TeachersFirst: Resources for Parents of ESL/ELL Students

Resources for Parents of ESL/ELL Students

Share these web resources on your teacher web page or copy the printables to encourage parent involvement and help them know how best to support their students. Many of them are available in other languages.

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ESL Podcasts Grade 5 to 12 - Internet TESL Journal- 9192

This site offers a continually updated variety of podcasts on news subjects at a level appropriate for ESL and ELL students. A short description tells the subject of the podcast as well as other extras like quizzes, speakers, and creators or originators. Students and teachers can listen from the Internet or download to an MP3 player or local computer. A "Read the Web Page" link takes viewers to the news article or other special feature mentioned in the broadcast. Be certain to preview the podcasts that you plan to use in your class. Some are not appropriate for elementary students and young adolescents. This website requires Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

In the Classroom:
Use this page to listen to current events news in simple English. Play them on your speakers for an entire class or provide headphones for individual listening. Have the students try to write the main points of the podcast they listen to and then check their listening against the webpage with the original article. Special education teachers may want to use this resource as an adapted way for students to read and submit weekly current events articles. Mark this site as a favorite on your classroom computer so students can use it during their free time with headphones. Share the link on your teacher web pages for parents and students to access quickly from home, but be sure to suggest that parents of younger students monitor the topics for appropriateness.

ESL Teacher Handouts, Grammar Worksheets, and Printables Grade K to 12 - Using English.com- 6900

Find ESL Teacher Handouts, Grammar Worksheets, and Printables on this site. These will give you a quick source of easy-to-use handouts for instant extra practice with your ESL/ELL students. Parents may elso find the handouts helpful at home.

In the Classroom:
ESL/ELL teachers may want to share this source with regular classroom teachers and with parents to help provide students with extra practice. Some of your larning support students may benefit from them, as well. Don't forget to print the answer sheet, as well!

Literactive Grade K to 3 - Entertainment & Information Industries Ltd - 8891

This site assists beginning readers by providing screen sized, illustrated stories with limited rhyming vocabulary. You are required to go through a free registration. You can play rhyming games with the newly-learned words. The site also has a sections of stories for ESL and ELL students, guided reading for kindergarten students, downloadable traditional picture books, e-poetry, and many learning activities! Some of the topics of the learning activities include Match the Sounds, Sequence Game, and several others. This site requires Flash. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

In the Classroom:
Provide this link in your class newsletter and on your class website, so parents can reinforce the reading skills you are teaching their children in school. Share the activities link with your students on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Then have your students explore the activities with a partner on your classroom computer center or cluster.

English for All Grade 7 to 12 - US Department of Education- 8818

This multimedia online program allows teachers to set up English classes for ESL/ELL students from all language groups. The website includes online stories, accompanying print materials, videos, and optional videos and CDs for purchase. Teachers can set up this FREE program (including 20 lessons) for unlimited classes. Each lesson has vocabulary, a video, support work, listening requirements, grammar, and a test. Students go through a series of activities; results are reported back to the teacher. Videos are available as downloads or podcasts. Teacher guides are provided. This site requires Flash and Quicktime. Get them from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

In the Classroom:
Be sure to take advantage of this FREE website to help your ESL/ELL students improve their English. For older students, this program can help them prepare for the world of work. Some parents of ESL/ELL students may even appreciate the resource for their own learning. ESL teachers may want to share the site at an open house or conferences as a non-invasive way of drawing parents into the process.

KIDiddles Song Lyrics Grade K to 3 - KIDiddles - 8397

Find the lyrics to favorite children's songs, ready for you to share in the classroom. Many also have MIDI audio files with them for you to sing along. The indexing is well done with songs organized alphabetically by the first word of the song. There is also a subject index helpful for planning a lesson on a certain theme. You can also search by phrase and more (see the explanation of phrase searching as well as substring matching. Some songs include a suggestion how it might be used: dance, fingerplay, etc. Information about song origin, adaptation, and copyright information is available as well.

In the Classroom:
Turn up your speakers, then share this site with the school librarian and parents for great times using songs with fingerplays, dances, and other activities. Sing along as a center by finding a song to fit this week's classroom theme or invent your own class set of words to a familiar tune once your students know the original. Students can write verses, and the entire class create a chorus!

Use songs with elementary ESL/ELL students help perfect pronunciation, intonation, and memory of English phrases. Include this link on your teacher web page for parents to help speech or ESL/ELL students "sing along" at home.

Tips for Parents of Third Graders Grade 3 to 3 - Reading Rockets- 6818

Read the tips on this web page or download a single sheet of suggestions to make reading together fun and funny for parents and kids together, while encouraging the skills to make a lifelong reader. Teachers can download the tips for third grade in NINE languages in addition to English to print out and send home with your ESL/ELL students. Their parents will appreciate the opportunity to participate in their learning, and everyone wins. Printables require Acrobat Reader.

In the Classroom:
As students approach their first high-stakes testing, every little bit helps. Give these tips out at conferences, in backpacks, or as a link on your teacher web page.

Tips for Parents of Second Graders Grade 2 to 2 - Reading Rockets- 6817

Read this web page or download a single sheet of suggestions to make reading together fun and funny for parents and kids together, while encouraging the skills to make a lifelong reader. Teachers can download the tips for th in NINE languages in addition to English to print out and send home with your ESL/ELL students. Their parents will appreciate the opportunity to participate in their learning, and everyone wins. Printables require Acrobat Reader.

In the Classroom:
Bring in the parents to help prepare children for third grade reading testing by getting them involved. Send home the printable, give it out at conferences, and/or include the link on your teacher web page. Everyone will win!

Tips for Parents of First Graders Grade 1 to 1 - Reading Rockets- 6816

Read this web page or download a single sheet of suggestions to make reading together fun and funny for parents and kids together, while encouraging the skills to make a lifelong reader. Teachers can download the tips for first grade in NINE languages in addition to English to print out and send home with your ESL/ELL students. Their parents will appreciate the opportunity to participate in their learning, and everyone wins. Printables require Acrobat Reader.

In the Classroom:
Send these home in the backpack parade or include the link from your teacher web page (or both).

Tips for Parents of Kindergarteners Grade K to 0 - Reading Rockets- 6815

Read this web page or download a single sheet of suggestions to make reading together fun and funny, while encouraging the skills to make a lifelong reader. Teachers can download the tips in NINE languages in addition to English to print out and send home with your ESL/ELL students. Their parents will appreciate the opportunity to participate in their learning, and everyone wins. Printable require Acrobat Reader.

In the Classroom:
Send these home in the backpack parade or include the link from your teacher web page (or both).

Genki English Grade 1 to 5 - - 5708

This creative and extensive site designed for the ESL classroom is filled with games, songs, talking pages, and clever teaching ideas. There is quite a bit to explore, but be sure to check out the teacher and parent pages, before turning your students loose on the "Kids" link. Also available in Japanese.

Mrs. P.com Grade K to 9 - Mrs. P Enterprises, LLC- 9687

You almost want to toast marshmallows on the open fire as you cyber-curl under Mrs. P’s feet by the fireplace. No need to bring a book; she has quite a selection. This interactive site will thrill your eager readers for hours. Actress Kathy Kinney tells delightful intro stories and expertly reads the books. Best viewed on a high speed Internet connection, it’s a breeze to navigate. On the homepage, click on the various items around the warm room to find intriguing, sometimes outlandish, stories about Mrs. P. Extend the learning by clicking on the book on the stand to find a loaded dictionary. Play the Title game as an amusing way to listen to one-liners about the stories at this site. And… the reason we all want to stay in Mrs. P’s library is the book stacks themselves. Click on the stack to find a healthy assortment of stories to listen and view. When you choose a book, click on ‘options’ to turn on or off ‘show the words.’ Each book is rated for age-appropriateness. (The rating of A, B, C, and D is a bit confusing as they refer to age-level rather than a “grade” rating.) Keep an eye on this site for future improvements and enhancements. Not only will you be able to listen to the stories, but soon you will be able to purchase them via convenient download, as well. They will always be free to listen to online!

