Tapped In Newsletter: November 2005

...On the Tapis
November 2005
Issue 96

In This Issue

[1] WiAOC 2005: Webheads in Action Online Convergence
[2] Tapped In Technology Tips
[3] News Nuggets
[4] Tips and Comments from the Experts
[5] About ...On the Tapis

Quote of the Month - "The only real mistake is the one from which we learn nothing." - John Powell

[1] WiAOC 2005: Webheads in Action Online Convergence

The Webheads will present Bridges Across Cyberspace November 18-20. For abstracts and more info, see the schedule. Online help during the convergence will be located in TI Reception. For back channel discussion social networking will take place in the A WiA Convergence room in Tapped In.

[2] Tapped In Technology Tip

Using Text Commands
A member recently asked helpdesk where the "follow" command had gone that was used in the old version of Tapped In. A helpdesk volunteer explained the commands that are available for those who prefer using text commands in the new version. One way to join a person who is in another room in Tapped In is to type "/join usernameofperson." Notice that there is a "/" before the word join. The "/" is important it tells the computer that you are not typing something to say but something to do.

Another example is the "emote" command. To emote an action, start your text line with a colon followed by an action. If you type ":waves" everyone will see "yourusername waves." The colon tells the computer that you are not saying something but that you are doing an action. Actions are virtual body language. Use them to greet people, to let people know you understand what is being said during a conversation, or to let people know you are listening to what is being said.

The ability to change the appearance of the text helps to keep the chat dialogue interesting. You can use the "think" command to show thought bubbles surrounding your comments. When you type "/th I am a deep thinker!" everyone will see "yourusername . o O (I am a deep thinker!)" As with the join command, the "/" let's the computer know you are doing something, not saying something.

For a list of all the text commands, log in to Tapped In and go to the Actions pull down menu in the top right corner of the chat window. Highlight TEXT COMMAND HELP and all text commands will be entered into your chat window. If you want to capture the list, use the Actions SEND TO PASTEBOARD, highlight the list on the pasteboard and paste to a word document (the list will not appear in your transcript).

[3] News Nuggets

The creators of SpellBEE.org and have launched http://www.MoneyBEE.org and http://www.PatternBEE.org. MoneyBEE is a pre-algebra two-player game, where students create and solve coin problems for each other with a simple graphic user interface. PatternBEE uses a rare, non-symmetric, variant of Tangrams, allowing two students to create geometric patterns for each other to solve using some or all of the colorful pieces. Rather than a simple electronic manipulative, each goal engages creativity, spatial reasoning, and geometric constraint problem solving. And they are a lot of fun as well!

Both websites, like Spellbee.org, are free and are part of a scientific study of a new kind of interaction discovered at the Brandeis University DEMO lab. This interaction is neither competitive nor cooperative, but encourages students to assess each other and present problems of appropriate difficulty, enhancing both motivation and opportunity to learn.

Jordan Pollack presented SPELLbee, MONEYbee and PATTERNbee during a Tapped In ASO on November 8. The transcript of the discussion is archived at http://tappedin.org/transcripts.
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Thanks to Tapped In member Neva Moga for sending in this article. Milwaukee Public Schools' Professional Support Portal Project (PSP) was featured in the Fall 2005 EDTECH magazine. Photographs can be seen of Stephanie Wild, cadre leader from Burbank Elementary, Karin Hansen, cadre leader from Manitoba Elementary, and Elise Riepenhoff, former PSP project manager. The article features quotes from the above MPS people and some from Nancy Ulrich, cadre mentor from Gaenslen Elementary too. To view the magazine, go to http://www.edtechmag.com. The article is located in the "Teacher to Teacher" section. Free registration is required for viewing.
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The Community Review System (CRS), a part of the Digital Library for Earth System Education (DLESE), is offering an Individualized Instructor's Report Service to secondary and post-secondary educators. Both Earth and Environmental Science Instructors and Educators of pre and in-service science teachers are invited to use DLESE resources with their students, write reviews of those resources, and have students write reviews of those same resources. The CRS will aggregate the educator and student responses and provide the educator with a written report that can be used to the educator's advantage. To see further details and to register, see http://crs.dlese.org/iir/Invitation_G.pdf.
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Tapped In member Carol Capps did a survey on the Prevalence and Purposes of Incidental Music in the Universal K-12 Classroom. Abstract: Music is an underused tool in the K-12 Classroom. Research shows that music has a strong effect on emotions as well as learning. This survey will show how music is currently being designed into K-12 curricula to influence behavior as well as learning. Levels of teacher education in music will also be compared to incidence of classroom music use. If you would like more info about the results, contact Carol at especiallykids@yahoo.com
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Tapped In member Lesley Farmer's newest book, Librarians, Literacy, and the Promotion of Gender Equity, published by McFarland, has arrived!
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The November issue of Leading & Learning with Technology contains articles written by or featuring Tapped In members Glen Bull, Rachel Kleinberg, and Valerie Crawford.
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Do you have a News Nugget about yourself or another member of the Tapped In Community? Send your News Nugget to BJ Berquist at bjb@tappedin.org.

[4] Tips and Comments from the Experts

On the creation of Hurricane Central Help Center: I think this is a great thing you are doing. I am a Katrina victim who found a new job through a network of art teachers. Perhaps this new community could do the same for others. I would love to be a part of this Tapped In Community. ~ Grace Hall
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I took a look around this [K-20 Math Resources group room] site. I think it is a great resource for teachers and that more people will participate in the upcoming time period. I am going to recommend it to the teachers I talk to in my role as a math specialist. ~ Renee Hill
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I think this [K-20 Math Resources group room] is a great site too. I think it can help me find creative ways to scaffold math concepts for my student population. ~ Sharon Passley
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Tapped In member Diane Chen mentioned during a visit to Reception that Tapped In was being mentioned on several blogs. If you catch a comment on a blog, please send the information to BJ Berquist and she'll share it in future newsletters.

[5] About ...On the Tapis

Past issues of ...On the Tapis newsletters are available online.

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