Students use the internet for everything from research to purchasing music, but do they really know how to search effectively, critically evaluate information, and cite their sources using ethical standards? The 21st Century Information Fluency website has a wide spectrum of resources for both students and teachers to learn and practice these skills. As High School students are required to do more in depth research and the topics they study become more complex, the need for information fluency/literacy becomes more important. This site includes tutorials, tools, and wizards for students to learn and practice the skills they need to navigate digital environments effectively efficiently and ethically. The vast array of content and information available can be adjusted for curriculum topics and the grade level of the students. There are also opportunities for professional development for teachers to improve their own information fluency skills. Don’t miss the wizards to cite sources in various styles of documentation. No more remembering where the comma goes!

This site is deep and robust and should be explored thoroughly before using it with students. As you approach a research project, plan to include some of these lessons as part of that project. Ideally, team with other teachers at your school/level to require consistent standards of research as taught through this site, but be sure you know which classes will help the students master them first! This is one to save in your favorites for repeat visits.

Register for daily e-mail "word of the day". - Grades 4 and up - You can register for FREE daily e-mail "word of the day". The entry includes phonetic pronunciation, various meanings, and derivation. There is even a sound wave pronunciation of the word. You can retrieve a complete list of words presented. (examples: euphony, paragon) Excellent site for upper elementary through High School.
274

This is an incredibly rich site for teaching and learning about resources, plagiarism, and writing a research paper. Although geared for Ryerson University students, all students can access the animated "story" told in episodes and many of the resources discussed in the story. Particularly helpful for students are such resources as the Assignment Calculator, which helps plan when to do what, and reference sources to access online. The key draw to this site, however, are the stories which cover unintentional plagiarism, buying or borrowing coursework, cheating on tests and exams, forging/misrepresentation & unauthorized group work, and group work. All of the episodes use the same characters and teachers can download the scripts to preview or use at their discretion as supplemental. Note: the interactive quizzes offered at the end of the series are not accessible to non-Ryerson students. This website requires Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

Downloading the scripts would offer an opportunity for groups of students to act out the episodes, always a popular idea. Having 5 groups of students watch different episodes and then report on them is another way to use the site. You can also have students watch certain episodes as assignments or enrichment. Be sure to check out the additional resources shown at the end of each episode. Social studies teachers assigning research projects may want to make these tutorials available for reference at research time.

The Virginia Department of Education has created a very usable collection of acceptable internet and technology use policies from schools, colleges, and universities. These are presented along with some general guidelines as to the information that an AUP should contain. Great resource for schools and districts that want to be clear with students, faculty and staff about on-line rights and responsibilities.
118

Share this link with your teaching colleagues who use the internet and technology regularly in the classroom.

How often do your students come across unfamiliar acronyms related to current events, science, or computer technology? These pesky words and abbreviations can be a major source of confusion, but this site helps make sense of the often overwhelming jungle of acronyms. Enter the acronym in question, and be rewarded with a complete list of definitions with links to more specific explanations. The site even addresses slang and "chat" acronyms that are used frequently by kids, but may mystify many teachers!
5118

Library specialist Linda C. Joseph has assembled a useful, interactive, and entertaining collection of resources for students and teachers. Use the "primary source of the month" feature to spark discussions about why such a resource is so valuable. Links to Web treasure hunts, projects, and helpful how-to advice on a variety of Internet-related topics are included.
4909

Not sure what sites exist for your topic? Start here and find sites listed by icon for Art, Encyclopedia, History, Languages, Science, Writing skills, Music, and numerous other topics. Whether you are searching for research information, enrichment, or tutorials – check out this site. Notice that TeachersFirst is among the “faves” for teaching!

Why search for these sites, when the links can all be found in one place? Use this site in combination with TeachersFirst’s rich reviews. Students can use these links as a springboard to research and projects. Be sure to save this site in your personal favorites! There is a lot to explore. List this site on your class website and/or wiki for students to access both in and out of the classroom.

