TEL.A.VISION | It's Your Story

TEL.A.VISION Helped Me Create a Doorway to Discuss ALC Student’s Futures

Posted on 03. Feb, 2010 by Ringmaster in All Posts, Power of Vision, TEL.A.VISION Stories

By Tom Wendt

St. Croix Valley Alternative Learning Center

I recently used TEL.A.VISION with two of my classes at the St.Croix Valley Alternative Learning Center (SCVALC). The students got into it. They took ownership of their videos. They all finished the project. The software was simple to use and there are online lesson plans to follow.

TEL.A.VISION got the students looking ahead; looking to their future. It was a doorway to open for me to have discussions on where they are headed and what they are doing.

I’ve often said that the hardest students to work with are those who have no direction. When a student has dreams and goals you have something to work toward. If you don’t have goals and you get knocked off course there is nothing to help steer you back. TEL.A.VISION gave them a foundation of goals that they can go back and change over time.

I’d highly recommend TEL.A.VISION for Alternative Learning Center students.

My experience with TEL.A.VISION was excellent!

Posted on 01. Feb, 2010 by Ringmaster in All Posts, Power of Vision, TEL.A.VISION Stories

By Eric Paquette

Dunwoody Academy students at their computers

I am a high school writing teacher with a large special ed. population in my classroom. I found the visionary aspect, the creative freedom and hands on approach empowered previously unengaged students.  Since the project I have seen that by referring back to the goals set in the video students are connecting daily work to long term goals in a more concrete manner.

From the first day that we started using TEL.A.VISION there seemed to be an instant connection between the students and the program.  The special ed. students in my class seem to be more comfortable writing, and processing information on the computer than with a pencil and paper.  TEL.A.VISION allowed them an opportunity to have success in the classroom in a format that permitted them to focus on what they were saying rather than the format that they were using.

I would recommend TEL.A.VISION to ANY teacher trying to get students to rise to their full potential

Here is a sample video by one of the students.

Digital Story Telling with Homeless Students

Posted on 02. Jan, 2010 by Ringmaster in All Posts, Power of Vision, TEL.A.VISION Stories

Lanise Block enjoyed using TEL.A.VISION in her classroom and decided to use it in a “Digital Story Telling” project with the homeless. She was surprised by how well the project was accepted by her students.

Big News From TEL.A.VISION

Posted on 05. Jun, 2009 by Ringmaster in All Posts, Media, Social Media and Vision, Supporters, TEL.A.VISION Stories, Web 2.0

5th Graders at Clear Springs Elementary on Parents Night

The BIG news is that TEL.A.VISION  is becoming a non profit. Actually, it has always been a not for profit but we are just making it official. This will allow us to seek funds from foundations and individuals. I know that we will probably be rejected 10 times before we find someone willing to help fund us so if you know any organization or individual willing to be one of the first to talk to us let us know.

It’s hard to believe we launched only 8 months ago. In that time our partner Haberman has done a great job of getting us in all of the local press as well as the Christian Science Monitor. We had a successful TEL.A.VISION Day with a 24 hour broadcast of TEL.A.VISION videos on the Internet ( Thank you Steve). In May we did our first NYC press tour and from that will be covered in a 4 page spread in District Administration (Thank you Sue), a feature in Family Circle and have been told we will be in Scholastic and Time For Kids.

We have some exciting partnerships we are  working on.

1. Having 6th, 9th and 12th graders in the Minneapolis Schools create vision videos as part of graduation requirements,
2. Working with TIES Education,
3. Partnering with Youth Services of America to create Service Learning videos,
4. Working with The Discipline of Peace and Culture of Peace Initiative to create Peace videos,
5. Discussions with SEARCH Institute and Templeton Press on creating a Vision Curriculum with Dr. Benson’s New book “Vision“
6. An invitation to visit the staff of the Fetzer Institute.

While all of this holds great potential the most rewarding work has been to see the difference TEL.A.VISION  is having on youth. Three projects stand out.

