Posted by Denis Soukhanov on Tue, Feb 02, 2010 @ 04:57 PM
Learning Today, Inc., a Florida-based math and reading software publisher, announces the latest addition to their company website, Teacher Toolbox, a collection of free high-quality online resources for teachers.
The Teacher Toolbox is designed to provide teachers with materials of exceptional quality that they can access quickly and easily. Currently divided into three areas, the Teacher Toolbox includes online interactive lessons, professional development resources, and printables for the classroom.
"We understand the challenges that teachers face right now, especially when it comes to trying to find premium resources on very tight budgets. Our goal in making these resources available is to provide educators with high-quality, free materials at the click of a mouse," stated Sukanti Husain, VP of Education at Learning Today.
Included in the Teacher Toolbox are interactive math applets, reading and math games, and whiteboard lessons, as well as flashcards and video podcast stories. The professional development resources section incorporates educational articles, inspirational videos, access to a teacher forum and an educational software blog. Downloadable posters, bookmarks, coloring pages, word searches, and award certificates are included in the printables section.
The math applets are one of the most popular interactives offered., These applets were designed in conjunction with the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) for their Illuminations website. Another teacher favorite is the research-based lessons and games, which are interactive whiteboard (IWB) compatible. ESL and exceptional student specialists find that the free video podcast series "Stories for Kids" and the free interactive flashcards are valuable instructional resources for their students.
The professional development resources section has proven to be both educational and inspirational for teachers. Judging from the number of subscribers, Learning Today's Educational Technology blog is a credible source of information that many educators refer to for industry news and software reviews. The forum, still in its early stages, offers a community for those interested in exploring ways to use technology to reach all children.
The printables section includes the Blooming Butterfly and Blooming Orange taxonomy posters which created a buzz on the internet when first released. The motivational poster "NETS Pledge for Teachers" has been downloaded thousands of times and is a visual reminder of the ways educators can enable students to succeed in today's digital society.
Teachers and parents can send in requests and suggestions for new resources via the website (LearningToday.com) or via twitter - @learningtoday. No registration is required, and educators can freely download and distribute the printables without requesting prior permission.
Posted by Denis Soukhanov on Thu, Oct 08, 2009 @ 04:47 PM
Learning Today, Inc., a South Florida-based reading and math software publisher (http://www.learningtoday.com), announced today that the company's Smart Tutor
TM program was awarded 2009 EDDIE Awards (Education Software Review Awards) from the ComputED Learning Center. Smart Tutor received an EDDIE Award in two categories: Upper Elementary Reading/Literacy and Upper Elementary Math.
The EDDIE Awards target innovative and content-rich programs and websites that augment the classroom curriculum and improve teacher productivity, providing parents and teachers with the technology to foster educational excellence. Winners are selected from titles submitted by publishers around the world.
"It is our privilege to receive this prestigious award," commented Robin Baker, Executive Vice President. "We strive to create a world-class program for schools, learning centers, and families while also providing free teacher resources, and state-of-the-art reading and math curriculum so that all students can meet their academic potential."
Smart Tutor is a research-based reading and math program that provides placement assessment and individualized instruction. Its online learning management system allows educators to use reports to improve teaching and learning, manage individual lesson plans, and provide information to encourage parents to be involved in their child's education. Free teacher resources include a teacher forum as well as reading games and math games for whole-group instruction.
The math and reading curriculum is designed to address the needs of special education students, English language learners (ELL / ESOL / ESL / LEP), economically disadvantaged students (Title I, Free & Reduced Lunch program), and students in need of intervention (Response to Intervention, RTI). Lessons are aligned with state and national education standards.
Smart Tutor meets the needs of low-achieving students, including the fostering of specific reading skills, by tailoring assessments, instruction, practice, and re-assessment to individual students and providing a specialized learning plan for each student. More specifically, Smart Tutor assesses students to determine their appropriate skill level, establishes individualized instruction for each student, monitors and reviews student progress by accessing reports, identifies students in need of remediation and intervention, establishes targeted intervention programs using teacher-assigned instruction and helps build skills that allow students to perform better on high-stakes tests.
There are no downloads or installations required for this web-based program, and typical school accounts can be set up in days instead of weeks. Teacher manuals, training videos, and webinars supplement Smart Tutor's training and professional development, and unlimited phone and email support is available free of charge.
Posted by Denis Soukhanov on Tue, Oct 21, 2008 @ 04:08 PM
Learning Today, Inc., a Florida-based educational software publisher, announced the release of its SmartTutor.com "Freebies" offering. SmartTutor.com offers families the opportunity to utilize Learning Today's award-winning educational software at home for academic remediation and maintenance, or gifted placement. The new "Freebies" offering is designed to provide children and families with
fun academic lessons and educationally inspired games. It also includes free printables, which consist of character-themed award certificates, note cards and party invitations free of charge.
In this ailing economy, the SmartTutor.com "Freebies" page was designed to offer parents a free resource that they can use to help build their children's key reading skills including basic sight words, phonemic awareness, phonics, vocabulary, and reading comprehension. The Freebies page also includes lessons and arcade-like games that strengthen math skills such as number and operations, measurement, and geometry.
"Our goal is to blend the latest online technology with research-based activities in a highly engaging and effective manner. By offering some of our SmartTutor.com content for free, we hope to help families continue to support their children's academic efforts even during this time of financial need," stated Dale Baker, CEO of Learning Today.
Free reading and math assessments are a unique feature of SmartTutor.com. The company's Atlas Assessment uses state-of-the-art technology to efficiently analyze students' academic ability levels. These assessments automatically develop each student's individualized learning program so they can work at their own pace. The 14-day free trial includes the assessment results, which parents may print and keep for their records. The company is also offering group discounts for large organizations or corporations. Some companies are offering SmartTutor.com as part of their soft benefits plans in order to improve recruitment, retention, and the work-life balance.