Advance excellent teaching with Annenberg
Media.
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*** In the Spotlight for April ***
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- Linking to Current Events
- Galileo and the International Year of Astronomy
- Distance Learning
- Explore.org Captures International Philanthropy
- Connect Learning with Special Days
o Ellis Island Family History Day
o Richter Scale Day
o National Environmental Education Week
o National Poetry Month
o Mathematics Awareness Month
o Autism Awareness Month
- Upcoming Conferences — NCTM and IRA
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*** LINKING TO CURRENT EVENTS ***
U.S.-Mexico Border Issues
Reports of drug-related violence south of the U.S.-Mexico border have prompted
U.S. officials to confront the problem directly, through the deployment of
federal agents to the border and diplomacy aimed at increasing cooperation
between the U.S. and Mexico.
Present your students with a rounded view of Mexico and borderland issues with
the help of our resources:
> "Boundaries and Borderlands"
<http://www.learner.org/powerofplace/page2.html>, the second program of The
Power of Place: Geography for the 21st Century, focuses on the border cities of
Juarez, Mexico and El Paso, Texas, showing how an individual mother is drawn to
cross the border to feed her family and the attrition of U.S. Border Patrol
agents. The related series, Teaching Geography
<http://www.learner.org/workshops/geography/wkp2intr.html>, includes a
lesson on factors in migration from Mexico. You can access both the video link
and the lesson plan.
> For a view of differing "geographical imaginings" by tourists and native
Mexicans of Cancun, watch "Imagining New Worlds" from Human Geography: People,
Places, and Change
<http://www.learner.org/resources/series85.html>.
> Middle school Spanish students learn how their leisure activities compare with
those of their Mexican-born schoolmates in "Hearing Authentic Voices" from
Teaching Foreign Languages K-12: A Library of Classroom Practices
<http://www.learner.org/libraries/tfl/>.
> American Passages: A Literary Survey Unit 2, "Exploring Borderlands"
<http://www.learner.org/amerpass/unit02/>, brings in history and literature
to aid our understanding of borderland issues and cross-border identities.
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*** GALILEO AND THE INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF ASTRONOMY ***
Galileo Galilei is called the Father of Astronomy for his observations of
heavenly bodies in the Solar System, which reordered humans' concept of the
universe in 1609, and for his discoveries that contributed to the demise of the
Earth-centered cosmology of Aristotle and Ptolemy. Star gazers can see what a
radical change this was and how it was received 400 years ago in several science
resources:
> Watch The Mechanical Universe...and Beyond
<http://www.learner.org/resources/series42.html> Program 1, "Introduction";
Program 2, "The Law of Falling Bodies"; and Program 4, "Inertia."
> Earth Revealed
<http://www.learner.org/resources/series78.html> Program 2, "The Restless
Planet," traces the development of astronomical theory.
> Essential Science for Teachers: Earth and Space Science, Program 8, "The Solar
System: Order out of Chaos"
<http://www.learner.org/courses/essential/earthspace/session8/> probes young
students' ideas about Earth's origins and their concept of the Solar System.
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*** DISTANCE LEARNING ***
From the Distance Learning Team at Annenberg Media
We hope everyone is enjoying spring after a long, cold winter. Spring is a time
of renewal and therefore a great time to remind everyone to renew their licenses
for the upcoming summer and fall semesters. We are excited to let you know that
our new Exploring World Art course will be ready and available for preview by
fall 2009. In addition, we have a new physics course in development and plan to
have a preview available early winter of 2010. Last but surely not least, when
you license Ethics in America, you are automatically entitled to use the six new
programs that are part of Ethics in America II.
Don't forget that students can access the video for our distance learning
courses through our online VoD stream, 24/7 at no cost. Additional options for
students enrolled in a distance learning course are to (1) purchase the DVDs at
a greatly reduced price of $35 per series/per part by calling 1-800-LEARNER
(532-7637), or (2) download WMV files through ACT media for $55 per series/per
part by calling 1-913-768-1696.
Visit us! We will be at the following conferences over the next few months:
NILRC, April 16-17 in Quincy, Illinois; Georgia Distance Learning Association,
June 22-24; NUTN, June 21-23; and Wisconsin Distance Learning, August 5-6.
