The Buzz : Testimonials

Gizmos Help Student Scores on VA State Tests

We received this great feedback on recent state test scores from a veteran middle school science teacher:

"I wanted to pass on to you my Virginia Science SOL (Standards of Learning) results. I credit my fantastic results to Gizmos and to my classroom performance system. I had 73.5% of my special needs kids pass the test!!!!! Not to be outdone I had 44 pass advance and 5 perfect scores out of 117 students testing! You would think I would stop being amazed at how well your programs work but I still get amazed every week when we use Gizmos. I have the computers signed out every week and we do at least one Gizmo a week and they students do not tire of it. They come in and chant, "Gizmo day, Gizmo day!"

Kris Campesi, Middle School Science Teacher
Stafford County, VA

Check out some of the Gizmos that Kris has used with her 7th grade students: Food Chain, Chicken Genetics, and Mouse Genetics (One Trait).

Gizmos Are Creating a Buzz in Canada too.

We recently received this testimonial from a new Gizmo fan in the Prince Edward School District Board in Ontario, Canada:

"I have just spent a very enjoyable and worthwhile amount of time exploring "Gizmos", which I understand has been recently licensed in Ontario by OSAPAC. I recall seeing your sales rep about this at NCTM in Richmond, VA last October, and in my summary report to management indicating it was one of the only worthwhile applications we should explore further.

I must confess that my positive remarks at that time were understated. After using the simulations and seeing the high-quality videos you have, I am even more convinced that you have an outstanding product. And speaking as our office's resident curmudgeon, I seldom give out that kind of praise.

Thanks for making such a high-quality item."

William S. Lundy
I.T.S. Department, Mathematical Literacy/SMART Board Lead, The Hastings and Prince Edward District School Board

Thanks for this endorsement of Gizmos, Bill!

Gizmos: “The best computer program I have ever seen to use in math classrooms”

We just received this praise from a 7th grade Math teacher in Greenwich, CT, who helped evaluate Gizmos for her district’s middle schools.

“I just wanted to follow up about the Gizmo program we've been able to try through ExploreLearning.com. It works great as a classroom tool with the Smartboard, which I've finally got up and running…The students are so excited when they get to use Gizmos, which makes them excited about learning.  The correlation to the Connected Math books is amazing. There has been a worthwhile Gizmo for every Investigation since we've had the opportunity to use the program. Using the Exploration Guide for each Gizmo, I have created Activity Packets for the students to complete. These Exploration Guides are very well put together and directly correlate with topics being discussed in class. This is the best computer program I have seen to use in math classrooms. The students get to see real simulations that they read about in the books.  It gives real life problem-solving a whole new meaning to them.  It is so helpful for students who have a hard time with visualization. 

    Since I've started using them with the students, I refer to the Gizmos as I'm teaching.  I have even had a student mention a Gizmo in extra help, …and she was immediately able to relate it to the problem she was working on.  I really feel that it expands critical thinking skills and helps [students] connect and extend their understanding.

    The Assessment Questions provided with each Gizmo are excellent. They are often similar to CMT (Connecticut Math Test) multiple-choice questions, which is great practice for the students.  I love being able to see how the students did and where they need more instruction.  I have only used the assessment questions when I have taken the students to the computer lab, but they can easily be assigned as homework.  I have accessed the site from home and it would not be a problem for students to do so. The results that are provided for the teacher are great instant feedback. I honestly would give anything to be able to use this in my classroom next year.
    I looked over the Gizmos that correlate with the other books I cover in my classes and my mind is already forming plans to incorporate them in my teaching plans…This is the most passionate and excited I have ever been about a new teaching tool.”

                                                                                                    --- Emily Carter, Greenwich, CT

Gizmos as part of Classrooms for the Future

The Classrooms for the Future initiative provides funds for schools in Pennsylvania to purchase state-of-the-art resources for teachers to more effectively educate and prepare students to compete in the ever-expanding high-tech global marketplace. Under this initiative, one Pennsylvania high school, in Millcreek Township, is using Gizmos as a great resource for improving student learning in science.

"My AP students found the Bohr Model Gizmos to be really helpful and a very useful tool to visualize the electrons bombarding the nucleus and the energy that is absorbed or emitted.  My Applications of Chemistry students found the Element Builder Gizmo fun and a unique visual with moving parts to see the atoms."                        

                                            Julie DeWoody, High School Science Teacher, Millcreek Township, PA

Julie also participated in a video segment showcasing the success she's had using Gizmos in her AP Chemistry class. Watch this video and see about how Julie has made a difference for her students with Gizmos.

Check out these high school Chemistry Gizmos and many others for yourself: Bohr Model: Introduction, Bohr Model of Hydrogen, Element Builder

More Kudos for the EL Customer Support Team

Yesterday, a subscribing teacher in Maryland emailed our Customer Support Team about a problem he had encountered while trying to log into our website. Our able Customer Service Supervisor, Carmen Edwards, quickly picked up his email and began to troubleshoot the issue. She gave him two easy-to-follow suggestions for resolving the problem. We got this complimentary response from him afterwards:

"Thank you for your quick response. I will try your suggestions. This is the second time I have utilized your customer service and I think it is excellent. It's as good as any company I have dealt with on a school level or as a private citizen."

Jeff Wagner, Anne Arundel County MD Public Schools

Thank you Jeff for the kind words!