Warning: This is a beta product. Expect some glitches here and there, however, it appears to be nearly glitch-free as is. If you do find a problem, send a bug report as seen at the top of the screen. There are some hints available for turning on and off some features to make the site operate more smoothly if your connection speed is super-fast. Do NOT even try this one on a slow connection! This site requires Flash. Get it here TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

In the Classroom:
Teachers, check out the first link at the bottom on the homepage. Submit student stories and Mrs. P. may choose to read them on this site. Be sure to get parental consent before submitting any stories.

What a valuable tool for ESL and ELL students and teachers of emergent readers as students follow the words on the screen as Mrs. P. reads a story. Create a corner in your room to read stories the way Mrs. P. does! Use your first initial, let your imagination run wild, change your accent of course, and you can become another Mrs. P.

Be sure to share this treasure on your teacher web page for students (and parents) to access outside of class. You may find students become interested in some of those "old books" in the library!

Leading to Reading Grade K to 2 - Reading is Fundamental (RIF)- 10385

This interactive and chatty site from RIF shares activities for the preschool and early childhood set, including interactive books read aloud (see Preschoolers and click on "read"), book and activity ideas (see "grownups"), audio songs and nursery rhymes with the words on screen, and much more. The entire site is available in Spanish by clicking Español at the top right. The interactive books then display with BOTH English and Spanish available! Many classic activities and nursery rhymes are included in the "Baby and Toddler" section but would work well in a kindergarten classroom, too. Monthly Activity calendars to promote literacy at home are available in both English and Spanish.

In the Classroom:
The many activities on this site are ideal for an interactive whiteboard or computer center in a pre-K through primary classroom. You will need to turn up your speakers or provide headphones. Even ESL/ELL teachers may find the ability to play the activities and books over and over very helpful for your young students. After sharing the interactive books in a center, why not write a book together as a class, creating the pages in PowerPoint, then uploading to record the audio in Voicethread, reviewed here. Teachers will also want to share the parent handouts at back to school night or conferences and to share this link on your class web page for your readers and their siblings and parents to use at home. Share a regular "reading tip" with your parents. There are loads on this site! You might even send home the monthly activity calendar printables.

Bookglutton Grade 9 to 12 - Bookglutton.com- 10107

TeachersFirst Edge review: for social networking technology users who love literature, reading, and writing. This online eBook and literary discussion tool allows you to read collaboratively with others using an online eBook reader that is built into the site. The site is open to the public, so teachers should preview with their students' maturity level in mind and guide them carefully into constructive and safe use of its tools. Our editors found no objectionable texts available at the time of review, but these change. Those interested primarily in reading and discussing selections offered by Bookglutton can read the books from any computer, but you will want to set up a membership to keep track of what you are reading at the very least. The books offered include free texts that are in the public domain (no longer under copyright), user-submitted books, and fee-based purchases offered by publishers who sell their books in online form. More savvy users can embed the book-reader tool in another web site or wiki, as well. Readers who are logged in can discuss a text live (chat style) with others they "meet" on Bookglutton or with a specific group. They can also leave comments on pages or passages so others can respond later. Your comments (annotations) can also be kept private for viewing just by you, just like marking up the margins in your paperbacks. Works available include those from Bronte, Dickens, and many traditional classics of the high school curriculum.

In the Classroom:
Skills needed: You must join and manage various profile options, including email notifications for activity and various social features. Teachers will want to explore the options for Groups. If you wish to upload and discuss unpublished texts such as student drafts or a literary magazine proof, read detailed directions and formatting requirements for using their E-Pub Converter for uploads (more technically challenging than using books already on the site). If you wish to embed a book in a class wiki or web site, you need to know how to copy/paste the embed code and put it in your wiki. Many of the social options mirror those on Facebook (friends, wall, etc.)

Getting started: Start by browsing the catalog to see which of the books you already study are available here. Watch the "How it Works" video on BookGlutton's home page to see how both "Talk" (left side) and "Mark" (right side) annotation tools function. "Talk" is for real-time interaction, while "Mark" allows comments from others at a later time. Join the site (email required) and set up groups for your students to use: "A group can be a good way to share private book uploads with multiple people, or just to read a favorite [book] from the catalog together." Try opening a book from the catalog and making some notes, then retrieving those notes later. Create a group for your class discussion of the book and invite your students to join that group. If your school does not permit use of student email, consider setting up a Gmail account and subaccounts that you control so make a set of discussion memberships. 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. Start out by working with one of the many classics available because they are past copyright. Consider embedding the book in your wiki or web page so students are not distracted by all the other social options. If you do plan to have students use the site, plan a full tour and explanation of the tools (with caveats about the areas that are off limits). Your projector or interactive whiteboard will be ideal.

Safety/Security concerns: This site is completely public and includes the ability to make "friends" and chat with others outside your school. Many schools prohibit use of such “social networking” features. Check your school policies before allowing students to access the site on their own, then spell out specific permissions and consequences. You will want to obtain written agreements on class policies from both students and parents. Set your class discussion to "private" to avoid drop-ins by uninvited guests! If you or students submit your own texts (according to school policies, of course), take the time to teach safe ways to submit, voting/ranking etiquette, and the potential for cruelty or rude behavior by anonymous viewers. Bookglutton may be blocked by your filtering system because of the social networking options. Another, more teacher-controlled option would be to use a single whole-class account to interact with books and others who are reading the same text. While limited to class consensus on an interactive whiteboard or projector, this might be a way to get started with the tools and possibly find like-minded school groups to "discuss" literature with you.

Possible Uses: Make study of classic (or "old," to your students) literary works more engaging by having students annotate, respond, and share thoughts in a Group. Set the group as private and include just those from your class or use your network to find other high school classes interested in sharing the discussion. Embed the ongoing dialog in your class wiki, or make separate groups for 3-4 students and embed both their annotated editions in your wiki for comparison of their responses. Require student groups to explain new vocabulary encountered in works using the "mark" tools and challenge them to add personal responses to passages, literary devices, characterization, themes, etc. Teach any kind of literary analysis by involving students directly with the text and allowing them to interact with each other in the discussion. Take literary discussion from teacher-centered to reader-centered. Consider uploading your drafts of the school literary magazine or work from a creative writing group for others to read, react, and respond (after establishing guidelines about appropriateness and mutual support). Share selected, well-annotated editions as embeds on your class wiki for other students to use as windows on challenging texts. Learning support or ESL/ELL teachers might find the use of the "mark" tool helpful in creating student-friendly annotated editions of required texts. Why not work together with your students to create these and continuously add to them from year to year?

Woices (beta) Grade 4 to 12 - Woices Enterprise, S.L.- 10000

TeachersFirst Edge Review: for moderately adventurous technology users. This site, still in beta, offers a FREE service that allows you to create and share "echoes." Echoes are words (audio recordings), left by anyone at any place, and can be played over and over by any visitors who find them. Listeners will feel as if they are really there! Echoes can be anything from personal memories, personal messages to a class, history or art related annotations of a place, music to accompany that place, or any kind of audio you can connect to a location. The audio recordings are linked to geographic locations or real-world objects (in the place where they are located). Echoes could also be fictitious accounts "placed" somewhere in the world to tell a story. Woices states that the goal of the site is to "extend reality by creating a new layer of audio information, what we call the echosphere, that will make the world a more interesting place."

