May 18, 2013

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Texas Municipal Courts Education Center PSA Contest

May 9, 2013 By

The Texas Municipal Courts Education Center (TMCEC) is proud to again sponsor a traffic safety PSA contest for all Texas students. The deadline to enter is May 15th. Please consider working with your students and win $500 for your school. $500 buys a lot of books and materials for your school! Making these videos is a lot of fun, and can be really informative. We know that it is a busy time of year, with standardized testing and final exams, but making a PSA is a great class project for an afternoon post-testing or as an extra credit assignment. We encourage PSAs on any traffic safety topic, from safely crossing the street to not texting while driving to wearing a bicycle helmet while on a bike. Here is the link for all the information: http://www.tmcec.com/DRSR/2013_PSA_Contest

 

Note that at the bottom of the webpage, you can see what was submitted last year. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to email me at mcgee@tmcec.com.

Filed Under: Student Recognition

James Otis Lecture – Nominate a Student to Attend

April 11, 2013 By

TEX-ABOTA, the Texas Chapters of the American Board of Trial Advocates, commemorated Constitution Day 2012 with an Inaugural James Otis Lecture in the chambers of the Texas House of Representatives at the State Capitol. It was a tremendous success with students, teachers and TEX-ABOTA members, and we anticipate 2013 being another successful event.

Students from across Texas may be nominated by a teacher, parent, grandparent, administrator or friend to attend the day’s event, to be held on Tuesday, September 17, 2013. That is actually Constitution Day in the United States.

All applications must be in by Friday, August 2, 2013.

Students and those who nominated them will be notified via email.  Students must have their own transportation.

We will meet at the Texas Capitol (1100 Congress Ave, Austin, TX 78701) at 9:15a.m.

Students will then go to the floor of the House of Representatives and the Senate Chambers, in different groups.

Author/UT Professor Henry William (H.W.) Brands will be the keynote speaker. A brilliant historian and fabulous storyteller, Dr. Brands will no doubt have the students completely enthralled.

We will then have lunch at the historic First United Methodist Church just across the street from the Capitol.

The group should be adjourned by about 3:00 p.m.

Download a nomination form at the link below

James Otis Lecture Nomination Form 2013

http://www.tex-abota.org/2012/11/james-otis-gears-up-for-2013/

Filed Under: Student Recognition

Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History Affiliate Schools

February 17, 2013 By

A Message from Ron Nash, Senior Education Fellow at Gilder Lehrman

Good day Texas teachers and librarians,

.
The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History has received a challenge grant from the NEH to substantially increase the affiliate program. It is essentially a special relationship to Gilder Lehrman. The Gilder Lehrman resources are FREE and will be available in perpetuity. While this cannot replace the extensive professional development resources of the TAH program, the affiliate program will continue to grow and add substantial resources on a weekly basis. The entire collection of Gilder Lehrman documents is also scheduled to be digitalized and made available to affiliates. Please email me at my Gilder Lehrman address ron.nash@gilderlehrman.org for additional information on how to apply. It takes about 15 minutes to become an affiliate school. Currently there are 3,000 schools in the program.

Gilder Lehrman has contracted with over fifty historians to write original essays for the affiliate school site. The essays cover ten major and forty sub eras in US history. Many of the essays also explore interdisciplinary aspects of American culture. An extensive and current bibliography, new podcasts, primary sources, teaching strategies, and lesson plans complete the package of resources. This section of the GLI web page will continue to expand. We have also been contracted to create many lessons which focus on essential texts in American history. This ongoing initiative is appropriate for schools, teachers, librarians and students at the K-12 level. The GLI web page also has a Community Forum which allows for rich discussion of history and classroom topics.

In addition GLI will continue to expand its summer seminar program with preferential consideration provided to affiliate members. This year about 50 per cent of the 1200 positions are allocated to current affiliate school applicants. Eventually, only affiliate school members will attend the summer seminars. GLI will also continue to sponsor the History Teacher of the Year award (HTOY). This year’s winner received his recognition at the Frederick Douglass Academy in New York City. Caroline Kennedy presented the award. This year’s competition will recognize a history teacher at the K-6 level.

Similarly, GLI will continue to provide school districts the opportunity to connect to history through traveling exhibits (a new major initiative is well underway related to the immigration) and several new projects inthe history box series. As you reach out to schools, you might remind teachers that the affiliate relationship is like a toolbox. You never know when you need that one item but at least it is there when the time arises. Just ensure that the building principal is on board (I’m not sure that anyone will pass on no cost professional development).

