RM - Designed by Education - www.rmeducation.com

myeasiteach.com launched!

2008-05-23T11:57:00.007-04:00

RM is pleased to annoucene the launch of myeasiteach.com, a free service that allows teachers to download RM Easiteach interactive lessons and also upload their own lessons to share with the RM Easiteach community.

There are over 100,000 licences of RM Easiteach in the US, and this service as been provided to users to increase the library of interactive lessons available and share good practice of incorporating RM Easiteach into the curriculum.

Please register today to access myeasiteach.com and browse the free of charge lessons already available and also to upload any lessons other teachers would enjoy using in their classroom.

In addition to the free of charge lessons on myeasiteach.com, RM Easiteach Content packs for Math, English Language Arts, Science and Games are also available for Elementary Schools and a Cross-Curriculum Secondary School pack is also available from your local RM reseller.

For more information go to www.rmeducation.com.

Engaging Students Where they Live

2008-04-18T15:32:00.005-04:00

Sprayberry High School's students live in Cobb County, Georgia, but this is not what Alison Coker, Vice-Principle means when she says this. She and her colleagues are all involved in a pilot for the whole county that involves using interactive technologies in the delivery of the curriculum to make the learning process more in keeping with the 21st century student's environment. When asked why Sprayberry was chosen she replies that demographically Sprayberry represents Cobb as a whole in terms of the differing abilities and backgrounds of their intake.

"If it works here it can work in Cobb as a whole."

In each of the 106 classrooms in Sprayberry High School is a Computrac Classroom Solution including interactive whiteboard, projector and wall controller enabling the teacher to easily control the classroom projection system. Installed last fall, 'heavy-duty' use of the technology really began in January, explains Alison, with even the most reticent teachers at the beginning now stating that they 'cannot do without it'.

Sprayberry are now taking their Interactive Classroom Solution to the next level through use of tools and content for any brand of interactive whiteboard/slate from RM Education.

RM Math Framework is a supportive interactive digital curriculum for high (and middle) school Math and the Math department at Sprayberry are enjoying searching for resources by state standard and interweaving the thousand plus activities created using the dynamic Geometer Sketch Pad and RM Easiteach into their current curriculum. Having interactive content like RM Math means that teachers can focus on how they want to deliver resources like 'Transformations of Flags and Fish' with their students rather than having to create resources from scratch every time they want to use their interactive whiteboard. It was designed to help schools like Sprayberry to see a return on their investment more readily and encourage teachers to use technology when it is the best medium for delivering a lesson.

Further down the corridor, English and Social Studies teachers and students alike are excited to be using RM Podium, the all-in one podcasting solution for education. Poems, book reviews and play readings are all being podcasted because sometimes the written word is not always the best medium for presenting these things and by embracing podcasting Sprayberry are reclaiming technology for the classroom and engaging their technology-minded students. Alison also talks of their English as a Second Language students and how they are benefiting from listening to podcasts created by their teachers/peers on unfamiliar vocabulary and how they can listen to the pronunciations over and over again, anytime, anywhere using their mp3 players. She talks of students 'blooming' and about them 'taking over the learning process in a positive way'.

There is no doubt that Sprayberry is cutting edge when it comes to educational technology and by standardizing on the tools and content being used, the school can be assured that whatever hardware piece they add in the future, RM software provides them with an agnostic platform that will work with any brand of interactive technology.

There are over 100,000 students in Cobb County and RM Education together with its local partner Computrac look forward to helping each and every teacher to maximize opportunities for interactivity and engagement in the classroom by providing them with innovative and interactive content solutions designed by teachers for our discerning learners of today.

After all, as Alison quite rightly concludes 'this is all about increasing the engagement of our students' and reaching out into their world, a world where technology is integral to their daily life and perhaps more importantly, how they choose to operate.

With thanks to Alison Coker, Vice Principal of Sprayberry High School, GA.