You can create your own "echo" or listen to various "echoes" created by others from around the world. Click Explore to hear the echoes of the world (in every language imaginable). You do not need to join to explore and listen to others' echoes. The site uses Google Maps to share the world. Echoes are also labeled with an "e-code" for easy access by URL and listening via mobile phone. Completed echoes can be shared as an embedded device in a wiki or web page, via email, or by URL link (click Share). Here is a sample echo created by the TF Edge team. The site also includes tools for comments, blogs, forums, and other "social" aspects. This site does require Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

Note: Future plans for Woices (remember, it is still in beta) include integrating it to work with GPS-enabled mobile phones, so you could "listen" to locations as you visit them without knowing or searching for the e-codes -- right on your mobile phone. Imagine touring the Gettysburg battlefields or a museum with an audio guide on your mobile phone, created by other Woices users.

In the Classroom:
Skills needed: No special skills are needed to listen to echoes. Just click Explore. To create your own echoes, you must register. Registration does require an email address and activation via a link sent to your email. To create your own, visit the Create link and follow the detailed instructions. The instructions include three simple steps (Put it on the Map, Give it a Name, and Send It). Step one requires you to click your location on the map. Then click Proceed to go on to the next step. At Step Two you add the title, description, tags, your photo (optional), language, and then you RECORD. Simply use your computer's built-in microphone and the site's "record" button. You can record more elaborate mp3 files using other software for later upload as an echo. You have TEN minutes of FREE recording time. Finally, click to Send It, and your new echo is on the web. The link is visible in your computer's address bar or can be emailed by clicking Share. You can also combine echoes created by you or various members of a group to form a "walk" of related echoes. Completed echoes can also be shared as an embedded device in a wiki or web page.

Note that using music or sounds from other sources could be a copyright violation. TeachersFirst editors remind you to use copyright-free music or -- better yet -- record your own.

Safety/security concerns: This is a public site, so once an "echo" is created, any user can access the information. If you are considering having students create their own echoes, you will want to be certain to adhere to your school's Acceptable Use Policy and obtain parental permission. If you are having students register independently (which may not be the best option), why not consider creating a free Gmail account with up to 20 subaccounts for each group of students (by code name or number) within your classes. This will allow you to control the accounts. Here is a blog post that tells how to set up GMail subaccounts to use for any online membership service.

This site also includes various social features (Community section) and advertisements. This is a great opportunity to teach basic Internet Safety in the context of a productive lesson. If students are working independently, be sure to have clear expectations and consequences spelled out -- then monitor activities. And remember, anything that is posted on this site, is available to any visitor on the web. There is no way to make the "echo" private. Take advantage of the Comments feature for students to respond to each other's echoes or to invite parents and others to respond. For example, if students create a local history tour, share it with older adults in the community to comment with their memories about the sites.

Possible Uses: The possibilities at this website are endless! Even the youngest of students can use this site (with assistance). In world language classes, have students LOOK for echoes from other countries, and even make some to practice language as they narrate cultural highlights of countries where their language of study is spoken. Make echoes about places you study in geography or history class. Have students create an echo tour or your own hometown and the important local historical sites (be sure to protect the identify of yourself and your students). Make a fictional echo "story" in real settings, using a sequence of links to echoes for the events in the story. Create a teacher-made echo treasure hunt of important locations for cooperative learning groups to explore. Make echoes about environmental sites or issues. Make a literary "walk" of a poet's geographic area with readings of his/her poetry "placed" in the places they describe, such as Emerson's account of Lexington and Concord. Make a mapped, narrated "walk" of the botanical species or animal habitats in your area. Make echoes about landforms. Create whole-class "I wonder" echoes about places they begin to study, ex. narrating the pueblos and asking about the people who once dwelled there. Then add more echoes as you learn. Use this site to record directions, questions, or prompts about places they should research and links they should use; then have them access the echoes at learning stations or with a substitute. Create "Echo" audio newsletters to share on your class website, connecting to the various "places" your class has been studying. Teachers could also record echoes about locations on a map to teach about map reading skills or have ELL/ESL students record echoes about places where their primary language is spoken to share with classmates. Have the students make the echoes, of course. Have students create their own echoes as "electronic" gifts for family and close friends. Why not create one celebrating moms for Mother's Day? Use this site to celebrate dad, grandparents, and other care givers also! Be sure to list this link (and relevant safety concerns about the site) on your class website for students to use at home. Include it as long breaks approach so students can work with their families, creating echoes about places they visit during family vacations or reunions.

Pinky Dinky Doo Grade K to 2 - Cartoon Pizza- 9982

Pinky Dinky Doo is a vibrant cartoon character who teaches children the concepts of storytelling and problem solving while simultaneously introducing them to colorful vocabulary. Have students click on the Your Story Box option to create their own imaginative story with a beginning, middle and end. As the story is created, Pinky Dinky Doo reads the story aloud while students read along as the words are highlighted on the page. Additional audio snippets make the retelling fun and even more cartoon-like. Upon completion, students can submit their stories to the Pinky Dinky Doo pod cast so they can be read by others. There are also links to Printables that include coloring pages, crafts, and other activities. Visit the Videos link to view fifteen short video clips from the show. There are also links to podcasts, interactive “games,” and a Grown-Ups link. The Grown-Ups link has an “Educational Approach” section with several classroom ideas. This site requires Flash and Adobe Acrobat. You can get both from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

In the Classroom:
Note: If you have students create their own stories, be sure to reinforce basic Internet safety concepts about protecting their identity and to obtain parent permission to place their child’s work online. Share this colorful site on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Download entertaining Pinky Dinky Doo podcasts to use in a listening center. Check out the Printables, perfect for reinforcing early literacy concepts such as retelling and sequencing. Speech/language or ESL/ELL teachers can use the retelling option for vocabulary development. Allow students to watch a storytelling episode on the classroom computer and retell it by creating a comic strip of the story. Be sure to list this link on your class website, so students can access both in and of the classroom.

Storytop Grade K to 12 - Storytop- 9975

Teacher's first Edge Review: For moderate technology users. Need a quick and easy site for creating and sharing a story? Use Storytop to instantly create stories that tell what students have learned. Storytop is a free and easy to use service that requires users to create an account in order to save any created stories. Login requires a username and password only (no email is required.) The clip art available is simple and not extensive, but this may be better than having students choose from an extensive collection. See a quick example of a StoryTop story here.

In the Classroom:
Skills needed: Teachers need to be able to help students in a storytelling process from the initial idea to the storyboard of the scenes they plan to create. Other skills include being able to navigate through the controls of the site which are very easy to understand. Managing comments or creations of groups are easy, though students should be aware of their responsibilities and consequences. To share stories, click "share" and copy the link provided when you say you want to email your story to a friend. You can paste this link anywhere, including in your class wiki or simply in a teacher's list of completed stories and their links. To share online, you need to know how to add links to your class blog, wiki, or website.

Basic directions: On the screen on the left, choose items to edit such as backgrounds, objects, people/animals, weather, and text boxes. Create your scene, add your information, and make multiple pages by using the green arrows. Teachers can create a group so students can comment on the creations made by other students. Share creations through web links. You can also take snapshots of scenes by using print screen (PrtSc) function in PC or snapshot (apple/shift/4) in Mac. These images of your story can then be saved and uploaded to a blog, wiki, or website. Click the help button to read FAQ helpful in using this tool. Currently embed codes are not given for saved stories.

