If you click on the map to zoom in, it will show the location of our libraries, reception and other useful locations. This was designed using http://maps.google.com.au/
and the” my maps tool.”
Instructions can be found here http://earth.google.com/outreach/tutorial_mymaps.html

View All Hallows’ School in a larger map

If you are visiting our school, this map may help. Check the map carefully-easiest access is via Dodge Lane (off Boundary Street) to access the carpark. Please be aware parking is not always available. Also see the widgets on the right to see the carpark entrance in Dodge Lane. Use the opening second from the left to enter the drop off area.

Recently, I was asked to suggest novels on the basis of readability in relation to syllables. This was to assist reading recovery for secondary students. “Readability” is interesting, not only in relation to recommending books, but also in relation to our own writing. The following site allows checking of writing for readability http://www.online-utility.org/english/readability_test_and_improve.jsp . I input text from one of my newsletter articles and found it would take 11 years of education for the average person to read it. This is worth considering if the content is aimed at students as well as parents. The site will even suggest sentences to target for improving readability.

More resources at http://www.hoagiesgifted.org/reading_levels.htm Kathy Schrock has more information on readability at http://school.discoveryeducation.com/schrockguide/fry/fry.html

Free sites that list books according to readability
MultiLit http://www.multilit.com/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=d%2BgLyyH0jxI%3D&tabid=720You may be able to register for Book Wizard which levels books http://bookwizard.scholastic.com/tbw/homePage.do
There is a free online book tool at http://www.arbookfind.com/advanced.aspx
Related sites
Concerns to be aware of about accelerated reader programs
Jim Trelease http://www.trelease-on-reading.com/rah-ch5-pg3.html#arq
Why Harry Potter books are “easy to read”
http://www.tes.co.uk/article.aspx?storycode=338511 http://www.dyslexia-parent.com/mag20.html

Scope of the Co-Curricular Licence for participating Catholic Schools in QLD
The Co-Curricular Licence allows the school to play films that are purchased or rented by the school to the teachers, students and parents of the school for the following purposes:
At school for entertainment purposes (e.g. at lunchtime on a rainy day)
On bus excursions, where the school provides the DVD (not the bus company)
At school camps and excursions, including outdoor screenings at camp, where the school provides the DVD (not the camp)
At after-school care and holiday programs conducted at and by the school

The Licence will not apply:
Where the film is played to the general public
To a fundraising event for the school
To school and after school holiday programs conducted by a third party
To an event which is advertised or promoted to people other than the students and staff of the school
Where advertising or promotion occurs during the playing of a film

Home and Away by John Marsden and Matt Ottley

Here is what is happening in ours
• Students finished Friday lunchtime followed by staff lunch to farewell staff leaving
• This week – Meetings and planning with teaching and Library staff, HODs etc
• Professional Learning sessions- cameras, turnitin, referencing, making posters, using copiers, blogging, netbooks, implementing one-to-one model in Departments, rewriting units
• Library staff annual appraisals and development of next year’s Action plan
• Staff meeting and support staff meeting
• Return of equipment. Return of resources from staff who are leaving
• Student volunteers helping for their community service award
• Finishing stocktake
• Students and parents coming in to view SAIs
• Tidying up, processing, final orders
• Swine flu injections
• Booking events into calendar for next year, and arranging events
• Promoting Jamie McKenzie for next year
• Send staff holiday reading list
• Copyright- looking at repositories and announcing new Co-Curricular Movie licence
• Lunches, breakfasts, mass and other celebrations
zzzz

Amazon offers free Kindle software app for PCs, with Apple version on its way. Brennon Slattery (PC World (US online)) 11/11/2009 reports Amazon released a Kindle for PC app, available as a free 5.17MB download for Windows 7, Vista, and XP. Much like the Kindle for iPhone, Kindle for PC allows e-book downloads and shows them on your computer for convenient reading either when you’re away from your svelte e-book reader or if you chose not to buy it in the first place. http://www.techworld.com.au/article/325708/kindle_pc_released_color_kindle_coming_soon
Free download here
http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000426311
New article http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9141437/Elgan_7_reasons_why_e_book_readers_make_lousy_gifts_this_year

