The Electric Company
Airs Fridays at 5:00 p.m. beginning Jan. 23, 2009 on KLRN Channel 9 / KLRN-DT 9.1 HD
Television’s iconic series, The Electric Company, delivers a jolt of literacy and charges a new generation when it launches on KLRN on Mon., Jan 19, 2009 with a special two-hour sneak peek marathon from 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m., before it settles into its regular weekly timeslot on Fridays at 5:00 p.m. (beginning January 23). Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit educational organization behind Sesame Street, powers up this new version of one of television’s most beloved children’s series.
The Electric Company is a multimedia literacy campaign charged with reducing the literacy gap between low and middle income families and advancing the idea that “reading is cool.”
The show will be supplemented with a richly interactive online environment at and community-
based outreach activities.
Martha Speaks
Airs weekdays at 3:30 p.m. on KLRN Channel 9 / KLRN-DT 9.1 HD
Based on the children's book series by Susan Meddaugh and published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, this animated series stars Martha, a beloved family dog who is accidentally fed alphabet soup—giving her the power of speech and the chance to speak her mind to anyone that will listen. Aimed at young viewers ages 4-7, Martha’s educational goal is to teach children new words. With two stories in each episode, kids will get to know Martha as an outspoken, honest, smart, confident dog who loves to eat (and talk!). They will also meet the rest of Martha's family and friends, including ten-year-old Helen, who is Martha's best friend. Martha encourages the shy, artistic Helen to be more outgoing and brave. Helen acts as the voice of reason for Martha, and it's a relationship any dog, or pet-lover, can appreciate. The series is supported by an educational outreach campaign that includes a cross-age reading buddy program. The show is closed captioned and described for the visually impaired.
It's produced by WGBH Boston and Vancouver's Studio B Productions.
Word Girl
Airs weekdays at 4:30 p.m. on KLRN Channel 9 / KLRN-DT 9.1 HD
WordGirl is a new animated series that follows the every day life and superhero adventures of “WordGirl” as she fights crime and enriches vocabulary usage, all in a day’s work. Disguised as mild-mannered fifth-grader, Becky Botsford, WordGirl arrived on planet Earth when she and her monkey sidekick, Captain Huggy Face, crashed their spaceship. In classic superhero form, WordGirl possesses superhero strength with the added benefit of a colossal vocabulary. WordGirl has a family and friends who have no idea of her secret identity. As WordGirl, she battles and prevails over evil (albeit ridiculous and comical) villains. Each episode introduces four new vocabulary words and will reinforce their meaning in a variety of fun and interesting contexts throughout the episode. WordGirl enriches young audiences’ vocabulary, closes the gap for those who don’t grow up in language-rich environments, instills a love of language, and fosters better reading comprehension.
PBS TeacherLine of Texas
Have you thought about taking an online course, but wondered if online learning is right for you?
PBS TeacherLine of Texas offers a FREE Orientation Course, "Practice Learning Online with TeacherLine" to prepare for online learning.
At the end of this course, you will be familiar with:
- The importance of time management and the self-discipline required to be a successful
online learner.
- Skills for navigating course content quickly and efficiently.
- Strategies to improve the quality of your participation in an online learning community.
- Where to go for help.
- Resources available through PBS TeacherLine.
*In order to take the course, you must first join PBS TeacherLine. Click to Join for free.
PBS interviews Directors of Instructional Technology, Bruce Ellis (Dallas Independent School District) and Miguel Guhlin (San Antonio Independent School District) about the PBS TeacherLine programs they've implemented in their districts.
http://www.teachertube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=fcac7694cf648430358c
PBS TeacherLine courses are approved by the Texas State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC) and count towards required CPE hours.
District course licensing and ELL/ESL courses are now available!
For more information: hcustard@klru.org, 512-232-9406.
Special station pricing is available for individual course registrations. Call Malinda McCormick at
210-270-9000 ext. 2251 or e-mail mmccormick@klrn.org, to register for your course at lower rates than nationally advertised!
PBS TeacherLine Courses
If you’ve never taken an online course, now is the time! PBS TeacherLine's high quality, standards-based graduate-level courses offer teachers the professional development opportunities in an accessible online format that makes learning fun, flexible and collaborative. Earn training or graduate credit while gaining strategies and resources to bring directly to your classroom.
Fall Term courses are open for enrollment, so browse our catalog to choose the one that's right
for you! Below are two favorites:
 = Teacher Favorite
 = Classroom Link
RDLA125 Children's Authors on the Web: Online Sites that Motivate Students to Write 
Subjects: Reading/Language Arts, Instructional Technology, Instructional Strategies
Grades: Kindergarten-6th
Hours: 30
Discover the power of author studies to motivate students to read and write. This course uses a problem-based approach to teach the techniques of conducting an author study integrating technology and the Internet. Explore author and other Web sites to collect resources that will introduce your students to many genres.
RDLA220 Teaching Writing in the Content Areas
Subjects: Mathematics, Science, Reading/Language Arts
Grades: 6th-12th
Hours: 30
You can bring writing into your classroom in all content areas with a practical plan developed in this course. Covering the research basis for writing across the curriculum, the course will help you teach students effective writing processes, including finding the time to write. You'll learn sound techniques for evaluating writing skills and discover proven ways to promote writing to students.
PBS TeacherLine Peer Connection
Get Connected!
In the drive to improve teaching practice and student achievement, many schools and districts are turning to instructional coaches to support school-wide improvement and enhance classroom
practice. Coaches require high level resources and professional development so they can lead the way in reform initiatives and deliver on specific district instructional and student performance goals.
