Wooing Wed Widing Hood Unveiled

Miss Fecko’s 3rd grade class at Avon Heritage South Elementary School had the opportunity to see a preview of Oberlin High School’s Drama Department’s presentation of Wooing Wed Widing Hood Unveiled during their dress rehearsal. The Oberlin students performed selected scenes of their play and asked the Avon students to identify the events and meaning of the scenes and compare them to Folk Tale Little Red Ridding Hood. Next week the Avon Students will follow up this activity by creating fan mail for the performers to share over the videoconferencing system.

Oberlin High Schools Drama Department offers a children’s theater performance every year. Their performance of Wooing Wed Widing Hood will be on January 14th at 2:00pm at Oberlin High School Auditorium. Going by what I saw in the dress rehearsal this looks to be a great performance. The Drama class will also make a visit to the elementary schools in their district.

Thanks again Mrs. Price and the Students of Oberlin High School

Avon HS Art Students learn how to sand cast

Mrs. Petrulis’ High School art students met with their partner class at Amherst Middle School to learn how to sand cast. Being that sand casting is a messing project, takes time to complete and Amherst has carpet in their distance learning lab, the project could not be done online. To help the students of Avon understand the project and to see the steps to completing sand casts Mrs. Morris videotaped her advanced class. The video was edited by their districts video department and was played through the VCR to the students at Avon HS.

This format allowed students to ask questions and get feed back from the Amherst Jr. students on the project. The students enjoyed the interaction and the opportunity to ask someone that had already completed the project. Avon HS Art Students will follow up this activity in a couple of days to show off their projects in a virtual show and tell conference.

Thanks again Miss Morris and her class at Amherst Junior High!

Miss Lavelle’s Class Dreams of Snow with the Columbiana ESC

Miss Lavelle’s second grade class at Avon East Elementary School had the opportunity to share Eric Carle’s story Dream Snow. Using the document camera Mrs. Straub from the UNITE Consortium read the story to the students giving the program a reading rainbow type effect to the story. The students used clues from the story and the shape of the figure to guess which farm animal was coved by snow. Once the guesses were made the students voted on the most likely animal.

After the story Mrs. Straub demonstrated how do make hidden pictures like the images in the story. The students will make the pictures back in their rooms to share with each other. Mrs. Straub did a great job sharing the story and interacting with the students.

Thanks again Columbiana ESC :)

LCDLC Updates and Opportunities for January 9, 2006

Don’t miss out on these GREAT videoconferencing opportunities!!!

1) TOWN HALL SPEAKER SERIES PRESENTS: T.R. REID, THE UNITED STATES OF EUROPE AND THE END OF AMERICAN SUPREMACY
2) HEARTS FOR A SAFE HARBOR, THE PLIGHT OF VULNERABLE CHILDREN IN NORTHERN UGANDA
3) MYSTERYQUEST WORLD GEOGRAPHY
4) TECHNOLOGY TOOLBOX: WHAT IS A BLOG AND HOW CAN THEY HLP IMPROVE STUDENT LEARNING
5) GREAT OPPORTUNITIES FOR TEACHERS
6) FAMILY CONSUMER SCIENCE TEACER MEETINGS OVER IVDL
7) NEW PROGRAMS FROM THE MUSKINGUM VALLEY ESC
________________________________________________________________________

1) TOWN HALL SPEAKER SERIES PRESENTS: T.R. REID, THE UNITED STATES OF EUROPE AND THE END OF AMERICAN SUPREMACY


WVIZ/PBS and NOTA in conjunction with the Town Hall of Cleveland will be presenting an hour with NBC Washington Post columnist T. R. Reid on Monday, January 23 from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m. Plan to have your students meet with the Mr. Reid via the NOTA and/or ATM distance learning networks. Students of the Town Hall Youth Council will host the program.

If you are interested in your students participating in this program contact John Ramicone at 216-739-3940 or jramicone@wviz.org by January 18th to reserve a NOTA or ATM connection slot. Based upon the number of schools participating an email address and/or dial-in phone number/will be available during the program for your students to ask questions of Ms. O’Donnell.



Careers in Criminal Science Investigation 1/12/06
Careers Exploration Program: Careers in Pharmacy 1/26/06

<> <>
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2) HEARTS FOR A SAFE HARBOR, THE PLIGHT OF VULNERABLE CHILDREN IN NORTHERN UGANDA

Reminder that Julie Maruskin's Hearts for Safe Harbor presentation is January 19th at 8:30. Julie will share about her time in Gulu, Uganda.

Please let me know if you are interested in either presentation.

