• 30 Jan

    From time to time, we are incredibly lucky to hear how BrainPOP has profoundly affected a child’s learning.

    Some kids find it hard to write. There could be any number of reasons for this but sometimes the writer simply needs inspiration. The following is a guest post from a teacher who describes how one of her reluctant writers found his muse in a certain robot called Moby…

    “Hello! I am Miss Read (@missread10) and I am currently teaching a Year 3 class at a Primary School based in Ipswich, Suffolk. I am in my second year of teaching and ICT/VLE co-ordinator at my school. Following finding out about BrainPOP from my visit to the BETT show I was keen to use it in the classroom and to show my children about the technology I use.

    So for my own benefit, I used BrainPOP for the first time with my Twitter account open for the children to come and post about what they thought and if I should continue to use it. Armed with some great feedback and comments (as well as an impromptu chat on Twitter with BrainPOP themselves!) I set my children the task to write about what they had learnt from the Rainbow movie we watched.

    I have a very wide range of ability within my class ranging from labelling and sounding out words to those who produce reems of A4.

    My superstar is classed as a P Scale writer – he usually verbally told our teaching assistant Mrs P what he needed to say and copied from the scribe. But following his exposure to BrainPOP the below is the most he has ever produced!

    Summer Sun and Rainbows

    Since then, he has been writing and adding things in a variety of forms and styles around my classroom – even on my BrainPOP calendar!

    Moby makes me feel happy

    Moby makes me feel happy

    For as long as Moby (who apparently is a Baby Transformer who has come to learn about Earth) sticks around – I cannot wait to see what my superstar as well as my class (who are all stars) will produce next!”

    This is Moby

    This is Moby

    The significance of this small but important step forward is not lost on Miss Read, nor us. It’s what we hope for when we construct BrainPOP – that at some point a child will make a break through that empowers them to progress and fall in love with learning.

    And we don’t apologise for our emotional language – Moby making kids and teachers happy and successful in their learning is what we’re all about and it’s what motivates us in return.

    If you have any teaching and learning tales you’d like to share with us – it really is a treat to see what your kids have been up to – please email info@brainpop.co.uk. We’d love to hear from you!

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  • 26 Jan

    We are keen supporters of TeachMeet Takeovers at BETT. We actually hosted the very first one by Tom Barrett in 2010 and, frankly, it was such a blast, we couldn’t wait to volunteer our stand for 2012.

    This year we were lucky enough to have three teachers take over our stand, each of whom, in the spirit of TeachMeet, were  more than happy to share their presentations with us so we could share them with you.  What a wonderful world!

    TeachMeet Takeover

    1. Mark Anderson (a.k.a. @ICTevangelist) kicked off with a crowded session on Thursday where he shared the “cornerstones” of his classroom: Web 2.0 tools you can use straight away. He managed to cram an unbelievable amount into just 15 minutes and told us about the following, to name just a few:

    • Popplet, a mindmapping tool that works on the iPad
    • A free online presentation tool, SlideRocket
    • SpicyNodes – a mindmapping tool which teachers can even use to write schemes of work
    • VisuWords – an online graphical dictionary
    • Format Factory – a free tool for converting mediatypes
    • And offered good tips and tricks for using YouTube in school

    2. On Friday, we were delighted to have Julia Skinner (a.k.a. @TheHeadsOffice) “let loose” [her own words] on the stand and tell us all about the 100 word challenge, a creative writing challenge which aims to spark the imagination of potentially reluctant writers. It’s truly awe-inspiring to see what kids have written and shared with a worldwide blogging (and tweeting) community.

    3. And finally on Friday we had Phil Bagge (a.k.a. Baggiepr) take over the stand with an animated and engaging presentation about how easy and effective it is to blog in schools using an iPod Touch and Posterous.

    You can find a full list of other takeovers from the four days here: TeachMeet Takeover BETT 2012

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  • 25 Jan

    We were delighted and honoured to have so many kids visit our stand at BETT this year.