RM at NCTM, Salt Lake City, 9-12th April

2008-04-04T15:59:00.012-04:00

RM Education will be at NTCM in Salt Lake City from the 9-12th April (Booth Number 2435) showing the latest version of RM Math Framework Edition for both Middle and High Schools with all lessons aligned fully to State Standards. RM Math is an exicting digital curriculum that can be utlized on all brands of Interactive Whiteboards and wireless Slates/Pads to help increase attainment and motivation in the Math classroom through the interactive activities, lessons and assessment. RM Math also includes RM Kaleidos, the

RM will also be showing the new Secondary Content Pack for RM Easiteach which includes a wealth of engaging content for Interactive Whiteboards and Slates and is the latest addition to the ever expanding RM Easiteach family.

In addition to RM Math and RM Easiteach, RM will also be demonstrating the RM Bee-bot and RM Pro-bot student robots, and the RM Tuff-cam student digital camera and digital video camera.

Finally, RM will be hosting Singin' & Signin on the RM Booth, a revolutionary supplemental math program designed for intermediate grades. Through easily recalled childhood songs and chants, the program teaches complex concepts using accompanying signs and gestures that easily adapts to any curriculum. In this interactive workshop, you will learn how to teach the program by becoming a student. Be ready for a fun, interactive way to learn and apply math formulas. The musical methodology is so catchy that you will be singing formulas in your head long after the session ends. Signin' & Signin' uses RM Easiteach as a tool to deliver the program.

RM Easiteach wins Award

2008-03-26T17:10:00.006-04:00

RM Educational Software, Inc, has recently won an award for RM Easiteach TV in the District Administrator Top 100 Products of 2007/2008 Awards that are voted for by educators at the leading edge of educational technology.

RM Easiteach TV was developed in direct response to teachers wanting a step by step guide to using the features found within RM Easiteach. Although RM Easiteach is simple to use, RM acknowledges that teachers time is precious and to get the best out of an investment such as Interactive Technologies in the Classroom, teachers require an anytime, anywhere learning approach.

RM Easiteach TV provides very focused tutorials for each of the key features of RM Easiteach such as the curriculum focused toolbars and content packs. RM wants educators to be successful with RM Easiteach and this award backs up this approach and RM will continue to make professional development a priority.

RM Easiteach chosen for Large District Wide Interactive Technology Implementation

2008-03-16T12:37:00.007-04:00

RM Easiteach has been chosen as the preferred Interactive Software Solution for one of the largest districts in Arizona.
Chandler USD in Phoenix, Arizona recently purchased a District Wide Licence of RM Easiteach for use on their eInstruction CPS Chalkboards purchased for use by over 1500 teachers. RM Easiteach was chosen to help pull together all the districts interactive technologies such as Interactive Whiteboards, CPS e Instruction Chalkboards, Document Cameras and Projectors. The district chose a complete licence of RM Easiteach, the dedicated curriculum toolbars for Math, ELA, Science and Social Sciences and the full suite of RM Easiteach State Aligned Elementary Content Packs in Math, ELA, Science and Educational Games.

The eInstruction CPS Chalkboard and RM Easiteach, releases the teacher to teach interactively from anywhere in the classroom, allowing whole class and group teaching to be done effectively and also allows full student participation.

RM's preferred partner in Arizona, CCS Presentation Systems, worked with RM on this exciting project and RM recently completed the first round of training.

For more information on RM Easiteach Tools and Content, click HERE.

For more information on CCS Presentation Systems, click HERE

RM to demonstrate RM TTS Products at National Science Teachers Association

2008-03-16T11:56:00.012-04:00

RM is pleased to announce we will be demonstrating the RM TTS Range at the NSTA Conference in Boston from 27th-30th March 2008 (Booth number 2354).

