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Saturday, February 16, 2013

Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… 2-16-13 …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EF



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

LARRY FERLAZZO’S WEBSITES OF THE DAY

LOOK FOR MY UPCOMING BOOK IN MARCH, 2013

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"Self-Driven Learning: Teaching Strategies for Student Motivation" 

The Best Resources For Learning About The Next Papal Election

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 8 hours ago
The upcoming Papal election looks likes it may coincide with my IB Theory of Knowledge class covering “Religion,” though I’m not sure yet if or how I might take advantage of that coincidence. Just in case, though, I’ve decided to … Continue reading →

The Best Info On Skills Employers Are Looking For In Job-Seekers

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 10 hours ago
One of the ways I try to help students motivate themselves in our life skills lessons and when we push as much as possible into higher-order thinking skill activities is to share information about what employers are looking for in … Continue reading →

Bye, Bye, Posterous

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 13 hours ago
Posterous, the easy as pie blogging platform, is being shut down on April 30th by its new owner, Twitter. Read all about it at TechCrunch.

The Harlem Shake As A Language-Learning Activity

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 13 hours ago
I was crazy enough to have my English Language Learner students create Gangnam-style videos as a language-learning activity (though no one reading this blog will ever see what we created since students wouldn’t do it unless I participated and, trust … Continue reading →

The Best Multimedia On The Russian Meteor

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 15 hours ago
As I’m sure everybody knows by now, a meteor hit Russia earlier today causing damage and injuring hundreds. Here are some resources on the event: The New York Times has a fascinating collage of videos. Meteor falls over Russia is … Continue reading →

A Selection Of Nelson Mandela Videos

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 16 hours ago
We’re in the minds of our ninth-grade English unit on Nelson Mandela, and here are several videos I’m adding to The Best Sites For Learning About Nelson Mandela:

Developing Academic English Skills

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
I’ve recently updated The Best Websites For Developing Academic English Skills & Vocabulary. Additional suggestions are welcome…

February’s Best Tweets — Part Two

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
Every month I make a short list highlighting my choices of the best resources I shared through (and learned from) Twitter, but didn’t necessarily include them in posts here on my blog. Now and then, in order to make it a … Continue reading →

Some Final Valentine’s Day Links….

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
Here are a few final additions to The Best Sites To Learn About Valentine’s Day: From lonely hearts to electronic dating is an interactive history of matchmaking — from the BBC. Freaky Ways Animals Woo Mates With Gifts is from … Continue reading →

It’s Official: “What Works Clearinghouse” Approves Study That Shows Relationships Promote Perseverance & Cash Bonuses Do Not

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
Earlier this month, I posted a fairly popular piece titled Surprise, Surprise: Study Finds That Relationships Promote Perseverance & Cash Bonuses Do Not. It referred to a new study which found that high school seniors being mentored by college students … Continue reading →

More Resources On The Minimum Wage

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
Here are some new additions to The Best Resources On Why Raising The Minimum Wage Is Important: This graph is the best argument for raising the minimum wage is from The Washington Post. The Minimum Wage Debate In Charts is … Continue reading →

“How can English Teachers Best Improve Their Craft?”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
How can English Teachers Best Improve Their Craft? is the new “question of the week” at my Education Week Teacher column. Feel free to leave your comments there or here….

The Best Resources On Why Raising The Minimum Wage Is Important

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 day ago
President Obama proposed raising the minimum raise during his State of the Union address earlier this week. Here are some resources sharing why it’s important. You might also be interested in: The Best Websites For Learning About Labor Day The … Continue reading →

A Few More Valentine’s Day Resources

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 2 days ago
Here are a few more additions to The Best Sites To Learn About Valentine’s Day: Love around the clock: 12 love idioms is a nice infographic. Thanks to Michelle Henry for the tip. Hundreds of couples leave ‘love locks’ across … Continue reading →

Create Your Own Pulp Magazine Cover!

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 2 days ago
Use the Pulp-O-Mizer to create a fun-looking and over-the-top pulp magazine cover. You can download your creation, though you can’t save it to the web. And if you or your students want some inspiration, you can always check out 8 … Continue reading →

More Resources On Implementing The Common Core

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 2 days ago
Here are new additions to The Most Useful Resources For Implementing Common Core: Preparing Students for Common Core ELA is by Tom Hoffman and may be the best short and sweet advice you’re going to find. Thanks to Alice Mercer … Continue reading →

“California Drops Out of ELL Assessment Consortium”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 2 days ago
California Drops Out of ELL Assessment Consortium is the headline of Lesli Maxwell’s Education Week piece on a pretty important event here in California. The politics of it still seems a bit unclear, but I’ve got to say it sounds … Continue reading →

“Finding a Balance Between District Mandates & Student Needs – Part Two”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 2 days ago
Finding a Balance Between District Mandates & Student Needs – Part Two is my newest Education Week Teacher post. It includes responses from educators/authors Kimberly Kappler Hewitt, Sheryl Nussbaum-Beach and Heather Wolpert-Gawron.