At PBS TeacherLine, we support professional development from the classroom forward. Our new
PBS TeacherLine Peer Connection service will help you build a customized, practical professional development program for your teachers by providing sustained and targeted support for coaches.
Lesson Plans and other resources for the classroom
Are You a PBS Teacher? Join PBS Teachers Connect!
You are if you use digital media to teach! Sign up and join thousands of classroom teachers, home educators, media specialists and professional development providers who use PBS and public media resources to engage students. When you register, you will receive:
- Access to select PBS resources
- A personalized page with resources aligned to your subject & grade
- A customized local station program schedule
- A 10% discount coupon for PBS Shop for Teachers
Sign up now at: http://www.pbsteachers.org/connect
Look at what educators are talking about in Language Arts in PBS Teachers Connect:
KLRN Connect
Click and Engage
Log-in to KLRN Connect and start using these great classroom resources today! (In order to view you must be logged in to KLRN Connect)
Not a subscriber of KLRN Connect? Click here
Ensure Your Teachers are Associated with the Correct School
Do you have teachers that moved to a new school within your district over the summer months?
How do you ensure their KLRN Connect usernames and passwords are assigned to the correct schools? One way is to shuffle them from one school to another. In the past, this required someone with administrative access, but that is not the case anymore! Teachers can
shuffle themselves from one school to another - in five easy steps. They are as follows:
- Go to klrn.unitedstreaming.com
- Click on the Passcode Login tab
- Enter the new school's passcode (get the passcode from your school’s
admin or email mmccormick@klrn.org)
- Enter in your existing DE streaming username/password
- Click the login box
PowerPoint link that walks you through the steps above - screenshot by screenshot.
http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/matt.monjan/files/2008/08/shuffling-schools.ppt
Want to Get More Involved with Your Use of KLRN Connect in the Classroom?
Click here to go to the KLRN Connect page or click on the links below. Login required.
Getting Started: Step-by-Step is a new site that provides easy to follow instructions for new users to help them log-in, learn the functionality of DE streaming and/or DE Science, and encourage them to use it frequently. With videos, training resources, integration ideas and professional development opportunities, Getting Started was built and packaged for you to pass right along to your teachers. http://www.discoveryeducation.com/gettingstarted/
Discovery Educator Network Webinar Series
The Discovery Educator Network (DEN) is a global community of educators passionate about teaching with digital media, sharing resources, collaborating, and networking. With over 25,000 members providing professional development to over 250,000 educators worldwide, the DEN connects teachers both on-line and in-person. Discovery Educators have exclusive access to a wide range of resources, professional development activities, networking opportunities, exclusive Discovery Educator events and more!
Voted the best professional development website in 2007 by the Association of Educational Publishers, this website is a place to connect to other educators across the globe. Here, all users can read the blogs and discussion boards. Discovery Educators (any educator that has a Discovery account) have the ability to comment on the blogs, post to the discussion boards, and register for Discovery Educator Network events. http://community.discoveryeducation.com/
***NEW Webinars Series from PBS Teachers in the New Year!***
PBS Teachers Live! brought to you by KLRN, PBS Teachers and Elluminate
Are you looking for ways to incorporate digital media into your teaching? PBS Teachers is introducing a series of free monthly webinars that provide information about integrating online instructional resources in the classroom to engage students in curriculum lessons. The PBS Teachers Live! webinar series features presentations by leading education experts, authors, or producers of PBS programs who will share their knowledge and ideas on using digital media to
create rich learning experiences for students.
Join us on Jan. 28 at [7 p.m. CST] for “Changing Views of History, Changing Views of Race,” with our speaker, Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. In this discussion, you’ll learn how Americans' understanding of and attitudes toward Lincoln, African American history, and culture continue to evolve, and ways to approach this topic with your students. Dr. Gates’ latest documentary Looking for Lincoln, which premieres in February, addresses many of the controversies surrounding Lincoln about race, equality, religion, politics, and depression by carefully interpreting the evidence from those who knew him and those who study him today. Dr. Gates, who has earned numerous academic and social action awards, is the Alphonase Fletcher University Professor and Director of the W. E. B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research at Harvard University.
Mark your calendars for:
What: Changing Views of History, Changing Views of Race
Who: Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
When: Jan. 28, 2009 at 7 p.m. CST
Where: Online. Login information will be emailed to you prior to the webinar.
How: FREE! Sign up to become a PBS Teacher and enjoy access to PBS Teachers Live! webinars and more.
Click here for more information and to register. Registration entitles you to free membership in PBS Teachers and access to all its services, including PBS Teachers Connect, an online learning community where preK-12 educators can collaborate with their peers, discuss digital media use, and “save” online instructional resources. PBS Teachers members also receive discounts to ShopPBS for Teachers.
Media Infusion
From the Archives of Media Infusion
 Let the Games Begin: Promoting Early Reading Skills with PBS KIDS Island by Gina Montefusco
Learning to read can be scary – for both kids and parents. Kids have to contend with letters, sounds, and words, while their parents are handed terms like “phonemic awareness” and “alliteration.” It isn’t easy for anyone to make sense of all the new information. But reading doesn’t – and shouldn’t – have to be an intimidating process that turns off all but the most gifted students. With online games, kids are introduced to new skills in a light-hearted, silly way, allowing them to learn at their own speed and stay engaged. Everything from the alphabet to phonemes can be fun. Really. We promise. Continue reading
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KLRN is giving away an autographed copy of Helen Darling’s book, Hide-n-Seek Monday. To enter, send an email with your complete name, school, and daytime phone number to 