If you have a question of any kind about using Gizmos, please feel free to give us a call at 866-882-4141, Option 4 or email support@explorelearning.com.

ExploreLearning Gizmos are a AT&T Blue Web'n 5-Star Resource

ExploreLearning Gizmos have been recognized by AT&T's Blue Web'n site as a 5-star resource for education in Math and Science. Additionally, ExploreLearning.com was recently profiled as the Blue Web'n Hot Site of the week.

Blue Web'n is an online library of outstanding Internet sites for Education, categorized by subject, grade level, and format. Sites are hand-picked and are AT&T's choices of the most useful resources for instruction. The sites in Blue Web'n are chosen by their Education Advocates, who have advanced degrees in education and numerous years of teaching experience.

Browse the resources they've chosen at:

http://www.kn.sbc.com/wired/bluewebn/contentTable.cfm

Gizmos are listed under the Math, Science and Education content areas, and as lessons, resources and activities. Or, simply search for Gizmos!

Florida's Polk County using Gizmos as part of technology-infused curriculum

Polk County, FL has recently initiated a pilot program to infuse technology into its secondary mathematics and science curriculum. John Miller, Curriculum Coordinator of Secondary Mathematics, explained the sound reasoning behind his county's adoption of Gizmos as part of this initiative like this:

"...the focus of this initiative, and the reason we are providing you with Gizmos and technology support to go with it, is to help students better comprehend mathematics by allowing them to be more engaged in (excited about) the learning process in our math classes and see math in a more visual and connective way."

— John C. Miller, Curriculum Coordinator of Secondary Mathematics, Polk County Public Schools, Florida

The district has purchased projectors, interactive whiteboards, and ExploreLearning Gizmos for 160 of its secondary teachers. Each teacher is receiving training on the new technology, including work with ExploreLearning's Professional Development team. Gizmos have proved to be a wonderful way for teachers to quickly integrate educational technology into their instruction and improve student performance!

Science concepts in a fraction of the time.

Pam from Nebraska let us know how she is using Gizmos in her classroom. She writes,

I teach earth Science to 8th graders and I use gizmos with each unit. I can teach concepts to kids in a fraction of the time with better results than traditional labs. Since it is truly an interactive website, students get to control it and repeat the activity until they feel they have mastery. This is a wonderful inquiry based website. One component I also use is the assessment piece. There are short quizzes after each activity to check the student understands. I can go in & check on the scores any time. What a time saver and it's good for my students too!

— Pam Petersen, 8th Grade Science, York Middle School

Thanks Pam. Here's an interesting fact about Nebraska. Did you know that Nebraska became one of the first states to provide the entire state with educational television in 1963? Wow, from educational television to educational technology, the cornhusker state is on a roll!

Algebra in the Real World!

Kim Washington, a high school math teacher in Norfolk, VA praised the real world application that Gizmos gives her Algebra students.

"When we talk about slope and rate of change, they can actually see it in Gizmos. I think that helps them. I struggle to get them to apply Math, to get them to understand that what we're doing, you're going to do every day. You pick the right Gizmo and 'Voila,' the application is there for you!"

Here are just a couple of the real world Gizmos Kim likes to use:
Distance Time Graphs -- creates a graph of a runner's position versus time
Modeling Linear Systems -- a cat and mouse chase modeled with a system of 2 lines.

ExploreLearning.com Browsing is a Big Help to Teachers

Recently, we visited with Kris Campesi, a middle school science teacher in Stafford County, VA. We talked to her about she organizes her science lessons to incorporate Gizmos. She had this to say about the ability to browse and choose appropriate Gizmos using the textbook and state standard correlations on our site:

"I click on my textbook and 'Whoa!'- you tell me what Gizmo goes with what chapter...and if I'm missing something for an SOL, I don't have to look through the Gizmos to see what Gizmo meets that standard, I just click on VA Assessments and you tell me what Gizmo meets that assessment need. You save me a lot of work and have it so well organized that it's not hard for me to integrate it."

Thank you Kris. We think our browsing capability is superior as well. Check it out on the Gizmo Browsing Page.

It's True: Techies love Gizmos

Recently, Elsie Rivard, Manager of Professional Development found herself presenting in front of a group of teachers in Madison, Indiana. After a friendly visit to Prince of Peace Catholic School, fourth grade teacher Eve Juarez had this to say about Gizmos.   

Coming from a software background, I think they [Gizmos] are some of the best educational software I have seen in a looooooooooonnnng time.

Thanks Eve, we love your enthusiasm!  We think Gizmos are great too…In fact, we think they are so great that we are expanding our Gizmo library to include coverage for grades 3 to 5.  Take a sneak peek of our new Elementary Science Gizmos (passcode - gizmo), coming this fall.

"More Concepts with Real Life Experiences!"

During a recent ExploreLearning Professional Development workshop in Miami, our Miami-Dade project manager, Mario Junco, received this word of praise from Mohanalatha Pamajala, an attending teacher.

Teaching engineering principles and concepts to various levels of students in the same class is made possible by Gizmos. Gizmos are more visual and interactive, and keep students on task to learn efficiently. Once I started using Gizmos in my class, I felt happy that my students were learning more concepts with real life experiences.

Mrs. Mohanalatha Pamajala, Technology Education Department, Miami Sunset Senior High School

Here’s another example of how teachers are using Gizmos to better explain complex scientific principles .  Keep up the good work Mohanalatha!

