Mr. Casal has left the building...

To the PS 10 community,

It is with a heavy heart I am posting this blog entry. I will no longer be working at PS 10, effective immediately. I have been presented with an opportunity outside of New York City and have chosen to pursue it.

I realize this is sudden, and brings about unforeseen difficulties as the school year begins, and for this I sincerely apologize. This was in no way my intention. I was not looking to leave 10, but I was approached out of the blue and offered an opportunity in Westchester, in the Scarsdale school district, that I needed to accept.

In the last 5 years I have immensely enjoyed my time at 10. Even if I may not be the touchy-feely smiley type, I was always having fun. Thank you to everyone for the wealth of experiences and all that I have learned. This was not an easy decision and I leave PS 10, and all my students, with a heavy heart but a need to pursue this opportunity beyond the DOE.

I hope I have imparted some skills and knowledge that my students, and the parents of my students, find valuable. My hope is for my students to pick up where we have left off and begin to use the Google Apps platform we have implemented to drive their own learning. We’ve researched, created presentations, built websites, have tweeted, and have blogged. Just because I am not here does not mean this has to end.

I truly hope my students continue to pursue the interests and projects we have begun, and take this opportunity to pursue others we haven’t thought about yet.

Keep blogging, tweeting, building portfolio webpages, Skyping, and pushing the limits of Google Apps. Please reach out to me at any point for any technical assistance and I will do my best to support the students of PS 10 as best I can from afar.

Students of PS 10, you have done amazing things and you have the skills and knowledge to continue to do amazing things. Push the limits, expand the boundaries. Have a vision. Be demanding. Create. Plant a positive digital footprint. Be awesome.

Thank you for a great 5 years. See you on teh interwebs…

• Email: mrcasal.lab@gmail.com
• Twitter: @mr_casal
• Google+: +ChrisCasal
• Facebook: MrCasal.lab
• LinkedIn: Christopher Casal
• Graphite: MrCasal
• Personal blog: thecasalos.blogspot.com 

5th Graders - Take your @ps10.org data with you

5th graders,

Over the last few years you have created quite a lot content here at PS 10. Between your classroom and the computer lab you have produced a lot of great work.

In the last year everyone has been using Google Drive to create and store projects.

Here is how you take it all with you:

3rd Grade Google Presentations

3rd graders have been working on creating Google Presentations in Drive.

The theme, and title, is "What History Means to Me" which is essentially an extension of a previously written essay created as a Google Document.

The original Document was an introduction to using Google Drive; comparing and contrasting to Microsoft Word, and so forth. The actual writing was fairly self directed. I gave students a prompt: "to me history means..." and then it was up to them to define "history." For some students history is all about family. For others it is all about learning in school. History is the past, but the aspects of the past that stand out for each student vary child to child.

Once the essay was finished I introduced them to Presentations. We talked about slides as opposed to paragraphs, bullet points as opposed to sentences, the different style and voice used to convey the same content. They then began to turn their "History" documents into Presentations, able to edit, update, and alter in any way they saw fit.

The overall project is a few months in the making because we cover:

Class 460's PowerPoint movies

Ms. Smith-Thomas's class has been working on creating PowerPoint presentations.

We started with the basics of Powerpoint such as adding slides and text. WE discussed what a bullet point is, how to edit and revise bullets to make them clear and concise, and how to add create appropriate and relevant content.

Once the slides were done students looked to relevant and appropriate pictures using Google to add to their presentations.

Once all the elements were in (titles, bullets, pictures) students added Animations to all the elements.

After animations students added Transitions to all the slides, set with timings, so the slides would advance automatically after the viewer read the information.

Once everything was complete, students would watch each other's presentations to provide feedback and help each other with any final editing and revising.

When they were ready to turn in, students did a "Save as Movie" to turn the presentations into .mov files.
(side note - unfortunately when saving out as a movie the animations, transitions, and timings don't carry over, so not all elements are readily available via YouTube - we'll be addeing PowerPoint shows to this page shortly to showcase the full compliment of student work)

They they used the class DropItTo.me site to upload it to Mr. Casal's Dropbox. From there Mr. Casal added them to his ps10.org YouTube channel and embedded them here...

Enjoy!
(4 students are finished and currently posted. these 4 studies are in the process of assisting the other 7 in completing, exporting, and uploading their movies)

Joseph's:

Dylan's:

Isabela's:

Anthony's:

Giovanni O:

More to come soon...!

Adobe Voice - a quick iPad app review

Adobe recently released a new app, Adobe Voice.

It's subtitle is "Show your story."

And it's just that simple. Choose your photos. Record your audio story to match. Save. Publish. Share. Very simple, but very elegant and powerful at the same time.

Here is my first attempt at using the app...

(raw link: http://voice.adobe.com/v/CM95Zzdayhr)

That video took me about 3 minutes, literally, to make.

While Adobe Voice may lack in heavy editing features it is fantastic for putting together quick videos from your photo roll.

The upside?

