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Saturday, December 29, 2012

Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… 12-29-12 …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EF



Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL

LARRY FERLAZZO’S WEBSITES OF THE DAY

Helping Students Motivate Themselves: Practical Answers To Classroom Problems.


Study Shows Head Start Supports Parent Engagement

Larry Ferlazzo at Engaging Parents In School... - 1 week ago
Two new studies were just released examining Head Start. They were mixed in some areas, but positive about its effect on parent engagement. Here’s an excerpt from a summary: One of the studies, by the nonprofit Mathematica Policy Research, found that parents of children enrolled in Head Start became more engaged in teaching their children [...]

“Spreading the Word: How One Teacher Talks Policy With Parents”

Larry Ferlazzo at Engaging Parents In School... - 1 week ago
Spreading the Word: How One Teacher Talks Policy With Parents is an interesting post by Lindsey Durant at the TransformED blog. She shares an email she sent-out to parents about education policy issues and the responses she received….

New Issue Of “School Community Journal” Out

Larry Ferlazzo at Engaging Parents In School... - 1 week ago
The latest free issue of School Community Journal has just been published. Some of the articles seem pretty esoteric to me, but there are also some that look intriguing…

Role of Parents & Teachers in Keeping Students Safe – This Wk’s #PTchat

Larry Ferlazzo at Engaging Parents In School... - 1 week ago
Guest post by Joe Mazza With the horrific events of last Friday, the conversation is how vulnerable our own schools are if an intruder would enter our own respective settings. During this week’s parent-teacher chat, we’ll share policies and protocol in place, as well as where parents and teachers feel President Obama should focus his [...]

Talking To Children About Violence

Larry Ferlazzo at Engaging Parents In School... - 1 week ago
I’ve posted an extensive collection at The Best Resources On Talking With Children About Tragedies at my other blog. There might be some materials there that are worth sharing with parents.

Video: ” The Power of Belief – Mindset and Success”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 8 hours ago
Eduardo Briceño is the Co-Founder, with Dr. Carol Dweck, of Mindset Works: I’m adding it to The Best Resources On Helping Our Students Develop A “Growth Mindset.”

More New Year’s Resources

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 15 hours ago
Here are the newest additions to The Best Sites For Learning About New Year Celebrations: 10 global New Year’s eats is from CNN. New Year’s Facts by the Numbers Infographic is a very impressive graphic from The History Channel.

“DREAMers, MOOCs, and Charter Schools: The Coming Year in Education”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 20 hours ago
There have been lots of “year in review” features, including my The best — and worst — education news of 2012. But what’s going to happen in 2013? DREAMers, MOOCs, and Charter Schools: The Coming Year in Education is a … Continue reading →

Lots Of Popular Article Lists From Education Week

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 20 hours ago
Education Week has begun publishing lots of “most popular articles of the year” list. In addition to The 10 Most Popular ‘Classroom Q & A Posts’ of 2012 from my blog there, you can see The 10 Most-Viewed EdWeek Stories … Continue reading →

How Can This Get Incorporated In Value-Added Measurements?

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 23 hours ago
NPR’s Story Corps shared a moving story today called Decades Later, Student Finds Teacher To Say ‘Thank You’. In it, a student from 1958 tells how he tracked down a teacher (also part of the broadcast) who changed his life. … Continue reading →

All My “Best Of 2012″ Lists In One Place!

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 23 hours ago
I’ve posted many “Best of 2012″ year-end lists, and I thought readers might find it useful for me to put them all together. You might also be interested in: All My “Best Of 2011″ Lists In One Place I apparently … Continue reading →

Two Nice Geography Sites

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
Here are the newest additions to The Best Geography Sites For Beginning & Intermediate English Language Learners: Reach The World Geo Games are similar to many puzzle maps online. The difference, however, is that here you place the countries on … Continue reading →

Video: “The Face of Creation” – Higgs remix

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
Here’s a new video from Melody Sheep. I’m adding it to The Best Resources For Learning About Higgs Boson, The “God Particle”:

Must-See Video: “Landfill Harmonic”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
Cateura, Paraguay is a town essentially built on top of a landfill. Garbage collectors browse the trash for sellable goods, and children are often at risk of getting involved with drugs and gangs. When orchestra director Szaran and music teacher … Continue reading →

“My Most Popular Parent Engagement Posts Of The Year — 2012″

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
I’ve just put together a list at my other blog titled My Most Popular Parent Engagement Posts Of The Year — 2012. You might want to take a look….