As part of the Australian Government Quality Teachers program, I investigated digital storytelling in 2006. My activity was designed to take only a few lessons, but students achieved some wonderful stories in a short space of time, learnt skills they could apply to the many powerpoints they construct for assessment and had lots of fun. The following presentation provides details on how to go about this. Obviously there would be changes now as we have Powerpoint 2007, but the principles are still similar. Examples that I particularly liked for various reasons are included in following posts for inspiration. Slideboom is good because it includes the powerpoints with animation in a form that can be blogged, but it is a lot slower than the original so please make allowances, and you will need to click to proceed through some of these, just like in powerpoint.

Here is the last of the examples of digital storytelling commenced in preceding posts.

Here is another example of telling stories with p.owerpoint

Here is a choose your own adventure type digital story example.

Here is another example of using Powerpoint for digital storytelling which will test slideboom as it is quite a large file.

From 2003-2006, I used powerpoint with groups of students over a couple of lessons and we had fun and learnt a lot about digital storytelling, inlcuding choose your own adventure stories. I have now discovered slideboom http://www.slideboom.com , which allows sharing of these stories on this blog while retaining the animation. I will inlcude some more examples in further posts.

Hopefully, this blog is encouraging you to try blogging. If you would like to share a file, as in the previous post, googledocs can help with this http: //docs.google.com/ You may need to sign up with google. Then, login to google docs, and click upload in the right corner. Browse for the file/s you want to upload from your computer or USB. Once uploaded, click “back to google docs “

If you do not want this file shared, it should read “not shared’ so you are the only one who can access this file. To share a file, click the box next to the file you want to share and click invite people. A box will pop up. I put in my own email address, and then clicked “Add without sending an invitation.” It should send you back to googledocs. Click next to the file, then click Share. Click the box “Allow anyone with the link to view (no sign-in required)” A link will appear. Copy this link.
Now this link is probably very long and may cause problems if you try and insert it into your blog. So go to http://tinyurl.com/ Put your long link in the top box, then choose what you would like the short link to be called in the next box. Click on “make tiny url” – and the new short url to the document you want to share will appear. Use the “tiny url” in your blog to let readers see your file. I obtained some of the instructions above by putting “share” into the google docs Help menu, so try there for more instructions.

To encourage holiday reading, Elizabeth in our Library made a life size poster. This has been a huge hit. The instructions can be found at http://tinyurl.com/displaypeople The image is being used under copyright for the curriculum purpose of reading promotion.
The instructions explain using the site www.blockposters.com . This method could be used for assessment such as monologues to provide characters to talk to, displays, for promoting events and for decoration.

Hi All Teachers and Teacher Librarians,

You are invited to register for the Jamie McKenzie Workshop at All Hallows’ School, Brisbane, on Saturday, 23rd January 2010 – Managing the Hands – On Laptop Classroom. This should be a very worthwhile professional development workshop with many schools moving to laptop/netbook classrooms. Details are below and at the following registration link –
http://tinyurl.com/ahsjamie

All Hallows’ teaching staff will be working with Jamie duriing the week.
Here is Jamie’s website http://fno.org/

While it is wise to consider the need and ways to protect privacy on the internet and to consider carefully what is published; on the other hand many seek to use the internet to reach more people.

What if you want more google fame for you and your edublog? Here are some ideas

• List your site URL at google webmaster https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools/home?hl=en and make a public profile here
• Google says a sitemap will promote its search results for a site – as yet I have not been able to work out how to do this with a free edublogs blog. There is a free sitemap generator http://www.xml-sitemaps.com/ here, which is easy to use, but I am still trying to work out the final stages of how to use this on google
• Try the ideas at google webmaster http://www.google.com/support/webmasters/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=35769
• Reply to other blogs, especially those that are high profile
• Promote your blog
• List your blog on technoratii and other blog directories; and also on social book marking sites like diigo and delicious
• Regularly update your blog to maintain reader interest and reply to comments

Sign up to http://www.slideshare.net/
Click the upload tab, and upload your powerpoint
Once uploaded, choose wordpress (for edublogs), copy the embed code, go to edublogs and your post, click html and paste