Please stop by our booth or attend our presentation. We would love to connect.
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*** EXPLORE.ORG CAPTURES INTERNATIONAL PHILANTHROPY ***
Teachers looking for videos to supplement lessons on topics of inter-religious
studies, multicultural understanding, environmental issues, and wildlife
preservation may be interested in Explore.org. Explore is a media communications
project highlighting the work of humanitarian non-profit organizations, both in
the U.S. and internationally. It is funded by the Annenberg Foundation and
headed by Foundation trustee, Charles Annenberg Weingarten. The Web site is
organized by region (China or India, for example) and further organized by film
length and subtopic. Explore invites teachers to provide feedback at
www.explore.org. The site will be relaunched during the 2009-2010 school
year.
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*** CONNECT LEARNING WITH SPECIAL DAYS ***
Ellis Island Family History Day (April 17)
The Immigrant Station at Ellis Island in New York Harbor served was a port of
entry for 12 million immigrants to the United States from its opening on January
1, 1892 until its closing on November 12, 1954. The busiest year was 1907, with
1,004,756 immigrants; 11,747 were processed on April 17, 1907 -- more than on
any other day in the Immigrant Station's history. It is estimated that over 40
percent of Americans are descended from immigrants who came to the United States
through Ellis Island.
Noteworthy people to reach the United States through Ellis Island include
novelist Anzia Yezierska and artist Ben Shahn.
> Get an overview of the impact of Ellis Island's immigrants on American culture
with the article "Coming to America: Immigrants at Ellis Island"
<http://www.learner.org/amerpass/unit09/context_activ-3.html>. This page
also links to photographs of immigrants at Ellis Island and two poems related to
the topic. In the same archive, read the article "How the Other Half Lived: The
Lower East Side"
<http://www.learner.org/amerpass/unit09/context_activ-4.html>.
> Anzia Yezierska's writing about immigrant life in New York's lower east side
is featured in the program "Social Realism" from American Passages
<http://www.learner.org/amerpass/>.
> Read the poem "The New Colossus" by Emma Lazarus in PDF format
<http://www.learner.org/amerpass/archive/9000s/9092.pdf>. The poem is famous
for the words, "Give me your tired, your poor,/Your huddled masses yearning to
breathe free...." In 1903, a plaque bearing the poem was affixed to the pedestal
of the Statue of Liberty.
> A Biography of America, Unit 19, "A Vital Progressivism"
<http://www.learner.org/biographyofamerica/prog19/> looks at how several
groups, including Chinese and Japanese immigrants, attempted to gain access to
the American dream in the period between 1893 and 1929.
> America's History in the Making, Unit 14, "Industrializing America"
<http://www.learner.org/courses/amerhistory/units/14/> examines the
experiences of immigrants in America during a period of global economic and
industrial expansion in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. See Unit
Resources for a list of reference materials, links to articles, and a radio
program about immigrant women.
Richter Scale Day (April 26)
The Richter magnitude scale is used worldwide to measure the amount of energy
released during earthquakes, particularly smaller, local quakes. Charles Richter
and Beno Gutenberg at the California Institute of Technology developed the
logarithmic scale in 1935 to study seismic activity in California.
> Get a solid overview of earth science and topics such as plate tectonics,
volcanism, and erosion with "Earth Revealed"
<http://www.learner.org/resources/series78.html>. Programs also address
environmental issues including the use of fossil fuels, groundwater
contamination, and potential consequences of global warming.
> Our Dynamic Earth interactive
<http://www.learner.org/interactives/dynamicearth/> offers an introduction
to plate tectonics, boundaries, faults, and earthquakes.
> Look at the relationship between earthquakes and volcanic activity with our
Volcanoes interactive
<http://www.learner.org/interactives/volcanoes/>.
> Algebra: In Simplest Terms
<http://www.learner.org/resources/series66.html> Program 19, "Logarithmic
Functions," explains how the Richter scale measures quake magnitude; Program 11,
"Circle and Parabola," demonstrates how P and S waves are used to locate an
earthquake's epicenter.
