44 record(s) found
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Bookemon Grade K to 12
- Bookemon, Inc.-
10404
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Teacher's First Edge Review: for slightly adventurous technology users and their students. Students and teachers can write their own original books, add your own images and artwork as illustrations, and read your published books in interactive, online form. For a fee, you can also have printed copies made, but there is no fee for the online publication and sharing. This is the ultimate in "digital storytelling."
Here is an example of a book created by the TeachersFirst Edge editors. Once you set up free membership in this site, students (or teachers) can select to create from a blank start or using templates provided. You can also create a book starter of your own as an example so students can follow the prompts you have created. The book creator allows you to upload your own images and to create books from a Word document or PowerPoint file you have already made. There is no provision for multiple users to collaborate on the same book.
After you save and publish the work, share the URL so people can read the entire thing online, either among an audience of “just my friends” or publicly. They also offer the embed code to place your books in a class or school web page, wiki, or blog, but at the time of this review, this code was not working properly. The BEST option is to copy the address of the new window displaying the interactive book. There is an option to have the book printed for a fee, but this is not required. You can also read books created by others (if they make them public). Use the fully-public option to create learning materials for classes to access year to year for at-home review or reading practice.
This site requires a simple registration. Members must be at least 13 years old. Teachers using this tool with younger students should use a whole-class account WITH parent permission and in accordance with school policies. See more detailed suggestions “In the Classroom” below and in our sample book!
In the Classroom:
Skills needed: Join the site. No need for a confirmation email to get started. SKIP the profile and friends areas to get to the book creator. The site constantly offers ways to purchase printed versions of your books, but you can ignore them. On the Create Books page, choose from using a blank book, starting from a file, or using a template. Browse many “public” examples on the templates page of books created by others. Choose “school” to see projects from other classes or a sample created by you or a student team working in advance along with you. Explore ready-made themes (seasonal, topical, etc.) or use “open theme.” Choose book dimensions (match layout shape to any uploaded files, such as PowerPoint slides). Enter settings and description of your book (editable later), including who is allowed to “see” it: everyone, just friends, or private. Again choose a “theme” – more of a category where Bookemon will list your completed book. A logical option is “school.” Experiment with tools to upload files (within file limits), add images, add text, etc. Written help is offered as you go, but there is no video demo. SAVE often. Turn margins on to avoid chopping content. To share the book, you must “publish” it (i.e. finalize).
Once published, locate the book under "My Books" and use options to share (by email—and see the URL to copy from there), “Make a new edition” to create a new version—also useful for treating the original as a template for later books), Post to Other Sites offers embed codes not currently working properly. The BEST option is to click the book COVER which opens a new window without ads or “stuff,” and copy the ADDRESS of that window to paste into email, etc. You can also make that clean-window view a Favorite on a classroom computer!
Safety/security concerns: The home page of the site has “Featured books by our members” and the ability to browse all public books. You will want to preview for possibly inappropriate books created by others. As with any site where students can create content, you will want to obtain parent permission before posting student work online. The site does not allow users under age 13, so teachers with students below that age should obtain written parent permission for students to use generic student accounts you create and control through your teacher-extra Gmail address. Use up to 20 subaccounts of that Gmail account to create student accounts and passwords to be used by each student or group of students (by code name or number) within your classes. Here is a blog post that tells how to set up GMail subaccounts to use for any online membership service.
If you have older students use their own email accounts to join and navigate, you will want to first spell out rules about the “profile” tools, friends, and other social networking features. There are multiple opportunities to share address books, use social tools such as Facebook to share your books, etc., so teacher-controlled accounts may be the easiest option.
If students are to collaborate on the same book, they must either log in under the same user name or sit together to collaborate. This could provide opportunities for “vandalism,” so have class policies and consequences spelled out in advance.
Possible uses:
With younger students, have them create their work in PowerPoint then upload for whole-class books. See an example, created by the TeachersFirst Edge editors . The example is full of ideas for classroom use from Kindergarten to high school, including science concept tales, poetry books, general writing, math problem solve-its, and more. ANY grade can use this tool, depending on the amount of direction by the teacher. By the way, the correct answer to the problem in the sample book is c. 27. Another idea, have students create personalized books for their parents or grandparents for special occasions (Mother's Day, Father's Day, or Grandparent's Day).
Tip: Use this site for a guided introduction to social networking as a class, an excellent teaching opportunity for 21st century literacy skills and online safety discussion. |
At Home:
Create family “books” about vacations, holidays, or other special events. Share them online with family members living far away. |
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Reading Suggestions Grade K to 12
- TeachersFirst-
10029
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This site, created by our teacher-editors, offers a reading list for students in all grades. Simply click on the grade level that you wish to explore and a book list will be provided. Most books offer a short description and some link to other titles by the same author. New titles are added frequently, so be sure to check back.
In the Classroom:
Save this site on your classroom computers' favorites, so students can easily access the site to find new books to read! Share this link on your class website. This is an excellent resource to provide for summer reading. |
At Home:
Use this site to find new books for you and your student to enjoy together. |
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Computer Lab Favorites Grade K to 5
- Scholastic-
10028
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All of the activities at this site are designed to take 15-30 minutes and include language arts, math, science, social studies, and Spanish. You can also choose your grade levels: k-2 or 3-5. There are over 50 interactive stories and activities here to share. Examples of activities include Rhyme with Reggie, Myth Brainstorming Machine, Practice Counting Stars, Figure out a Pizza Puzzle, Tour the Mayflower, Build a Plane, Build a Dinosaur, Play Sports on the Moon, Make Weather Happen, and countless others.
If you click on the Student View a spinning wheel will appear. Students can spin to choose a random activity! Many of these activities require Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
Save this site in your favorites on your classroom computers. Introduce this site on your projector or interactive whiteboard. If a student finishes early and needs some enrichment or is struggling and needs some extra practice, look here for some interactive help! Share this site on your class website for students to access outside of the classroom. |
At Home:
Although this site is for the "computer lab," nearly all of these activities would be excellent enrichment for your home "computer lab" too! Sit down and enjoy the activities with your student. Click the Student View wheel to spin and get a random activity to try! |
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KENKEN Grade 4 to 12
- Nextoy, LLC-
9899
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The KENKEN craze is spreading quickly across the world! Created in 2004 by Japanese Math Teacher, Tetsuya Miyamoto, these puzzles are fun, educational, and addictive. At first, these puzzles appear very similar to Sudoku puzzles. They have a few added components (more math and logic required). There are various levels of difficulties (3x3 puzzles through 9x9 puzzles). For 3x3 puzzles, you use only numbers 1-3, for 4x4 puzzles you use only numbers 1-4, and so on. At the time of our review of this brand-new puzzle, the 3x3 puzzles had not been created. But they add new puzzles daily, so check back! The rules are simple: each number can only be used once in any row or column. There are also "cages" which are represented by heavily outlined sets of squares. The goal is to produce the target number (in the corner of the cage). Numbers can be repeated within one cage, just so the number is not already in the row or column. Want to learn more? View the How to Play link that includes written instructions and a tutorial video. Puzzles are also PRINTABLE. Don't miss the link for teachers. This site requires Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
Introduce this site on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Then have students explore the puzzles on their own. Use this site to differentiate for various students. Be certain to save this site in your favorites and check back often. List this link on your class website so students can "play" both in and out of the classroom. Have older students attempt to create their own KENKEN puzzles. It’s not as easy as you think. |
At Home:
Looking for an educational way to spend some time with your student? Try these puzzles together. Be warned: they are addicting! |
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Vacations Grade 3 to 9
- Vocabulary University-
9891
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This site offers word puzzles, a vocabulary wordbank of 16 words, discussion questions, examples of some great summer treats and more....all about vacations! Many of the activities are able to be printed FREE. This site does have some basic advertisements.
