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Featured Resources: Images & The Smithsonian

BlogPosts Featured Resources

There are a ton of images on the web, and if you need to use an image, you have to be very careful about where you get it. Pay attention to the licensing. If you’re not sure how to read the licensing, check out our LibGuide on Creative Commons. On the LibGuide, we explain the differences between copyright free and royalty-free. There is a link to the creative commons licensing explanations. We also include a list of sources for royalty-free photos.

In addition to these, you may have also heard, that the Smithsonian has released more than 2.8 million images that you can use for free. These will include 2D and 3D images. Find them here: https://www.si.edu/openaccess.

It is also worth checking out the Educator Resources on that same website. We will elaborate on this in future posts.

Teach with Primary Sources from the National Archives

BlogPosts Featured Resources

To piggy-back off of yesterday’s post about the 19th Amendment, consider teaching with primary sources from 100 years ago, accessible through the National Archives website: archives.gov.

Don’t forget the amazing resources also at the Library of Congress: https://www.loc.gov/exhibitions/women-fight-for-the-vote/about-this-exhibition/

See the actual 19th Amendment below, downloaded for free from the National Archives. Click to open the .pdf.

Celebrate 2020 with WXXI

BlogPosts Featured Resources

To celebrate the 100th anniversary of the signing of the 19th amendment, which granted women the right to vote, WXXI has developed a number of audio profiles accessible on their website.

See the list here: https://www.wxxi.org/wh/celebrate-2020-suffrage-moments-audio-profiles

These short audio clips are great for a quick introduction to a topic, to get students thinking and talking about suffrage, the voting rights of all citizens, and some of the issues that parts of America are faced with today.

Featured Resource: Free Stock Music

BlogPosts Featured Resources

In addition to our vast collection of music and sound effects from Soundzabound, there is another free resource where you can find stock music. This is https://mixkit.co. When you click into the music section of the site, you are able to browse an array of various music clips. At the top, you can search for music with specific terminology, or you can filter the selection by Genre, Mood, or Tag. It’s a quick easy way to find music for your student films, podcasts, or stop motion videos.

If you’re using a video editor on a computer, you can also use Mixkit to download free stock video footage.

March Learning Opportunities

BlogPosts Professional Development

There are two learning opportunities coming up in the next two weeks.

This week, Classlink is hosting a webinar on March 19 with New York school district technology leaders on Ed Law 2-d. If your district is already using ClassLink, this may be very valuable information for you. If you are using something else, it may still be valuable, but keep in mind they will be talking about the ClassLink product.

Webinar: Five district’s secret weapons and successful processes for NYS Ed. Law 2D compliance using ClassLink!

Thursday, March 19, 2020

9:00 am – 10:15 am EST

Register here: https://www.classlink.com/events/webinar-ed-law

Presenters and Panel:

  • Shelley Rossitto, Former Technology Director, Monticello School Districts
  • Dr. Ailene Cavaliere, Coordinator of Instructional Technology & CIO, Lindenhurst UFSD
  • Rob Zdrojewski, Director of Technology, Oakfield-Alabama School District
  • Reanna Fulton, Director of Technology, West Islip School District
  • Dan DeMarco, Project Manager, ClassLink
  • Bob Chappell, VP Instructional Technology, ClassLink
  • Patrick Devanney, VP Interoperability, ClassLink

Discussion Topics:

  • Single Sign-On – a tool to manage access to digital assets through a private district portal
  • Roster Server – rostering, data reporting and improving data security and activity audit trails using the industry-standard OneRoster
  • New tools & workflows to managing security agreements and 2D compliance, along with adding structure the on-boarding process of digital material
  • OneSync – greater responsiveness and security by automating the creation and deactivation of network accounts
  • Public Portal – facilitating the transparency of your digital landscape with community stakeholders

Next week, WXXI Education is hosting a free environmental-themed educator open house (Inventing Green Open House) on Wednesday, March 25 from 4-7 p.m. at WXXI Studios. It is open to any educator working with 2nd – 8th graders (8-13 years old). Educators can include: classroom teachers, after-school and out-of-school staff, librarians… There will be free learning materials, giveaways, prizes, local community partners, resources from PBS KIDS Design Squad Global, and more! The event is free but registration is required.

