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It's Podcastic!

Nancy Bentley, Wood End School - Reading, MA

What are podcasts?

Podcasts are amateur radio shows that you can play on your computer or mp3 player. Podcasts are different from regular audio files because you can subscribe to them using an RSS feed.

How can I use podcasts in my classroom?

There are so many podcasts that are related to your classroom curriculum whether you teach preschool or high school. They can be played for students in school or your students can download them to their MP3 players and listen to them on their own time. The itunes store is a great place to get started. You can find audio and video podcasts under the podcast education section. They are free, educational and often times entertaining.

Why should I have my students create podcasts?

Having students create podcasts is a great way to teach students 21st century skills. They require the students to move beyond the 3 Rs reading, writing, and arithmetic and incorporate the 3 Cs: creating, communicating and collaborating.

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The Blueprint for Excellence National Institute

Register Now!

Visit elementary, middle, and high school classrooms and 
gain first-hand experience from some of the best teachers in the world!

Focusing on the needs of students, a successful journey never ends. Reading Public Schools began their journey of school improvement nine years ago when a team of dedicated educators first attended the annual Blue Ribbon Schools conference. Bringing questions to addressing the many needs of their students – they found the answers to begin school transformation and went home inspired, year after year.

Join us in Boston for an inspirational professional development institute on:

• A Comprehensive School Improvement Process
• Teaching Special Needs Students
• Leadership
• SMART Content Creation
• Literacy
• Integrating Technology and 21st Century Skills
• Successful Classroom Applications
• High School Innovations

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Texas Beginning Educator Support System

TxBESS, Region 10 Education Service Center

The Texas Beginning Educator Support System (TxBESS) is an induction program for teaching staff that pairs each new teacher with a mentor. Teachers new to the profession work with their mentors for their first two years at Northwest High School while experienced teachers new to the campus have a mentor for their first year only.

New teachers meet monthly as a group with the TxBESS coordinator to discuss areas of concern. Mentors also meet monthly with the TxBESS coordinator to get general feedback and provide the same. Mentors meet at least weekly with their protégés to enact aspects of the program and give the new teachers a touchstone as they transition into campus and/or professional life. The mentor teacher also serves as an informal liaison with administration as well as other teachers in their respective departments and with the support staff.

Each new teacher is teamed with an experienced teacher to provide ongoing professional support. Focused support for experienced teachers principally addresses school culture and professional issues related to the student population, staff acclimatization, procedural details, and general team building.

Teachers new to the profession receive encouragement in classroom management techniques, lesson preparation and assessment, identification of student needs, and establishment of an attitude of professional growth. Mentors assist through direct observation of new teacher classroom preparation and instruction, provide observation opportunities for the new teachers in their own and other teachers’ classrooms and regularly debrief with the new teachers providing moral support throughout their transition into the education profession.

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Build a Blue Ribbon School

Bart Teal, President/CEO, Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence, Inc.

Come and discover how two schools successfully completed their journeys to educational excellence. Woodview School and Meadowview Elementary School in Grayslake, Illinois, will share how they used the "Blueprint for Excellence" assessment and analyzed sessions at a previous conference to build a Blue Ribbon Lighthouse School.

How is your school doing? Really doing?

The Blue Ribbon Assessment will help you answer that question, "How's your school really doing?". It's a comprehensive school assessment , designed for all schools with a collaborative approach to school improvement - it gets the entire learning community involved. To learn more about Blue Ribbon Lighthouse Schools and the Nine Components of the Blue Ribbon Schools Assessment, please click on this link.

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Making the Dream A Reality

Vallerie Cave, Principal – Risley Early College Academy, Brunswick, Georgia

This unique learning community accepts students of all abilities
and prepares them for college. Every student pursues a
rigorous academic curriculum while at the same time receiving
individualized instruction. Come see, listen and engage in the
journey that was destined to fail but rather became one of
extraordinary achievement and purpose.

Category(s): Student Focus and Support; School Organization
and Culture; Challenging Standards and
Curriculum; Active Teaching and Learning;
School, Family, and Community Partnerships

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