In the Classroom:
Use this site at the beginning of the school-year as you learn about your students. Share the word puzzles on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Have students create their own word puzzles about their summer vacations (whether spent at home or traveling). |
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Big Huge Labs: Map Maker Grade 2 to 12
- John Watson: Big Huge Labs-
9838
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Create maps -- for multiple reasons -- with ease. As you ‘travel’ through your geography or history course, create an ongoing map of the places you’ve visited and embed/post it on your blog or any webpage. Simply type in the title of your map, choose the land masses you wish to include, and then click on the correct boxes for your particular locations. When finished, click the You’re Ready box at the bottom of the screen. Now scroll to the top to see what your map will look like. The embed code (geek-speak term for computer gobble-dee-gook that tells your computer how to find and display the map you have made) for your map is ready to copy and paste into your webpage. You can find the embed code to the right of the map. There is also a button to Reset and Start Over.
In the Classroom:
Create a map to track where your students went on summer vacation (or have ever traveled). Create a map of places you have visited in a work of literature, or where students have written about going on fantasy vacations. Share the maps on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Have cooperative learning groups work together to create maps related to lessons in your social studies, history, or literature classes. Embed multiple student project maps in your class wiki along with student writings that accompany the maps. |
At Home:
Make a family vacation map to post in your family blog or on your website. |
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C Beebie's Stories and Rhymes Grade K to 2
- BBC-
9829
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This collection of online written and oral interactive stories features British pronunciation, but the story clips are short and easy to understand. Many of the characters are also on American television (64 Zoo Lane, Teletubbies, Jakers, and others). Students will enjoy learning clicking to the next page of the story as they view the animation and frequent rhyming sequences. Some of the stories also require readers to click on elements of the story in order for it to continue, or to hear special dialog. All the stories are also available in print format. The home part of the site keeps track of the places readers have looked at and offers games and links to other C Beebie features.
This site requires Flash and Windows Media or similar player. The printable pages require Adobe Acrobat. Get them from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
Add this link to your classroom computer for students to use for extra reading practice. Share this site on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Set this site up as a learning center (or using individual computers, if available). Don’t forget the headsets! List this link on your class website. Use free printouts to reinforce what was learned in the stories and for students to take home or do as homework. The “Watch and Listen” link at the left will take parents to a page where they can download podcast versions of the stories to take in the car! |
At Home:
Read these colorful stories with your students! |
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PicLits Grade K to 12
- PicLits.com-
9822
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Teacher's First Edge Review for moderate technology users The title says it all: "Inspired Picture Writing!" Use this free drag and drop literacy tool to create great sentences inspired by beautiful pictures. Or add inspirational or humorous captions to pictures.
NOTE: Our editors regret that PicLits occasionally allows advertising on their home page to include images that are not classroom-friendly. Teachers should preview to determine whether or not your students can ignore the ads.
"Learn It" provides learning opportunities and examples for creating captions, compound sentences, or paragraphs. Advanced lesson plans for teachers are viewed in the "Learn It" tab as well. "View the Gallery" to see already-created PicLits as well as comments and ratings. After selecting a picture (or using the one they provide) and dragging a word onto the screen, choose different forms of the word by using the drop-down menu next to the word. Move your words anywhere on the screen for creative writing. You can also click “freestyle” instead to type in your own words instead of choosing from their list. Word lists change, depending on the image selected. Note: Advertisements run alongside the PicLits screen. Caution students to ignore these. Here is an example: 
See the full PicLit at PicLits.com
In the Classroom:
Skills Required: Join the site (requires email but does NOT require that you wait for confirming mail to arrive so jump right in!). Users of PicLits must be able to navigate tabs on sites, manage logins, and use URL's and embed codes to share results on websites and blogs. Play to learn the tools before or after joining. Help also provides a short-and-sweet text explanation of the tools.
Safety/Security concerns: Registering for a PicLits account requires the use of an email address. PicLits can be used without an account but users are unable to save or blog about their creation without an account. This site allows outsiders to comment on created PicLits.
Many school policies prohibit such interaction, so be sure to check your school policy. Teach about proper “netiquette” and making appropriate comments as students use this site. Set specific written class rules and consequences for interacting with outsiders. If you wish each student to have an individual account, they need to create it with an email address. Check your school policies about accessing/sharing student email on school computers. You may want to create your own Gmail account with up to 20 subaccounts for each group of students (by code name or number) within your classes. Here is a blog post that tells how. A class account can be created instead. However, it does not show which work is attributable to which student. You may want to require that students initial their contributions in order to get credit. All work on the site can be seen without a login. All projects are public. Check your school policy for posting student work online. Written permission is always a good idea.
Management suggestions: You may want to create a word doc, Favorites folder, or other “collection” of the URLS to all your students’ projects in one place for easy work at grading time. Some teachers use a class wiki or blog with links to all projects from there. You may allow students to self-register, but be sure to keep a written record of their passwords for when they “forget.” It may be worth your time to do advanced registration for your
younger students or simply use a whole-class account.
Possible Uses: Share a PicLit on your interactive whiteboard at the start of a grammar or writing lesson to discuss word choice, figures of speech, or vocabulary. Use the visual picture prompt for journal or blog writing, allowing each student to compose a unique poem or haiku. Even science classes can write about concepts illustrated in the many nature photos. Emotional support teachers will love the chance to discuss feelings and how to describe facial expressions in the pictures. Make a collection of PicLits for a curriculum topic or as a literary magazine online. ESL students can create PicLits to learn new vocabulary. Have students create PicLits for special occasions and special people (mom, dad, grandparents, school nurse, or others). Use the embed code to place your creations on many other sites, including your class wiki or blogs. Share your PicLit by using a URL or code for an embedded widget. |
At Home:
Increase literacy skills by engaging your student in beautiful pictures and combining words for captions, thoughts, poetry, and free form thinking. Create messages for family members, especially those at a distance. Create images and use print screen functions to snapshot an image for use as a screensaver or print for an actual poster. |
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Sharp Brains Grade 6 to 12
- Sharpbrains-
9614
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Do you see the guerilla? Use the basketball mind stretcher to find out! This site offers some traditional and not so traditional mind stretchers. The general topic areas include How Your Brain Works, Attention, Memory, Pattern Recognition and Planning, Visual Workouts, Visual Illusions, Language and Logic, and others. Some of the activities are quick (less than a minute) while others require more time. The activities could be used in many subject areas; there are language activities, math, general logic, and even some for physical education.
