TeachersFirst: Week of August 9, 2009

Featured Sites - Week of August 9, 2009

RSS feed with this page.

Here are this week's features. Clicking the "more resources like this" link below each listing will present a list of our most recent additions for the same subject area and grade level .

Write Rhymes - Grades 1 - 12 - permalink
Need a rhyming word for those lyrics or poems? Simply type in your poem at this site. When a rhyme is needed, hold the Alt or Option (MAC) key over the word and click on the specific word that you want to rhyme, and a window of rhyme possibilities appears. Students may print their poetry, or, they may opt to save their typed creations to their own Word files. The site is simple, but it sure beats digging through a rhyming dictionary. Some of the words are difficult to read due to the background graphics. 10130

In the Classroom:
Demonstrate this site having volunteers share their poetry on your interactive whiteboard or projector. For advanced poets studying meter, discussing the multiple syllable options makes the task easier. You can also use this site as you teach common letter combinations and sounds with beginning readers. Enter a simple word such as “fish” or “bat” and Alt-click or Option-click for dozens of rhyming words to read aloud with a small group at your interactive whiteboard.

For similar resources, click the appropriate keyword: Poetry | rhyme | meter | poems |

Bubbabrain - Grades 0 - 12 - permalink
Looking for interactive review activities for your subject area? Use Bubbabrain's vast array of activities created for many levels and subjects. Registration is not required to play. When Game ID is checked (this is the automatic default for the site,) you choose a level ranging from Elementary to College (be sure to click the circle in the appropriate grade level) and then choose a subject area from the drop down box at your level. Subject areas vary by grade level and may include: telling time, government, family and consumer science, world languages, sociology, technology, and countless others.

Click the "Go" button to start your activity. Click on the correct answer to the question and then a new question appears. Prompts to try again appear if the answer is wrong and a percent right appears on your screen as you progress. Click on the teacher's link in the upper right hand corner for more information on becoming registered. Once registered, teachers can create their own games for the site. Your teacher ID can be entered by students to access created games. 10152

In the Classroom:
Use these activities for review of concepts or terminology with your class on specific topics/subjects. Wish there were a review game for a missing topic? Request a teacher ID, and have groups of students create the questions. Enter the information for the game and students can review by playing their game or one created by another group. Share the student-created games on your interactive whiteboard or projector.

Graph sketch - Grades 9 - 12 - permalink
Need a simple way to graph equations? Enter an equation (up to six per graph,) choose some settings, and graph it. There are a number of functions you can use to plot with examples for formatting. Save the graphs to use later in your documents or worksheets. Create a permanent link to share them with others. Ability to format equations for use with this graph is needed, but some examples are given. Easily change the settings of the graph and few common functions for formatting. 10158

In the Classroom:
Demonstrate how to use this site on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Use as a simple graphing calculator for all students. Students can verify math rules through the use of graphing of various equations. Be sure to list this site on your class website for students to access outside of the classroom!

For similar resources, click the appropriate keyword: graphing calculator | equations |

PBS Kids Internet License - Grades 1 - 5 - permalink
This simple site introduces your students to key internet-related terminology and safety issues. To get started, have students type their name (first name only) into the text box and click “drive.” Next, simply click on one of the items in the circular web (i.e. privacy policy, be nice, meeting people, downloading, c is for cookies, passwords, and several others).. Answer the question by clicking in the circle. The correct answer is displayed as well as a definition of that term or process. In the same fashion, click on all the other terms. When finished, a gender-correct license will be ‘issued.’ Simply print out the license for your student to show they ‘know’ safety features and terms of the internet. 10128

In the Classroom:
At the beginning of the year, make this an introductory computer-use lesson for elementary students. Introduce the site on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Then have students navigate the site on individual computers or set-up a learning station.

Set a classroom goal for 100% of the students to gain a license. Post the licenses on a bulletin board that highlights internet safety. Invite your computer lab teacher to address internet safety before passing out the ‘licenses.’ See if students can come up with additional internet safety guidelines.

For similar resources, click the appropriate keyword: Internet safety | computer terminology | cyber bullying |

Real Clear Politics - Grades 9 - 12 - permalink
If you are a politics geek, this site will occupy you for hours! "Real Clear Politics" is a collection of video clips, editorials, blog postings, and news stories on current politics. The site strives to capture both the left and the right, and "everything in between" and carries the full range from Limbaugh to Olbermann; from the Wall Street Journal to the Nation. If you and your students don't have time to catch all the evening commentary programs, read half a dozen papers, and search the blogsphere for facts and opinion (and who does?) this site might be a great place to start each day. Stories are categorized by date and by topic and there is a link to video content.

10118

In the Classroom:
Make this site available in Favorites on your classroom computer for students to refer to often when they have questions about current events or politics or build deeper understanding. You may also want to list this link on your class website or wiki, so students can access the page both in and out of the class. Consider using the site as an icebreaker at the beginning of a class: pick one of the polls or short video clips (share it on your interactive whiteboard or projector) and discuss. Use the site to demonstrate how to negotiate the partisanship in political reporting on television and to teach students about how political bias affects the tenor of the conversation about current events. After doing research, have cooperative learning groups create podcasts or video commercials highlighting a recent event or political figure. Create FREE podcasts using a site such as PodOmatic (reviewed here). Share student-made videos on a site such as Teachers.TV reviewed here.