ExploreLearning Customer Support Scores an A+

ExploreLearning user Mary Kost recently encountered a problem launching Gizmos. Through careful questioning and step-by-step guidance, our Customer Service Specialist, Charlotte Wilt, was able to detect a technical problem with Shockwave and help her solve it. Afterwards, Charlotte got this rave review:

Dear Charlotte: Everything is working perfectly. I have never had such good help when I have encountered problems with programs. You are a gem and if I were there I would kiss your feet.

If you have a question or if you need help with anything Gizmo-related, please give Charlotte a call!

Testimonial: "The outcomes after testing were phenomenal!"

Another teacher let us know how successful her students have been using Gizmos to prepare for Texas state testing.

Deanna Showalter, a teacher in Grapevine Colleyville, Texas writes,

The student feedback was great!  The interactions with the programs took them farther, faster than anything else I have worked with... The outcomes after testing were phenomenal!

Thank you for letting us know how well your students are doing with Gizmos, Deanna!

"Where were these online toys when I was teaching math and science!?"

Two more complimentary emails have rolled into the ExploreLearning recently that I want to pass along …

Shirley Owens, Coordinator for Instructional Technology for the Mission TX Consolidated Independent School District writes,

I love the Gizmos. During my 20 years as a classroom teacher, I taught computer science, all secondary mathematics courses and physics. At this point, I am teaching teachers to use technology in the classroom. One of the things I have been showing since TCEA is the wealth of material on your site … Where were these online toys when I was teaching math and science!? Guess that's what happens when a person started teaching BC (before calculators).

And Sandy Fliegelman has praise for our customer service department,

I am very much impressed by your speedy response - I wish there were more customer service teams that were as responsive and helpful as you have been!

Thanks!

Teacher Says, "Gizmos ROCK!"

Hey, we think the ExploreLearning Gizmos are pretty cool, but don't take our word for it …

Gizmos ROCK!

My Junior HIgh students have learned so many science concepts through the use of Gizmos that were otherwise very difficult to grasp. …I am an advocate of your site and encourage every teacher I meet to check it out.

— Caryn Murray, Science Teacher, Frontenac, Kansas.

Thanks, Caryn!

Testimonial: "My students absolutely LOVE Gizmos."

Jill Galloway, an 8th Grade Math Teacher in Coppell Texas, writes to tell us how she and her students feel about the Gizmos:

I have fallen in love with your site … my students absolutely LOVE Gizmos. While staying on task in the computer lab is often an issue, I did not have one problem keeping the students engaged in the activity. The Gizmos have been a useful tool in stimulating higher-level thinking, so it is wonderful that the students love it as much as I do.

Thanks for letting us know, Jill. That's so cool. You know it's one thing for a teacher to get excited about a new learning tool, but it's a whole other level when the students are just as excited. And it's trying to make that happen that is a big part of what ExploreLearning is all about.

Testimonial: "High Quality Trainers"

Here's some excellent praise that came in for our own, Thom O'Brien:

Shoreline [Public Schools in WA] subscribed to Explore Learning for three of our schools this year (2 middle - 1 high) after having done a limited pilot last year. Our teachers are enthusiastic about having this tool. I'm writing, however, to report that this enthusiasm escalated considerably due to Thom O'Brien's wonderful training session today. I've dabbled with EL for over a year and learned more in the first 20 minutes of Thom's presentation than in all that time on my own — and I reckon others felt the same way. Thom combined an easy-going style with solid practical implementation tips and some marvelous ideas on how to integrate Gizmos with other applications we use. I had to literally kick our teachers out of the room at 3:00 to free up the room — else I think they would have stayed well beyond the scheduled time …

I have already spoken to Thom about his possible return for another session with other teachers, and the teachers from today were in favor of the idea.

Thanks for the great product and for having such high quality trainers available to your clients.

Jim Golubich
Professional Development/Instructional Technology
Shoreline School District

Thanks, Jim, for your kind words. We're glad to hear that the implementation is off to a strong start.

Thom is quite a guy. By the way, if any of you happen to meet Thom when he visits your school as part of ExploreLearning's Professional Development and Teacher Training on Gizmos, be sure to ask him about a very interesting job he had in the past. (Hint: "Three rings. Big Show.")

Gizmos a Hit in Oklahoma

Janet Kingsolver, a middle school science teacher at the Classen School of Advanced Studies in Oklahoma dropped us a note the other day to tell us how things are going with her classes and Gizmos:

I was able to finally get started with my class and the gizmos today.  They loved it.  My biggest problem is keeping them from exploring the other gizmos I've put into their class.  We did a density lab today and several of the students commented on how real it made the term "density" for them.  I challenged them to find relationships within the lab and to do the math necessary to find the relationships.  They were very excited about it.  I'll try the questions and other things next time we work [with a Gizmo].

What a great start to the 2005 school year. Thanks for sharing the news, Janet.

In my own observations of students interacting with Gizmos, it's so pleasing to see how the students "get into it" so to speak. I mean since the Gizmos are our product, we expect that students and teachers will like them (we build them that way after all), but seeing it in action is really a great experience.

"Gizmos Uncover Big Ideas"

Here's what an Arlington (VA) Public School teacher says about our Gizmos:

Just wanted to share another thought with you. I teach the UbD (Understanding by Design) class and a major premise of this process is the need for students to uncover big ideas and essential questions. Using Gizmos allowed my students to do just this. I'm hooked.
— MaryAnn Peterson

Thanks for saying so, MaryAnn.

