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Saturday, December 8, 2012

Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… 12-8-12 …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EF



Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL

LARRY FERLAZZO’S WEBSITES OF THE DAY

Helping Students Motivate Themselves: Practical Answers To Classroom Problems.


Useful Infographic & Commentary On Flipped Classroom

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 29 minutes ago
Michelle has written a useful post at her blog on Flippin’ for ESL. If you’re an ESL teacher, I’d suggest it’s a “must-read.” In her post, he shared this infographic from Daniel Grafton, which I think anyone exploring the idea … Continue reading →

New Year Celebrations

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 9 hours ago
It’s a little early, but I’ve just updated The Best Sites For Learning About New Year Celebrations. Additional suggestions are welcome…

The Best Articles Pointing Out That Our Schools Are Not Failing — Please Suggest More

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 10 hours ago
There is a often a hue and cry, sometimes generated by those who hope to make a profit, about our so-called “failing schools.” Many of the challenges facing young people have little to do with what’s going on inside the … Continue reading →

Wow, What A Chart On International Education!

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 14 hours ago
Thanks to Alexander Russo (his blog and twitter account are among the ones I read first), I saw this chart appearing in the NAACP’s report, Finding Our Way Back To First. It’s a useful report, and I especially liked their … Continue reading →

Video: Amazing Magic Performance Useful For Theory of Knowledge & For ELL’s

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 14 hours ago
Check out this amazing performance by French magician Yann Frisch. It joins other videos that I can show my Theory of Knowledge class when teaching about perception, and it’s also a good video to show English Language Learners and then … Continue reading →

Excellent Collection Of Songs For English Language Learners

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
The British Council reorganized their website awhile back, and now that have all their songs for English Language Learners (including closed-captioning) all in one place. It’s an excellent resource. I’m adding it to The Best Music Websites For Learning English.

Great Quote On Writing

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
I’m adding this to So, You Want To Write A Book? Here’s The Best Advice…: Source: changemakrs.com via Larry on Pinterest

“Memories For The Future”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
Memories For The Future is a series of Google Maps Street View images of the destruction caused by the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. here’s an image of Rikuzentakata Municipal Kesen Junior High School I’m adding it to The Best … Continue reading →

“20 Great Infographics of 2012″

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
20 Great Infographics of 2012 has just been published by Visual.ly. Many of them look pretty good, but I personally prefer my own choices in The Best Infographics Of 2012 — So Far.

New Title For My Upcoming Book!

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
Eye On Education, the publishers of my upcoming sequel to Helping Students Motivate Themselves, have come up with a new and better title for it — Self-Driven Learning: Teaching Strategies for Student Motivation. Sounds good to me. Look for it … Continue reading →

“Ideas for English Language Learners | Celebrate the Holidays”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
Ideas for English Language Learners | Celebrate the Holidays is my new New York Times column for this month. It might be helpful….

New “Google+ Communities”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
Google has just announced a new Google+ feature called Google+ Communities. Here’s a video on it, and you can read more about it here. By the way, they also announced that Google+ now has half a billion users. You can … Continue reading →

Two Nice Christmas Resources

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 2 days ago
Here are two new additions to The Best Places To Learn About Christmas, Hanukkah, & Kwanzaa: 27 Days Of European Christmas Customs Advent Calendar For English Students and Kids is from ESOL Courses.

“Compendium” Is A New Cool New York Times Tool

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 2 days ago
Compendium is a new cool tool from The New York Times that lets you: Create collections of articles, quotes, images, and videos from The New York Times. Annotate the items you’ve collected to tell a story. Share your collections with … Continue reading →

The Value In Being Bilingual or Multilingual

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 2 days ago
Here are new additions to The Best Resources For Learning The Advantages To Being Bilingual: Language Learning Makes the Brain Grow, Swedish Study Suggests is from Science Daily. The Cognitive Benefits of Being Bilingual is from The Dana Foundation. Bilingual … Continue reading →

“All Over the Map: 10 Ways to Teach About Geography”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 2 days ago
The New York Times Learning Network has published an excellent post called All Over the Map: 10 Ways to Teach About Geography. I’m adding it to The Best Websites For Learning & Teaching Geography.

The Best Year-End Collections Of Images — 2012

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 2 days ago
I’m beginning my annual “The Best…” list highlighting “year in review” images. There aren’t a whole lot right now on the date of this post, but they’ll soon be coming out of the woodwork. I figured it would be helpful … Continue reading →

“9Slides” Shows Your Slides & You At The Same Time

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 2 days ago
9Slides lets you upload a presentation and lets you record and sync a video of you providing narration. You’re allowed five presentations before you have to start paying for more. It seems similar to Present.me. I’m adding it to The … Continue reading →

Here’s What I Do During My Favorite Time Of The School Week

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 2 days ago
Usually, during my lunchtime, I am either with students in my classroom (our cafeteria isn’t large enough to accommodate all our students at lunch time) or am meeting with colleagues. However, one day a week during lunch I do my … Continue reading →

My Best Posts Over The Years — Volume Five

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 3 days ago
I’ve been writing this blog for six or seven years. I thought readers might find it useful for me to dig back in the “archives” and highlight my choices for some of the best posts that appeared during that time. … Continue reading →

Research Studies Of The Week

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 3 days ago
I often write about research studies from various field and how they can be applied to the classroom. I write individual posts about ones that I think are especially significant, and will continue to do so. However, so many studies … Continue reading →

Set Up A Virtual Social Network With “groupgel”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 3 days ago
groupgel joins a long list of sites that let you set up private or public “social networks.” I’m adding it to Not “The Best,” But “A List” Of Social Network Sites.