Safety/security: Groups are not listed, so public and groups can only be joined when the actual group name is known. If you want students to comment on other stories, create a specific group (with a meaningful name for YOUR class) and have your students join that group. Caution students to not share the group name. Many school policies prohibit such interaction, so be sure to check your school’s Acceptable Use Policy. You will want to discuss these features in the context of Internet Safety. The only way students can see others’ projects is through joining a group or publishing the web link online. Students must have individual accounts, but an email address is not needed. 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 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.

Possible uses: Telling what you learned can be boring. Make it more like a story to identify what students have learned about the topic. For example, after studying air pollution, students can create a story about the source, problems caused, and solution that changed a specific pollutant from causing harm. In Biology, create a story about members of a food chain or biome. In Language Arts or world language class, create an alternate ending to a story or create your own short story. Tell the story of a famous figure in history or a day in the life of an animal. Have your students create stories for their “little buddies” in a lower grade. With younger students, create a curriculum-connected story as a whole-class activity, using you interactive whiteboard. Be sure to share the link with parents! Learning support or ESL teachers may want to create visual stories for students to narrate aloud to build vocabulary and expressive language. Create stories about any topic relevant in your subject area/class. Share the stories on your interactive whiteboard or projector.

busuu.com Grade 3 to 12 - UNESCO- 9913

This site offers language lessons for 4 languages: Spanish, English, French and German. The site plans to add additional languages in the future. Joining for free allows students to learn vocabulary, dialog, writing, oral skills, comprehension, and more - in a highly interactive format. Support from native speakers is a regular feature of this site using the interactive video chat capability. The range of topics includes more than 100 commonly used language situations. The site saves errors for review, lists of lessons already studied, results of those lessons, etc. This project of UNESCO's International Year for Languages offers lessons in "What you really need to know!" This site requires Flash. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

In the Classroom:
Check school policies concerning both student memberships and interaction with outsiders. You will want a written set of rules which both students and parents agree to before allowing students to navigate on their own in the portions of the site that use video chat with outsiders. Younger students (under 13) should use a teacher or class account, rather than an individual one, to avoid conflict with COPPA (child online protection act in the U.S.).

Make this site available from your class web page or as a favorite on local machines for ESL, ELL, and world language students to use to reinforce their survival and vocabulary skills. World cultures classes might even want to “taste” a bit of a language as they learn about other countries. French, German, and Spanish language students will enjoy the opportunity to "chat" with native speakers in their target study languages. (Be sure you have parent permission for students to interact with outsiders!). You will need headphones or speakers for the audio portions of this site. This site is excellent for enrichment or personal learning. Include it on your teacher web page for students to access both in and out of class.

Fable Library Grade 2 to 6 - Fable Vision- 9661

This site includes online stories, short downloadable books, a story for older children, and even a spot for young writers to create their own fables. One story, The Adventures of Sticky Burr, is a comic, with continually updated, new episodes. Readers can see fables that other children have contributed by clicking on "Create Your Own." ESL, ELL, and emergent readers may find reading the short illustrated segments offered at this site less of a challenge than reading a textbook or hard copy book. NOTE: the actual fonts used in some of the books may be difficult for some younger children to read. Preview with this thought in mind before assigning a fable to a student to read alone. This site requires Flash. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

In the Classroom:
Offer young readers the option of doing "outside" reading online to encourage them to read in a variety of formats, including both the fables and downloadable books. Look at one of the fables with your class on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Have students take turns reading the story aloud to the class. Share models of the “student created” stories and then challenge your students to write their own fable (either to share with the class or submit to the site). Be sure to be aware of your school’s Acceptable Use Policy on sharing or submitting what the students have written to the website. Obtain parental permission before submitting any work.

Ethan's Bookshelf Grade K to 8 - Ethan's mother- 9655

This site offers short summaries of well-loved children's books. Students and teachers can search the site by title, author, or category. It also offers links to several articles about encouraging reading among children. More extensive summaries are linked to a commercial page because of the website's association with Amazon.com, although you can certainly read the tidbit about the book without buying the book. This site doesn't pretend to be a comprehensive site of books on any particular subject or inclusive of award winners; the author says she just chooses books she loves.

In the Classroom:
Use this site to help students select independent reading similar to books they've enjoyed or in the same category. Students may want to try this model of a personal approach to book reviewing when they share books with their class. Suggest the site to ESL and ELL students or struggling readers who may be overwhelmed by looking for books on a larger site.

Prompts Grade 2 to 12 - Creativity-Portal.com- 9652

This site offers writing prompts of many types, from written prompts to line drawings, to photographs, from story starters to articles on the imagination. With plenty of prompts available at your fingertips, teachers will find inspirational starters in a form which will appeal to all types of students.

There is a submission option at this site. You are able to submit articles or projects, suggest websites with FREE learning content, creativity journey blogs, or inspiring success stories. Before you submit any students’ work, be sure to check with your school’s Acceptable Use Policy and always get parental permission.

In the Classroom:
Use these writing prompts with your ESL or ELL students to get them to incorporate new vocabulary into a written piece. Share the on your teacher web page for all students to use as starters for blog writing or journaling. Have students share their own ideas of writing prompts, drawings, and photos that they feel may help others start writing. Submit students’ work and ideas, after the proper precautions have been taken.

Sight Words with Sampson Grade 1 to 3 - Knowledge Want, LLC- 9594

When you arrive at the site, click Start to enter the world of Samson. There are four steps at this site: Learn Words, Build Words, Identify Words, and a Quiz. At the "Learn Words" step, the site includes 28 different lists of words for students to read at four levels. Mousing over the number of the list brings up the actual word list so it's easy to check if the student is working at the correct level. Students read, listen to the word, pronounce it, see the word spelled, and see the word used in a sentence. Step two has students spell the words themselves (after hearing them read audibly and being provided with several letters to choose among). Step three challenges students to click on the correct spelling of the word (several choices are presented). The final step is the quiz; students are presented with all letters and are asked to spell the word pronounced. The same list is used throughout all four steps of this activity. For example, if a student is working on list 1 of level 1, those same words will be repeated throughout all four “steps.” All steps provide immediate feedback on the students’ choices, and opportunities to try again. The Question/Answer steps have a Hear Again feature to repeat the word. The Resource center provides useful tools for teacher, including pdf files of the sight words used, lesson plans, and more. This site requires Flash. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

In the Classroom:
Include this website on your class newsletter or on your class website so parents can encourage their students to enrich their spelling vocabulary and have fun at the same time. ESL and ELL students will benefit from having the opportunity to practice their listening and spelling skills simultaneously. This site is also useful in differentiating spelling lessons in a regular or special education classroom.

Stories for Kids Grade K to 4 - Denver Public Library- 9472

Denver Public Library's Podcasts for Kids is a constantly-growing story resource from a variety of authors including Beatrix Potter. There are also folktales, fairy tales, interviews, songs, news, nursery rhymes, and story time favorites. Students can listen to them online or download them directly to mp3 players or the computer for listening later. There are also links for podcasting help and a kids’ page with reference information, games, homework help, and more. This site requires Quicktime. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

In the Classroom:
Encourage beginning readers, ESL, ELL, and special ed students to read along with texts in hand as they listen to the stories and the pronunciation of possible new words. Check back with this site frequently to see new stories that have been added. Include this site on your teacher web page for students and parents to access as encouragement for extra reading. Save this site in your favorites and use it as an L.A. learning center (don’t forget the headsets). Play an audio story with the speakers turned up and lights turned off for a quiet listening activity.

Mingoville Grade 2 to 8 - Danish eLearning Center - 9464

Mingoville features a community of survival "Missions" designed to help English learners build vocabulary, practice, and share short stories. Topics include clothes, the body, food, sports, etc. Each topic has many layers of activities; listening and reading occur simultaneously. There are also extra activities, exercises, games, and songs. An online dictionary is also available.