Be aware: each mind stretcher activity includes a blog. Some of the blog comments may not be appropriate, so be sure to READ any blogs that you plan to share. You may want to make these activities a group challenge, rather than individual exploration. Many are interactive and require Flash or Java. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
Start your class (any subject area) with a mind stretcher or include this as part of a psychology or biology lesson on how the brain works. Share the puzzle or challenge on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Challenge your students to create their own logic activities and create a class "Logic" wiki. |
At Home:
Try some of these mind stretchers with your student. Use this site during the summer to keep those minds SHARP! |
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Geni - Everyone's Related Grade 4 to 12
- -
9613
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Teachers First Edge Entry: for slightly adventurous technology users. This tool allows you to create an interactive family tree. Once you are registered, you can easily create a family tree. You are able to include family member's birth-dates, death-dates, email addresses, pictures, video clips, and more. This site also has the capacity to create timelines for births, deaths, weddings, divorces, education, occupation, and other important events and information. The family tree and some of the other activities require Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
Skills Needed: this site is fairly simple to use. Join the site (free) and log in. Registration requires an email address. Tip: rather than using your personal or work email, create a free Gmail account to use for memberships. If you plan to have students register individually, you may want to create your own Gmail account with up to 20 subaccounts for each group of students (by code name or number) within your classes. Here is a blog post that tells how to set up GMail subaccounts to use for any online membership service.
Navigation of the site is simple. Click on Tree to start your family tree (or Timeline to use that free resource. For the family tree, arrows are provided to add family members. The arrows pointing up indicate a parent, arrows to the left or right are used to add a wife/husband or brother/sister, and arrows pointing down are used to add a son or daughter.
Safety/Security Concerns: This site allows users to set-up their family tree or timeline as PRIVATE. It allows you to control who can and can't view your profile, family tree, and other information. For more information about this feature, visit the Settings link (on the top right corner). Before you plan your family tree project, be sure to get parental permission.
Possible Uses: Use this site to create family tree projects in elementary or middle school classes. Have high school students create family trees as part of an immigration unit studying patterns in social studies classes. In science class, have students create fictitious "people" as they study genetics. With younger students, create a class timeline sharing important dates for individuals (i.e. birthdays) and class dates (field trips, tests, or other special events). Have students share their family trees on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Be sure to "advertise" this project on your class website (and newsletter, if applicable) so students have time to gather names, birthdates, and other information about family members. In world language classes, have student create a family tree using the correct vocabulary for relatives and talk about it as they share it on the interactive whiteboard. When researching famous people, reading biographies, or even reading literature have students create a family tree illustrating their discoveries about their famous person, writer, artist, musician, explorer, literary character, etc. |
At Home:
Create a family tree with your student! Add pictures and videos, and then share the family tree at the next family reunion. |
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MapSkip Grade 4 to 12
- MapSkip.com-
9374
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Teacher's First EDGE Review: for slightly adventurous technology users. This online tool allows you to see various cities and countries throughout the world. The site features placemarkers added by users to interactive Google Maps including stories, photos, videos, and comments and ratings from other users. Visit this "story" we made in Reston, Virginia (west of Washington, DC) for a sample placemarker full of teaching ideas left by our review team “captain.” Mapskip allows you to zoom in and out (using the arrows) and scroll across the map in any cardinal direction. You can view the entire world, or individual cities. Red hands are used to represent placemarkers created by users. There are special features available for teachers upon registration. See their blog entries for more details about these features and ways to see only content created by your students or classmates. The Mapskip blog is written by the MapSkip staff to explain new features and tools. Registered members are able to comment on any updates there, as well. The videos require Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
Skills Needed: Register (requires email and activation from confirmation email). Before you submit your registration, be sure to scroll down to request "additional features for teachers" with the checkbox near the bottom of the form. Manipulate the map as you would on Google Maps (zoom, drag, etc). Click to add a new placemarker, enter a "story," title it, and upload pictures or video. You need to know how to locate and upload files. You can also edit your profile, view places created by you or any author you choose to "follow" and more. You can "rate" placemarkers left by others, as well. Why not make our review a "Favorite"?
Safety/Security Concerns: Membership requires an email address and user name. Use your “memberships” (extra) email account for such memberships, so you don’t clutter your mailbox. Register for the "special teacher features" to enable you to establish student accounts linked to your email address. Since this site has photos, videos, and stories submitted by members, always be sure to preview what you wish to share in class. The site has a link to click if anything appears inappropriate. At the time of this review, this website and its contents appear very useful and appropriate for intermediate and secondary students. Be sure to check your district's acceptable use policy before you submit anything to a website. Use fictitious names or initials for your students (or use the teacher features!) and be sure to get parental permission if photos, videos, or any student work are included. Since others can read, comment, and "Favorite" any entry you or your students make, you may want to discuss ethical behavior and help students build a “thick skin” to outside criticism. This is a good place to learn positive interaction with the public.
Possible Uses: Even without joining, you can share PREVIEWED Mapskip entries created by others on an interactive whiteboard or projector as you study faraway places. Create Mapskip entries about historical sites in your local area, including images taken with digital cameras, artifacts from your local historical society, links to newspaper articles, or video/audio interviews of older residents telling about old times. As you study community or landforms in your elementary class, "mapskip” them with annotations of a local map, showing examples of landforms and local community landmarks with digital pictures. Allow older students to use the site independently or in small groups. Mapskips are ideal as a product for individual research projects. In world language classes, have students plot a trip or write an imaginary story of their dreamed trip to Spain or Mexico. Take your students on a whiteboard trip to the native countries where the language is spoken. Literature settings can take on new meaning when your students annotate them on a map. Have students "mapskip" the landmarks of an author's life and/or the locations in his/her novels. Trace the path of a famous person's biography or annotate a famous painter's works, using links to the images from the places shown in landscapes. The "story" of a work of art can include critical analysis, as well. Anything that has a "place" can be a mapskip. Have students map family trips or important places in family history and share the maps with parents! |
At Home:
Is your family going on a vacation? If so, use this site as a fun way to remember and share your journey. Registration is quick and free! Once registered, you are able to share video clips, photos, and stories of your trip.
