February 2012
3 posts
50 Alternatives to the Book Report →
theteachersdesk:
Character Astrology Signs
Heroes and Superheros
Create a Childhood for a character
Critique from the point of view of a specific organization
Social workers report
College application
School counselor’s recommendation letter
Talk show invitation
Radio exchange
Movie recommendations
Create a home page
Chat room conversations
E-mail directory
Title acrostic
...
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20 Twitter Hashtags for Teachers →
These Twitter chats cover anything and everything in education, and represent a great jumping off point for those just getting started in Twitter education chats.
#edchat – Talk to a variety of educators around the world through #edchat, Tuesdays at noon and 7 p.m. EST.
#lrnchat – Every Thursday night from 8:30-10 p.m. EST, you can connect with other educators and discuss learning.
#edbkchat –...
January 2012
10 posts
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My Brother Sam is Dead Blog is Back! →
After a short recess, the My Brother Sam is Dead Blog is back. The purpose of the blog is to provide information on using the historical fiction novel My Brother Sam is Dead in the classroom and allow for interaction between myself and those interested in this topic.
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Carved Books... Amazingly Cool →
Artist Guy Laramee carves and illustrates incredible sculptures out of books!
Laramee transforms the edges of vintage books, dictionaries and encyclopedias into mountainous glacial landscapes, plateaus, and deep valleys along with detailed painted illustrations.
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Mapk Tbeh: Mark Twain's "Russian Connection" →
In the 1950’s a Redding man wrote a letter to Russia. What resulted from Bradley Kelly’s letter was/is pretty amazing. This is a Powerpoint Presentation.
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Project Based Learning →
NatureMapping Takes Kids — and Technology — Outside and into Active Learning
A data-collection program brings real science to school — and startles the professionals.
Mark Twain: Rescue Etiquette →
In assisting at a fire in a boarding house, the true gentleman will always save the young ladies first—making no distinction in favor of personal attractions, or social eminence, or pecuniary predominance—but taking them as they come, and firing them out with as much celerity as shall be consistent with decorum. There are exceptions, of course, to all rules; the exceptions to this one are:...
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Banned and Challenged Classics (surprising!) →
Each year, the ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom records hundreds of attempts by individuals and groups to have books removed from libraries shelves and from classrooms. See Frequently Challenged Books for more details.
According to the Office for Intellectual Freedom, at least 46 of the Radcliffe Publishing Course Top 100 Novels of the 20th Century have been the target of ban...
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The Future of Learning (who needs college?) →
Udacity was founded by three roboticists who believed much of the educational value of their university classes could be offered online. A few weeks later, over 160,000 students in more than 190 countries enrolled in our first class, “Introduction to Artificial Intelligence.” …
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Background Information for My Brother Sam is Dead →
You can now borrow this e-book for free if you have a Kindle Reader and are a Prime Member.
This E-Book is the product of six years of research. It provides the most extensive (and accurate) background information available to those looking to know more about what My Brother Sam is Dead is about and based on. With this information parents and teachers will save themselves hours of preparation...
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The 2012 Republican Candidates by the Twitter... →
The relationship between Twitter success and politics.
Cool infographic from Dan Zarrella “The Social Media Scientist”
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Chapter by Chapter Summary & Analysis of My... →
I’ve set it so you can now borrow this book for free, with no due dates, if you are a Amazon Kindle owner and Prime member.
December 2011
6 posts
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Teaching History w/ Google Earth →
This Google Earth project can be used as a complete lesson to teach the historical fiction novel- My Brother Sam is Dead. It follows the story and characters, chapter by chapter. Click on the placemarker pins to open windows that contain discussion questions, written by Carol LaRow’s 7th grade students, which can be used in class to arrive at the meaning and theme of the novel. Each link...
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Online Nutrition Calculators →
With the tablet market growing, this online service is going to explode in the near future. Be sure to place nutritionix.com on your “companies to watch” list.
The Story of NH's “Blue Mountain Forest” →
In the late 1800s, Austin Corbin II created a 26,000-acre wildlife preserve and private hunting park spanning the New Hampshire townships of Cornish, Croydon, Grantham, Newport and Plainfield. The majority of the park is in Croydon, with over 10,000 acres. 1,151 acres lie within Grantham’s borders. Corbin’s intention was to bring together at his preserve, “all the animals of the world that...
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Before it was New York City →
See what New York City looked like before the Europeans arrived.
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Using Facebook in the Classroom →
Mashable published a cool article with tips from teachers about how they use Facebook in the classroom.
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November 2011
10 posts
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Mark Twain's Final Home- Stormfield →
In honor of his Birthday, here are some photos of Mark Twain’s final home in Redding, Connecticut.
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Frank Sprague- He made modern cities possible →
Known as “The Father of Electric Traction”, engineer genius Frank Julian Sprague and his family owned a home in Sharon, Connecticut for nearly twenty years in the early twentieth century. As a mathematical genius and inventor Sprague developed a new breed of electric motors that provided horizontal traction for cutting edge vehicles such as the trolley car and subway train. In the...
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Interactive Online Stories →
With Kindle, iPad and other tablets gaining momentum this looks to be the future of learning. A Jury if Her Peers is a good start, and could be even better with several more interactive elements, such as- Google Maps of the location(s) in the story, photos, bios and backgrounds on each character. Online quizzes based on the story would be nice too. :)
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Did You Know Mark Twain Lived in Redding? →
Powerpoint presentation on Mark Twain’s time in Redding, Connecticut. Many rare photos.
