My Copyright Action Plan

As a teacher I think there are a lot of things you need to be aware of referring to copy right. One thing I found out that I didn't know was; if you want to use an image in your classroom, you can only use it once. If you are doing a unit and you want to use the same image for more then one year you have to get permission from the author. If you don't get permission to use it then you are breaking the copy right law. I didn't know that this was against the law. I have personally seen a teacher use the same image for more then one year and they didn't have a copy right on the image. (http://dese.mo.gov/divimprove/curriculum/copyright/finaldoc.pdf)

Something else I learned was that if you play a video in the classroom it needs to go with the topic or unit you are teaching. You have to be careful how much of a video you play with certain videos, depending on their copy right. It is illegal to play a video for entertainment purposes. This is taking money away from the company or creator. I now understand why we weren't allowed to watch Disney movies in my elementary school. I think my teacher's could have used those situations to explain copy right laws. (www.copyright.iupui.edu/dist_learning.htm)

Another thing that I found interesting is that, as a teacher, it is illegal to play some types of music in your classroom unless it directly related to what you are teaching. When I was in elementary school, my teachers would play music while we where having silent reading time or when we where doing homework. You have to be careful that the CD you are using doesn't have a copy right to it. (http://www.utsystem.edu/org/intellectualproperty/ccmcguid.htm and http://dese.mo.gov)

Now that I am aware of these copy right laws, I will be able to apply them to what I do in my classroom. My plan is going to be to plan all my lessons in advance. If I need to use something that has a copy right on it then I will plan time to get permission for the things I need.