Students may choose to use the site as a guest or register for free. There are several mentions of parents purchasing memberships, but the company has established free registration for U.S. students through a foundation grant. With registration, students are able to submit their own work in the "showroom" or "book" section. Registration requires an email address. Be sure to get parental permission before posting or submitting any student work. Note that you will also want to discuss safety issues, since the site provides a way for users to create a “profile.” Check school policies! This site requires Flash. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

In the Classroom:
Check with your administrator about allowing the students to register for this site using their own names. You may wish to set up a class registration instead of entering true data into the registration site. Another option is to 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. Be sure to save this site in your favorites for your ESL and ELL students to use after setting clear rules about what they are allowed to do.

Animalia Grade K to 5 - PBS Kids GO!- 9459

Join your child guides, Zoe and Alex, as they travel to Animalia (an interesting world of talking animals). This CGI-animated series is based on the best-selling children's book by Graeme Base. At the Parents and Teachers link the site explains that Animalia teaches creativity, cooperation, persistence, world cultures, and language arts. Take a tour of Animalia, go to the Games and Activities link to find writing activities, art fun, creativity builders, and even mystery codes. There are also links to watch video clips! This interactive site requires Flash and Adobe Acrobat. You can get both from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

In the Classroom:
Use this site to spruce up language arts class! Take a tour of Animalia together on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Have students work on individual computer to watch video clips and try the interactives. Have students write the story or "crack the code" at the Games and Activities link. Save this site in your favorites on your classroom computers so students can visit during language arts class or when work is complete. Use this site to help your ESL and ELL students further familiarize themselves with the English language. Gifted student respond well to this book. Consider extending your study of animals or writing by creating your own books modeled on Animalia.

NS Teens: Making Safer Online Choices Grade 5 to 12 - National Center for Missing and Exploited Children- 9436

If you teach teens, then you need to remind them continually of internet safety and protocol. This cool, upbeat site is fully loaded with teen-friendly music, videos, comic strips, and more, all communicating the need for internet responsibility. If you want general internet safety information, visit the sister site to NSTeens, NetSmartz Workshop: (reviewed here). ESL and ELL teachers will love the Spanish version of this site (including Spanish downloads). This site requires Flash.

In the Classroom:
Teachers, you will find plenty of resources for teaching net safety to teens when you click on ‘teaching materials’ at the bottom left of the homepage (this takes you to the sister site – NetSmartz Workshop). Videos, fact sheets, lesson plans and activities await you there.

Use your interactive whiteboard or projector to share the video clips or comics. Have students create their own internet safety videos and share them using a tool such as YouTube or TeacherTube (explained here). List this site on your class website for students to access both in and out of the classroom. You will also want to share it with parents.

Field Trip Grade 1 to 3 - HUD- 9380

Students can take an interactive tour (or quick picture tour) of three community sites: a park, a library, and city hall. Each location allows students to “click around” to learn more about the location. For example at the library, students learn what non-fiction, fiction, periodicals, and other library terms mean. There are also links on the bottom of the page for People, Places, and Things. The People link teaches students about volunteering, the homeless, and various careers. The Places link features safe places to play, field trip links, and more. Go to the Things link to Build a Community, go on a Scavenger Hunt, or play other interactive games. Much of this site requires Flash. Get Flash from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

In the Classroom:
Use this during your unit about neighborhoods and community. Share the site on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Then either set up a social studies computer station or have students explore on individual computers. If you plan to visit the library or town hall, preview it with a visit to this site. Have your students draw other community buildings and explain their functions by using a map or go floor by floor, as in the library visit. You could even create a class wiki “tour” using digital pictures. You might want to list this site in your class newsletter or on your class website for parents to share with their students.

ESL and ELL students learning names for community locations will appreciate this site for helping things come alive. Use this site to increase and strengthen vocabulary. Ask students to compare these locations with parallel offerings in their home communities.

Word World Grade K to 2 - PBS Kid- 9332

This language-rich website offers countless language arts activities for young elementary students. Based on the PBS show, Word World, this website highlights animals and objects in the environment. The animals and objects are all shapes AND words, everything has a label. Some examples of language activities include spelling, letter sounds, rhyming, upper case and lower case letters, and many others. Click on any of the animals to start your class's language learning adventures. There is also a link for parents and teachers that provides additional information about the TV show, website activities, and lesson ideas. This site is adaptable to use in the regular classroom, ESL and ELL classrooms, and special education students. This website requires Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

In the Classroom:
Treat your students to an "animal of the week." Each animal adventure challenges students with new language skills. Use an interactive whiteboard or projection screen to share this website with your class. Then make the site a center in your classroom. Provide this link in your class newsletter or on your class website so students can practice language skills at home.

English Interactive Grade 2 to 10 - A. Gil and H. Massingham- 9312

This wonderful, highly interactive ESL site includes survival topics, grammar, culture, and vocabulary at three levels for English learners. The BIG caveat is that the explanation for the teachers and students and a lot of the metalanguage is in Spanish. Click on menu, though, and all the topics come up in English. The intermediate and advanced levels are still under construction, but the highly interactive quality of the beginning sites offers a promise of continued excellent material. Click on the "P" on the left side of the interface to see printable reviews of many topics, especially grammar, all in English. The most in-depth portions are survival vocabulary and grammar.

Be sure to turn off your pop-up blocker so you can “see” all the site content. Although the pronunciation is in British English, this is a great, high-content site. This site requires Flash. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

In the Classroom:
Save this site to your favorites so you (and your students) can easily find this site. Include this site on your teacher web page for students and parents to access as a reference and for engaging extra practice.

Pixton Grade 4 to 12 - Goodinson Design Inc.- 9280

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.

Kids' Vid Grade 3 to 8 - Mike Keating- 9242

Leap into video production with help from the Kids’ Vid site! Kids’ Vid steps you and your students through the process with tips on scripting, storyboarding, shooting video, and editing it into a visual masterpiece. The site has classroom ideas, short exercises for story writing and learning video shots, an online storyboard creator, and lots of useful help from experts and kids on how to make the whole process an exciting educational experience. Some of the activities require Flash. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

In the Classroom:
Start the activity by showing the student-produced videos on the web site. Use the resources on the site for a whole class jig-saw exercise. Assign small groups the task of learning one aspect of the process and then reporting and showing it to the rest of the class. Share the knowledge by creating working groups, which contain an expert from each aspect of the process. Use one of the many class ideas as practice activities for students to learn the finer points of video production before they start their masterpieces.

Video is a great tool for authentic assessment – especially for ESL, ELL, and Special Education students. Think about letting each of your students create a short video about what they know for their parent conference meeting or Open House. Explore the realm of possibilities by having students develop and ask peers a “Question of the Week” and document the responses on video. Let students produce a walking tour of the school and key personnel as an introduction for new students. Post this video on the school website, but check the district and students’ Acceptable Use Policies before videoing any student faces. You may want to ask your school’s funding sources to consider purchasing a few USB plug-in "flip" video cameras that cost about $100 each so students can do these projects with an “indestructible” tool.

