This newsletter is full of great information on Gizmos, Reflex, and the latest happenings at ExploreLearning:

Expert Corner: PD Options for Common Core and Next Generation Science Standards

Educator of the Month: Scott Lehman

New Recognition for Gizmos

New Pages on Reflex Website

Dress Like an Avatar!

Grant Program Accepting Applications

Expert Corner: PD Options for Common Core and Next Generation Science Standards

After receiving her M.Ed. in Science Education and teaching science in middle and high school classrooms for nine years, Pam Larson began working for ExploreLearning in 2007. As a Regional Manager of Professional Development, Ms. Larson has been instrumental in designing curriculum for science and math professional development sessions, and she manages trainers working directly with teachers using ExploreLearning products.

Many schools are using their summer professional development time to address the Common Core Standards for Math (CCSS-M) and the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). Gizmos are a great tool that teachers can use to develop the knowledge and the habits of mind of strong math and science students. The PD department at ExploreLearning is offering higher-level training workshops aimed at preparing teachers for the CCSS-M and the NGSS.

Using Gizmos with the CCSS will help participants develop a deeper understanding of both the content standards and the Standards for Mathematical Practice. The Common Core – the Balance between Skills and Understanding workshop allows participants to work collaboratively and identify mathematical tasks that develop students’ capacity to meet the Standards of Mathematical Practice.

Districts can also choose from a variety of Troublesome Topics in Math workshops. Each of these is designed for a different grade band around math concepts that are difficult for students to grasp and have moved down in grade level in the new standards. The elementary workshop focuses on fractions, while the middle grades workshop explores ratios and proportions, and the high school workshop examines functions. Teachers leave with a better mastery of the content they are teaching and with specific strategies for leading students to conceptual understanding of their focus topic.

Like the Common Core workshops, using Gizmos with the NGSS is designed to help teachers make the pedagogical leaps dictated in the new science standards. The NGSS encourages teachers to teach fewer content topics, but to take students to a much deeper level of understanding than in the past. The three Troublesome Topics in Science workshops focus on refining teachers’ understanding of science content in three disciplines across all grade levels; Life Science, Earth/Space Science, and Physical Science. If teachers themselves have a strong knowledge of science topics, they will be better prepared to help students develop a deeper conceptual understanding.

As the summer and fall go on, the PD department will be developing additional higher-level offerings to support these new standards.

To learn more about bringing any of these workshops to your school or district, please contact your Account Executive.

Educator of the Month: Scott Lehman

Mr. Scott Lehman has taught for 18 years, and has a B.S. from Pennsylvania State University and an M.S. in Science Education from Nova Southeastern University. He teaches 5th grade science in a Palm Beach County public school.

Mr. Lehman began to use Gizmos when he taught at Village Academy in 2007. He had the opportunity to participate in a Gizmos initial training workshop, and was immediately “hooked.” He found Gizmos both exciting and educational, and saw that the simulations would work as another tool to help his students study science.

His students are excited to learn using Gizmos, and Mr. Lehman uses them to spark interest in the topics they study. Gizmos help start a discussion at the beginning of the lesson, and often the conversations among students continue throughout. He finds that Gizmos help students gain a better understanding of the topics they discuss in class and how they connect to one another.

Mr. Lehman’s students often have a hard time grasping the concept of energy conservation. Using the Energy Conversions Gizmo helps his students understand the different pathways that can be created with energy. Mr. Lehman spends time introducing the Gizmo, and, after the students work through the simulations, the discussion questions encourage the students to talk amongst themselves. The Gizmo helps the students gain a better understanding of energy.

Mr. Lehman has observed that both students and teachers get excited when they use science Gizmos. He finds that the best part of using a Gizmo is the “Ah-hah” moment. Students will recognize something in class and tell him that they learned it before when they were using a Gizmo. “When students look at you and realize what they are learning is exciting, fun and educational, that’s what makes teaching worth it,” says Mr. Lehman.

New Recognition for Gizmos

We're happy to announce that Gizmos has won the SIIA CODiE Award for Best Science/Health Instructional Solution!

This year's award marks ExploreLearning's 6th CODiE win. The CODiE Awards recognize leaders and innovators across the software, digital content and education technology industries. We are honored to be included among these leaders.

The SIIA CODiE Awards website has a list of all the 2013 Award Winners.

New Pages on Reflex Website

The Reflex website now has three new pages which explain how Reflex can be used effectively in Response to Intervention settings, information about how Reflex aligns with the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics, and some results from Special Education teachers using Reflex. We will continue updating these pages as new success stories and more great results roll in!

Dress Like an Avatar!

Do your students want to dress like their avatars? Now you can get T-shirts at our Café Press site (just like the ones in the Reflex store on the island) so kids can match their avatars on the website! Also available are Green Light stickers and buttons, and all sorts of other fun Reflex and Gizmos goodies.

Grant Program Accepting Applications

Once again, we are accepting applications from educators wishing to be considered for the Reflex Educator Grant Program. Educators who are selected into the program over the summer can use Reflex in their classrooms this fall.

Ute Lentz, a math teacher at an intermediate school in Kannapolis City School District in North Carolina and current Reflex grantee, reports having great success with Reflex in her classroom. “The mother of a student came to me at the beginning of the year concerned that her daughter would fail math in 6th grade because she had been struggling in 5th grade. She was 9% proficient in her math fluency in September. Now, in April, the student is 86% proficient in Reflex and made the 3rd quarter AB honor roll due to her ‘A’ in math!”

“At least half of my students came to me this year with less than 25% math fact fluency,” Ms. Lentz added. “Reflex made catching up on their fluency skills playful and enjoyable for them, and it is easy for me to integrate it into my lessons.”

Student test scores have gone up, too! “At our school, we are utilizing the Scholastics Math Inventory (SMI) diagnostic test throughout the year to measure growth. About 60% of my Reflex students also showed growth in their Scholastics Quantile score.”

After 45 days of average usage on Reflex (Multiplication and Division 0-12), 26 of Mrs. Lentz’s students have gone from 17% to 78% fluent in their math facts!

To bring this kind of success with math fluency to your classroom, learn more about the Reflex Educator Grant Program.

Stay in Touch

If you want to comment on any of the information in this newsletter, be sociable and post your insights on the Facebook pages for Gizmos and Reflex.

And as always, if you have a question or comment about Gizmos or Reflex, don't hesitate to contact our Customer Support team using the support form for either Gizmos or Reflex. We would love to hear from you.

For information on bringing Gizmos and Reflex to schools in your area, contact your ExploreLearning Account Representative:

866-882-4141, Option 2 sales@explorelearning.com