All My Math-Related “The Best…” Lists In One Place

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
The question next week at my Education Week Teacher blog will be related to math instruction. Because of that upcoming question, I thought it would be useful to bring together the few “The Best…” lists that I have about math … Continue reading →

The Best Posts On Student Cellphone Use In Class — Please Contribute More

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
I’m not a big fan of student cellphone use in class, and my posts about them have reflected that perspective. However, I like to think I have a relatively open mind about many things. So, though I’m starting off this … Continue reading →

Study: ” 94 percent of high school students accessed social media on their phones during class”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
A study has just been studied finding that 94 percent of high school students accessed social media on their phones during class. It only covers Israeli students, but I wouldn’t be surprised if a similar percentage works for other countries, … Continue reading →

“Photo Cat” Is A New Editing Tool For…Photos

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
Much to my surprise, The Best Sites For Online Photo-Editing & Photo Effects list continues to be one of the most popular posts I’ve published. Thanks to the Book Chook, I’ve learned about another tool to add to the list … Continue reading →

“The Hundred Best Lists of All Time” Is A Wonderful….List

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
The Hundred Best Lists of All Time is a great list from The New Yorker that also includes links to all of them. It can be serious and funny. Here are their top five: 5. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual … Continue reading →

Video: Let Jim Henson Show You How To Make A Puppet

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
Open Culture just discovered a very old, and great, video of Jim Henson demonstrating how you can make a puppet out of ordinary household supplies: I’m adding it to The Best Resources For Using Puppets In Class.

“The 10 Most Popular ‘Classroom Q & A Posts’ of 2012″

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
I’ve just published my newest column at Education Week Teacher, The 10 Most Popular ‘Classroom Q & A Posts’ of 2012. It’s a nice list…

iPad Resources

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 2 days ago
Here are new additions to The Best Resources For Beginning iPad Users: What Students Can Actually DO With An iPad is from Edudemic. Have Gadgets, Will Travel: 10 Tech Tools for Turning Your iPad into a Mobile Workstation

Another Article On The “Motivation Trumps IQ” Study

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 2 days ago
Last week, I wrote about a new study the reinforces what most teachers have experienced — that student motivation is the key to academic growth, not IQ (see Is This The Most Important Research Study Of 2012? Maybe). TIME Magazine … Continue reading →

“Self-Driven Learning: Teaching Strategies for Student Motivation” Should Be Out In March!

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 2 days ago
Assuming that I can focus on reviewing the copy-edits this week, my next book, Self-Driven Learning: Teaching Strategies for Student Motivation, should be out in March. It’s a sequel to Helping Students Motivate Themselves. Once this book is “out of … Continue reading →

Email Newsletter Just Sent-Out

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 2 days ago
I send out a free monthly email newsletter to about 2,000 readers. You can subscribe here. Here’s the latest one.

December’s Best Posts From This Blog

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 2 days ago
I regularly highlight my picks for the most useful posts for each month — not including “The Best…” lists. I also use some of them in a more extensive monthly newsletter I send-out. You can see older Best Posts of the Month … Continue reading →

December’s “The Best…” Lists — There Are Now 1,036 Of Them

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 2 days ago
Here’s my monthly round-up of new “The Best…” lists I posted this month (you can see all 1,039 of them categorized here): The Best Websites For English Language Learner Students In 2012 — Part Two The Best Resources, Articles & … Continue reading →

I Wish Everyone Connected To A Private Foundation Would Read This Article, But I Suspect My Wish Will Go Unfulfilled

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 3 days ago
I’ve written a fair amount sharing my perspectives on the role of private foundations. I’ve had a lot of experience directly relating to them during my community organizing career, and some dealing with their role in education. You can see … Continue reading →

Useful iPad App Recommendations

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 3 days ago
Here are new additions to The Best Resources For Beginning iPad Users: A list of All The Best iPad Apps Teachers Need (thanks to Joe Dale for the tip) Top 50 iPad Apps: The Best Apps in Every Category for … Continue reading →

This Week’s “Links I Should Have Posted About, But Didn’t”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 3 days ago
I have a huge backlog of resources that I’ve been planning to post about in this blog but, just because of time constraints, have not gotten around to doing. Instead of letting that backlog grow bigger, I regularly grab a … Continue reading →

