Posts on “ awards ”

Our K-3 resource has been named the winner of a 2013 ON for Learning Award from Common Sense Media! The ON for Learning Awards celebrate the best digital media products for kids. BrainPOP Jr. is one of just 50 apps, web sites, and games to be honored this year. Common Sense Media is dedicated to providing families with reliable information about media and technology; some of you may recognize the organization as one of our GameUp partners. Their ON for Learning Award winners are chosen based on the results of an intensive evaluation framework. Read what they had to say about BrainPOP Jr. We’re thrilled about this honor! Feel free to spread the good news by test driving our newly minted SHARE button, which you’ll see at the bottom of this post,      

Dr. Kari Stubbs, Vice President of 21st Century Learning at BrainPOP, was in the first “20 to Watch” class in 2006. Since then, many BrainPOP Educators have been recognized including Adina Popa, Robert Miller, and Teryl Magee. Click here to checkout the previous winners. NSBA’s “20 to Watch” Recognition Program Do you know educators who are passionate about using technology to transform teaching and learning; who can inspire their colleagues to embrace new tools; and who are curious by nature and always looking for how the next innovation can be applied to education?  If so, please submit their names by January 12th for consideration as part of the National School Boards Association’s “20 to Watch” recognition program.  The 2011-12 “20″ will be honored in Washington during CoSN’s Annual Conference, March 5-7, and recognized during the Technology Leadership Network Luncheon at the NSBA Annual Conference in Boston, April 22. Established in 2006 as a part of the 20th anniversary celebration for NSBA’s technology and learning conference , the “20 to Watch” program identifies emerging leaders within the education technology community who have the potential to impact the field for the next 20 years. While primarily focused on K-12 teachers, administrators, and… Read the Rest»

Last week, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan announced the launch of the new Digital Promise Initiative. Part of the initiative is the 2012 National STEM Video Game Challenge. BrainPOP is a proud outreach partner of this event and our site is a terrific starting place for you to prepare your students to participate.  Of course our science, technology, engineering and mathematics topic pages introduce many key concepts that are perfect entry points for developing game content. In addition, check out Game-up for examples of STEM based educational  games and begin thinking about turning content knowledge into games.  Finally, listen to our webinar and read our blog posts that can help you consider the best ways to bring game design into your classroom. We love providing these resources,  and hope that you love using them too!  

A year and a half ago, Dr. Jan Harris, district superintendent from Cullman City Schools, spotted Moby on the shirt of BrainPOP’s VP of 21st Century Learning, Dr. Kari Stubbs.  Dr. Harris shared her district’s enthusiasm for BrainPOP and its use alongside other cutting edge technology tools to increase 21st century learning outcomes for students and teachers. BrainPOP has been following Cullman City Schools’ successes ever since and has had the opportunity to collaborate with one of their star Technology Integration Specialists, Aimee Bates. Here at BrainPOP, we were ecstatic to learn that Cullman City Schools recently won the 2011 CoSN Team Award for their visionary leadership and utilization of technology! They were recognized during the CoSN annual conference for their effective and innovative use of technology to transform teaching practices, learning opportunities for students, parent and community involvement, and professional development for teachers. To learn more about the award and the accomplishments of Cullman City Schools, check out the recent press release issued by CoSN. BrainPOP couldn’t be prouder of Cullman City School City schools! Keith Kreuger, CEO of CoSN, said it best in the press release, “From their implementation of a one-to-one laptop initiative to ensuring that teachers… Read the Rest»

The November/December 2010 Buyer’s Guide edition of iPhone Life magazine listed our free Featured Movie app among the “best of the best” in the Education category. Download the app from iTunes for your iPad, iPhone, or iPod Touch – it’s a great way for kids and grown-ups alike to learn something new every day!

October was a great month for Andover USD 385 in Kansas. The BrainPOP-using district earned a “Top 10″ ranking in the seventh annual Digital District Survey. Conducted by the National School Board Association in conjunction with the Center for Digital Education, the survey cites the effective use of technology to communicate with the public and embrace modern best practices. Rob Dickson, Andover’s Director of Technology, joined Kari Stubbs for a well-attended workshop at the Kansas State Department of Education (KSDE) conference in Wichita on October 26. The session, dedicated to the implementation of digital tools in the classroom, weaved in success stories from six Andover teachers and earned rave reviews. Using BrainPOP in your district? Share success stories below!

Congratulations to eMINTS on not only receiving an I3 Grant, but also on being named a Highest Rated Applicant. BrainPOP is partnering with the University of Missouri eMINTS National Center and New Franklin R-I School District on an I3 (Investing in Education) Grant The eMINTS Validation Project will examine the efficacy of eMINTS professional development programs on the achievement of high-need rural Missouri middle school students. The project will reach 10,500 students and 240 teachers over a five-year period. The grant will specifically examine students’ mathematics and English Language Arts performance. BrainPOP will support the grant with its online content BrainPOP, BrainPOP Español, and BrainPOP ESL, as well as professional development support through BrainPOP Educators. Congratulations again. BrainPOP looks forward to supporting this investigation of best practices for technology integration into learning through the eMINTS program. Is your district involved in a grant program that BrainPOP could support? Please share!

We at BrainPOP ESL are proud to win our second IMA Best in Class award, this time in the Education category. The Best in Class award is the highest honor bestowed by the Interactive Media Awards. It represents the very best in planning, execution and overall professionalism of a website. We are also excited to announce that BrainPOP ESL was named a finalist in the 2010 Association of Education Publishers Awards!  This is a prestigious award and to be selected is truly an honor. Winners will be announced at the ceremony on June 8th in Washington DC.  Wish us luck!

I just got this email from an outstanding BrainPOP Educator, Adina Popa, who’s been working on creating a new model of professional development at her school. What an honor for BrainPOP Educators to have met their criteria and been chosen as a school resource for PD. Adina was the driving force behind our amazing series of webinars in February. Adina had the vision of tackling not only 1 webinar, but reaching out to her staff and finding a specialist in each specialty area that was presented. For all the gratitude we feel towards Adina and her colleagues, it’s so thrilling to hear what an impact this had on the flipside. Read all about it here! Adina’s teams’ criteria for finding a professional network included  1) unrestricted access at school, 2) relevant information pertaining to the resources we are using, 3) free, and 4) provides collaborations amongst a large number of educators. This only makes me want to take BrainPOP Educators to a new level even more, and I would love your feedback. What features would you like to see here? Additional resources? What does your version of BrainPOP Educators 2.0 look like? Your input is greatly valued.

It’s time for the 2009 Edublog Awards nominations! In the past, we’ve nominated outstanding educators who have found dynamic ways to document their class’s experience with BrainPOP. This year, we’re excited to nominate Steve Anderson for… Best Individual tweeter: http://web20classroom.blogspot.com/ We follow Steve on twitter and are impressed with his commitment to sharing quality educational resources. Stay posted at the 2009 Edublog Awards to vote once the nominees are all in! Nominations close Tuesday, December 8th! Have you found an innovative way to incorporate BrainPOP into your class blog, website, social network, or twitter account? Please share!