• easy to use
• Insert Text
• Import Camera Roll photos
• Keyword search for clip-art style Icons
• Creative Commons-licensed
• 32 Themes 
• various colors and textures for backgrounds
• 6 Layout templates
• photos only, photos and captions, two-column, etc
• 30+ Music options 
• 37 built in, but the app can also pull songs from your iPad's iTunes Library

The downsides? 

• Can't export the finished product to the Camera Roll (or another app)
• Only uploads to Adobe's site (can't add to YouTube, Vimeo, etc)
• Need an Adobe Creative Cloud account (free, but yet another account to manage)
• Their embed code seems to be a bit wonky, and maybe it's more Adobe's hosting, but it seems to take an abnormally long time to load

The downsides aside, I think Adobe Voice has great potential.

• Its very easy to use
• Makes quality multi-media presentations quickly
• Easy for student and teachers alike to do exactly what Adobe set out it, tell their own story

It's free. Free to download. Free to store on Adobe's Creative Cloud...

Definitely worth the download at that prince. Here is the App Store link: Adobe Voice


Tell your story...

Things happen pretty quickly in schools, Adobe Voice is a great way to snap some photos to document what you are doing, add some brief descriptive narration, and easily share to your students, parent, or community at large.

I'm looking forward to playing around with it some more, really seeing how creative and detailed the final products can be. 

Going to put it in some student hands too, let them really take it for a spin...

Why Blogger with students?

I use Blogger with my students. I have two classes currently running fully independent blogs. One 3rd grade class and one 5th grade class.

I often get asked why I chose Blogger over some of the other blogging platforms, namely Kidblog, EduBlogs, or even WordPress.

My choice was based on the following thoughts:

• we are a Google Apps (GAFE) school so Blogger was an easy choice
•  to keeps login simple
• seamlessly integrates with other apps we use such as Drive
• this class blog (ps10tech.blogspot.com), which, as you know  is used for student assignments and resources, is a Blogger blog so there was existing familiarity for students on the look, feel, comment options, etc

That's basically it.

I wanted to see what it would be like to teach students to blog in the same environment I do, using the same tools.

The downside?

Blogger doesn't have the administrative abilities of Kidblogs. I can't moderate posts before they go up, I can't restrict access, I don't have the granular control over the content that I could with a platform such as EduBlogs or Kidblogs.

So why go with Blogger for 3rd and 5th graders if I don't have that restrictive control?

I wanted students to have independence and true ownership of their blogs. Yes, this does open up potential pitfalls. No, there are no moderations on my student blogs. They design, write, publish, and manage their blogs as they see fit.

We spend the majority of our time together talking about

• purpose
• audience
• appropriate writing & voice
• spam and phishing scams
• the nitty gritty of responsibility and digital citizenship when you own and publish from your own space

It's an experiment

I have 22 classes a week. 600 students. I started this experiment with a single 4th grade class (now 5th graders). I expanded to include a 3rd grade class this year, to see how the different ages would approach it.

Will I do this with 600 students?

Probably not. 600 blogs is a bit too much to keep track of, even with the best of RSS feed readers.

I may experiment with the other platforms next year. I encourage the classroom teachers in my building to try those platforms out (at this point most teachers have a teacher-run class blog that students comment on, or "guest post" but have no control over design, etc).

If you would like to check out my student blogs they'd love to see their audience stats change:

• 3rd graders
• 5th graders

They also love comments, so if you feel so inclined...


What about next year?

That is a good question. These 5th grades are the first to have independent blogs. At this point the thought is they'll change ownership of it from their PS10.org GAFE accounts to a personal GMail account (their own or that of a parent) and continue working on it after they graduate.

The 3rd graders will definitely continue. Their blogs will be an ongoing part of their digital portfolio and the foundation for their digital footprint. I plan on using their blogs as the focal point for much of what we do next year.

Will I add another class? Honestly haven't decided yet. Might. Might not. Might give Kidblogs a shot. Possibilities are endless and I have as much fun experimenting and trying new things as the kids do, and at it's core I think that is why having their own independent blogs has worked so well.

I've given them ownership of their own voice and a place to speak to the world. A place to create an audience. A platform to tell their own story as they see fit.

Powerful stuff. But fun. Very, very fun. And at the end of the day that's what matter...

Thanks!

Email spam - sniffing out the bad, even from trusted sources

This post is a follow-up, of sorts, to the previous "Twitter spam" and "Phishing" posts. In making the slide deck about Twitter spam I realized there were a few different variations of spam in general, especially within emails.

This post deals specifically with email, and more to the point emails you receive from trusted sources that contain questionable material and links.

When a user gets hacked or compromised as a result of a phishing scheme, the people involved will use the users contacts list to send out emails in hopes of getting more users to give up their usernames and passwords.



This scam is particularly effective since you get an email from someone you know and trust, so your guard is down. The idea is to lull you into a false sense of security that the content of the email is safe since it got sent from someone you know and you recognize both the name and email address.

Once you click the links and enter your password you then turn your account over to the hackers who in turn send emails from your address to your contacts in an attempt to get even more users to give up their passwords.

A lot of email spam originates as "phishing" scams. These are emails designed to get the user to voluntarily offer up their username and password. These emails convince the recipient they need to pride details, or log in, to prevent something bad from happening. Once the user replies or logs in the scammers have their passwords and can use their accounts to send out spam to a users address book.

