Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Dec. 11-17, 2011)

December 18, 2011

Here are my favorite resources of the week, curated from my Twitter account.

Social Media Resources, Policy tools and How To’s

Best practices for confronting employee sexual harassment – by Judy Greenwald

15 WordPress Plugins For A Better Facebook Experience – 1stwebdesigner.com

Social Media News

Underground Industry Aims to Dupe Social Media Users – by Tom Simonite

Canada’s Tories to take questions in inaugural Twitter town hall – CTV news

What Insurers Could Do With Your ‘Social Media Score’  – by Sheryl Nance-Nash

Adult Literacy and Essential Skills

Computer Use Tip Sheet – HRSDC

Writing Tip Sheet – HRSDC

Reading Tip Sheet – HRSDC

Tips on Working with others – HRSDC

Oral communication tips – HRSDC

Children’s Literacy

Reading Companion – Great literacy resource by IBM

Robert Munsch’s Reading Website for Kids

Starfall – Excellent literacy resource for children

Top 10 Tips for Teaching Basic Reading Skills – Worksheet library

Technology and E-learning

Bringing Speech Recognition to Reading Instruction – by Marilyn Jager Adams

A lesson plan to introduce YLs to blogging – by Dina Dobrou

Apps and software for students with language-based learning disabilities – by Inov8-Ed

Popular educational Twitter feeds live and streaming – from Splaysoft

Tip of the Week – Six Great Ways to Publish Student Work – Historytech blog

Tutpup – Competitive Educational Games – by Mark Brumley

10 Instructional Design Tips for e-Learning Development  – TheNewLearner.com

The Gamification of Education: What School Can Learn from Video Games – Terrell Hick

Languages and Multilingualism

10 Myths you will be told about multilingual children – Multilingual Children’s Association

Christmas resources in 4 languages – LanguageNut

80 Apps to Learn a New Language – by Joshua Johnson

Elements Of Style Rap: Columbia Journalism Students Tackle Strunk And White Grammar Classic – Huffington Post

Education News

How the Left Side of the Brain Got Left Behind: A Hypothesis – GettingSmart.com

Online schools score better on Wall St. than in classrooms – NY Times

English Continues to Be World’s Most Influential Language, TalktoCanada Reports – SacBee

Teachers concerned about Inclusive Education Planning Tool – Alberta Teachers’ Association

Tech startups ride surge in online education – AsiaOne.com

Related posts

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (December 4-10, 2011)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (November 20- 26, 2011)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (November 13-19, 2011)

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Update – January 2018 – This blog has had over 1.8 million views thanks to readers like you. If you enjoyed this post, please “like” it or share it on social media. Thanks!

Sarah Elaine Eaton is a faculty member in the Werklund School of Education, University of Calgary, Canada.


Strunk and White’s Elements of Style – in a rap song

December 15, 2011

This new video has had over 12,000 hits in the last two days. It is Strunk and White’s Elements of Style set to a rap song.

Who says grammar can’t be fun?

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Update – January 2018 – This blog has had over 1.8 million views thanks to readers like you. If you enjoyed this post, please “like” it or share it on social media. Thanks!

Sarah Elaine Eaton is a faculty member in the Werklund School of Education, University of Calgary, Canada.


Canadian English: Not Just a Hybrid of American and British English

December 13, 2011

NALD logoA number of years ago I had the pleasure of participating in a professional development workshop in Cuba for English teachers there. Due to the large numbers of Canadian tourists in Cuba, the teachers were intensely interested in “Canadian” English. They asked, “What is Canadian English?”, “How does it differ from British English? Or American English?” and “Is there really such a thing as ‘Canadian’ words?”

I wrote a paper on the topic of Canadian English for the workshop and I must say, I was surprised at how much I learned about my own language!

The National Adult Literacy Database (NALD) has archived the paper and has made it available for all researchers, teachers and literacy practitioners free of charge. Download your free copy of “Canadian English: Not Just a Hybrid of British and American English”.

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Update – January 2018 – This blog has had over 1.8 million views thanks to readers like you. If you enjoyed this post, please “like” it or share it on social media. Thanks!

Sarah Elaine Eaton is a faculty member in the Werklund School of Education, University of Calgary, Canada.


Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Dec. 4-10, 2011)

December 10, 2011

Here are my favorite resources of the week, curated from my Twitter account.