Thanks
Katrina

Katrina Dieringer M.Ed.
Distance Learning Consultant
Cell 216.346.2651
<>

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3) MYSTERYQUEST WORLD GEOGRAPHY

Berrien County ISD is offering a middle school geography projectvideoconference to schools around the country. The only costto participate is the line fees for you to dial in. Read on for details.Technical Info: We can connect IP or ISDN.MysteryQuestThis project is designed for middle school students studying worldgeography. Through video conference technology, students are able tomeet other students while learning about cities and countries in the world.The following areas of the world are featured:AfricaWestern HemispherePreparationPrior to the video conference each classroom will create a presentationwith clues about their ONE mystery country and city. The other classrooms,using maps, the Internet, textbooks, and other resources, will try todiscover the mystery location presented by each participating classrooms.Six classrooms connect at a time for this project.WebsiteSee http://www.remc11.k12.mi.us/dl/MysteryQuest/ for more details,including an agenda.This project is FREE and best for one classroom per connecting site.We welcome multiple schools/classrooms dialing in on one line!FlyerIf you'd like to print a one page flyer to share with your teachers,visit the web site: http://www.remc11.k12.mi.us/dl/MysteryQuest/Topics & Dates:Visit this page for the latest availability...http://www.remc11.k12.mi.us/dl/MysteryQuest/classrooms.htmlRegister for the project ASAP!Teachers need to start preparing their presentations!Register online: http://www.remc11.k12.mi.us/dl/MysteryQuest/First click on Classrooms & Dates and make sure your preferredtime slot is still open. Then click on Contact & Registration to fill out theonline registration form.Looking forward to a few more schools joining us!Janine LimInstructional Technology ConsultantBerrien County ISD711 St. Joseph Ave.Berrien Springs, MI 49103jlim@remc11.k12.mi.usPh: (269) 471-7725x101Fax: (269) 471-1221Web: http://www.remc11.k12.mi.us/dlBlog: http://bcisdvcs.blogspot.com/TWICE Read Across America Coordinator 2006http://www.twice.cc/read/------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4) TECHNOLOGY TOOLBOX: WHAT IS A BLOG AND HOW CAN THEY HLP IMPROVE STUDENT LEARNING

You have heard the term, seen them in the news, but what is a Blog?

Join Paul Hieronymus and Bridget Ereditario from Avon Heritage South Elementary School on a virtual tour of Blogs. Thursday January 12, at 3:30 on Ohio’s ATM video network Paul and Bridget will share the many ways that Blogs can be used for parent communication, to enhance class projects, to create web based distance learning applications and to enhance written expression. They will walk teachers through the creation of a Blog and how easily they can be maintained. Bridget will show her students Blogs and discuss the advantages they have had on Language Arts Classes. We look forward to seeing you online!

This program is free, but we will limit this program to 10 interactive schools. To sign up for this program contact Paul Hieronymus via email. HieronymusP@avon.k12.oh.us


Paul HieronymusCurriculum Technology CoordinatorAvon Local Schools3075 Stoney Ridge RoadAvon, Ohio 44011Phiero@leeca.org(440) 829-8273ISDN: 614.722.0019IP: 66.144.122.221www.avon.k12.oh.us/distancelearning
Educational ConsultantLorain County Distance Learning Consortium1885 Lake AvenueElyria, Ohio 44035Office: 440.324.5777 ext 104Cell: 440.829.8273ISDN: 614.722.0051IP: 156.63.190.212http://www.lcdlc.org/
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
5) GREAT OPPORTUNITIES FOR TEACHERS

Please open these attachments for some great opportunities for teachers in your district. We are looking for some great high school educators to participate in our Creative Career Series with The WWestern Reserve Historical Society, The Cleveland Museum of Art and The Cleveland Institute of Music.

Our 1945 grant-funded project is also a unique opportunity for teachers to co-develop lessons with our content providers.

Sandy Kreisman, Community Education skreisman@universitycircle.org University Circle Interactive Cleveland 10831 Magnolia Ave. Cleveland, Ohio 44106 (216) 707-5021 office phone(216) 791-3935 fax (330) 221-0421 cell
Learn more about distance learning at http://www.ucicdl.org/

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6) FAMILY CONSUMER SCIENCE TEACER MEETINGS OVER IVDL

The Family and Consumer Science Teachers across the state are starting to schedule some of their state-wide meetings via videoconferencing. In an effort to reach as many FCS folks as they can I have been asked to use our listserv to spread the word. I am requesting that you pass this information along to your district contacts and ask them to distribute to the intended audience on their end. The meeting information is in the attachment.Thanx...LSakemillerFCS Instructors - You may wish to attend the January 31st Inservice. See the web site for locations.FCS Supervisors - Please email out to your teachers as a reminder.


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
7) NEW PROGRAMS FROM THE MUSKINGUM VALLEY ESC

Here are 2 new interactive distance learning programs for your districts, as well as a few favorites from the past year which work great with the upcoming winter holidays. If you have anyone interested, let me know as soon as possible to secure your spot. As always, they are available upon request, and are $50.00 per connection. Each session comes with correlations to the Ohio Academic Content Standards as well as extension activities that can be used following the connection.

Leslie Charles
Distance Learning Manager

Muskingum Valley Educational Service Center
205 North 7th Street
Zanesville, Ohio 43701
740.452.4518 ext 133
lcharles@mvesc.k12.oh.us
www.mvesc.k12.oh.us/tap/

Mrs. Meikle’s 5th graders head south on a chilly day in January

The fifth grade science classes from Avon Heritage North Elementary School meet their partner school in Miami Florida to start our gardening project using Earth Boxes. The Students from Miami County Day School shared common facts of Ohio and Florida and the students of Avon use Google Earth to show a birds eye view of our schools and local hot spots. Hearing the local weather forecast for Miami and Avon made us envious while their students were thrilled to hear we had a 30% chance of snow (we didn’t get any). One important comment I over heard as the students left was that “they were just like us”, we hope to hear more comments like that.