The Monticello Classroom Grade 4 to 12 - Thomas Jefferson Foundation- 9231

Invite your students to step into Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello and experience colonial life. This educational website is beautifully designed for both students and teachers to use the extensive resources to learn about Jefferson, Monticello, and daily life. The Monticello Classroom provides a student portal with fact and resource sheets, an image gallery, online activities, and a saved favorites section. Web pages offer information by reading levels: elementary, middle, and high school. The image gallery contains a slide show builder for students to create a presentation using the images and copies of primary source documents. The presentations can be saved, printed, or emailed. Students can register for an account to save favorites and other resources. Registration requires a user name, password, first name and last name. Check your school’s policies before allowing student accounts, especially with full names! See more hints below.
Teachers can register for a teacher area to create assignments for classes, review the available lesson plans, or build your own, and save your favorites on your personal Monticello Classroom web page. Each class has its own log-in and password and students are able to submit their completed activities to the teacher for review. Some of the interactive online activities require Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

In the Classroom:
This site can serve a a hub for your unit on colonial life, Jefferson, or even inventors. If you wish your students to register for accounts, be sure to check the students’ acceptable use policies or get parent permission in writing. Instead of students using their real first and last names, have students create their own colonial names for registration. Be sure to keep a list of these names to be able to review and assess student work. Give a class introduction to the Monticello Classroom using an interactive whiteboard or projector. Be sure to help your weaker readers and ESL and ELL students by sharing the vocabulary words prior to reading, either on a handout or by projecting on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Highlight the vocabulary words in the text as you come to them.

Telephoning English Grade 2 to 8 - English Portal.com- 9190
Students learn appropriate language to use when telephoning and also begin to understand voice mail messages at this site designed for ESL and ELL students. Since using the telephone is a big challenge when learning a new language, this site will be extremely helpful for newcomers. There are three levels of difficulty available.

In the Classroom:
Have your students practice the language on this site in a simulated telephone conversation. Have them record the voice mail messages and then play them for other students to respond to. Share this site on your class website or in your class newsletter so ESL parents can benefit from understanding telephone conversation better, too. Teachers of world languages may wish to use this site as a model to create similar information for their students of French, German, Spanish, and other world languages. Special ed teachers working on life skills will find these phone skills helpful, as well.

Inspired Beginners Spanish Podcast Grade 5 to 12 - Ben Curtis and Marina Diez - 9178
This language-rich website features podcasts spoken using British English. The podcasts review the previous episode, explain new English vocabulary, discuss the subject in English, and then present the Spanish language podcast. Be aware that clicking to play a podcast will start a long pause as the podcast downloads to your computer, and it may appear that noting is happening! The subjects are of high interest for students. The name is somewhat of a misnomer, though, since people with no knowledge of Spanish might be a bit overwhelmed by the language used. Unfortunately, accompanying worksheets with complete transcripts are not free, and there is no text available elsewhere. There are a few other free worksheets available under the About link (see resources). Listening options include listening on your computer, iPod, or mp3 player as podcasts.

IMPORTANT NOTE: This site includes tools for blog users to interact (in English or Spanish). Any visitor can comment on the posts and podcasts or participate in Forums. There is also a link to a sister blog on Spanish culture. Check your school policies on students posting comments, etc. to the web and whether they are permitted to do so anonymously and/or with name or initials.

This site requires Quicktime. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

In the Classroom:
This site is a treasure trove for Spanish teachers. It also provides a way for your ESL and ELL students to share their language and culture as the focus of a lesson, perhaps as you study other cultures. Have the ESL or ELL students and native English speakers work on understanding podcasts together. They can discuss what they understood and what they did not. You might have your Spanish speakers write out the dialogue and vocabulary selections, but be sure to have a knowledgeable adult check the Spanish before using it with your students.

To alleviate safety concerns, you might want to create a simple class policy (e.g. initials only) and obtain parent permission before inviting your class to participate in the blog, since you will not be able to monitor their submissions. The site does moderate to prevent "bad" comments from appearing online, but you do not control this moderation. ALL blog comments require an email address (kept hidden). If safety and school policy concerns limit student access, use the site as a whole-class activity and selectively choose portions for students to use. You can assign DIRECT links to podcasts by right-clicking the "Audio: download" link and copying the URL that shows in "Properties," ex. http://media.libsyn.com/media/learnrealspanish/nisbeginners20_el_kindle.mp3. Students can RIGHT-click >Save target as to download and load podcast files to their mp3 players or simply keep to listen over and over at a computer.

Owly Comics Grade K to 4 - Andy Runton- 9071
This cartoon/graphic novel site offers free previews of many wordless comic books and short graphic novels. You can select the regular length or mini-books. Some examples of the stories include The Way Home, A Time to Be Brave, Bee Nice, and several others. There are twelve lesson plans available for free download at the Teaching link. Pre-readers, ESL and ELL students, and those learning foreign languages will delight in making up the words to go along with the very expressive pictures here. The lesson plans at this website require Adobe Acrobat. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

In the Classroom:
Ask students to dictate captions for these stories, write the captions on strips, and put them with the printed pictures. For students able to write, have them write their own captions. Have a caption-writing contest among pairs of students in the classroom. Have ESL and ELL students write simple captions and learn the words for items in the pictures at the same time. Students in foreign language classes can generate desciptions or dialog to go with the stories. Special ed teachers will appreciate the opportunity for students to “narrate” the comics -- and possibly place pages in sequence -- to develop vocabulary. Use printable versions for take-home work with parents, as well. Challenge students to create their own wordless books. Don’t forget to check out the twelve lesson plans available at the link that complement this website.

Lil' Fingers Grade K to 1 - David Lumerman- 9057
Little fingers meet big fun at this free interactive website. Designed with toddlers and Kindergarten kiddies in mind, this site offers storybooks, interactive games, holiday activities, coloring sheets, and much more. There are even interactive games for ABCs and telling time. Bright colors, quick loading pages, short stories, and extra large buttons (arrows) are just some of the features that make this site easy to use. When viewing the storybooks, just make sure you are not too hasty to click. Clicking your mouse too early may mean missing out of some of the animation. Warning - at the end of each storybook, a recommended book is featured. If you click on that recommendation, you will be taken to a retail book site. This site requires Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

In the Classroom:
Primary teachers, make simple printed text from the storybooks to reinforce the reading skills. Use the holiday games to liven up your computer centers. During Kindergarten Open House, set up a computer center with the storybooks--ready for parent/child interaction. ESL and ELL teachers will appreciate the simplicity of the text for their beginning English-learner students.

Be sure to provide this link in your class newsletter or on your class website.

Reading A to Z Grade K to 6 - learninga-z.com- 9050
This site has downloadable, leveled reading books for sale, but there are plenty of free stories with illustrations. Along with the stories are worksheets to test reading comprehension, focus on grammar from the stories, and review what took place in the story. The stories are organized by reading level, from A to Z. New free offerings appear frequently. Schools can apply for a free trial to check out the full offerings. Some stories are available in Spanish. The site offers other genres for free download including poetry, comics, pocket books, alphabet books, and wordless books. Phonics books complete the offerings.

Caution: although you are able to use many of these items for free, most downloads ask that you input your email address. You can bypass this by clicking submit without inputting your email address. This website requires Adobe Acrobat. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page. .

In the Classroom:
The books can be projected on an interactive whiteboard for students to highlight new vocabulary, signal words, etc. with their fingers then read independently. Tell your students' parents about this site to encourage them to read or download and print more stories for their children. Include the link in your class newsletter or on your website. Beginning readers, ELL, and ESL students will enjoy the wordless books whose stories they can tell themselves or tell in their own languages. Students may want to make up their own wordless picture books after seeing some of these examples.

Silly Books Grade K to 6 - sillybooks.net- 9029
This site offers animated books with audio (some authored by children), jokes, cartoons, interactive games, and more. Some books are in Spanish, as well. Prepare to mark this site in your Favorites when you see the extensive content. Its name doesn’t reflect its depth. Many books have the text displayed, and as each word is spoken, it is highlighted. Students will learn new words used in context, since the stories feature rich vocabulary. This site requires Flash. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

NOTE: The link to “Stumble It” connects to a very intriguing but random way of finding similar web sites, but it has its safety concerns for younger students. Read more about it in our TeachersFirst Edge review of Stumble Upon before you permit your students to use it.

