Spring Professional Development from PBS TeacherLine

PBS TeacherLine online professional offers busy teachers a robust collection of professional development courses.  And it’s a sure sign of spring when  PBS TeacherLine graduate courses start on March 27!  Visit our course catalog for a full list of courses or to learn more about the following:

SOST507 – America’s History in the Making: A Special Collection from Annenberg Learner
45 Hours | Enroll Now  Enrich your knowledge of American history and learn how to bring history to life in your classroom through the integrated use of video, text, classroom activities, and Web-based interactives.

TECH325 – Searching and Researching on the Internet
30 Hours | Enroll Now
Learn how to help your students develop their researching skills through responsible Web use, and explore ways to integrate primary resources into the classroom learning environment.

Here are two new PBS TeacherLine courses available for graduate credit and open for spring enrollment:

MATH527: Mathematics Illuminated: A Special Collection from Annenberg Learner
Grade Level: Kindergarten-12th | Hours: 45 | For course description and details, including full Syllabus, check out the course details page.

TECH575: Leveraging Smart and Social Digital Media in the Classroom
Grade Level: 1st-12th | Hours: 30 | For course description and details, including full Syllabus, check out the course details page.

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World of Water half day Teachers’ Conference – April 5

Join WGBY and Wilbraham & Munson Academy for a special half-day conference aimed at the professional development of teachers and professors in the area. Learn how to incorporate water and economics into your classroom.  A keynote lecture will be delivered by Fabien Cousteau, grandson of Jacques Cousteau.

When: Friday, April 5, 2013  •  8:30 – 11:30 a.m.

Where: Athletic Center  •  Wilbraham & Monson Academy

Cost: $20 Admission (includes lunch)

Participating teachers will receive 10 PDPs for participation with completion of short follow-up classroom work.    Teachers would also be welcome to bring their classes to the event for additional activities.  To register, visit the GEM conference website.

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Digital Literacy in the Classroom

The Teaching Channel delivers videos for teachers over various platforms, including the Internet.  In addition to showcasing inspiring teachers, Teaching Channel hosts a community for educators to share ideas and best practices and to enhance their knowledge. For example, Teaching Channel Presents and PBS LearningMedia provide materials that can help teach students to become proactive digital citizens.

You can preview the Teaching Channel Presents episode Digital Literacy in the Classroom, which show students learning how to become proactive digital citizens.   From understanding safe behavior online to learning how to find reliable sources to seeing how online activity leaves a lasting identity trail — these lessons are designed to develop critical thinking skills.  You can search the Teaching Channel’s schedule and watch other full one-hour episodes such as Teaching Math to the Core, Connecting the Arts to Academics, Middle School and The New Teacher Experience.  Check out the preview below:

For additional digital literacy activities, check out other media-rich resources from PBS LearningMedia such as What Is Personal Information? for grades 3-6 and Cybersafe Your Teens  for grades 6-12.

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Free Professional Development Resources from PBS LearningMedia

PBS is eager to support your efforts both inside and outside of the classroom.  At PBS LearningMedia you can explore hundreds of free professional development resources.  Here is just a sampling:

Reading Buddies: Anna  (For K-2nd grade teachers / Video / Reading fluency)
Watch as an older student models fluent reading with a kindergarten-aged English language learner (ELL). Notice strategies such as page-turning prompts that make the experience more effective.

Setting Up a Book Corner  (For PreK-2nd grade teachers / Video / Classroom) In this teacher training video, Theo the Lion interviews Kimberly Triplett of the Early Childhood Institute at Mississippi State University who describes how successful book corners have been set up in learning environments, childcare centers, and home daycare facilities.

Benefits of Curriculum Mapping   (For K-13+ / Video  / Video Sequence)  With this resource group, teachers can explore the benefits of curriculum mapping. This group includes a review of how curriculum mapping can influence a school, a video example of a horizontal curriculum map, and a video example of the optimal group configuration for the read-through of a curriculum map.

Build a Rubric  (For 9-13+ / Video)  Rubrics provide students with clear expectations and consistent feedback. Build a customizable rubric that can be used for any writing activity your class might be completing.

