Ironworks Helps Discovery Education Provide Resources for Teachers
RALEIGH - Ironworks has helped Discovery Education re-launch its popular online Teacher’s Store, where teachers can purchase videos and multimedia products to engage their students. The new Teacher’s Store, at http://teacherstore.discovery.com, allows educators to search over 6,000 titles by subject, grade level or product type. Educators can also share the products they have found with fellow teachers or save them to their own wish list.
The Teacher’s Store also provides educators with access to content standards, MARC records and teachers’ guides at no extra charge. Moreover, teachers can read customer ratings and industry reviews of products and preview video clips.
“Ironworks helped us streamline our Web site to make finding resources much easier for time-conscious teachers,” said Alicia Levi, vice president of publishing for Discovery Education. “The improved Web site allows teachers to view specific course requirements for each grade level while shopping for classroom tools; and the new user-friendly search and check-out options will speed up the overall shopping process. We look forward to adding new titles each semester and playing a role in the learning process of our leaders of tomorrow.”
Ironworks provided information architecture, usability testing, interface design and development services to optimize the site content, feature layout and navigation of the Teacher’s Store.
"Ironworks is proud to work with such a well respected organization as Discovery Education and to help provide teachers with these valuable resources,” said Bhadresh Patel, a principal of Ironworks. “We know from experience that a Web site customized to meet the exact needs of its target audience – in this case teachers – will generate higher revenues for the parent company.”
About Ironworks Consulting
Ironworks is a project-based consulting firm with one mission – never fail a client. The firm specializes in the use of Web technologies to solve business problems through the combination of strategy, technology and design. Ironworks has earned a reputation for delivering on what it promises, deploying a team of experts on every engagement and completing projects on time and on budget. The firm offers expertise to clients nationwide in the practice areas of IT Strategy, Program Management, User Experience, Content Management and Portal Development, Business Intelligence, and Custom Application Development. Ironworks operates from offices in Richmond, Va. and Raleigh, N.C. www.ironworks.com
About Discovery Education
Discovery Education is a division of Discovery Communications, the leading global real world and knowledge-based media company. The leader in digital video-based learning, Discovery Education produces and distributes high-quality digital video content in easy-to-use formats, in all core-curricular subject areas. Discovery Education is committed to creating scientifically proven, standards-based digital resources for teachers, students, and parents that make a positive impact on student learning. Through strategic partnerships with over 25 public television stations across the country, its public service initiatives, products, and joint business ventures, Discovery Education helps educators around the world harness the power of broadband and media to connect their students to a world of learning. www.discoveryeducation.com.
Get clued in to the best online resources for students
In a few short days, Summit County will be back to school, and that means the inevitable - homework. Fortunately, there are a variety of online resources to make things easier. We've done some research, and have come up with a list of some of our favorite sites.
On or near the top of virtually every homework help list, is B.J. Pinchbeck's Homework Helper at http://school.discovery.com/homeworkhelp/bjpinchbeck/.
Seventeen-year-old B.J. started compiling and posting links for homework help in 1996; today the site contains more than 700 links, which can be browsed alphabetically or by subject. The site offers a large variety of sources and reviewers say the links are extremely accurate, leading directly to useful information.
Another highly rated site is HomeworkSpot.com. The content is sourced by a team of teachers, librarians and journalists who comb the internet for the best sources in all the usual subjects. The resource links are organized into elementary, middle and high school categories making for easy navigation. We were particularly intrigued with www.kidinfo.com. The site is the product of a teacher with 36 years in the classroom, and it shows. What makes the site different is that it is organized by curriculum generally covered in typical elementary, middle and high schools. The site is cleanly organized and easy to navigate.
The University of Michigan's Internet Public Library, found at www.ipl.org, is another great source. The site is organized much like a brick and mortar library with virtual stacks of references and resources, and a librarian (IPL volunteer) ready to answer your reference questions. You'll find Kidspace for younger students and Teenspace for older kids containing help and advice on writing college essays and career advice.
We also must mention Wikipedia at www.wikipedia.org, a free encyclopedia offered in 10 languages. In addition to your more traditional encyclopedia searches, Wikipedia offers a reference desk where volunteers answer questions and a community portal with a bulletin board, projects, activities and more.
Another award-winning site is FactMonster.com, brought to you by www.infoplease.com/aboutip.html Information Please. As the site publishers explain, the site "combines the contents of an encyclopedia, a dictionary, an atlas, and several almanacs." We found the site to be fun, intriguing and highly informative.