Just a reminder to you, a classroom teacher or a librarian has to make the application. You should go to our web page athttp://www.gilderlehrman.org and go to the affiliate’s drop down on the site. This allows you to create an account and submit an application. The last page asks for some demographic information and that should be available from the school’s guidance office. The final question is just a short explanation of why you want to be an affiliate.

Let me know how things progress, Ron

Ron Nash
Senior Education Fellow
The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History
19 West 44th Street, Suite 500
New York, NY 10036
ron.nash@gilderlehrman.org
www.gilderlehrman.org
(P) 646-366-9666 ext. 40
(C) 201-704-6096

 

Filed Under: Classroom Resources, Professional Development, Student Recognition Tagged With:

The Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Young Scholars Program

December 18, 2012 By

The application for the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Young Scholars Program, one of the most generous scholarships for seventh-grade students in the country, opens in January. Applicants must:

 §  Be in seventh grade at the time they apply or going into eighth grade in the fall of 2013.

§  Earn grades of all or mostly A’s, with no C’s or below in their core academic subjects since sixth grade. (Some exceptions have been made for students with unique talents or documented learning differences.)

§  Have significant unmet financial need. The average family income of previous winners is approximately $26,000 and the vast majority of families make $60,000 or less.

§  Attend school in the United States.

Those selected receive financial support for educational and extracurricular activities, as well as one-on-one help applying to high schools, colleges, summer programs, and more. Winners tell their advisor what they’d like to become. Over the next five years the Foundation uses its resources to help them get there.

A free webinar, an online presentation covering the ins and outs of the application process, will be held on January 10, 2013 and again on January 24, 2013.  Both sessions begin at 7 p.m. Eastern Time. To register go to http://cty.jhu.edu/talent/events/webinar.html. Anyone with questions should feel free to contact outreach coordinator Lionel Foster at the Center for Talented Youth at 410-735-6270 or jkcinfo@jhu.edu.

Learn more about the Young Scholars Program at http://www.jkcf.org/scholarships/young-scholars-program/. The application will open on January 17, 2013.

Information about the Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth’s programs for bright students in grades K through 12 is available at http://cty.jhu.edu/.

Filed Under: Student Recognition

Introducing Citizenship Counts

September 15, 2012 By
Introducing Citizenship Counts - An Interactive/Multi-Disciplinary Civic Education Program
Citizenship Counts, is a national nonpartisan 501(c)(3) organization whose mission is to educate today’s youth on the tenets of citizenship, encourage them to appreciate their rights and responsibilities as Americans, and give them an opportunity to celebrate good citizenship by engaging in service to their community.
Founded by author, humanitarian, and Holocaust survivor, and proud naturalized citizen, Gerda Weissmann Klein; Citizenship Counts offers a FREE six lesson plan interactive, multi-disciplinary curriculum that is designed to enhance your students’ academic knowledge and skills, inspire their pride in America, and empower them to be participatory and socially-just citizens who appreciate the privileges and benefits of living in a diverse, inclusive a democratic country.
Our program promotes critical thinking about the path to citizenship, the naturalization process, and the rights and responsibility of civic engagement.  The curriculum begins with an exploration of that it means to be a citizen of their classroom, to the community (school, neighborhood, town, etc..), to what it means to be a citizen of the United States, including the rights and responsibilities that go hand-in-hand with that of citizenship.  Our program educates students about the immigration and the naturalization process, and an emphasis on understanding how arduous the process is and the push-pull factors that are catalysts for the decision to seek citizenship in the United States.
The program culminates in one of two activities: 1) planning of and taking part in an authentic naturalization ceremony, in collaboration with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and the U.S. Federal Courts, or 2) participating in a service-learning project.  We believe that by engaging students in the democratic process of planning and taking part in a naturalization ceremony, they will develop a better understanding that the United States is a cultural mosaic whose richness and diversity weaves us together in a colorful tapestry of citizenry.  By engaging them in a meaningful service-learning project, it is our vision to create a well-informed citizenry of individuals who understand that they can be agents of change.  Our goal is to motivate them to participate in service to one another, as well as to both their local and national communities.
The Citizenship Counts lesson objectives are aligned to both the standards developed by the National 

Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) and the Center for Civic Education (CCE). Additionally, all six lessons have been correlated to the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts & Literacy in History/Social Studies.

