edYOUcator opens to broader audience

Have you heard the word yet?

You can now register for a pin number directly from the edYOUcator site. Didn't get access after an email request or taking part in the Twitter drawing? Now's your chance.

Go to http://edyoucator.com/edyou/home. Perform a search. Click "Click here." Fill out form. Voila!

Easy as pie.

Happy searching!

One other thing. You can now add YOUR lesson plans, right from the search engine. Just send us your info here.

_________________________________________________

Don't forget: Send an email to edYOUcator@allofe.com with any questions, problems, suggestions, etc., etc., etc. edYOUcator is still in its very early stages and the only way to make it better is through YOUR feedback. We are looking to supply educators with ONLY THE BEST resources. We want to minimize the amount of searching you have to do to find the best lesson plans or assessments, so we're being very particular about what is added to the search engine. But that also means we want to hear from you, to know what YOU find useful.

The more searches you search, the more questions you question and the more suggestions you suggest, the better it's gonna be.

It's a group effort!

edYOUcator: How To

So you’ve heard all the buzz about edYOUcator. You might have access or you might still be waiting to receive your pin number, but either way, you'll be using it soon. We want you to help edYOUcator grow. Every day, we index hundreds more of the best lesson plans, units and other instructional materials that we think educators will benefit from, but we want to hear from YOU.

edYOUcator was built for you, the educators. Using the edYOUcator search engine results only in what we believe to be the best resources for educators. As many of you who have used the edYOUcator search engine have seen, it’s easy and simple to use. But there are a few advanced options you may wish to use as well.

1. When searching use the “Advanced Search Options” to search within a specific subject or grade level. Say you’d like to find crafts for a Kindergarten class. Just type in Crafts and click the “Advanced Search Options” then check the “K” box like so:
   
   
   
   
2. To be more specific in your search, choose a subject area to search in by using the drop down menu in the “Advanced Search Options” as shown in the screen shot above. By choosing a subject area, your search is limited to lessons within that subject.
3. Another edYOUcator feature is being able to preview a page before you visit it. You can do this by hovering your mouse over the magnifying glass by the lesson title. By using this feature and reading the short descriptions you can be sure it’s a plan you’re interested in without even leaving the search page.
   
   
   
   
4. Another option is to click “Help” under the search bar. This will bring up a list of helpful ways to type in your search. One helpful way is the Title search. It is used when searching for words or phrases in the title of a lesson. If you search title:”ABC” your results will yield material with “ABC” in the title of the plan.
   
   
   
   
5. If you still can't find what you're looking for, then please, please send us an email at edYOUcator@allofe.com. That's the only way we'll know to look into the problem and once we're aware of it, we will do everything we can to fix it. We want you to take ownership over this, and we want you to get the most benefit possible.
   

Here are some more helpful tips to find exactly what you're looking for in you edYOUcator search:

• Keep it simple - don't complicate your search. There's no need to specify you're looking for a lesson plans, so instead of searching "algebra lesson plans", just search algebra.
• Use the Advanced Search Options - You can choose one specific grade level or multiple ones and even search within a certain subject area.
• Keep using it - The more you search the more edYOUcator will grow and the better your search results will become.
  

So what’s next?

As edYOUcator grows we will be incorporating new features into the site! There are some features in progress:

• By having an account on the site you’ll be able to fully benefit from these future features, especially ones like tracking and rating your favorite lesson plans.
• Another feature we’re currently developing is allowing users to search for state specific and national practice assessments. These resources will focus on tests like the SAT, ACT, Texas’ TAKS and New York’s Regent Exams to name a few,and will include helpful practice tests, former exams and answer keys. If you can't find practice assessments from your state, please let us know at edYOucator@allofe.com.
• Finally one of the features we’re very excited about is allowing educators to be able to contribute their own plans! edYOUcator is a network of educators that we want to share and engage with other educators. While this is not something we’ve added as a feature yet, if you’re interested in contributing lessons please let us know at edYOUcator@allofe.com.

As educators you are the focus of edYOUcator! If you’ve been using it, how do you use it and how would you like to use it in the future? Any suggestions on how we can improve? Leave a comment or e-mail us at edYOUcator@allofe.com!

Introducing: edYOUcator

You may have seen the chatter on Twitter about a new search engine designed especially for educators, called edYOUcator. edYOUcator provides quick and easy access to lesson plans, units and other instructional materials. It aggregates content from many educational resources across the World Wide Web and provides a centralized tool to find information based on subject area, grade, keywords and more, and is only going to get bigger and bigger, especially with YOUR help.

Now, let me take a few minutes to really explain.

How can you gain access?

While the new search engine will launch tomorrow (Feb. 10, 2011), not everyone will be able to access it...yet. We will be selecting a few random users of the #edYOUcator hashtag per day to gain the first access to it - so...

• If you want to be entered into the random drawing, you must use "#edYOUcator" in your Tweets.
  
• I'll be announcing when the drawing will happen throughout the day - I am estimating around 5 per day (give or take) - so follow @allofek12 and pay attention on Monday-Friday between 9-6 CST from Feb 10 - Feb 18.
  
• If you're selected, we'll mention you from @allofek12 and ask you to send us a DM with your email address so that we can send you some information on how to log in.

If you really want to go above and beyond, you can request access by sending a really nice email to edYOUcator@allofe.com and we'll see what we can do. After Feb. 18, there will be a sign-up for a request to gain access.

First adopters that either get selected for access, or request access will be the first to get new features that will be given to account holders, such as tracking favorite lessons, rating lessons, and things like that - so keep that in mind.

Another thing to remember: we are going to be indexing more and more resource-rich websites as edYOUcator grows, and since it's a free service, we WANT contributors (if you would like to be a lesson contributor to edYOUcator, please email edYOUcator@allofe.com).

Our goal for the roll-out process is to solicit feedback from educators about the search engine - what they like, don't like, and suggestions. That way, as we roll it out to more people, we'll put our best foot forward. This really is a work-in-progress and as it grows, we want to know what you will benefit most from.

The History

We have vast experience in working with educators across the nation to build the most comprehensive suite of intuitive, web-based applications for K-12 schools to manage everything from curriculum to online assessments to student information to staff professional development. We have worked with administrators and teachers to provide online tools that help them in their everyday lives and better communicate with students, parents, and the community. We've found that there's a void in terms of an easy way for teachers to find really good resources quickly and easily. edYOUcator is our way of filling that void.

The Future

We hope by using edYOUcator.com that teachers across the world will have easier access to the instructional materials they need to learn better and to teach better. It aims to provide focused content to K-12 teachers by indexing relevant content from across the web combined with high quality educational material from our own dedicated educators.

We want to build a network of educators that share and contribute to this learning repository - so as the search engine grows, there will be more and more opportunities to contribute your own instructional materials and share them with the world.

______________________________________________________

We are excited to be able to offer this to such a wonderful group of educators we've come to know and love - and we're even more excited to see what you think! We'll be putting out new information as we go, so definitely keep in touch and let us know of any questions you have.