Post on 31-Mar-2015
transcript
Supporting Classroom Learning with the ORC
St. Augustine SchoolMay 1, 2014Jamie Davis, ORC Coordinator
Agenda
• Introductions• What is the ORC • Why students should access the ORC• Why school staff should access the ORC• Resources that support the PreKinder-6
curriculum• ORC Support Site• ORC Listserv
Welcome!Please share your:• Name• Your position• Your familiarity with the ORC
What is the ORC?• A $1.7 million collection of curricular-aligned,
authoritative digital resources licensed on behalf of all Alberta:• K-12 students and their parents • School staff• Pre-service teachers • Public library staff *
• Funded by a yearly Grant-In-Aid from Alberta Education to The Alberta Library (TAL)• Return on Investment (ROI) calculation of 3:1
for Alberta Schools
*for the purposes of supporting K-12 patrons
Why students should
access the ORCORC Resources:• Provide authoritative, age appropriate, engaging,
curricular-aligned content• Allow students to become familiar and comfortable
with the kinds of resources and searching practises that an integral part of 21st century learning
• Are time savers once you are familiar with using them
• Include embedded supports for diverse learners like listen, text translation, citation tools, vetted websites, copyright friendly pictures and videos
• Provide anytime, from anywhere access
Why school staff should
access the ORCORC Resources Provide:• Access to ready-to-use or customizable lesson plans,
teaching materials and direct curricular correlations • Support for ESL and foreign language learners• Access to journals like Walrus, National Geographic,
National Geographic Kids, Men’s Health, and Maclean’s just to name a few (RSS feeds available)
• Consistent and explicit update schedules• Access to vetted websites • Ability to create permalinks that can be posted on a
website or in an email blast
Accessing the ORC• Go to LearnAlberta.ca • Select English• Click on “Online Reference Centre” in the tab
along the top of the screen• In school automatic authentication• Access outside of school requires a remote
username/password• ECSD Username: LA12 Password: 2953
• Share your district username/password using low tech methods
• Email jdavis@thealbertalibrary.ab.ca for your remote username/password
Resources to Support Literacy Skills
BookFLIX• 105 fiction and non-fiction book pairs
organized into themes• Search titles by guided reading level,
author, grade level, theme, etc.• Lesson plans for each pair provided• Real voice audio support embedded
throughout resources• Follow up “puzzlers” for each pair
TrueFLIX• Newly created sister resource to BookFLIX
designed for grades 3-5• Nonfiction content divided into 2 broad
themes with 3-5 subthemes• Each ebook includes an introductory video to
help build background knowledge of topic• Human voice read along feature• Interactive table of contents for each ebook• Essential inquiry questions and project ideas
for every ebook
TeachingBooks.net• Bring an author into your classroom any time
you need• Search for Meet-the-Author Movies or Book
Readings, Author Audio Name Pronunciation, book guides and lesson plans
• Access Alberta specific booklists: • Pacific Northwest Library Association Young Readers Choice Award (YRCA)• ELA Authorized Novel and Nonfiction Reading Lists grades 4-12•Meet-the-author book readings in French•Canadian Book Award Winners/Canadian Book and Author Resources
• Personalized Book Lists upon request
Resources to Support the Science Curriculum
PowerKnowledge Suite
• Content divided into 3 databases: Earth Space, Life Science and Physical Science• Includes a customizable read aloud
feature• Short, segmented articles with
introductory videos to build background knowledge• Embedded science experiments and
educational games • Aligns with 95% of the grade 3-6 science
curriculum and 87% of grade 1-6 science curriculum
PowerKnowledge: Earth Space
Curriculum areas covered:•Grade 1 Seasonal Changes •Grade 2 Exploring Liquids•Grade 3 Rocks and Minerals•Grade 4 Light and Shadows, and Waste and Our World•Grade 5 Weather Watch, and Wetland Ecosystems•Grade 6 Sky Science•Social Studies mapping skills
PowerKnowledge: Life Science
Curriculum areas covered:•Grade 1 Needs of Animals and Plants•Grade 2 Small Flying and Crawling Animals•Grade 3 Animal Life Cycles and Hearing and Sound•Grade 4 Plant Growth and Changes, Wetland Ecosystems and Waste and Our World•Grade 6 Trees and Forests
PowerKnowledge:Physical Science
