Make Create Educate

Picture books are a wonderful way to engage children of all ages.  With younger children they provide an opportunity to engage in literacy with storylines they may not have experienced or thought about. With older students they are a wonderful hook to stimulate discussion or debate.  Is it true? Is it relevant to us? What can we do to protect? prevent? or follow up? Once upon a time Online by David Bedford Using fairytale characters this book illustrates some of the hazards of being online. The Fairy Godmother teachers them how to use screen time to be productive and creators rather than users of technology. The Fabulous Friend Machine by Nick Bland Popcorn the chicken finds a friend machine (phone) and makes some wonderful new friends, who turn out be not telling the full truth. Her old (true) friends step in to save her. The internet is like a puddle by Shona Innes This book gently talks about the dangers of being online and how adults can help us navigate those dangers. The...

What is social media and how can it be useful for teachers? Published in Education Matters with corrections to the organisers of @EduTweetOz Biography Meridith Ebbs is teacher St Columba Anglican School, Port Macquarie. She has a blended role, teaching classes from years 2-10 and working as an eLearning integrator to support the eLearning programs and teacher professional development within the school. Meridith is a key staff member of the Professional Excellence and Innovation Centre, Port Macquarie. She develops and facilitates conferences and workshops. Meridith acts as a consultant in digital citizenship, the use of technology to enhance 21century pedagogies and social media. Meridith is a moderator of a MOOC for Adelaide University and speaks at conferences on coding, technology and pedagogy. Meridith is interested in computational thinking, coding and the maker movement. She is working on increasing the participation of girls in Science, Technology, Engineering and ...