// Langwitches Blog

I have been blogging for over 4 years now. In my very first bog post (February 20, 2006), I wrote :
This Blog is an experiment. I am fascinated by the possibilities of blogging in the foreign language classroom. I will document what I have learned and hopefully inspire other language teacher to try their own [...]

I want to recommend a book today.
Curriculum 21
Edited by Heidi Hayes Jacobs. Contributing authors: Stephen Wilmarth, Vivien Stewart, Tim Tyson, Frank W. Baker, David Niguidula, Jamie P. Cloud, Alan November, Bill Sheskey, Arthur L. Costa and Bena Kallick.
I am usually a fast reader, but I have been taking my time with this book. [...]

image licensed under CC by Let Ideas Compete
An Odyssey is defined by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary as:
1 : a long wandering or voyage usually marked by many changes of fortune
2 : an intellectual or spiritual wandering or quest
I can’t help but make the association with the above definition of “wandering” ,”changes of fortune” and “quest” with [...]

I received a tweet from Michael Kaechele, Technology Teacher at Valleywood Middle School.

What an opportunity!
Michael and I set the Skype calls up for the following week. I had a meeting with our Judaica teachers to get them involved and Brian, the Social Studies teacher from Michigan, shared a Google Doc with the questions his students [...]

You are able to download the following images as pdf files now:

It’s not about the Tools…It’s about the Skills- Wikis
It’s not about the Tools…It’s about the Skills- Blogging
It’s not about the Tools…It’s about the Skills- Podcasting
It’s not about the Tools…It’s about the Skills- Digital Storytelling
It’s not about the Tools…It’s about the Skills- Video Conferencing
It’s not [...]

I have added a new visual to the “Skill Set” of ” It’s not about the Tools, it’s about the Skills“.
Digital Storytelling Skills

Brian’s TRT Blog picked up one of my blog posts from Educon’s session Taking.Play.Seriously. Brian has only a very short response to this:
So, would more play produce more creativity which would result in higher test scores? Hmmmm………
That “Hmmmm” sparked the following comment from me:
That is exactly what I am pondering as well. How can [...]

Science and history fairs have been held across the United States (and maybe other countries?) for years. Having grown up in Germany and Argentina, the first time I encountered these events was with my oldest daughter at her elementary school in the 1990s.  According to Wikipedia, Science fairs have been held across the USA since [...]

I am attending a 3 day workshop about Curriculum Mapping by Curriculum Designers (Resources) in Boca Raton, Florida.
Presenters are:

Heidi Hayes Jacobs
Ann Johnson
Earl Nicholas
Jeanne Tribuzzi.

Over the next few days, I am hoping to learn more about curriculum mapping and how to take it back to my school. I am need  help in facilitating and coaching [...]

Many times, I see eyes glazing over, when I excitedly speak with parents or administrators about blogging, skyping or podcasting with students. Many of them, unfamiliar with the tools, will immediately feel uncomfortable. Some will automatically and immediately steer the conversation back to what they know:
What about learning the basics, like reading, writing, math and [...]