For those needing a little extra help in math, we recommend Math Forum at http://mathforum.org/dr.math, reportedly one of the best resources for kids needing help with the numbers. Students can search the archive for their answer or ask the "Swat Team," a group of Swarthmore College students that answer math questions.
For younger kids, KidsClick! at www.kidsclick.org is a great choice. Created by a group of librarians and maintained by the School of Library and Information Science at San Jose State University, the site covers more than 600 subjects, is easy to use and is intriguing for kids. Use a bit of caution, though. The site is not an internet filter so parental supervision is encouraged.
Remember, the internet contains several sites with unreliable information. Always check the source of the information, usually found under "About Us" or something similar.
In a few short days, Summit County will be back to school, and that means the inevitable - homework. Fortunately, there are a variety of online resources to make things easier. We've done some research, and have come up with a list of some of our favorite sites.
On or near the top of virtually every homework help list, is B.J. Pinchbeck's Homework Helper at http://school.discovery.com/homeworkhelp/bjpinchbeck/.
Seventeen-year-old B.J. started compiling and posting links for homework help in 1996; today the site contains more than 700 links, which can be browsed alphabetically or by subject. The site offers a large variety of sources and reviewers say the links are extremely accurate, leading directly to useful information.
Another highly rated site is HomeworkSpot.com. The content is sourced by a team of teachers, librarians and journalists who comb the internet for the best sources in all the usual subjects. The resource links are organized into elementary, middle and high school categories making for easy navigation. We were particularly intrigued with www.kidinfo.com. The site is the product of a teacher with 36 years in the classroom, and it shows. What makes the site different is that it is organized by curriculum generally covered in typical elementary, middle and high schools. The site is cleanly organized and easy to navigate.
The University of Michigan's Internet Public Library, found at www.ipl.org, is another great source. The site is organized much like a brick and mortar library with virtual stacks of references and resources, and a librarian (IPL volunteer) ready to answer your reference questions. You'll find Kidspace for younger students and Teenspace for older kids containing help and advice on writing college essays and career advice.
We also must mention Wikipedia at www.wikipedia.org, a free encyclopedia offered in 10 languages. In addition to your more traditional encyclopedia searches, Wikipedia offers a reference desk where volunteers answer questions and a community portal with a bulletin board, projects, activities and more.
Another award-winning site is FactMonster.com, brought to you by www.infoplease.com/aboutip.html Information Please. As the site publishers explain, the site "combines the contents of an encyclopedia, a dictionary, an atlas, and several almanacs." We found the site to be fun, intriguing and highly informative.
For those needing a little extra help in math, we recommend Math Forum at http://mathforum.org/dr.math, reportedly one of the best resources for kids needing help with the numbers. Students can search the archive for their answer or ask the "Swat Team," a group of Swarthmore College students that answer math questions.
For younger kids, KidsClick! at www.kidsclick.org is a great choice. Created by a group of librarians and maintained by the School of Library and Information Science at San Jose State University, the site covers more than 600 subjects, is easy to use and is intriguing for kids. Use a bit of caution, though. The site is not an internet filter so parental supervision is encouraged.
Remember, the internet contains several sites with unreliable information. Always check the source of the information, usually found under "About Us" or something similar.
Four-time Iditarod champion Susan Butcher, 51, has lost her battle with leukemia. She died Saturday in a Seattle hospital of complications from a recent stem-cell transplant.
In 1986, Ms. Butcher became the second woman to win the grueling dogsled race from Anchorage to Nome. She added victories in 1987, 1988 and 1990 and finished in the top four through 1993.
Ms. Butcher ran her last Iditarod in 1994 when she decided to have children. She has two daughters, Tekla and Chisana, with her husband, attorney and musher David Monson.
To leave a message for Susan's family, please click!
Box UK and Promethean Launch Free Interactive Learning Website
Box UK and Promethean, the global leader in interactive learning, are delighted to announce the launch of ‘Promethean Planet’ -- a free collaborative web portal designed to help teachers, administrators and parents maximise the use of interactive learning technologies.
Promethean Planet is a fully interactive and comprehensive online source of information and resources for use in the classroom. These include creative and innovative lesson plans, organised and searchable by class age and subject. The site provides a wealth of videos and web links for use with Promethean’s award winning Activstudio and Activprimary lesson development software. Teachers can also share, discover and collaborate on best practices, which are highlighted in the monthly ‘Teacher Feature’.
According to Promethean USA President, Mark Elliot, Promethean Planet was designed with teachers firmly in mind:
“Most teachers don’t have the time to go hunting for resources to develop their lessons. Promethean recognises this. Our goal with Promethean Planet is to ensure that teachers have thousand of resources at their fingertips and can easily access the ones they need.”
