Halloween Lesson

A fabulous example of clever teachership and what can be done with a video projector.

No Turning Back

Dropbox Storage Application

Dropbox is a free (up to 3GB; more than that costs) storage application which enables you to store and sync files online and between computers. Very handy if you are working on several different computers. It is also very handy in team work, as it provides a very good way of sharing files, be it documents, photos, films or anything else that can be stored on a computer.

Dropbox will automatically keep files synchronized between multiple computers. When files are modified the changes will sync up instantly and automatically with all other computers on which you are running the Dropbox software. Dropbox keeps each set of changes, which makes it possible for you to access previous versions of files or even restore previously deleted files. Another useful feature is the ability to download folders as compressed zip archives.

Dropbox can also be used to share files with people who do not have Dropbox installed on their computers. Just put the file in your public folder and give the URL to whomever you want to share it with.

If you need to access your files from someone else’s computer, simply log in to www.getdropbox.com and you are able to view, download or upload files securely.

Dropbox works perfectly across all operating systems and you are therefor able to share folders with friends or colleagues whatever operating system they are using. It is simple in design and easy to manage.

YouTubeSnips

YouTubeSnips is a free tool for downloading YouTube videos to your computer. I find it very handy when preparing lessons as a way of having videos readily available to be shown in class. No need to worry about lagging or bad internet connections. It is also a convenient way of storing videos to be used for future lessons on the same subject. For those unfortunate enough to work at schools which has banned YouTube it is of course handy to be able to download videos outside school to be used in class.

I have used YouTubeSnips to download videos for my Geography class where I showed videos on different sources of energy as an introduction to a new project. I have also downloaded videos on Medieval Times for use in my History class.

You can choose three different ways of downloading the videos:

1. Copy and paste the URL of the video in the box provided at the Youtubesnips site
2. After viewing a video on YouTube, in the URL location box, type snips after youtube, and click enter to download video!
   For Example change: www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7yfISlGLNU to www.youtubesnips.com/watch?v=R7yfISlGLNU
3. Use the bookmark downloader provided and add it to your toolbar. Click it whnenver you watch a video that you want to save and it downloads.

Inoculating Children Against Ignorance

Nicholas Negroponte on a 1-1 mission in Colombia: “It is with the ministry of defence with whom we are working [...] because it is seen as a strategic defence issue in the sense of liberating these zones that has been completely cut off”. It is interesting how the handout of computers is viewed as a strategic defence policy – not primarily as a means of fighting literacy problems. Children are seen as the agents of change. 1-1 must be the most effective way ever of safeguarding democracy ever.

Further I was quite moved by the story of the six year old teaching her mother how to read and write.

Animated Bayeux Tapestry

I came across this video on the site Smart Teaching.org and their listing of 100 best Youtube videos for teachers. Technology and internet brings so many fantastic opportunities of giving life to history and for simply making things more fun. Having an internet connected projector with a large projection screen in the classroom is for me the most important of teaching aids. Easy to install and relatively inexpensive (compared to for example Smart boards). For students who has a hard time digesting written text visualisations through film and pictures are of course very valuable.

Like Bruce Dixon put it in his lecture at the “Framtidens lärande” conference last May: “Technology in the hands of an educating professional, of a teacher, increases pedagogical capacity. It increases your capability to reach more young people with a deeper understanding of a broader range of subjects than you could without. Simple as that!”

What is Your Dark Ages Character?

This post is written in relation to the previous. At History.com there are lots of fun things to do and learn. One of them is all about interactively creating your own medieval character. Pedagogical winnings would be learning medieval vocabulary while at the same time learning facts about life in the Middle Ages. I feel that this is an exercise that would suit students of all ages.

The procedure of creating your character takes you through steps where you after choosing the gender and social position of your character first is given a name. Then you upload an image of your face to be used after which you add hair, clothes and accessories.

When your character is ready you can so read about his or her situation of life in connection to the picture. I find the texts to be both informative and suitably condensed.