In two weeks the students will plant lettuce seeds to start our gardens. Both classes will plant their crops in Earth Boxes purchased from http://www.earthbox.com/. The Avon students will use grow lights and the students in Florida will plant the same crops but will place their earth boxes outside. Throughout the year the students will compare plants and discuss what changes each group should make as they chart their plants progress.

We look forward to working with our new friends at Miami Country Day :)

Amelia Earhart kicks off 2006 with third grade students at Avon Heritage South.

Mrs. Fecko’s third grade students has the opportunity to receive a visit from Amelia Earhart and to discuss her life and place in the history books. This lifelike presentation by Pat Jordan of Virent Broadcasting was only made possible by videoconferencing as she preformed from Rose Tree Media in Pennsylvania.

The students had just started reading a story about Amelia Earhart which made this program a perfect fit into the 3rd graders Social Studies and Language Arts Curricula. After her performance the students had several questions about her life, accomplishments and tragedies. It was a great learning opportunity for the students and one that they will remember for some time.

Virent Broadcasting offers many impersonators of historical figures. Pat Jordan can also be seen presenting Betsy Ross, Deborah Franklin (Ben Franklin's wife), Abigail Adams (President John Adams’ wife), Sarah Gibbons (a colonial indentured servant), Fanny Kemble (1880’s Actress & Abilitionist), Dorothea Dix (Social Reformer), Louisa May Alcott - (author), and Mary Poppins (Fictional Character). Programs and descriptions can be found on the web at http://www.virent.net/ .

Avon Middle School has been fortunate enough to play host to John Swartz more commonly known as George Washington and Thomas Edison to the IVC world. John is currently traveling the nation doing only life performances. We wish him luck and hope to see him online again :)

Thanks again Virent, Pat and Rose Tree Media Schools

Happy Holidays from the Avon Local Schools

The Avon Local Schools would like to wish all of our distance learning partners, content providers and future sites a happy and safe holiday.

Thanks for all of the great opportunities you have provided to our students. We look forward to working with each of you again making 2006 our best year ever!

Happy Holidays!

LCDLC Teacher will Connect from Antarctica

You may have seen the article on the front page of the Morning Journal yesterday already, but if not, you'll be interested to know that Marianne Kaput from Troy Intermediate School, Avon Lake City Schools will be leaving for Palmer Station, a research station in Antarctica. Marianne will join 4 researchers there as they study an insects (the Belgica Antarctica) ability to survive extreme temperature changes down to 50 below zero! Research findings could have far reaching effects for us. One of the largest benefits could allow transplant surgeries to be more successful by preserving organs longer! Other applications will be discussed as well.

We'll be conducting a total of 4 sessions for our Antarctica Annie sessions. Session 3 (1/19/06 9:00 - 10:00 A.M.) and Session 4 (1/25/06 9:00 -
10:00A.M.) will take place from the Antarctica Station. We'll be using their Satellite and taking most of their bandwidth to connect back to middle school students in Lorain County, Ohio, and the nation.

This project is available at several levels of interactivity. Students may connect for Session 3 and 4 only to visit with Marianne, or may choose to participate in a more advanced level using a "Creative Problem Solving Method" coordinated by our Gifited and Talented consortium. All four sessions are listed in the attached sign up sheet. Interested parties should fax this sheet back to be included.


Want to know more.
Here's some info directly from Marianne from a recent presentation about her voyage:

I'll fly from Cleveland Ohio to the tip of Chile to a place called Punta Arenas. Flying is only part of the journey. I'll ring in the New Year in Chile and then board a research vessel to Antarctica. There's no airport for a plane to land at Palmer Station where I'm going- the back yard is just glaciers!

Then we have to go through the dreaded Drake Passage- famous for being the roughest waters of the world! Antarctica took a long time to be
discovered because the early explorers could not make it across this strip of ocean. The waters are very rough with waves up to 30 feet! Up here around Lake Erie, there are small craft warnings called when waves reach around 5 feet! But not to fear, our ship is made just for travel like this- I sure hope I am! It has been said that you first must "Pay the Drake" before you can begin to appreciate and begin to enjoy Antarctica.

Anyway- I'm sure life at a research station will be quite different than teaching in a classroom. First, there are only 22 researchers there. We will be 5 of them! The 17 others will most likely conducting environmental studies, biological studies, meteorological studies and much more. I'll tell you more about who is there when I get there.

Sign up Today while we still have spots left! Visit our Calendar from our website at http://www.lcdlc.org/ to see all our Antarctica Annie Session listed during January & February.

Program Flyer: http://www.avon.k12.oh.us/distancelearning/Downloads/ProjectAntarcticaFlyer.doc

Dave Miller
Director of Distance Learning
Lorain County Distance Learning Consortium
1885 Lake Avenue
Elyria, OH 44012
440 324-5777 ext 195 Office
440 610-0782 Cell
dave.miller@leeca.org

Health Students become DNA Detectives

Avon High School Students had the opportunity to be DNA detectives with Heath Space Cleveland. After an overview of DNA and their roll in human development the students were divided in to groups of 4 and 5 and assigned a suspect of a crime screen. Using a sample of that person’s DNA sequence. The students cut the DNA sequences and into manageable numbers for comparison to a sample taken from the victim.