I created this quick tutorial for my colleagues to help them recognize and identify emails sent from compromised accounts:

Recognize spam email (even if you trust the sender)

We will never be immune from phishing scams and spam, and everyone will be compromised at one point or another (through their actions of those of others) but as GI Joe always said, knowing is half the battle...

Phishing: not the hook you're looking for

This post is a follow-up, of sorts, to the previous "Twitter spam" post. In making the slide deck about Twitter spam I realized there were a few different variations of spam in general, especially within emails.

This post deals specifically with "phishing"

Another post will address email arriving from trusted sources but smelling particularly spammy due to phishing...

If Twitter has it's moments of Costco-sized spam deliveries than email is the place where Costco shops. 

A lot of email spam originates as "phishing" scams. These are emails designed to get the user to voluntarily offer up their username and password. These emails convince the recipient they need to pride details, or log in, to prevent something bad from happening. Once the user replies or logs in the scammers have their passwords and can use their accounts to send out spam to a users address book.

I created this quick tutorial for my colleagues to help them recognize and identify phishing scams:

We will never be immune from phishing scams and spam, and everyone will be compromised at one point or another (through their actions of those of others) but as GI Joe always said, knowing is half the battle...

Know your Twitter spam

Periodically I try to create & post resources that I hope the entire PS 10 community; students, staff, and parents alike, find valuable. This is one of those posts. Spam comes in many forms but since we use Twitter so extensively here at PS 10 I wanted to create a Twitter-specific resources for recognizing and protecting yourself from Twitter-related spam.

Twitter has it's moments of Costco-sized spam deliveries.

We've all seen it. Or more to the point you got a Direct Message (DM) saying "wow, have you seen this post about you?" with a on-so-not-suspicious link attached. Or the ego enhancing "I've lost weight with this, and you could too!"

When this spam comes through I immediately delete it and let the sender know they most likely have been compromised. It's not always the users fault, though. Recently Pinterest was compromised and was sending out tweets to those users who had connected their Pinterest and Twitter accounts.

I created this quick tutorial for the PS 10 community to help everyone recognize and identify suspicious DMs and tweets:

We will never be immune from spam, and everyone will be compromised at one point or another (through their actions of those of others) but as GI Joe always said, knowing is half the battle...

3rd Grade - Spring Break 4/2014 - Building the biggest

Have you ever seen a very large boat? How about a big cruise ship? Often, out in New York harbor you can see very large ships carrying containers. They are shipping goods throughout the world.

Have you ever seen one of those giant container ships being built....?

Below is a video of the largest shipping container ship being built. The video is a time-lapse video comprised of 50,000 pictures. You will be able see the entire ship built in 76 seconds...

You can read about the video here and here.

Your assignment:

Watch the video and then comment with answers to these questions:

• Have you ever seen one of those ships in New York harbor (or anywhere else)?
• What are your thoughts about the video?
• What is one thing that stood out to you the most after watching the video?

Please post your comments in full and complete sentences with proper grammar, spelling & punctuation.

Have a great Spring Break!

Remember - Comment as "Name/URL" and use your first name and last initial (proper capitalization, no URL)- please respond in full and complete sentences - double check your work before posting your comment.

4th Grade - Spring Break 2014 - Pinokio

We live in interesting times. Technology is all around us. Some technology is passive, meaning it only does what we make it do. Other technology works on it's own...



Can technology talk to you? Can technology play along? The robots of the movies, are they possible in today's technology filled world?



Watch this video and answer the questions below:

Pinokio from adambd on Vimeo.

Here is information about the Lamp from the creators of the video:

Pinokio is an exploration into the expressive and behavioural potentials of robotic computing. Customized computer code and electronic circuit design imbues Pinokio with the ability to be aware of its environment, especially people, and to expresses a dynamic range of behaviour. As it negotiates its world, we the human audience can see that Lamp shares many traits possessed by animals, generating a range of emotional sympathies. In the end we may ask: Is Pinokio only a lamp? – a useful machine? Perhaps we should put the book aside and meet a new friend.

Your assignment:

Watch the video and read the quote from the creators. Post a comment in paragraph form with your thoughts on what you saw and read. Keep these questions in mind:

• Did you ever think a robotic lamp was possible to make?
• Now that you've seen one are there other objects you think can be made to move and interact with people?
• Does this mean we'll have full robots soon?
• Over all, what are your thoughts & reactions to this video and the description from the creators?
• Can you think of any other every-day objects that have been changed or upgraded with technology?

Please post your comments in full and complete sentences with proper grammar, spelling & punctuation.

Have a great Spring Break!

Remember - Comment as "Name/URL" and use your first name and last initial (proper capitalization, no URL)- please respond in full and complete sentences - double check your work before posting your comment.

5th Grade - Spring Break 4/2014 - We are technology

Technology is everywhere. Often, we think all things are created with things like computers. We also tend to think computers are what make everything better. But that is not always the case. Sometimes the greatest technology is the human mind and it's creative potential...




