Leona, the lovable cub from the Emmy® award-winning PBS KIDS® television series BETWEEN THE LIONS, will meet and greet new friends on Saturday, March 6th at the Children’s Museum of Richmond.  Leona is the four-year-old in the family of lions who run a library like no other library on earth!  It is a magical place where children learn to read.  While Leona is not reading yet, she loves to get her paws on a good book.  She especially enjoys being read to by her parents, Theo and Cleo, and her older brother, Lionel.

BETWEEN THE LIONS is a multimedia educational initiative created to help children ages 3-7 acquire beginning reading skills and a love of reading. It is built around a curriculum that incorporates the most recent scientific research in literacy instruction.   Each episode features an engaging variety of animation, puppetry, live action, and music. The series is part of PBS KIDS Raising Readers, a national reading initiative focused on helping children ages 2-8 build their reading skills – especially those from low-income families BETWEEN THE LIONS airs weekdays on WCVE at 2PM and on WCVW at 6AM.

There will be story reading, BETWEEN THE LIONS videos, and children’s activities at the Children’s Museum of Richmond.  For more information, call the museum at 474-7070.

Leona would love to meet you.  Won’t you join Leona and your friends from WCVE at the Children’s Museum on Saturday, March 6th?

Even old man winter couldn’t dampen the enthusiasm at EdTech 2010!  Despite the not-so-perfect weather conditions, almost 500 educators braved the snow and blistery temperatures to attend WCVE Education’s annual technology conference…and everyone came home a winner!

Attendees left the two-day conference eager to share all they had learned with their colleagues.  The wide range of technologies demonstrated during the various workshop sessions are a valuable resource for teachers, library media specialists and administrators – and can easily be incorporated into any classroom curriculum.

Additionally, several lucky participants were awarded door prizes donated by several of the vendors.  Congratulations to…

• Linda C. – Huguenot High School, Richmond City
• Valerie T. – Pocahontas Middle School, Powhatan County
• Lori L. – Patrick Copeland Elementary School, Hopewell City
• Judy B. – Hybla Valley Elementary School, Fairfax County
• Laura J. – McNair Elementary School, Fairfax County
• Angela N. – Pocahontas Elementary School, Powhatan County

Thanks to everyone for their continued support of EdTech – making it another successful event!  See you in 2011!

Good news! Because the snow may have put a damper on story submissions for the PBS KIDS GO! Writers Contest, we have extended the deadlines for both WCVE and WHTJ.  The new deadlines are March 3rd (for WHTJ) and March 19th (for WCVE.)

So put on your thinking caps and send us your original stories!  It’s not too late!

Rules and entry forms for WCVE and WHTJ can be found on their respective websites.

WCVE Education faces the same economic challenges as everyone, and is not immune to budget cuts.  For this reason, it has become necessary to end the ITV broadcast schedule earlier than anticipated.  Please note the last day of ITV broadcasts for the 2009-2010 school year is now March 12, 2010.

In the meantime, be sure to check out Classroom Clips, WCVE Education’s video streaming site.  This on-demand media is designed to support students’ instructional needs, and can be streamed or downloaded.  Available to educators free of charge, the wide range of educational content – including topics such as history, government, science, and art – is correlated to Virginia’s SOL and is a perfect complement to the classroom curriculum.

For questions about Classroom Clips, contact Stewart Smith at 804-560-8138 or ssmith@ideastations.org.

Calling all educators and those interested in teaching and learning! This professional development conference brings together the world’s best thinkers, practitioners, and more than 8,500 educators to share their passion for teaching and learning.

This two-day experience for educators happens March 5-6, 2010 at the Hilton New York in New York City.  Full line-up, sign-up for email updates, and details can be found at ThirteenCelebration.org.

The PBS KIDS GO! Writers Contest is now underway!  Kids in grades K-3 are encouraged to put on their thinking caps and put pen to paper.  WCVE PBS and WHTJ PBS are looking for original works…written and illustrated by the entrant.

Stories can be fact or fiction, prose or poetry – and each grade level will be judged separately.  Because the goal of the contest is to encourage, challenge and reward effort, every child who submits an original story will be recognized for their participation with a Certificate of Appreciation.

Rules and entry forms for the WHTJ PBS contest can be found at the WHTJ website.  All entries must be received by February 26, 2010.

