Sunday, August 26, 2012

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

The Night Circus




The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night...



This book is so imaginative! Loved Morgenstern's sumptuous descriptions of the sights and smells of this magical circus.  I think the Freshmen Book Club would enjoy reading this.

App of the Week-Animation Desk



Turn Drawings into Animations 


Animation Desk is an iPad app (free and premium versions available) that allows users to create hand-drawn animations. The drawing interface provided by the app resembles the real working environment of a professional animator, who completes each frame of an animation on a specially designed desk, the animation desk. With the app, students can create drawings using just their finger on an iPad screen. The free version allows users to create up to 50 scenes in each of their projects. In each scene, they can include as little or as much detail as they want, they can use different brush and pencil effects in their drawings, and they can alter the opacity of the colors they choose. Users can also add audio effects to spice up their animations. When they’ve completed drawing all of their scenes, users simply hit the Play button to watch the animation unfold. If they don’t like an aspect of their animation, they can go back and edit any of the scenes. If they’re happy with their animation, they can export it to YouTube. They can also transfer animations between different iDevices and enjoy animating anytime, anywhere.
Click Here to Download Free App

Monday, August 13, 2012

App of the Week 8/14/12

Don't forget to add Evernote to your laptop and mobile device for iTech!  A great way  to keep and access all your notes...


Evernote allows you to take school notes, personal notes, archive pictures and share notes with others and across multiple devices. All notes are stored in the cloud so that you can access them anywhere with an internet connection.

http://www.evernote.com/

Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

cover_image

Just started reading this as the summer comes to an end.  Love the lure of this mystical sea story.

"Some race to win. Others race to survive. It happens at the start of every November: the Scorpio Races. Riders attempt to keep hold of their water horses long enough to make it to the finish line. Some riders live. Others die. At age nineteen, Sean Kendrick is the returning champion. He is a young man of few words, and if he has any fears, he keeps them buried deep, where no one else can see them. Puck Connolly is different. She never meant to ride in the Scorpio Races. But fate hasn't given her much of a choice. So she enters the competition - the first girl ever to do so. She is in no way prepared for what is going to happen. As she did in her bestselling Shiver trilogy, author Maggie Stiefvater takes us to the breaking point, where both love and life meet their greatest obstacles, and only the strong of heart can survive. The Scorpio Races is an unforgettable reading experience."