Social Media

7 Social media tips for the company Christmas party – by John Balitis and Carrie Pixler-Ryerson, for Inside Tucson Business

Social media policy essential in the workplace – by Anna Cairo

Apple’s social media policy leaked by Emily Nicholls

A social media policy pearl by Andrea Di Maio

8 Ways To Avoid Social Media Culture Clash by Debra Donston-Miller

What Boards Should Know About Social Media by Erika L. Del Giudice and Dorri C. McWhorter

Social Media Policy Essentials by Ray Silva

After Facebook rant, Manatee County suspends deputy for three days by Alison Morrow

Apple Fires Employee Over Facebook Rants by Margaret Rock

Quebec Minor Hockey League Social Media Policy – QMHL

UFC Reaps the risks and rewards of social media – by Chad Dundas, ESPN

Literacy and Essential Skills

Take time to learn together on Family Literacy Day by Community Content

Technology and teaching children to read: What does the research say? from NEIR TEC

No place in class for digital illiterates – The Guardian

Margaret Atwood says Twitter, internet boost literacy – CBC News

Tips to Make Reading Fun – in Lake Mary Health and Wellness

National Literacy Trust highlights book-free millions – by Judith Burns, BBC News

Paper or electronic? Reading to children important no matter the medium – by Roni Reino

Financial Education pays off in adult life – by Sharon Singleton

Technology and E-learning

How to convert your Powerpoint into an E-learning course – Rapid E-Learning

Google Forms for Educators – ISU Workforce Training

Top 10 iPhone Apps of 2011 – by eGichomo

Digital literacy resources – Government of South Australia

Languages and Multilingualism

How to market to foreign language speakers – by Christian Arno

“Pleasure reading” key to second language learning – Victoria University of Wellington

Effective Learning / Metacognition

Effective learning and teaching – Science for All Americans Online

5 Training “Must Knows” – by Sarah Bohnenkamp

Education News

India offers English stepping stone to east Asian students – The Guardian

Canada: a failing grade on aboriginal education – by Gerry St. Germain And Lillian Dyck, The Leader-Post

The rise of flexi-schooling – by Jeevan Vasagar

When an adult took standardized tests forced on kids – by Valerie Strauss

Related posts:

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Nov. 20 to 26, 2011)

Dr. Sarah’s favorite resources of the week (Nov. 13 to 19, 2011)

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Update – January 2018 – This blog has had over 1.8 million views thanks to readers like you. If you enjoyed this post, please “like” it or share it on social media. Thanks!

Sarah Elaine Eaton is a faculty member in the Werklund School of Education, University of Calgary, Canada.


5 Festive ways to say “Happy Holidays!” to your favorite teacher

December 9, 2011

In many regions of the world, classes are winding down for a winter holiday break. Here are 5 festive ways to let your favorite teachers know you appreciate them:

1. A hand-made holiday card – Teachers love cards and notes that say “You make a difference in my world!” A store-bought card is nice, and a hand-made card is even better.

2. Certificate of Appreciation – Most word processing programs have a template for certificates. Create your own Certificate of Appreciation for a teacher complete with their name, the name of the school and the school year. Sign them and add a sticker of a happy face or a gold star for extra effect.

3. A home-made consumable gift – A batch of cookies or a jar of home made jam is a super gift for a teacher. Many of them are so busy at this time of year finishing up with classes and corrections that they do not have as much time as they would like to bake and make things for the holidays. A gift that they can share with their loved ones is always appreciated.

4. A gift of indulgence – A gift certificate to a coffee shop or a movie theatre is a wonderfully indulgent gift. I have two teacher friends whose absolute favorite gift to receive is a gift card to their favorite coffee shop. Suddenly, a $10 gift card transforms into an afternoon visit with a friend over a cup of coffee – and the teacher gets to treat!

5. Fun school and office supplies – Did you know that many teachers supplement the supplies they receive at school with their own extra-special supplies such as stickers, post-it notes, coloured markers and other fun stuff that are not part of regular school supplies? Often, they pay for these little “extras” out of their own pocket. A trip to your local discount store can provide you with stickers, posters, arts and crafts supplies and other goodies that many teachers can use in their classroom.

Related posts:

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Update – January 2018 – This blog has had over 1.8 million views thanks to readers like you. If you enjoyed this post, please “like” it or share it on social media. Thanks!

Sarah Elaine Eaton is a faculty member in the Werklund School of Education, University of Calgary, Canada.