We've all seen a kaleidoscope  But have you ever seen one made with people? Made without any help from a computer?

Watch this video and look for the assignment below:

TEDxSUMMIT - The Power of X from WE ARE Pi on Vimeo.

A quote from the description of the video:

...they fused architecture, dance, math and magic into a bespoke18-meter high triangular mirrored structure that hovered over a multi-colour moving floor to create the world’s first Human Arabesque (with no computer graphics). 

An Arabesque is a form of art that reminds me of a kaleidoscope.

The "Power of X" as they say, to me, means "the power of our minds & creativity." The power of our potential.

Your assignment:

After watching this video post a comment with your thoughts and reflections about what you saw. Use these questions as a guide:

• Have you ever seen a human kaleidoscope?
• Now that you know they made that video without computer animation, what do you think you can create & accomplish without computers?
• If I asked you to create something amazing, without a computer, what would you define that as? What would you try to make?
• If you could do anything in the world, but couldn't use a computer or any other technology, what would you do?

Please post your comments in full and complete sentences with proper grammar, spelling & punctuation.

Have a great Spring Break!

Remember - Comment as "Name/URL" and use your first name and last initial (proper capitalization, no URL)- please respond in full and complete sentences - double check your work before posting your comment.

Where we are...

Here is a quick update as to where all classes are in the Computer lab...

2nd grade

• finishing their work on their History documents
• writing
• editing & revising
• formatting
• searching for relevant & appropriate pictures
• downloading & inserting pictures into their documents

3rd grade

• beginning Google Presentations
• taking History document and converting essay content to bullet format
• adding slides
• discussing the difference between conveying information on slides versus an essay

4th grade

• building personal portfolio websites (using Google Sites)
• used Microsoft Word to begin building a site map
• creating pages within Sites
• beginning to add content to pages
• discussing he importance of safety and security of personal details and information
• discussing the importance of creating a positive digital footprint

5th grade

• building personal portfolio websites (using Google Sites)
• used Microsoft Word to begin building a site map
• creating pages within Sites
• beginning to add content to pages
• discussing he importance of safety and security of personal details and information
• discussing the importance of creating a positive digital footprint

As always, feel free to contact me at any time with any and all questions.

Thank you!

Mr. Casal

Grade 4 - Panorama

4th graders,
Since Mr. Casal is absent you will do the following assignment, answering the questions as comments.

Once you have successfully posted a comment you can finish work on your "Me2013" Google Presentation.

Have you ever wanted to look at something from above? Have you ever wanted to look at a monument of city from every angle?



A panorama is a wide-angle look at something. 360 degrees is a full circle...

There is a website that has taken 360 degree panoramic images of famous places and made them available for free on the internet. The company uses helicopters and a variety of cameras to make these 360 degree panoramic photos.

These photos are wide angle looks at various places, wide-angle views from every angle in all directions.

Your assignment:

• Go to the site http://www.airpano.com/
• Chose one or more of the 360 panoramas (you can select from their home page, from the World Map link, or from their full list)
• If you have any trouble loading a panorama click on the "iPad/Android" link to get a version that will load more quickly
• When you open the panorama, explore it, more the image around, look up & down, left & right. Use all the tools such as the ones I've circled in the picture below:

Post a comment with:

• The name/location of the panorama you looked at
• The things you observed
• What  the images made you think of
• Your thoughts & ideas about the website & pictures in general

Remember - Comment as "Name/URL" and use your first name and last initial (proper capitalization, no URL)- please respond in full and complete sentences - double check your work before posting your comment.

Grade 5 - Yosemite

5th graders,
Since Mr. Casal is absent you will watch the video below and answer the questions. When you are finished, and have successfully posted a comment you may continue to work on your "Me2013" Google Presentations.

Remember, you will not be watching the video on your computer, only on the Smartboard. Mr. Waisome will play the video a few times as you read the questions and post your answers to the questions.

The United States has many National Parks. Yosemite is one of them.

First protected in 1864, Yosemite National Park is best known for its waterfalls, but within its nearly 1,200 square miles, you can find deep valleys, grand meadows, ancient giant sequoias, a vast wilderness area, and much more.

The video:

Yosemite HD II from Project Yosemite on Vimeo.

Some informations about the video:

A 200+ mile backpacking experience through Yosemite National Park captured by Colin Delehanty and Sheldon Neill. This project was filmed over the course of 10 months. We spent a combined 45 days in the park capturing the images in this video.

If you want to read more about the makers of the video, click here

Your questions:

• Have you ever been to a National Park?
• Have you ever been to Yosemite?
• When you watched the video, what stood out to you the most?
• What did the video make you think about?
• After watching the video, would you want to go to Yosemite?
• What are your overall impressions of Yosemite after watching the video?

Remember - Comment as "Name/URL" and use your first name and last initial (proper capitalization, no URL). Please respond in full and complete sentences. Double check your work before posting your comment.

When you are finished, and have successfully posted a comment you may continue to work on your "Me2013" Google Presentations.

Grade 3 - New York Day

3rd graders.
Since Mr. Casal is absent you will be watching a short video and answering a few questions related to it as comments. You must answer all of the questions.

