Training Opportunities

We are all looking for opportunities to expand our knowledge and skills. Here are some training opportunities that you may want to consider as you plan for your own professional development.

 Orientation and Information

Library Media Specialists and ITRTs are invited to join the WVPT Education Services Department for a morning of orientation and information on September 30, 9:00 a.m. to noon, at WVPT in Harrisonburg, Virginia. This event is designed to provide Library Media Specialists and ITRTs with an overview of the education services provided to their schools by WVPT– Virginia’s Public Television. Samples of topics to be covered are: instructional programs and online resources, professional development workshops, and copyright regulations. A tour of the wvpt4learning.org website will be included in the presentation.

To register for this event, e-mail Kathryn Staton at kstaton@wvpt.net or Bly Brown at bbrown@wvpt.net.

Friday Afternoon Tech Teasers

Spend a Friday afternoon each month getting acquainted or reacquainted with some technology applications and hardware that will enhance instruction in the classroom. The following sessions have been scheduled in the WVPT Training Room from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. Each session is limited to 10 participants. To register, click on the link beneath each session to complete the online registration form.

Please bring a wireless laptop to participate in this session. 

 

Share the Skies

In December 2007, the Virginia Department of Education officially launched the Share the Skies telescope project. Share the Skies is the nation’s first statewide initiative that enables students and teachers to study astronomy in real time during the daytime without leaving the classroom. This innovative project was developed by the Virginia Department of Education, New Mexico Skies, Software Bisque, and Virginia Tech’s Institute for Connecting Science Research to the Classroom. It enables Virginia students to access and control research-grade telescopes to explore Australia’s night skies via the Internet. Students use CCD (charge-coupled device) imaging techniques to capture digital images of deep space for further study. 

WVPT is offering workshops, both at the station in Harrisonburg and at local school division sites upon request, to deliver training in the use of the telescope. Upon completion of the training, participants will receive accounts that will enable them to schedule time and to use the telescope to support classroom instruction. The workshop will also introduce educators to other resources that will support the study of astronomy.

For further information about the project, to register to attend a scheduled workshop, or to schedule a local school division workshop, contact Linda Holt at lholt@wvpt.net or by calling   (540) 437-2463  .

Scheduled Workshops:

  • September 30, 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 pm: A Morning of Orientation and Information (Preregistration required)
  • October 8, 4:00-6:00 pm: Discovery Education Meet and Greet at Panera’s Bread, Harrisonburg, VA (Preregistration preferred)
  • October 21: Thinkfinity Field Trainer Workshop, 9:00-4:00 pm, Rockingham Training Lab, 100 Mount Clinton Pike, Harrisonburg, VA (Preregistration required)
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2 Responses to “Training Opportunities”

  1.   Butch Kitts Says:
    April 23rd, 2008 at 8:24 am

    Linda
    Congrats on new position – can you give me an example how the palm would be used by a teacher at the high school level?
    PS – I am the ITS at E C Glass HS, Lynchburg

  2.   lholt Says:
    April 23rd, 2008 at 8:44 am

    Thanks for the congrats. I’m loving the new job.

    To answer your question about the palm, I want to suggest that you consider the Palm to be not just an organization tool but also a computer and media player.

    Using applications like Documents to Go and a myriad of other free and shareware applications, students can create documents, spreadsheets, etc. on the Palm. Adding a wireless keyboard, makes the use of the Palm as a word processor a low cost solution to one-to-one computing.

    Because of its size and viewability in outdoor conditions, the Palm is also a great tool for allowing students to collect data, capture notes, etc. on field trips or during outdoor science activities.

    Podcasts and videos can be viewed on the Palm. In fact, the Palm will do what iPODs and other multimedia players do. You can create audio or video lessons for students to listen to and view. Or better yet, have your students create those as a multimedia project and use the Palm as a way to share that content.

    Probeware and scientific and graphing calculators are also available for the Palm.

    I think it can be a tool used by students in every curriculum area.

    As time allows, I will be sharing some ideas, resources, etc. related to the use of the Palm on my blog. So subscribe to updates for more information.

    And please share your own ideas for using the Palm at this level.

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