If a vacation isn't in your near future, why not have your student share a picture and story about your hometown? |
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Poetry Everywhere Collection Grade 7 to 12
- WGBH Foundation-
9352
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This is an amazing site with 12 notable poems that include a Quicktime video of the poem reading- either by the poet or an animated enactment (i.e. Emily Dickinson). Each of the lessons includes a broad spectrum of activities, lesson plans, and PDF worksheets. While you do have to register to fully access the material, it is free. This site requires Adobe Acrobat and Quicktime. You can get both from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
If you are looking for something worthwhile as a quarter ending or are deeply involved in poetry, this site is great. Billy Collins reading "The Lanyard" is tough not to love and you can choose any of the included features to use or not. Because the site uses Quicktime, you have the option of replaying the video or pausing for discussion where you choose. This is wonderful as a class discussion. Another use for this site is to assign different poems to small groups of students and have them explicate them and then present them to the class. You could even shock the world of traditional English class or school video news announcements with a video “poetry break” during Poetry Month (April). |
At Home:
If your student enjoys poetry, this might be a nice site to explore together during the summer or a rainy Saturday. Have your student write their own poetry. |
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Sounds Factory Grade 4 to 10
- Austin Chang & John Foster -
9346
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This rhythmic website tells the story of a factory worker who is bored with his job. The activity challenges students to create various rhythms using the tools and equipment in the factory, to keep the factory workers entertained. There is an animated introduction that describes the scenario. Descriptions and instructions are provided throughout the activity. Once your students are familiar with the site, you are able to skip the instructions. Note: this site is slow to load! Preview it on your classroom machines to get it into your "cache." This website requires Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
Introduce your music students to various rhythms and the interesting tools available to create music. Use an interactive whiteboard or projector (and speakers) to demonstrate the program. Then have students work with a partner to create their own music. Students can save and send recordings to friends, but this uses email addresses. Check your school policies or have them “send” the recordings to your teacher email for sharing. They might even “turn in” a music assignment that way! |
At Home:
If you have a student "bored" like this factory worker, challenge him or her to create his or her own entertaining rhythms at this interesting site! |
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Go on a Family Adventure Grade 2 to 7
- National Geographic-
9306
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In this traveling activity students choose whether to go on a family vacation by sea or by land. The land adventures include The Presidential Route, Ancient Cities Route, and The Marco Polo Route. The sea adventure options include The Caribbean Islands Route, Polynesian Islands Route, and The Arctic to Amazon Route. Students may then choose a difficulty levels (easy or hard) and team color. Students learn to read different types of maps, recognize symbols on maps, and get to know famous sites in the cities they visit. Students can see their selected form of transportation navigate the geographic and civic barriers, learn cardinal directions, and enjoy some gorgeous photos of the places they visit. This site requires Flash. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
This activity would work well for individual or pairs of students in a lab or on laptops. If individual computers aren’t available, share this site with your class on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Use this activity to preview sites you are studying in geography or locations of writers of famous books or even the presidents. |
At Home:
If you can't take a real trip to the Arctic, Caribbean, or Ancient Cities - use this site to take your student on a virtual field trip in the comfort of your own home. |
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Pixton Grade 4 to 12
- Goodinson Design Inc.-
9280
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Teacher's First Edge Review: for slightly adventurous technology users. At this site, students can create, share, and "remix" comics. The "remix" link allows students to add their own twist to ready-made comics. Students can read comics created by others and also make comments on them. Other highlights of the site include a featured author and blog. This free version of Pixton will be followed with a fee-based version for schools (with teacher and student registration levels and safety tools) in 2009, but the free version will remain available. Eventually, the free version will only include a 30-day trial period. Be aware: the Pixton for Schools (if continued after 30-days) will cost $1 per student. See an example created by the TeachersFirst Edge team. This site requires Flash. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
Skills Needed: Register and watch “trailers” or play with the simple tools to choose a situation (template), color, graphics and symbols. Then enter dialog. Make changes with simple tools alongside each block of your comic. Save your work to come back later or you may "publish" right away. You have a choice about whether others are allowed to “remix” your work. You also have the option to edit work or embed it in a website, blog or wiki. Comics can also be shared by URL (copy it from the address bar) or sent via email.
Safety/Security Concerns: Registration requires an email address.
You may want to create your own Gmail account with up to 20 subaccounts for each group of students (by code name or number) within your classes. Here is a blog post that tells how to set up GMail subaccounts to use for any online membership service. There are some safeguards in place to be sure students use appropriate language and actions. It would be wise to preview whatever you wish to share with your students, however, since the general public can create comics with their own ideas. Students should submit their work without identifiable names and location, according to your school policy, perhaps using their newly-assigned Gmail address and account (monitored by you, since you own the master account). You will also want written parent permission before allowing students to create comics that can be seen online.
Possible Uses: Use comics to write summaries of current events, responses to reading assignments, expressions of teen problems, and creative works of humor. With younger students, use an interactive whiteboard or projector to create a class comic on a current topic of study, such as the life cycle of the frog or ways to conserve energy. Use this site to integrate an art and writing lesson. Why not have students create comics to demonstrate a concept in science or social studies, rather than a traditional paper/pencil quiz? World language teachers and ESL/ELL teachers will love the chance for students to demonstrate written language skills in the “context” of their comic situations. |
At Home:
Why not make some comics together with your student. What better way to allow him/her to practice foreign language skills or send birthday party invitations via email. You might even convince a reluctant writer to send an email comic “thank you note” to grandparents. |
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Seashell Identification Guide Grade 2 to 10
- Seashells.com-
9270
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If students ever wonder exactly what seashells they managed to collect at the beach last summer, this is the site to use. Clear photos click to an even larger and distinct picture of many varieties. Along with the larger picture are the common name, scientific name, region found, and maximum size. Links on the page include more information about identifying shells, cleaning, preserving, and using as decorations.
