The following email was sent to me from Jennifer Oxenford [jmacdoug@isc.upenn.edu]  This is a free video conference.

Schools around the globe are invited to join a new program being offered by The National Constitution Center called, "THE EXCHANGE: Should a year of national service be required for all Americans?" This program will be offered on March 18, 2010 from 12:30-1:30 PM EST. The Cost is FREE and the program is open to schools who have access to Internet2 connected networks and H.323 videoconferencing equipment. (Note - All ESU 10/11 schools are members of Internet2.)

If interested, please contact Jason Allen at either jallen@constitutioncenter.org or 215.409.6644 by Thursday, March 11th for registration and information.  Mandatory Internet2 testing for all sites will be on Friday March 12th.  Once you have confirmed that you have Internet2 capabilities please contact Jason Allen to reserve a testing time.

The National Constitution Center is excited to invite your school to participate in the 4th installment of the 2009 – 2010 season of its national student program, The Exchange: A Marketplace of Student Ideas.  This event will take place on Thursday, March 18, 2010 from 12:30 PM to 1:30 PM EST.  This installment of The Exchange, “Should a year of national service be required for all Americans?“ asks students to consider ways to connect national needs and the demands of responsible citizenship.  The discussion will be hosted by SuChin Pak from MTV and Discovery Channel’s Planet Green and moderated by Kermit Roosevelt, professor of law from the University of Pennsylvania School of Law.

Students will have the opportunity to be heard by and hear from other students around the country using Internet2 video conferencing technology.  It is an exciting way for students to discuss current constitutional and political issues with their classmates and peers in other parts of the nation.  

Schools that participate in The Exchange will be asked to use a free Town Hall Wall lesson-plan poster provided by the National Constitution Center to prepare their students to be part of the conversation.  

If your school chooses to participate in The Exchange, you will be asked to select one student to be part of the video conference round table.  Only one student, your school’s student representative, is allowed to speak to the national audience during the video conference.  If a student other than your student representative speaks without prior authorization, then your school will be disconnected form the video conference.

During the video conference, students will have an opportunity to interact with each other and share their thoughts on mandatory national service.  Students will use this deliberation to recommend a national service model that the government should implement.   

Participating schools must have connectivity to the INTERNET2 network and the ability to do H.323 videoconferencing.

While there is no cost to participate in this event, we do ask schools to work to make sure this event is a success. Participating schools will be responsible for the following:

• Participation and successful completion of videoconference testing prior to the event with the National Constitution Center;
• Selection of a student representative;
• Preparation of students through the use of the free Exchange Town Hall Wall lesson-plan poster and resources; and
• Completion of the nationwide Exchange Web Poll at www.constitutioncenter.org/exchange <http://www.constitutioncenter.org/exchange> .  

We hope you are able to participate in this remarkable opportunity.   

Skype, (the cross-platform video and audio program), Logitech (who manufacturers low priced video and audio hardware), and Lifesize (who was recently purchased by Logitech and provides an H.323 HD video conferencing tool) have plans that will allow video conferencing between these platforms.

Skype users enjoy the application cost (free) and the versatility of the application.  With this cross platform application having the ability to connect to the regular video conferencing equipment, we will soon have the ability to have a good quality connection across both major platforms at a low cost.

To read more about what is being said, go to http://www.thestandard.com/news/2010/01/11/skype-and-lifesize-may-have-hd-video-compatibility-soon

If interested, you can go to http://katyvc.pbworks.com/Snow-Partners and you will see multiple times for making such a connection.  If you are interested in this event, please email me as I need to set up your distance learning equipment in the CAPSpace database.  Also feel free to send questions you might have regarding this event. jstritt@esu10.org

Description: Student will share a snow-themed piece of literature and discuss what life is like in winter.
Dates: Jan. 26, 27, or 28  (multipe times to make connections)
Sign up method:Website http://katyvc.pbworks.com/Snow-Partners
K Subjects:  Language Arts/English, Science (Physical)
Outcomes:

1. Observe and identify patterns including seasons, growth, and day and night and predict what happens next.
2. Observe and record weather changes over seasons.
3. Compare changes in parts of trees through the seasons.
4. Ask questions about organisms, objects, and events.
5. Make connections to own experiences, to ideas in other texts and to the larger community and discuss textual evidence

Preparation Time Frame:
Preparation is minimal. Partners where is snows, may want time to take video and pictures.
Methods and Activities: Resources are online resources provided by Katy ISD facilitator. See wiki: http://katyvc.pbworks.com/Snow-PartnersResponsibilities:See agenda & wiki here:http://katyvc.pbworks.com/Snow-PartnersAgenda:
Session Agenda

1. Greetings from both schools
2. Share weather report from both schools
3. Shared literature
4. Snow Partners dress in snow gear (snow suit, boots, gloves, hat, scarf)
5. Discussion/Q&A about living in snow (Best part , Worst part, Special jobs (shoveling snow, breaking up ice in animal water holes), Safety rules)
6. Share excerpts from More Snow for Kids