Remember, you will not be watching the video on your computer, only on the Smartboard. Mr. Waisome will play the video a few times as you read the questions and post your answers to the questions.

As students are probably aware I am a big fan of time lapse videos. I think they are great ways to see the world and experience things in a very different & exciting way.

I have discovered another New York City time lapse video...

New York Day from motionkicker on Vimeo.

I found this video on Mashable.com, a great resource for all things tech. Here is what they said about it:

Timelapses have been a particularly popular trend as of late, and New York City has always been a hot spot because of its' edgy beauty — but Samuel Orr is taking the entire concept to a new level with "New York Day."

The photographer hopes to create a series of timelapse videos that chronicle life and people in a sprawling city. Each video is a small story — people coming to life in the morning on their commute, going about their day, eating and then homeward bound in the evening — all compiled to show what an average day in New York is like. Orr says that including the sounds of the city makes the series "more of an immediate experience."

"It can be tricky shooting timelapse in a place like NYC," Orr tells Mashable. "People are challenging, but in general they're kind, interested, and helpful. Or at least don't bother you - except for the guy who was concerned I was taking too many pictures of the Empire State Building."

Orr's path to timelapse photography was unexpected. He began as an ecologist, which led him to develop nature documentaries. During that time, he realized timelapse would be the perfect way to demonstrate how natural landscapes and plants change over time.

Read the passage above and watch the video.

Post a comment with your response to the passage & video

• What did you think about it?
• What stood out to you?
• Are videos like this interesting?
• Do you enjoy seeing these type of videos?

Remember to post your comment in full and complete sentences with proper spelling, grammar, and punctuation. Post as "Name/URL" using your first name and last initial

Enjoy!




Remember - Comment as "Name/URL" and use your first name and last initial (proper capitalization, no URL)- please respond in full and complete sentences - double check your work before posting your comment.

Grade 2 - History of Typography

2nd graders,
Since Mr. Casal is absent you will watch this video and then answer the questions below. After you have posted your comment you can open up Word and continue on your History document.

Remember, you will not be watching the video on your computer, only on the Smartboard. Mr. Waisome will play the video a few times as you read the questions and post your answers to the questions.





When we are typing we are entering our text using a particular font, or style of writing. But fonts aren't just fonts, they are "typography" or the art or technique of arranging type in order to make language visible.

Before computers there were typewriters and before that, handwriting. In order to make writing universally legible there needed to be typography.

Watch the video below and answer the questions as comments...

The History of Typography by Ben Barrett-Forrest from Dezeen on Vimeo.



The questions...

• What did you learn about typography?
• Do you remember any of the typography style names? Which was your favorite?
• What did you think about the style of video?
• Did you like the way the video looked and was animate?
• If you saw this video last year, have any of your thoughts or opinions on typography changed? Did something new stand out to you?

Answer these questions in full and complete sentences as a comment below...

Remember - Comment as "Name/URL" and use your first name and last initial (proper capitalization, no URL). Please respond in full and complete sentences. Double check your work before posting your comment.

When you are finished you can open Word and continue working on your History document. Remember:

• 5 sentences
• edit & revise
• Format
• title
• centered
• underlined
• different font
• different size
• essay
• different font (one font for whole essay)
• different size (one size for whole essay)
• 5 pictures related to your writing

Remember - Comment as "Name/URL" and use your first name and last initial (proper capitalization, no URL). Please respond in full and complete sentences. Double check your work before posting your comment.

5th Grade - February 2/2014 - The Science of the Winter Olympics

The Olympic Winter Games are currently happening. They started on February 7th and go until the closing ceremony on February 23rd.

Below are a few videos about how some Olympians compete in their sports...

(for more videos check out the website NBC Learn)

Choose one of the videos to watch. After you watch it, post a comment about what you learned. Is it a sport you might want to try? Does seeing the video make it easier to understand how the athletes compete? Has your idea of the Olympics and the athletes changed since watching the video?

These are a few questions to get you thinking. Pick a video, watch it, and post a comment on your thoughts related to what you saw, heard, and learned...

Downhill Science (Alpine skiing):

Air Lift (Ski Jump):

The science of Snowboarding:

Figure Out Figure Skating:

Watch one of the videos here, or feel free to go to the Science of the Olympic Winter Games website to check out some of the others. Make sure to post your thoughts about the video you watched when you are done.

Your questions:

• Is it a sport you might want to try? 

• Does seeing the video make it easier to understand how the athletes do the sport? 

• Has your idea of the Olympics and the athletes changed since watching the video?

• Any additional thoughts you would like to share?

Please respond in full and complete sentences, paragraph form. Double check your work before posting your comment. Once you post your comment, Mr. Casal will be notified and he will grade and approve your post. Your comment will not appear on the blog until Mr. Casal has read and approved it.

Have a great week off, watch the Olympics, and have fun!

Remember - Comment as "Name/URL" and use your first name and last initial (proper capitalization, no URL). Please respond in full and complete sentences. Double check your work before posting your comment.

4th Grade - February 2/2014 - New Winter Olympic events

The Olympic Winter Games are currently happening. They started on February 7th and go until the closing ceremony on February 23rd.