WCVE PBS contest rules and entry forms are available at the Community Idea Stations website.  The deadline is March 12, 2010.

Tell us…What story ideas do your young writers have?

In 2010, CLIFFORD will celebrate ten years on PBS.  To commemorate this special occasion,  PBS KIDS® and Scholastic Media have selected Monday, January 18, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service,  to begin their Be Big With Clifford: Ten Days, Ten Ways event.  This celebration will showcase, over a 10 day period, Clifford’s ten BIG IDEAS, highlighting key life lessons that will help children learn social and character building skills.   Clifford’s mission is to “invite everyone, big and small, to take action and raise awareness for how his BIG IDEAS can make the world a better place.”

The BIG IDEAS featured each day are:

January 18 – Help Others
January 19 – Have Respect
January 20 – Work Together
January 21 – Be Kind
January 22 – Be Truthful
January 25 – Believe In Yourself
January 26 – Play Fair
January 27 – Be a Good Friend
January 28 – Share
January 29 – Be Responsible

To make this celebration even more special, the Community Idea Stations is partnering with The Great Big Greenhouse to bring everyone’s favorite dog, Clifford, for a visit.  He will be at The Great Big Greenhouse on Saturday, January 23 to meet and greet his fans.  Appearance times are 10 a.m., 11 a.m., 12 Noon, 1 p.m., 2 p.m., and 3 p.m.  There will be children’s activities and a book give-away, while supplies last.  Plan to join us for a day of fun with the “Kids Day in the Garden”.

Tell us…What can you do to make the world a better place?

ATTENTION! Teachers, library media specialists, ITRT’s and administrators…time is running out! Don’t miss the opportunity to discover new and exciting ways to bring technology into your classrooms!

Register for EdTech 2010 is just a click away! Several exciting sessions are planned, including Join the Pod: An Introduction to Podcasting for Educators, Learning with New Discovery Education Streaming, Math Lessons: Make Them Futuristic, Fantastic and Fun and Role of an Administrator in 21st Century Skills Implementation. Please check our website to see the preliminary schedule.

This is one conference you won’t want to miss! Register now!

Comment below to share your Ed Tech experiences with us.

A magnificent trading vessel embarks on a royal expedition to a mysterious, treasure-laden land called Punt. Is this journey, intricately depicted on the wall of one of Egypt’s most impressive temples, mere myth — or was it real? NOVA travels to the legendary temple, built some 3,500 years ago for the celebrated female pharaoh Hatshepsut, in search of answers to this tantalizing archeological mystery.

Teacher resources may be found at the NOVA website.

1 hour
Airs: January 12 at 8 pm (23/41)
SOLs: History- WHI.3

Share your knowledge…How have you used NOVA in your classroom?

When the ancients peered into the night sky they were fascinated by the celestial bodies…yet, they could only wonder about the world beyond. Today, we have the ability to land men on the moon and launch a space-based telescope that can capture images from the far reaches of our universe.

CORE ASTRONOMY examines the key points in the development of astronomy — beginning with Greek astronomer Ptolemy’s earth-centered paradigm to Copernicus’ introduction of a sun-centered solar system and Newton’s three laws of motion.  Quasars, white dwarfs, neutron stars, pulsars and black holes are just a few of the celestial topics featured on this program.

CORE ASTRONOMY will be broadcast February 3, 2010 from 4:50 to 5:30 am.  It is also supported by teacher resources including a teacher’s guide, a timeline and a blackline master quiz.

Since ITV programming will end on March 12, educators should plan to record this informative program for future use in the classroom.

Science SOL:  PS.10, ES.2, ES.3, ES.4, ES.11, ES.12, ES.13, ES.14, PH.5, PH.12, PH.14

Tell us. . .What celestial events have you witnessed?

No science is more at the core of every technology than chemistry. It supports the seven billion people living on the planet in myriads of ways. Chemistry is at the base of the foods, medicines, fuels and materials that are the hallmarks of modern life. CORE CHEMISTRY shows how man’s understanding of physical chemistry, organic chemistry and biochemistry has improved over time with each new experiment and observation. From ancient metallurgy to the modern discovery of biocatalysts, science has come to have a clearer understanding of the principles and laws of chemical interactions.