1. Working with the Divas of North Minneapolis. The Star Tribune did a nice article on them.
2. Spending a day at Angelo Patri Middle School in the Bronx with 18 young people creating a new vision for their school ( The video is below). Their Vide Principal cried when she say it.
3. Parent night at a Clear Springs Elementary in Minnetonka, where 75 people showed up to view amazing videos created by 5th graders .

We’ve started a new contest called “100 words for $100“. Tell us how you have used TEL.A.VISION and win a chance for $100.

Thank you all for your support of TEL.A.VISION. If you would like to receive regular updates on TEL.A.VISION sign up in the upper right hand corner.

TEL.A.VISION Video Leads to Minnesota Student Service Award

Posted on 14. May, 2009 by Ringmaster in All Posts, TEL.A.VISION Stories, Vision Videos

When Heather Palmer, a teacher at Valley View Elementary School in Edina Minnesota, wanted to do a service learning project with her sixth grade class she first turned to the curriculum developed by the 6 Billion Paths to Peace Project. 6 Billion Paths to Peace is an effort to inspire people to focus on our interconnectedness and reflect upon the individual contributions that each of us are making to a more harmonious world.

Heather teaches in a French Immersion class and wanted the students to have a way to practice their French, while considering what they will do in their lives to bring about Peace.

To bring this all together she had the students develop a TEL.A.VISION video, where each student wrote their statement in French and in English and added a photo to their words.

Here is a look at their prize winning video:

Wired for 2020 to Feature TEL.A.VISION and DIVAS

Posted on 02. Apr, 2009 by Ringmaster in All Posts, Supporters, TEL.A.VISION Stories

About Wired for 2020

TEL.A.VISION  and Project Divas will be at the Wired for 2020 event at the Mall of America from 10-5 on Saturday April 18th. Come and learn how to make a TEL.A.VISION Video and than sit down at one of our interactive stations and make one yourself.  Here is a link to a post about the Divas project.

Mentor and Youth Engagement

Wired for 2020 is the Mentoring Partnership of Minnesota’s year long engagement campaign to get more mentors involved with youth in the state of Minnesota. It is our mission to interest caring adults in becoming mentors to youth.  Caring adults who are willing to help young people spark their future career interests and expand their possibilities. Through the Wiredfor2020.com website and event at the Mall of America on April 18th, the Mentoring Partnership of Minnesota hopes to provide youth and their mentors with resources, edutainment, and social media tools to engage them in conversations about their future opportunities.

The Wired for 2020 Event is at the Mall of America Event on Saturday 4.18.09 from 10am-5pm in the Best Buy Rotunda and the West Market and is open to the public.

TEL.A.VISION Brings Teachers & Students Together

Posted on 11. Mar, 2009 by Colleen Matschi in All Posts, TEL.A.VISION Stories

“Teaching is about building relationships with your students,” says Jim Amaral, Global Concepts teacher at Oak-Land Junior High, who has brought TEL.A.VISION to 700 seventh graders during the past year.  Jim will tell you that one of the greatest gifts of TEL.A.VISION is not only witnessing students learn more about themselves, but that the process truly builds stronger relationships between students and their teachers, parents and peers.

Jim sees students, who might not normally participate in class or complete assigned work, choosing to engage in the TEL.A.VISION project.  The students are truly enjoying the multi-faceted approach which incorporates their creativity and multiple technologies.

Photo by Andy Blenkush of the Stillwater Courier/Lake Elmo Leader

As a result of this experience, future Oak-Land 7th graders will continue to create their own TEL.A.VISION.  The students have enjoyed the project so much that Mr. Amaral is working with students to identify additional global topics/assignments to which they can communicate their work via TEL.A.VISION.  The next step for Oak-Land is to collaborate with students in other schools, states, even countries to share student visions for their lives and their world.

The key to the success of TEL.A.VISION is having students share their videos.  In sharing, everyone gains insight into not only that student, but themselves as well.  The whole basis for TEL.A.VISION is to give students the opportunity to spread their visions of hope and possibility throughout the world.  In the process, unique visions combine to achieve a common goal of peace.