Below is a video describing the new events at these Olympic Games. These are events that have never before been Olympic events.


Watch the video and answer the questions below...

Your questions:

• What did you think about the video?

• Which of the new events looks most interesting to you? Why?

• Have you watched any of the Winter Olympics this year?

• Have you seen any of these new events? 

• Do you currently do any winter sports? Ice skating, skiing, hockey, etc?

Please respond in full and complete sentences, paragraph form. Double check your work before posting your comment. Once you post your comment, Mr. Casal will be notified and he will grade and approve your post. Your comment will not appear on the blog until Mr. Casal has read and approved it.

Have a great week off, watch the Olympics, and have fun!

Remember - Comment as "Name/URL" and use your first name and last initial (proper capitalization, no URL). Please respond in full and complete sentences. Double check your work before posting your comment.

3rd Grade - February 2/2014 - Which Olympic sport is for you?

The Olympic Winter Games are currently happening. They started on February 7th and go until the closing ceremony on February 23rd.

Below is a video of celebrities and athletes (not Winter Olympic athletes) answering the question: "In which Winter Olympic Sport would you want to compete?" 

Watch the video and answer the questions below:

Your questions:

• Have you watched any of the Winter Olympics this year?

• What Winter Olympic sport would you, as a 3rd grader, like to compete in?

• Do you currently do any winter sports? Ice skating, skiing, hockey, etc?

Please respond in full and complete sentences, paragraph form. Double check your work before posting your comment. Once you post your comment, Mr. Casal will be notified and he will grade and approve your post. Your comment will not appear on the blog until Mr. Casal has read and approved it.

Have a great week off, watch the Olympics, and have fun!

Remember - Comment as "Name/URL" and use your first name and last initial (proper capitalization, no URL). Please respond in full and complete sentences. Double check your work before posting your comment.

We tweet @P10Brooklyn. A lot

Tweeting @PS10Brooklyn has become a core component of many classrooms. It has been great to see teachers, students, and parents alike embrace the power of Twitter as a communication, collaboration, and connection tool.

For example, @MsKertesz in the 4th grade has used Twitter to connect with a class in Liverpool, England. They do weekly Skype sessions and our 4th graders have developed a great working partnership with their English counterparts. Without Twitter these two classes, separated by an ocean, would never have connected.

Twitter has also gotten PS10 recognition outside of New York City...



One of the largest educational technology conferences, FETC, is an annual event drawing thousands of educators from all over the world to Orlando, Florida, to share and learn together. PS 10 was invited to present our use of social media, Twitter in particular, to the attendees at the conference. Here is the slideshow from that presentation:

This is the webpage created to support PS10's appearance at FETC

What do we tweet?

@PS10Brooklyn tweets out news and information related to school, but also retweets a lot of the great work teachers are tweeting from their classrooms.

At it's core, Twitter @PS10Brooklyn allows the community as a whole a real-time glimpse into the classroom learning environments. It also allows us to share the great work and successes of our students in a global, meaningful, and authentic way.

Social media is here to stay. Twitter is growing platform. Here @PS10Brooklyn we want to be at the forefront of technology and teach our students proper digital etiquette. The best way to do this is to model appropriate and positive use of digital tools. Tweeting with PS 10 is the best way to model the powerful good social media, and Twitter, can bring to the instructional environment.

Check out all the teachers who tweet:

https://twitter.com/PS10Brooklyn/lists/staff

Not on Twitter? No worries! Follow our hashtags here:

tagboard.com/ps10bk - general school tweets
tagboard.com/ps10sw - student work specific tweets
tagboard.com/ps10st - student written tweets



Feel free to email, or tweet @PS10Tech with any questions.

Thanks!

Class 5-404 blogs...

Class 5-404 blogs...

These blogs were originally created in the computer lab under the direction of Mr. Casal using their PS 10 Google Apps for Education accounts. Since their initial creation the students have taken 100% control of the direction and content that appears on their blogs (while meeting the guidelines of the PS 10 acceptable use policy)

These blogs were started in 2012 when the students were in the 4th grade. It was the first foray of any class into the world of student-driven blogging. Prior to this students comment on teacher-written posts. This was an opportunity to give students control of their digital publishing.
(roughly 10 students are new to the class this year, so their blogs are not as robust and populate yet)

Some posts are on specific topics with specific guidelines set forth by Mr. Casal. Some posts are entirely independent free writes, completely inspired by the students alone. The layout and design of the blogs is similarly guided, some layout elements are required, but for the most part the students are free to design as they see fit.

When they leave PS 10 if they would like to keep their blogs they will be able to change ownership to a personal Google account.

These blogs are intended to be student directed & controlled creative outlets to showcase their talents...




