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I'm Christine Bell, a High School Social Studies Teacher who believes that I always learn so much from my students while I teach them. Students respond to the fun and the different. To that end, I focus on web-based instruction and technology. I also love to have the students create their own projects, games, and special content-based creations. Almost any strategy that facilitates communication, higher level comprehension and thought is worth trying.
"It is paradoxical that many educators and parents still differentiate between a time for learning and a time for play without seeing the vital connection between them."
Leo Buscaglia, USC
"...in play, children learn how to learn."
O. Fred Donaldson - Martial Arts Master
"Almost all creativity involves purposeful play."
Abraham Maslow -Psychologist
"Play is not a luxury. Play is a necessity."
Kay Redfield Jamison - Professor of Psychiatry
"Play gives children a chance to practice what they are learning."
Fred Rogers - American Television Personality
"The true object of all human life is play."
G.K. Chesterton - British Author
"...the playing child advances forward to new stages of mastery."
Erik H. Erikson - American Psychoanalyst
Education:
- Advanced Placement Institute, Human Geography, Advanced Placement, College Board, Williamsburg, Virginia 2005
- University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, 1985-1986 Master of Education, emphasis on Curriculum and Instruction
- Post-Graduate Certification through Virginia Department of Education in Social Studies and History
- Mary Washington College, Fredericksburg, Virginia, 1979-1983 Bachelor of Arts, double major in Art History and American Studies
Awards and Honors:
Teacher of the Year Hopewell School Division - 2001
Resolution of Appreciation from Virginia Department of Education for participation in rewriting of Standards of Learning World History II - 2001
Who's Who Among American Teachers - 1996
YMCA Service To Youth Award - presented to me by then Governor George Allen in Richmond -1996
This website will be a vehicle for putting forward instructional ideas and methods that I have found to be helpful and even wonderful.
Web-based Instruction begins early and continues through life...
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Terrific Web-based Software to make learning fun:
This list is a work in progress...
1. http://prezi.com/ Wonderful and unusual ways of putting together multimedia into a new way of looking at content.
2. http://goanimate.com/ Students can put together their own movies with music and pictures.
3. http://www.makebeliefscomix.com/Comix/ Wonderful software that allows students to create their own comic strips for presentations.
4. http://evernote.com/ Software for students to synch materials from computer to all
5. http://issuu.com/ Students can create their own magazines!
6. http://www.slideshare.net/ Students create and share
7. http://www.good.is/infographics New ways to organize content and material
8. http://www.youtube.com/editor Students film themselves, create their own movies
9. http://wordpress.org/ Students create their own blog
10. http://www.taggalaxy.com/ One of my new favorite ways to search for photos
11. ooVoo It's possible to have a 12-way conference on this social vehicle.
12. Skype.com Extremely user-friendly communication vehicle.
13. Let's not leave out Facebook, Twitter, Ning - Reach the students where they are.
14. VYM (View Your Mind) A metacognitive way to put together mind-mapping
15. Historypin.com - Cool way to put history and maps together and then share
16. Timetoast.com - Great interactive way to put together timelines
17. Argumentative - Cool and logical mind-mapping
18. Zondle.com - Teachers create their own games for students
20. Sophia.org - Social networking for students and teachers
21. Googleartproject.com - How about investigating art museums over the world?
22. Mission-us.org - New online game about the American Revolution
23. MemoryLifter.com - Free flashcard software
24. BreathingEarth.com - Cool way to start discussions on global climate change
25. Playinghistory.org - A compendium of history games - start here
26. Stykz.com - Fun way for students to put together comic strip and tell a story
27. StatPlanet.org - Great way for students to visualize earth issues
28. Kerpoof.com - Students have a lot of fun creating their owned presentation
29. Voki.com - Let's teachers or students create their own avatar to present
30. Food Force.com - a game to show ways to fight hunger
31. Geosense.com - Lets students compete against people around the world
32. Gapminder.com - Great way to begin discussion on country development
33. Flashcardexchange.com - World's largest collection of content-based cards
34. www.sheppardsoftware.com - Lots of free geography lessons and games
35. googleearth.com - Who's NOT using this wonderful resource? :)
36. Weebly.com - Great way to put together a website or blog
37. Adobe Education Exchange - Wonderful exchange tool for ideas and lessons
38. Online Education Database - Includes a huge amount of information and articles
as well as lists of educational blogs and open forums
39. http://www.active-explorer.com/ -Simple, elegant, and useful on all levels
This list is a work in progress...
1. http://prezi.com/ Wonderful and unusual ways of putting together multimedia into a new way of looking at content.
2. http://goanimate.com/ Students can put together their own movies with music and pictures.
3. http://www.makebeliefscomix.com/Comix/ Wonderful software that allows students to create their own comic strips for presentations.
4. http://evernote.com/ Software for students to synch materials from computer to all
5. http://issuu.com/ Students can create their own magazines!
6. http://www.slideshare.net/ Students create and share
7. http://www.good.is/infographics New ways to organize content and material
8. http://www.youtube.com/editor Students film themselves, create their own movies
9. http://wordpress.org/ Students create their own blog
10. http://www.taggalaxy.com/ One of my new favorite ways to search for photos
11. ooVoo It's possible to have a 12-way conference on this social vehicle.
12. Skype.com Extremely user-friendly communication vehicle.
13. Let's not leave out Facebook, Twitter, Ning - Reach the students where they are.
14. VYM (View Your Mind) A metacognitive way to put together mind-mapping
15. Historypin.com - Cool way to put history and maps together and then share
16. Timetoast.com - Great interactive way to put together timelines
17. Argumentative - Cool and logical mind-mapping
18. Zondle.com - Teachers create their own games for students
20. Sophia.org - Social networking for students and teachers
21. Googleartproject.com - How about investigating art museums over the world?
22. Mission-us.org - New online game about the American Revolution
23. MemoryLifter.com - Free flashcard software
24. BreathingEarth.com - Cool way to start discussions on global climate change
25. Playinghistory.org - A compendium of history games - start here
26. Stykz.com - Fun way for students to put together comic strip and tell a story
27. StatPlanet.org - Great way for students to visualize earth issues
28. Kerpoof.com - Students have a lot of fun creating their owned presentation
29. Voki.com - Let's teachers or students create their own avatar to present
30. Food Force.com - a game to show ways to fight hunger
31. Geosense.com - Lets students compete against people around the world
32. Gapminder.com - Great way to begin discussion on country development
33. Flashcardexchange.com - World's largest collection of content-based cards
34. www.sheppardsoftware.com - Lots of free geography lessons and games
35. googleearth.com - Who's NOT using this wonderful resource? :)
36. Weebly.com - Great way to put together a website or blog
37. Adobe Education Exchange - Wonderful exchange tool for ideas and lessons
38. Online Education Database - Includes a huge amount of information and articles
as well as lists of educational blogs and open forums
39. http://www.active-explorer.com/ -Simple, elegant, and useful on all levels
Learning from Students
Fun and Rewarding Work With Students
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The master of the art of living makes little distinction between his work and his play, his labor and his leisure, his mind and his body, his education and his recreation, his love and his religion. He hardly knows which is which; he simply pursues his vision of excellence in whatever he does, leaving others to decide whether he is working or playing. To him he is always doing both.
Buddha If you never did you should. These things are fun and fun is good. Dr. Seuss |
If you want creative workers, give them enough time to play.
John Cleese The creation of something new is not accomplished by the intellect but by the play instinct acting from inner necessity. The creative mind plays with objects it loves. Carl Jung Do not…keep children to their studies by compulsion but by play. Plato |