In the Classroom:
Use this site as a kick-off when students return to write their "What I Did on my Summer Vacation" papers. If you're teaching research skills, this site is a good place to start, since it is highly visual but definitive. ESL and ELL students can independently use this site since the vocabulary is limited to names, regions, and sizes. Biology teachers can use this site as a reference when teaching about classification. |
At Home:
When your family returns from a trip to the beach, challenge your student to identify the seashells that you have collected. |
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Sheppard Software - Brain Games Grade 2 to 8
- Sheppard Software-
9182
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Brain Games offers a collection of over thirty interactive logic games, puzzles, music games, and more. Some specific topics include code breaking, coins, arithmetic, music notes, word scramble, and many others. There is even a card game version similar to “24.” All of the activities require Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
Introduce the website (or a specific activity) on an interactive whiteboard and then have students work in pairs to "try their hands" at the many activities. This website is perfect for gifted students looking for an extra challenge. This is a great link to provide to parents in a class newsletter or on your class website. |
At Home:
Be sure to save this link for some "brainy day" summer fun. Challenge your student to one of the many activities. |
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Digital Dialects Grade 2 to 12
- Craig Gibson-
9177
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Want to learn just a little or a lot of a new language? This is a great place to start learning vocabulary and basic phrases. The reviews and games are in cute interfaces, but there aren't many sound files. Since the description says the developer is adding more to the site each day, hopefully there will be more pronunciation added. The scope of the site is amazing: 44 languages. The languages include Albanian, Bosnian, English, Filipino, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, and MANY others. The sound files, few as they are, feature native speakers pronouncing the basics. The games allow the student learner to guess and practice as much as possible by presenting the same words several times. The advanced feature provides more advanced vocabulary and the geography features the geography of the language group. This site requires Flash. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
Try a few words in another language with your class as you study world geography and history! This site is especially useful in ESL, ELL, and world language classrooms. Have your students plan a pretend vacation and study a few words of the target language before they go. Ask students to go beyond the games by guessing the answers before they appear on the screen. |
At Home:
Is your family taking a vacation to a foreign country? If so, use this site to help your student familiarize him or herself with the native language. Or if you are just looking for something new and different to do as a family – choose a language to learn together. Speak the phrases during dinner. This is a great summer project idea! |
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Art Attack Grade 1 to 8
- The Media Merchants Television Co.-
9088
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As support to a TV show from the UK, this site offers hints on creating art and crafts with various media. It gives great directions for many easy but original art/craft projects, called Art Attacks. Every step of each project includes a photograph of the progression of the creation. There is a sharing gallery so that teachers can submit their students' creations, if they so choose. Some art attacks contain brief write ups about featured artists This site requires Flash. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
Quickly search this site for a unique but well-explained art or craft project to serve as a culminating activity a unit. Invite your students or a parent to share a favorite art activity by breaking it down into steps and photographing each step, thus creating your own "art attack." Share your "art attacks" on a class wiki as chance for students to practice writing sequenced directions. |
At Home:
Use this site to discover some creative summer (or rainy day) art projects! |
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Story Starters Grade K to 6
- Scholastic-
8904
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Type your name and choose your grade level (K-1, 2, 3, or 4-6). Then get ready for the wheel to spin! You can spin four wheels to get a very specific writing prompt. For example, Describe a vacation with a skinny cactus who loves country music. Each wheel produces a different part of the prompt. Each time the wheel spins, a new prompt is created. The prompts are created for the specified grade level and are highly creative. Be sure to check out the Teacher's Guide that offers learning objectives, specific lesson ideas, and printables.
Be warned: the "spinning" page has some rather loud audio sounds. Either turn up the volume and enjoy, or hit the mute button! This site requires Flash and Adobe Acrobat. You can get both from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
Whether you are looking for a daily prompt for your students, or individual prompts for writing stations, you will find some creative ideas here. Share how to use this site on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Set up writing stations and have students use this site to find their prompts. Use this site to differentiate for your gifted students by allowing them to choose a prompt at a higher grade level. List this link on your class website for some writing practice or extra credit writing exercises. |
At Home:
Encourage your budding author during school breaks with this unique story starter. |
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Grammarman Grade 5 to 12
- grammarman.com-
8854
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This online version of Asian-created Grammarman regularly appears in foreign newspapers. Before reading, students can click on each character under Bad Guys or Good Guys to get the character’s background. The people of "Verbo City" need help with grammar problems when Grammarman comes to their rescue. Both still and movie versions of the various episodes feature his triumphs over bad grammar. This site is a refreshing break from grammar exercises and quizzes for all students (ESL, ELL, special education, and in the regular classroom). Downloadable Grammarman Dominoes allow students to carry the characters in their pockets and play a game with each other. You may notice some slight spelling or vocabulary differences, because this website was created using British English. This site requires FLASH. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
What a fabulous grammar website to use with all students. Use your interactive whiteboard to share the "grammar story of the week." Challenge your students to find the grammar errors and help Grammarman "save the day." Use the free, downloadable templates to have students create their own Grammarman comics featuring their personal grammar "demons." Have another teacher judge the entries and allow the "winner" to wear the Grammarman "cape" for the week (or earn a homework pass). |
At Home:
Use this site during the summer or other breaks to reinforce grammar skills. |
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AlgebraLAB Grade 7 to 12
- Mainland High School-
8846
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AlgebraLAB highlights the connection between algebra (and many other math subjects) and science. Although this website may appear as an in-depth informational algebra site, there is A LOT more to explore! AlgebraLAB includes 10+ links to various topics: Lessons, Practice, Careers (how Algebra and science are used in countless careers), Directions (offers insight on how to use this site), Word Problems, Study Aids, a Glossary, and several others. Many activities are interactive. This site requires Windows Media Player. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
This informational site is a MUST HAVE in any secondary math class. Be certain to save this site in your favorites. The site highlights countless algebra topics (and other math areas). Share the information on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Share the link on your class website so students can access the site both in and out of the classroom. Have cooperative learning groups explore one of the topics presented at the lessons or activities link. Have the groups create a video to share what they learned. Share the videos on your interactive whiteboard or projector using a tool such as TeacherTube (explained here). Differentiate! You can easily find extension activities for your more-able students to do while you reinforce the basics with others. |
At Home:
If your secondary student is looking for some enrichment, advancement, or support in any of the math areas, be sure to check out this HUGE site together. |
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Grain Strain Grade 4 to 10
- sciencemuseum-
8832
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This interactive website challenges students to design a contraption that will catch 50 pieces of grain. There is a chain that drops the grain, and a bucket at the bottom of the screen. Students have their choice of 5-6 chains running in various directions. What a fabulous way to integrate science, math, creativity, and problem solving. This site requires FLASH. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page. NOTE: this British science museum is very popular. The site opens slowly at certain times of the school day and evening in Britain.
In the Classroom:
This is a wonderful website to incorporate into a science unit about levers, gears, and simple machines. Or use this website as a mind stretcher for the entire class.
Share this creative website on an interactive whiteboard (or projector). Be sure to turn up the volume, students will enjoy the background music and sounds provided at this website.(You may end up turning it OFF after a while, too!). Or have students work in pairs on laptops to solve a level and analyze their success, including drawing and labeling the parts of their machine. |
At Home:
Enjoy a challenge together with your young engineer. You may find that age has no connection to mechanical ability! |
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Sound Junction Grade 3 to 12
- Associated Board of the Royal School of Music (UK)-
8582
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Want to know how music is really put together? Do you love exploring and creating different sounds? You don't need to be a music teacher (or teacher of gifted and talented) to appreciate this site, but if you are one, you will want to mark this as a Favorite immediately. As the site says itself, "You can take music apart and find out how it works, create music yourself, find out how other people make music and how they perform it, you can find out about musical instruments, and look at the backgrounds to different musical styles."