Here are some of the characters I had a great time creating:

Me as a monk
Me as a man peasant
Me as a woman peasant
Me as a nun
Me as a knight
Me as a lady

Project – Life in Medieval Times

This autumn I shall be repeating a project from last year which incorporates English and History. The basic idea is that each student invents a medieval character and tells a first person story about the life of this character. Things that are to be mentioned are basic things about the persons life such as family situation, food habits, living quarters, work and so forth; but also the persons life story in a broader perspective. Each student makes both a written and an oral presentation. When we did this project last time some fantastic stories orginated and everyone seemed to enjoy it very much. A lot of research obviously went into making the stories up, where the students had to find out facts about life in those days. Of course such information is to be found in abundance on the internet, but I do like to present the students with a selection of links so as to save time. Here are some of the very usefull sites that I found:

FEUDALISM AND LIFE IN GENERAL:
Learner.org – What Was it Really Like to Live in the Middle Ages? – Feudal Life
britainexpress.com – Feudalism and Medieval life
History on the Net – Medieval Life – Feudalism
hkcarms.tripod.com – Medieval Occupations
Sir Dragontamer – People of the Middle Ages

FOOD:
Gode Cookery Presents: Tales of the Middle Ages – Food and Drink
The Bonnefont Cloister Herb Garden
The Arts in the Kingsom of Acre – Food and Beverage in the Middle Ages
History For Kids – Medieval food
Medieval-Life.net – Medieval Food
Medielval Spell – Medieval Food
Medieval Spell – Medieval-Feast
medievalcockery.com – Medieval Recipies

HOUSING:
History on the Net.com – Medieval Life Housing
Learner.org – What Was it Really Like to Live in the Middle Ages? – Homes
Learner.org – What Was it Really Like to Live in the Middle Ages?- Homes of the Wealthy

CLOTHING:
Learner.org – What Was it Really Like to Live in the Middle Ages? – Clothing
History on the Net.com – Medieval Life Clothing
Medieval-life.net – Medieval Clothing
History For Kids – Medieval Clothing

HEALTH AND MEDECIN:
Learner.org – What Was it Really Like to Live in the Middle Ages? – Health
historylearningsite.co.uk – Health and Medicine in Medieval England
Medieval Spell – Medieval Medicine

RELIGION AND LIFE IN THE MONASTERIES:
Learner.org – What Was it Really Like to Live in the Middle Ages? – Religion
britainexpress.com – Life in a Medieval Monasterry
britainexpress.com – Map of Medieval Monastery
The Nun’s Realm
newyorkcarver.com – The Virtual Abbey: A Medieval Tour
History Learning Site – Medieval Monasteries
History Learning Site – Positions of responsibility in a monastery
History Learning Site – A day in the life of a nun

PEASANTS:
The Peasants Realm
History Learning Site – Medieval Farming
History Learning Site – The Lifestyle of Medieval Peasants
History Learning Site – The Poor Peasant
History Learning Site – Medieval Farming Calendar

KNIGHTS AND NOBLES:
Chivalry Kidzone – Medieval Nobles
Medieval-life.net – Medieval Chivalry
Humanities Interactive – The Art of Chivalry
Castles of Britain.com – Medieval Knights
About.com – Medieval History – Knight Life
Knights and Armour
The Steps of Knighthood
Wikipedia – Knight
Medieval Spell – Medieval Armour
Chivalry Kids Zone – Medieval Nobles
The Knight’s Realm
The Medieval Knight

OUTLAWS:
boldoutlaw.com – A Beginner’s Guide
The Robin Hood Legend
Wikipedia – Robin Hood
Robin Hood – Fact or fiction

CASTLES:
National Geographic – Ghost in the Castle
Sir Dragontamer – Life in a
Medieval Castle
castlewales.com – Castle Terminology
History Learning Site- Castle Features
History Learning Site – Defending a Castle
Medieval-Castle.com
Life in a Medieval Castle

ARCHITECTURE:
History for Kids – Medieval Architecture
Medieval architecture in France

LITERATURE, ARTS AND MUSIC:
metmuseum.org – Works of Art – Medieval Art
hastings1066.com – The Baueyx Tapestry
History For Kids – Medieval Art
Wikipedia – Medieval Art
A Guide to Medieval and Renaissance Instruments

TECHNOLOGY
Medieval Technology Pages
Wikipedia – Medieval Technology

ENTERTAINMENT
Medieval Spell – Medieval Entertainment
castles.me.uk – Medieval Entertainment
middle-ages.org.uk – Entertainment in the Middle Ages
olivet.edu – Medieval Entertainment

GENERAL
Medieval Spell
Medieval Life and Times
middle-ages.org.uk
All About Medieval Times

The Feudal system explained with magnetised pictures on the white board.

It doesn’t take many generations and we are back in the Middle Ages. This is my time travel device for going back in time with my students.

Techy Tips For Not So Techy Teachers

Click here for some fabulous tech ideas!

(via rmbyrne)

All But 650 Million Years In 80 Seconds

The probable past and possible future of Earth’s land masses as shown in this simulation of land mass movement.

650 Million Years In 1:20 Min.
by xchristox