Just Updated List Of Videos Showing Good Questions

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 2 days ago
Some of the clips in The Best Videos Showing The Importance Of Asking Good Questions had stopped working, so I’ve updated them. Feel free to make other suggestions….

That Was Quick — Obama Administration Unveils “College Scorecard”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 2 days ago
“… My administration will release a new “College Scorecard” that parents and students can use to compare schools based on a simple criteria — where you can get the most bang for your educational buck.” - President Obama, 2013 State of … Continue reading →

A Few More Carnival Links

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 3 days ago
Here are a few more additions to The Best Sites To Learn About Mardi Gras & Carnivals: Rio de Janeiro’s samba schools vie for title is a photo gallery from The Sacramento Bee. Brazil’s Epic Carnival: Scenes from Rio’s Sambadrome … Continue reading →

NY Times Feature Lets You Create A 1 Minute Highlight Reel Of SOTU

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 3 days ago
The New York Times has come up with a very creative interactive for the 2013 State of the Union address — you get to “cut-and-paste” your own one minute video highlight reel at My State of the Union Address in … Continue reading →

Nice Valentine’s Day Graphics From The Washington Post

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 3 days ago
The Washington Post has published two graphics I’m adding to The Best Sites To Learn About Valentine’s Day: Love is in the mind, not in the heart How Deep Is Your Love?

Easily Create Learning Games With “Review Game Zone”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 3 days ago
Review Game Zone lets teachers, and anyone, input academic questions and have them turned into a games that students can use for review. It’s free, and teachers can also monitor student use of at least some types of the games. … Continue reading →

More Resources On The State Of The Union

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 3 days ago
Here are the newest additions to The Best (& Most Intriguing) Resources For Learning About The State Of The Union Message: The Wall Street Journal has an interactive transcript of President Obama’s 2013 speech. The Guardian has evaluated the reading … Continue reading →

American Psychological Association Starts Their Own TED-Like Talks

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 3 days ago
The American Psychological Association has just announced that they’re beginning their own TED-like Talks “by prominent psychologists.” They’ll be posting their PsyTalks here. Here’s the first one, though I actually found the second video they posted more interesting and useful … Continue reading →

Summary Of #selfdrivenlrng Twitter Chat On Student Motivation — Week One

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 3 days ago
My next book, Self-Driven Learning: Teaching Strategies for Student Motivation, will be published on March 1st by Eye On Education. It’s a sequel to my book, Helping Students Motivate Themselves. Starting in Feb and continuing for 6 weeks, I’ll be … Continue reading →

“7 Qualities to Maximize the Impact of Your Lesson Plans”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 3 days ago
7 Qualities to Maximize the Impact of Your Lesson Plans is an edited version of a chapter in my book, Helping Students Motivate Themselves. Eye On Education, the publisher of that book and its upcoming sequel, Self-Driven Learning have published … Continue reading →

Next ELT Blog Carnival Coming Up!

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 4 days ago
As I’ve previously mentioned, after 31 editions of ESL/EFL/ELL Blog Carnival, it was time for it to be refreshed. So I’ve worked with other bloggers to “re-brand” it as The ELT Blog Carnival and it now has its own permanent … Continue reading →

Video: Preview Of Dan Rather’s Report On Seattle School’s Standardized Test Boycott

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 4 days ago
Thanks to the American Federation of Teachers, I learned about this video preview of Dan Rather’s report tomorrow on AXS TV on what’s happening at Garfield High School in Seattle. I’m adding it to The Best Resources On The Seattle … Continue reading →

Three Infographics About Valentine’s Day, Including One Perfect For English Language Learners

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 4 days ago
Here are three new additions to The Best Sites To Learn About Valentine’s Day. The first one, results from a supposed survey of ELLs, I think has questionable statistics, but provides a great opportunity for an ELL class discussion about … Continue reading →

Mardi Gras & Carnivals

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 4 days ago
Here are the newest additions to The Best Sites To Learn About Mardi Gras & Carnivals: The History Channel has a good selection of multimedia resources on Mardi Gras. 2013 Rio Carnaval is a photo gallery from The Los Angeles … Continue reading →

More “State Of The Union” Resources

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 4 days ago
Here are the newest additions to The Best (& Most Intriguing) Resources For Learning About The State Of The Union Message: The ASIDE blog has a useful Visualizations To Teach The State of The Union post. Bing announces interactive State … Continue reading →

Feb. 12th Is Darwin Day

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 5 days ago
“Darwin Day is a global celebration of science and reason held on or around Feb. 12, the birthday anniversary of evolutionary biologist Charles Darwin.” You might be interested in The Best Online Resources To Learn About Charles Darwin.