CORE CHEMISTRY is a new instructional program on the ITV lineup and will be broadcast January 28, 2010 from 4:30 to 5:00 am. It is also supported by teacher resources including a teacher’s guide, blackline master quiz, and a timeline.

Since ITV programming will end early this year on March 12, educators may want to record this informative program for use in the classroom.

Science SOL: PS.2, PS.3, PS.4, PS.11, CH.2

Tell us what you think…How can you use CORE CHEMISTRY in your classroom?

PBS Parents offers a unique blog under their “Issues and Advice” tab.  If you have questions or concerns about various parenting matters, this can be the place to find advice and discover answers.  Each month, you’ll have the opportunity to get answers straight from early childhood experts.  The topics cover a wide range of parenting concerns. You will also be able to share your own experiences with other parents.

December’s blog feature is How Parents Can Simplify the Holidays, and is geared for grades PreK-2.   Katrina Kenison, author of “Mitten Strings for God: Reflections for Mothers in a Hurry”, is leading a discussion about how families can turn the holidays into an opportunity for connection, rather than a series of obligations.
Check it out at http://www.pbs.org/parents/experts/.

Join the conversation.  How do you simplify the holidays?

The name may have changed, but it’s still the same great contest!  The PBS KIDS GO! Writers Contest begins January 2010, and will carry on the tradition that began over 15 years ago with the READING RAINBOW Young Writers and Illustrators Contest.

Since the only thing better than reading a good story is writing one, WCVE PBS and WHTJ PBS are looking for your original stories.  Open to kids in grades K-3, each entry must be an original work – written and illustrated by the entrant.  Stories can be fact or fiction, prose or poetry – and each grade level will be judged separately.  Because the goal of the contest is to encourage, challenge and reward effort, every child who submits an original story will be recognized for their participation with a Certificate of Appreciation.

Rules and entry forms will be available at ideastations.org/writerscontest  by January 29, 2010.

Who knows?  There could be a future Caldecott or Newbery award-winning author or illustrator in your home or school division!

Let us know…do you have a budding author at your house?

WCVE Education is continuing to develop and acquire educational content for Classroom Clips. You can help us evaluate this content, as well as share your lesson ideas, by using two Classroom Clips features. For each clip, there is a five star rating system located to the right of the media player. Select 1 (Poor) to 5 (Perfect) stars  depending on how useful you found the media. Over time, as clips are rated again and again, the average score will better help us and other users determine the instructional value of a clip. Additionally, we want you to share how the clips can be used in a unit or lesson by filling out the comment form found below each clip. What a great  way to share the many terrific strategies for using  media in the classroom!

Tell us what you think…Go to Classroom Clips to preview and rate a clip today.

NOVA: The Spy Factory—For the first time on television, NOVA exposes the hidden world of high-tech, 21st-century eavesdropping carried out by the National Security Agency (NSA).  Today, the NSA is the world’s largest intelligence agency, three times the size of the CIA and far more secret. Its mission is to eavesdrop on the world — from cell phones in Europe to pay phones in Afghanistan to email messages from Pakistan to Baghdad. But since 9/11, it also has turned its giant ear inward, listening in without warrant on thousands of American citizens, many of whom are on the government’s secret watch list, now more than half-a-million names long. Based on the latest best-seller by journalist James Bamford, “The Spy Factory” is a gripping investigation of the NSA, from its tragic failures leading up to the 9/11 attacks to its secret listening rooms currently installed in the nation’s telecom facilities. Teacher resources may be found at the NOVA website.

1 hour in length
Airs: December 15 at 7 pm (23/41)

What do you think? How can NOVA reinforce teaching in your classroom?

PBS Teachers is hosting a free webinar for educators on Tuesday, November 17 at 8:00 p.m. (ET) about Helping Kids Understand Viruses and Vaccinations with SID THE SCIENCE KID.  Webinar participants will learn strategies and resources they can immediately use in the classroom to teach students about the critical topic of viruses, how vaccinations work if their families choose to get them, and how to stay healthy. The featured speakers are Dr. Cyrus Rangan, from the L.A. County Health Department, and early childhood education expert Moisés Román. They served as advisors for a special new episode of SID THE SCIENCE KID that focuses on the science behind germs, viruses and vaccines using age-appropriate vocabulary and concepts.