To learn more, please visit the Citizenship Counts website (www.citizenshipcounts.org) to gain access to our FREE lessons and additional educational resources. All you need to do click on the “Education” tab at the top of the website and then click on “Core Curriculum.” The registration process is simple and you will have immediate access to the lessons.
If you have any questions or concerns about the program or materials, or are interested in hosting a free professional development event, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Tina Ochoa | Education Coordinator| Citizenship Counts
4201 N. 24th St, Suite 210 | Phoenix, AZ 85016
ph: (602) 412-3526 | fax: (602) 773-3105
Filed Under: Classroom Resources, Student Recognition Tagged With: , , ,

A Message from National History Bee

August 13, 2012 By

Greetings,

My name is Eric Huff, and I am the director of the National History Bee.  The National History Bee is an individual academic competition for elementary and middle school students.  The Bee tests knowledge of a wide range of historical topics that have direct relevance to what your students are learning in the classroom.  School winners advance to the regional competition and the regional champions earn the right to compete in Washington for scholarships, prizes, and the title of National History Bee Champion!

As a former classroom teacher, I appreciate the role that motivation plays in student achievement.  The job of educators is to foster in our students a desire to learn, and few things motivate students to want to learn more than competition.  The National History Bee is an extra-curricular activity that not only recognizes and rewards students for existing knowledge, but also uses competition to encourage them to develop an intellectual curiosity and desire to learn on their own.

I know that with school starting it’s a busy time of year, but when you have a minute.  I invite you to visit our website atwww.historybee.com  There you will find not only more information about the competition itself, but a wealth of history resources and practice quizzes that will be useful to any student wanting to learn more about history.  If you think that students would benefit from participating in the National History Bee, I would ask that you pass it along to other social studies teachers.

If you have any questions at all about the National History Bee, please do not hesitate to contact me at eric@historybee.comor 864.504.2577

PS: To see a preview of the airing of the 2012 National Championship, visit http://www.history.com/shows/history-bee/videos/the-national-history-bee-sneak-peek

Filed Under: Student Recognition Tagged With: , ,

TCEE Sponsors Money Week Poster Contest

March 8, 2012 By

Texas Council on Economic Education (TCEE), in conjunction with UH Bauer College Financial Symposium to be held at the University of Houston on April 14, 2012 during Houston Money Week 2012,  will sponsor a poster contest. Each school may enter their top 5 posters from each grade band (K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12) that address the theme, Managing Your Money.  Kindergarten through grade 12 students who live in the greater Houston metropolitan area are eligible to enter the poster competition. Click here for Poster Contest Rules

Filed Under: Classroom Resources, Student Recognition Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Bank of America Charitable Foundation’s Student Leaders Program

February 9, 2012 By

The Bank of America Charitable Foundation’s Student Leaders® Program is accepting applications for the 2012 program. We are asking for your help to spread the word about this exciting leadership opportunity.

As part of the company’s lending, investing and giving to strengthen the communities we serve, the Bank of America Student Leaders Program has recognized more than 1,600 exemplary high school juniors and seniors with a passion for improving their communities.  The program helps students gain a greater understanding of how nonprofits create impact in the community and develops them as the next generation of community leaders through two components:

A summer 2012 eight-week paid summer internship with selected nonprofit organizations designed to provide  opportunities for the students to develop and apply leadership skills through hands-on work experience, while raising their awareness of community issues addressed by their host organization.

A week-long all-expense paid Student Leadership Summit in Washington, D.C., July 15-20, 2012. Conducted in partnership with the Close Up Foundation, the Summit introduces students to aspects of civic, social and business leadership and provides them with knowledge and skills they will use throughout their life to create positive community change.

 

Filed Under: Student Recognition Tagged With: , , , , ,

Rho Kappa National Honor Society Charter Applications

February 3, 2012 By

National Council for the Social Studies is proud to introduce Rho Kappa, the National Social Studies Honor Society. Rho Kappa provides national recognition and opportunities for exploration in the social studies.

The Rho Kappa is the only national organization for high school juniors and seniors that recognizes excellence in the field of social studies. Any accredited public or private high school can apply for a local charter, through which it may invite students to become a member of Rho Kappa based on academic achievement in social studies, and participation in community service.

Learn more and apply for a charter for your school.

Filed Under: Student Recognition Tagged With: , ,

Compete in the Heroes Day Contest

January 21, 2012 By

What is the Heroes Day Contest?

It’s a fun, friendly competition for students from schools across the country who love history.  The top 5 teams will win $1,000.00 towards their travel costs to the History Bowl contest held at a destination (to be determined) on May 12, 2012. 
How do I become a finalist?
1. Register your team on Franklin’s Opus’ History Hub
2. Watch and complete history quizzes on three (3) Who’s My Hero Videos

3. Read and complete quizzes on twelve (12) Heroes Readings
4. Post one (1) Student-Generated Hero Video, PowerPoint or Multimedia presentation (tiebreaker) on Franklin’s Opus History Hub

All components of the contest are online and can be completed by one or more members of each team in any order between January 15, 2012 and April 5, 2012.

Questions? E-mail us at info@franklinsopus.org
Filed Under: Student Recognition
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