The presentation at SF WordCamp 2011 that had me closest to tears was this one. John Kleinschmidt spoke about CURE International. Zack Berke shared his work with UNICEF in Uganda. See the slides and be inspired.
43,000 Free Learning Resources at Your Fingertips
What WordPress is to the web, curriki.org may become to education (for at least K-12 that is). Scott McNealy, co-founder of Sun Microsystems, was the keynote speaker at ShiftED, a conference held to inspire and inform educators on how to embrace 21st Century technology to transform teaching.
“Education is not a right in this country. A right is something you give to everybody without taking from anybody. Healthcare is not a right in this country either,” said McNealy.
Citing sad statistics on the performance of 4th graders in U.S. schools, “What we have is not an Achievement Gap, we have an Achievement Grand Canyon!”
To address his concerns for the state of education and in alignment with his belief in open source, McNealy founded curriki.org. There you’ll find free learning resources including lesson plans, interactive materials, games, and other learning aids to enliven today’s classroom where students are more likely to be using digital media not yet available at the school they’re attending.
Feeling Stuck? How to Overcome Inertia in 60 Seconds
Cameraless Photo by Mary Gow
Do you find the week gone by and your “to do” list is longer than when the week began? Or have you given up on the list?
No need to feel ashamed. Sometimes inertia sets in and it could be that sunshine motivates you and there isn’t any! (as I write from foggy San Francisco).
Getting unstuck could take less than 60 seconds! One of the beliefs of feng shui, the art of placement, is that if you move 27 things you change your life.
Well 27 sounds a bit overwhelming, doesn’t it? Why not take a baby step? Move one thing. A lamp, a coffee table, a bookcase, the TV.
In under 60 seconds I moved one small bookcase (I put pads on the bottom so I could slide it) and the results have been astounding! My living room has it’s mojo back! The positive vibe I get from this one change is delicious. So what’s one thing you could move?
So next time you feel challenged, try moving a table, a chair, the lamp. One big or little thing. See how it feels. One thing.
Introducing the Lumbrella!
Lumbrella!
Introducing the Lumbrella! The Lumbrella is a Rolf van Widenfelt creation. The parts come in a kit that may be assembled on your own or in a class taught by van Widenfelt. Unless you already have a soldering setup you may want to take the class. You’ll learn how to solder LED lights to a cord and add on a control switch with an on/off button. The soft light look is achieved with ping pong balls. The lights are then attached to your umbrella of choice. You’re bound to get noticed on a rainy day! Want to find out more about how to make your own Lumbrella?