Highlights will be the RM Tuff-Scope

Transform your Tuff-Cam into a digital microscope with our new Tuff-Scope. Portable and simple to use, you can take magnified digital pictures either attached to or away from the PC. The microscope can be used with the Tuff-Cam attachment as a digital microscope or without the attachment as a normal microscope. The imaging head can be removed from the stand to make it hand held.
Magnification

50x - 100x

100x -200x

200x -400x
2x Continuous Optical Zoom
Storage Draw
Transmissive and reflective LED Lighting
Powered by 3xAA batteries (not supplied)

Price $40 making the Tuff-Scope very affordable for getting technology into the hands of Students.

A RM Tuff-Scope and RM Tuff-Cam bundle available at NSTA will be $210 ($10 saving).

Also being demonstrated at NSTA will be the new RM Easiteach Secondary Content Pack that includes high quality virtual science experiements and independent learning for students.

f you have an Interactive Whiteboard, Wireless Slate or Pad or a projector, you can utilize RM Easiteach to help bring difficult concepts to life using Interactive Technologies to provide students with highly engaging and motivating lessons to help increase attainment.

Some examples of the high quality virtual experiments below:

Main Menu of Secondary Science Pack

Interactive Vaccines Experiement

Video of Ultrasound Scan plays back in RM Easiteach

Photosythesis Menu

RM Sonica ESL Interactive Language Learning

2008-03-07T02:05:00.007-05:00

RM Announces more information on RM Sonica ESL.

RM Sonica will be shipping from April and will include 3 Dancemats as standard to fully utilize the very innovative and interactive Dancemat Activities within this exciting new way of learning English Language.

Example of Dancemat Activity

Example of Resource Manager

Example of Assessment Editor

For more information on RM Sonica ESL or if you would like to represent RM Sonica please click HERE

RM Announces RM Sonica ESL Interactive Language Learning

2008-02-27T21:54:00.003-05:00

RM is pleased to announce a new and interactive approach to improving English Language Learning for those with Spanish as a first language. RM Sonica ESL has been specifically designed to engage and motivate students using high quality, flash based interactive activities, dance mat technologies and a truly kinaesthetic learning experience.
RM Sonica ESL has been designed to work on all brands of Interactive Whiteboards, Wireless Slate and Pad but can also be used on standalone computers. This approach greatly enhances the focus of students and can help accelerate the learning of English.
RM is currently seeking 5 districts to trial RM Sonica ESL. One school chosen by the district will receive a site licence of RM Sonica ESL and one day of professional development all free of charge. If you would like to participate in this exciting programme please contact Christy Smith at csmith@rmeducation.com for more information.
Click HERE to explore 3 example from the 100’s of activities available in RM Sonica ESL.

RM Math Framework Edition in T.H.E Journal

2008-02-27T17:17:00.018-05:00

RM Math Framework Edition in recent T.H.E Journal

Improving Instruction with Interactive Whiteboards (on the Cheap)
by Dian Schaffhauser

The Dennis-Yarmouth Regional School District in South Yarmouth, MA faces obstacles not uncommon to many school districts: poor state testing scores, declining enrollment, and a diminishing budget for classroom resources. But that hasn't stopped Lory Stewart, director of instructional technology, from doing everything she can to squeeze out the money necessary for bringing interactive whiteboards into as many classrooms as possible.
Although it's too early to tell yet, she said she believes the district will see a marked improvement in its middle school math scores as a result.
Stewart describes the Cape Cod district's student population as diverse and highly transient. About a fourth of the population changes every quarter. "We have very opposite ends of the spectrum financially.... Real estate values are very high, but we have students who are very poor--who live in campgrounds in the summer and hotels in the winter."
Much of the challenge in meeting its annual AYP--adequate yearly progress--is owing to poor test scores among the district's special education population. "We're not bringing them along as far as we should," said Stewart.