This program was made possible through a generous donation by the Henkel Adhesives Corporation that donated funds to Health Space Cleveland for distance education for Lorain County Ohio Schools. If you would like to learn more about the distance learning programs provided by Health Space Cleveland check them out at www.healthspacecleveland.org/education/education.asp?detail=9

Avon East Participates in the First Annual Holidays Traditions Conference

After a huge snowstorm that blew through the North East canceling the conference the previous week, the Holidays Traditions Conference launched their first conference on this morning. Avon East Elementary School was in and out of the conference due to schedule conflicts with the video systems but felt the conference was a huge success and look forward to being a part in the program next schools.

Originally Miss Lavelle, Schaffer and Mrs. Bunnevich’s classes were scheduled to sing their choir pieces to the conference, but the rescheduled date did not make this possible. Instead I read the classic poem “A Visit from St. Nicholas” otherwise known as the “Night Before Christmas” by Clement Clarke Moore. Our remote audience was 4th and 5th grade students from Taylor Texas. Using PowerPoint and images downloaded from various sites on the Internet the students enjoyed images of the first visit of St. Nicholas as the poem was read to the local and remote audiences.

Mrs. Masin and Miss Lavelle’s students enjoyed meeting the students from Taylor Texas and discussing the weather with Mr. Claus between sessions. The students were also treated to a discussion of the Christmas Traditions of Africa from Dr. Mbeje and Dr. Dinar, University of Pennsylvania , Philadelphia, PA .

A special thanks to the students from Miss Lavelle’s students that won door prizes drawn from Santa himself. Megan L., Joseph Y., Meghan H., Alicia S., and Ryan M.,

Way to go EAGLES!

Other schools in attendance were Central Cambria Elementary, Ebensburg, PA, St. Paul School, Taylor, TX, Glendale Elementary School, Flinton, PA, Mt. Zion Elementary School, Mt. Zion, PA, St. Francis University, the Ohio State University and St. Francis University.

Catch me if you can

3rd grade students from Avon Heritage South discussed the various ways that they can hunt and protect themselves out in the wild. Using Ohio’s wildlife the Lorain County Metro Parks French Creek Nature Center showed examples of camouflage and hunting techniques. The Catch me if you can program demonstrated how animals are hunted and they various ways that they protect themselves. Leslie our naturalist used images, live animals and video clips to interact with the students.

The program started with the students identifying animals that are predators, prey and animals that are both. The students did a great job classifying the animals shown and had great questions for Leslie about the animals behavior.

The Lorain County Metro Parks is the Lorain County Distance Learning Consortium’s (LCDLC) newest content provider which offers programs to grades K-12. Their programs are scheduled on demand and are free to LCDLC schools. Other schools can schedule their programs for $40.00. www.loraincountymetroparks.com

Way to go Lorain Metro!

LCDLC Updates for 12/12/05

1) FREE ELEMENTARY PROGRAM - "Wooing Wed Widing Hood" Unveiled: A Children's Play in the making - Behind the scenes
2) INSTANT HARMONICA WORKSHOP with Blues great Billy Branch
3) VIRTUAL TEACHER EXCHANGE PROGRAM SUMMER 2006
4) FREE CHAPTERS PROJECT
5) VISIT WITH SANTA AND HIS ELVES
6) CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA INVITE
7) ANTARCTICA ANNIE VIDEOCONFERENCE (Local teacher visits Antarctica for 30 days)
8) MERRY CHRISTMAS



1) FREE ELEMENTARY PROGRAM - "Wooing Wed Widing Hood" Unveiled: A Children's Play in the making - Behind the scenes

Our existing teachers have developed some GREAT programs. Pat Price is offering the following three part session to any elementary school that would like to participate. For details on the lesson and/or to view Pat’s short video promo, click on the following link
http://lcdlc.lorainesc.k12.oh.us/projects.htm . Pat’s program is listed under the Elementary Programs.


2) INSTANT HARMONICA WORKSHOP with Blues great Billy Branch
For the third year running, the Museum of Science and Industry is pleased to offer the "Instant Harmonica" Workshop with Blues great Billy Branch. In this interactive 45-minute program, students will learn the basics of playing the harmonica. We will offer two sessions of the program on Thursday, February 23rd only. This is a very popular program and registration will be done on a first-come, first-serve basis. These sessions are open to students in grades 4-8 only.
Please call Anel at 773.684.1414 to register. 10:00 and 11:00 AM CST, February 23rd only. Cost is $90 and includes harmonicas and song sheets for up to 35 students.
Sarah Tschaen Senior Education Coordinator Museum of Science and Industry 57th Street and Lake Shore Drive Chicago, Illinois 60637-2093
(773) 753-6254 direct line (773) 684-9844, Ext. 6254


3) VIRTUAL TEACHER EXCHANGE PROGRAM SUMMER 2006

Virtual Teacher Exchange Program

Austin Urban Debate League, World Class Schools, and ALOUD are not proud to sponsor a new and innovative program- Summer School Virtual Teacher Exchange programs. Teachers will be matched with schools in other coutnries or other areas of the US and teach summer school. This will allow schools to obtain the best and brightest minds in the world to teach their students. The rewards will be professional development, participating in a project on the ground floor, and inservice or CE credits. Imagine teaching in another country and home in your own bed each night. Sounds exciting then you are the person we need.

