Playing Scarecrow: Getting Students to Think
The Scarecrow from the Wizard of Oz taught us that, even if at times we don’t believe it, we are all capable of deep and rational thought. The irony in the Scarecrow’s story, of course, was that his deepest desire to get a brain turned out to be an unnecessary one. He was the most […]
Google CS First: First Impressions from a Tech Integration Specialist
Google CS First: First Impressions from a Tech Integration Specialist In this guest post, TIS Brooke Hall (@BrookeHallTIS) describes her first encounters with CS First by Google. Brooke attended a workshop to learn more about the curriculum and to discover ways to use the lessons with students. My name is Brooke Hall, and I am […]
Collaboration Is a Life Well Lived
This post is about collaboration, and as I explored many different angles to find an example or analogy that illustrates what it truly means, I realized something. Explaining collaboration doesn’t require an analogy or even a deep explanation. Our daily lives and how we survive are fueled by collaboration. Each individual is deeply entwined with […]
STEM: It’s All About the HOW
As an educator, there are many different trends and words that seem to make the rounds through our world of education. The same seems to be true of “STEM” which has definitely been quite the buzz for the last 5 years or so, but is it just a trend? I’m here to say, it most […]
Becoming a Google Certified Educator
Guest contributor Amber Anania (@msanania) is a 7th grade language arts teacher at Westfield Middle School who recently became a Google Certified Educator Level 1. In this post, she shares her experiences preparing for and taking the qualification exam. I jumped wholeheartedly onto the Google bandwagon when it arrived at my school a few years […]
Taking Time this Summer is an Absolute NEED for Educators
Burn-out: fatigue, frustration, or apathy resulting from prolonged stress, overwork, or intense activity (Dictionary.com, 2017) We have all been a victim of burn-out. While every individual regardless of age, intelligence, and profession has the potential to experience the effects of burn-out at some point in their lifetime, educators seem to struggle often with this negative phenomenon. According […]
Reflections of a CEO
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. I always envisioned starting an article about a personal experience in my life with those particular words. Five-Star Technology Solutions was a dream in 2003-2004 that became reality in 2005. A few of the most common questions I am asked is why I […]
Saving Money While Spending Money
One way to upgrade your school network infrastructure is by tapping into the dollars available via the federal E-Rate program that is administered by the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC). E-Rate provides discounts to eligible schools and libraries in the United States in order to ensure access to affordable telecommunications and information services. E-Rate dollars are available […]
The Truth about What is True: Teaching Students How to Think
This just in: Inner-city crime in the United States is reaching record levels. (Source: Donald Trump). You are three times more likely to be able to get a mortgage if you’re a white applicant than if you’re a black or Hispanic, even if you have the same credentials. (Source: Hillary Clinton) Due to a shortage […]
The Benefits of Formative Assessment for Special Education
Formative assessment is a teaching tool that supports all learners, but it is especially critical for students who are struggling, as it holds the potential for changing the learning outcome. It is a quick way for teachers to evaluate learning needs and academic progress in their classrooms. Here are some examples of how formative assessment can […]