A Math Epiphany

The district's adoption of a new approach to teaching math started when Stewart attended the annual Christa McAuliffe Technology Conference three years ago. She sat through a session about interactive whiteboards, which showed the use of RM Math Framework, math software from RM Education.
"I was wowed," she recalled. "I asked a few questions. I got up. I walked out of the room. I stood outside the door for 10 seconds. And I turned on my heel and went back in and sat down for another session. It completely captivated me."
An understanding of its power occurred for her, Stewart said, when a 45-degree acute angle was shown up on the screen as part of the demo. "It's flashing to me in red. Then all of a sudden, up comes the rest of the circle in blue, flashing the arc around the balance of the circle. The light went on for this 57-year-old woman. An angle is only that portion of a circle. It's all working on the circle being 360 degrees."
She returned to work and told the director of instruction, "This [is] the best thing I've ever seen in my life." They requested a Web demo by the company, which happens to have a United States office 20 minutes from Stewart's district offices.
Then a group from the district visited middle school math classes in another district that had adopted the software that same year. "We came home that day," said Stewart, "and said, 'OK, that's the route we're going too.'"

Click HERE for the full article

RM Math Framework Edition

RM Math Framework Edition is a whole-class teaching system which utilizes interactive whiteboard technology to deliver a dynamic, highly visual and standards-aligned middle school math curriculum.
Consisting of more than 2,000 high-quality math activities which are aligned to both NCTM and State-based curriculum learning standards as well as powerful teaching and planning tools, RM Math Framework Edition can transform classroom instruction, engage and motivate students, and help you to focus teaching and learning closely around State-based learning standards.
RM Math Framework Edition is different from many other information technology-based systems in that it is a whole - class teaching solution. This means that the math teacher remains very much at the center of the instructional process.

For more information on RM Math Framework Edition click HERE

RM Podium V2 Released

2008-02-21T20:19:00.006-05:00

RM is pleased to announce the latest version of RM Podium, the dedicated K-12 solution for educational podcasting.
The use of podcasting in the classroom is growing dramatically as educators increasingly see how the benefits of podcasting can extend teaching and learning beyond the classroom.
Current uses of RM Podium is with classroom audio systems where the teacher can hit record and teach the lesson normally and then publish the lesson to enable the students to review back for reinforcement and revision purposes.
Students can use RM Podium to record daily diaries, document fieldwork and work on collaborative projects for review within the school.
School principles can also using RM Podium to release announcements as podcasts for students, parents and the wider community.
RM Podium V2 now offers multi-track recording and editing allowing much broader podcasts to be published. Multiple tracks allow voice on one track, sound effects on another and a music track on another for example, greatly increasing the effectiveness of RM Podium in the classroom and beyond.

To download the latest 30 demo version of RM Podium, click HERE

New RM Easiteach 3.4 Video Presentation

2008-02-18T00:55:00.004-05:00

RM Easiteach V3.4 is now available. For more information on the features and benefits of using RM Easiteach on your Interactive Whiteboard, Bluetooth or RF Wireless Slate or your Projector/Document Camera, please click on the RM Easiteach Logo above.

Please click HERE to view video.

3.4 New Features

Widescreen support
Support for additional handsets:Renaissance ResponderE-instruction RF Gen2Response Card RFGenee
Vista Support
Speech engine reverts to standard Microsoft Text to Speech system
Foreign characters inserted from the Word banks are no longer surrounded by white space – this allows them to be inserted into words.
Changing the background color on a page now applies that change to any new page added to the document.
Change default Easiteach file background color to be pastel blue
Allow users to use the mouse scroll to scroll in Easiteach
The erase tool can now be used to erase parts of lines
Support (via object dialog) to enable Metafiles to be marked as Anti-Aliased to give a smoother appearance.
A transparent-fill option has been added to the color palette
Skins updated to include standard extra buttons on the right hand edge of the frame
Allow the user to see a thumbnail of each Easiteach page without opening them – if they hover over the page number the thumbnail appears.

RM Podium Video Presentation

2008-02-17T22:53:00.007-05:00

RM is pleased to announce a new on-line video that helps explain the benefits of Podcasting in the K-12 classroom and how RM Podium can help both students and teachers podcast with a high degree of success.

Please click HERE to view video.

