1. Copyright © 2008 Verizon Foundation. All Rights Reserved. This document may be reproduced and distributed solely for uses that are both (a) educational and (b) non-commercial. Any reproduction or distribution of this document for any other purpose, including commercial gain, is strictly prohibited. Montgomery, Alabama January, 2009 Keith George Alabama State Department of Education

2. Thinkfinity.org is a Web site that contains thousands of free lesson plans and student materials for every core subject, designed by the leading educational organizations in the United States. º A partnership between the Verizon Foundation and the nation’s leading educational and literacy organizations º 55,000+ FREE education and literacy resources º FREE professional development

3. The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing ArtsArts National Council on Economic EducationEconomics National Endowment for the HumanitiesHumanities National Council of Teachers of MathematicsMathematics International Reading Association & National Council of Teachers of English Reading/Language Arts American Association for the Advancement of ScienceScience National Geographic SocietyGeography National Museum of American HistoryAmerican History National Center for Family Literacy & ProLiteracy Worldwide Adult & Family Literacy

4. O Free Educational Resources º Standards-based lesson plans º Student & Teacher Materials –Online –Interactive –Offline (printable) º Partner-reviewed Web links O Free Literacy Resources º For literacy instructors º For literacy program staff º For community members º For adults and early childhood learners

5. O Free Educational Resources º Standards-based lesson plans º Student & Teacher Materials –Online –Interactive –Offline (printable) º Partner-reviewed Web links O Free Literacy Resources º For literacy instructors º For literacy program staff º For community members º For adults and early childhood learners

6. O Free Educational Resources º Standards-based lesson plans º Student & Teacher Materials –Online –Interactive –Offline (printable) º Partner-reviewed Web links O Free Literacy Resources º For literacy instructors º For literacy program staff º For community members º For adults and early childhood learners

7. O Free Educational Resources º Standards-based lesson plans º Student & Teacher Materials –Online –Interactive –Offline (printable) º Partner-reviewed Web links O Free Literacy Resources º For literacy instructors º For literacy program staff º For community members º For adults and early childhood learners

8. O Free Educational Resources º Standards-based lesson plans º Student & Teacher Materials –Online –Interactive –Offline (printable) º Partner-reviewed Web links O Free Literacy Resources º For literacy instructors º For literacy program staff º For community members º For adults and early childhood learners

9. Voted Best Site to download Free Lessons & Materials (2006 & 2007)

10. º Access and use resources at school or at home º No subscription/ membership fees

11. Highlights

12. Thinkfinity Calendar

13. 21st Century Learning

14. Thinkfinity Search Engine

15. Individual Partner Sites

16. º Expanded professional development opportunities and materials º Web site redesign: º Separate entry points for educators, students, parents, and the afterschool community º Robust and easy-to-use search capacity º Focus on 21st Century Learning º Integration of Thinkfinity Literacy Network º Alignment to state standards º My Thinkfinity º Smithsonian’s History Explorer Partner site Recently added…

17. Coming soon… º Search by state standards

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20. The Alabama Learning Exchange, or ALEX, is the state education portal. This provides a one-stop shop for education resources for Alabama teachers. And it directly links with Thinkfinity! Quality for every facet of learning…..

21. Career Technical Conference 2007 Through Courses of Study, teachers access digitized, printable Alabama Courses of Study with over 38,000 aligned Thinkfinity and Alabama Teacher-developed resources for all K-12 subject areas.

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23. Career Technical Conference 2007 Visit the Lesson Plan section to find panel-reviewed, “best practices” new ideas and inspirations!

24. Career Technical Conference 2007 Teachers Search all of ALEX to find Course of Study Standards that are Frequently Tested, Hard to Teach/ Learn, and typical Achievement Gap Areas—aligned to exciting learning resources selected by a panel of National Board Certified Teachers.

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26. Career Technical Conference 2007 In Professional Learning, educators can visit new Alabama Department of Education section web sites for rich instructional tools and professional development opportunities.

27. Career Technical Conference 2007 Learn all about Alabama’s ACCESS Distance Learning program.

28. Career Technical Conference 2007 1. ARMT, AHSGE, Direct Assessment of Writing 2. Hard to Teach/Learn 3. Typical Achievement Gaps 4. New- Alabama Science Assessment Graphics Depict the Tagging of Critical COS Standards

29. New, Free ALEX and Thinkfinity Training Program Trainers Now: http://www.technologyinmotion.state.al.us Contact: kgeorge@alsde.edu http://www.technologyinmotion.state.al.us