This Year’s “What If?” History Lesson

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 3 days ago
I’ve written a lot about about the “What If?” history lessons that I have my history and IB Theory Of Knowledge students complete (you can see my previous posts at The Best Resources For Teaching “What If?” History Lessons). We … Continue reading →

“Christmas Around The World”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 3 days ago
Here’s this year’s final addition to The Best Places To Learn About Christmas, Hanukkah, & Kwanzaa — a CNN video that might not show-up in RSS Readers:

Four Christmas Slideshows

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 3 days ago
Here are four Christmas slideshows from The Wall Street Journal: Light Me Up Santa Winter Games Christmas Around the World Greet Santa. Cue Tears. I’m adding them to The Best Places To Learn About Christmas, Hanukkah, & Kwanzaa.

“Christmas Eve Escape Game”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 3 days ago
I’ve previously written about how I use online video games with English Language Learners. Here’s another video game: Christmas Eve Escape Game, and here’s its walkthrough. I’m adding it to The Best Places To Learn About Christmas, Hanukkah, & Kwanzaa.

“Share your Good News, and You [ & Others ] will be Better Off”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 3 days ago
I’ve posted a lot about the value of encouraging students to be positive, and for us to do the same. You can find a collection of those posts, which include specific strategies I use, in My Best Posts On Why … Continue reading →

Merry Christmas!

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 4 days ago
Here’s a fun music video for a little Christmas cheer. Mariah Carey and Jimmy Fallon sing her hit Christmas song only using classroom instruments: “All I Want For Christmas Is You” I don’t want a lot for Christmas There is … Continue reading →

Martin Luther King, Jr. Resources

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 4 days ago
Martin Luther King’s birthday will be celebrated soon in the United States (and elsewhere, I’m sure). I’ve just updated The Best Websites For Learning About Martin Luther King. Additional suggestions are welcome….

“Make It Share It” Seems Like The Easiest Way To Make Online Animations

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 4 days ago
I’m going to be talking a little bit about creating online animations in my next monthly post in The New York Times, so I reviewed The Best Ways For Students To Create Online Animations list and looked for new ones, … Continue reading →

What Has Each Of Us Done Lately To Bend The “Arc Of The Moral Universe”?

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 4 days ago
Which Is There More Of: Kindness Or Unkindness? A Christmas Accounting is another special reflection by Robert Krulwich over at NPR. Here’s an excerpt: People will improve, [Martin Luther King] told them. He couldn’t say when, but one day, he … Continue reading →

December’s (2012) Best Tweets — Part Two

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 4 days ago
Every month I make a short list highlighting my choices of the best resources I shared through (and learned from) Twitter, but didn’t necessarily include them in posts here on my blog. Now and then, in order to make it a … Continue reading →

My Holiday Gift To You…

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 4 days ago
(I first posted this two years ago, but it’s a timeless gift!) I just received a special Christmas gift from Mary Ochs, a good friend who gave me my first job as a community organizer twenty-seven years ago and who … Continue reading →

My Most Popular Posts Of The Year — 2012

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 4 days ago
It’s time for the annual list of my most popular blog posts of the year — determined by the number of times they’ve been visited. You might also be interested in these previous lists: My Most Popular Posts On Parent … Continue reading →

Reminder: What Is The Best Education-Related Book You’ve Read This Year?

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 5 days ago
As I do every year, I invite readers to share the best education-related books that you have read over the past year. The books could have been published earlier and the only requirement is that you have read them sometime … Continue reading →

“The solution to gun violence is clear”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 5 days ago
Fareed Zakaria has written one of the best pieces on gun control that I’ve seen. It’s titled The solution to gun violence is clear and appeared in The Washington Post. I’m adding it to A Collection Of Resources On The … Continue reading →

Even More “Year In Review” Features

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 5 days ago
Here are the newest additions to The Best Year-End Collections Of Images — 2012: 2012’s photos of the year is from The Washington Post. Year in Review: 2012 is from CBS News. Here’s a new addition to The Best “Year … Continue reading →

The Best “Fun” Sites You Can Use For Learning, Too — 2012 (Part Two)

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 5 days ago
The resources on this list were not designed with education in mind, but which can easily be used for learning purposes — particularly, though not exclusively, for English language development. I only hope that creators of “educational” content can learn … Continue reading →