Flash Player required. Please click on Flash Icon below to download

RM Mobile One ClassBook Information

2008-02-17T12:25:00.008-05:00

Click on the Brain Brake Video Below for more detailed information on the RM Mobile One ClassBook available exclusively from CDW-G.

For more information and pricing, click on the CDW-G logo below.

More RM Mobile One ClassBook Drop Test Videos

2008-02-17T12:09:00.003-05:00

See how RM uses an approved testing Lab to ensure that the new RM Mobile One ClassBook is Drip Proof, Drop-Proof and Student Proof

Click HERE to view video

RM TTS and RM Easiteach reviewed in T.H.E. Journal

2008-02-15T14:33:00.001-05:00

Click HERE for full article.

Podcast with podium

2008-02-13T23:41:00.007-05:00

RM is pleased to announce a new way for individual teachers, students and parents to purchase single licences of RM Podium. Please note that if you are a school, please use your local dealer for pricing.

For more information on how to buy the retail version of podium, please go to http://www.podcastwithpodium.com and either download a 30 day file or the full version for $39 per single licence.

RM Tuff-Cam by TTS at TCEA Video

2008-02-11T21:55:00.000-05:00

Click HERE for Tim Holt's RM Tuff-cam interview at TCEA

RM Podium makes the pages of eschoolnews

2008-02-11T01:46:00.000-05:00

FETC 2008: Multimedia, presentation, and video tools

From eSchool News staff reports

RM demonstrated its Podium podcasting solution, a PC-based application designed for the education market. The software allows teachers and students of any age to create, edit, and publish podcasts—all from the same simple interface. Besides enabling students to demonstrate what they’ve learned and develop their creativity by using audio to express themselves, teachers can use Podium to communicate with parents regularly by posting class or school updates on the web. They also can publish lesson guides to help students who might have missed sessions through absence or who simply need reinforcement when completing homework assignments. Podium’s scripting tool, which allows students to assign parts of their podcast to different members of the group, helps facilitate group projects. For example, if students are recording a passage from Shakespeare as one of their podcasting episodes, they are able to color-code the text on screen for different characters, so each person knows when it’s his or her turn to speak.

Click HERE for the full article

Click HERE for more information on the new RM Podium that now includes multitracking!

1st RM Easiteach Secondary Pack Customer Press Release

2008-02-10T20:09:00.000-05:00

Brandon School District

1025 South Ortonville Road, Ortonville, Michigan 48462 * (248) 627-1800 * FAX (248) 627-4533
Thomas C. Miller, Superintendent

News Release Friday, February 8, 2007

Students in the eighth through 12th grades in the Brandon School District are the first in the United States to be using a new curriculum technology package that teachers are calling “top quality”. The RM Easiteach Secondary Content Pack is designed to complement the curriculum already in place, according to the District Director of Technology, Paul Spoor.

Spoor says the new system contains pre-constructed lessons that interact with the advanced technology already in classrooms, giving students a new tool to help them better understand and comprehend their lessons. It is designed to supplement the lessons already being taught. RM Easiteach aligns with the federal and State of Michigan standards and is fully modifiable to meet district curriculum changes and needs.

The system was designed by RM Education, a global leader in education technology, which has a headquarters in Hyannis, Massachusetts, and is distributing the RM Easiteach Package to thousand of districts across the United States. Brandon School District is the first in the country to implement the new RM Easiteach Secondary Content Pack. The program has been in development for several years, and Spoor says the District’s teachers are excited by the latest addition to their collection of teaching tools.

Superintendent Thomas Miller says this is another example of how the Brandon School District is always improving the academic opportunities for District students.