Check out this online dictionary with a multilingual personality. You can search and display words and their definitions in English, German, French, Spanish, Italian or Dutch. Links to related sites for word-lovers are also provided.
5338

Compiled by a librarian at Canisius College in New York, this site offers a collection of time lines for almost every imaginable event. While the quality of these varies significantly, it’s a commendable effort that could be useful in a variety of classroom applications.
4878

This interactive glossary of thousands of American Sign Language Terms provides students and teachers with QuickTime animations and description of how the words are actually formed. A great visual resource for those needing some practical assistance in communicating with hearing impaired students.

Cornell University’s guide to evaluating online information sources would be a great primer for teachers who are not proficient web searchers. High school students will also find this site a useful way of separating the reliable research sources from those less trustworthy.
3627

This Canadian site offers quick, easy access to vital statistics and rankings for 10 regions and more than 190 countries. This is a handy compilation of stats ranging from the typical like population and life expectancy to the less common such as nuclear arms, and HIV prevalence.
3781

The Getty museum has compiled a very complete, easily used thesaurus of art and architecture terms. Type in a generic search word related to art and architecture, and this handy research tool will provide its definition, related terms, and position within the site's hierarchical database. Art teachers and students will find this one a valuable research and study tool for understanding art terminology and vocabulary. This is a text-only resource, but useful for clarifying concepts and styles.
4460

Try this student-created site on copyright and use of artwork in school and web projects as a great way to introduce elementary students to the basics of copyright an intellectual property. Teaching these habits early on is a great way to ensure compliance later on.
4698

This site provides good fine arts background material with museum listings, photographs of works, and articles for a number of artists. Teachers and students can search for information by artist, painting title, and museum. The site also has a great comprehensive list of artistic movements with definitions and a list of participating artists.
4498

If your local library just can’t help, try this online service that puts you in contact with Library of Congress research librarians. Live chats are available for some topics. Other inquiries will receive a response within 5 days. Be sure to read the Reference Correspondence Policy at the bottom of the home page for directives on how this resource should be used. This is an "adult" reference tool, not a student's homework assistance hotline!
5276

This “ask a scientist” site is one of the earliest such efforts, and it’s still going strong after a decade. While there are guidelines regarding acceptable question types, this remains a useful resource for questions that may arise in elementary or secondary science studies, and it’s a great way to let the students take on the research role.
3991

This easy, kid-friendly search site focuses on learning, combined with a little “edu-tainment.” Students ask pertinent questions by using their natural language, and the search begins. The searches filter the web and provide age-appropriate content. (Note: This site was formerly known as Ask Jeeves.) Notice the two links under the search window for ‘News Resources’ and ‘Fun and Games.’ These links open into safe, off-site areas for more information-gathering and fun.

On the home page of Ask for Kids, notice the stacked books on the right. Click the subject ‘book’ in which your search is needed. The easy drop-down menus will aid in zeroing the search.

Use an interactive whiteboard or projector to teach students how to do research using this online search site. Many students need modeling on how to fine-tune their searches. For those with reading levels or maturity levels not yet ready for full-fledged "Googling," this site is a winner. It would also be an excellent comparison to Google for upper elementary students as they learn more about evaluating web sites.

For existing and potential wordies, this fun page offers a word of the day, a quote of the week, a list of new terms added to the OED online (i.e. "Lollywood"), a chance to look at commonly asked questions about words and linguistics, and a chance to ponder over interesting quotations that feature significant words and word play. Links from the page go to dictionaries including a children's dictionary, a cross word puzzle,facts about English, a quick quiz, and more games. Note: you can toggle between US and UK versions of the site at the top right.

If you have a projector, use the word of the day or one of the quotes as an anticipatory set for vocab lessons or during homeroom to warm up the minds of sleepy students. Include the link on your teacher web page for your "wordie" students. Maybe even consider making some of the activities an exta credit opportunity.

Some of the most riveting cultural, political, and scientific figures of the 20th and 21st centuries are represented on this site that provides interviews drawn from BBC’s archives. Bring the voices, thoughts, and insights of Virginia Woolf, Aaron Copland, Agatha Christie, Mohandas Gandhi, Andy Warhol, and Charles Schulz, into your classroom. The audio interviews are organized by name and subject area. This is truly an impressive resource that can create quite an impact in the classroom
5000

This website highlights a collection of resources about Australia. Some of the printable pages include an Australian map, coloring page, Australian animals, and others. There are also links to listen to the national anthem, to read stories about Australia, to take a quiz about the county, and much more. There are even authentic Australian recipes provided. Some of the activities require FLASH. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

If your class is learning about Australia, this is a one-stop resource for research, teaching ideas, and more. Use your projection screen (or interactive whiteboard) and share the "What's it like being an Aussie kid?" link. Print the many printable pages and have the students work in pairs to complete the challenge.