For more details

email
Michael Cunningham
mcunningham@del-valle.k12.tx.us
or call 512-386-3219



4) FREE CHAPTERS PROGRAM

Hello all,

I am trying to find grade 5 and 6 teachers who would be interested in participating in the Chapters project, a web-based writing project with a culminating videoconference presentation. I have attached the flyer that advertises the project. I have requests to participate from teachers in Texas and Cambridge, Ohio, but I don't have enough area teachers to partner them with for the project.

Please share the attached flyer with your fifth and sixth grade teachers and ask them to contact me if they are interested in participating. I am hoping to schedule the project for January and February.

Thank you.



5) VISIT WITH SANTA AND HIS ELVES

The TCHESC has some limited time slots left for the Distance Learning content, Santa and his Elves. This program will last between 30 and 4 minutes and Santa will do his best to call on as many children as possible. The sessions are limited to 35 children, so that Santa can call on as many as possible. He will also be sharing facts about reindeer and comparing them to white tailed deer. He will discuss mammals, herbivores, and other characteristics of the animals. The elves will also be making an appearance.
This session costs $50 and we must have the PO prior to connecting. To register, go to http://www.blogger.com/www.tchesc.org <http://www.tchesc.org/> and then look on the left side of the page for a link to a reservation system called Santa and his Elves. After successfully registering, you can go to this web address, http://www.blogger.com/www.tchesc.org/santa to download the materials. It is IMPERATIVE that if you are able to register, you MUST fax us the form called wish list by Thursday, December 8th so that Santa has time to see all the requests.

Thanks!

Michele L. Carlisle
Gifted and Instructional Technology Specialist
Tuscarawas Carroll Harrison Educational Service Center
330-308-9939 x 220



6) CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA INVITE

DL Liaisons:
I still have ATM slots available for your schools to participate in Thursday's Careers with a Symphony Orchestra. Please share the attached flyer with your high school and middle school music departments.
Thanks.
John
<>


7) ANTARCTICA ANNIE VIDEOCONFERENCE (Local teacher visits Antarctica for 30 days)

Visit with Marianne Kaput from Troy Intermediate schools, Avon Lake as she researches the unique characteristics of the Belica Antarctica, an insect in Antarctica. She will be on Palmer station with 30 scientists. Marianne (Antarctica Annie) will be conducting two live videoconferences from their Satellite uplink while there. There are multiple levels of participation for students. This program is geared for grades 5 – 8 and will include the creative problem solving model for schools who wish to participate. See attached flyer “Antarctica Flyer”.


Dave Miller
Director of Distance Learning
Lorain County Distance Learning Consortium
1885 Lake Avenue
Elyria, OH 44012
440 324-5777 ext 195 Office
440 610-0782 Cell
dave.miller@leeca.org



8) MERRY CHRISTMAS

Hi Everyone. It’s hard to believe, but this may be our last communication before the Christmas break! If we don’t talk to you again before the break, Merry Christmas!

Avon Presents at SOITA Technology Conference

The Avon Local Schools were proud to be a part of the SOITA (Southwestern Ohio Instructional Technology Association) Conference at the Dayton Convention Center without leaving my office in Avon, Ohio. With a short month in December and an all day in-service the next day this would have been impossible to be done onsite. Instead I was able to practice what I preach and provide the audience with the same if not a better presentation from my office.

The topic was getting the most out of your videoconferencing system. The focus of this session was classroom to classroom collaborations and other uses for your IVC unit. We started the session off with an exciting game of IVDL jeopardy and discuss the various ways that my district uses IVC to enhance (not replace) our existing curricula. Video clips from team teaching and classroom projects were used to demonstrate our usage. A special visit from “Duct Tape Man” demonstrated that multiple video formats can be used with any vender’s product as we tried to show that it is the content that makes the videoconference.

I hope that the audience enjoyed the presentation and that it leads to future IVC collaborations. We hope to see our friends in Southwest Ohio online again in the future.

Thanks again SOITAhttp://www.soita.org/

Avon Heritage Students take a ride on the Polar Express

Dressed in the PJ’s and their chair lined up in rows resembling seats on a train the third grade students from Mrs. Michelich’s 3rd grade class at Avon Heritage South prepared for an interactive journey to the North Pole on the Polar Express. Presented by the UNITE Consortium of Columbiana County.

On an over-night holiday train the students improved vocabulary, sequenced events, recognized characteristics and features of different types of literary forms and genres and identified the theme of a literary text. Narrated by Mrs. Straub of the Columbiana ESC the students were treated to a fun and valuable experience.

The students shared hot chocolate and had a silver bell to signify the end of the story. As each student rang their bells it was obvious that all shared the Christmas spirit was the sound ringing echoed the room.