We heard similar sentiments during our recent Summer Schoool for Teachers. More details and pictures about that soon …

A "Wow, now I know what that's all about" experience for kids!

Another Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching winner just wrote in about his experience using Gizmos with his students for the past year!

Here's what John Emerson, who teaches up in New Hampshire at Jaffrey-Rindge Middle School, had to say about Gizmos:

Dear Explore Learning:

I was given the chance to use the "Gizmos" from Explore Learning after receiving the Presidential Award for Excellence in 2003. At that time I was solely a math teacher who had been drafted into teaching science in a school district in need of science instructors.  Being a hands-on teacher who is always in search of ways to help learning become easier and meaningful for students, I found that the Gizmos provided visual presentations of concepts that too often become just boring textbook reading and memorizing for kids.  For example when we were studying earthquakes, the Gizmo on Reporting Centers brought to life the P-waves and S-waves and how they are used to locate epicenters. Even teaching the Doppler Effect became a "Wow, now I know what that's all about" experience for kids as they could see sound waves in action [Ed note: the Doppler Effect Gizmo comes in several versions -- version 1, version 2, version 3].

Next year, I have been asked to teach science only and I am excited about the opportunity to use the Gizmos even more.  We will be integrating a lot of math and once again Gizmos are right on target demonstrating many graphing activities with live action and immediate visual graphing presentations. If you need to make science or math come alive in your classroom, I cannot recommend enough the use of these activities and demonstrations. All it takes is one computer, an internet connection, and a projection device and you're in business.

So thanks again for giving me the opportunity to use these innovative teaching strategies. I'm now hooked and will be using them from now on.

Sincerely,
John Emerson

Thank you for your kind words, John! We're glad to hear you and your students benefited from Gizmos. We're going to be launching many new science Gizmos this year, so there will be even more to use in the 2005-2006 school year!

P.S.: Calling all science teachers (and students)! If you have ideas for new science Gizmos, this is the time to send your wishlists in! You might end up seeing your Gizmo on the site when you come back to school after the summer!

Testimonial: "Freshmen Begging to Factor"

Valerie Muller, a mathematics teacher in Greenville County, SC, has had a very positive experience with using Gizmos in her classroom, in particular the Algebra Tiles Gizmo. In a recent email , she writes,

[ExploreLearning] continues to be one of the best "interactive products" available. I use it with my LCD projector as a demo in my algebra I class — students love the algebra tiles and really identify with the visual image. Since I have a SmartBoard, manipulating the algebra tiles to factor trinomials is a "can I be next" experience. Isn't that funny: freshmen begging to factor?

Considering how factoring is an anathema to most math students (I know it was for me), I don't think you can have a better testimonial to for what Gizmos bring to the math classroom than what Valerie reports Greenville. Freshmen begging to factor. Superb.

Thanks for sending that in, Valerie. And thanks for using Gizmos!

ExploreLearning: "Inventive and Content-Rich"

Gayle Glusman, Director of the Challenger Learning Center at the Louisiana Art and Science Museum wrote us recently with this wonderful praise:

Just want to say again this year how wonderful I think your site is. We conduct a lot of professional development for educators and I always show them your site and encourage them to subscribe. This site continues to be inventive and content-rich. Kudos! Please continue your excellent programming.

Thanks, Gayle.

As I've written before, we never get tired of hearing the good things people have to say about the site and the Gizmos.

Meanwhile, be sure to check out the online activities for teachers to download and print from the LASM.

Effective *and* Efficient on the Easternmost Tip of Canada

Isadore Snook, a mathematics e-teacher at the Centre for Distance Learning and Innovation in Newfoundland, Canada, writes, "...I used a Gizmo on rational functions in the classroom and the students loved it. It condensed my lesson by 20 minutes or more...I have a Master's of Education in Information Technology and I have always been keenly interested in learning objects.  Your "Gizmos" happen to be the BEST I have ever used."

I was very happy to read Isadore's comments because they highlight how Gizmos can make your instruction more efficient as well as more effective. Being able to cover fundamental topics more quickly means that you have more time to discuss additional / advanced topics, or can devote more effort to remediating specific areas of difficulty. Gone are the days when educational software was so cumbersome that integrating it into your lesson plans meant things moved more slowly and you covered fewer topics rather than more!

Thanks for writing to us, Isadore!

Man Bites Dog and Kids Ask for Homework!

Talk about a "Man Bites Dog" headline, this is one of the best testimonials for ExploreLearning we've ever come across. Science teacher Linda Canobbio of Monroe Township Public Schools in New Jersey writes,

The kids worked on the module today on cell division. They were so engaged and quiet that I had to check for their pulses!

And, get this, the Linda's students are asking for Gizmo homework!

We are expecting a big snow storm this weekend and the kids asked if they could work on Gizmos at home and on Monday if we don't have school. What! They are asking to do homework !?! Love it, love it, love it.

We love it, too, Linda. Thanks so much for letting us know about your students' enthusiasm for the Gizmos. It doesn't get any better than that.

Meanwhile, Linda's story stands in sharp contrast to this one:

A suburban Milwaukee teen and his dad are suing the boy's math teacher for assigning homework to be done over summer vacation.

They are seeking to bar homework assignments over the summer.