Challenge your students to work in cooperative learning groups and investigate various topics. For example, assign one team to be the "Zoologists" and study the various animals highlighted at this website. Another team could be the "Travel Agents" and learn about the various travel "hot spots" listed at this website. A third team could be the "News Reporters" and research the "What is it like being an Aussie Kid" information. A fourth team could be the "Politicians" and learn about the national holidays celebrated in Australia. You could also include a team of "Chefs," "Religious Scholars," and numerous others based on your students. Once the investigation portion of the project is completed, have the students create interactive Power Points, podcasts, or visual displays to share their research with the class. Or create a Tour of Australia wiki!

For those needing literary, writing, or historical reference information, this site provides one-stop shopping. The site collects on-line versions of several dozen standard reference works, and it also offers a search interface that can make short work of finding even the most obscure information.
75

Include this site on your teacher web page for students and parents to access as a reference.

This primer from the Environmental Literacy Council offers teachers a brief but thorough introduction to the basic concepts of environmental science. While suitable for use by high school students directly, much of the content could serve as background information for science lesson planning.
6270

The American Library Association's annual listings of the best young adult fiction and non-fiction. You'll find listings for 2002 as well as several years prior. Find the good works here.
3390

This simple site includes booklists to help children dealing with difficult situations, such as divorce, death, disabilities, and alcoholism. There are also tips on do's and don'ts of using bibliotherapy with children. The booklists themselves may be helpful for a librarian or classroom teacher to make recommendations to students. Guidance counselors will appreciate having a place to go to make recommendations to parents, as well. The site author, though not himself a psychologist, has actually compiled these lists from multiple sources, including reputable libraries and professional groups.

Share this site with your colleagues and librarian as a reference.

This simple-looking online thesaurus is actually MUCH more than a quick-look-up. You can find synonyms, antonyms, similar words, and rhymes for any word you enter. A click on any of the words offered provides the same information for THAT word, sending you on word-paths through the English language. Innocent-looking links at the top of the page also provide hundreds of prompts for blog posts and stories, with enough choices to inspire any writer. Don't let the boring white background and plain-text presentation fool you. This tool has magic powers to make words interesting to almost anyone. The database of words used to generate this thesaurus comes from "the Princeton University WordNet database, the Carnegie Mellon Pronouncing Dictionary, and suggestions from thousands of people on the internet just like you." See a special note to teachers below regarding student behavior!

Keep this link handy among the resources on your class web page or wiki, and be sure to bring it up on your screen or interactive whiteboard to remind students of the rich tools it offers as you teach grammar, revision, poetry, essay-writing, or even letter and resume writing. With primary grades, share the rhyming words to help teach spelling and phonics! As students share in revising a passage or writing a poem on the interactive whiteboard, have this thesaurus available on another window to model their search for just the right word. Encourage students to look up any new vocabulary or terminology at the start of new science or social studies units so they can gain a broader "sense" of the words themselves through a constellation of synonyms and related words. Help students refine vocabulary by having them rank the various synonyms offered for a certain word, deciding which has the most positive or negative connotations. Offer the writing prompts for student journal or blog posts or creative stories. ESL/ELL students can explore new words with this tool, even practicing the rhyming sounds and noticing their varied spellings.

NOTE: If students enter an inappropriate word, they WILL find classroom-inappropriate terms. As with use of any reference, your students need to know your classroom's consequences of such activity. The options are no different from students looking up body parts or pornographic terms in a print dictionary or on Google.

Search two major search engines at the same time. Compare the results of the search easily and perhaps find items that one of the search engines may have missed. Just type in your search in the text box. Then the two search engines’ results appear side by side in columns.

Use as a comparison of two of the most popular search engines currently being used. Identify the usefulness of one search engine over the other. Use as an initial discussion of how search engines work, search engine queries that are effective, and other lessons related to searching.

