Author Archives: Ben Kramer

Sandra Carswell, Librarian in Copperas Cove ISD, local winner in the PBS LearningMedia Get Your Tech On Sweepstakes!

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Ms. Carswell, Librarian at S.C. Lee Junior High School in Copperas Cove, is the second local winner of a Samsung Galaxy Tablet and a one-year subscription to the Premium level of PBS LearningMedia. A 25-year veteran educator, Ms. Carswell started her career with an abiding love of reading, which she found morphing into an interest in technology and its potential for young learners.

Copperas Cove ISD has a “bring your own device” policy for its students. With that in mind, Ms. Carswell looks forward to furthering her proficiency on her Galaxy Tablet as she helps students find and use quality digital resources – like PBS LearningMedia.

Carswell with student

Aaron Higdon, Dahlstrom MS Teacher, wins Get Your Tech On Sweepstakes

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KLRU Educational Services congratulates Aaron Higdon, the Gateway to Technology teacher at Dahlstrom Middle School in Buda. Aaron recently received a Samsung Galaxy tablet and a PBS LearningMedia Custom account. Here, he gives us some background and how he incorporates technology:

This is my 11th year as a teacher, two years in Houston ISD and nine in Hays CISD.  I taught middle school science, then math, now STEM.  This is my 4th year teaching STEM.

My students use Google apps all the time.  Each student has a gmail account that is managed through the district.  they use Google drive (and all the apps with that).  They’ve created Google sites to make engineering portfolios.  And, we’re now using Google Classroom to manage assignments and feedback.  We occasionally use other apps like Kahoot! on student devices.

Like Julie Hildebrand, our 2014 PBS LearningMedia Digital Innovator, we salute Aaron and his work, and we encourage all educators to submit an application now to be a 2015 PBS LearningMedia Digital Innovator.

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Map Your World Project and Tablet Grants

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Inspired by the PBS Independent Lens documentary The Revolutionary Optimists, Map Your World is an online and on-the-ground platform that empowers youth to make positive changes in their own communities. Young people everywhere can collect data, map the issues, share powerful stories, and become change agents, for free.

To help support young change agents and their projects, Map Your World is offering grants for Nexus 7 tablets, provided by Google, for teachers and facilitators. Applications for tablet grants must be submitted by December 1, 2014.

It’s inspiring! In Kolkata, India, youth tracked water points in their slum and convinced the local government to build the first clean drinking water line in over 30 years. In Oakland, California, middle school students are tracking cigarette litter and are lobbying the city to protect their urban wildlife refuge’s ecosystem. In Seattle, youth are mapping incidents of violence and bullying. The application deadline is December 1, 2014.   http://mapyourworld.org/#/teachers

 

Educator Webinar with Henry Louis Gates, Jr.!

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As the next in our series of Get Your Tech On educator events, PBS LearningMedia is thrilled to be joined by Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Harvard scholar and host of PBS’ Finding Your Roots, this Wednesday, 11/5 for a FREE webinar about how science and storytelling come together to reveal the rich histories of his guests. Invite educators to join and take local credit for providing direct access to this renowned scholar. A special thank you to Thirteen/WNET for making this event possible.

  • Finding Your Roots in the Digital Age | 11/5 at 6:30 pm ET | FREE Educator Event | Register Here!

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KLRU Kids Fall Schedule 2014

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KLRU Kids

KLRU’s fall 2014 lineup for kids includes the following highlights: KidsShowBlocks

  • WordGirl appears M-F at 6:30 a.m. for a great dose of vocabulary and fun before school!
  • The return of Clifford for a full hour on Sunday morning (8-9am), and Maya & Miguel on Saturday and Sunday (7:30am)
  • Sesame Street‘s 45th season with a full hour M-F (7-8am) and half-hour episodes at 7am on Saturday and Sunday, and 1-1:30 pm M-F

Get the full schedule of kids’ programming now

And as always, go to klrukids.org for hundreds of episodes, games, activities, and links to other powerful learning resources!