Online Exhibitions--National Library of Australia - Grades 6 - 12 - permalink
Whether you are a native of Australia, or are looking for online resources related to Australia, the National Library's site may be valuable. Each of the online exhibitions is beautifully presented, and could be used as a complement to a lesson on an interactive whiteboard or projector. The exhibitions are grouped by category (People, Places, Arts and Culture, and online Collections) and cover a wide range of topics (Bunyips, country and landscapes, numerous famous people, fashion, historical information, and more). There are links to past exhibitions and future exhibitions. 10121

In the Classroom:
For those in classrooms outside Australia (or already living “Down Under”), save this site in your favorites as part of resources on other countries; students doing projects on "the land down under" will find valuable information here. Those in Australia can use this information in teaching about the country's history and culture. Have cooperative learning groups research specific areas of this site. Then have the groups share what they learned by creating online books using a tool such as Bookemon, reviewed here.

For similar resources, click the appropriate keyword: Australia | Australian culture | Oceania | bunyips |

New Year's Resolutions - Grades 4 - 12 - permalink
HAPPY NEW YEAR! Come to this site to find some word puzzles, writing exercises, a wordbank with 20+ words, class activities, and more. Several of the puzzles are printable. This site does have some minor advertisements. 9908

In the Classroom:
Share these word puzzles on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Have students create word puzzles about their own New Year's resolutions. Share the resolutions and word puzzles on a class wiki. This site could even be useful at the beginning of the school year (New School-Year Resolutions)!

For similar resources, click the appropriate keyword: new years resolutions | New Years | first day |

Science News for Kids - Grades 3 - 12 - permalink
Search news articles about various topics such as "Agriculture," "Animals," "Chemistry and Materials," "Finding the Past," and many other topics. Featured articles and pictures can be found on the front page in a section titled "The Weekly Scoop" and "Science Snapshots." View other pages in the site including "Puzzle Zone," "Game Zone," "SciFi Zone," SciFair Zone," and "Lab Zone." Click on the "Teacher Zone" to access question sheets, resources, and websites for classroom use. Some ads run along the sides of this site. 10157

In the Classroom:
Use Science News for Kids as a great reading and reporting assignment. Students can find an area and article of interest to read, summarize, and report to the class. Have students create commercials about their topics. Video and share using a site such as SchoolTube reviewed here. Students can use these news articles to find additional relevant information on the internet. Students may find these topics to be great self-study topics. Use the question sheets when assigning articles for class reading as a guided inquiry. Teach reading comprehension using these factual articles on your interactive whiteboard, asking students to highlight key words and generate a “main idea” sentence using them.

Bab.la - Grades 0 - 12 - permalink
Need to translate words or phrases into another language? Use this free and easy to use site for translations. in various languages (Spanish, Chinese, Turkish, Russian, Romanian, Portuguese, Polish, Korean, Japanese, Italian, Hindi, German, and French). View dictionaries that exist between languages, hear audio of the translations, take quizzes, or try language games. Students can play language activities such as hangman, scrambled words, memorize, or match it, as well. Customize each game by clicking "change" next to the "settings." Choose different languages, ease of play, and categories of words. 10156

In the Classroom:
Use this translator for understanding foreign words or how words compare between different languages. Use this in a world cultures class when looking at other cultures and to learn or use basics of their language. Have students create online books defining newly discovered words (in other languages). Use an online book making tool such as Bookemon reviewed here.

Arty the Part-time Astronaut - Grades 0 - 8 - permalink
Travel the solar system and explore using this colorful site. Choose from great missions such as "Travel the Solar system," "Space-pedia," "Space Shuttle," "A Flying Machine," "Comets," "Global Weather," and many others. (There are several pages, so don’t miss the arrows to check the others). Students can select a username from lists of Titles, first, and last names or have the name machine select one for them. View each mission for information about the topic and examples to choose from. Audio levels are easily controlled along the top right part of the screen. 10154

In the Classroom:
Share this site on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Better yet, have students explore the site on individual computers. Be sure to remember the headsets! Use the missions for students to identify basic concepts to bring back to small group or class discussions. Students can use this information as springboards for further discussions or the start of new group or class projects.

Find a Book - Grades 1 - 12 - permalink
This site allows teachers and students to go through four simple steps to find a book that has a lexile rating. The steps include entering a lexile range (if unknown: enter grade level and ease of reading), interests (similar to a keyword search), search of all items that come up, and list-making.

One disadvantage of the site is that you can only enter a keyword when you get to the third step. After a book list based on interests appears, then you can search by keyword to make the search zero in on specifics. When teachers or students select books for a reading list, they can then click to see the complete list of books they have selected. Clicking on a book title leads to another screen, but it does not contain a book summary; instead, it has a list of other keywords for the book along with other book data. 10138

In the Classroom:
This site is great for teachers searching for books at specific lexile levels. Learning support and ESL/ELL teachers can find books to accompany units in content area classes but on the correct lexile level. Students can also use the site by entering their grade levels and what kind of readers they are. Use this site to differentiate the learning experience for all levels of students. Rather than having students complete traditional book reports, why not have them complete a multimedia project? Provide some choices such as a podcast, using PodoMatic (reviewed here), interactive venn diagram comparing characters (reviewed here), or online book using Bookemon (reviewed here).

For similar resources, click the appropriate keyword: lexile levels | grade levels | book lists |

Want to see what else we've been up to? Check out our recent additions.