Interact with musical instruments or create your own music and share your composition with others on the web. Lively, crisp sounds echo from this site so use your best musical "ear." Teachers can find many ways to collaborate with others around the world by clicking "Find music teaching resources," an area that even includes Sound Junction activities created by other teachers. Free membership allows you to save music you create and save your "journey" through the site's tools so you can retrace your steps another day. If high school music students are allowed to use personal accounts, they can create music individually or in small groups. Even working together as a class is a remarkable experience from beginner to professional level. This site requires Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
Be sure to hook up speakers or headphones to share in class. Music teachers who have access to an interactive whiteboard or projector can enjoy composing music together with the whole class, then posting to the web for the school community to enjoy. Elementary students will develop a better "ear" just from the Music Explorer which will "feature" different voices from within a piece of music. Both Explorer and Composer require a "Sequence Xtra" plug-in (offered for free download). Teachers of gifted will want to share this resource with their talented musicians. There is so much in this site it could take months to discover it all. |
At Home:
If your student has a love for music, explore this site together on a rainy Saturday or during the summer! Turn up the volume. |
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VoiceThread Grade K to 12
- VoiceThread-
8315
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TeachersFirst Edge entry: for moderately adventurous technology users. Voicethread allows you to upload images (from your digital camera, scanner, or even paint program), then allow students to record their own comments and/or narration about the images. Other listeners can "comment" back, as well. TeachersFirst is providing the link to the VoiceThread home page but suggests that you first watch this quick explanation about two types of FREE educator memberships being offered for classroom teachers (one completely free, the other after a one time fee of $10...so "sort of" free). You can click to go to the home page from there. Access to the ed.voicethread site (as opposed to www.voicethread)is restricted to grades K-12 students, educators, and administrators.
VoiceThread explains how to set up a classroom account and has some ideas for classroom use, as well. Ideas from the TeachersFirst Edge review team are listed below, under "In the classroom."
This site requires FLASH. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
Skills needed: join the site (free). You will be logged into your account immediately after you fill in the registration form. Watch the "One Minute Voicethread" to get a very quick overview of how easy it is to create a digital story. Set up student identities. You will want to "Browse" some Voicethreads to get an idea how they work. Use first names only. You need to know how to locate and upload saved pictures. You WILL need a microphone, either plugged into your computer or built in. They can be purchased for less than $10 at a discount or electronics store. Once you create a Voicethread, it can be shared by copying the URL and sending it via email or other means, inviting others to comment back. You can also decide whether you wish to allow comments and whether these comments will be moderated by you.
Of course, you should be sure that you have the RIGHTS to any images you upload. Fair Use does not apply when you put an image on the web!
Safety/security: TeachersFirst recommends that you explain the VoiceThread projects via a note sent home and obtain parent permission to post student work to the web, even anonymously. Then invite parents to share in the results (The VoiceThread classroom page tells you more about this). TeachersFirst does not recommend using actual, identifiable pictures of children. Let them draw a picture or take a digital picture of an object that somehow represents them (middle schoolers will love that idea!). If you allow others to "comment" on student Voicethreads, the experience can be both wonderful and a bit intimidating. Use this opportunity to promote ethical and kind interaction with other students and their projects.
Possible uses: Elementary classes can create or take pictures, then ask each child to talk about the images. Each child can comment on the SAME pictures, creating a collaborative collection of responses. After a field trip or special class event, you can assign groups of students to explain each of the digital pictures you took and how they relate to curriculum topics. In art class, students can critique works of their own or of fellow students. In language arts classes, students can scan and comment on writing pieces as part of a reflective phase of the writing process. Or post an image as a prewriting activity and allow students to respond orally in an idea-generating phase. In social studies, have students provide a picture of a grandparent then narrate what they learned about that grandparent from interviewing him/her. Have students create narrated pictures as gifts (for parents or other care givers) for special occasions, winter holidays, Thanksgiving, Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, Father's Day, etc.. During a science experiment or demo, have a student take pictures of the steps. Then ask students to "narrate" them by commenting on what is happening. The narration assignment could even be a center activity or an assignment on a few classroom computers for students to rotate through. What a great way to review and apply key vocabulary! Be sure they identify their voices if you are using a single class account and want to be able to assess understanding. Other ideas: narrated local history projects (pictures of local sites), audio "museum tours" of artifacts (photos) or war veterans telling their stories along with images of their uniforms or old photos. Speech/language, ESL/ELL or early childhood teachers could use this tool to promote vocabulary development and oral expression.
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At Home:
Upload family pictures and ask your children to narrate about them. Include everyday events as well as special occasions and vacations! |
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Montage-a-Google Grade K to 12
- Grant Robinson-
8226
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Visual thinking and verbal flexibility come together in this clever site. SEE the power of words and their multiple meanings using this simple online tool. Enter a search term, as you would in Google, and click to see a montage of images that match your term. For example, if you enter "apple," you may see pictures of the fruit, a pie, and a computer...among a montage of 20 "apple" images. Why bother? Help your students build flexible thinking by letting them SEE the many ways one word or phrase can be "read." Whether reading, writing, or listening, they will start to see language in more dimensions and be more aware of their own vocabulary. Art teachers will love the visual display of plays on words.
If you teach about effective web searching, this site will SHOW the importance of word choice quite graphically!
This site requires FLASH. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.. Click "Launch Project" to start the game.
In the Classroom:
Project this tool or use an interactive whiteboard to create a visual anticipatory set/activator for ANY term you plan to teach that day. As you introduce new vocabulary before reading, use this as one of your ways to build background before reading. In art class, demonstrate this tool, then ask your students to create their own drawing or photomontages for a word they think of...and ask others to guess it. Warning: this site is addictive. Make the link available on your teacher web page for student to use at every available moment, both at home and at school.
Once you are good at Montage-a-Google, try the reverse guessing game, Guess-the-Google, with your class. |
At Home:
This is an excellent rainy day or summer break activity to try with your student. |
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The Hunt Grade 4 to 12
- ThanksUSA-
8110
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ThanksUSA is a site dedicated to raising money to support the families of those serving in the armed forces. The centerpiece of the site is a virtual treasure hunt focused on the history of the United States. Each year there is a new theme. This year the focus in on the histories of Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, Georgia, Maryland, Montana, North Dakota, Oregon, and Rhode Island, along with the histories of the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Marine Corps and the history of ThanksUSA. There are crosswords, wordokus, word searches, kakuros, anagrams and more at the end of each chapter as you try to unlock that chapter's treasure chest. Although the site requires registration to access the treasure hunt (FREE), the game can be played on line, or by downloading materials and printing them out. This site requires Flash and Adobe Acrobat. Get both from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
The long term nature of the treasure hunt would make this a good enrichment activity or extra credit project for students. Alteratively, the class could act as a team and undertake one chapter at a time as an ongoing project. The project might also make a good summer enrichment opportunity for students, be good for home schools, or work well with summer day camp groups.
