Showing posts with label you. Show all posts
Showing posts with label you. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 4, 2015
Do You Want Cheap Books For Your Classroom
There are so many things I love when it comes to my classroom... without card stock, Velcro, clothespins, magnetic tape and magnetic printer paper, I wouldnt know what to do! Ill definitely detail the infinite uses of all of those things one day, but all of those things being said, there is one thing that I am addicted to more than anything else: childrens books!!!
Take a look at how full my bookshelf is in my classroom!
And thats not even all: I have 11 totes full of books in my basement! They are 64 qt. totes and hold 100-200 books!
Obviously, the cost of books can add up quick, especially when we have so many different topics that there are great read alouds for. But, there is a way to get books for your classroom for dirt cheap... library books sales!!! These are probably the best way to build a classroom library!
The best way Ive found library books sales is through this website:
Note: Im not getting paid to promote the website, Im posting it because it honestly is the best!!
Browse through the site to find sales near you. Usually the ones that state "Big Sale!" are pretty good, but only trial and error will really work. You can sign up for a weekly email alerts so youre always aware of the sales in your area (without having to remember to check the website!)
Now, any given day at a library sale is a steal for books... but do you want books for your classroom that are basically free? Of course you do!!!! So you need to go to the book sales on the best day... bag day! Most large library sales have this the last day of their sale. Fill up a whole bag full of books for $5! A lot of places let you even bring your own bag... I get a kick out of people with giant beach bags full of books (ok, so Im usually one of those people but it is funny to watch)!
Not only do I use bag day to stock up on new books for the classroom, but I also use it to fill my treasure chest! The kids just look to bring home books as a prize for their good behavior! I started off this year with two totes full of books for the treasure chest (easily 300 books that I paid a total of $10 for) and all of these books were gone by December! They were the most popular prize as well as the least expensive!
Read more »
Take a look at how full my bookshelf is in my classroom!
And thats not even all: I have 11 totes full of books in my basement! They are 64 qt. totes and hold 100-200 books!
Obviously, the cost of books can add up quick, especially when we have so many different topics that there are great read alouds for. But, there is a way to get books for your classroom for dirt cheap... library books sales!!! These are probably the best way to build a classroom library!
The best way Ive found library books sales is through this website:
Note: Im not getting paid to promote the website, Im posting it because it honestly is the best!!
Browse through the site to find sales near you. Usually the ones that state "Big Sale!" are pretty good, but only trial and error will really work. You can sign up for a weekly email alerts so youre always aware of the sales in your area (without having to remember to check the website!)
Now, any given day at a library sale is a steal for books... but do you want books for your classroom that are basically free? Of course you do!!!! So you need to go to the book sales on the best day... bag day! Most large library sales have this the last day of their sale. Fill up a whole bag full of books for $5! A lot of places let you even bring your own bag... I get a kick out of people with giant beach bags full of books (ok, so Im usually one of those people but it is funny to watch)!
Not only do I use bag day to stock up on new books for the classroom, but I also use it to fill my treasure chest! The kids just look to bring home books as a prize for their good behavior! I started off this year with two totes full of books for the treasure chest (easily 300 books that I paid a total of $10 for) and all of these books were gone by December! They were the most popular prize as well as the least expensive!
Friday, February 27, 2015
Academic Earth Gives you Learning Goose Bumps!
- Link to Academic Earth
- FAQs
Academic Earth is an educational video website with the goal of enhancing the usability and expanding the awareness of OER, focusing first on video lectures.
MISSION?
Giving everyone on earth access to a world class education.
MISSION?
Giving everyone on earth access to a world class education.
OBJECTIVES?
- Centralizing the best video resources from multiple sources into one easy-to-search hub.
- Applying the latest best practices in usability and design.
- Integrating crowd-sourcing and wiki tools so users can enhance the experience for future users (these features to come).
Currently, there are over fifteen hundred videos from MIT, Stanford, Berkeley, Harvard, Princeton, and Yale there. As they are adding more every day, you can imagine the rest! Also, many lectures are grouped into courses, providing us added convenience to access. In addition, when the "Download to iPod" option appears you can download a QuickTime version of the lecture (click on the "Download to iPod" link and select "Save Target As..." or the equivalent for your browser).
Yes, they even allow you to grade (A, B, C, D) the lectures, which is quite cool. Lecturers are graded instead of learners or students. Wouldnt that be a cool school? We learn, no grades except for grading our lecturers. In other words, students can relax and learn, while lecturers get stressed out with their grades (for their lecturing ability). Though, I suppose they could add a comment feature to each lecture, enabling us to give our 23 cents when wanted or needed.
The interface is soothing and it is easy to find stuff (Playlist, Subjects, Universities and Instructors). Besides the normal embed and share feature, we are also provided with a Citation Info feature, which makes it extremely easy for us to reference our lecture discoveries (replicate!). Interestingly, a Feedback option follows us everywhere we go, indirectly reminding us of their eagerness to get feedback and improve further.
If I was allowed to grade this site, I would give it a delicious A. Surely, one of the best lecture finding sites (or lecture aggregators) I have ever visited :)
The interface is soothing and it is easy to find stuff (Playlist, Subjects, Universities and Instructors). Besides the normal embed and share feature, we are also provided with a Citation Info feature, which makes it extremely easy for us to reference our lecture discoveries (replicate!). Interestingly, a Feedback option follows us everywhere we go, indirectly reminding us of their eagerness to get feedback and improve further.
If I was allowed to grade this site, I would give it a delicious A. Surely, one of the best lecture finding sites (or lecture aggregators) I have ever visited :)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)