No doubt, homework is a tough sell with students. That's what makes Linda's experience in Monroe Township so inspiring for all of us here at ExploreLearnng World Headquarters.

ExploreLearning Goes Back To School!

Two members of our ExploreLearning team recently went back to school to talk with a group of 11th grade Computer Mathematics students — all members of the Blue Ridge Virtual Governor's School. The students, from four different high schools, are not only learning their first programming language (Visual Basic), but are also learning how to use technology to solve problems and to work with others across physical distance.  The discussion, led by Paul Cholmsky (Director of Product Design and Analysis) and Margarita Figueroa (System Administrator Extraordinaire), focused on ExploreLearning Gizmos and what happens behind the scenes to turn an idea into a design, and a design into a new Gizmo, a Gizmo that (we hope!) will make its way into classrooms across the world. Here are some discussion board postings from the group about what they learned from the presentation (the teacher was kind enough to share the feedback with us):

… think it's neat that they're using technology to help out all the visual and kinesthetic learners of the world understand subjects that are otherwise difficult (at least for me — math and science isn't really my thing). Good job guys.…

… I think that the most interesting thing about our field trip yesterday was the gizmos. It was really interesting that a small group of 15 people could make so many useful tools to help people learn certain topics. The gizmos made something complicated, such as tides, seem incredibly easy, and it was neat how they allowed the user to interact (with the topic).…

… I actually thought the presentation was interesting, especially seeing how they took a complicated concept and made it into an easy-to-understand program.…

… I'd say that the most interesting thing that I... well, realized, as opposed to learned, was that static images do make learning hard. Trying to learn some science concepts (DNA, etc.) from the textbook last year was murder because you couldn't have a moving image in your head. It would make sense that a company would move in to fill this niche.…

… I thought the most interesting thing I learned from the presenters was that they started their own business from scratch, and now they have more customers every day, even though they still have the same amount of employees working. People from all over combined their ideas and formed their business from scratch. I think that's pretty impressive.…

Thanks for the feedback! We enjoyed giving the presentation and demonstrating some of our Gizmos.

Student Teacher and Gizmo Success

One of the things we've been trying to do at ExploreLearning is get our Gizmos in the hands of student teachers so that they can begin incorporating Gizmos into their math and science teaching from the moment they start their professional careers.

One such student teacher, Diana Chau, in the bachelors/masters program for future classroom teachers at the Curry School of Education at the University of Virginia, studying secondary mathematics education recently wrote of her experience with ExploreLearning:

My teaching with technology went well this semester. At the beginning when I was teaching matrices, I predominantly used the overhead graphic calculator projector to show students how to use their calculators to solve matrices. I used TI-connect to take screenshots of matrices to use in class worksheets and in guided notes. Because the students are extremely calculator dependent, it helped them to know what to expect when they entered information correctly into a calculator.

Once we started the quadratic functions chapter, our main source of technology was using ExploreLearning.com [view the Quadratic functions and inequalities Gizmos]. I used the graph screenshots from the factored, vertex, and polynomial form quadratic function Gizmos to create a sort and match graphs and their equations activity. [Note: We'll be making this worksheet available for download shortly -- ed.] Students rotated from a graphing packet station, sort and match station, and to an ExploreLearning.com station where they used the above mentioned Gizmos.

I created a worksheet that provided step-by-step directions. After using each gizmo and finishing its assessment, students using the ExploreLearning.com explanations would explain why they got a questions right or wrong and briefly state whether or not the gizmo was helpful. This was a great chance for them to explore information in pairs. … [The students] seemed to gain a deeper understanding of the topic. Many of them were able to infer patterns and rules from playing with the Gizmos. Since most of the students had been exposed to algeblocks in Algebra I, we used the Gizmo version as a class for discussing factoring. The kids seemed to enjoy it, and it reviewed the use of manipulatives for the SOL [The Virginia Standards of Learning test].

Overall, the use of technology was a great experience for me, Erik Gauss [the cooperating teacher], and the students. While the use of the graphing calculator had already been incorporated into the classroom, it did not impact the students as much as using Explorelearning.com. Using the Gizmos allowed students to discover mathematical relationship and develop their own understanding. Since it was interactive, it truly held their attention.

What I found is that even though technology is exciting to incorporate into the classroom, it presents a number of problems, including its reliability for working and students ability to understand how to use the technology. I also learned that technology cannot just be thrown into a lesson; the connection to the curriculum must be extremely obvious to the students.…

Excellent work, Diana. Thanks for the report. We all were impressed with the clever use of the Gizmo screen capture feature in the cut up/matching activity. That's a great way to make use of a built in Gizmo feature to follow up and reinforce the hands on, interactive work the students can do with Gizmos.

Gizmos: "A League of Their Own"

Here's a great user testimonial from Evan Glazer, Ph. D., Director of the Roanoke Valley Governor's School for Science and Technology:

The activities at ExploreLearning are in a league of their own. … [They] enable students to feel the "A-ha!" of a learning experience, an expression that brings a smile to a teacher's face.

Thanks so much, Evan.

We've tried to make it such that Gizmos allow students and teachers to explore "What if?" questions quickly and effectively. We believe that pursuing "thought experiments" — the kind that lead to those "A-ha!" moments Evan alluded to above — is one of the main components of a high-quality educational experience. It's great to hear from the teachers using Gizmos that this is coming true.