    But we were especially delighted to welcome Fiona, Betsie, Jack, Trafford, Bayleigh from Woodlands Primary class 4h, onto the stand along with their teacher, Mr Handley (a.k.a. @tomhenzley and author of The PGCE Survival Guide). The kids gave a presentation about BrainPOP and finished off with a quick lesson on the Heart.

    A sizeable crowd looked on as Mr Handley kicked off with a quick introduction before the kids took over:

    Here’s a prezi Mr Handley put together to accompany their presentation: A Child’s View of BrainPOP and we’ve included the full transcript below too.

    Mr H: Introduce what we are going to do - talk about BrainPOP, why the children love it and then do a mini lesson.

    Bayleigh: BrainPOP is a really cool website that we all love and we use a lot in school.

    Fiona: On BrainPOP there are lots and lots of videos, featuring our favourite characters - Tim and his Robot friend Moby.

    Betsie: Each video starts with a letter written by a child, asking Tim and Moby a question.

    Trafford: And Tim and Moby receive the letter and try and answer it in the video.

    Jack H: The video is full of lots of useful information about lots of different topics.

    Bayleigh: All the topics are interesting - many are linked into what we study in school.

    Betsie: But others are about interesting events or generally super information, that we love to learn about.

    Bayleigh: All of 4H love to watch Tim and Moby and often ask to watch Tim and Moby vidoes.

    Jack H: We can also go on BrainPOP at home - which is super for exploring with our parents and helping them to learn things too!

    Fiona: Often the videos are quite funny too and always try and with a joke or something silly.

    Trafford: At the end of each video there is also a quiz to help us show what we have learnt.

    ALL: WE LOVE Brainpop because…

    Jack H: Because it can help us with our learning

    Trafford: Because it is easy to understand.

    Bayleigh: You learn things without realising.

    Betsie: You can go on variety of different things and explore.

    Fiona: You can watch things and they are fun whilst learning.

    All: Our Favourite BrainPOP movie is…

    Fiona: Fireworks - because it’s cool to see what is inside fireworks.

    Betsie: Chocolate - because I love chocolate and it’s interesting to see how it is made!

    Jack H: Electricity - because it is really interesting as it works each day.

    Bayleigh: Heart - because it’s funny

    Trafford: Simple Equations - as it’s really interesting.

    Mr Handley finished up their presentation with a quick BrainPOP lesson using our Heart topic.

    Mr Handley takes a lesson on the Heart

    The kids’ favourite movies again for you:

    Fireworks

    Fireworks

    Chocolate

    Chocolate

    Electricity

    Electricity

    Heart

    Heart

    Simple Equations

    Simple Equations

    A big thank you to Mr Handley and all the kids from Woodlands Primary School for your clear dedication to BrainPOPping. We have your letters and promise to answer them soon!

    And finally, it’s no fun visiting the BrainPOP stand unless you get a hug from a big orange robot. Moby was happy to oblige.

    Kids from Woodlands Primary meet Moby

    Jack, Trafford, Bayleigh, Fiona and Betsie meet Moby

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  • 20 Jan

    We’re proud of being a “social business“. Not only because we’ve met the most amazing people via social networks but because we discover new things every day just by listening to you all.

    BETT is one of those exhibitions where you bump into people a lot – in both the idiomatic and literal sense. 1000′s of minded folks head along to meet with other like minded folks, all keen to see new technology and tools for education.

    One of the best ways to find out about the coolest things to see & the people to meet and greet is to join Twitter. If you’re a teacher looking to collaborate and share teaching ideas and hear about new resources and tools to use in school it’s a fantastic thing.

    Below, we’ve included a selection of our BETT tweets using this awesome free webtool called “Storify” . It just goes to show how much is said and done in the virtual world of social networking.

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  • 18 Jan

    There’s no shortage of post-BETT chatter clogging up the internet super highway this week and most folks can sum up their time far more eloquently than us, plus we were kind of tied to our stand for the duration, so we’ll keep this debrief…brief. Our highs, lows, and everything in between…

    1. VIBs and a girl named Phoebe

    For the past few years, we’ve invited VIBs (Very Important BrainPOPpers - expert BrainPOP Educators) to help us out on our stand. We figure it’s better for teachers to hear from teachers about BrainPOP than just a demo from us*. So a round of applause and huge thank you to Dawn Hallybone (@dawnhallybone), Charlie Deane (@charliedeane) and Ian Addison (@ianaddison) who all rolled up their sleeves and got stuck in for BrainPOP.

