favorite "TED Talks" presentations?

Videos to Learn Skills for your Classroom

The REMC Association of Michigan has started this web project for Michigan educators to share videos that other educators can use to learn new skills that they can apply in their classrooms.

Are you interested in making a video that you can share with other educators? Check out this site and the educator-made videos that may be of benefit to you and your colleagues:

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

CNET- a great resource for technology news, information, downloads and reviews

The CNET Web Site- Technology News, Reviews, Downloads and More...

For those not familiar with CNET, it is a very useful site whether you are interested in computers, cell phones, HD TVs, iPads/tablets, video games, digital cameras, getting a new WiFi router or  aside range of other technology topics.

CNET is easy to navigate and besides tech news articles and reviews also features many videos and podcasts covering a range of consumer-orientated technology information.

The CNET Downloads area is a safe place to look for free and low cost software to download from a trusted site. Overall CNET has a wide range of very useful information for educators, students, consumers and technology professionals. You can also find the CNET podcasts on iTunes which is a great ways to keep up on tech news on the go.

The CNET web site is: www.cnet.com

Check out CNET's reviews before making your next technology purchase!

What is MACUL? Why Should I Join?

MACUL (Michigan Association for Computer Users in Learning) is the main edcuational technology organization in Michigan. MACUL is free to join and all educators and administrators are encouraged to join at:

www.macul.org

When you join MACUL you will be informed about...

- Educational technology grants available
- Professional Development opportunities in EdTech
- Special INterest Groups (SIGs) you may be interested in joining
- the main MACUL Conference each Marsha attended by about 4,500 educators alternating between Detroit and Grand Rapids each year.
- networking opportunities with educators who may share your interests and needs

Join today!

Khan Academy

A great free resource for students, parents and teachers is Khan Academy. Khan Academy is a free online service that offers educational tutorials and videos on a wide range of topics. Teachers can set up an account and organize "classes" and invite students to do specific activities/tutorials. Many just prefer to go to "Browse Our Library" and just manually select topics to watch/use for their classes or skills they might want to learn themselves.

http://www.khanacademy.org

Google Camp 2013

Several Harper Creek teachers attended the "Google Camp" held at the CISD on July 22, 23 and 25.  A variety of classes were offered covering the Google Apps for education, which many area schools are starting to incorporate, including Harper Creek. Some of the Google Apps covered include Drive, Docs, Calendar, YouTube for education, Sites and Hang Outs.

For more information: Google Apps for Education Home Page

Video: Google Apps for Education Video

Welcome to the new Harper Creek EdTech Blog!