This site has archives of lists of books, organized by theme and displayed pictorially. Specific subjects feature books divided into two or three levels, including picture books, books for independent readers, and YA books. Featured books are not annotated, but bibliographic information is included. There are many widely varied themes, from the classical to the offbeat (Something from Nothing, and In Praise of Bad Books). The themes are too numerous to mention them all: Adventures on the High Seas Booklist, Africa Booklist, American Military Stories Booklist, Building Things Booklist, Children Putting on Plays Booklist, Exploration Booklist, First Day of School Booklist, Inventors and Inventions Booklist, Mother Goose Booklist, and countless others. A search feature allows teachers and students to search by many different criteria: Type of Child, Title, Author/Illustrator, ISBN, Genre, Subject, Series, Format, Fiction or Non-Fiction, Reading Level, Grade Level, Lexile, Setting, Author and Illustrator Demographics, Personal issues, and other categories. A free login allows users to submit reviews, tag books, or create wishlists (suggest other themes). Registration does require an email address, but it is free. You do not need to register to access the booklists.

Turn to this comprehensive list if you are searching for books on a certain theme. These books are a perfect addition to units on the various topics presented. Share the link with your students if they want other books about subjects that have interested them. Keep these booklists handy for students seeking independent reading. If you use a list in conjunction with a curriculum unit, be sure to invite students to "review" the books by putting the list on a class wiki or in a spreadsheet where they can enter comments and indicate that which books they have read. This will allow other students to choose books based on what a fellow student with similar taste recommends. Google Docs Spreadsheets reviewed hereare an easy online tool for students to collaborate and comment. The teacher can create one that is editable publicly and link to it from the class web page. You may want to provide this link on your class website for families to access at home.

Demystify effective web searches with Boolify! Finally, there is a tool to SHOW what changes to search terms do, in dynamic, visual form so students can SEE both terms and results graphically. Students can drag and drop color-coded puzzle pieces to add keywords and Boolean operators like AND, OR, and NOT. The search results are immediate and help students understand their results by visually illustrating the logic of their search. Each change to the search instantly changes the results. The search results are presented through Google's "Safe Search STRICT" technology, but like all search results, no filtering technology is 100% secure.

This easy and appealing web site is designed for elementary and middle school student use, but offers a great illustrative method for anyone to experiment with Boolean logic operators. Click the Curriculum tab for search activity sheets and links to web resources. While the site is still in development (beta), it promises language selection and translation options soon.

Use this site as a whole class research activity with an interactive whiteboard or projector. Students can volunteer key words, select operators, and see the search results. Grab screen shots of effective search term combinations and post them on bulletin boards as great examples of Boolean logic – add the students’ names for recognition of a job well done.

Consider holding a short Boolean logic contest where groups of students can craft keyword phrases and operators based on subject area topics. Groups can see the results of their search strategies and modify them until the teacher declares the search to be effective.

Click on the map to choose a state, and access a series of interactive practice tests organized by grade level and subject. A great resource state assessment testing preparation. Share this site with your students and their parents.
5439

This site is the definitive list for yearly Caldecott Medal winners in the field of art and illustration in children's literature. Besides the list of the new winners and the accompanying honor books, the site provides access to previous winners from 1938 onward. Information about the Caldecott award appears in a side panel with links to other important medals in this field, including the Newbery (for excellence in children's literature).

Save this site on your classroom favorite’s on your computer to assist students in finding books to read and sample illustrations for art class and students' own stories. This is a great link to provide on your class website for students to access at home. Within the classroom, have students choose a former Caldecott winner to read and create a multimedia presentation. Use a tool such as bubbl.us (reviewed here) to create and share concept maps about the books.

This informative and resourceful website provides information about numerous holidays. Although this website was created for use in the United Kingdoms, it provides a great deal of knowledge about holidays celebrated in many countries throughout the world. Some of the specific topics include New Years, Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, Easter, Christmas, and other holidays. Use this website to help your students gain a better understanding of numerous holidays in other cultures. This website provides information about the history of holidays, how the holidays are celebrated and much more.

As you study other cultures, be sure to include this resource for students to research the celebrations there. Or include the link on your teacher web page with the title "Every Day is a Holiday?" asking students to use the holiday calendar to become more be aware of different cultures. Instead of reporting on a current event from the newspaper, give them the option of reporting on a holiday that occurred this week in another part of the world.