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New Courses from PBS TeacherLine

With the potential challenges of winter weather, online courses can be the best way to meet your professional development needs.  Offering courses with the quality you expect from PBS,  TeacherLine’s Winter Term begins on January 23rd. You can explore the full catalog of online courses to discover what courses will serve your teaching practice.  In addition to the many courses that educators continue to value, here are two new ones:

MATH522: Teaching Math (Grades K-2): A Special Collection from Annenberg Learner
For K-2nd grade teachers | 45 Hours | Syllabus | Sign Up
This inquiry-based course offers math teachers a deep-dive into the NCTM process standards. During the course, teachers will explore ways to expand their practice, and develop lesson plans for each of the five standards.

SCIE572: The Habitable Planet: A Systems Approach to Environmental Science-A Special Collection from Annenberg Learner
For 9-12th grade teachers | 45 Hours | Syllabus | Sign Up
This course helps to provide a background for understanding and discussing the different Earth systems: geophysical systems, the atmosphere, the oceans, and natural ecosystems. Examine the unique characteristics that make our planet habitable and investigate the effects of human activity on different natural systems.

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Save the Date: “The World of Water” Teacher Conference

Keynote Speaker Fabien Cousteau

Save the Date!  On Friday, April 5, 2013, Wilbraham & Monson Academy will sponsor “The World of Water”, a half-day professional development conference focused on the incorporation of water and economics learning into the classroom.

The highlight of the day will be a Keynote speech from Fabien Cousteau, son of Jean-Michel Cousteau and grandson of the late Jacques Cousteau, entitled “What’s Good for Water is Good for Business”.

Registration will open in the coming weeks, but please mark your calendars.  We hope you will join us for what looks to be an exciting day!

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Award: Edqyna Wheadon Postgraduate Training Scholarship

Edwyna Wheadon Postgraduate Training Scholarship provides funding for professional development experiences for English/Language Arts teachers in public educational institutions, to enhance teaching skills and/or career development in teaching

Maximum award: $500

Eligibility: teachers of English/Language Arts in a publicly funded institution

Deadline: January 31, 2013

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Grant: NEA Learning and Leadership

NEA Learning & Leadership Grants support public school teachers, public education support professionals, and/or faculty and staff in public institutions of higher education for one of two purposes. Grants to individuals fund participation in high-quality professional development experiences such as summer institutes or action research; grants to groups fund collegial study, including study groups, action research, lesson study, or mentoring experiences for faculty or staff new to an assignment.

Maximum award: $5,000

Eligibility: public school teachers grades K–12; public school education support professionals; or faculty and staff at public higher education institutions

Deadline: February 1, 2013

Note: WGBY is not affiliated with this grantmaking program.  Please contact the funding agency directly for more information.

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Good Tidings from PBS TeacherLine

Over 1000 teachers in our region have taken PBS TeacherLine online professional development courses, offered in a wide range of content areas for preK-12 teachers.  To help spread the good tidings of the holiday season, PBS TeacherLine is offering a $30 discount off most graduate-level courses to all alumni and registered users.

To receive this discount on winter courses that begin on January 23, 2013, you must register by December 31, 2012.  For a special promo code that must be used for registration, please contact me  in WGBY Education and Outreach Department:  bkapetanis@wgby.org 413.781.2801, ext. 292.

Here’s just a sampling of PBS TeacherLine winter courses, all of which you can view by going to the online catalog:  UNST125 Building Critical Thinking Skills for Online Research (Grades K-12); MATH410 Seeing Math:  Linear Functions (Grades 6-12); RDLA157 Teaching Phonemic Awareness and Phonics (PreK-3); SCIE564 Structure of the Earth System – Special Edition: Teachers’Domain, Produced by WGBH Boston (Grades 5-12); SOST502 Bridging World History:  A Special Collection from the Anneberg Foundation(Grades 9-12).

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Apply for the PBS Teachers Innovator Awards

The PBS Teacher Innovator Awards recognize innovative PreK-12 classroom educators, media specialists, technology coordinators, and home-school educators who use digital media to enhance student learning. Entrants submit a short video or PDF with text and images that showcases their work. Entries can be a demonstration of a unique teaching technique or the outcome of influence on a student work.

Maximum award: all-paid, week-long “Innovation Immersion Experience” at The Henry Ford in Dearborn, Michigan in August 2013; free professional development from PBS TeacherLine.

Eligibility: preK-12 classroom educators (public, private, or charter school), library media specialists, technology specialists/coordinators, home-school educators, and Head Start or licensed daycare teachers.

Deadline: December 12, 2012.

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