In the Classroom:
Have your promising writers submit books for possible publication at this site (with parent permission, of course!). SillyBooks does the illustrating and audio. Make sure you click on the Catalog link to view the vast listing of books to which your class can listen. Use the expression-filled books on your projector or interactive whiteboard as choral reading readers (turn up the speakers!). Be sure to include this site on your teacher web page for students to access both in and outside of class for further reading practice. Spanish teachers, there are a few Spanish-language books available to read and hear. Learning Support and ESL/ELL teachers will love the chance to build student vocabulary as they read -- and perhaps even want to write a story of their own.

Story Nory: Kids Audio Stories Grade K to 5 - Blog Relations: Matthew Lynn and Hugh Fraser- 9023
This site offers over 100 audio stories, downloadable to mp3 players or playable from your computer using Flash. It also has constant updates, news about new offerings, and several complete books available as well. The stories available include animal stories, poems, fables and legends, modern stories, and some holiday stories. A few stories include an animated video. The text of the story is included, so students can follow along during the audio reading The audio quality is high, so enthusiasm will be contagious! This site does have some small unobtrusive advertisements. Be aware - this website is a blog, so students can add comments about a story (using first names only), if this is within your school policies. This site requires Flash. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

In the Classroom:
Beginning readers will enjoy this site as much as more capable readers, listening intently to the high quality presentation. Share this site with parents in your class newsletter or from your teacher web page. Use it also when you read Alice in Wonderland, and when you teach the concept of "series" stories (try the "Bertie" stories). ESL/ ELL and learning support students will benefit from reading and hearingstories at the same time. Project the story on an interactive whiteboard or projector with small groups of readers so students can follow along and even highlight words during the audio reading.

Open English World Grade 8 to 12 - David Rogers and Michael Huskins,- 9015
This site's free offerings include useful weekly idioms, business expressions to improve vocabulary, and listening activities on current topics. Translations of the listening sentences into the student's first language are optional and include French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Japanese, Korean and simplified Chinese. Spoken utterances are always in English. Be aware there are some advertisements on this page, but nothing too distracting. Students can complete a free registration at this site, but it is not required. There is a Forum for discussion. See TeachersFirst’s safety and use tips for using this site in class under Classroom Use. The listening activities require Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

In the Classroom:
Mark this site as a Favorite on your classroom computer or on your teacher web page and assign ESL/ELL students to check it weekly for a new idiomatic expression. Newer ESL and ELL students may find the translation feature helpful. The foreign language options could be useful in a German, French, Spanish, or Chinese class. Check your school policies on allowing students to participate in the forum area, and obtain written parent permission before students log on. You may want to use the forum as a whole-class activity with a teacher account. Monitor the discussion boards for a week or two before deciding if they are appropriate for your school situation.

The Story Connection Grade 2 to 6 - Dianne de las Casas- 9009
This website offers printable (retold) stories by Dianne de las Casas. She offers quite a collection, and adds new stories each month. The stories come from all around the world. Other offerings on the site include holiday stories, fingerplays, play scripts, activities to do with stories, and puzzles. Don't forget to check out the extensive suggestions under Resources such as Story telling games. These help teachers and parents know what to do after they've all read a story together. Teachers, school librarians, and even parents can sign up for a free monthly newsletter about using stories in education; The Story Connection Express. This site requires Flash and Adobe Acrobat. You can get both from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

In the Classroom:
Use the activities in class after reading one of her stories from a country you have represented among your ESL or ELL students. Have your students write their own story activity suggestions after you have used a few of Dianne's. Be sure to include this link on your class website and in your letter home to parents. Suggest that they read just one short story and find accompanying activities for the family to do.

Picture Prompt Story Starters Grade K to 4 - Story-It- 8901
This page offers a series of illustrated, printable story prompts. Printing in portrait or landscape for larger spaces between the lines. Another option includes a black and white drawing that the children can color before or after writing the story. The pages also contain a box to write a word list for help spelling more difficult words. The story topics include many seasonal and holiday offerings, as well. Some of this site requires FLASH. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

In the Classroom:
Use this site with beginning readers, beginning writers, and ESL students to reinforce the skill you are teaching and to show connections between reading and writing. Make it available for your active writers to choose their own prompts, too, or for parents to use at home during breaks. Special ed teachers will appreciate these prompts as a way to promote language development. Use the pictures to record students' vocabulary on the lines below as they "tell you about the picture."

Kindersay Grade K to 1 - Webmosis- 8867
Although it describes itself as being "preschool" site, Kindersay is a great web site for primary readers, ESL/ELL students and special education students working on speech and language. This site offers simple, easy-to-use activities such as letter recognition and vocabulary. Each letter and vocabulary word has a corresponding video with correct pronunciation. The Favorites tab provides an opportunity to create differentiated instruction for each child. Registration is free!

In the Classroom:
Add the link to a classroom homepage for center-time or for parents and children to practice at home. Use a different activity category each day or week with ESL/ELL or special ed students to build vocabulary. Then use a digital camera to create some pictures and sound files of your own for new categories using PowerPoint slides or the online "My Family" area.

ABC Toon Center Grade K to 4 - Jack Armstrong: ABC Learning Time- 8805
This interactive site, hosted by Hoot and Kat, features 25 games and story links. Some games are more educational than others. Hoot's Story Time and Learn with Kat areas are a good place to start. Players may solve special challenges that allow them to become a Junior Ranger. Once a Junior Ranger, they will be invited into a secret clubhouse which contains more surprises and games. What a fun, literacy-based site to use when rewarding good learning! This site provides hours of safe fun for our primary and elementary learners. ESL teachers will be pleased to know that the homepage can be read in five different languages.

In the Classroom:
Share this site with parents via a link from your teacher web page for safe learning fun at home or use specific literacy activities as a center in your primary classroom.

Chuala Grade 4 to 12 - Chuala- 8773
This site allows students to practice pronunciation in 10 languages, including English, European languages, and Mandarin Chinese. After a free registration, you can put in a search term for lessons. It's a bit difficult to guess search items, so looking at the entire list in any given language is a good way to start. Currently, English has 298 items. You are also able to contribute lessons.

One helpful document is the Chuala inventory which allows instructors to quiz ESL students on their pronunciation by having them pronounce 144 distinct items. They can then search the lessons for practice, recording, and making comparisons on these phonemes.

Some of the lessons take the whole language approach and appear as dialogs, discussions, or Q and A. Most, however, have students practice distinct sounds only, with no context. One advantage of the program is that you can select lessons by distinct language area. For example, American English students can hear examples of American English rather than British English. You can also request that other lessons be created. This site requires Flash and enabled Javascript. Get Flash and directions on enabling Javascript from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

In the Classroom:
Set ESL/ELL or speech/language students up with this site on a classroom computer cluster or in a lab to practice phonemes they can't hear or pronounce (see safety notice below). You MUST have a microphone or use a computer that has one built in. Use the inventory to make initial ESL/ELL evaluations as well as periodic progress checks. Students may like the site so much they'll want to practice at home.

This website could be very useful to French, Spanish, and German teachers (or teachers of other world languages). Use this site to learn new vocabulary and improve pronunciation of world languages.

Safety concern: This site requires FREE membership to use the audio tools and access content. Membership includes social networking tools, such as "friends" and "messages," and requires an email address. You may want to set up a single class account for in-school use, entering your "extra" email address to avoid unsafe use of the site by your adventurous students. If you KNOW how they are logging in (with your account), you can remove any friends or other unauthorized contacts. The problem with this approach is that you will not know which student has done what. If you do permit individual user accounts (according to your school's policies, of course), have parents and students sign an agreement that spells out permissible behavior and consequences -- and get your principal's OK!

