TeachersFirst - Featured Sites: Week of Dec 6, 2015

Here are this week's features. Clicking the tags in the description area of each listing will present a list of other resources with this topic. | Click here to return to the Featured Sites Archive

 

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Kid World Citizen - Becky Morales

Grades
K to 6
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Kid World Citizen offers a large variety of resources to encourage kids to become global learners and thinkers. Explore categories such as books, food, and art to find international...more
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Kid World Citizen offers a large variety of resources to encourage kids to become global learners and thinkers. Explore categories such as books, food, and art to find international learning activities. Look for topics on specific countries using the map search. Be sure to check out the For Fun area with links to movies, music, games, and toys.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): back to school (62), chinese new year (5), christmas (37), cross cultural understanding (156), earth day (60), hanukkah (13), hispanic (28), holidays (159), italy (16), Juneteenth (22), mexico (29), native americans (91), ramadan (10), thanksgiving (24)

In the Classroom

Bookmark this site for use throughout the year when teaching about countries, holidays, and for cross-cultural literature resources. Choose a country to explore each month using resources found on the site. Learn about your students' backgrounds to find countries and regions to explore using activities on the site. Use an online tool such as Interactive Two Circle Venn Diagram, reviewed here, to compare and contrast your culture with that of a different country.

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America's Heritage: A History of Immigration - immigrationcouncil

Grades
6 to 12
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Explore America's History of Immigration through the thirty-two interactive events on this timeline beginning in 1492. Scroll the timeline bar to any area on the timeline to view events...more
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Explore America's History of Immigration through the thirty-two interactive events on this timeline beginning in 1492. Scroll the timeline bar to any area on the timeline to view events for that period. Click the arrows on each box to read more about that event.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): immigrants (33), immigration (64), timelines (47)

In the Classroom

Share this timeline on your interactive whiteboard as an introduction to your unit on immigration. You could show the history of immigration and discuss the U.S. as a nation of immigrants. Use a tool such as Thinkalong, reviewed here, for students to debate about this topic, or any hot topic. It is interesting to note that there are many more events for the most recent twenty-five years than there are for all the previous years. Use this as a starting point for students to research and find additional information to add. Have students transform their learning and create their own timelines (with music, photos, videos, and more) using Timeline JS, reviewed here.

Comments

This is a comprehensive, yet kid-friendly, overview of US immigration policy in an interactive timeline. It ends with an Executive Order in November 2014. I hope the Heritage foundation continues to update this resource. Patricia, NJ, Grades: 6 - 12

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TPS Teachers Network - Metropolitan State University of Denver

Grades
K to 12
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TPS Teachers Network is a social networking site for social studies and history teachers. The Library of Congress funded this as part of their Teaching With Primary Sources Program....more
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TPS Teachers Network is a social networking site for social studies and history teachers. The Library of Congress funded this as part of their Teaching With Primary Sources Program. Create an account to begin using features on the site (email and password required). Once enrolled, options include participating in a chat, adding friends, and searching using keywords. Use the search from the top right menu after logging in on the main page to find specific information topics such as primary source sets or political cartoons. Create albums on the site, including primary and secondary sources, and videos to easily share with students or fellow teachers. Be sure to check out the Help section by clicking the question mark at on the top menu bar when you first get started for Quick Tips to all sections of the site.

tag(s): bookmarks (47), primary sources (113), professional development (388), social networking (68), Teacher Utilities (146)

In the Classroom

Bookmark and save TPS Teachers Network as an excellent professional development and social networking site. Share with your colleagues to create your own professional learning network on the site. Create albums with primary sources for use throughout the year in one easy to find location.

