I’ve started a new blog especially designed to record the best educational web sites I find for kids, called The Web Catcher. Check it out! Then don’t hesitate to leave a comment about YOUR favorite web sites!
Here’s a new way to have it all and give it away at the same time. Share this with grandparents and other generous gift givers.
Starting November 12, One Laptop Per Child will be offering a Give 1
Get 1 Program for a brief window of time. For $399, you will be
purchasing two XO laptops—one that will be sent to empower a
child to learn in a developing nation, and one that will be sent to
your child at home.
The goal of One Laptop Per Child is “To provide children around the world with new opportunities to explore, experiment and express themselves.” They have developed a laptop that is “rugged, durable and child-friendly, inside and out,” specifically for the world’s poorest children in the most remote areas. It consumes very little power, is rechargeable by human power, contains its own wireless router for connectivity, runs on free open-source software with web browsing, multimedia, wiki journaling, presentation tools and more, and has a unique and new interface focused on activities and community rather than specific software or documents.
Of course, the Give 1, Get 1 program is not the only option. Your gift of $200 will pay for and deliver an XO laptop to a child in a developing nation.
I have been a list serve fan for several years now, thanks to Joy Zabala and her good work at QIAT. I feel like I’ve got a whole world of experts at the click of an email send button. But often all that good insight and discussion gets lost in the archives, and I’ve longed for a ‘better way.’ I keep thinking a wiki or two might do it — a collaboratively written site all about assistive technology. But somehow people have to want to come and then know what’s new or what to add and so on. It’s a bit overwhelming, and I think some people hold back because their query may feel too insignificant or unformulated, etc. So how to bridge the gap?
Well, whether Ning is it or not, it definitely has me intrigued! Karen Janowski keyed me into Ning via the social networking site she and Brian Wojcik created at http://assistivetech.ning.com/
What I’ve ‘grocked’ so far is that Ning lets you create social networks with blogs, discussions, groups, tags, photos, videos and more, so you can pop your question or idea wherever it may fit. I’ve got lots more to learn, but it’s exciting stuff… Can’t wait to see where this goes!
Okay, so now I’m blending Google Doc’s new online presentation software with Plasq’s cool and easy screenshot/annotating/uploading tool called Skitch. I think this has potential. The image is everything, because you write your step-by-step instructions right on it. Both students and teachers could use Skitch to create, snap or import images, then write and draw on them to give instructions, create maps or diagrams, indicate key features of a photo or painting, and so much more… In Google Docs, you can import images (created in Skitch or elsewhere) into your presentation. Then, collaborate on your documents online with anyone you choose to invite.
You can also invite people or groups to view your presentation and comment in a chat area. This changes the game of providing online presentations. Very cool.
Karen Janowski does it again… an extensive blog post on free technology tools for universal design in the classroom. Karen is one of the most down-to-earth and get-it-done people I know and she has a great way of communicating. Bookmark her post and keep coming back for updates.
Now, what I’d really like to see is a wiki on the same topic, so we could all add in our two bits. Maybe a QIAT wiki…