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Featured Resources: Instructional Media

BlogPosts Featured Resources Multimedia

Monroe One BOCES offers educators in districts that participate in our Multimedia service the SAFARI Montage instructional video platform, and Learn360 videos.

To get there, go to: https://media.monroe.edu and log in with your Active Directory account (what you would normally use to log in to your school computer)

To help you think through how to use video in your classroom, read this Eduptopia article from March of last year about using video in the classroom: https://www.edutopia.org/article/using-video-content-amplify-learning. It lays out very clear tips for using video in your classroom (summarized below).

It’s important to have a clear purpose for using a film, documentary or news clip. Make sure you’re not just assigning a video to use up time.

Be purposeful when using video, such as:

  • Building background knowledge on a topic. Video is great for ELL students because they can pick up information using visual cues.
  • Enriching a text or text excerpt. Video can help students visualize a place, event or person.
  • Deepening or solidifying student learning. Giving students information in multiple modalities can help students learn more thoroughly.

Tips for using video:

  • Be selective. Pick the most dynamic and pertinent clips to illustrate your point. Use the chapters feature in SAFARI Montage
  • Provide a mission. “As you watch, pay attention to…” Setting a goal will keep students attentive.
  • Pause to ponder (and write)
  • Turn on closed captioning. Again, listening, while reading and using video images for visual clues are great multimodal ways for students to take in information.

5 Questions That Will Help You Become More Media Literate

BlogPosts Media Literacy

In our media rich society, it’s more important than ever to help our students become critical consumers of media. According to Media Literacy Now, “the average kindergartener sees about 70 media messages every day. By the time they’re in high school, teens are spending more than 1/3 of their day using media.” (1) Here are 5 questions they can ask to help become more media literate.

1. What is this media message saying to me?

Cut through all of the distractors and identify the main message. Is the message clear?

2. Who created this message?

Who wrote this? Is there a bigger entity behind the writer?

3. Why did they create it? Who makes money from it and how?

Did the person get paid to write the message? If the person didn’t get paid directly, are there advertisers surrounding the message? How could they be persuading the person who wrote the message?

4. How does the message make you feel? How might it make other people feel?

Does the message make you feel strongly about something? Do you think it could make others feel strongly about something? Does it stereotype others?

5. What creative technique was used to attract my attention to this media?

Does it use catchy music or visuals? Is the headline alarming or does it make you curious?

 

By asking these questions, students will get to the heart of media messages and how they are constructed, and ultimately empower themselves to be better digital citizens.

Source:

(1) “What Is Media Literacy?” YouTube.com, Media Literacy Now, 17 Jan. 2017,

https://youtu.be/GIaRw5R6Da4.

Media Literacy Project Grant

BlogPosts Grants and Awards

Do you have an idea for promoting media literacy in your classroom, but don’t have the cash to implement it?

Don’t fret! Help is here!

The New York State Educational Media/Technology Association provides up to two annual Media Literacy Project Grants in the amount of $1,250.

Media Literacy is defined as the ability to comprehend, design, and produce media. It includes critical thinking skills used to evaluate and analyze information in a variety of formats. Media Literacy is essential to be able to distinguish between fact and fiction.

​The purposes of the grant are to:

  • Support educators who provide resources and services that correlate to state and national learning standards for instructional excellence promoting media literacy.

  • To provide funds for research projects or demonstration projects that can be replicated in other areas across the state and nation.

Examples include:

  • A film literacy course held after school

  • Learning about the effective creation and use of media in student work

  • Using video effectively in your lesson plans

Eligible educators must work in a district that participates in the media service at a BOCES or Big 5 that is an EMTA member.

For the application, click here: GRANT APPLICATION (WORD) or here: GRANT APPLICATION (PDF)

To see presentations on past projects, click here: EMTA WEBSITE-GRANT PAGE