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Microsoft Enters Tablet Market

SurfaceNo, that image to the left is not an iPad surrounded by SmartCovers. That is the Microsoft Surface. Not to be confused with the giant table-sized computer the company released a while ago, the Surface is Microsoft’s entry into the tablet market.

Attempting to take a page out of Apple’s playbook on several levels, Microsoft revealed the Surface during a mystery press event in California. What those in attendance saw was an iPad knock-off that is heavier, boasts shorter batter life and an inferior chip. To be fair, the Surface does have an impressive cover that contains a fully functioning keyboard, but that is an accessory that must be purchased.

Microsoft has two versions of the Surface in the works, each for a very different audience. There’s a “consumer version” that will run Windows RT and a “business version” that will run Windows 8.

Microsoft isn’t saying exactly when the Surface will be available for purchase, or how much it will cost, but experts are predicting the “consumer version” to fall in the $500 price range with the “business version” to come in at over $1,000. The pricier version does have better overall tech specs than its cheaper brother, but that improved performance comes at the cost of weight and, of course, cost.

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Breaking Down Boundaries Through...


Whats behind the pushback diversity trainer Jane Elliot gets from many white students about her now-famous Blue Eyes/Brown Eyes exercise? The exercise aims to explain the daily struggles of nonwhite students, and the pushback doesnt come from a place of hate, but one of ignorance or even arrogance.

Its the common problem in our culture of denial, both in the sense of denying identity within race and thus denying the problem as well as denying the reality of...

Early Literacy Assessment


Quiz themboth orally and on paper
Listen to their retellings
Have them read from the basic sight word list
Select a variety of papers that demonstrates their progress in spelling
Administer and score an attitude survey for each one
Give them the unit pretests and prepare the end-of-level posttests
Prepare a cloze passage for them
See if each one can segment a word into phonemes
Take a running record of everyones oral reading for the...

Obsessed?

I have one student~ who lives and breathes fishing. He knows more about different types of fish~ fishing gear~ and fishing conditions than most adults. He has read dozens of books and magazines on the subject~ written his own E-book on fishing~ and serves as a fishing guide for his father and other family members.

I think its safe to say hes obsessed with fishing.

In fact~ it can be quite common for gifted children and those highly curious and enthusiastic about...

Enrichment: Remember our Veterans

  1. Monday, November 11, 2013 is Veterans Day in the USA. Use the day to remind students of the etching on the Korean War Memorial in Washington, D.C.:Freedom Isn't Free. Use class time to ask about Veterans in the lives of our students; share storiesabout Veterans in your life.
  2. Veterans Day is a time to respect, reflect, and remember not only those who made the...

Enrichment: Twitter Manners

  1. Manners always matter; they help us negotiate complex and simple relationships. Manners serve as the guardrails for society. The internet too has guardrails to keep us from falling into trouble. In a recent infographic by Donna Queza~ (@twitter.com/donnaqueza)~ the following simple and essential Twitter Manners were highlighted for us to share with our students.
  2. 1. Don't ignore someone when he/she talks about you-even if it uncomplimentary.
  3. Think of Twitter as a...

Enlightenment: Difficult People

  1. As the Head of a High School, I am linked to situations that require me to address the behavior of difficult people. Some of these people are internal constituents, while others are external. The internal ones often leave the greatest scars on themselves and the culture of the school as they seek alliances and attempt to create enemies. Sadly, this is a reality of leadership.
  2. To address culture killers within an institution, I suggest the following seven tips:
  3. 1....

One Plus One Equals Success

"If we want them to achieve, we must link them with achievers....One plus one--Pass it on."
(H. Weinberg, The Public Television Outreach Alliance)

Sometimes my students simply amaze me.

I teach a second-grader, who is a full-blown animal lover. Last year, she collected supplies for the Humane Society. She devours books, often one per day, that have dogs and other animals in them. As part of her gifted project, she established a dog washing club in her...

Brattleboro Area Middle School: An...

After spending a day at Brattleboro Area Middle School (BAMS) in Vermont, Im considering how my career path could overlap with living in this district. It isnt likely, but my point is that I want my future hypothetical children to go to exactly this kind of school and as a resident, I would want my local tax dollars to support this type of institution and all the amazing professionals that educate and care for the students in it.

BAMS...

Enlightenment: Flow

  1. Flow is what MihalyCsikszentmihalyicalls a mental state of operation in which a person is fully immersed and focused in what he/she is doing. This is the central point of gaming. Flow involves full mental engagement in a process or activity. It is the ideal between boredom and anxiety or frustration. Csikszentmihalyi indicates eight components that make flow possible. Here are the eight components that align well with gamification of ideas in education.
  2. 1. Achievable Task
  3. ...

TEACHING KIDS THAT THEY HAVE A HISTORY...

TEACHING KIDS THAT THEY HAVE A HISTORY USING THEIR FAVORITE CHILDHOOD TOY

When you think of your childhood~ does one toy or stuffed animal or other item~ comes to mine? Mine was Pinkie. Pinkie is beige(so go figure the name I chose as a little girl). My mom had to sew her eyes and nose back on a number of times and the stuffing got squashed when I dropped it in the street and a car ran after it before my dad heroically rescued Pinkie for me.

In the beginning of...

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