Created by a university consortium, this site offers a wealth of graphs, charts, and data that students can use to analyze America’s demographics. There are a number of prefabricated analyses available, and there is also enough data to create exercises or activities that let students explore on their own. There are a number of possibilities for social studies, math, or statistics in this one.
3635

This online investigation challenges students to choose their ideal pet bird. The choices for birds include a parrot, canary and a cockatiel. Students must weigh the benefits of each breed. Students are given numerous traits of birds and then the students must choose the three traits that they value the most. Next, the students research the three traits that they have chosen. All of the research is provided at the website. The final product is a "Bird Decision Making Sheet". For further extension, a final product of a persuasive PowerPoint is detailed.

This online investigation could be used for a quick research project while reinforcing higher level thinking and decision-making skills. You could do a simlar activity for other types of animals: Choose your pet dog, frog, cat, etc. as part of animal study. Visit the "Information For Teachers" page to find a PowerPoint, standards, assessment tools and more! You will need both PowerPoint and Word software to open the files on this site.

This is almost too easy! Students can enter information about a research source and, with the click of a mouse, create an entry in proper format. Results can be copied and pasted into a word processing document, printed directly, or saved to an RTF file. Perfect for younger students who are just learning about the importance of citing sources for a school report.
5662

Provide students with a resource that can answer all of their questions when working on a bibliography for a class project or paper. This site conveniently features MLA, Turabian, APA, and AAA styles, presents examples of specific citations, and provides links to other helpful Web sources. Developed by the Seattle Central Community College Library.
4965

TeachersFirst Edge entry: for slightly adventurous technology users. Imagine being able to give students (or parents)an exact link to a specific quote within a web page. This TeachersFirst Edge tool does exactly that. Why would you want to? Perhaps you want to send students to a certain paragraph for an activity: for reading comprehension, for reading a specific portion of text, or even for highlighting a literary device within a text or poem. Students will no longer waste time, announcing, "I can't find it!" or return to school saying they couldn't do the homework!

No membership or cost required. Tool can be used in less than 30 seconds. Skills needed: Open TWO windows in Internet Explorer or any web browser. One should be open to citebite; the other to the web page you wish to reference. On that web page, locate and "highlight" the exact passage of text you want to "send" people to see. Copy/paste the passage into the quotation box at Citebite (copy, then change windows). Return to the target web page and copy/paste its actual URL into Citebite. Click "Make Citebite." Copy/paste the new url, indicated after "Your citebite link is:" Note: if the original quote is within a FLASH presentation, it will not copy/paste or generate a Citebite. See this example of a Citebite link to a tip about TeachersFirst Edge tools: http://pages.citebite.com/b1j4l1j7o0ndu

Have your middle and high school students do a web page "credibility critique" on their potential sources by using Citebite before they start a research project. They can highlight passages as proof of credibility -- or lack thereof -- and give you the Citebite links. They will love this easy way to reference a specific portion of a page. You will love the ease of finding it. If you give them a Word document table as a web site evaluation rubric, they can paste the Citebites there, with their comments in the neighboring cell!

Here’s an on-line resource from Duke University offering drop-down instructions for citing more than a dozen different types of sources. What’s especially slick is the comparison between Chicago, APA, MLA, and Turabian style formats. This makes the site useful across a wide range of standards and settings. It’s the closest we’ve found to one-stop shopping for research citation help.
3560

This site would be useful for any teacher who assigns a research paper, regardless of the subject. Open this site on the interactive whiteboard or projector and share it with students before assigning them a research project. To insure that students are reminded of plagiarism and the importance if citing, copy this link on to any student assignment sheets that contain information about their research paper.

This large variety of clip art images and photographs is a great resource for K-12 students and teachers. No cost is involved for educational use, but make sure that you read the site's copyright information. This site is SLOW to open, so be patient.
5343

Need help determining colors for a project, website, blog, bulletin board, or (if fashion challenged like me) today's outfit? Use this great site to determine colors that look great together for your next project. Point and click on the portion of the color wheel to pick a central hue of your choosing. Decide among the following choices: monochromatic, complementary, triad, tetrad, among others to choose a selection of colors. View examples of your choice as it would appear on a web page. Use the RGB values for entering into the color number for your web page. RGB values are six characters (numbers and letters) following a # sign. Save your scheme ID number for future reference.