Curriculum areas covered:•Grade 1 Needs of Animals and Plants•Grade 2 Hot and Cold Temperatures and Magnetism•Grade 4 Wheels and Levers•Grade 5 Electricity and Magnetism and Classroom Chemistry•Grade 6 Trees and Forests
Science In Context• Featured news and videos on homepage • Content organized into Featured,
Reference, News, Statistics, Videos, Images, etc. on topic pages• Customizable listen feature • Download articles to MP3• Text translation into 13 languages • Resources section includes resources for
students, teachers, and librarians • “Curriculum Standards” for Alberta
Resources to Support the Social Studies Curriculum
CulturegramsOUpdated every 6 monthsOIncludes a World, Kids Edition and
Provinces EditionOArticles are written and reviewed by in-
country consultantsOCultural recipes included for each country
and provinceOCreate customizes graphs and tablesOTools include world time, distance
calculator, and currency converter
The Canadian Encyclopedia
• New updated interface very aesthetic and functional• Multiple pathways to information• Personal accounts, videos, articles, images,
etc.• Wealth of Canadian content to support:• Grade 4 – Geography, Geology, Natural Resources, Provincial &
National Parks, Hoodoos, Dinosaurs in Alberta, Foothills, Rocky Mountains, etc.• Grade 5 – WWI, WWII, John A. Macdonald & George Etienne Cartier,
Confederation, Canada’s National Railway, Great Depression, Famous Five, Lester B. Pearson, Statute of Westminster, Potlatch, etc. • Grade 6 – Local Government, Lieutenant Govenor
Canada In Context• Canadian content!• Customizable listen feature• Articles downloadable to MP3• Text translation to 13 languages• Share or permalink capabilities• Featured videos, news, and stories on
homepage• Jump to related articles within the article• Advanced search allows for Boolean, and
content selection (basic/intermediate/advanced)
Canadian Points of View• Essays written from multiple sides of current Canadian-
themed issues• Organized by category and then related topics• Homepage guides for research • In the Spotlight • Customizable listen feature• Access Canadian magazines, newspapers, International
newspapers, Bios, Radio and News transcripts, etc.• Embedded Canadian Curriculum standards
With An Account:• Can create folders and sort by date, articles, videos, etc.• Can create RSS feeds on searches
Other Engaging Resources to Check Out
Muzzy Online
• Learning languages through the context of a story• Hundreds of words and phrases
embedded in stories• Six movies in each language level with
subtitles that can be turned on/off• 101 thematic video lessons with
embedded language learning games divided into level I & II• All new 3D animation• All new recording studio
Visual Thesaurus
• 6 languages including English, French, Spanish and German• Correct word pronunciation • Images related to words with right click• Word of the day/week/month• Personalized word lists and spelling
bees*• Vocabgrabber*
*With personal account
Setting up a personal Visual Thesaurus account
World Book Kids• New text to speech feature• Easy online database for young users• Use the compare option to find
similarities and differences between animals, countries and places• Available on iPads• Online Training Available
World Book Student• New text to speech feature• General encyclopedia • Includes atlas, dictionary (with voice
pronunciations), images, web links, and charts• "My Research" option for students to track
and save their research online. • Timeline feature embedded• Available on iPads• Online Training Available
ORC Support Sitewww.onlinereferencecentre.caOResource training materials - podcasts,
videos, archived webinars, and guidesOInformation about upcoming free ORC PD
opportunitiesOInformation about province-wide resource
trials and surveysOOnline booking system for ORC sessionsOCalendar of ORC EventsOLinks to ORC Twitter and Facebook accounts
ORC ListservOWeekly email updates organized by E/J/S:
ONew resources and featuresOProvince-wide trialsOSurveysOFree PD opportunities
ONo emails during school breaksOMembership has its benefits – joining
incentiveOEmail jdavis@thealbertalibrary.ab.ca or
visit the ORC Support Site to join today
ContactFor more information or to schedule a school presentation please contact
Jamie Davis, ORC Coordinator
Call 780-414-0805 ext.229OR
Email: jdavis@thealbertalibrary.ab.ca
Links to Check outORC Support Sitehttp://www.onlinereferencecentre.ca/
ORC ListServhttps://lists.talonline.ca/listinfo/orc
ORC Facebookhttp://www.facebook.com/OnlineReferenceCentre
Twitter@ORC_AB