National Environmental Education Week (April 12-18)
Environmental Education Week is an opportunity to increase students' knowledge
and awareness of environmental science and current issues -- the perfect lead-in
to Earth Day on April 22.
> The Habitable Planet: A Systems Approach to Environmental Science
<http://www.learner.org/courses/envsci/> presents current information on 13
environmental topics plus an online textbook, interactive labs, visual aids, and
a downloadable guide.
> Observe Gage Reeves's 5th grade lessons
<http://www.learner.org/workshops/teachreading35/classrooms/cv5.html>
incorporating fun literacy building exercises into a unit about global warming
and climate change.
> Connect your literature lessons with environmental issues by teaching a unit
on Octavia Butler's highly realistic science fiction novel, "The Parable of the
Sower"
<http://www.learner.org/workshops/hslit/session7/aw/work1.html>. For the
video, click on the link to the Session 7 main page.
> Planet Earth
<http://www.learner.org/resources/series49.html> looks at environmental
concerns in Program 3, "The Climate Puzzle," and Program 7, "Fate of the Earth."
> Economics U$A
<http://www.learner.org/resources/series79.html> looks at how industry and
government regulation can affect the environment in Program 21, "Pollution."
> Try our Weather exhibit
<http://www.learner.org/interactives/weather/>, which explores the structure
of Earth's atmosphere and explains the greenhouse effect and ozone depletion in
simple terms.
> See compelling ways of teaching about the chemistry of Earth and the chemistry
of saving Earth in Workshop 7 of Reactions in Chemistry
<http://www.learner.org/workshops/chemistry/workshop7/>.
> "The Precious Envelope," Program 27 of The World of Chemistry
<http://www.learner.org/resources/series61.html>, looks at the natural and
unnatural evolution of Earth's atmosphere.
National Poetry Month
> The beautiful documentaries of Voices & Visions
<http://www.learner.org/resources/series57.html> showcase thirteen of the
best American poets and their poetry. Poets include Elizabeth Bishop, Walt
Whitman, Robert Lowell, and Emily Dickinson.
> In the classroom video "Gaining Insight Into Poetry"
<http://www.learner.org/series/cowl/ch13-19/>, high school teacher Chris
Mazzino uses the poem "Will They Ever Learn?" to help his students understand
the experience of being "the Other." The video is part of our unique set of
resources, Teaching "The Children of Willesden Lane."
> Read the poem "Immigrants" in English in Spanish ("Los inmigrantes") plus
other works in PDF format
<http://www.learner.org/workshops/hslit/support/guide1.pdf> in the support
materials for The Expanding Canon: Teaching Multicultural Literature in High
School
<http://www.learner.org/workshops/hslit/>. The series explores various
approaches to teaching literature.
> Use our Interactive Strategy Workbook
<http://www.learner.org/workshops/tml/interactive/> to compare two poems --
part of Teaching Multicultural Literature: A Workshop for the Middle Grades.
Find poets and poetry throughout the series.
> For more middle school lessons, see "Teaching Poetry"
<http://www.learner.org/workshops/middlewriting/prog3.html> in our series
Write in the Middle: A Workshop for Middle School Teachers. The workshop
includes teacher reflections and actual samples of student work.
> Literary Visions
<http://www.learner.org/resources/series41.html> presents mini-lectures and
dramatizations on Setting and Character; Words and Images; Rhetorical Figures;
Prosody and Form; and Myth, Symbolism, and Allusion. Poets include Gary Soto,
Anne Sexton, Lucille Clifton, and James Dickey.
> Poetry inevitably speaks to the era in which it is written. American Passages:
A Literary Survey
<http://www.learner.org/amerpass/> elucidates the connections between poetry
and social and political context in Program 10, "Rhythms in Poetry," and Program
15, "Poetry of Liberation."
> Jump-start your upper elementary students' interest in poetry using this
lesson
<http://www.learner.org/libraries/engagingliterature/starting/lessonplan.html>
on our Web site for Engaging With Literature: A Video Library, Grades 3-5. The
page links to a list of poems suggested for teaching the use of line breaks,
repetition, and other devices.