Avon Heritage South is a proud and active member of the UNITE Consortium with half of the buildings teachers previously at Avon East which was award their equipment through the Telecommunity Adding Partners Grant as part of the UNITE Consortium. Avon continues to be a part of the group with Avon East and Heritage South Elementary Schools.

Thank you Columbiana County for a great program!

LCDLC Updates & Opportunities 12/5/05

For a complete listing including our past opportunities, visit our web site and view our VC Classifieds at http://lcdlc.lorainesc.k12.oh.us/vc_classifieds.htm.
1) RUSSIA VIDEOCONFERENCE
2) WVIZ/CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA PRESENTS PROFESSIONAL MUSICIAN - VIOLINIST
3) HOLIDAY TRADITION CONFERENCE
4) A VISIT WITH MRS. CLAUS
5) CAREERS OF CONSCIOUSNESS: SERVING PATIENTS IN THE 21ST CENTURY
6) THE ENVIROSCAPE – WATERSHEDS & POLLUTION
7) READ ACROSS AMERICA BY TWICE – LAST CHANCE
8) CHAPTERS PROJECT
9) WORLD WIDE POETRY JAM


1) RUSSIA VIDEOCONFERENCE (See Attachment “Russia Videoconference.doc”)

We invite your middle and high school students to meet Patricia Carr via distance learning to learn about her visit to Russia, exploring the similarities and differences in cultures with the former Soviet Union.

Carol Straub, Ed.S.
Distance Learning Education Department
Columbiana County Education Service Center 38720 Saltwell Road Lisbon, Ohio 44432
330-424-9591 ext 170

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


2) WVIZ/CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA PRESENTS PROFESSIONAL MUSICIAN – VIOLINIST
Ohio ATM Network Sites Only
DL Liaisons, Advocates and Tech Coordinators:
Please share the attached information with your teachers regarding the Cleveland Orchestra Invite.
Thank you.
John
John R. Ramicone Director of Distance Learning Services-WVIZ/NOTA 4300 Brookpark Road, Cleveland, Ohio 44134-1191 phone: 216-739-3940 fax: 216-398-4245 email: jramicone@wviz.org
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3) HOLIDAY TRADITION CONFERENCE
Cost: Free
Live stream and participate in the virtual chat room

Holiday traditions have always varied between cultures and regions. Now, thanks to Internet2 and videoconferencing, we are able to share holiday traditions beyond borders that once existed. In the tradition of Internet2, Megaconference, and Megconference Jr. we ask you to participate in the first ever Holiday Traditions Conference.

Program Schedule: http://www.cermusa.francis.edu/holidaycon/

Sign ups for the Holiday Tradition Conference via Videoconference are closed, but classes can still watch the program through a lived stream through windows media player. Information on the webcast can be found on the following hyperlink.

http://www.cermusa.francis.edu/holidaycon/Streaming.htm

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


4) A VISIT WITH MRS. CLAUS

30 minutes for grades K-4

This program allows your students the opportunity to visit with Mrs. Santa Claus. She will read a short story to the students and then they will have the opportunity to ask questions about her, Santa Claus, and the North Pole.

Cost: $50.00

Contact: Theresa Neuser
tneuser@cesa7.k12.wi.us
595 Baeten Road
Green Bay, WI 54304
United States
Phone: (920) 617-5641
Fax: (920) 492-5965


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

5) CAREERS OF CONSCIOUSNESS: SERVING PATIENTS IN THE 21ST CENTURY
Hello Everyone.

You received an email from me about 2 months ago about a Career Series that unfortunately I could not get paid registrations. HealthSpace has generously agreed to go ahead and offer this one for FREE. Please send out to your school contacts on Monday and encourage registration for this great career panel for high-school students coordinated by HealthSpace Cleveland with the Cleveland Clinic Foundation.

They can register on the CILC site or email me directly. Thanks so very much.

Sandy Kreisman

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

6) THE ENVIROSCAPE – WATERSHEDS & POLLUTION

Program Title: “Lake County Solid Waste Management District
The Enviroscape”

Cost: Free

Grade(s): 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 for 60-90 minutes

Using a 3x3-floor model, Students create a "real-life" city while discussing and demonstrating sources of pollution. Students will gain an understanding of watersheds, run off, and point/non-point source pollution

Objectives: Students will:1. Gain an understanding of watersheds.2. Identify point-source pollution.3. Understand the effects pollution has on a community.4. Learn about "eco-friendly" solutions and products.

Contact: Lara Gonzalezlgonzalez@lcswmd.com7820 BroadwayMerrillville, IN 46410United StatesPhone: (219) 769-3820 ext. 103Fax: (219) 769-3890


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

7) READ ACROSS AMERICA BY TWICE – LAST CHANCE

Paul Hieronymus has completed the site verification for the consortium and will be happy to assist any teacher that would like to be a part of the RAA program. Teachers that would like to signup will need to contact Paul for the consortium pin # required for signup.