Date and Time:  Tuesday, February 2, 2010.  9:30 AM

Description:  Dr. Marc Lamont Hill is one of the youngest members of the growing body of “Hip-Hop Intellectuals” in the country. His work, which covers topics such as hip-hop culture, politics, sexuality, education, and religion, has appeared in numerous journals, magazines, books, and anthologies. Dr. Hill has lectured widely and provides regular commentary for numerous radio, television and print media outlets such as The Baltimore Sun, Philadelphia Inquirer, Essence Magazine, Radio America, CNN,
MSNBC, and Fox News. His column, The Barbershop Notebooks, appears bi-monthly for PopMatters Magazine and his award-winning daily blog is updated on his website www.MarcLamontHill.com. In 2005, Ebony Magazine named him one of America's top 30 Black leaders under 30 years old. Dr. Hill is currently completing several book projects, including You Ain't Heard It From Me: Snitching, Rumors and the Politics of Other People's Business in Hip-Hop America; Vocab: Words and Phrases of the Hip-
Hop Nation; New Dilemmas of the Black Intellectual (edited with Gregory Seaton); and
Media, Learning, and Sites of Possibility (edited with Lalitha Vasudevan).

Registration:  To register for this video conference event, send an email to Mike Irwin (mirwin@durhammuseum.org), Durham Museum distance education director.  Limited number of sites for this presentation.

See attachment for additional information.

Date and Time:  Tuesday, March 2, 2010.  9:30 AM

Description:   
The journey for entrepreneur, attorney and author, Marshawn Evans, J.D., stretches from being labeled a problem-child to becoming one of Glamour Magazine’s and USA Today’s top women in America.  Now
known to audiences as “Miss Peak Performance,” Marshawn has used her story to speak words of empowerment across the nation and on such leading media outlets as ABC, VH1, CNBC and PBS.  As President and Chief Branding Officer of EDGE 3M, a media, marketing and
management firm for celebrities and professional athletes, she represents some of the nation’s top personalities in entertainment, the NFL and NBA.  With her savvy business brawn, Marshawn attracted
the attention of real-estate tycoon Donald Trump whom handpicked her as a cast member on NBC’s popular show The Apprentice, and enabled her to lead Trump’s all-women team to their only victory as the project manager.  She has worked on televised promotional projects and marketing campaigns for companies such as Sony Pictures, Lucas Films, Lamborghini, Bally Total Fitness, The Learning Annex, and
Dairy Queen.

Registration:  To register for this video conference event, send an email to Mike Irwin (mirwin@durhammuseum.org), Durham Museum distance education director.  Limited number of sites for this presentation.

Click here to download a pdf file about the event.

Date and Time: 

• January 15, 2010 - 12:15 PM - 1:45 PM
• January 21, 2010 - 12:30 PM - 1:30 PM

Description:  The highly physical, wildly theatrical and thoroughly entertaining sonically driven music is sure to have you in awe. ScrapArtsMusic excites the senses with its intricate rhythms, raw energy, athletic choreography and the most inventive use of recycling today! Using scrap and offbeat materials from accordion parts to artillery shells, these one-of-a-kind instruments are as striking as their music is riveting. Interact with the musicians; learn how they make their instruments; hear them play; and share a project of your own school that exemplifies how you have recycled materials. Learn more about the musicians and their earth-friendly mission at http://www.scrapartsmusic.com. Cost for the program is FREE

Target Audiience - Grades 5-12

More information including how to register, go to http://www.cilc.org/search/content-provider-program.aspx?id=2979 (go to the bottom of the page for registration information).

Date:  December 1, 2009
Time:  10 a.m. to 11 a.m. CT and 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. CT
Grade Level:  5-12
Program Description:
Engaging directly with art on display in the Portfolio Gallery’s current exhibition “Still All Over the Place” featuring works by artist Lonnie Powell, participating students will be invited to experience what it means to create an art exhibition.  How are works chosen for the exhibition?  How is location determined for works to be placed in the exhibition space?  How is the exhibition organized to give the viewer a better sense of the artist’s concepts, themes, inspiration, etc?  How does the way works of art are exhibited affect the viewer’s experience of them?  
We’ll explore these questions and more as students ask questions of artist Lonnie Powell and the gallery’s owner and curator.  Mr. Powell paints both portraits and landscapes in various media including watercolor, oil, charcoals, and pastels.  Students will learn about the central themes of the exhibition, see selected works, and view video of the exhibition being put up, video of the exhibition’s opening night and reactions from patrons at opening night.
About the Exhibition and Portfolio Gallery:
More information about Mr. Powell’s exhibition, some images of Mr. Powell’s paintings, and details about the mission and artistic and educational programs of Portfolio Gallery can be found at the Portfolio Gallery website, http://www.portfoliogallerystl.org/.