> See how teachers incorporate poetry into their early elementary reading
lessons in Teaching Reading K-2: A Library of Classroom Practices
<http://www.learner.org/libraries/readingk2/>. Examples can be found in
"Becoming Readers and Writers," "Connecting Skills to Text," "Students Making
Choices," and "100 Days of Reading."
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Mathematics Awareness Month
The theme for this year's Mathematics Awareness Month is "Mathematics and
Climate."
> Gain a deeper understanding of the math underlying food webs and ecosystems
with "Connecting with Networks"
<http://www.learner.org/courses/mathilluminated/units/11/>, Unit 11 of
Mathematics Illuminated -- new in 2008.
> The interactive labs that accompany our series The Habitable Planet
<http://www.learner.org/courses/envsci/interactives/index.php> use the power
of mathematics to model factors affecting the environment; go to Carbon Lab to
look at how climate-altering greenhouse gas emissions may change over time.
> Our interactives
<http://www.learner.org/interactives/> offer enjoyable learning activities
for exploring mathematics. Weather includes information on the mathematics
behind weather forecasts, while our Math interactives -- Geometry 3D Shapes,
Math in Daily Life, Metric Conversions, Statistics -- explore the math behind
everyday phenomena, introduce terminology and concepts, and assess student
knowledge.
> Our five Learning Math courses
<http://www.learner.org/courses/learningmath/> for elementary and middle
school teachers include links to Video on Demand, interactive illustrations and
activities, and problems for reviewing the material. Topics include Geometry;
Measurement; Number and Operations; Patterns, Functions, and Algebra; and Data
Analysis, Statistics, and Probability.
> Our Teaching Math courses
<http://www.learner.org/courses/teachingmath/>, available only online, offer
professional development for K-12 teachers. Course materials and activities
include examples of student work, analysis of student-teacher dialogues, video
clips of teachers in classrooms, a reflection journal, math problems and
solutions, and interactives.
> Our Teaching Math video libraries offer classroom footage to demonstrate
effective teaching practices at the K-4
<http://www.learner.org/resources/series32.html>, 5-8
<http://www.learner.org/resources/series33.html>, and 9-12
<http://www.learner.org/resources/series34.html> grade levels.
> The program Surprises in Mind
<http://www.learner.org/resources/series130.html> documents a 12-year study
tracking the development of mathematical skills in students participating in a
special math curriculum. The program demonstrates how we can tap into children's
innate mathematical ability and make learning math fun. Private Universe Project
in Mathematics
<http://www.learner.org/workshops/pupmath/> expands on these ideas in a
full-length series.
Autism Awareness Month
> The Brain: Teaching Modules
<http://www.learner.org/resources/series142.html> Video 29, "Autism,"
features Dr. Temple Grandin of Colorado State University. Dr. Grandin, severely
autistic as a child, explains how she was able to overcome her autism and
eventually benefit from her special way of perceiving the world.
> "Behavior Disorders of Childhood," Program 11 of The World of Abnormal
Psychology
<http://www.learner.org/resources/series60.html>, presents an overview of
autism in children, showing the range of symptoms in milder and more severe
forms of the disorder.
> Ethics in America II, Program 5, "A Better Brain: The Ethics of Neuro-enhancement"
<http://www.learner.org/series/ethics2/better_brain/>, uses a hypothetical
case to raise broader ethical issues related to the concepts of "merit," "need,"
"disability," and the proper role of medicine.
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*** UPCOMING CONFERENCES — NCTM and IRA ***
If you're planning to attend either of the following conferences, remember to
stop by our table in the exhibit hall:
NCTM 2009 Annual Meeting & Exposition
April 22–25, 2009 in Washington, DC
Walter E. Washington Convention Center
Session on Mathematics Illuminated at 2:30 p.m. on Friday, April 24
IRA 2009 Annual Convention North Central
May 4-6, 2009 in Minneapolis, MN
Minneapolis Convention Center
We look forward to meeting you and hearing your views about math, reading, and
teaching!
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Editor’s
note:
The update email from Annenberg Media for March 2009 included a reference to ongoing conflict in Gaza. The purpose of listing the news item was to refer teachers and individuals to background video that includes scholars commenting on the history and geography of that region. We apologize to those who felt that the conflict was misrepresented in any way.