PBS in Education

PBS KIDS Play! and PBS KIDS Island Receive High Marks from USA TODAY

USA TODAY reporter Jinny Gudmundsen recently reviewed two of PBS's latest offerings for preschoolers, PBS KIDS PLAY! and PBS KIDS Island. Gudmundsen gives PBS KIDS PLAY! a five-star review, along with a glowing review of PBS KIDS Island. Check it out: http://www.usatoday.com/tech/columnist/jinnygudmundsen/2009-05-14-pbs-games_N.htm


May Media Infusion: The IslandWood 2.0 Team

In the May Media Infusion, representatives from IslandWood, a 250-acre residential environmental education center that serves nearly 4,000 students each year, discuss environmental education, place-based learning and the use of technology.

"We're often asked, "Why would an outdoor education center use screen-based tools to connect kids with nature?," writes the IslandWood team. "Yes, it's a bit counterintuitive, but we've identified a few key reasons why we, and classroom teachers, should actually use them more."

The IslandWood team offers strategies to help connect students to their own neighborhood environment and community by using PBS resources such as the newly launched companion Web site THE NATIONAL PARKS: AMERICA'S BEST IDEA, NOVA and more.

PBS Teachers invites educators to visit Media Infusion in May and ask questions, comment on Island Wood's suggestions or offer some of their own.

PBS Launches Companion Web site to Ken Burns' THE NATIONAL PARKS: AMERICA'S BEST IDEA

Coming in Fall 2009 and filmed over the course of six years at some of nature's most spectacular locales-from Mt. Rainier to the Olympics, Yellowstone to the Grand Canyon- THE NATIONAL PARKS: AMERICA'S BEST IDEA by Ken Burns is a story of the people who devoted themselves to the land they loved.

The preview site for THE NATIONAL PARKS: AMERICA'S BEST IDEA is now available at http://www.pbs.org/nationalparks/, where you can:

Find the DVD and related products with a ShopPBS link on every page of the site

Rob Lippincott of PBS Shares His Expertise on Informal STEM Education with Congressional Subcommittee Members

The U.S. House of Representatives' Subcommittee on Research and Science Education held a hearing to examine the role of informal environments in promoting science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) learning. During the hearing, "Beyond the Classroom: Informal STEM Education," subcomittee members heard testimony on The National Academies report, Learning Science in Informal Environments: People, Places, and Pursuits.

"The Science and Technology Committee, and our Subcommittee in particular, has made STEM education a top priority," said Subcommittee Chairman Daniel Lipinski (D-IL). "While we often examine and discuss ways to improve STEM education in the classroom, we rarely look at the many opportunities for learning elsewhere. A great deal of learning happens throughout our lives in everyday activities -- from having a conversation at the family dinner table to attending a summer camp at a zoo."

Among the expert witnesses testifying before the subcommittee was Rob Lippincott, senior vice president of education for PBS.

For Lippincott's full testimony, go here

For more information on the hearing, go here

Download the Masterpiece Classic Teachers Guide to Teaching Dickens

Designed to help readers see Dickens' relevance to our world today, this extensive teaching tool offers general questions and activities to be used in conjunction with Dickens' texts and the Masterpiece Classic productions of Oliver Twist, Little Dorrit, The Old Curiosity Shop and David Copperfield. What do we mean when we speak of something being Dickensian? How does Dickens illustrate his famous and eccentric characters? How did the workhouse conditions of Dickens' day compare to poverty in our time? The Teachers Guide for Teaching Dickens offers clear and concise classroom ideas for opening the world of Charles Dickens to school-age readers.

Help Prealgebra Students Discover the Lure of the Labryrinth

Lure of the Labyrinth is a digital game for middle-school pre-algebra students. It includes a wealth of intriguing math-based puzzles wrapped into an exciting narrative game in which students work to find their lost pet - and save the world from monsters! Linked to both national and state mathematics standards, the game gives students a chance to actually think like mathematicians.

Included in the site are resources for educators, including a professional development video for pre-algebra teachers demonstrating how Maryland teachers are effectively using Lure of the Labyrinth in the classroom.

Resource Provides First-of-its-Kind 21st Century Skills Classroom Example

The National Council of Teachers of English and the Partnership for 21st Century Skills have released the 21st Century Skills and English Map, which provides educators with teacher-created models of how 21st century skills can be infused into English classes.

The map - which demonstrates how the integration of 21st century skills into English curriculum supports teaching and learning and prepares students to become effective and productive citizens in the 21st century - highlights the critical connections between English and 21st century skills.

By providing lesson examples that combine core skills like critical thinking, creativity and innovation with interdisciplinary themes (civic, economic and entrepreneurial literacy and global awareness), the map provides concrete examples of how to align teaching and learning to the demands of the 21st century.

For more information and to access the map, visit www.21stcenturyskills.org

New Downloadable Videos and Classroom Activities from NATURE and e2

NATURE Online, the award-winning Web companion to PBS' broadcast series is now offering educators more than 40 free downloadable video segments that can be shared with students and colleagues in any kind of free, educational presentation. NATURE's video segments, ranging in length from approximately 30 seconds to 5 minutes, are incorporated into standards based lesson plans. The segments can be downloaded to personal computers or compatible viewing devices; usage is restricted to the United States only. In addition to video segments, there are hundreds of still images that are shareable, printable and saveable.

For more information, including accompanying NATURE's teachers' guides, visit http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/

e², an ongoing PBS series about the economies of being environmentally conscious, chronicles global efforts to solve pressing ecological challenges. e² has 18 downloadable video segments, including six from the current season (Season 3). These are accompanied by pre- and post-viewing discussion questions, background readings, and classroom activities and projects.

For more information, visit http://www.pbs.org/e2/teachers/teacher_overview.html

Let the Games Begin: STEM Resources for the PBS KIDS GO! Generation

Several online science and math games are now available from PBS KIDS GO! More and more educators are discovering the value of online games, which allow students to practice new skills and educators to quickly assess student understanding. The games and activities below provide teachers and students with fresh approaches to Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) that are critical to 21st century learning.

Cyberchase: Math and Sports
Make a connection between math and sports. Explore this newest thematic unit from Cyberchase that encourages kids to see and practice the math concepts used to plan, track, and calculate facts and figures in sporting events. Find classroom activities, view online video and play the new CyberOlympics game.

Dragonfly TV: Nanobots
Learn more about nanotechnology by adjusting the positive and negative charges to guide a nanobot through an obstacle course. Traverse preexisting courses or build your own.

Fetch!: Geyser Surpriser
Discover what is required for a geyser to exist by manipulating three of the elements that make up a geyser. Then, add to your knowledge of geyser trivia while playing a bonus game.

Fetch!: CSI: Squeak Sneak
Use problem-solving and logical reasoning strategies to deduce who stole Ruff's squeaky toy. Search for clues at the crime scene, analyze and identify the clues in the crime lab and identify the thief by matching clues to suspects.