Why Should You Read Lord of the Flies - A New TED-Ed Lesson

Why You Should Read Lord of the Flies is the latest video added to TED-Ed's "why should you read..." series. There are now more than thirty videos in that series. Why You Should Read Lord of the Flies follows the same pattern as the other videos in the series. The video covers the major plot points of the story and provides a bit of background on the author and the writing of the story. Those who are looking for discussion questions to use with the video will find them here.


Applications for Education
Why Should You Read Lord of the Flies doesn't reveal anything new or particularly insightful about the story or William Golding. That said, if you're having students read the book, this video provides a nice little introduction to the story.

Using Video as a Reflective, Collaborative, and Data Collecting Tool

The last presentation of the Practical Ed Tech Creativity Conference was given by Brian Heyward who shared Using Video as a Reflective, Collaborative, and Data Collecting Tool. In his presentation Brian shared how video can be used to reflect on process/progress, collect data for informal/formal research, and to collaborate synchronously or asynchronously on the same tasks. Brian included some great tips for those wondering about how to manage and assess students' videos. The video of his presentation is now available to view here.

Using Makey Makey to Creative Assistive Technology - Webinar Recording

Yesterday afternoon Art Spencer gave an engaging presentation about some interesting Makey Makey projects that he's done with elementary school and middle school students. In the presentation Art does a great job of explaining what Makey Makey is and how his students have used it to create assistive technology devices for other students who have special needs. Watch Art's presentation here.

On a related note, Amazon has Makey Makey Invention Kits on sale right now at 29% off the regular price.