Archive for November, 2007

RAP: Do teachers need a CAPspace account?

Published November 30, 2007 CAPspace , RAP 3 Comments

Quicklinks: Read Around the Planet website and CAPspace login.

As you are getting ready for Read Around the Planet, you’re probably starting to think about teacher registration. The big question is: do your teachers need to login to Collaborations Around the Planet (also known as CAPspace)?

If teachers do own registration
 If your teachers do their own registration, then yes, they should have an account in the system. For them to be able to register, they will need to be attached to verified equipment. Go to Admin, My Equipment, Attach End Users to connect your teachers to the videoconference system they will use for Read Around the Planet.

If you register for teachers
By far, most of you do registration for your teachers. If this is the case, there is no need to have the teachers login.

Teachers in the system from last year: The My People tool under Admin is intended to organize the support structure for people who have accounts in the system. If you have teachers who participated last year, you can collect them under My People. But they don’t necessarily need to login.

New teachers: If you register for your teachers, new teachers do not need an account and they will not show up in My People. You will register for them and the registration will be in your name with their contact information attached to their particular match request. This way you can still do the registration and the teachers will still have each other’s email and phone to communicate about their project. The teachers should talk to each other with phone or email after they are matched, just like before.

Collaborations Around the Planet directory
The directory side of CAPspace is intended to increase the usability of the data entered for RAP, but certainly isn’t essential to the RAP process.

ASK with Janie Panagopoulos

Published November 29, 2007 ASK Leave a Comment

The last three days 8707-11-29janie2.jpg2 students from across Michigan interviewed author Janie Panagopoulos as part of the TWICE ASK sessions.

Most of the sessions were on the book Traders in Time, but two sessions were on the book Little Ship Under Full Sail and Journey Back to Lumberjack Camp. In the Lumberjack session, one of the classes came to the session dressed as lumberjacks, which Janie thought was very neat.

Here are a few of the questions the students asked in the Traders in Time sessions.

  • Why did you write this book?
  • In chapter 12, why didn’t you tell more about Grey Eyes and McDougal?
  • Why did you use the turtle as the rock in the story?
  • How did you come up with all the characters in the book?
  • Have you thought about writing a sequel to Traders in Time?
  • How many times do you edit your book?

07-11-29janie.jpgOne of the challenges we are facing with these highly popular programs is a change to Michigan curriculum. The Michigan studies are moving from fourth grade to third grade. As you can imagine, this is causing consternation for many fourth grade teachers. In this set of sessions, we had a few third grade and 3/4 split classes participating along with fourth grade. I asked some of the teachers if they thought this program was going to work well with their third grade students this early in the school year. Here is one response:

I am teaching 3/4 split this year, and they enjoyed it as much as or more than the fourth. I was very fascinated to learn so much of the book was actually true. I think we could do this with 3rd. She is a great person to interview. As for the time of year, it was perfect because we are studying Native Americans in Mich History-so it fit right in. I read the book to the class with them following along in the books from the isd and they followed very well because itwas so interesting to them. I would definitely read it to 3rd grade and would like to use the books again. All in all, a great program.

Are you getting this same response from your 3rd grade teachers? It seems likely that we’ll be able to continue offering these programs to Michigan students.

RAP Attach MCU to Endpoints

Published November 28, 2007 CAPspace , RAP Leave a Comment

Quicklinks: Read Around the Planet website and CAPspace login.

Coordinators: This tutorial is for attaching MCUs (videoconferencing bridge) to endpoints. It is a supplement to the instructions for adding your equipment for RAP verification.

First, make sure you have your account set up correctly in Collaborations Around the Planet. Read more…

Endpoint details
Next, if an endpoint needs to connect through an MCU, the endpoint details should include connecting through MCU as shown below. If all the types of connections listed for the endpoint are marked as connecting directly, the endpoint will not show up in the list of equipment to be attached to the MCU.

twice-mcu1.jpg

Endpoint tech contacts
Also, for this to work, you need to have either created the endpoint, or you need to be listed as one of the techs for the endpoint. Click the endpoint name from Admin, My Equipment to see who is listed as the tech and/or to Manage Technical Contacts as shown.

twice-mcu3.jpg

Attach MCU to Endpoints
Now that you’re ready, from the Admin menu, click Attach MCU as shown. Then click the MCU. It will highlight as shown. Click the checkboxes in the unit(s) that need to connect through the MCU. Scroll down (if necessary) and click Update Connections.

twice-mcu2.jpg

The screen should jump to the top of the list so you know it saved. Then go to My Equipment, and those units should no longer have the “attach to MCU” step listed under Verification Step. They should now be listed as “Ready to be Verified.”

twice-mcu4.jpg

If you have any problems connecting your MCU to your endpoints, please contact Janine Lim, RAP Verification Coordinator at jlim@remc11.k12.mi.us.

RAP Equipment Verification Steps

Published November 21, 2007 RAP Leave a Comment

Quicklinks: Read Around the Planet website and CAPspace login.

Coordinators: As you are adding your equipment for RAP verification, please note this critical detail. In the screen shot below taken from Admin, My Equipment, you’ll see three endpoints with their status listed on the right. Please note that your endpoints will not show up on the RAP Verification Partners’ “todo list” until the endpoint is at the “Ready to be Verified” status.

twice-verification1.jpg

The new system assumes that you have more than one tech contact for each endpoint. You can add tech contacts for this endpoint under Manage Technical Contacts. However, if you are the only coordinator/tech contact, you’ll need to follow these steps to get past “Manage Technical Contacts” to the “Ready to be Verified” status.

