Blog6 - iTuneU

If you have an iPhone, iPod, iPad or any of the other Apple products, you may already be acquainted with iTunes, but for those who are not, iTunes may have only been for putting music on your iPod at one time but it has developed into a whole library of useful items for education.  The App store has a number of useful Apps for your device that might prove useful for your student, but today I would like to talk about something you may not have looked at, namely iTuneU.  I would also like to talk a little about some of the podcasts available on Itunes.  If you are really serious about helping your child learn, there are a whole series of education courses developed for teaching grade school children. One such series was put out by the state of California, and you might want to look at everything else that is available.  One of the interesting things about iTuneU is that you can find something for any age, and any subject.  Have you ever wanted to go to Harvard, Yale Princeton, Cornell, MIT or you name the University of your choose, you will find full classwork, lectures and all on iTuneU, or discussions by the experts.  Want to learn computer programming? Check out MIT's opencourseware under Engineering and then Computer science.  Their first course in Python and the book is even available on the Internet for free.  Want to learn a new language? You'll find almost any language you would like to learn on iTuneU.
Let's talk for a bit about podcasts or netcasts as they are sometimes called.  If you aren't familiar with podcasts, you're in for a treat.  Pick any subject that you are interested in, or want to know more about, and you will find a podcast on it.  They can range from a few seconds to an hour or more. They can be just sound or they can be set up like a TV show.  If you want to find out about the latest in technology I suggest that you check out Twit.TV, it is available on iTunes or at Twit.TV on the net, Leo Laport, weekend radio host, has set up a number of weekly shows on what he has named "The Twit Network" . Besides his weekly radio show, you will find a variety of subjects in the tech world from digital cameras to cell phones and beyond. If you want to hear about a variety subjects. or stimulate a student, try the Ted Talks from the Ted conferences. The Ted conferences feature the greatest minds in the world. These are super creative people in every respect.  Listen to a variety of podcast and it will stimulate your creative juices. If you have some older students in the house, turn them onto something they enjoy by sharing a recording with them.  Other things you can find on iTunes include books and Audible books, iTunes is available on the Mac or Windows platforms for free. Just download iTunes from http://www.apple.com/support/itunes/.

The Power of Being a Parent

Blog #5

The experts say that the time that you spend reading to your children forms not only a bond between you and your children, but also a bond between your children and books.  If a child learns to read, it opens their door to learning, and if they establish a love for books, it sets them on the trail to become "Life long learners".  This isn't completely reserved for parents either.  As a grandpa, I love it when my twin grand daughters clime up on the arms of my chair so that I can read them a story.  This doesn't have to be stopped as the kids become a little older. As they get a little older let them read to you.  My wife was telling me the other day that she used to drive the kids to school, and on the way she would have them read the newspaper to her. I can tell you as a former radio announcer and broadcast journalist that there is no better way to build your vocabulary then to read out loud, and reading the newspaper will expose the reader to a great vocabulary, and current events
A few years ago I helped tutor a group of intercity kids.  One of the biggest things we did for them, was to help them with their reading skills.  We read to them and had them read to us.  We helped them with pronunciation.  We helped them earn the meaning of the words, and taught them how to use a dictionary.  We also helped them with their math skills,and the simple things like how to tell time. Basically, anything that they were working on in school we helped them with if they needed help. We checked their homework, and made sure they were doing it and doing it correctly. The kids came after school for an hour or two a couple of times a week for a school year.  Some just a few months, and their advance in school was dramatic.  One girl went from the lowest reading group to the highest.  One girl had been diagnosed as special ed, was given accolades for making the best advancement in her class for the year. Unfortunately, the program was cut for lack of funding.
This blog was meant for last week, and it was appropriately the 107th birthday for Dr. Seuss.  While I was never a big fan, I've never met a kid that wasn't.