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At Home:
Suggest this competition for your bored middle schooler during the summer. It is much better than a video game! And there are PRIZES. |
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Logic and Reasoning Games Grade K to 12
- Math Playground-
7785
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Use this website to "clear out the cobwebs" in your students' minds. The site offers several interactive logic activities. Many require no reading. A few examples include Tetris, Rubik's Cube, Sliders, Towers and more. All activities require JAVA and FLASH. You can get both from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
Use one of these on an interactive whiteboard as a brain warm-up at the beginning of class or as student enter the room. If you have a difficult group in a study hall, this site could keep them busy in a positive way. Substitutes will also love it! Include this link in your class's newsletter, classroom computer, or teacher web page for extra challenges and enrichment. Teachers of gifted can challenge their students to write "how to" directions for how to solve these puzzles, once they have figured them out! |
At Home:
Try these games with your students. Even adults will find many of them to be a challenge! |
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DinoDictionary.com Grade K to 4
- Arts and Letters Corp.-
7771
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For the avid dinosaur lover! Students can look up any dinosaur in this user-friendly dinosaur dictionary. Do not forget to listen to the dinosaur talk...and give a brief description of itself as well as the appropriate way to pronounce each individual dinosaur name. This site requires Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
Share this link on your teacher web page during a unit on dinosaurs or for your dino-maniacs to explore for enrichment during school breaks. You could also use it as a source for student research; even non-readers can learn using the audio self-profiles. Play a dino sound file for your students as a listening activity! |
At Home:
If your student just "digs dinosaurs" check out this site together! |
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TogetheRead Grade K to 12
- TeachersAndFamilies.com-
7198
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Share family reading and activities around a monthly theme using this outstanding series by our partner site, TeachersAndFamilies. Interwoven into each TogetheRead theme are questions and activities based on reading strategies for effective readers. Parents and children of all ages can select books from the annotated lists, read together, and do related free or low-cost activities. Written in language understandable to parents and without education "jargon" so familiar to teachers, these themes will help any child become a a better reader and enjoy sharing family time. Books are grouped into "bands": preschool/picture books, early elementary, upper elementary to middle school, upper middle school to young adult, and mature teen to adult books. Activities accompany each age group, and participants can contribute their own activity suggestions, as well.
Libraries, schools, parent organizations, and teachers will find free, downloadable materials to promote good reading and family time. They can also sign up to receive advanced notice of upcoming themes to be able to locate the books for their families. There is even an FAQ-style page to help parents get started. Sound reading strategies help EVERY child!
In the Classroom:
Share this link on your teacher web page or in a newsletter. You might even talk to your parent organization about promoting TogetheReads as a whole-school activity. Maybe even host a TogetheRead family evening in the gym or library. |
At Home:
This is a sure winner for you and your family, for parents, students, and extended family of all ages. Why not try this month's theme and even suggest some activities YOU think of! This is a great summer resource. |
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Mysteries of Apo Island Grade 6 to 9
- Shedd Aquarium-
7154
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While on a scuba diving vacation in the Philippines, something attacks the propeller of your boat. Students will use critical thinking skills to solve the mystery as they visit places on Apo Island and collect clues in their interactive notebook. Analyze the collected clues and present the solution to a marine biologist to find out if it is correct. Continue on your tour to learn more about shark biodiversity. Note: Students should have some prior knowledge about sharks before trying to solve the mysteries on this site. This site requires Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
To encourage peer collaboration, pair students to solve the mysteries. Then bring the class together to discuss their notebook entries and how they reached their conclusions. |
At Home:
During summer break (or a rainy Saturday), check out this site together with your student. |
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Analytical Problems And Puzzles Grade 3 to 12
- folj.com-
6853
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This very simple site, created by an anonymous puzzle-lover, is a treasury for logic problems and lateral thinking puzzles to use in your classroom or beyond. Click on the puzzle type you want. Use them as brain warm-ups in a math or science class before venturing into problem-solving or inquiry process or simply to engage the brains before starting any activity. There are different levels of logic and different types of lateral thinking puzzles, each with a hint before revealing the complete answer. These puzzles would also be useful for gifted enrichment.
In the Classroom:
If you don't have time to spend on these in class as often as you would like, print out a single lateral thinking or logic problem each week for your bulletin board and let the students argue about it all week. Or include this link on your teacher website for the students to access outside of class. This site is a life-saver for your study hall the day before a vacation! |
At Home:
Try a puzzle together with your child to develop better thinking skills and have fun together. Take some in the car or airport for long trips! |
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Starfall Grade K to 3
- Starfall Education-
6711
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Find interactive reading activities for emergent/beginning readers at Starfall. It combines instruction in letter-sound relationships, word recognition skills, and reading comprehension strategies. The site also includes scope and sequence and a section to download worksheets and journals for additional practice of skills introduced. Seasonal activities can also be found on the main page. The four "levels" of reading at Starfall include "ABCs," "Learn to Read," "It's Fun to Read," and "I am Reading." Many of the interactives require Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
This website could be used for an entire class using your interactive whiteboard or projector. You could also set up a learning center for use during your L.A. block. Use this site to differentiate reading levels for your students. Be certain to save this site in your class favorites and list this site on your class website for students to access both in and out of the classroom. |
At Home:
Practice basic reading skills for beginning readers at home with your student, especially if a teacher has suggested that extra practice might be helpful. Remember to make it FUN, and make your time together at the computer something you both look forward to as "together time," not "work." Later sit together and read a story or the newspaper comics together! Never spend more than 20 minutes on computer learning games with young children. They need to get up and move. |
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Grow Up Reading Grade K to 3
- West Bloomfield Township Public Library-
6570
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This Web site, developed by a public library, is filled with excellent information on instilling a joy of reading in young children. Includes helpful book suggestions, book selection tips, and a list of do's and don'ts when reading aloud.
In the Classroom:
Keep your primary students interested in reading even during summer vacation by sharing this resource with parents before the end of the year. |
At Home:
Try these ideas with your young elementary child to promote reading at home. |
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Shel Silverstein's Official Website Grade K to 6
- Shel Silverstein; Harper Publishers-
6550
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Shel Silverstein’s outside-the-box style of poetry has delighted students for years. Now, his website extends that wacky literacy to another medium and level. You may be tempted at most sites to skip the intro. Don’t skip Shel’s. Familiar entities walk across your screen welcoming you. Screen Savers, animated Shel-creature-people to enjoy, reproducibles, and more await your enjoyment. Click on Poetry Month to find more activities and games that you can use during April. Your students will chuckle at Shel’s own reading and lively animation of several of his poems. This is a site to explore with your class. This site requires Flash. Some of the reproducible pages require Adobe Acrobat. You can get both from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..
In the Classroom:
Take your students on this language-rich adventure using an interactive whiteboard or projector. Mark your calendar now to visit this site during April, when Poetry Month is celebrated. Download your free poetry kit from the poetry month link. Of course, Shel Silverstein’s whimsical and slightly dark humor can be enjoyed any month. There is a link for Teachers and Parents with lesson ideas, printables, and more. This is a great site to share with parents and students for summer breaks. |
At Home:
Visit the Ideas for Teachers & Parents link to find some entertaining poetry activities to do as a family. |
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Kidscamps.com Grade K to 12
- -
5129
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This comprehensive directory lists thousands of summer learning opportunities for kids of all ages. Day and overnight camp choices include those focusing on sports, special needs, family, self-improvement, arts, adventure, and academics. The site also includes advice for parents about selecting, paying, and packing for summer camp.
In the Classroom:
Provide this link on your class website during the Spring. |
At Home:
Looking for some fun, exciting, and educational camps for your student? Check out this site for some fresh ideas. |
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Summer Activities: Making the Most of Family Time Grade K to 12
- Donna Warner Manczak, Ph.D., M.P.H.-
4345
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Although this site is "plain vanilla" it does offer some creative family activity ideas. Here are some great ways older elementary school children can keep occupied over the summer break. These could be used as family activities or as special ways siblings can work together.
