1. CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT OF ALBANY
ter
l te ch Newslet
Instructiona
Volume 11 Issue 7
March/April 2012
Spring Happenings
May 15– continuing Inside this issue:
For the next few
Tuesdays we will be PBL projects. You can email her at
World War I 2
working on how to Reading is good for you 3,5,6
get something set up If you would like to spa-
Using Polling 4
for Project Based attend please just let ben@albany.k12.ny.us
Storybird 4
Learning. us know. There is
always room for one
Here is a brief sched- more!
ule in case you
would like to join us.
Just let us know you
April 17– Setting up are coming as we al-
a project ways have food. Just
drop us an email.
May1– Weebly Sandy is located at
Abrookin now in
May 8– Finishing Room A09 which is
Weebly Pages where support group
is held.
Instagrok
Those who have good but for educa- os, and even quizzes. I
known me a long tors I think I might think the potential for the
time can remember have found its re- classroom and students is
when Google came placement. I put in limitless! This is probably
out I thought it was terms like American my new favorite!
the greatest thing on Revolution, and I got
the planet. It still is websites, facts, vide- http://www.instagrok.com/

2. PAGE 2 INSTRUCTIONAL TECH NEWSLETTER
World war I
Once again this section graphic site that had interactive get a detailed outline of the
comes from your re- maps, outlines and other valua- event. This site may be good
quests. I hope you find ble resources. for students who have to re-
the links useful. The search a topic on World War I.
http://
links run the gambit
education.nationalgeographic.com/ http://
from those geared to-
education/multimedia/interactive/ www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/
ward younger students
pearl-harbor/?ar_a=1 FWW.htm
to those geared to high
school students. The in-
formation is useful for
teachers across the PBS continues to have some of This is another comprehensive
board. the best resources out there. site that would be useful for re-
search.
http://www.pbs.org/greatwar/
http://
The BBC site has great www.historylearningsite.co.uk/
clips and a perspective ww1.htm
Causes of World War I
that is worth taking a
look at. http://www.historyonthenet.com/
WW1/causes.htm This site looks at the role of
http://www.bbc.co.uk/
history/worldwars/wwone/ women in World War I.
This site talks about the role of http://wiki.answers.com/Q/
African American soldiers in What_did_women_do_in_World_
BBC School is a site War_1
World War I.
worth looking at. The
site has an excellent sec- http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/
tion on true stories from aaohtml/exhibit/aopart7.html
different perspectives.
This site is definitely
worth a look.
At first glance this site doesn’t
http://www.bbc.co.uk/ appear to have much. Howev-
schools/worldwarone/ er, each link has a great deal of
information. For example, if you
click on chronology, a list of
dates and topics comes up.
Remembering Pearl Har-
Once you click on the topic you
bor is a National Geo-

3. VOLUME 11 ISSUE 7 PAGE 3
Your Brain on Books: 20 Proven Benefits of Being an Avid Reader
http://www.edweek.org/tm/articles/2012/01/25 /tln_magiera1.html?prin t=1
B y J en n i e M ag i e r a
http://www.bestcollegesonline.com/blog/2012/04/09/your-brain-on-books-20-proven-benefits-of-being-an-avid-reader/
For those of us who are avid readers, this is just fuel for our passion. However, the research supports what teachers
have known all along, reading is good for you!
Romantic types like to portray books as flights of fancy offering up imaginative escapes from everyday drudgeries of
work, school, and the like. But literature, no matter the medium, holds some pretty amazing, scientifically analyzed
perks right here on terra firma.
Passionate readers generally enjoy more finely-tuned brains than those who prefer more passive (though not lesser)
activities, so anyone hoping to improve their minds both psychologically and cognitively might want to think about tak-
ing up the habit of regular reading.
 Enhances the senses
Merely reading a word reflecting a color or a scent immediately fires up the corresponding section of the brain, which
empathizes with written experiences as if they actually happened to the audience. Researchers believe this might
very well help sharpen the social acumen needed to forge valuable relationships with others.
 Enables lifelong learning
In correlation with the previous perk, sensual stimulation makes it easier for aging brains to keep absorbing and pro-
cessing new information over time. This occurs when the occipital-temporal cortex essentially overrides its own pro-
gramming and adapts to better accommodate written language.
 Allows for better skill retention
Avid readers enjoy a heightened ability to retain their cognitive skills over their peers who simply prefer other media
— even when exposed to lead for extended periods, as indicated by an article inNeurology. It serves as something of
a “shield” against mental decay, allowing the body to continue through the motions even when facing temporary or
permanent challenges.
 Improves creativity
When educators at Obafemi Awolowo University incorporated education-themed comics and cartoons into primary
school classrooms, they noted that the welding of pictures to words in a manner different than the usual picture
books proved unexpectedly beneficial. Exposure to these oft-marginalized mediums actually nurtured within them a
healthy sense of creativity — a quality necessary for logical and abstract problem solving.
 Better verbal abilities
On the whole, readers tend to display more adroit verbal skills than those who are not as fond of books, though it
must be noted that this doesn’t inherently render them better communicators. Still, they do tend to sport higher vo-
cabularies, which increase exponentially with the volume of literature consumed, and may discern context faster.
 Increases one’s stores of knowledge
Anne E. Cunningham and Keith E. Stanovich’s “What Reading Does for the Mind” also noted that heavy readers tend
to display greater knowledge of how things work and who or what people were; once again, findings were proportion-
ate to how much the students in question devoured in their literary diets. Nonfiction obviously tends to send more
facts down the hatch, though fiction certainly can hold its own in that department as well.
 Higher test scores
Some students obviously don’t perform well on tests despite their prodigious abilities, but in general, findings (such

4. CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT OF ALBANY
Teacher Guide to Polling
Since many of you are getting “clickers” for your class-
room, this brief article seems appropriate.
Community Technology Initiative
However, within the article is an embedded 100 page
If you would like to contact us: guide that outlines numerous ways you can use clickers
Sandy Paben and polling in your classroom. So, even if you don’t
441‐5605 (cell) have access to clickers there are tools out there you can
Spaben@albany.k12.ny.us use with your students.
It talks about using Survey Monkey, Zoomerang, Quiz
Emer Geraghty
Snack and other tools that can be incredibly useful in
605-1229
the classroom.
egeraghty@albany.k12.ny.us
http://edudemic.com/2012/04/the-teachers-guide-to-
http://webhelp.albany.k12.ny.us/
Instructional
polling-in-the-classroom/
Storybird
There is also the option of in-
This is a site that could be used viting a collaborator. So, if you
by almost any age group. Stu- want students to work togeth-
dents can write their own sto- er it would be a perfect option.
ries or read one of the many,
many public stories. There are also options to pub-
lish, print and reading list.
There are many prompts we
would call story prompts. There It is so easy and the possibilities
are pictures that you can use are endless!
that are pre-loaded. There are
also themes you can choose
from as a way to start. http://storybird.com/
To start it’s as easy as dragging
and dropping pictures onto the
work space.

5. as those offered by the National Endowment for the Arts) show a link between pleasure reading and better scores.
The most pronounced improvement, unsurprisingly, occurred on exams focused on analyzing reading, writing, and
verbal skills.
 Reduced stress levels
According to a 2009 University of Sussex study, picking up a book could be one of the most effective strategies for
calming down when life grows too overwhelming — great for both mental and physiological reasons. The University
of Minnesota built on these findings and recommends reading some form of literature for at least half an hour every
day for optimum relaxation.
 Improves critical thinking
Fully engaged reading sessions — not just skimming, in other words — actively engage the sections of the brain re-
sponsible for thinking critically about more than just texts. Writing, too, also serves as an excellent conduit sharpen-
ing the skills necessary for parsing bias, facts vs. fictions, effective arguments, and more.
 Staves off dementia
In a British Medical Journal article, academics at the French National Institute of Medical Research showcased their
findings regarding the relationship between a mind occupied by reading and a lower risk of dementia. Obviously, lit-
erature isn’t going to act as a cure, but nonreaders are 18% more likely to develop the condition and experience
worsened symptoms.
 Dementia settles in at a slower rate
Readers genetically or environmentally predisposed to MCI, Alzheimer’s, and other disorders characterized by cog-
nitive decline won’t escape their fate if they live long enough; but not only do their literary habits push back the on-
set, these conditions also encroach at a more sluggish pace. More than any other way to pass the time, picking up
some sort of book (no matter the medium) proves among the most effective strategies for delaying and slowing de-
mentia.
 Better reasoning
Along with bolstering critical thinking skills, the authors of “Reading and Reasoning” in Reading Teacher noted that
literary intake also positively influences logic and reasoning. Again, though, the most viable strategy for getting the
most out of reading involves picking apart the words themselves, not merely flipping through pages.
 Confidence-building
Improved literacy means improved self-esteem, particularly when it involves kindergarten and middle school stu-
dents whose grades will swell as a result, although high schoolers, college kids, and adults are certainly not immune
to this mental health perk. Set realistic reading goals and work toward them for an easy, painless (and stress-free)
way to kick up the spirits when confidence starts wavering.
 More white matter
Neuron published a Carnegie Mellon paper discovering how the language centers of the brain produced more white
matter in participants adhering to a reading schedule over the period of six months. Seeing as how this particular
tissue structure controls learning, it’s kind of sort of a good thing to be building, especially when it comes to lan-
guage processing.
 Increases brain flexibility
Brain flexibility is how the essential organ stratifies itself, delegates tasks, and compensates for damages, and Car-
negie Mellon researchers believe reading might serve as a particularly excellent way to encourage this. These dis-
coveries of how the brain organizes itself beg for further insight into the autism spectrum and other conditions that
may stem from poor neurological communication.
 Improved memory
The physiology of reading itself contributes to better memory and recall, specifically the part involving bilateral eye
movement. However, it holds no influence over implicit memories: most of the benefit comes when recalling episodic
memories.

6.  Builds relationships between parents and children
Kids and parents who read aloud together enjoy tighter bonds than those who do not, which is essen-
tial to encouraging the healthiest possible psychological profile. Along with the cognitive perks, these
sessions build trust and anxiety-soothing comfort needed to nurture positive behavior and outlooks.
 Better listening skills
Listening skills improve reading, and reading improves listening skills, particularly when one speaks
words out loud instead of silently. When learning a primary or secondary (or beyond) language in par-
ticular, fostering interplay between the two ability sets makes it much easier to soak up vocabulary
and grammar.
 An easier time concentrating
Once again, any bookish types hoping to claim the full benefit of this cognitive phenomenon gain it via
close reading and analysis, not skimming, speed reading, and skipping. Because the activity is far
from passive, it challenges the mind to focus, focus, focus: which certainly carries over into other are-
as of life!
 Alleviates mental health disorders
Psychology professionals in the United Kingdom and United States gravitate towards bibliotherapy
when treating non-critical patients, thanks to studies printed up in the journal Behaviour Research and
Therapy. The practice involves prescribing a library card, which recipients use to check out one of the
approved 35 self-help books for 12 weeks; as a supplement (not a replacement) to conventional ther-
apy, it has proven extremely valuable to the clinically depressed and anxious.