From the Admin, My Equipment screen, click Manage technical contacts (shown above). Scroll down towards the bottom. You’ll see the following screen:

twice-verification2.jpg

Enter “no other tech contacts” or some similar text into the Contact 1 box. Click Update Contacts.

Now go back to Admin, My Equipment. Your endpoint should be listed as Ready to be Verified. Now, wait at least a week for your verifier to contact you to schedule the test call.

CAPspace – ways to find VC friends

Published November 20, 2007 CAPspace Leave a Comment

Now that you’re all getting your accounts set up for Read Around the Planet, the directory functions of Collaborations Around the Planet (affectionately termed CAPspace), are becoming more useful.

Have you tried the search recently (other than looking for “My People”)? Search by a state or country (UK, US, and Canada have the most right now). Notice how you can easily see who has logged in most recently and who has participated in RAP and Megaconference. Hopefully these features, along with the great “blurbs” everyone is writing, will help you find partners for future collaborations. Be sure to set your Privacy (under My Settings) to Full Access if you want others to be able to contact you for projects.

There’s another cool feature that you may not have found yet. Click My Projects, click RAP, and click the icon for one of the years. Voila! You have a list of people who have participated in RAP in the past.

07-11-20capspace.jpg

Cool, huh? So think of this. All the effort of getting registered and set up for Read Around the Planet will pay off not only in great RAP projects, but other potential projects too!

RAP Verification Does NOT Close Nov. 21

Published November 19, 2007 RAP Leave a Comment

We just realized that the RAP 2008 flyer accidentally inherited a deadline from last year for verification. We used to close Verification registration right before American Thanksgiving.

That is NOT true anymore. Verification will continue through the last day of teacher registration. However, you’ll be less stressed if you take care of it sooner! So breathe. There’s time. But take care of it soon.

As a reminder, the verification process includes:

  • You enter the videoconference system(s) that will be used for Read Around the Planet.
  • Then complete a successful test call with one of our Verification Partners.
  • Your VC system must be successfully verified before you can register for times & dates starting in December.

This information is then used in the matching process. Visit the Read Around the Planet website for more details and instructions on getting your VC equipment entered.

Nov. 28 Edventures Collaboranza

Published November 19, 2007 Field Trips Leave a Comment

There’s still room to sign up for the Nov. 28  TWICE Member Edventures Collaboranza

Come Share Best Videoconference Experiences
Come participate in these collaborative sessions with other TWICE members. Share your best practices, virtual field trips, experiences and general collaborative events using videoconferencing. This year we are offering three different dates. Each of these dates has a topic for discussion. We will not limit the discussion to the topic only. We are also adding an additional 30 minutes for those who can join right on time or for those who want to continue the discussion. We’ll learn from each other! Only 8 interactive slots are available. Multiple participants are welcomed and encouraged to attend at each interactive site.

November 28, 2007
4:00 – 5:30 p.m.
Edventure #1: Best Practices in your videoconference experiences. This session will also include a content provider to share observations from their side.

Please email Mike Maison, Field Trip Committee Co-Chair, to register.

RAP Equipment Video Ready

Published November 16, 2007 RAP Leave a Comment

Nov. 16 2007 Update for Read Around the Planet

Add Endpoint Video Instructions
Thank you everyone for your patience! The little video clip explaining how to set up your equipment for verification is online now. So check it out and start adding your endpoints/videoconference systems.

Add MCU Video Instructions
After American Thanksgiving / the last week of November, we’ll be adding a little video on how to add MCUs and get them connected to the endpoints that connect through them. In the meantime you can add all your endpoints.

Wait for test call
Please remember also to give your assigned verification partner at least a week to contact you to set up a test call. There is NOT a place to say when you can do a test call like there has been in the past. Instead, equipment ready to be verified just shows up in our todo list. Then we’ll contact you. Thank you for being patient!

We’ve Been Promoting: Look for Admin

Published November 15, 2007 RAP Leave a Comment

Update for Read Around the Planet

We just found out today that several of you have been updating your descriptions and we couldn’t see them to promote you. That little glitch is now fixed, and we’ve updated as many of your accounts that we could. So if you’re a coordinator, login again and check for the Admin button to the right of Logout on the menu.

If you don’t have the Admin button, be sure to write your description under My Settings, About Me and let us know that you coordinate videoconferencing.

While you’re updating your settings, if you want others to find you for other projects, go to My Settings, Privacy, and change to Full Access.

RAP is up again; Write your description!

Published November 14, 2007 CAPspace , RAP Leave a Comment

Access again
Good news, the router in Chicago is fixed and so you can get to Projects.twice.cc again. Thanks for your patience yesterday.

Write your blurb!!
Many of you are just getting your account set up in Collaborations Around the Planet. PLEASE be sure to go to My Settings, About Me, and scroll down to write a little description of your use of VC. We use this to know if you’re a teacher level, or if you are a coordinator and need more “power” in the system to add equipment etc. So once we see that you updated your description (you show up on the front page), then we “promote” you. So please write your blurb!

You can tell if you did or not by going to My Profile. Your description should be listed there.

Equipment video instructions by Friday
We hope to get a little video explaining how to add your equipment details for verification soon. Hopefully by the end of the day Friday. So watch the Read Around the Planet for that new instruction tool.

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