TIS
&
THAT All content presented within has been through the hard work and dedication of the following Aaron Radcliff Technology Integration Specialist at Robert L. Bland Middle School aradcliff@k12.wv.us Cherry Weikle Special Education Teacher & Site-Based Manager at Hannan Jr/Sr High School clweikle@k12.wv.us
Summer Is Nearly Upon Us! The crisp, cool school days of Fall are a distant memory. The long, cold Winter days and nights have thankfully been left behind us. Spring, though still clinging to us like the dew on a fresh blade of grass, will soon be a memory. Summer is upon us, ladies and gentlemen! With Summer comes those glorious sunny days spent near the water, or perhaps on the porch with that book we promised ourselves we’d read so long ago, or loading the kids up for a family outing. The word “Summer” evokes feelings that no other season can touch.
In This Issue of TIS & That In this issue, we will put four wheels (or maybe even two) on the Great West Virginian Road Trip as we examine a series of WV-centric resources that will help our families get out of the house and see more of our great state. Along the way, we’ll also discuss an app that will help anyone explore the history in our own towns and communities as seen by it’s citizens (all while getting a little exercise).
The Great West Virginian Road Trip Due to current technology, a child can take a virtual tour or view videos and pictures of any place one Earth. Children in West Virginia can see Sri Lanka, Japan, Paris or Greece at the click of their mouse. However, our children are so involved with exploring the distant places of the world that they are missing the treasures here at home. Many places in West Virginia are within driving distance and can be visited in a day. Nevertheless, our children are missing some wonderful opportunities just beyond their driveways. This newsletter includes resources to allow families to plan a trip, teachers to plan a lesson or field trip, and children to explore their own heritage and the wonders that West Virginia has to offer.
Top 10 Places to Visit in WV
——————— Harpers Ferry National Historical Park Snowshoe Mountain West Virginia State Penitentiary Seneca Caverns New River Gorge Bridge West Virginia State Capitol Summersville Lake Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum Stonewall Jackson Lake Resort Blackwater Falls State Park
Courtesy of AttractionsofAmerica.com
WV Official Webpage
WV Fun Facts
http://www.wv.gov
http://www.legis.state.wv.us/Educational/K ids_Page/fun_facts.cfm
WV Cultural Center http://www.wvculture.org/education.html
WV Tourism http://gotowv.com/ http://www.westvirginia.com/home.cfm http://visitwv.com/ http://www.wvcommerce.org
WV Magazines
http://www.50states.com/facts/westvirginia.htm http://www.funtrivia.com/en/Geography/ West-Virginia-3977.html http://jeff560.tripod.com/wvfacts.html http://awesomeamerica.com/westvirginia/ http://www.mapsofworld.com/usa/factsand-trivia/west-virginia.html
http://www.wonderfulwv.com/
Top 10 Family Activities in WV WV Facebook Pages https://www.facebook.com/pages/WestVirginia/112083625475436 https://www.facebook.com/WildMtnKat
WV Legislature Kids Pages
https://blog.trekaroo.com/top-10-thingsfamilies-west-virginia/
WV Educator Plans http://www.apples4theteacher.com/usastates/west-virginia/
http://www.birthday.wv.gov/resources/Pag http://www.legis.state.wv.us/Educational/K es/Teachers.aspx ids_Page/kids.html http://www.legis.state.wv.us/Educational/K http://www.wvdnr.gov/Wildlife/Teachers.s htm ids_Page/kids.cfm
WV History http://www.history.com/topics/us-states/westvirginia
A Summer Stroll with Ingress As individuals who work with young people, and individuals who use the phrase “young people” from time to time, we all know how difficult it can be to pry them from their screens and get them into the great outdoors, or at the very least, out for a stroll. A fantastic resource, by way of our good friend Google, will bridge both worlds. Through a partnership with Niantic Labs, Google has released an app (for both iOS and Android) entitled Ingress. This app combines the data on locations and history that has been accumulated by Google and good natured competition into a capture the flag style game that’s completely powered by user involvement and submission. Before I begin an in-depth analysis and description, as well as tying it into the education setting, allow me to express the opinion that this app is best experienced and played than you reading about it in black and white. As you can imagine, it loses something in the translation. Allow me to begin. The “story” is that there are connections all around us, and that there are two factions warring for these connections. After choosing a side, you can destroy the connections of your enemy, or strengthen and create connections to boost your allies. The game is GPS based, and requires a lot of foot travel. As promised before, getting young people out of their homes and getting exercise. One comparison that rings true is that it is an evolutionary step beyond geocaching. Regarding it’s place in education, each of the “portals” are based upon locations of historical or cultural significance. For example, in Weston, WV, there are portals at the Historical Courthouse, The Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum, and the Louis Bennett Memorial Library. Many of these portals provide links to more information, and can be connected on “Missions”, where you can learn about the places you are visiting while you complete objectives in the game. As mentioned above, this is user-generated content that is built upon, and verified by, Google. In other words, no funny business. More information can be sought at www.ingress.com, where you can find a series of videos that can explain the app much better than the writers of this newsletter. As mentioned above, the app is available on iOS or Android devices and can be downloaded for free through their respective app stores.