Even More Resources On The Lunar New Year

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 5 days ago
Here are the newest additions to The Best Resources For Chinese New Year: Snakes for the New Year is a Wall Street Journal slideshow. Here’s a Reuters’ video: China’s ‘Snake Village’ seeks New Year riches is from News.com in Australia. … Continue reading →

Video: “Extreme Unicycling”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 5 days ago
This would be a nice video to show to ELLs and have them describe what they’re seeing:

The Best Resources For Learning About Flight

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 5 days ago
I’ve been meaning to prepare this post for quite awhile, and it’s dedicated to Alice Mercer‘s son, Leroy, who’s a fan of flight and paper airplanes. You might also be interested in: The Best Sites Where Students Can Learn About … Continue reading →

“Several Ways to Balance Between District Mandates & Student Needs”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 5 days ago
Several Ways to Balance Between District Mandates & Student Needs is the newest post at my Education Week Teacher blog. It’s a good one. Rick Wormeli shares many great suggestions, and I recommend some ways to make textbooks more palatable.

Animated Infographic Video: Valentine’s Day

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 5 days ago
I’m adding this video to The Best Sites To Learn About Valentine’s Day. It says that teachers receive more Valentine’s Day cards than anyone else…

Send a “Vegas” Valentine

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 5 days ago
The Las Vegas Sun newspaper lets you pick from a variety of clean (and cute) images that you can choose to email to a friend for Valentine’s Day. You get to write a short message, and you’re also give the … Continue reading →

Video: The Complete “The Finland Phenomenon” Documentary Has Arrived Online

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 5 days ago
The well-regarded documentary The Finland Phenomenon is now online for free and is embedded below. I learned about its availability via a tweet by Pasi Sahlberg, which also included a radio interview. I’m adding it to The Best Resources To … Continue reading →

Video: “Amazing Gangnam Style Animation”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 5 days ago
I’ve written posts about using the Gangnam style video in class. Here’s a very unusual version of the music video:

“Year Of The Snake” Resources

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 6 days ago
Chinese New Year will began on February 10, 2013 and marks the start of the Year of the Snake. Here are new additions to The Best Resources For Chinese New Year: Chinese New Year Songs comes from Top Marks. The … Continue reading →

This Week’s “Round-Up” Of Useful Posts On Education Policy

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 6 days ago
Here are some relatively recent useful posts on education policy issues: West vs Asia education rankings are misleading is from The New Scientist. I’m adding it to The Best Sites For Getting Some Perspective On International Test Comparison Demagoguery. 3 … Continue reading →

Beginning Twitter Conversation On Student Motivation Today Using The #selfdrivenlrng Hashtag

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 6 days ago
My next book, Self-Driven Learning: Teaching Strategies for Student Motivation, will be published on March 1st by Eye On Education. It’s a sequel to my book, Helping Students Motivate Themselves. Starting today and continuing for the next three weeks, I’ll … Continue reading →

Very Important NY Times Article Today: “The Secret to Fixing Bad Schools”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 6 days ago
There’s a very important column in today’s New York Times titled The Secret To Fixing Bad Schools. It’s written by David L. Kirp from the University of California. He focuses on the positive performance of schools in Union City, New … Continue reading →

Video: “The Blizzard of 2013 Timelapse”

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 6 days ago
I’m adding this to The Best Sites For Learning About The Winter Season:

Impressive National Geo Interactive On Lincoln Assassination

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 6 days ago
If you’re ever in a position where you need to teach about Lincoln’s assassination, the new Lincoln Killing interactive from National Geographic is going to be one of your “go to” resources. I’m adding it to The Best Resources About … Continue reading →

Snowstorm Resources

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 6 days ago
I’m sure everybody has plenty of sources for up-to-date info on the snowstorm hitting the Northeast right now, so I’m not making a “The Best…” list on it. However, here are a few related resources I’m adding to The Best … Continue reading →

You Can Now Pre-Order My Book, Self-Driven Learning, On Amazon

Larry Ferlazzo at Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... - 1 week ago
My new book, Self-Driven Learning: Teaching Strategies for Student Motivation, is now available for pre-order on Amazon. It should be released by March 1st. You can read more about the book here.