    Special mention must go to an honorary VIB, who operated the stylus on the IWB for us when we showed BrainPOP movies on the Saturday afternoon, like only a 10 year old history fan can. She worked the board as competently as any dyed in the wool classroom teacher.

    Phoebe watches Cleopatra

    Phoebe watches the Cleopatra movie

    Phoebe, we salute your laid back style and whiteboard skills. And you’ve got great taste in movies: Black DeathQueen Elizabeth I and Cleopatra to name but a few.

    *Please note: we don’t actually pitch, that’s not how we roll.

    2. TeachMeet Takeovers

    Having been the host to the first ever TeachMeet Takeover in 2010, we were keen to offer up our stand once again. On Thursday we watched Mark Anderson (@ictevangelist) present on Web 2.0 tools you can use straight away, followed by Friday appearances from Julia Skinner (@TheHeadsOffice) who kindly shared what she’s been up to with her 100 word challenge, and Phil Bagge (@Baggiepr) who talked about using Posterous on the iPod touch. We’ll be doing a post shortly showcasing all of their presentations - there’s too much to fit in here - so stay tuned and watch this space!

    It wasn’t a Takeover but we also welcomed Mr Handley’s class who presented a masterclass in BrainPOP. They were incredible and a real highlight of the show for us. This presentation deserves a full blog post to itself so look out for that. In the meantime see the post they wrote up on their BETT visit.

    Mr Handleys class meets Moby at BETT 2012

    Mr Handley's class meets Moby at BETT 2012

    3. The heart-stopping moment when your wi-fi fails

    We were so excited about our “media counter“. We were finally going to be able to show off just how flexible BrainPOP is: For use at school, home, and on the go. BrainPOP can be accessed via the Sony PS3, various flash-enabled tablet devices, and also our free app for iPad, iPod touch and iPhone. We were also keen to hear Dawn Hallybone’s top 5 educational apps.

    However, none of this is possible if your wi-fi connection fails. And fail it did!

    It’s fair to say we were pretty devastated about both of the above but have learnt a good lesson for forthcoming years. Do not rely on wi-fi at BETT.

    4. Are you using iPads, iPod touch or iPhones in school?

    A question we asked everyone we spoke to. And it seemed for every teacher with access to iPods or iPads in school, there were another three who were visiting BETT to help them make a decision: Is there enough content available to justify the spend on such devices?

    While we can’t speak for other suppliers, we are well aware of the growing multitude of helpful apps and tools available for mobile devices which can be used in schools. As we’ve mentioned many times now, we’ve got a free app you can download from iTunes and start using it today. You’ll find top tips for classroom use available on our Mobile page.

    BrainPOP App screenshot and App button

    5. The goodies, the goodies!

    As ever, BrainPOP goodies seemed to go down a storm. But, when we’re surrounded by suppliers who seem to be offering less and less giveaways on their stands each year, we’ve got to wonder whether it’s truly worthwhile having them.

    A sample of BrainPOP giveaways

    What do you think? As a teacher, does it make any difference whether you get something to take away and share with your class? Or, does it all end up in the bin at the end of the day anyway? We implore you to let us know.

    6. Evaluate BrainPOP? No bother

    Dear Tim & Moby letter from BETTy

    If you spoke to any of the BrainPOP team at BETT you’ll know that this year we opted to set up a generic free trial for the event. This meant that anyone could walk away and log in to BrainPOP as soon as they liked; no messing with emails and activation links and all that jazz.

    Not only did we make the free trial process as simple as can be, we created evaluation booklets, each with a photocopiable topic sheet so your class could complete an evaluation of BrainPOP for you. Download the PDF here if you didn’t manage to grab a copy last week:

    Topic Evaluation Sheet

    Click image to download

    7. Moby does the robot

    Erm, there are no words?

    (iPod touch, iPhone and iPad are all trademarks of Apple Inc.)

