Celebrating 30 years!

Tennant Creek High School is 30 years old today!!  

The time capsules from 10 years and 21 years have been dug up so as to be able to display their contents - and another one is being made ready for this celebration. There is a big display up in the PAC and posters of interviews with past students, along the lines of what they remember and where they are now.

The community has been invited in to help us enjoy the party and celebrate the history and we are looking forward to many more years to come.

Happy Birthday Tennant Creek High School! 

Google like a Genius

I am always amazed and fascinated by how students can sit in front of a computer to research information for their assignments, spend a whole lesson there and find absolutely nothing that they can use.  

Every so often I get a few who complain that "there's nothing there, Miss, I can't do this" and then look totally stunned when I find what they need in a few minutes ... and it isn't because I'm older and smarter than they are!  

I just know a few more tricks to use on Google to make it do what I want. (They do say that old age and cunning will always beat youth and skill)

So I have included a few links below with hints and tips for conning Google into providing what you need, when you need it.  While I am fairly sure that most of you already know these hints, it may be helpful to pass it onto your students ... after all, one less reason for not being able to complete something.  

http://www.digitaltrends.com/computing/the-35-best-google-search-tips-and-tricks/

http://epictutorials.com/top-10-google-search-tips/

http://visual.ly/10-tips-search-pro-using-google

And of course, there is always the tried and true Boolean searching method.  I have talked about that in a previous post, but it is always a good start.  

Curation Tools and Ideas

Curation - What the heck is that??  And doesn't curation therefore need a curator? Well, yes it does.

So ... following on down that path - what’s a curator? Not exactly what you might think.  In today's world, curation is no longer a job for tweedy professors, carefully arranging flint arrowheads by size.  Today, online curation is a matter of speedy, selective contextualising. It’s more than just collecting content, it’s a matter of giving the chosen content added meaning, along with a reason to have been selected in the first place.

Out of a fast-flowing river of news and information, "curators are the zen-like bears, sitting amid the chaos, selectively plucking out the juiciest, shiniest salmon and then explaining which bits to eat." (From Storyful.com)

Brought down to the shiniest brass tacks, curation is the collection, storing, sorting and dissemination of information.  You find it, you store it in a safe place (that you won't forget), you sort it into something suitable to use with your class and then you share it with them to use for their studies.  

Below are a few free on-line curation tools you may like to consider as a 'safe place' to store 'your stuff'.  Rather like a online version of a vertical file, for those of us who can remember back that far.  Have a look, see what you think.  

*  Clipix :    https://www.clipix.com

*  LiveBinders :    http://www.livebinders.com/

*  Scoop.it :   http://www.scoop.it/