Promethean Planet also features an online forum where teachers can interact and share ideas, information and lesson materials. Online technical support from Promethean staff is also readily available.
The site is powered by Box UK’s Amaxus content management system. Promethean required a system which could handle the sheer volume of diverse data that the site holds and found that Amaxus exceeded these requirements with ease. Amaxus’s accessibility is also key to the success of the site, with users and site administrators able to easily add, amend and access data when necessary.
Promethean US Web Services Manager, Andy Ryff, is full of praise for Box UK and the functionality of Amaxus:
“With meticulous attention to detail, progressive thinking, amazing foresight and outstanding communication skills, Box UK has provided unparalleled customer service and a superior web authoring tool. From start to finish, all involved in working on Promethean Planet routinely displayed professionalism, courtesy, flexibility and a sense of urgency that always made us feel like our project was top priority.
“Furthermore, Amaxus has provided us with the ultimate experience in efficiency, power and accessibility. We could not be more pleased with the service and product and look forward to a long and prosperous relationship with Box UK!”
Box UK Project Manager, Teresa Butler is equally delighted with the success of the project:
“Promethean Planet was an extremely rewarding project and the feedback we have received has been fantastic. Using Amaxus, we have been able to work in collaboration with Promethean to provide a vast array of innovative learning resources, and put in place the facility for registered visitors to add their own. We hope that these resources will prove invaluable to teachers and pupils alike.”
Promethean Planet was showcased at this year’s National Educational Computing Conference in San Diego on July 5th and received a fantastic response; as evidenced by the phenomenal rate of user registrations.
The launch of Promethean Planet is currently US specific. However, the new school term in September 2006 will see the launch of a UK version, followed by a French version at the end of the year.
Registration, membership and access to Promethean Planet’s online resources and forums is free to all administrators, teachers and students. For further information, visit the site at www.prometheanplanet.com
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Box UK and Promethean, the global leader in interactive learning, are delighted to announce the launch of ‘Promethean Planet’ -- a free collaborative web portal designed to help teachers, administrators and parents maximise the use of interactive learning technologies.
Promethean Planet is a fully interactive and comprehensive online source of information and resources for use in the classroom. These include creative and innovative lesson plans, organised and searchable by class age and subject. The site provides a wealth of videos and web links for use with Promethean’s award winning Activstudio and Activprimary lesson development software. Teachers can also share, discover and collaborate on best practices, which are highlighted in the monthly ‘Teacher Feature’.
According to Promethean USA President, Mark Elliot, Promethean Planet was designed with teachers firmly in mind:
“Most teachers don’t have the time to go hunting for resources to develop their lessons. Promethean recognises this. Our goal with Promethean Planet is to ensure that teachers have thousand of resources at their fingertips and can easily access the ones they need.”
Promethean Planet also features an online forum where teachers can interact and share ideas, information and lesson materials. Online technical support from Promethean staff is also readily available.
The site is powered by Box UK’s Amaxus content management system. Promethean required a system which could handle the sheer volume of diverse data that the site holds and found that Amaxus exceeded these requirements with ease. Amaxus’s accessibility is also key to the success of the site, with users and site administrators able to easily add, amend and access data when necessary.
Promethean US Web Services Manager, Andy Ryff, is full of praise for Box UK and the functionality of Amaxus:
“With meticulous attention to detail, progressive thinking, amazing foresight and outstanding communication skills, Box UK has provided unparalleled customer service and a superior web authoring tool. From start to finish, all involved in working on Promethean Planet routinely displayed professionalism, courtesy, flexibility and a sense of urgency that always made us feel like our project was top priority.
“Furthermore, Amaxus has provided us with the ultimate experience in efficiency, power and accessibility. We could not be more pleased with the service and product and look forward to a long and prosperous relationship with Box UK!”
Box UK Project Manager, Teresa Butler is equally delighted with the success of the project:
“Promethean Planet was an extremely rewarding project and the feedback we have received has been fantastic. Using Amaxus, we have been able to work in collaboration with Promethean to provide a vast array of innovative learning resources, and put in place the facility for registered visitors to add their own. We hope that these resources will prove invaluable to teachers and pupils alike.”
Promethean Planet was showcased at this year’s National Educational Computing Conference in San Diego on July 5th and received a fantastic response; as evidenced by the phenomenal rate of user registrations.
The launch of Promethean Planet is currently US specific. However, the new school term in September 2006 will see the launch of a UK version, followed by a French version at the end of the year.
Registration, membership and access to Promethean Planet’s online resources and forums is free to all administrators, teachers and students. For further information, visit the site at www.prometheanplanet.com
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