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  • 24 Jan

    This year at BETT we welcomed two International VIBs to join the BrainPOP team, Adina Popa (Technology Resource Teacher/International Ambassador, Loudoun County, VA) & Tammie Mihet (4th Grade Teacher/Teacher Trainer, First Baptist Academy, Naples, FL). They have been using the American English version of BrainPOP in their classrooms for many years. We asked them to provide their unique perspective on the BETT event as a visitor, Collab8 4 Change keynote presenter, VIB and teacher.

    Tammie (left), Moby (middle) and Adina (right)

    “Do you want to see the latest and greatest technological advances in the education field? Do you want to rub shoulders with the brightest names in ICT? Then head to the BETT Show and come ready to be blown away.

    That is what we did last week.  Except we didn’t jump on a train to get there.  We flew through the night, all the way from the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, very eager to take part in the biggest  ICT show in the world.

    Our first impression when we walked in…overwhelming!  Overwhelming not because it was confusing or disorganized, it was just the opposite.

    Overwhelming because we felt like kids at Disneyland – so much to see, and so many activities in which to participate!

    The real treat, however, was our involvement in the show. We didn’t fly all the way from the US just to experience BETT as visitors. We came to take part in it.  We were VIBs – “Very Important BrainPOPers“.  As VIBs we shared the power of BrainPOP with people from around the world.  What an amazing opportunity we had to meet parents, teachers and school leaders and to share our passion for BrainPOP and its ability to drastically impact the learning of our students.

    Through our encounters we showcased many features BrainPOP offers:

    1. Research-based short videos that enhance instruction in any subject
    2. Quizzes that are integrated with Promethean whiteboards and ready to be taken via personal response systems
    3. Class charts with student responses that can be exported to PDF and graded accordingly
    4. Extension activities through the FYI section
    5. Closed captioning (subtitles to you guys!)
    6. ESL lessons that teach English in a very stimulating environment

    We also had the opportunity to attend and deliver a mini-note at Collabor8 4 Change, event held on Thursday evening, and sponsored by a few ICT leaders, including BrainPOP UK.

    The layout of the evening was beautifully arranged. The opening address was provided by Lord Jim Knight, who mentioned that ICT needs to be quintessential to education.   As we listened to Lord Knight we began to realize that, no matter which side of the Atlantic we call home, we are all facing similar struggles – economies are failing, schools are cutting budgets, and ICT integration is jeopardized.

    It is, therefore, important that as innovators we lead the way in illustrating the importance of 21st century tools in educating our children. Throughout the evening we listened to lead educators who shared ideas on successful implementation of technology.

    As a result of listening to these presentations, we created future collaboration plans between the two continents, and felt ready to implement many cutting-edge initiatives in our own schools.

    The evening ended with two mini-notes, one delivered by us.  Our theme centered on the fact that collaboration, especially at the international level, is becoming a necessity in education today.

    It is required by our ever-evolving society, and its integration is essential in order to understand and respect our globally connected world.  There are many ways to connect globally, and quite a few are offered through BrainPOP.  From international competitions, to BrainPOP Educators, to POPtalk, students and teachers alike have a place to learn and share practices, lessons, and finished products.  BrainPOP is a great catalyst in facilitating collaborations, and it is a good place to start collaborative activities.

    As we reflect on our time at BETT two things are very evident:

    1. There are some amazingly dedicated teachers and professionals out there working tirelessly to reach our kids
    2. Technology has magnetic power; it can engage even the most obstinate learner

    Personally we feel that BrainPOP is on the frontline, reaching out to teachers and students, and transforming the classroom into an engaging, 21st Century environment.  There is a saying that comes to mind when we think about the BrainPOP family: “Behind every great product there is a great team.”

    Thank you, Adina & Tammie! We hope to welcome you next year as our favourite International VIBS :-)

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  • 20 Jan

    Much like the Edinburgh festival many of the more interesting activities at the BETT show happen on the fringe. Although with Learning Without Frontiers, TEDX, Collabor8 4 Change and the TeachMeet being sold out it seems what was the fringe a few years ago is now challenging the mainstream for why teachers throng to London in mid January.