Ajax: http://newyorkknicksajax.blogspot.com/
Amelia: http://splapaint.blogspot.com/
Brisa: http://brisafkane.blogspot.com/
Caleb: http://calebkoolstuff.blogspot.com/
Carter: http://carterkportfolio.blogspot.com/
CC: http://crazyccwarriors.blogspot.com/
Elsa: http://bornothology.blogspot.com/
George: http://george-minecraft.blogspot.com/
Hershel: http://dibikg.blogspot.com/
Ian: http://iansgportfolio.blogspot.com/
Justice: http://justicecportfolio.blogspot.com/
Kai: http://kaisportfolio.blogspot.com/
Leandro: http://lg123soccer.blogspot.com/
Lauren: http://msmythology.blogspot.com/
Maddie: http://more-maddie.blogspot.com/
Marvin: http://marvinhportfolio.blogspot.com/
Max: http://veyronmine.blogspot.com/
Nora: http://norakhportfolio.blogspot.com/
Michelangelo: http://mikedoodlesies.blogspot.com/
Nyklos: http://wilsonbasketball.blogspot.com/
Owen C: http://oacthinks.blogspot.com/
Owen T: http://taberthoughts.blogspot.com/
Rajesh: http://rajeshsreptiles.blogspot.com/
Taylor: http://taylorjsportfolio.blogspot.com/
Tim: http://nbatimothy.blogspot.com/
Tristyn: http://insanityblogyea.blogspot.com/
Unni: http://greekmyth-unni.blogspot.com/
Waheeb: http://waheebpportfolio.blogspot.com/



And just becuase I think it's great to see:
http://tomerronen.blogspot.com/
Tomer is a former student and was a member of the class when we started the blogs. His family moved out of state but he has maintained his blog. It's great to see him keeping up even though he's no longer at PS 10!

Grade 5 - People of New York

Grade 5,

I am out of school at an educational technology conference. I am being a student, learning from other teachers new tools, ideas, and how I can be a better computer teacher. Learning never stops, even if you're a teacher.

You will watch the video below and answer a few questions...

For anyone that has difficulty commenting you can read this post and watch the video and if you still have questions, this post might be helpful too....

People of New York Part II from Rustad Media on Vimeo.

Your questions...

• The video was mostly shot in Times Square. Time Square is often called the "crossroads of the world." Why do you think that is?
• What was one thing that stood out to you?
• What does it feel like to watch people as they go about their day? 
• When the time-lapse portions started, many of those shots were not in Manhattan. Do you know where they were? Did you recognize any of the locations?
• What does watching a video like this make you think about New York?
• Does this video give you any ideas as to why people might love coming here, or living here?

Answer these questions in full and complete detailed sentences (at least one full paragraph) as a comment below...

Remember - Comment as "Name/URL" and use your first name and last initial (proper capitalization, no URL)- please respond in full and complete sentences - double check your work before posting your comment.

Grade 4 - Time Lapse: Earth

4th graders,

I am out of school at an educational technology conference. I am being a student, learning from other teachers new tools, ideas, and how I can be a better computer teacher. Learning never stops, even if you're a teacher.

You will watch the video below and answer a few questions...

For anyone that has difficulty commenting you can read this post and watch the video and if you still have questions, this post might be helpful too....

Time-Lapse | Earth from Bruce W. Berry Jr on Vimeo.


Your questions...

• What did you see, in your own words?
• What was one thing that stood out to you?
• Did you recognize any parts of the Earth, any continents or countries?
• When the night-time images came on, what did it make you think about?
• Did seeing the Earth from above during both day and night change your thinking about the world we live in?

Answer these questions in full and complete detailed sentences (at least one full paragraph) as a comment below...

Remember - Comment as "Name/URL" and use your first name and last initial (proper capitalization, no URL)- please respond in full and complete sentences - double check your work before posting your comment.

Grade 3 - History of Typography

3rd Graders,
I am out of school at an educational technology conference. I am being a student, learning from other teachers about new tools, ideas, and how I can be a better computer teacher. Learning never stops, even if you're a teacher.

When we are typing we are entering our text using a particular font, or style of writing. But fonts aren't just fonts, they are "typography" or the art or technique of arranging type in order to make language visible.

Before computers there were typewriters and before that, handwriting. In order to make writing universally legible there needed to be typography.

Watch the video below and answer the questions as comments...

I know some of you saw this video last year, but not everyone has. Even if you did see it, you are now a year older and may have a different perspective or opinion about it. Regardless of whether you've seen it or not, all 3rd grades will complete this assignment

The History of Typography by Ben Barrett-Forrest from Dezeen on Vimeo.



The questions...

• What did you learn about typography?
• Do you remember any of the typography style names? Which was your favorite?
• What did you think about the style of video?
• Did you like the way the video looked and was animate?
• If you saw this video last year, have any of your thoughts or opinions on typography changed? Did something new stand out to you?

Answer these questions in full and complete sentences as a comment below...

Remember - Comment as "Name/URL" and use your first name and last initial (proper capitalization, no URL)- please respond in full and complete sentences - double check your work before posting your comment.

Grade 2 - New Year's Eve in 2 Minutes

2nd graders,

I am out of school at an educational technology conference. I am being a student, learning from other teachers about new tools, ideas, and how I can be a better computer teacher. Learning never stops, even if you're a teacher.

Today you will watch a short video and then comment on it.

For anyone that has difficulty commenting you can read this post and watch the video and if you still have questions, this post might be helpful too....