“Who’s On First?” Remake

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 6 days ago
The old Abbott and Costello “Who’s On First?” routine is used by Theory of Knowledge teachers around the world to illustrate how language can be used to discourage understanding. Thanks to Chris Lehmann, I learned about a remake just made … Continue reading →

More On Gamification

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 6 days ago
Here are some additions to The Best Posts On “Gamification” In Education: Games: More than Just Reward Systems is from Justin Reich at Education Week. Gamification: does it make business more fun, or is it just exploitationware? is from The … Continue reading →

“Photolist” Looks Like An Easy Way To Make A Slideshow

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 6 days ago
Photolist is a new tool that seems like a very easy way to make a slideshow (that’s also embeddable) and that lets you also add expanded captions. I’m adding it to The Best Ways To Create Online Slideshows.

Even More “Words Of The Year” Collections

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 6 days ago
Here are new additions to The Best “Words Of The Year” Features For 2012: Test Your 2012 Slang Skills is a fun interactive from The PBS News Hour. Words of 2012 is from The New York Times.

Collections Of Best Infographics Of The Year

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 6 days ago
Here are new additions to The Best Infographics Of 2012: 2012 in infographics: how Graphic News saw the world is from The Guardian. 20 Great Infographics of 2012 has been published by Visual.ly.

A Few More Christmas Links

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 6 days ago
Here are a few more (perhaps the last for this year?) additions to my massive The Best Places To Learn About Christmas, Hanukkah, & Kwanzaa list: Holiday Foods to Avoid (And What To Eat Instead) is a slideshow from TIME. … Continue reading →

This “Kobe vs Messi” Video Would Be Good For ELL’s

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 week ago
English Language Learners could watch this short video and describe what they see — plus, they’d enjoy the video:

This May Be The Most Uplifting Video I’ve Seen All Year….

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 week ago
I loved this video, and I’m certainly adding it to The Best Videos For Educators In 2012 — Part Two:

The Best Articles I’ve Written In 2012

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 week ago
In addition to this blog, my blog on parent engagement, my weekly Education Week Teacher advice column, my monthly New York Times posts on teaching English Language Learner and my four books (with a fifth one coming-out in four months … Continue reading →

Today’s Sandy Hook Update — Gun Control Resources

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 week ago
Here are the newest additions to A Collection Of Resources On The Sandy Hook Shooting, and they mainly focus on gun control issues: The Freedom of an Armed Society appeared in The New York Times, and may be the best … Continue reading →

More “Year In Review” Features

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 week ago
I’m adding this very good video to The Best “Year In Review” Features That Aren’t Photo Collections — 2012: 2012 Year in Pictures: Part III is from The Boston Globe. I’m adding it to The Best Year-End Collections Of Images … Continue reading →

“Cutting a deal doesn’t necessarily have to mean capitulation”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 week ago
I’ve often written about my nineteen-year community organizing career, and how I learned about the importance of compromise during that time — the kind of compromise that’s “half a loaf” not “half a baby.” In fact, I have a “The … Continue reading →

Two More Useful Christmas Infographics

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 week ago
I’m adding these two infographics to The Best Places To Learn About Christmas, Hanukkah, & Kwanzaa. They both have a bit of a British bent to them: by greatbritishchefs.Browse more infographics. Learn about data visualization tools.

“Effective Ways to Use Tech in The Classroom — Part Three”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 week ago
Effective Ways to Use Tech in The Classroom — Part Three is my newest Education Week Teacher post. It includes includes pieces from educators Kathy Cassidy and Josh Stumpenhorst, as well as readers’ comments.

Interactive: “Gun Control in the United States”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 week ago
The Wall Street Journal has a very accessible interactive timeline called Gun Control in the United States. I’m adding it to A Collection Of Resources On The Sandy Hook Shooting .

More “Year In Review” Resources

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 week ago
I’m adding the following new resources to The Best Year-End Collections Of Images — 2012 (you also might be interested in The Best “Year In Review” Features That Aren’t Photo Collections — 2012): Nature has some great “year in review” … Continue reading →

Video: “The Mayan apocalypse: how to destroy the Earth”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 week ago
Here’s The Guardian’s somewhat unusual perspective on today’s rumors about the end of the world:

The Best Theory Of Knowledge Resources In 2012 — Part Two

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 week ago
As regular readers know, I teach an International Baccalaureate “Theory of Knowledge” class. Our school structures our IB program a bit differently from many others by having a whole lot of students take individual IB classes and we have relatively … Continue reading →