A Resource Guide for Teaching & Learning

Overview

The Resource Guide is will assist with the incorporation of technology resources into lessons and student output. Additionally, the guide aids with productivity and communication tools.

Our goal is to create means of effective feedback to students. Research indicates that small tasks followed by meaningful re-enforcement of good work and quick corrective actions lead to higher if not permanent retention.

At Learning Source, we attempt to foster memory development for routine learning and cooperative tasks which lead to higher critical thinking skills. We are consistent across the disciplines.

The learning theories center in classical methods. Our teaching and instructional approach incorporates behaviorist (explicit direct instruction) pedagogies for tasks such as memorization in the development of list character traits and basic arithmetic skills. Once a student has shown mastery of basic skills, they apply and extend theoretical development through constructionist techniques such as cooperative labs, writing, and discussions.

Teachers and learners create a learning environment that will provide an interesting and dynamic learning experience for all. Through the resources described in the Resource Guide teachers and students will develop real experiences while working with real things. We develop appropriate lessons for long term continuous learning in history, literature (reading), mathematics, science, and writing & grammar.

History

Literature

We build the Learning Source Literature program on the Trivium, Quadrivium, and Great Books of Western Civilization. Mortimer Adler and Charles Van Doren give the list found in our offering at “The Great Books List”. The questions we ask are, "What does it mean to be heroic?", "What virtues or vices are portrayed in the reading", "list the challenges overcome by the characters", and more. Literature offers an opportunity to examine the beautiful, true, and good.

Mathematics

Learning Source provides several public units of practice and lessons in mathematics. We will expand our offerings over the next 6 months. Come back here for a list of research and literature reviews.

Science

Our science curriculum follows the national science standards. As members of the National Biology Teachers Association, the team collects helpful resources. Like the mathematics curriculum, we share future literature and resources here. Please see the samples of our science curriculum.

Writing & Grammer

Classical Education

We are committed to classical thought and practices. We do not have the resources, to support original material in Latin. It is also clear that modern science and mathematics was not available in traditional classical or scholastic schools, colleges, and universities. We have developed a public lesson for Classical Education. More literature is being developed in fields such as biology and cosmology. We include Classical Pedagogy within our units of practices and lessons. This spot will direct teachers and curriculum developers to resources and literature as they develop. We are also considering workshops or courses to support the incorporation of Classical Pedagogy.

Web Site Evaluation

The world wide web (Internet) offers virtually unlimited amounts of data. The sites learners visit is critical to providing appropriate use of the web. Without proper guidance students may "wonder" the web, or worse they may review inappropriate material. There are several web site evaluation criteria that are available for teacher's use when putting together web-based projects.

Vetting Technology and Web Sites

Technology

Learning and Instruction tools allows us to create, edit, manage projects created in the classroom. The instructional products that we use are:

Word Processing

Tools for writing and presenting course work.

Spread Sheets

Spread sheets are a data and statistical analysis tool.

Presentation Software

Evaluation of tools for the 'snazzy' display of graphical information.

Database Design and Construction

Data repository software or Database Management Systems.

Moodle Learning Management

Learning Source SchoolHouse is built on Moodle. Moodle is a Learning Management System (LMS). You will need your own hosting environment. Moodle was selected because of community support and fewer limitation. We host the environment on our web servers. If you want to host your own LMS, then you will need to supply your own hosting environment on-premises, shared hosting, or cloud-based hosting.

Blackboard and Canvas are other LMS used at other institutions.

Web Development

Some colleges and districts provide Adobe Creative Cloud Suite. The suite includes industry standard tools like Adobe Dreamweaver (Web Dev), Photoshop (Image Editing), Acrobat DC (Universal web document productions), and Premier Pro (video editing). Creative Cloud provides everything web and publishing. Suite requires experience and/or training. There are several alternatives with fewer features.

This is a very rudimentary review of the tools. Use the web to train yourself. There too many YouTube and search engine articles about these topics. It would not hurt to take a training course on the web or through a local library or community college. We may include training and support in the future.

Image Editing

Editing tools for pictures and images come with Windows 10 and Mac. The Photo application also allows for 'splicing' video. You may want to search for stock photo provided to add texture to your units and lessons.

Video Editing and Clips

VLC media player displays most video. It is also a quick way to record or create clips. For creating clips and converting video, Handbrake is a tool that provides excellent features for cutting chapters or specific time clips out of a video. Handbrake also converts or wraps video for display. Handbrake support many video formats to mp4. NOTE: Neither VLC nor Handbrake provides a stitching feature--use Windows 10 Photo.

Programming

Software compilers and other software development tools.

Simulations & Other Fun Stuff

Recommendations for teaching, learning, tutorials, and a broad ranges of techinical services and tools.

Educational Reports & Data

Our site administration tools offer a better learning experience by providing administrators, teachers, and staff with data that will make them more productive. Part of being more productive is supplying constituents with up-to-date feedback for student products and grades. Communication and community tools will allow stakeholders to ask questions and respond to topics important to them as individuals or to the community at large.

The strategic plan includes offering dashboards and visualizations for parents, students, teachers, and administrators. We are strategizing how to share data and reports for researchers.

Learning Source seeks to work with publishers. Our accessible results will be available to "regular" media as well in academic journals. Publication will be made available through our public site.