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Worth a Thousand Words (Brian's Notes)
How many of you know what your Internet search engine is? Is it Google? Yahoo? or is it possible you are in a long term relationship with AOL? Well, have you considered using Bing.com? It is one of the more popular search engines out there....and there is a reason I'm suggesting to use it, but I just take forever to get to the point. I worked with a teacher at a middle school in the Tampa area and she used Bing for one reason - Every day Bing has a new picture set as their backdrop. The pictures are usually very unique and spark conversation. That teacher would use the picture every day to pull vocabulary out of her students. Here is an example: Think of all the vocabulary that could be found in discussions about this picture!!! Expanding on clouds and talking about fog! Light pollution! If you scroll down to the bottom right of the screen and click on info, it will give you more information about the photo. This particular image can also bring up an opportunity to pull down the old map and locate this area! Now the teacher I was talking about used this as a way to start each day during homeroom. Another way you could use it is to have the picture available to the students either through email or print out. The students could look at the picture at night and come up with as many words as they can to describe the picture. The next day, each student can share their vocab with the class. They discuss the word, its meaning, and if it's a signing class they could discuss the sign and how the sign came to be. With pictures like these, flexibility is key because who knows where the conversation will take you and your class! Have a great month! Brian | 
