Links for Free "Stuff" and Resources
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| Adobe Designs Gifts in Kind |
For public K-12 schools. Applications are processed every month. Software products are priced from $299 to $699; up to four Adobe packages may be requested per organization. Adobe donates the latest versions of certain software products to schools and nonprofits. Schools and nonprofits may request a maximum of four software packages a year. Adobe's donation program is geared to support K-12 schooling, whether in curriculum development, teacher training, or student performance, as well as organizations that work to prevent hunger and homelessness. Products that are available for this donation program include Acrobat Professional, Acrobat Standard, After Effects Professional, Acrobat Capture, GoLive, Illustrator, In Design, Pagemaker, Photoshop, and Premiere Professional.
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| Seeds of learning are at school garden website |
School gardens are cropping up all over, but to create one for your school, you have to have funding, some willing team members, and a plan. If you don't know where to begin, the Chicago Botanic Garden and the United States Botanic Garden have partnered to develop a website that can help. The site lays the groundwork for educators, giving them everything they always wanted to know about plotting a school garden. From analyzing the site, to building a team and applying for funding, to maintaining the garden and finding ways to use it for teaching, the school garden website has plenty to harvest. And the best new is that all the information is free.
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| Federal Resources for Educational Excellence |
Free teaching and learning resources for parents, teachers, school leaders, and students selected from more than 40 federal agencies.
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| Lucas Offers Free Edutopia Magazine |
Launching in September, the new Edutopia magazine from the George Lucas Educational Foundation will expand the foundation's coverage of K-12 success stories. Edutopia publishers promise to unlock a world of possibilities for what can be accomplished in the classroom or district. It will include the techniques, tools and technologies used by innovative educators, as well as profiles of educational heroes - both famous and unsung. The best news is that the subscription is free.
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| Educators Resource Center from eSchool News Online |
This site provides great information and resources for educators. Check it out!
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| Free Earth Science Kits Available |
The American Geologic Institute is offering kits to help teachers and others participate in Earth Science Week (Oct. 10-16) This year the theme of ESW is "Living on a Restless Earth." Kits contain activities - suitable for elementary through college-age students -for uses in the home or classroom, including a teachers' guide, a bookmark, a poster and a geological survey on CD and accompanying classroom activities. Other materials in the kits will be provided by NASA, IRIS (Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology), the Southern California Earthquake Center and the National Weather Service.
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| Adobe Software Donation |
Adobe Systems, Inc. supports K-12 schools by donating up to 4 packages of its latest software. Eligible organizations have a core mission that focus on at least one of the following: improving K-12 student performance; developing curriculum for K-12 classrooms; developing and providing K-12 teacher training and development; and working to prevent hunger and homelessness. The program is managed by Gifts in Kind International. Requests are reviewed monthly based on the primary service the organization provides. Organizations may apply once in a 12-month period.
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| PLUS Vision Corporation |
PLUS Vision Corp., a maker of ultra-portable projectors, has announced a new program called Education Spotlight. Through the program, PLUS Vision will donate 3 projectors and an electronic copy board to a selected school each quarter, reflecting a commitment to increase the effective use of multimedia in K-12 education. Applicants are asked to give a unique example of how the projectors will be used when applying for the award. Recipients are chosen based on the creativity of their response, and PLUS Vision will share innovative applications with other educators on its web site.
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| Kinko's Educator Savings Program |
This program aims to provide relief for teachers who often dig deep into their own pockets to purchase supplies for their classrooms. Educators can save 20 percent on most Kinko's products and services. Educators may obtain their 20 percent discount card through a program brochure available at participating Kinko's locations nationwide. Free cards are also available online.
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| Staples Recycle for Education |
Staples Inc. will donate $1 to public schools for every eligibile ink cartridge they collect. The "Staples Recycle for Education" program has now expanded nationwide. Staples now provides prepaid postage for shipping the cartridges and an account number so schools can monitor the status of reimbursement checks and total collection counts.
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| Free tools/guides to help teach 21st Century skills |
A coalition of high-tech companies and nonprofit organizations has issued a series of free tools to help teachers, administrators, and lawmakers incorporate specific "21st-Century skills" into the core curriculum to better prepare student for today's technology-infused workplace. These are web-based tools introduced by the Partnership for 21st Century Skills.
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| Free computers! |
Computers for Learning program provides computers for classrooms to prepare children to contribute and compete in the 21st century. Federal computer equipment is transferred to schools and educational nonprofits.
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| Free Educational Videos & Teaching Tools |
ConocoPhillips Co. has been producing high-quality educational videos and teachers' guides for math, science, and environmental topics. These are offered to teachers for free and have been seen by millions of junior high and high school students. Topics range from Math and science to problem-solving and protecting wildlife. To order, visit their website.
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| SchoolNotes |
The leading school-to-home communications platform in America. SchoolNotes offers a free service whereby educators can establish Web pages where they can post homework assignments and other messages to their students and those students' parents. Students and parents can sign up to be notified automatically when their teacher's SchoolNotes page has been updated. In addition, SchoolNotes enables teachers to create "flash-card" quizzes that students can take online..
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