Posts on “ current events ”

Thanks to all of you, our newly launched Featured Movie app for Windows 8 just reached a big milestone! The Windows 8 app – for devices like the Microsoft Surface – has now been downloaded more than 10,000 times. Remember, your BrainPOP username lets you log in directly from the app at no additional cost. A second milestone? The app earned front-and-center placement last week, when the Windows Store featured it in the Education category.

Tomorrow is March 14th, also know as Pi day!  Every year many teachers observe the coincidence that our calendar notation aligns with the most famous ratio –  the circumference of a circle to its diameter!  Thinking about ways to incorporate Pi day into your classroom? You can start by providing a overview with the BrainPOP Pi Movie , continue by checking out BrainPOP Educators Superfaux2′s custom mixer quiz on Pi, or create your own. Check out our “lesson ideas” page for some ideas about creating a Pi Day festival from Educator Toni Sexton.    Have a piphilologist  contest, to see which student can memorize the longest stretch of numbers!  Have additional ideas? Share them below. Happy Pi Day!

I was lucky enough to be part of the BrainPOP team that attended and presented at this year’s SXSWEdu Conference and Festival, and wanted to share some of my thoughts and impressions. Throughout  SXSWEdu, the concept of “innovation” was everywhere, but it was particularly notable at  the “LaunchEDU”  Summit. Over the course of two days, a panel of judges assessed products and services from 24 start-up companies, all attempting to solve a specific education problem – from a more research-friendly search engine to a simplifying complex multiple log-in processes. As individuals and teams gave their “elevator pitch,” you could immediately see  the engagement, excitement, and work ethic involved in starting a business. It got me thinking about how best to bring out these traits in students. Problem-solving is a prime example of authentic and engaging learning. The process forces a team of people, with diverse skill sets, to draw on background knowledge, build new knowledge, and creatively combine knowledge into an authentic solution. It’s what innovators and inventors have done since the beginning of time. It’s what humans do well. It demands creativity. To quote Seymour Pappert, it’s “hard fun.” So, how can harness this for the classroom? Sessions at… Read the Rest»

Here are 5 ways to shine April’s BrainPOP spotlights Earth Awareness and Money Matters into your classroom. 1) April 22nd is Earth Day – have students explore the entire Earth Awareness Spotlight page. Follow this lesson plan and help them choose their cause. 2) April 15th is tax day! Help your students understand why the grownups are grumpy by watching the taxes movie during morning meeting, or playing Budget Hero on GameUp. 3) Though many US citizens are still struggling financailly, US stocks have recently hit an all time high. Help your students explore what it means to buy shares of a publicly traded company with our stocks and shares movie. 4) April 25th is World Penguin Day! Enjoy the penguin movie and learn some fun facts about our flightless feathered friends! 5) To solve the problems of Global Climate Change, global cooperation in the key. Help increase your student’s global awareness by participating in a meaningful global collaboration project! Check out this webinar with POPstar Lisa Parisi, of this list of links for some ideas to get started! These are just a few of the countless ways you can use BrainPOP and GameUp Spotlight content with your students. Share… Read the Rest»

On February 13th, BrainPOP was thrilled to host student leaders from Global Kids and Mouse Squad for a “serious game jam” at BrainPOP Headquarters.  During the 2 hour event, student leaders from Global Kids led a “grow a game” activity that encouraging their peers to consider the role of values in the games they know and love.  Next, in small groups, students playtested and manipulated “Buckets” a new categorization and relationship assessment game that we’re developing here at BrainPOP. The student input was phenomenal, they provided all sorts of creative ideas for how to change the mechanics, data and interface to make the game more fun, effective and useful for the classroom. At BrainPOP we host events like this for a number of reasons.  First of all it’s wonderful to provide opportunity for students to learn about the process of game design from professionals in the field.  Second it’s great for our designers at BrianPOP to get authentic feedback and suggestions directly from the most important members of our audience: students! You can’t build a successful game without concrete feedback from your audience.   Finally, it’s through events like this that connect students, teachers, parents, and professionals with shared interests… Read the Rest»

We’re sure that today’s news about the meteorite in Russia has piqued everyone’s interest. With that in mind we’ve made today’s featured movie Asteroids. Enjoy!

For the past two weeks, Moby has been on the road visiting conferences and meeting his biggest fans! At FETC in Florida, and TCEA in Texas, educators posed for photographs with him and were quick to post their images with the hashtag #mobyandme to Twitter and Instagram for the BrainPOP community to see!  Using a service called “Sharypic” we’ve put together slideshows with all the fun photos. Be sure to discover and follow other BrainPOP fans on Twitter and Instagram! #Mobyandme at TCEA in Austin Texas TCEA photos> #Mobyandme at FETC in Orlando Florida FETC photos>

Digital Learning Day is a national campaign that celebrates teachers and shines a spotlight on successful instructional practice and effective use of technology in classrooms across the country. Here at BrainPOP, we strive to engage students by providing the best in digital learning content, and we’re committed to supporting teachers in their quest to utilize digital technologies in the classroom. Be on the look out for our newest tool in development called My BrainPOP that will enhance your students’ learning experiences, and give you the ability to track and assess student progress via tailored content. My BrainPOP is currently being piloted in select classrooms across the country and we can’t wait to make it available in your school! You can follow the Twitter hashtag #DLDAY to participate in discussions about the future of digital learning and see how teachers are celebrating digital learning in their classrooms today. A big thank you to Sharon LePage Plante (@iplante) for tweeting about using BrainPOP to teach verb tenses in celebration of this special day. How are you celebrating Digital Learning Day with students? Share your ideas in the comments!  

Join the POParrazi We are excited to be in Austin, Texas, this week for the 2013 TCEA Conference.  If you’re at the conference, stop by Booth # 1717 to take your picture with Moby and participate in our #mobyandme POParrazi photo collection!  While you’re there, find out about the latest developments at BrainPOP, including the mixer, new Educators pages ,and a special first glimpse of new teacher and student accounts!   BrainPOP is also featured in the conference program – our own Arturo Guajardo will present BrainPOP Basics and Beyond Thursday, FEB. 7th from 12:30 – 1:20pm in the Hilton ROOM 406. See you there!  

Sponsored by BrainPOP, the Partners in Learning 2012 Global Forum is an annual program that attracts teachers from around the world seeking innovative and effective uses of technology in K-12 classrooms. This year, there were over 250,000 applicants who completed a rigorous application process with hopes of being one of the 115 teachers who attended the Global Forum in Prague from November 27 – December 1.  Our very own Dr. Kari Stubbs, Vice President of Learning & Innovation, traveled to Prague to represent BrainPOP and presented, Are You Game? Leveraging Online Games for Classroom Engagement. At the event, five teachers from Florida, Michigan and Washington state were among 21 educators who were awarded global recognition for their innovative work in the classroom. These educators, part of Team USA mentioned here last week, took home prizes in three categories- Cutting Edge Use of Technology, Collaboration, and Educator’s Choice.  To see a list of all winners, please take a moment to register for the free Partners in Learning Network. BrainPOP was popular among the attendees and was included in multiple projects that were submitted for the competition.  Joli Barker (@Joli_Barker), 2nd Grade Classroom Educator, Slaughter Elementary, McKinney ISD, reflected on her use… Read the Rest»