    One of the most exciting of these developments is the TeachMeet Takeovers, where a commercial supplier gives their stand over to a classroom practitioner to present on a free tool, service or learning experience that they want to share. We really like this idea as it appeals to the BrainPOP ethos that places, above all else, the learner at the heart of things. And it feels deliciously rebellious too ;-)

    We had 4 teachers present their Takeovers - Dan Roberts, Alessio Bernardelli, Ian Guest and Bill Lord. Each one of them was erudite, interesting and entertaining. We uploaded some recordings of them below. We really do recommend you take the time to watch them, you will walk away enriched with practical ideas to take into your classroom.

    Dan Roberts aka @chickensaltash “35 Free Tech Tools in 6 Mins and 40 secs”

    This is the Slideshare which contains all the links:

    Chicken pecha kucha 20x20 free tech tools

    Bill Lord, aka @Joga5, talking about his Year 1 “Giraffeclass” in which he employed Twitter as a tool for literacy:

    Ian Guest aka @ianinsheffield gives a TeachMeet Takeover entitled “Poll Dancing - Using online tools for formative assessment, eliciting opinion & stimulating discussion”. He recommends some really excellent free Poll tools and best practice on how to use them in the classroom.

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  • 18 Jan

    For some people, BETT is about innovative ICT, for others, it’s about networking. And for a special few, it’s the annual opportunity to meet inspiring colleagues in the world of education.

    But we were thinking along the lines of something a little more ORANGE and ROBOTIC.

    Yes, we’re talking about meeting the mechanical maestro himself – Moby the BrainPOP robot. This year he had his very own photobooth where BrainPOP fans could have their picture taken with Moby. It was a massive successs and he LOVED the attention.

    Were you one of the lucky few who grabbed a special moment with the robotic rascal? If so, go and add yourself to your photo on Flickr or watch the slideshow below.

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  • 06 Jan

    This will be BrainPOP UK’s 3rd year at BETT and this time we’re turning it up to 11.

    At BETT 2009/10 we were “up in the Gods”, on the gallery section overlooking the Grand Hall. A sweet spot, but not too easy to find and not much space for Moby to bust out his moves.

    Moby on our old 2010 BETT stand

    Moby on our old 2010 BETT stand

    For 2011 we’ve graduated to the ground floor of the Grand Hall, stand No.B60, right in the middle next to the stairs and the RM stand. It’s a modest sized space compared to some of the monolithic structures that surround us but we promise it will be one of the most social and fun stands you visit.

    Each day we’ll be meeting lots of current and future BrainPOP Educators and demoing ALL the BrainPOP products and features, including BrainPOP ESL and BrainPOP Jr. Of course there will also be a scintillating array of BrainPOP goodies for you to take back to school to show off.

    Here’s a few more reasons you should come and visit our stand:

    • We’ll be joined by a number of VIBs – BrainPOP teachers (including Dawn Hallybone, Ian Addison, Tim Handley, Adina Popa, Tom Sale and James Mahoney) who have kindly given up a few hours to show how they effectively use BrainPOP in their classrooms, both 1-2-1 and presenting on our Interactive Whiteboard. They will have their own special VIB tshirts – keep an eye out for them as not only are they passionate about BrainPOP, they are great exponents of relevant and modern ICT practice.
    • We’re hosting TeachMeet Takeovers at 2pm on Thurs/Fri (maybe Saturday too). This is when we hand the stand over to a real teacher who gives a presentation about free tools and services that they’ve used in the classroom. We’re honoured and priviliged to have the inspiring Alessio Bernardelli and Dan Roberts doing a tag team Takeover on Thursday about “Using Livestream to create and broadcast pupils work as a TV Show & Chicken Pecha Kucha 20×20 free tech tools” and the fantastic Bill Lord (who is a wonderfully infectious speaker) talking about “Amazing free tools to fire up literacy learners“. You do NOT want to miss these.
    • Moby’s Photobooth – come and get a Polaroid portrait picture taken with the big orange fella himself, to treasure forever. His Photobooth will be open most of the show, except when he needs a break to oil his sprockets.
    • BrainPOP Spotters! If you visit the BrainPOP stand, get a demo and pick up a special Moby shoulder bag make sure you proudly display it when you’re wandering around the exhibition. Why? Because at 2pm each day Moby will be wandering the exhibition hall looking for a BrainPOP bag. If he “spots” yours then you’ve won a full year’s subscription to the BrainPOP product of your choice. Woot!