Educators play an important role in helping students stay healthy during the cold and flu season. The new SID THE SCIENCE KID episode, “Getting a Shot: You Can Do It!,” provides teachers and childcare providers with a way to teach science concepts while providing helpful resources for answering questions children may have about getting sick, why their parents want them to get a flu shot, and what they can do to stay healthy.  For more information, visit www.pbs.org/teachers/webinar.

Professional Development and Teaching Resources for Educators
In addition to the webinar, PBS Teachers offers the PBS Teachers Healthy Choices Activity Pack that provides resources and lesson plans on health-related decisions and a PBS Teachers Disease and Prevention Resource Roundup that includes a summary of related on-air and online resources.

On November 16, just in time for the indulgent holiday season, PBS KIDS GO! and Boston creative group CloudKid, invite early elementary school kids to join the hilarious animated adventures of Professor Fizzy and friends in FIZZY’S LUNCH LAB as they prepare tasty snacks, investigate the difference between good and bad food, and learn what happens once the food you eat goes into your body. Funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the immersive, comprehensive FIZZY’S LUNCH LAB experience features funny characters in a variety of short video segments and interactive games, and is designed to bring kids and parents together to help plan meals, make snacks, and team up to make healthier eating choices for the entire family. The site will also feature extensive resources on PBS Teachers.

You may read the entire release by visiting the PBS News website.

Competition plus engineering equals fun!  That’s the idea behind PBS’s engineering reality competition series DESIGN SQUAD, geared toward students in grades 4-7.

DESIGN SQUAD pits two teams of high school kids against each other to design, construct, and test engineering projects using their problem-solving skills…and gets kids and teens thinking like engineers and shows them that engineering is fun, creative, exciting, and something they can do themselves.  DESIGN SQUAD airs Tuesdays from 5:00-6:00 a.m. through February 4, 2010.

Now the series has a new teacher’s guide…and it’s FREE!  Check it out!  Developed for middle school science and technology teachers, DESIGN SQUAD’s latest guide blends hands-on engineering challenges with three core science concepts:

• Force: students build their own blimps
• Electricity: students design electronic games
• Sound: students make and play instruments

The challenges illustrated in the teacher’s guide use low cost, readily available materials, and are linked to national science and technology standards.  The series is also correlated to Virginia’s SOL – Science: 5.2, 5.4, 6.1, 6.2, 6.4, PS.1, PS.6, PS.10, PS.11, PH.1, PH.2, PH.3, PH.4, PH.5, PH.8, PH.13.

Order your free copy of the DESIGN SQUAD teacher’s guide here. Teacher resources, including activities, are available online.

Additional classroom resources from DESIGN SQUAD can be found at Teachers’ Domain.

The EdTech planning committee is excited to announce the keynote speakers for Ed Tech 2010 which will be held at Randolph Macon College in Ashland, Virginia.

The first day, February 3, will feature Dr. Tim Tyson (pictured left), who was named one of Georgia’s High Performance Principals by State Governor Sonny Perdue. A former principal at Mabry Middle School in Cobb County, Georgia, Dr. Tyson has been referred to as the “Pied Piper of Educational Technology” by The School Library Journal. His innovative use of technology to maximize student achievement has been featured in a variety of national education magazines.

Dr. Edward Berger (pictured right), current Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Virginia, will speak on February 4. He has authored over 25 technical publications, and secured research funding from the National Science Foundation, Air Force Office of Scientific Research, and Sandia National Laboratory. His present technical research focuses on nanoscale material characterization and atomic force microscopy, while his educational interests include instructional design using technology – especially tablet PC’s and podcasting.

You can learn more about attending Ed Tech at  the WCVE Education website, or to register directly, visit the Ed Tech 2010 online registration form.

Marking the 50th anniversary of the reopening of public schools in Virginia and the historic 1959 fall of Massive Resistance, the Community Idea Stations, in partnership with the University of Virginia Center for Politics, has produced a special one hour documentary. This film profiles the tragedies and triumphs of the children of Virginia who found themselves on the front lines of cultural war that desegregated Virginia Public schools and forever altered American history.

1 hour
Airs: November 16 at 9 pm (23/41)
SOLs: History-VS.9

We want your opinion on Locked Out: The Fall of Massive Resistance. Use the comment section below to tell us what you think.