Art teachers can teach basic design and color wheel principles using this tool on an interactive whiteboard or have students experiment with different color schemes to demonstrate their understanding of color concepts. Be aware that some monitors and projectors may not have the color responsiveness that other hardware has, making it more difficult to “see” the subtleties on this site. Use this tool for creation of coordinated website, wiki, or blog pages. Students will find an unlimited number of color schemes to choose from in the creation of their projects. Not sure what a “wiki” is? Have no wiki worries – check out the Teacher’s First Wiki Walk-Through reviewed here.

Interactive reference site on common errors in English. Click on the words (listed alphabetically) for an explanation of the correct word choice or directions on how to acoid the common error. Particularly useful for distinguishing between commonly confused words! Mark this one in your own Favorites for that day when you can't remember the correct word choice or expression.Created by a college professor.

A useful reference to offer on your teacher web page or classroom computer. You could even feature a tip each day at the start of class, based on this extensive list.

Here's a rich resource for finding occurrances of a particular word in hundreds of public-domain texts. Select the word and text, and the site shows you where that word appears in the text. Useful for lesson and test designs.
1063

This site sheds light on all of those pesky words – some homonyms, some just confusing – that create great frustration for students and English teachers alike. More than 3000 words, grouped according to the way they are misused, are presented, along with examples, explanations, and a helpful search feature.
0

The next time your students must perform U.S.-metric conversions, send them to this helpful site. The online calculator handles length, area, mass, weight, liquid volume, and temperature while showing users the conversion factor for each calculations.
5785

Here's a whimsical look at copyright that may be useful for those who need an entire tutorial on the topic. If you're looking for quick answers to specific questions, there are better sites than this, but it works well for a general overview.
3255

Copyright Kids is a copyright primer created expressly for students. It provides a structured introduction to various aspects of copyright and their implications for students, especially those using the web for research projects. This one could be a great classroom reference or an integral element of a unit on copyright issues.
4700

Knowing the specific rules about copyright terms can be a definite benefit when copying or scanning. This easy-to-read chart outlines the point at which published or unpublished materials enter the public domain. It may be more information than you care to know about the public domain, but it will keep you legal!
5225

This highly interactive explanation of copyright laws helps students recognize and understand their responsibility in citing sources. Use as an introduction or refresher before assigning research projects. The site also contains teacher resources and tips on explaining copyright issues.
4911

Access current and historical U.S. government documents with the click of a mouse. This electronic collection includes the Constitution, Bill of Rights, Gettysburg Address, Emancipation Proclamation, as well as Supreme Court decisions, the Budget of the United States Government, and so much more. Selected and authenticated by the Government Printing Office's GPO Access service.
5220

Use this as a resource for research projects or papers, particularly those debating a specific court decision or amendment. Useful resource for a US government class!

Make this resource available for the next round of student reports. Locate a country of choice from the alphabetized list, and browse through an impressive collection of annotated sites addressing everything from economy and government to foods and cultural events.
0

The Library of Congress has created a mini-portal to a large collection of information pages loaded with demographic, cultural, and statistical information on less well-known nations. Nearly all of the information is intended for older audiences. Nonetheless, this is a really rich resource of high quality (though sometimes dated) information for country reports.
53

This online tool lets you create a timeline of an individual's life using dates from 1000 AD to the present year. Enter the person's name and dates, add events (historic or personal) and their beginning/ending dates, and click the "generate" button.
6033

The goal of this website is to become the easiest, fastest online dictionary available. Is it? Try it, you’ll be impressed. An exciting tool is the audio component, allowing you to listen to the English pronunciation for selected words ( the triangular “play” button will show next to the word on the entry) . DefineItFast.com has a bookmarklet that you can drag and drop to your browser's link bar (if your computer is not “locked down” at school). When you look up definitions, highlight the word and click the linkbar button or you can directly type the word by clicking the button and click 'OK'. View the tutorial video to learn more about the bookmarklet feature. This site requires Flash, you can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

Note: The dictionary, like many real-world dictionaries, includes words that may not be classroom-appropriate. Decide how you will handle students who make inappropriate choices in using this tool.