    BrainPOPpers will also be attending these events:

    • Learning Without Frontiers (Drinks reception sponsor and general hob-nobbing – please grab a BrainPOPper if you see one and say hola).
    • Collabor8 4 Change – Sponsor, Keynote and round table lead.
    • TeachMeet BETT 2011 – Generally kicking back with lots of old (and hopefully new!) friends at this highlight of the educational calendar.

    Find us where the little red box is:

    The location of the BrainPOP stand at Bett 2011

    The location of the BrainPOP stand at Bett 2011

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  • 27 Jan

    Hello! I’m Ann BrainPOP (@carterwins) and I’m the BrainPOP UK marketer (be nice).

    I’ll confess: This was my first ever BETT show. Yep, I was a BETT newbie. And a first time TeachMeeter too.

    My personal highlights include talking to what felt like millions of teachers (not sure if this was typical of all stands but I’m not ashamed to admit there were queues off our stand at points), attending my first ever TeachMeet and getting to hang out with a big orange robot (see above).

    I also wanted to find out what it was like for a teacher to go to BETT and TeachMeet for the first time.  Oliver Quinlan, a teacher at Robin Hood Primary School, kindly obliged to answer a few questions about what he learned first time presenting at TeachMeet BETT2010.

    Oliver started following the TeachMeet buzz in 2009. After attending a Midlands event through the flashmeeting he said he “was left buzzing with ideas, and keen to go to one in person.” Months later he jumped at the chance to present at BETT…

    Hi Oliver. Why TeachMeet and BETT this year in particular?

    Oliver: I was keen to go as soon as I heard about it as it was the first one I knew I would be able to go to and share some of my classroom practice, as well as learning about others as I had done previously. Luckily my colleagues are very supportive and gave me the time out to go down to BETT and the TeachMeet.

    How many people have been in touch with you about your presentation since?

    Lots! I am really happy to see quite a few people have taken some ideas from what I’ve been doing and used them with their classes, which is what TeachMeet is all about really. I’ve also had lots of support on my blog from people who saw the talk and have started corresponding with me and commenting on other issues I’ve been writing about like my MA, which has been really beneficial.

    In your blog post you mentioned a few of the presentations you enjoyed - have you managed to try any out with your class already? Or even passed on to colleagues?

    I passed Helen Myers details on to a colleague straight away, as I know she has been thinking of using Second Life for language learning in our school, and could benefit from the experiences shared. Miles Berry’s work on Scratch is also something our new technologies team are keen to integrate into our curriculum. Ian Usher’s teachers as writers project has made me think quite deeply about my own interests and how I can link my teaching to authentic experiences I am involved in outside of the classroom.

    Do you think you’ll be getting more heavily involved with TeachMeets from now on?

    Certainly, I am looking forward to this year’s Midlands event already and planning to rope in some of my colleagues this time. One of the things I love about my present school is there is a real culture of teachers as learners, and TeachMeet really fits into that as it is about developing yourself as a teacher through sharing in the innovations of each other. Next time I would like to present on something that doesn’t have a technology focus, because I think this grassroots ideas sharing model is so good it should be about way more than just technology.

    Up for organizing #TM2011 if there is one?

    I’m certainly up for getting involved!

    Good news for anyone who possibly found the organisation a little stressful! There’s no mistaking that TeachMeet is set to shake up, and possibly shape up, the BETT shows Oliver and I visit in future. I certainly look forward to attending another if the opportunity presents itself.

    So, what to take from this for BETT 2011? Know your stuff inside and out and if you don’t know the answer, find out immediately! Get involved in what teachers are talking about and are clearly passionate about. Next year, I hope to have tried out a few of the things I heard about at TeachMeet and I hope to buy Oliver Quinlan a coffee.

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