NYE Times Square from The Timelapse Group on Vimeo.

Your questions:

• What did you do this past New Year's Eve?
• What did you think about the video?

Please answer the questions in full and complete sentences.

I hope you enjoy the video!


Remember - Comment as "Name/URL" and use your first name and last initial (proper capitalization, no URL)- please respond in full and complete sentences - double check your work before posting your comment.

Class 3-311 blogs

Class 3-311 blogs...

These blogs have been created in the computer lab under the direction of Mr. Casal.

The purpose of these blogs is to lay the foundation of a living portfolio, a place where students can post their work and publishing their writing, ongoing, during their time here at PS 10. The hope is as the begin the middle school application process in two years they will be able to show their blogs as timelines of their life as students, examples of the writing, and authentic demonstrations of their growth as students and people over the years.

Some posts are on specific topics with specific guidelines set forth by Mr. Casal. Some posts are entirely independent free writes, completely inspired by the students alone. The layout and design of the blogs is similarly guided, some layout elements are required, but for the most part the students are free to design as they see fit.

These blogs are intended to be student directed & controlled creative outlets to showcase their talents...



Ally: http://allyarportfolio.blogspot.com/
Kate A: http://kateaportfolio.blogspot.com/
Isis: http://isiscportfolio.blogspot.com/
Sophia: http://sophiaeportfolio.blogspot.com/
Phineas: http://phineasfportfolio.blogspot.com/
Helen: http://helenfportfolio.blogspot.com/
Bella: http://bellafportfolio.blogspot.com/
Mada: http://madagportfolio.blogspot.com/
Olivia: http://oliviagportfolio.blogspot.com/
Lena: http://lenagportfolio.blogspot.com/
Haley: http://haleyhportfolio.blogspot.com/
Jacob: http://jacobhbportfolio.blogspot.com/
Gus: http://gushportfolio.blogspot.com/
Ella: http://ellajportfolio.blogspot.com/
Nick: http://nickkportfolio.blogspot.com/
Brian: http://brianksportfort.blogspot.com/
Katie M: http://kateemportfolio.blogspot.com/
Camilo: http://camilomporfolio.blogspot.com/
Zenichi: http://zenmportfolio.blogspot.com/
Eshaan: http://eshaannportfolio.blogspot.com/
Knox: http://knoxoportfolio.blogspot.com/
Casey: http://caseypportfolio.blogspot.com/
Sequoia: http://sequoiarportfoloi.blogspot.com/
Banjo: http://banjosportfolio.blogspot.com/
Milo: http://milosportfolio.blogspot.com/
Naomi: http://naomifsportfolio.blogspot.com/
Josie: http://josiesportfolio.blogspot.com/
Gabriel: http://gabrieltportfolio.blogspot.com/
Katherine T: http://katherinetportfolio.blogspot.com/
Jaila: http://jailatportfolio.blogspot.com/
Theo: http://theoyportfolio.blogspot.com/

Perspective is an intersting thing

This post is not an assignment, just something I found I thought folks might find interesting.

In life we tend to get use to seeing things a certain way. We expect things we see to look & act the same, the way we're use too, all the time. Sometimes, however, it is possible to look at things differently. Looking at things differently, from different angles or with a different mindset, is called perspective.

I found this great video that I think demonstrates the importance of perspective....



When you look at a picture or even a statue, the head stays still. But sometimes, it's possible for a picture or statue to follow you are you walk around it...

Move videos on the Brusspup YouTube Channel

That, is perspective.

Yes, the video refers to it as an illusion, and it is an illusion. An illusion is something that tricks your mind into seeing something other than what is truly there.

But I think it's also a great way to demonstrate the importance of looking at things differently.

Sometimes what we see isn't always what we expect. And sometimes the unexpected is easier to explain than we think. An open mind is the key.

Enjoy the video, and always keep perspective...


------------------------------------------------------->

An explanation from the creator of the video:

This is based on the famous dragon illusion which was inspired by Jerry Andrus. I've always wanted to try this illusion with several of these at once. I wanted to use 20 or 30 but after I tried a test with only 12, I realized 20 or 30 was going to be too many. So another thing I've always wanted to try was to have a large version. The original file was about 9 feet X 9 feet. I had to split the image into 4 files so the printer as my local print shop could print it. I traced all of the pieces on cardboard which I used to build a support structure for the prints. I used small pieces of cardboard and hot glue to make the structure really solid. One problem that I had was that the paper for the large dragon was really shiny. So if you look closely you can see the reflection of the eyes on the "top" and side panels. I bought some matte spray to try and minimize the reflections. It worked a little. Over all I was happy with the results.
The t-rex design is an original design used with the Gathering for Garder 3D dragon template. The original 3D template design (dragon) was inspired by the work of Jerry Andrus to celebrate Gathering for Gardner 3. http://www.thinkfun.com

Links to print out your own T-Rex:

• GreenT-Rex image
• http://i.imgur.com/vBDV8o5.jpg
• Red T-rex
• http://i.imgur.com/80DDCYy.jpg
• Blue T-rex
• http://i.imgur.com/Z8lZnoK.jpg