Gizmos: "Greatest Thing Since the Graphing Calculator"

Janice DeLong an Instructor of Education at the University of Maine at Presque Isle emailed us to say,

… I want you folks to know that, as a 25-year career high school math teacher, I find your Gizmos to be the greatest thing to happen to mathematics since the graphing calculator.

We are all wide smiles and high fives after reading that. Thanks so much, Janice.

"Even the most reluctant..."

We recently received an order from the Boyd County Public Schools in Ashland, Kentucky. They had tasked one teacher to "check us out" with a no-obligation 30-day FREE trial...Their praise of our Gizmos was short and sweet, but especially meaningful and gratifying to us here at ExploreLearning: "Our contact received a 30-day trial & found that the applications were so well depicted that even the most reluctant student could grasp the concept." Thanks to our new customers...and friends...in Ashland KY for harnessing the power of Gizmos!

INCREDIBLE SITE

Catching up on emails after returning from the 82nd annual NCTM meeting in Philadelphia, I came across this nice note from Stephanie Hobrock who teaches junior and high school science in Virginia, IL (near Illinois' capital city Springfield IL and the Missouri border). Her choice of subject line "Incredible site" immediately caught my eye. Here's what she had to say: "I just came across your site for math and science and what a great experience. I believe it is one of the best I have seen for a long time.... Absolutely wonderful science materials are available from you and what a great preparation for state testing.... I am going to try a trial membership and see what other goodies are present. Stephanie Hobrock" Thanks very much for your kind words, Stephanie! Preparation for state testing is but one of MANY MANY valuable ways that Gizmos can impact teaching and learning. I hope many more people will follow your lead and, at the very least, get a free trial and give us a try.

"Gizmos: What Every Math Teacher Has Been Looking For"

Pat Baltzley, the Math Supervisor for Baltimore County Public Schools and the President of The Maryland Council of Supervisors of Mathematics, speaks highly of Gizmos and working with ExploreLearning:

Gizmos are what every mathematics classroom teacher has been looking for. They help bridge concepts from concrete to abstract and offer new opportunities for students to visualize and experiment with mathematics. Our teachers have found that by teaching with a Gizmo or by having the students explore a particular Gizmo themselves, they can open the door to mathematical understanding of more concepts than ever before.

We have enjoyed our relationship with ExploreLearning. The staff development opportunities with our teachers have been excellent with knowledgeable, personable trainers, excited about what they are demonstrating and the potential it has for the math or science classroom.

Thanks, Pat!

Differentiating instruction: Right meets Left!

Ellen McGoran, a teacher at Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy in Ohio, sent her thoughts about ExploreLearning.com to us last week:

This is the third year that I have used this website with my students. I have used it for algebra 1, geometry, and a senior level topics course. It is an incredibly powerful tool (and more than worth the price for a subscription).

It is especially valuable for the "right-brained" learner in a very left brained subject such as algebra. We love it!

Thank you Ellen!

At ExploreLearning, we try to design Gizmos that can challenge and stimulate advanced students, while at the same time provide a great entry point for learners who may initially be daunted by concepts in mathematics and science. We are in total agreement with Ellen that interactive visual models are a great way for more 'right-brained' students to get at many topics -- and once students become comfortable with a given topic's fundamentals, they can progress to exploring more of its advanced aspects -- all in the same Gizmo.

Keep Them Coming!

Susan Socha, a math teacher in Fairfax Co, writes:

Thank you for being so responsive. It's a terrific feeling knowing that someone actually listens to you when you write them.

Thanks Susan!

Here's the backstory behind her email: Late Tuesday afternoon, Susan had emailed our support team (support@explorelearning.com) to say that the random problem generator in the Modeling the Factorization of ax^2 + bx + c Gizmo occasionally generated problems that had a common factor. She suggested that we eliminate these, as she strives to get her students to eliminate common factors prior to factoring.

Needless to say, we agreed with Susan, so one of our ace developers, Dr. Qiuli Sun, went 'under the hood' in the Gizmo and implemented the change, and we managed to test the revised version and put it live on our site the very next day. I was happy to report back to Susan that the fix had been made, and she wrote us the very nice email above as her response.

I wanted to post this little story for a number of reasons. First of all, I'm pretty proud of ExploreLearning's ability to repair, evolve and improve its content so quickly. (In particular, Qiuli is one of the fastest developers I've ever worked with, anywhere -- around ExploreLearning, we sometimes joke that Qiuli can have a Gizmo coded and ready for testing even before we've designed it!)

Sometimes a fix is more complicated than others, of course, and there are 300+ Gizmos to look after, so we can't guarantee that everything gets turned around as quickly as 24 hours, but we do promise to do our best. Everyone here at EL is committed to making our Gizmo library the best it can be — I can assure you all of that. If we believe a change to a Gizmo is in the best interests of students and teachers, we'll find some way to make it happen.

Another reason for posting this story is that I want to keep encouraging even more of our users to email their suggestions to us -- that's one of the beauties of a Web-based product: we can integrate your bright ideas and make them available for everyone's benefit much much more often than we could with a CD-ROM or LAN-based product.

So please keep your suggestions, feedback, and new Gizmo ideas coming!