Recent Useful Articles On The Common Core

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 3 days ago
Here are some recent articles related to the Common Core Standards: The Common Core Ate My Baby and Other Urban Legends is a very useful article from ASCD Educational Leadership. I’m adding it to The Most Useful Resources For Implementing … Continue reading →

Infographic: A Surprisingly Interesting “History of the SMS”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 3 days ago
I’m adding this infographic to The Best Sites For Learning About The History Of Technology: by AliciaPompei. Learn about business intelligence tools.

The Best Web Tools For Teaching Irregular Verbs & Verb Tenses — Contribute Your Suggestions!

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 3 days ago
I was prompted to make this list by seeing a wonderful video at Michelle Henry’s site (I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again — I think it’s one of the best, if not the best, ESL/EFL sites on … Continue reading →

The Best Short Video Clips About Hurricane Katrina

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 3 days ago
We’re doing a unit in our ninth-grade English classes on New Orleans (see The Best Websites For Teaching & Learning About New Orleans) and I thought I’d bring together a few short video clips to introduce the tragedy to our … Continue reading →

Video: “Street Compliments”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 4 days ago
I’m adding this video to The Best Resources On “Gratitude”:

This Week’s “Round-Up” Of Good Posts & Articles On Education Policy

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 4 days ago
Here are some relatively recent good pieces on education policy: Racing, Striving, Accelerating, Winning, Yada, Yada. And Reading is by Nancy Flanagan at Education Week. I’m adding it to A Beginning List Of The Best Posts & Articles On Accelerated … Continue reading →

Will $3 Million Buy A “Total School Makeover” For 20,000 Students? The Ford Foundation Says It Will

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 4 days ago
There has been plenty of publicity today about a new “public/private partnership” that is going to add “up to” 300 hours in a school year for 20,000 students in a number of districts. In a bit of what I would … Continue reading →

Great Story On “Continuous Improvement”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 4 days ago
I’ve written a lot about Marvin Marshall, my favorite advocate of positive classroom management strategies. As I’ve written before, I’d strongly recommend you subscribe to his blog. I’d encourage you to read his latest post, which includes this great story. … Continue reading →

Infographic: “History Of The Christmas Tradition”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 4 days ago
I’m adding this to The Best Places To Learn About Christmas, Hanukkah, & Kwanzaa:

A Rube Goldberg Machine For Hanukkah

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 4 days ago
I’m adding this to The Best Places To Learn About Christmas, Hanukkah, & Kwanzaa and to The Best Resources For Learning About Rube Goldberg Machines:

Student Goal-Setting Form I’m Using This Month

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 4 days ago
We have three weeks left until our Winter Break, and last week I asked students to identify three school-related goals they wanted to accomplish by that time. After they chose them, I handed out this form, where they copied each … Continue reading →

The Best Sites For Learning About Mexico, Central & South America

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 4 days ago
Here’s another list in my continuing series for my Geography class (you can see them all at The Best Geography Sites For Beginning & Intermediate English Language Learners). I’ll start off with related “The Best…” lists I’ve already posted: The … Continue reading →

Voting is open for the Edublog Awards! Check out the 2012 nominees!

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 5 days ago
The finalists have been announced for the 2012 Edublog Awards! You can see who they are and vote for them here. Voting ends on December 12th. I am a finalist in several categories, and I thank those of you who … Continue reading →

I Really Like The “Global Closet Calculator”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 5 days ago
The Global Closet Calculator is an interactive from National Geographic that lets students research where their clothes are made and consider its implications. The site includes videos with a transcript. You can read more about it at Free Technology For … Continue reading →

My Best Posts Over The Years — Volume Four

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 5 days ago
I’ve been writing this blog for six or seven years. I thought readers might find it useful for me to dig back in the “archives” and highlight my choices for some of the best posts that appeared during that time. … Continue reading →

A “Napkin Curriculum For Writing”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 5 days ago
A “Napkin Curriculum For Writing” is Part Four in my Education Week Teacher series on teaching writing. Educator and author Barry Lane provides this week’s guest response. The series has been extremely popular, so you might want to check it … Continue reading →

Special Edition Of “Links I Should Have Posted About, But Didn’t”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 6 days ago
(Usually, I just post a weekly version of this regular feature. However, sometimes I post an extra “Special Edition” when I have more good links than usual) I have a huge backlog of resources that I’ve been planning to post … Continue reading →

Check Out What We’ve Been Doing In Class….