Local contact: Paul HieronymusHieronymusP@avon.k12.oh.us
440.829.8273

Take your students ‘Across America’ to celebrate Read Across America!
March 1-3, 2006
Cost: FREE

Virtually travel across America for the NEA event, Read Across America - use interactive video to connect your class with a class from a different area of the United States, and read to each other. Your students can take part in the two-way video Read Across America event that connects classrooms to classrooms around the United States. The activity is sponsored by the TWICE organization, in cooperation with the NEA.

This activity is open to all K-12 students in public and private schools who have access to two-way interactive video equipment (ISDN or IP). If you are unsure whether or not you have access to this type of equipment, check with your school's technology coordinator. Your class will be matched with a class from a different area of the United States and each class will exchange reading activities. Classroom to classroom connections will take place the week of March 1-3, 2006. Each connection is scheduled for an hour: 15 minutes for testing connections and introductions; 30 minutes for the reading activity (15 minutes per class); 15 minutes for exchanging information about respective schools and communities. Activities can range from reading a favorite book passage, to a “battle of the books” format.

Activity Ideas: Skits, Plays, Raps, Songs, Illustrations, Dramatizations, Student created books, “Battle of the Books” just to name a few.

To learn more about the RAA Event visit http://www.twice.cc/read/index.html

Video Introduction can be viewed at http://dl.remc11.k12.mi.us/RAAOverview.wmv


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

8) CHAPTERS PROJECT

Cost: Free
http://intercom.noeca.net/chapters/index.html
Through the NOECA InterCom Chapters project, teachers and students can collaboratively write chapter books that are then presented via video distance learning.
This is how the Chapters Project works:
-A title for the book is established. - Class A writes the first chapter. -Class B writes the second chapter.-Class C writes the third chapter. -All classes write their own conclusion to the chapter book based on the previous chapters.
-Each chapter should be written based on the previous chapter(s), unless your class wrote Chapter 1. The characters and plot should carry throughout the chapter book.
-Each chapter must have a beginning, middle and end. The end of each chapter should provide opportunities for something new to happen in the next chapter.
-All classes present their final chapter in an interactive videoconference. Classes may choose to "act out" their final chapter. The final chapter presentation should take no longer than 15 minutes for each participating class.

Contact Kathy Mohr at kathy@noeca.net or 419-627-1439 x224.


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

9) WORLD WIDE POETRY JAM

Friday December 9th 7:30- 11:00 am Central

We are trying to have an open mic poetry celebration in this conference. If your school has students who like to write poetry and participate by reading their poetry please contact

Michael Cunningham
Del Valle High School
mcunningham@del-valle.k12.tx.us

512-268-4598

We are also having schools send in to us audio MP3 poems if you want your stuff heard and not have ITV equipment. We can provide a DVD copy if you would like after the event.

AHS participates in Virtual College Tour

Through Ohio’s ATM video network, Avon High School joined 27 schools from across the state to view the LCDLC Virtual College Tour. Each hour a local University provided students with a 30-45 min presentation about their university followed by Q & A lead by the LCDLC staff. 6 sites each hour were designated as interactive while other schools could submit questions via email which were read by the LCDLC.

The college from this years event included Lorain County Community College, Bowling Green State University, Kent State University, The Ohio State University, Wright State University and Miami University. The program lasted from 8am to 2pm with limited breaks for connecting presenters and roll call for participating sites. LCDLC members schools that participated were Avon HS, Brookside HS, Firelandss HS,Amherst Steel HS, Elyria HS, Lorain Longfellow MS, Keystone HS, Oberlin HSLCCC - Elyria Early College Program and Lorain Whittier Tornado MS.

The program was a huge success and we look forward to participating in the Financial Aide program and the LCDLC Virtual College Tour II.

Thanks LCDLC!

The Avon High School Video I class competed against other Lorain County Distance Learning Consortium (LCDLC) Member Schools in the Henkel Adhesives Duct Tape Commercial Contest. AHS turned in six projects to compete against Elyria HS, Keystone HS, and Lorain Longfellow Middle School for the regional judging. The winner of the LCDLC judging advances to the State level judging on December 14th at WVIZ PBS 25 in Cleveland. Winner of the state competition will receive a Cannon GL2 video camera.

The scores were tight only two points on the scoring rubric separated first through third place. Avon HS’s Adventures of Duct Tape Man took a close second place in the judging out of 17 projects. The scoring of the projects were done in a multipoint videoconference with judges making up members of the local advertising field. After the projects were shown and the scores tallied the top three projects were shown and comments were made by the judges to the students.

The Avon Local Schools congratulate the students from all the participating schools and wish Lorain Longfellow Middle School the best of luck in the state judging in December.
All of the projects showed creativity and good use of video editing and production.

Great Job Everyone!

Freedom Calls from Heritage North Elementary School

Avon Heritage North Elementary School was proud to assist the Freedom Calls foundation by providing the use of our videoconferencing system for a happy birthday wish to a sibling in Iraq.

Tasha and her two children contacted the
Freedom Calls organization requesting the opportunity to say happy birthday to her sister stationed in Camp Cooke Taji in Iraq. After a couple of Emails, a two test calls the two sisters were sharing stories and updates as if they were in the same room.