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Mathematical Thinking for English Language Learners - Education Development Center, Inc

Grades
5 to 9
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Mathematical Thinking for English Language Learners contains 14 math tasks designed for middle school students. Each task includes five support tools: warm-ups, sentence starters &...more
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Mathematical Thinking for English Language Learners contains 14 math tasks designed for middle school students. Each task includes five support tools: warm-ups, sentence starters & frames, word chats, support notes, and a Spanish translation of the task. Tasks focus upon geometry concepts such as area and shapes. Download individual tasks in PDF format using the links provided.

tag(s): area (52), geometric shapes (135), measurement (125), rotation (3), tangrams (8)

In the Classroom

Although created for English Language Learners, take advantage of these geometric tasks for use with all students. Use the Sentence Starters and Story Frames as models for incorporating writing into any math lesson. If you are beginning the process of integrating technology, replace paper and pen by having students create blogs sharing their mathematical thinking and understanding using Tumblr, reviewed here. If you are teaching younger students and looking for an easy way to integrate technology and check for understanding, challenge your students to create a blog using Edublog, reviewed here.
 This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.

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Teaching World War I With The New York Times - New York Times/ Michael Gonchar

Grades
8 to 12
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Teaching World War I With The New York Times is a resource for teaching about World War I using historical articles and social media. The site offers topics paired with ...more
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Teaching World War I With The New York Times is a resource for teaching about World War I using historical articles and social media. The site offers topics paired with New York Times articles and slide shows for use in exploring the causes and effects of the war. Click on highlighted links to get access to all resources included on the site including Common Core Standards.

tag(s): europe (75), middle east (43), world war 1 (72)

In the Classroom

Take advantage of the free lesson plan for use in your World War I unit. Use this site to differentiate activities for students. Be sure to "mine" the links within the site for additional resources to add to your current lesson plans. Have students create online posters individually or together as a class using a tool such as Web Poster Wizard, reviewed here, or PicLits, reviewed here. Have students use Fakebook, reviewed here, to create a "fake" page similar in style to Facebook about a president, soldier, or family member during the time of World War I.
 This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.

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CS Unplugged - CS Education Research Group

Grades
4 to 12
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Find hands-on learning of computer science concepts (often without technology) with this collection of free learning activities including interactives and puzzles. All materials are...more
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Find hands-on learning of computer science concepts (often without technology) with this collection of free learning activities including interactives and puzzles. All materials are through Creative Commons licenses for easy copying, sharing, and personal adaptation. Download all activities for free in a book download or explore individual activities by topic, and then download in PDF format available in several languages. Other options include videos to view individually or by topic on activity pages. Topics covered include Binary numbers, Images Representation, Text Compression, Information Theory, Searching and Sorting Algorithms, Routing and Deadlocks, and Cryptography, among others. Also, check out the section for teachers under the Community tab. This section includes many additional resources and learning programs. The videos are in English, French, Swedish, Korean, and Chinese. If your district blocks YouTube, the videos may not be viewable.

tag(s): computational thinking (41), computers (105), cryptography (5), data (146)

In the Classroom

Make technology understandable and available to everyone, without the need to use technology. Use CS Unplugged as one of your STEM stations/centers during science lessons. Use CS Unplugged as an excellent resource for students who want to learn about computer science on their own. CS Unplugged is a great tool to share with students considering a major in computer science in college or wondering about computer careers. If you teach computer science courses, CS Unplugged could be useful for locating review materials to share with your students.
 This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.

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Banzai! - Banzai.com

Grades
2 to 12
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Teach real-world financial literacy using Banzai! Learn to prioritize spending by using simulations, interactives, and "choose-your-own-adventure" style situations. There are three...more
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Teach real-world financial literacy using Banzai! Learn to prioritize spending by using simulations, interactives, and "choose-your-own-adventure" style situations. There are three levels: Banzai Jr (grades 3-7), Banzai Teen (grades 6-12), and Banzai Plus (grades 9-12) all available in PDF format. Start the course with an assesment (pre-test) to determine your financial literacy. Then engage in real-life interactive situations covering balancing a budget and paying your cell phone bill, to paying for unexpected bills like car trouble. Student accounts receive free access to Banzai for life, allowing the opportunity to go back and review lessons at any time. After creating a teacher account, request the opportunity to receive the Life Scenario booklets for your class at no charge (this is dependent on funding from local financial organizations). If not available, print the booklets using the PDF download.