Language Arts Online Clips Grade 1 to 6 - Thinkport- 8757
This wonderful site has an extensive list of free video clips of favorite children's books, author interviews, and author documentaries. Users can open them with Windows Media or Real Player (the listings tell which one is needed). Some clips offer both options. Get the plug ins from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..This site MUST have a high speed connection! It can be slow to load during "peak" times (11 a.m. to 2 pm Eastern time in the U.S.). Be patient while clips download, even on a peppy network. While the videos are downloading, you may not think anything is happening. TURN OFF your pop-up blocker (including the ones built into the Google and Yahoo toolbars) so you can see the video pop-up windows.

In the Classroom:
Preview the video clips before recommending them to students or using in class, since the quality of video and audio varies significantly. None is designed for full screen projection, though some will project about half-screen. Share a partial video with the class or as a center to inspire children to read a book or allow them to watch videos after they have read books. (A Dark, Dark tale would be great for Halloween week). Remember to turn up speakers for group viewing or provide headphones at your center. If you are ready to try podcasting, use these dramatic readings as models for students to record some of their favorite selections as a podcast (and possibly illustrate with student artwork). Share this link with parents on your web page or in your newsletter to encourage reading at home. Most of the books will be in our school library, so students can follow along. School librarians should know about this site as well! ESL students and weaker readers always benefit from listening to different voices read the same story as they follow along.

Robert Munsch Virtual Story Room Grade K to 5 - Robert Munsch- 8569
Beloved children's author Robert Munsch offers many of his stories/books here in audio format. All students, including ESL students, will enjoy hearing these stories as they read along. Users must have the capability of listening through an MP3 player.

In the Classroom:
Set up these recordings as a center with the book at hand and headphones for the students (see download tips below). Or play them for the whole class with your speakers turned up after lunch or at the end of the day. Include the link on your teacher web page and newsletter for parents, as well. You must first click that you agree to the terms of use, then DOWNLOAD the files (SAVE to your desktop for easy access and delete after use). The "Terms of Use" appear in a pop-up, so make sure your pop-up blockers is turned off. The files will play with Windows Media Player, iTunes, or Real Player, whichever you have.

Little Critter World Wide Network Grade K to 3 - Mercer Mayer- 8540
The Little Critter books by Mercer Mayer have more to offer on this site. Listen to the author read stories, join in with sing-alongs (turn up your speakers!), watch interactive videos of the books, and find games, art, and other activities on this great website. The read and play activities highlight the text as it reads aloud to you, and even has music and giggle to go along with the story. Users can also read about the author and even write a letter to Little Critter. This is a great reading reinforcement site! Site requires Shockwave and Flash: get them from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

In the Classroom:
Select items on this site to use as a center or whole-class activity after you read a Little Critter book to your class. Share this link on your teacher web page and/or in a parent newsletter for those who love these books. ESL students will enjoy listening to having the books read as they follow along on the pages of the book. You will want to be sure that students steer clear of the "store" section where Little Critter items are sold.

Fingerplays for Young Children Grade K to 3 - Songs for Teaching- 8465
This subsection of the Songs for Teaching site has excellent chants and other childhood favorite songs which get children moving, speaking, and rhyming. Words to the fingerplays and songs are copyable, and many contain Quicktime sound excerpt files as well (enough to get you going with the song, though not the complete song). A few even have pictures of someone going through the motions of the song or rhyme. A link to Songs for Early Childhood allows you to see even more action songs. There are even songs to go with class content, such as Martin Luther King, Jr. Your kinesthetic learners will retain the concepts in these songs. ESL, ELL, and speech/language students will respond to the music; it aids with articulation, accent development, and memory. This site requires Quicktime. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

In the Classroom:
Share this link on your teacher web page and/or in a parent newsletter so that parents can use it at home too! Don't forget to turn up your speakers if you are using the music in class. If your class responds very well to using songs, you might try writing lyrics together about something you are studying -- using one of these familiar tunes.

VoiceThread Grade K to 12 - VoiceThread- 8315
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.

Foreign Languages Grade 1 to 6 - South Carolina ETV and ITV- 8238
This Website is designed to meet the needs of schools that would like to offer foreign languages but have no language. It serves as an introductory-level course in French, German, or Spanish. Each 10-15 minute lesson presents many words, with emphasis on the spoken word rather than the written word. Teachers of gifted may have students who want to learn a language as independent study using this site. This site requires Adobe Acrobat Reader and Windows Media Player. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

In the Classroom:
Share the videos as a whole-class lesson on a projector. You will need speakers for the audio portions of this site. Include this site on your teacher web page for students and parents to access as a reference. As you study different continents or cultures, include a little of the language to expose your students to the "sounds" of other places. If you have ESL students in your class, share a video for the native English speakers to better understand the experience of learning a new language.

Soaring High With Kites Grade 1 to 6 - everythingesl.net- 8224
This multi-level lesson plan for ESL students offers opportunities for vocabulary development, reading, writing, and cultural sharing by responding to stories and books about kites. Primary grade tecahers could also use it in a unit on weather or as an interdisciplinary science/language arts activity. Because of its high interest level, it motivates students to participate in understanding new words and in expressing their ideas about the books they read and the techniques and history of kite flying in their countries. Students also read and talk about kite safety rules and examine websites about kites. Writing opportunities include writing rules,original stories, cultural histories haiku, and diamante poems. Students also get to design, make, decorate and fly their own kites.

In the Classroom:
Plan a kite day in the fall or spring and use all or part of these plans to learn new words, build kites, and even fly them before you write about them. This would be a terrific activity to include parents at school year's end.

Learn English Kids Grade K to 6 - British Council- 7424
This ESL-focused site provides stories, activities, links, games, and plenty of opportunities for writing practice. Children can listen to the stories as they read them. Teachers can print flashcards for survival English vocabulary such as clothes, food, parts of the body, jobs etc.; accompanying activities provide reinforcement for vocabulary. Learn English Kids changes weekly, offering weekly activities, opinion polls, learning through songs, playground fun, and more. The read-aloud stories are a wonderful option for beginning readers and even non-readers. Both spelling and pronunciation are British.

Speech/language clinicians will join ESL and primary teachers in using the many activities on this site. It even has sorting activities such as fruits/vegetables (see "Food"). Although the interface is graphically appealing, by clicking on "Topics," users can find activities, songs, and games all organized by subject. There is also a large section for parents to help their child at home.
Requires Flash plug in. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

In the Classroom:
Make a shortcut to an activity each day on your classroom computer (RIGHT-clicking in the middle of the page will give the option to Create shortcut). This will give students an easy way to open today's activity, especially if you RENAME it with the student's name or place it in a certain corner of the desktop. Longer stories require the Real Player plug in. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page. In these stories, Students can double-click a word to find out its meaning!

Teach Children ESL: Games Grade K to 3 - Teach Children ESL- 6882
This site has many games available for downloading including card games, board games, and Valentine’s Day bingo. Children learn vocabulary and have fun while manipulating the various versions of memory cards, Go Fish, and other traditional children’s past times. Downloads include colorfully illustrated cards and game parts as well as instructions. Links include more goodies: worksheets, songs, and flashcards. At certain times of the day this site can be slow in loading. This site requires Adobe Acrobat. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

In the Classroom:
Download the games and laminate the materials or send them home for parents and children to do together. Speech and language teachers as well as ESL/ELL teachers will love the free games-to-go!