Freedom calls is a non profit organization created to help soldiers abroad the opportunity to communicate with friends and family through phone and videoconferencing. They have been uniting families, creating new ones through virtual marriages and even connecting to hospitals for live births to help our soldiers. It makes you wonder if there are any limits to this technology!

To learn more about Freedom Calls. You can visit them on the web at www.freedomcalls.org/ .

Local Artifact Exchange

The clues have been delivered, the artifacts exchanged, students have met their partner school, but where are they from???

Mrs. Michelich and Mrs. Clark’s third grade classes met with their partnered school today over videoconferencing to ask questions about their community, geography and artifacts sent to their school. At the end of the videoconference the schools guessed their partners state. Stuffed animals representing species found in the Smokey Mountains, Moon Pies and pictures of trains help Avon’s students to identify the State of Tennessee as their partner’s state.

Our partners used buckeyes, carnations, a stuffed slider toy (Cleveland Indians mascot) and duct tape to identify Ohio giving some key clues as to our proximity to Lake Erie and Cleveland. The students will exchange one more series of poems providing clues to our cities and schools. December 15th the students will connect and provide their partner schools a presentation about their community followed by one last chance of Q & A before the sites guess their locations.

The students from both sites are very excited about the project and can not wait until their next connecting in December. We are so pleased that our friends in Tennessee shared this project.

Great job classes!

LCDLC Updates

Attached find our most recent updates for the week of 11/28/05. Don’t miss out!

1) SHARED VIDEOCONFERENCING LESSONS AVAILABLE FROM EXISTING TRAINED TEACHERS – WOW!!
2) LESSON AVAILABLE “Native American (Southwest U.S. & Central America) Student Projects”
3) LESSON AVAILABLE “Career Overview of a Clinical Laboratory Scientist”
4) FASFA SESSION “NOW I GET IT, GETTING MONEY FOR COLLEGE”
5) LETTERS TO THE OLD WORLD

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1) SHARED VIDEOCONFERENCING LESSONS AVAILABLE FROM EXISTING TRAINED TEACHERS – WOW!!

Don’t miss out on an opportunity to participate in some GREAT lessons our existing teachers have developed that can be shared over videoconferencing! This year, we’ve asked our existing teachers to develop three lessons that they would be willing to share with another school. Each teacher has developed a brief lesson plan describing their lesson. Additionally, many have created short streaming video clips to describe and promote the available lessons. The sessions with a icon of a clip beside the lesson is a hyperlink and will allow you to preview a short 2 – 3 minute video describing the lesson. You can view both at our website under our new section, “Projects” at http://lcdlc.lorainesc.k12.oh.us/projects.htm.

Please view these and don’t miss out on any upcoming that might be available to you!

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
2) LESSON AVAILABLE “Native American (Southwest U.S. & Central America)

Our existing teachers are providing three lessons that they’ll be teaching out to other schools this year. Herb Fiske from Lear North Elementary school will be providing a program on “Native American (Southwest U.S. & Central America) Student Project “. The event is 30 minutes – December 5, 2005 (10:00 – 10:30).

For more info, see Herb’s web promotion describing the lesson or click on the video clip icon to view a short streaming video of Herb’s lesson available to your students!

http://lcdlc.lorainesc.k12.oh.us/Projects/Lesson%20Plans/NativeAmericanStudentProjects.mht

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
3) LESSON AVAILABLE “Career Overview of a Clinical Laboratory Scientist”

This lesson by Barb O’Malia, Elyria HS on December 2nd is available for other schools to view. View Barb’s lesson at http://lcdlc.lorainesc.k12.oh.us/Projects/Lesson%20Plans/ClinicalLabScientist.mht

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
4) FASFA SESSION “NOW I GET IT, GETTING MONEY FOR COLLEGE”

Join us for a one hour session as Amy Kovalsky, College Advisor, gives an overview of how the college financial aid process works. Topics covered will include applying for aid and the importance of understanding the terminology. Amy currently works with students and families at North Ridgeville High School and is available to come to one of the participating sites to present. This is offered on a first come first serve basis. Sign up today!

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
5) LETTERS TO THE OLD WORLD

Hi all,
I wanted to let you know about a unique video conferencing experience that is filled with Ohio history and community significance. Zoar Community Association, in Zoar, Ohio has developed an interactive and engaging video conference unit called Letters to the Old World. Through the eyes of an historian, the students will learn about this one of a kind community that existed for many years in Ohio. Zoar was a developed as a commune style of living, and the settlers were completely self supporting as a community. The content standards are available on the website below as well as all registration information. The cost of this program is $50, payable to the Zoar Community Association. Zoar is able to connect ATM or ISDN at speeds of 384kbps. A purchase order is required prior to the connection. This content is geared toward 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade classes. For more information, contact Michele Carlisle at michele@tchesc.org (330-308-9939 ext. 220) or Marilyn Roder at marilyn@tchesc.org (330-308-9939 ext. 251. Please check this out on the web at www.tchesc.org/zoar

Thanks,

LuAnne Jackson
Technology Director
TCHESC
834 East High Avenue
New Philadelphia, OH 44663
phone: 330-308-9939 ext. 250
cell: 330-243-4538
fax: 330-308-0964
www.tchesc.org