Definitely investigate the free Search Engine download that’s available to make this tool even more useful. This may become your favorite dictionary-- bar none. You may want to save this site in your favorites on your class computer(s), but see the cautionary note above about the FULL database of words available.

Help students navigate more efficiently in the library with this multimedia tutorial about the Dewey Decimal Classification System. Visitors can learn about the history and logic behind the DDC, and how it is used to organize information of every kind. Project the site to accompany a teacher-prepared introduction to the library, then test student knowledge with the site's interactive quiz.
0

Share this site on the interactive whiteboard or projector to help prepare students for the library when working on a research project or paper. It is a quick activity, and can be done as a class to save time. Have students take turns leading the group through the tour to encourage active participation.

Here's a collection of on-line dictionaries for dozens of specialties, foreign languages, and the like. If you're looking for technical, foreign, or other definitions, you'll likely find the answer here.
3187

This British resource is an outstanding resource for teachers who want to build vocabulary in capable students. This on-line dictionary lists thousands difficult words and provides a search feature.
83

Use this site to generate lists of words to include in vocabulary drills. Post a word of the week to your teacher web page and have students submit blog entries guessing the word's meaning and origin.

This site is a searchable database of science quotes from different scientists and philosophers. This site is a basic “plain vanilla” tool, but includes a lot of scientists and philosophers (great for reference and quick research). Searches can be done by keyword, names, or alphabetically. The drawback to the site is that there are some distracting commercial features. Direction would need to be given to younger students on differentiating between advertisements and site content.

This site would be great for creating cross curriculum units with language arts and science. It could be used as a resource for teachers. Students could search for quotes relevant to scientists being studied. Students could also choose a favorite quote as a prompt for a blog post. Have students create bulletin board posters using favorite quotes and adding images to them using a tool such as Project Poster, reviewed here: http://www.teachersfirst.com/single.cfm?id=7332, or an online “poster” about a scientist using a tool such as Nota, reviewed here: http://www.teachersfirst.com/single.cfm?id=9915.

No matter what you want to measure, you’ll find information on how to quantify it here. While some browsing is required, teachers will find applications for this information in science, math, geography, and other subject areas. The reference possibilities are also extensive. Add this one to your toolkit of web reference specialties.
3867

This just-for-fun resource could be the source of a daily vocabulary challenge for your language arts students. The site keeps track of words as they enter and leave the English language. Users can browse the collection alphabetically or by category. Word origins are also provided. Great fun for all "wordphiles."
5410

Everyone knows the "for Dummies" books, but did you know there is an entire web site? This site, created by the same publisher, has text-based and video "How To" information on thousands of topics, organized into general categories. It is also searchable. The education/languages area has both obvious and more obscure topics than you might expect, from To Write a Sonnet to How to Build a Bill (in the U.S. Congress). These text- based articles are great for those who follow verbal information well and often include simple diagrams. The more consumer-oriented areas of the site include videos from setting up your wireless network to carving a turkey. Click on "all videos" under the Featured video to see the video categories.

Be sure to tell your students that they are NOT the "dummies" referred to in this site! Then go beyond the obvious use of this site as a reference to use it to teach informational writing, reading comprehension, or any curriculum content. Share text-based articles on a projector or interactive whiteboard and have students analyze the keywords and structure of sequential direction-writing or informational writing before they try it on their own. Use the pens and highlighters to note transitions and other ways of organizing directions, including formatting. Use articles to teach basic comprehension skills by copy/pasting sections and having students drag them into the correct sequence on the whiteboard to form logical directions. In science or social studies classes, have students view models on this site, then work in groups to write their own how-to wiki on curriculum topics such as "How to tell a fungus from a bacterium," "How to solve simultaneous equations," or "How to form a government." If you have access to video equipment, have students write scripts and produce video versions of their how-to instructions and post them on a site such as TeacherTube reviewed here.

This site has games and activities appropriate for beginning ESL students. Since beginners have few language skills and know little vocabulary, any of these games would help their English and would also be fun for the students. Teachers of speech and language or special ed may also find this useful for their language-delayed students.

