E-mporium

The Midwest Brain and Learning Institute conference Technology & the New Brian  is June 23- 26, 2008.  The conference will be held at the Haworth Inn and Conference Center, Holland, Michigan.

This year’s Institute will help participants increase their professional knowledge about how the brain learns, current realities of learner differences and effective uses of technology to enhance instruction.  The goal is for participants to come away from the Institute with a renewed energy for seeing these changes in learners as possibilities rather than problems.  They will recognize the need for flexible materials and methods that will lead to student success in meeting demanding standards. 

Technology & the New Brain flyer

Eighth Annual Midwest Brain and Learning Institute - Technology and the New Brain

The Gale/Library Media Connection TEAMS award recognizes and encourages the critical collaboration between the teacher and media specialist to promote learning and increase student achievement. 

 All K-12 public and private schools in the United States and Canada are eligible to enter.  Three winners will receive a $2,500 cash award; Gale products (approximate value $500); a one-year subscription to Library Media Connections; and Educator’s Professional Bookshelf (approximate value $500) from Linworth Publishing.

Click here for more information.

Time is running out to turn 200 words into over $23,000 worth of prizes.  The contest ends April 18, 2008, so on your mark, get set, WRITE!

You still have a chance to win a Lenovo 21st Century Classroom powered by Intel(R) Centrino(R) processor technology and once-in-a-lifetime visit from an Olympic athlete and Olympic torch.

To enter the Racing Toward Innovation Contest, just write a short essay telling Lenovo what you think is the most significant technological innovation of the last 25 years.  

Also, Lenovo offers free “Olympians in Life” lesson plans.  Use a global event to prepare your students for a globalized world.  Your students will compete in a technology-filled, worldwide work place.  To get them ready, Lenovo has sponsored lesson plans available from the U.S. Olympic Committee.

Click here to enter, for complete contest rules and regulations, and for lesson plans.

“MI-LIFE has been the most beneficial professional development that I have been involved in during my 16 years in the educational world.”  Byran Girbach, Assistant Superintendent, Milan Area Schools.

Over 250 Michigan school leaders from public, non-public and charter schools have already confronted the changes of 21st century leadership through the MI-LIFE program.  At the heart of their learning are activities and knowledge sharing through discussion centered around the research on effective leadership skills that will ultimately improve student achievement.  In addition they are learning to collaborate with their peers using wikis and online discussion boards, developing online discussion boards, developing online surveys to assess their leadership skills, and creating online concept maps to organize their thinking.

The 2nd cohort of the MI-LIFE Program will begin in September 2008 and continue through August 2009.  Ingham ISD will be one of eight host locations around the state.  For complete information about the curriculum, courses, and schedule and to access the online application, visit the MI-LIFE website at www.mi-life.org.

Learn how to use the various sections of LearnPort via one hour Web-delivered presentations on key topics in Michigan LearnPort.  They will be delivered through Adobe Connect Professional and archived in Michigan LearnPort.  Presentations are on Tuesdays from 4:15 p.m. to 5:15 p.m.

Michigan LearnPort Web Training Schedule Revised

Picturing America is a free resource that can be readily used in every classroom and public library in the country.  The National Endowment for the Humanities’ (NEH) new Picturing America initiative provides an innovative way for citizens off all ages to explore the history and character of America through some of our nation’s greatest works of art. 

 Images of people, places, and events illustrating American history give citizens everywhere a chance to better understand our country’s past and its ideals.  From the courage and leadership portrayed in Emanuel Leutze’s Washington Crossing the Delaware to the power of American democracy illustrated in Norman Rockwell’s Freedom of Speech, these works of art represent enduring American ideals.  These masterpieces open the viewer’s eyes to America’s rich history and culture, while also providing an introduction to the broader world of the humanities.

Picturing America is available to all eligible public, private, parochial, and charter and home school consortia (K-12), as well as public libraries in the United States and its territories.  These organizations will receive a set of 40 high-quality reproductions (approximately 24″x36″) of great American art and a teachers resource book.

Detailed instructions for submitting an application may be found on the Picturing America Web site, http://picturingamerica.neh.gov/ .  The online application will be accepted through April 15.

MACUL Leadership has been asked to help a non-profit organization find interested schools that would like to be part of a Second Life pilot.  The grant would fund a very creative and educational project in the Second Life environment.

 All costs would be paid by the non-profit organization.  Technical requirement specifications for Second Life are posted at: http://secondlife.com/corporate/sysreqs.php

If you have an interested teacher who would like to be considered for the Second Life pilot, please contact Ric Wiltse at MACUL (rwiltse@macul.org)

Information needed – teacher’s name, school, email address; grade level of class(es) involved; does school qualify for free lunch or USF funding; and any other pertinent information that would make this pilot successful.

The Mt. Vernon Ladies Association is working to promote George Washington by placing his picture back in schools across the country.  The portrait known as a “porthole portrait” is free and will be sent to schools who order it.  As George Washington’s birthday approaches, historians have grown concerned that today’s children have limited factual knowledge of George Washington and his presidency.  By placing a portrait of George Washington in the schools, historians hope to raise interest regarding our first president, his life and his presidency.

To request a portrait for your school, please have your principal send a letter on the school’s letterhead to the address listed below.  Your letter should include a description of the place you plan to hang the portrait and the school’s street address for UPS deliveries.  If requesting a poster for George Washington’s Birthday, please have your letters in by February 8, 2008.

To order send to:

Ann Bay

Associate Director for Education

P.O. Box 110

Mount Vernon, VA  22121

For more information visit http://mountvernon.org

The Michigan Leadership Council is excited to announce the details of the upcoming Discovery Educator Network (DEN) Virtual Conference.  The host site is in West Bloomfield at Doherty Elementary School.  The conference will be held February 2, 2008 from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.   Additional information and registration is with the link below.  The event is free and space is limited.

If you are interested in assisting with or facilitating a breakout session, please contact Cindy Carson (carson@westbloomfield.k12.mi.us). 

MI-DEN Virtual Conference registration.

Additional information - Michigan Blog on the DEN site.

The first Joint Education Conference will be held June 25 at Holt High School, and is a one day event sponsored by MACUL, the Michigan Association of Middle School Educators (MAMSE),  the Council for Social Studies (MCSS), Michigan Council for the Teachers of Mathematics (MCTM) and the Michigan Science Teachers Association(MSTA). 

The conference is also presented in cooperation with the Michigan Business Education Association, the Michigan Mathematics and Science Centers Network, and the Michigan Department of Education.

The theme of the conference is Making Integrated Education Work for Everyone:  Bringing It All Together

A Call for Speakers form to present  at the conference is available at mijec.org and proposals are due January 15.

One complimentary registration will be given to the lead presenter who is a current member of one of the following associations:  MACUL, MAMSE, MCSS, MCTM or MSTA.  Additional presenters will be given a discount rate of $20.00 each. 

For more information, visit mijec.org.