Hi Everyone, We’ve booked 2 sessions on the Staff Development calendar for ANYONE who is working at a Fast ForWord site (including satellite sites). If you came to the Introductory session in October, please consider attending Part 2. Part 1 (Wed. November 16th; 12:30-3:00) will focus on the following: brief introduction to neuroscience and implications to…
Fireside Conversations on Interventions (webinar)
Sometimes you just need a place to voice those questions, comments or situations that don’t appear to have any answers. I’m reminded that having ‘partners in learning’ help to enrich and see things in different ways. With all the busy-ness of school, it’s difficult to get away. Enter ‘technology’… The webinar approach was a good…
The Next Steps… Reading Series Bridges Literacy
It’s here! For those of you with students who completed Fast ForWord or with students who may fit into that RTI (tier 2 or 3) group, this may be the connection you’ve been seeking. I’ll be hosting an online webinar to share details of the Reading Series and Fluency Program, who would best fit, as…
Take Your 3-Ring Binder Online or Bookmarking Gone Extreme!
This is a “have your cake and eat it” situation. Last time I shared bookmarking through the use of Symbaloo (a great tool that lays websites out in visual tiles). Today it’s LiveBinders. This tool organizes your resources and presents your content in a binder format. (They even look like little binders.) Tabs provide the organizational structure so that you…
Lang v2 – New Interventions
New intervention tips are uploaded under the Elementary Intervention page for Language v2 (Ele-bot, Space Commander, Whalien Match). Some of these can be done in a “prevention phase” rather than intervening afterwards.
Launching Reading Levels Series
We’re thrilled to be able to provide Reading Series to every Fast ForWord site. Last year, three of our sites piloted this series with some students who completed Fast ForWord processing exercises. The positive responses from both students and teachers have moved us forward in this opportunity. Reading Levels takes the same approach as Fast ForWord…
Visual Bookmarks
Bookmarking is probably the one of the most useful methods for gathering and storing a huge range of information. Of course, the key is retrieving that content when needed. More importantly in a classroom, you know your bookmarks have been vetted – a starting point for research and deep questions. I’ve been playing with multiple…
And Away We Go …
So much happens in the Fall term: anticipation and plans for the year, crackle of leaves, weather gets a bit more blustery and there’s a definite “autumn feel”. We had a fabulous 2 days of Learning – Intro to Fast ForWord last week. I was thrilled to be part of the journey as we…
A New Look for 2011-2012
You might have already taken a peek at your Fast ForWord stations and discovered a new look to the Gateway icon and program. All sites have been upgraded to version 5, which offers not only a sleeker view but some differences in the way the program launches. Click here for instructions about launching the new Demo….
Happy New School Year
Welcome back to another year of fabulous discoveries, happenings and journeys. My summer was packed as usual with family things and events, connecting with old friends and making new friends in new places. Oh and lots of food, great food! We grew at the end of June! We’re very excited that Stoney Creek has joined our…
Virtual Webinar – Brain Connections
Just in case you missed the last offering, here’s another chance to dive into free webinars with Sherelle Walker and Martha Burns. Sherrelle Walker Dates: June 10, 2011 and June 17, 2011 Time: 8am PT (30 minute session) During this information-packed half-hour, Ms. Walker will discuss concrete, useful strategies for integrating Brain Fitness into district…
Assessments – Yearend
In our ongoing efforts to chronicle our journey, please complete the Yearend Assessment Data sheet and return by Thurs. May 26th 2011. I have also produced the form online (click here) if you would prefer that format. Student/teacher/parent surveys are optional, however, consider collecting those wonderful stories. The surveys can be found online:
Visual Supports
For those of you on the constant search for visual supports for your students, here are a couple of good sites. ConnectABILITY allows you to create your visual supports via multiple ways. It pulls from Boardmaker images or include your own images. Here’s an opportunity for you to bring out the photographer in you! The…
Cleaning up student data (move, change, delete)
Hi Everyone, For those of you on version 5, needing process for changing, moving, deleting student data (clean up) see HOW TOs – Student Data.
Magic in a Flashdrive – MyStudyBar
The updated version 3 of MyStudyBar from the Regional Support Centre – Scotland, is out for those of you looking for more options for students with difficulties in reading, writing and organizational skills. While this is not nearly as robust as Kurzweil 3000, it certainly has tools that can be easily utilized and is FREE,…