Welcome to the June 2011 Newsletter. Please feel free to forward this e-news bulletin to colleagues that you think would be interested in any of the items below. If you have any comments or suggestions on this bulletin or indeed any special requests for special software offers, please email them tokim.conway3@btinternet.com
This is the last e-news bulletin until August, after the summer holidays. Hope you all have a good and restful break.
News
- Autodesk have released Autodesk Design Academy 2012
- Imovesdance.com is a new website that will help you to teach fun and interesting dance based sessions. Imovesdance.com is suitable for use with children of all ages. There are 12 different styles of dance. Click here to register for a free trial
- The International Children's Games is the world biggest youth sporting event with up to 1,500 competitors ages 12 to 15 from more than 80 countries taking part. To help promote the games a Glow Meet has been arranged for 9thJune 2011 whereby children across Scotland can ask Scott Leitch, former Motherwell FC Captain, and former Assistant Manager at Motherwell FC and Aberdeen FC about his career as a professional football player and as an Assistant Manager at a SPL Football Club.
- There has been a great response for teachers applying to become SMART Exemplary Educators. The lucky teachers will become eligible for membership of an exclusive group, and will attend conferences throughout Europe as well as being given the opportunity to pilot new SMART software. Anyone who has not applied and would like to be considered should contact Anne Forrest immediately. Those successful with be notified by end of June.
- I Can Animate from Kudlian Software is now available on iPhone, iPod and iPad
- BrainPOP UK have now has a newsletter to keep you up to date will all that is going on. Sign up to receive the free BrainPOP UK newsletter.
- XMA's new Scottish Procurement pricing on Apple is available to all schools in Scotland which offers great savings over list prices. Warranty is available at £50 for three years or £70 for four years. For details on Apple and XMA visit www.xma4education.co.uk or email to request an XMA Apple Scotland brochure.
- Granny's Garden and SuperSpell 2 from 4Mation have both been tested and run on Microsoft Multipoint 2011. SuperSpell2 is also compatible with the latest version of Mac OSX.
Curriculum for Excellence
- BrainPOP UK- all BrainPOP UK animated movies and quizzes are mapped to Curriculum for Excellence and using DeepBeep their curriculum matching tool, you can quickly and easily find a movie to suit your needs. This month's spotlight is super Ideas that changed the world, July's is Finding Your Way and Augusts' is BrainPOP Safari. Sign up for a free trial.
- 3DMadeEasy.comis working on a mapping of projects which use titles from the Autodesk Design Academy 2012 to Curriculum for Excellence
SS4E Showcase - Autodesk Design Academy 2012 and 3DMadeEasy.com online training subscription.
New to SS4E Website
Two new case studies have been posted -Trinity Primary School using SMART Technology and see how St Peter's Primary School is using the SMART document camera to promote collaborative learning.
Free Resources
Mike Thrussell, Technologist, Henshaw College had developed a new but simple interface as an alternative YouTube interface Access:YouTube. Access:YouTube can be easily navigated with a keyboard or can be use with a single and/or two switch access.
Check out Espresso's FREE Classroom Resources Taster including
- Problem Solving -Helps children to develop the key mathematical skills of counting, sorting, matching, seeking patterns, making connections and recognising relationships.
- Growing Plants -Focuses on plant growth and the factors which affect growth. Pupils can watch a video on the enormous flower and then label different parts of a flower with the interactive activity.
- Maps and mappingIncludes a Map maker activity where children follow a set of instructions, and use symbols or pictures, to label the features on a map.
- Volunteers -Introduces Volunteers' Week (1-7 June) and talks about some of the work done by volunteers in the UK.
Forthcoming Events
CALL Scotland, BRITE and the JISC Regional Support Centre, Scotland North and East have come together to organise two days of free exhibition and demonstrations of hardware and software for students with additional support needs by a number of Britain's leading suppliers. Register for which day you would like to attend
- 15thJune 2011- CALL Scotland, Edinburgh
- 16thJune 2011- Thistle Hotel, Glasgow
Competition
Your last chance to win an Amazon Kindle and tickets to the 2011 CILIP Carnegie & Kate Greenaway Awards! Complete a short Accelerated Reader quiz on one of the shortlisted titles for the 2011 CILIP Carnegie & Kate Greenaway Children's Book Award and you could win a fantastic prize! One lucky winner will receive an Amazon Kindle for their school plus tickets for two children (plus one accompanying adult) to attend the awards ceremony in London on Thursday 23rdJune!
The competition closes at midnight on Friday 10thJune. Visit: http://www.readwriteexcite.co.uk/
If you require further information on the above please click on the appropriate web link. Please feel free to circulate this newsletter to any colleagues who may be interested. Feedback on this newsletter is welcome; please email kim.conway3@btinternet.com with your comments. If you wish to stop receiving this newsletter, you can remove your address from the distribution list by sending a blank email with the subject 'unsubscribe' to kim.conway3@btinternet.com