For more information, a demonstration, interviews or photos, contact:
Paul Spoor, Director, Technology Department (248) 627-1800 ext. 1030

For more information on the new RM Easiteach Secondary Content Pack go to http://www.rmeducation.com/content

RM Tuff-Cam by TTS

2008-02-09T14:38:00.000-05:00

RM is pleased to announce the new RM Tuff-Cam by TTS, a truly educational digital camera and video camera. We are proud to present you with our ultra simple, purposely designed, student friendly 3 MP digital movie/ still camera:

Now with upgraded sound quality, video resolution, zoom and battery life!
Up to 3.1 mega-pixels resolution (2048 x 1536)
64MB internal memory which can be expanded via the SD card slot
1.5" high quality TFT screen
Built in flash and self-timer
Audio and video recording and playback
Rugged rubber casing - very durable and hard wearing
Docking station for simple PC connection and tripod mount
Simple trigger for taking pictures
SD card slot for expansion, which can be upgraded to 1GB or more
Download files to either PC or Apple Mac computers
Suitable for PC/ Mac.

Still Pictures
Up to 3.1 Mega-Pixels resolution
Selectable resolution
2048 x 1536
1280 x 1024
640 x 480
Digital zoom up to 4x in 0.1x steps
Automatic colour balance, or manually selectable
Flash is built-in, automatic or manually selectable
Video
320 x 240 at 10 frames per second
Standard AVI with DCF
Audio recording and playback through internal speaker
Storage
64MB internal memory
130 High resolution images
1000 VGA images
12 minutes of video
SD card slot for expansion
Supports up to 2gb SD card
Software Supplied
Ulead Photo Explorer 8 (Windows Only)
Trim, cut and join videos
Create animations
Make slideshows with variable transitions
Organise and view stills and videos
Export slideshows as video files
Convert video file formats
Drivers for PC and Mac
Optional Accessories
Purpose-designed tripod

Price is $180 available from:

RM Education - www.rmeducation.com
Computrac - www.compu-trac.com
Academic Superstore - www.academicsuperstore.com

RM Easiteach Secondary Content Pack

2008-02-09T14:16:00.001-05:00

The highly anticipated RM Easiteach Secondary Content Pack was released at TCEA to very good reviews. More than $2m of development has gone into the lastest RM Content pack and this is very visible in the High Quality Flash Lessons and Activities. The pack focuses on teaching concepts that are difficult to teach without the use of interactive technologies in Math, ELA and Science.

The new Science lessons and activities have been designed to help teach difficult concepts or to create virtual experiments such as photosynthesis. The Math activities have been developed from the new RM Math Framework Edition Digital Curriculum and are fully aligned and correlated to all state standards. The ELA content has been produced in association with leading ELA teachers in the US and again use high quality flash lessons to motivate and engage students.

RM Easiteach Secondary Content pack requires RM Easiteach 3.3 or then newly released 3.4.

It is priced at $1000 per school site licence until 31st March for early adopters.

For more information on where to purchase RM Easiteach Secondary Pack, please go to http://www.rmeducation.com/content

RM Mobile One ClassBook at TCEA

2008-02-09T13:59:00.000-05:00

The RM Mobile One ClassBook made it debut at TCEA and attracted great attention from the demonstration pictured. For the 3 days of the show, water continually flowed onto the keyboard to demonstrate how RM has taken on the wishes of Instructional Technology Directors and produced a notebook designed purely for the classroom. In between water and drop tests (see video on main www.rmeducation.com website) many districts were also impressed with 4 hour battery life and toughened screen. For more information on the RM Mobile One ClassBook, go to http://www.rmeducation.com/mobileone/overview.

RM Podium Presentation

2008-02-09T13:45:00.000-05:00

RM Podium 1.2 has just been released and attracted many interested districts at the 4 presentations each day. The latest version of this innovative but simple to use student and teacher tool now includes multitracking to increase flexibility further. Podium is excellent value starting at just $39 for a single licence student version and $499 for an elementary school licence and $799 for a High School Licence. For an extra $199, you can also get the Community at Home Licence that allows all students to use RM Podium at home.

For more information on RM Podium go to http://www.rmeducation.com/podium/overview.

RM at TCEA

2008-02-08T20:02:00.001-05:00

The RM Stand at TCEA. Great to meet and speak to many existing and potentially new school districts.