Gizmos have them excited in Canada

Longtime ExploreLearning user (through one of our predecessor sites ExploreMath) Bruce McGillivray is Technology Integration Facilitator for Black Gold Regional Schools in Alberta, Canada http://www.blackgold.ca/). Bruce recently purchased a subscription for 11 teachers and their classes. On the day they first logged in, here's what he had to report: "We used the first account this morning and everything went well. The student excitement about the Gizmos was infectious." Thanks, Bruce, for your patronage and kind words!

Henrico is Gizmofied!

You've all probably heard of the Henrico County School District in Virginia, right? There the ones who started the first ever "laptops for all teachers and students" program which has won awards and received much press attention. Indeed, Henrico County is seen as one of the most tech-savvy, forward thinking school districts in all of North America.

It shouldn't come as any surprise, then, if I tell you that they use Gizmos in Henrico County:

ExploreLearning's product is exactly what we were looking for — excellent exploratory content that is easy to use and integrate in the classroom, motivational for students, and supportive of teachers.

— Steven Lapinski, Math Specialist
Henrico County Public Schools

Awesome.

You heard it here first: Gizmos are going to become the "killer app" in education technology for math and science. And all of you using Gizmos today will one day be able to say proudly, "I was one of the first teachers to introduce ExploreLearning to students." I kid you not.

Another Presidential Award Winner Loves Gizmos!

We recently received this lovely email from one of our customers:

I LOVE the Gizmos!! My school doesn't have a computer lab that a classroom teacher can take classes into so I'm using them as a demonstration tool in my classroom. The kids love them also! They love the "interactive-ness" of them. I love that I can show them so much mathematics in just a short time.

I was showing my Algebra I students different graphs of quadratic equations and we were analyzing how the graphs change when the different parts of the equations change (a, b or c). My students had graphed some already and most had "a" values of 1. One of my students noticed that when he picked additional x values to graph after graphing the vertex, that the new y values were up or down one from the y-coordinate of the vertex. He asked if all parabolas would do that. We were able to analyze different "a" values and show him how changing the "a" value changes that relationship of the additional points to the vertex and answer his question!!!

Mary Lou Beasley
Southside Fundamental Middle School, FL
2001 Presidential Awardee - Secondary Math

This email really brought a smile to my face, because it gets at the heart of what we're trying to do with Gizmos -- and that's to bring more and more of these "A-Ha!" moments to the classroom. We love to hear that Gizmos are helping students get more excited about learning -- stimulating them to generate their own 'what-if' questions, and then giving them the tools to explore and answer these questions.

On a personal note, I want to thank Ms. Beasley and everyone else who has taken the time to write in and tell us about the impact Gizmos are making in their classrooms -- I (and our entire content development team) really do appreciate it, it definitely makes us even more eager to jump back to our computers and make more Gizmos for you all!

Making the Invisible and Abstract Visible and Concrete

Randy Bell, who coordinates the secondary science teacher education program at the University of Virginia's Curry School of Education, is an enthusiastic supporter of Gizmos.

Here Professor Bell explains why:

While many scientific phenomena are part of students' everyday experiences, their explanation are neither easily visualized nor commonly understood. This difficulty stems from the invisible nature of many key scientific phenomenon, like sound waves, and the fact that traditional representations do not allow students to interact and experiment with the phenomena.

That's where ExploreLearning Gizmos come in. The computer simulations are able to get past these limitations by making the invisible and abstract more visible and concrete.

For example, one of my students' favorite Gizmo is the one that simulates sound waves emitted by moving objects. Being able to see representations of the sound waves emitted by moving objects helps students to visualize concepts such as wavelength, frequency, and even the Doppler Effect. Even more impressive, the Gizmo allows students to manipulate various components, such as the speed of the object, the speed of sound, and the frequency of the sound emitted by the object. Such interaction encourages students to pose questions, try out ideas, and draw conclusions.

Yes, that every Gizmo in our catalog is designed such that it "allows students to manipulate various components" is one of our main pedagogical design philosophies. Indeed, the notion of using manipulatives to explore new knowledge and practice applying it is one of the keys to the research that provides empirical evidence of the effectiveness of Gizmos.

User Support: A Team Effort

Regarding our user support, ExploreLearning customer Michael Franke from the Spartanburg Day School writes:

"I want to thank you for your incredible tech support. As I mentioned to Paul, I was in the software business for 17 years prior to getting into teaching, and I've seldom seen better. You can quote me on that."

Thanks, Michael!

From the start, we've made customer support a very important part of our business. To that end, then, we've made sure every ExploreLearning team member gets first hand experience with customer support. For instance, the "Paul" whom Michael refers to in his praise above is Paul Cholmsky, our Director of Research and Design.

So while Paul is busy writing grants, designing Gizmos, and researching the effectiveness of virtual manipulatives, he also participates in one, four hour support shift each week. We all do.

If you ever find yourself having to contact user support, don't be surprised if the EL team member helping you is the president of the company or one of the folks who codes the Gizmos or designed the site.

Presidential Teaching Award Finalist Praises Gizmos

Patrick Lintner, math supervisor for Harrisonburg City Public Schools (VA) and Presidential Teaching Award finalist dropped us the following very complimentary email:

Explorelearning has created interactive mathematical animations that are easy to use, fun and, most importantly, revealing. The "Gizmos" offer students and teachers the opportunity to explore mathematical relationships in ways that are powerful and focused. By simply manipulating a parameter, a graph, or a geometric figure, hundreds of "examples" are explored in seconds.