More details about the interactive program, including format, learning activities and related curriculum standards can be found at http://www.cilc.org/search/content-provider-program.aspx?id=2920.


Portfolio Gallery:  In-Depth with Artist Lonnie Powell
Date:  December 3, 2009
Time:  10 a.m. to 11 a.m. CT and 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. CT
Grade Level:  5-12
Program Description:
Engaging directly with art on display in the Portfolio Gallery’s current exhibition “Still All Over the Place” featuringworks by artist Lonnie Powell, participating students will interact with the artist as he shares examples of his work. Mr. Powell paints both portraits and landscapes in various media including watercolor, oil, charcoals, and pastels.Students will explore individual paintings.  They will interact with the artist to discuss what inspires him, the variety of his subject matter, the techniqueshe uses, and his creative process. Selected students from each interactive location will also be able to share an example of their work and information about their inspiration and creative process for discussion with, and feedback from, Mr. Powell.
About the Exhibition and Portfolio Gallery:
More information about Mr. Powell’s exhibition, some images of Mr. Powell’s paintings, and details about the mission and artistic and educational programs of Portfolio Gallery can be found at the Portfolio Gallery website, http://www.portfoliogallerystl.org/.

Are your students ready to STAND UP, SPEAK OUT and LEND A HAND against extremism and hunger?

TARGET AUDIENCE: Grades 7-12
Program Cost: - Free
REGISTRATION DEADLINE: November 24, 2009
PROGRAM DESCRIPTION:

In the winter of 1945, on the day of her liberation from six years of Nazi rule, Gerda Weissmann clung to life at the end of a 350-mile death march. She weighed 68 pounds, her hair had turned white, and she had not had a bath in three years. She survived with courage, grace and dignity.

Gerda Weissmann Klein, renowned motivational speaker and Holocaust survivor, teaches each one of us about tolerance, understanding and making a difference. Gerda Klein’s spirit helped her survive six years under Nazi rule; through her story, and her unique perspective, she continues to help each one of us to understand the dangers of hate and extremism.

Students involved in STAND UP. SPEAK OUT. LEND A HAND will hear from Gerda during a special interactive videoconference event and then embark upon their own service learning projects. Each participating school will be tasked with designing and implementing a service learning project that combats social issues in their community.

In order to maintain an on-going dialogue over the course of the project, each class will create a wiki page and posting bi-weekly updates on their projects. Once a month, schools will be assigned a partner class who will review and comment on their wiki page (and vice versa).  Students will then reconvene via videoconference to share their service learning projects with the Klein Foundation during a celebratory "Project Collaboration Videoconference" in March. We will break schools into smaller groups for project sharing to encourage dialogue among students!

It's a three-month service learning challenge. Are your students ready to STAND UP, SPEAK OUT, and LEND A HAND against extremism and hunger?

MAGPI is pleased to partner with The Gerda and Kurt Klein Foundation to bring you this program

PROJECT TIMELINE:

• You are the Messengers to a Time I Will Not See:
• A Conversation with Gerda Weissmann Klein Videoconference

December 10, 2009 * 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. ET

• Supporting Your Students in their Service Learning ProjectsTeacher Workshop Videoconference

January 21, 2010 * 3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. ET

• Student Service Learning Projects

December – March

• Service Project CelebrationStudent Sharing Videoconference Event

March 24, 2010 * 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

• Students/Classes will be assigned to a 50 minute interactive period during this time.

For additional information including dates and how to register,
http://www.magpi.net/Community/Programs/Stand-Speak-Out-Lend-Hand

As most of our schools have video conferencing technology available for both high school and elementary classrooms, I will be using this forum to share about upcoming opportunities.

Almost daily I receive emails about upcoming events.  Some are free while others have a participation fee. 

Because you receive this notice, I would ask that you share about these opportunities with staff members at your school.  If they need assistance in setting up their technology, please share my email address.

Also I believe you have rights to publish your own posts which would allow you to share enrichment events you have participated in.  Your experiences - both good and not so good - will provide others ideas for both "sit and get" and collaborative events.

Last year, Spanish classes at Loup City and Palmer Public Schools participated in an enrichment event entitled Day of the Dead.  This event was sponsored by an ESU in Texas.

Both teachers felt it was a good experience and wanted to do a similar activity in Nebraska.  

In support of these schools, ESU 10 will provide video conferencing support for the Day of the Dead activity which will be held on Thursday, October 29.  There will be several sessions held during the day for schools who wish to participate by sharing their memorials or just wanting to view the event.  

To learn more about the event, please go to http://blog.esu10.org/jstritt/67


--
John Stritt
ESU 10 Distance Education Director
jstritt@esu10.org
Phone: 308-865-5664 Ext 281
Fax: 308-233-9069
POB 850
Kearney NE  68845