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Can You Make Money as an Affiliate Marketer? →
Yes… you… can. Read these articles by my friend Dan. I’ve known Dan since Elementary School and I assure you, he knows what he is talking/writing about. Read these articles if you’ve ever wondered: “Can you really make money as an affiliate marketer?” You can if you do it the right way.
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My E-Books about My Brother Sam is Dead →
Recent review of: Chapter by Chapter Summary & Analysis of My Brother Sam is Dead (Brent M. Colley’s Guide to My Brother Sam is Dead) (Kindle Edition)
When my daughter had to read the book for summer reading. It was a little difficult for her to understand how life was in the time of the Redcoats and the American and British living. When I uploaded this onto Kindle I was quite...
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Online Quizzes That Grade Themselves... →
ProProf.com has created a very affordable online quiz service that allows educators to create quizzes that grade themselves. It’s worth a look. These are the quizzes I have created.
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Great New Book Explores Historical Fiction Novels →
When Sara was researching this book she visited Redding and I gave her a great tour. She fell in love with “My Brother Sam is Dead” and it is featured in Chapter 2!!
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“A man may plan as much as he wants to, but nothing of consequence is likely to...”
– Mark Twain - “The Turning Point of My Life”
October 2011
4 posts
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Who's Hot and Who's Not in Social Media →
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Five Great Social Media PR Tips →
So you’ve got the social PR basics down, and you’re following and engaging with relevant media and influencers. Maybe you’ve even developed a few social media campaigns for your company or clients. What are some other ways you can give your PR efforts an added social boost?
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Facebook as a Study Tool? →
Friends with Brainefits allows students to leverage their friends to make them smarter, and – just as important – to add fun to studying difficult subjects.
Friends with Brainefits helps students remember important concepts in their most critical subjects by challenging their Facebook friends to use need-to-know terms in creative and unique ways. Every day (or every other), Friends with ...
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Top 8 Android Apps for Education →
September 2011
23 posts
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Interactive Phone Apps for Cultural Institutions... →
Founded in 2004, Guide by Cell is the world’s largest provider of interactive mobile technology solutions to over 1,000 cultural institutions and nonprofit organizations, including museums, zoos, aquariums, national and state parks, libraries, restaurants, universities and historical sites.
The San Francisco-based company offers five main services: cell phone audio tours, text messaging, ...
This Day in History...
On this day way back in 1957, West Side Story, composed by Leonard Bernstein, opened at the Winter Garden Theatre on Broadway. At the time he lived on Fox Run Road in Redding, Connecticut.
Mark Twain Gets Robbed!
Danbury Evening News, Friday, September 18th, 1908:
“Crooks carry off Humorist’s Silverware. Caught while fleeing by train. One jumps from car while other uses revolver.”
The New York Times, September 19, 1908:
BURGLARS INVADE MARK TWAIN VILLA Captured After a Pistol Fight on a Train in Which Prisoner and Officer Are Shot.
The Burglary
A little past midnight on...
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My Solution to the Huck Finn "N-Word Controversy" →
A Powerpoint Presentation that explains why Mark Twain wrote Huckleberry Finn.
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How Tech Is Changing the Museum Experience →
Museums are exploring digital and mobile technologies to enhance visitor experience. Initiatives go beyond technology within exhibits and installations, but also include more pervasive uses of tech to create interactive experiences for visitors throughout a museum, as well as remote experiences for those who cannot get there.
This article highlights what three museums are doing to make the...
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A Journey into the Natural Disasters in... →
This journey shows you the devastation from several of the most severe natural disasters, as well as the spirit of perseverance of the state’s residents.
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“Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on society.”
– Mark Twain [Unfortunately, this is no longer true.]
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Samuel L. Clemens' Redding, Connecticut Land...
First Purchase: 03-24-1906, 75 Acres from William F. and Catherine Kearney
Second Purchase: 05-07-1906, 110 Acres from Albert B. and Arthur S. Hill Third Purchase: 09-04-1906, 10 Acres from Estate of Sarah E. Jones Fourth Purchase: 04-10-1909, 125 Acres from Stephen E. Carmina Fifth Purchase: 07-17-1909, 20 Acres from Isabel V. Lyon Ashcroft
Total Acreage: 340 Acres
Samuel L. Clemens sold...
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Using Online Resources in the Classroom
Many history teachers today are finding that historical fiction novels are an opportunity to provide their students with a unique window into the past. Because characters and drama interact with past events and involve the student in a study of the past from the emotional level as well as the cognitive level, students become immersed in the novel’s setting, character, plot and theme, and thus...
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Connecticut Museums (All of them!) →
This is a great example of an online resource every State should have… a guide to Connecticut’s museums, parks & sites of interest. This is one of my favorites Connecticut websites because, not only is it packed with great information, but, it’s very easy to navigate. I’d recommend it to Parents & Teachers in Connecticut looking for field trip ideas and for those...
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Early Rev War Teaching Resources →
For teachers and parents who are teaching their classrooms about early Rev War history these e-books are a huge help and that is not marketing hype. The book these resources are tied to is called My Brother Sam is Dead and it is one amazing Historical Fiction Novel.
Spread the word…please.
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Mark Twain & Helen Keller →
Blindness is an exciting business, I tell you; if you don’t believe it get up some dark night on the wrong side of your bed when the house is on fire and try to find the door. - Mark Twain quoted by Helen Keller
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Inflation and the American Revolution →
When in May 1775, the Continental Congress began making preparations for war with Great Britain they resolved to issue paper money to pay for salaries and supplies. Taxation was not even considered, and the few who recommended it were ridiculed or ignored. Americans were rightly averse to any taxation, but war bills had to be paid somehow. They chose to finance the war through the printing of...