tag(s): financial literacy (91), game based learning (171)

In the Classroom

Banzai is an excellent resource for any financial literacy course, or for those who don't have financial literacy classes as an option for your school. Create your classroom account, and then provide students with a class code to sign in to their account. Create as many classes as you like then have students follow the curriculum including pre-tests, simulations of life scenarios, interactives, and post-tests. The Banzai tool grades it all. Set up student accounts and assign activities based on your state standards. Be sure to share Banzai on your class website for students to explore at home. Enhance student learning goals by having students reflect on their learning using a blogging tool such as Penzu, reviewed here. Banzai would work well for blended or remote learning since it works on any internet connected device, including tablets and smartphones at home.
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ZenPen - Tim Holman

Grades
2 to 12
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Block out all distractions and just start writing with ZenPen. Remove the instructions found on the page (just highlight and click delete). Begin writing without any visual elements...more
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Block out all distractions and just start writing with ZenPen. Remove the instructions found on the page (just highlight and click delete). Begin writing without any visual elements in the way. No registration is required! Highlight text and select options to add italics, bold text, or URLs. Use links on the left side of the page to change text and background colors to black and white, toggle to full screen, add a word count, or save work.

tag(s): editing (93), process writing (38), proofreading (21), writing (315)

In the Classroom

Use this simple tool with an interactive whiteboard or projector to demonstrate different writing techniques without any distractions. Create and save student writing projects such as short stories, poems, and reports. Create study guides before tests or directions for assignments. Have students write a progressive story where they each add a portion.

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Technovation Families - Iridescent

Grades
4 to 12
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Technovation Families: Curiosity Machine connects scientists and engineers with young people to help design and create projects together. Create an account to begin using features on...more
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Technovation Families: Curiosity Machine connects scientists and engineers with young people to help design and create projects together. Create an account to begin using features on the site. Discover challenges to build on your own, including categories such as aerospace, robotics, engineering, and more.See the menu on the left to see them all. Find inspiration by watching videos of scientists and engineers sharing their inventions. Share your finished projects as inspiration for other aspiring engineers and scientists.

tag(s): aeronautics (9), computers (105), design (82), engineering (117), gifted (64), inventors and inventions (71), makerspace (41), oceans (146), problem solving (225), robotics (22), STEM (259)

In the Classroom

Be sure to take advantage of the free educator units offered with membership. Share project ideas with students as ideas for a school science or engineering fair. Share this site with students interested in exploring careers in science or engineering. Encourage students to enhance their technology use and learning by using a visual blogging tool such as Telegra.ph, reviewed here. With Telegra.ph you just click on an icon to upload images from your computer, add a YouTube or Vimeo, or Twitter links (no registration required), to document their progress while completing projects. Have gifted students choose projects from the site to complete as enrichment within different learning units.
 This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.

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Noteflight - Noteflight, LLC

Grades
4 to 12
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Noteflight is an online music creating and sharing tool. Create your own music or view and listen to the works of other artists. After creating your account, click to begin ...more
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Noteflight is an online music creating and sharing tool. Create your own music or view and listen to the works of other artists. After creating your account, click to begin a New Score. Use the tools in the program to add notes, notation, and more to your composition. Be sure to check out the User Guide, Tutorial, and Reference Videos for full instructions on available features. Registration is not required to browse and listen to compositions shared by other site members. Noteflight works on all browsers and Safari Mobile iOS 6.1. The free plan allows you to create 10 scores. If your district blocks YouTube, the videos may not be viewable.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): musical instruments (45), musical notation (35)

In the Classroom

Share students' musical creations online! Demonstrate the art of composition while using Noteflight on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Explore different musical instruments and how they affect the tone and mood of the piece. During a multimedia presentation, have students create their own music. In Destination Imagination or Odyssey of the Mind, use your scores to showcase talent. In honoring multiple intelligences, highlight the students' with musical talent. While reading historical fiction novels, have students compose a song typical of that period with the commonly used instruments and style. Offer in your after school clubs for music, guitar, or band.

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