Tuesday 7 May 2013

Skwirk blog – Early May 2013

Hi Skwirkers,

With Term 2 officially underway it’s time for students to break out the winter uniforms, teachers to start thinking about mid-year reports, and EVERYONE to get excited about the new Skwirk site. We are talking non-stop with the development team to make sure the Skwirk 2.0 will combine all the existing features you love with a range of new functions, including a powerful custom-made lesson creator tool for teachers.

New partnership: Digital Farm TV
Skwirk is delighted to announce our latest partnership with Digital Farm TV. DFTV is an online news platform for the Australian agriculture industry, with connections to farmers and regional advocacy groups all over the country. Skwirk will be using DFTV footage and reports to develop video resources and increase student awareness of the historical, geographic and commercial role of  farming in Australia.
DFTV has already provided us with two video great resources, including a video from Canegrowers Australia that details the “paddock to plate” processes for growing Australia’s second largest export crop. You can see it below:


Skwirk @ EduTECH 2013
As we mentioned last month, Skwirk will be in attendance at the upcoming EduTECH conference on the 3rd and 4th of June. We’re now proud to announce that in addition to showcasing the new site to teachers from all over Australia, your humble Education Content Manager will be giving a seminar on cross-curriculum connections in the new Australian Curriculum. This is one of a series of free seminars that will be taking place in the exhibition hall over the course of the conference, so if you are attending the conference or stopping by, feel free to join us!
We’re also terrified delighted to announce that after years of working behind the scenes our mascot, fearless leader and benevolent overlord Professor Skwirk will be joining us for EduTECH. The Professor will be wandering the exhibition hall handing out treats and challenging the conference-goers to the ultimate battle of wits – GIANT CONNECT 4. Be sure to give him a high-five!

Website of the week – The Girl Effect
All over the world girls are being born into circumstances that lessen their chances of being healthy, getting an education or earning a living. The Girl Effect website exists as a collection point for a host of data, videos and inspirational stories about the steps you can take to raise awareness of this massive global issue. The website’s approach to sharing content is incredibly generous, stating repeatedly that ‘this site is yours’ and offering zip files of themed resources.

App of the week – Fotopedia Heritage for iPad and iPhone
The UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites is a comprehensive catalogue of the greatest natural and cultural locations on Earth. Every continent (except Antarctica) is home to dozens of these amazing places, and they are a central part of teaching key concepts for both History and Geography. Fotopedia Heritage allows you to explore World Heritage Sites using images sourced from the global Fotopedia community and linked to explanations from both the UNESCO site and Wikipedia. And if you are feeling inspired to visit them in person, the app also integrates information about local accommodation from TripAdvisor !

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