In the Classroom:
Share this site with your students (and families) on your class website. These are some excellent ideas to use during those long summer days. |
At Home:
Looking for some rainy day fun during the summer (or any other day of the year)? Be sure to take pictures of the activities to remember your special days. Maybe even create an online book using a tool such as Tikatok (reviewed here). |
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Summer Home Learning Recipes Grade K to 3
- US Department of Education-
4328
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Make this summer one of discovery, family fun and painless learning. Try these ideas offered by the Department of Education for place to start the summer days rolling. We only wish there were even more.
In the Classroom:
Share this link on your class website (or end of your newsletter) for families to use during those long summer days. |
At Home:
Have each of your students choose a family activity to try on a rainy day. Create fun family memories together. |
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100 Best Books Grade K to 12
- TeachersFirst-
4096
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TeachersFirst offers a listing of 100 of the best books for children, along with links to TeachersFirst's content about some of those books. Check out this list for some new literature ideas!
In the Classroom:
This is a great starting point for reluctant readers. Provide this list (or link) to parents to use during the summer months to help with the "I'm bored" days. |
At Home:
Try using this list to find good books your student will love. |
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Johns Hopkins University CTY Program Grade 2 to 12
- The Johns Hopkins University-
3496
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Created by the Institute for the Academic Advancement of Youth at the Johns Hopkins University, this site contains comprehensive information for teachers of gifted students in upper elementary grades through middle school. Highlights include information about summer programs for students in grades 2-12, summer employment opportunities for elementary and middle school teachers interested in becoming involved in CTY summer programs, the CTY talent search, student application information, ability and achievement testing, recommended publications and resources, and available services for interested schools and teachers.
In the Classroom:
Share this link with your parents of gifted students. |
At Home:
Check out this site for some creative summer opportunities for gifted students. |
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Johnnie's Story Page Grade K to 12
- Johnnie Wilson-
3359
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This website offers a compilation of links to interactive stories designed in the categories of Beginning Readers, Classic Stories, and Older Readers. The site was created by Johnnie Wilson, a mentor math coach and former 5th grade teacher. He has found the "best of the best" interactive stories and activities on the web! The reading levels vary, so preview the stories before sharing them with your students. This site does require Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
What a fabulous way to share classic stories, fables, fairy tales, and myths! Use your interactive whiteboard or projector to introduce your students to these wonderful stories. Use this website in your language arts classes, special education classes, with your ESL and ELL students to share these classic stories, or the other topics provided. Challenge your gifted students to create new "classics." Have students investigate the sites on their own (using headsets). Save this site as a favorite on your classroom computers. With elementary students use this site during your language arts block, use this website as a learning center for students to explore independently. (Be sure to provide headsets). Don't forget to list this link in your class newsletter or on your class website, so students can practice their reading skills at home or maintain skills during vacations. |
At Home:
Wow - if you are looking for ways to enhance, enrich, and advance your students' reading skills.. you have found your answer. Use these FREE interactives and online stories together with your student. During summer break, challenge your student to create their own "classic." |
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Johnnie's Math Page Grade K to 8
- Johnnie Wilson-
1737
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This site offers links to "The Best Math." Subject areas include numbers, geometry, fractions, multiplication, math fun, measurement, statistics, and probability. This collection of nearly 100 interactive math activities was organized by a math specialist (Johnnie Wilson, a former 5th grade teacher). What a fabulous resource for any elementary or middle school math class. All of the activities are interactive and require FLASH or JAVA. You can get both from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom:
What a fantastic website to include in your classroom web page and newsletter. All of these activities are perfect for an interactive whiteboard or projector. This is an excellent resource for gifted students. The activities could also be used for enrichment, additional practice, and re-teaching skills. So turn up the volume and treat your class to a math and/or mind-bending challenge. |
At Home:
Save this site in your favorites on your home computer. It provides HOURS of math practice that is educational and entertaining! Try a different topic area each week during the summer. |
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Digger and the Gang Grade K to 6
- BBC-
1629
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This site offers an eclectic mix of topics (and interactives) divided up by age level. All ages include science, math, language arts, music, art, and more! Ages 5-7 will enjoy Nash's Adventures: spelling, counting, sinking and floating interactives, and more. For ages 7-9, there is Flick's Adventure. This exciting "adventure" includes several interactives, many revolving around "adventures" (through a haunted house, riding a roller coaster, and walking up a mountain). Sprat's Adventures offers interactives and more for ages 9-11. The activities takes students virtually to a museum, a circus, and outer space! In addition to the numerous interactive activities, there are also printable pages, comics, songs, e-cards, and more. Attention Teachers - there is a link with lesson plans, printable pages, lesson ideas, and more available if you click on Home and then Teachers . Be aware, since this site was created by the BBC, you may notice some slight spelling and language differences. Nearly all of these activities require Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..
In the Classroom:
This site can easily be differentiated using the specific age ranges provided. Use this site to differentiate for your special education, ESL, or ELL students.
Be sure to visit the Teachers Link for some excellent ideas. All of the activities are perfect for learning stations, individual computers, or on an interactive whiteboard or projection screen. The offerings available are so diverse, that this website could be used throughout several language arts, math, science, art, and music lessons. Feature this website in your class newsletter or on your website so students can practice these educational activities at home. |
At Home:
Take advantage of these FREE and FUN educational resources. Sit down together with your student and go through the various exciting adventures. This is a perfect site to use to keep learning through the summer! |
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Savings Quest Game Grade 5 to 9
- A.G. Edwards-
1096
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This practical and inventive website presents students with a fictional budget. Students can choose their "character" and career. Then students choose the type of living space they wish to rent, what short term goal they would like to save towards (for example, a new computer or vacation), how much money they need each month for entertainment and food, and other NEEDS or WANTS. Students are also presented with the choice of 4 careers (Copy Editor, Accountant, Detective, or Archaeologist). After students have made their choices, the game of "Life" begins. Students are presented with their monthly work task (for example the copy editor needs to correct everyday grammar mistakes). This continues for six months, as students work towards their short term savings goal. The career choices turn this website into an opportunity for grammar, math, science, and geography practice. This website does require Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..
In the Classroom:
This website offers a fabulous resource for some "real-life" math practice. Have students work on individual computers, while you display the introduction on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Have students share their short-term goals. Allow students time to work independently at this website (and at their "jobs")using a classroom computer cluster, laptops, or a lab . Once students have completed the 6-month assignment (which takes approximately 15-20 minutes), see how many students have reached their goals. Discuss what "life" dealt the students, how they could have saved more money, and how they could budget better for the future. Extend the project by having them create spreadsheets for a mythical budget with a job they find in the local newspaper. |
At Home:
Have fun sharing the realities of the working world with your middle schooler using this activity. |
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