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 6 days ago
You might, or might not, want to check out our ESL class’ blog and what we’ve been doing recently. One is a project on culture from our Geography class, which includes a fun Animoto slideshow. Another has student videos where … Continue reading →

Los Angeles Teacher’s Union & District Make Deal On Teacher Evaluation

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 6 days ago
The teacher’s union and school district in Los Angeles have reached an agreement on teacher evaluation that excludes the use of Value Added Measurements and also supposedly prevents the Los Angeles Times from gaining access to individual teacher data. John … Continue reading →

My Best Posts Over The Years — Volume Three

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 6 days ago
I’ve been writing this blog for six or seven years. I thought readers might find it useful for me to dig back in the “archives” and highlight my choices for some of the best posts that appeared during that time. … Continue reading →

Holiday Resources

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 week ago
I’ve just more-or-less updated a massive list, The Best Places To Learn About Christmas, Hanukkah, & Kwanzaa. I’m sure it will be getting even bigger….

My Best Posts Over The Years — Volume Two

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 week ago
I’ve been writing this blog for six or seven years. I thought readers might find it useful for me to dig back in the “archives” and highlight my choices for some of the best posts that appeared during that time. … Continue reading →

Resources For World AIDS Day

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 week ago
World AIDS Day is recognized every December 1st. You might find The Best Web Resources For Learning About HIV & AIDS useful.

Infographic: “The Weight Of Obesity”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 week ago
I’m adding this infographic to The Best Sites For Learning About Nutrition & Food Safety and to The Best Sites For Learning About The World’s Different Cultures. Learn about infographic design.

Pearl Harbor Resources

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 week ago
Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day is on December 7th here in the United States. I’ve just updated The Best Sites For Learning About Pearl Harbor. Additional suggestions are welcome….

Two Nice Interactive Infographics

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 week ago
Here are two nice interactive infographics I’ve recently discovered: Interactive: global energy sources is from Nature.com, and lets you show the amount of each kind of fossil fuel individual countries use. The OECD Better Life Index describes itself like this: … Continue reading →

My Best Posts Over The Years — Volume One

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 week ago
I’ve been writing this blog for six or seven years. I thought readers might find it useful for me to dig back in the “archives” and highlight my choices for some of the best posts that appeared during that time. … Continue reading →

Nice Short — & Cool — Video For English Language Learners

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 week ago
This would be a nice video to show ELL’s and then have them describe what they see. You can see more videos that I use the same way here.

Photo Galleries Of The Week

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 week ago
Obviously, photos can be great educational tools with English Language Learners and with any students (see The Best Ways To Use Photos In Lessons). I post about many photo galleries, also called slideshows. To do it in a little more organized … Continue reading →

Excellent Critique Of The Silliest Column Of The Year Related To Education

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 week ago
You may, or may not, have read or heard about New York Times’ columnist Tom Friedman’s amazingly silly column today where he says that Education Secretary Arne Duncan should be the next Secretary of State. His reasoning is bizarre, and … Continue reading →


“Family Engagement in Education Makes a Difference”

Larry Ferlazzo at Engaging Parents In School... - 1 week ago
Family Engagement in Education Makes a Difference is nice and useful post by Myrdin Thompson (I’ve previously written about her great work). It shares some good commentary and helpful resources….

Is Parent Engagement A Casualty In Newark’s “School Reform” Efforts?

Larry Ferlazzo at Engaging Parents In School... - 1 week ago
I’ve written a fair amount about schools in Newark, New Jersey (see The Best Posts & Articles For Learning About Newark’s $100 Million From Facebook). There appears to be another new “nail” pounded into the “coffin” of parent engagement in … Continue reading →

“Parent engagement in child literacy and learning among immigrant families”

Larry Ferlazzo at Engaging Parents In School... - 1 week ago
Parent engagement in child literacy and learning among immigrant families is an online PowerPoint presentation that has some useful information. It’s worth a look….

“Creating The Conditions for Parent Engagement”

Larry Ferlazzo at Engaging Parents In School... - 1 week ago
Chris Wejr has created this useful slideshow presentation: Creating The Conditions for Parent Engagement from Chris Wejr

This Week’s #PTchat – Recognizing Students for In & Out of School Accomplishments During the School Year

Larry Ferlazzo at Engaging Parents In School... - 1 week ago
Guest post by Joe Mazza Back in June, we spent an hour on #PTchat talking about whether Awards Assemblies were best for all kids. We agreed it was good to recognize students for all they do, but one takeaway highlighted how … Continue reading →

Excellent Overview Of Parent Engagement From Ontario

Larry Ferlazzo at Engaging Parents In School... - 1 week ago
Thanks to Sheila Stewart, I’ve learned about an excellent report on parent engagements issues from the Ontario Ministry of Education. Their Capacity Building Series: Parent Engagement is a must-read for those interested in parent engagement. I’m adding it to The … Continue reading →

Community Schools and Parent Engagement

Larry Ferlazzo at Engaging Parents In School... - 1 week ago
I’ve posted often both about my support of community schools and about my concern that they generally don’t encourage parent engagement (see Parent Leadership Is Often “Missing Link” In Community Schools). Here’s an excerpt from a new study that found … Continue reading →