The recent addition of many new Gizmos, assessments and explorations has made the product even more useful for teachers and students. The management is truly easy to use and the gizmos fit easily into our curriculum. The ability for students to access their class on any computer means that many students can do work at home on the computer.

I use the Gizmos in a variety of ways including classroom demonstration, guided student work in a computer lab, and through assignments that I ask students to do on their own. The response has been great by both our teachers and our students.

Thanks, Pat. It's especially gratifying to read how users are finding the Gizmos not only easy to use but also easy to fit into an existing curriculum. As former teachers, we know how difficult it can be to introduce a new technology into the classroom, so from day one we've repeated the mantra "make it easy for the teachers." We want teachers to be able to spend their valuable time on teaching the core subject, not the technology.

A "Must-Have" App

OK. It doesn't get any better than hearing praise like this given to us by Joe Hill, the Directory of Math and Technology of Rockingham County Public Schools in Harrrisonburg, VA:

ExploreLearning is one of those rare "must-have" applications of computer technology for math classrooms.

I am always on the lookout for new technologies which will boost our students' interest in and understanding of mathematics. The Gizmos of ExploreLearning provide such a tool, enabling students to inductively study both math and science. …

From a technology standpoint, ExploreLearning is ideal: no software to install since it is web-based and features exceptionally easy management for teachers. From an educational standpoint, it is instructionally sound, motivating for students, and comes with lots of options for teachers including individual student accountability. Plus, the folks at ExploreLearning have been great to work with.

Thanks so much, Joe. That is really fantastic to hear.

User Support: Mad Props!

Recently, customer Celeste Capone, a network technician supporting a junior high school in Baldwinsville, NY, gave us some "mad props" (as the kids like to say) regarding her user support experience with ExploreLearning:

This did solve the problem! I have to admit, when I saw your message, I thought it was one of those cop-out responses that we often get from vendors, but it was an easy enough fix (especially since it didn't even require a re-boot), so I figured I'd humor you. I was wrong, and it worked like a charm! The teacher is thrilled, too. I told him he definitely got his money's worth for his subscription. I was also impressed at the speed of your reply, something else we don't see very often.

Thanks again for your assistance.

Thank you, Celeste, for choosing EL and giving us the chance to resolve the issue.

If you're wondering, here's the problem as stated:

One of our science teachers has set up an account to use your labs in his classes. We are having a problem with an error that appears when the students are logged onto the network and try to launch gizmos.

They receive an error that the Shockwave update is required. The systems are locked down, so students are not able to download or to install applications. However, if I log into the systems as an administrator, and run the update patch, I am able to launch the gizmos. But, when I log the students back in, they still receive the same error message. In addition, even before running the upgrade, the version number on the Shockwave executable file is 8.5.1.102. I have also granted the student users full access to the \winnt\system32\macromed folder, as suggested by Macromedia.

And this was the solution: Download the latest version of the Shockwave uninstaller, run it while you are logged in as an administrator, then re-install Shockwave and set the permissions as specified.

A Telephone, A Computer, A Gizmo

JoAnna Allen, a teacher in our Baltimore County, MD pilot program, emails the following regarding using a Gizmos with a student at a remote location:

At Home and Hospital (where students are homebound for various reasons) I use the telephone and computer sharing simultaneously and happen to be working with a trig student who is nicely computer literate and can data-connect via cable.

We are about to do graphing (he's been hospitalized so we're way behind) and I love the Unit Circle Gizmo -- perfect for tomorrow's class. I'm able to share software and applications that I open on my computer and give him control so we are viewing the same screen constantly. This way we can discuss while it's happening. I'm psyched because he can also go into the site after class time. Up to now, I could share my software applications only while we were connected.

Since I teach science too (physics and chemistry), I'm eager to explore those too. The difficulty has always been when only a portion of the class can connect by computer, but with the after-class capability, Wowee!

We've always believed that one of the greatest strengths of our Gizmo simulations is that they can be delivered anwhere, anytime, anyplace via a web connection. It's extremely gratifying to hear confirmation of this from a teacher who is putting the Gizmos to just such a distance learning type test.

Thanks, JoAnna!

"Wow!!!!"

Here's another great email that came into ExploreLearning world headquarters (and by world headquarters I mean our humble second floor office space in downtown Charlottesville).

WOW!!!!! The site looks super!!! From what I've seen over the last 5 years, it looks like you've taken the use of Internet activities to another level. I am looking forward to this new journey and to see how my kids interact and learn from the use of Gizmos.
-- John Staley, Baltimore County Public Schools

Thanks for the praise, John. These new Gizmos and the new site really are a quantum leap for us.

"Rock On!"

Ah, here's a good one. Customer and Gizmo user Colby Hearn emails to say:

I'm a college student taking Calculus I for the first time. Your ShockWave explanation of the Unit Circle just saved the day!

Go you, rock on!

As Deiter was fond of saying on the SNL skit Sprockets: "Now's the time we dance!"

Thanks, Colby!

High Praise Indeed

This is the kind of user email that gets the EL Team all giddy and baying at the moon. Teacher and EL user Ginnopaoli Kelley writes,

I would like to take this time to tell you how incredible your product has become. I began using your site when you first became live and have loved every minute. My students have learned so much with your Gizmo’s that I recommend your site to any and every math and science teacher and pre-service teacher I encounter.

Thanks for the kind words, Ginnopaoli. (Now if we can get our Director of Multimedia Design to stop his moon baying! :)