A good site as an alternative for the student who may not be ready fora specific classroom activity or who may need a successful learning experience in the midst of a frustrating day. You may also want to suggest it for at-home use, if the student has internet access.

Educators who have lamented the demise of the AskERIC service will welcome its new incarnation, offering a robust, up-to-date collection of theme-based educator resources, and wealth of lesson plans, and archives of past questions. Managed by the Information Institute of Syracuse, the new format greatly enhances usability. Kudos!
4853

Over 2000 lesson plans are at your fingertips when you visit this site. Find lesson plans on these topics: Arts, Computer Science, Foreign Language, Health, Information Literacy, Interdisciplinary, Language Arts, Mathematics, Philosophy, Physical Education, Science, Social Studies, and Vocational Education.

Some of the lesson plans are actually units designed for a week or more of study. The site allows for printer-friendly versions of the plans to make printing them a neat option. When you need quick plans for the substitute--or if you are a substitute-- this site is a must-have.

This is a nice collection of on-line tutorials and related information on software frequently used in schools. The author has clearly "been there - done that." If you'd like to do more with the programs on your computer, start here.
126

For technical and historical information about space travel and technology, this site is probably without peer. There are hundreds of pages, images, and minutely detailed chronologies of the people, programs, and equipment which have contributed to space travel in countries around the world. It's an outstanding research site, and a wealth of information.
459

This searchable electronic encyclopedia provides a comprehensive chronicle of Chicago's colorful and complex history. From Mrs. O'Leary's cow, to Al Capone and the city's infamous stockyards, the site provides thousands of articles, photos, maps, broadsides and newspapers, and interactive components. It's a fascinating research tool for understanding the evolution of an American city and the people and events that helped shape American society. Visit the "Users' Guide" for an overview of the site's many features.
6036

Use the images on this site to create a visual discovery activity in your classroom. The images span the decades, and can be easily searched to find one that matches a particular unit in your classroom. Open the image on the interactive whiteboard or projector. Have students discuss or write what they observe, infer and predict happening in the photograph. This is a great way to review activity in place of a practice assessment, as it requires to use what the have learned and apply it to the circumstances in the photo in order to interpret it.

This fairly extensive picture dictionary uses photographs, not drawings, to assist language learners to see the real thing! Besides defining the word the student selects to look up, other items in the photo are also labeled so that learning vocabulary can occur in chunks, thus making it more meaningful and comprehensive. Site users may add to an archive of quizzes on the dictionary’s word list.

A great dictionary site to bookmark on your classroom computers for limited English speakers! This one would also be good for speech and language practice for special ed both at home and at school.

ESL Gold's "Words and Phrases" page is a listing of vocabulary, grouped in categories ideal for learning a new language. The categories are divided by levels from Low Beginning to Advanced. Many of the categories provide a picture dictionary of all items. Some of the more advanced levels do not include pictures. All levels have audio pronunciation. The higher levels contain vocabulary in context, word phrases, and other vocabulary development activities without definitions. This site requires Windows Media Player or Quicktime to play the audio. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

Use this site to share vocabulary by category, using pictures, audio, and written words with your ESL/ELL students, primary students, special ed students, or speech/language students. Include this link in a newsletter that goes home with ESL/ELL students. Mark it as a Favorite on your classroom computer. Demonstrate how to use this website on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Then have students work alone (or with a partner) at their current speaking level. This website could also be used in a regular education class with emerging readers. The five difficulty levels allow teachers the flexibility to differentiate the instruction. Note: small type fonts and some advertising may make this site difficult for some younger students to use. Preview and decide what your class can handle.

Students frequently believe facts are credible just because they found them on the web. Not so. U.C. Berkeley’s discussion of how to tell a web page’s pedigree is one of the better treatments we’ve seen. Librarians and teachers assigning research projects may want to use this page as a model for their own discussion, or simply offer it to their students as required reading. Add this one to your reference bookmarks.
4413

Confused about media messages? This is not only a problem for students but also adults. Use the lesson plans and examples in this site to teach students to be smart consumers and follow steps to analyze information and uncover truths.

Follow the guide to lesson plans for great activities on "Deductive and Inductive Reasoning," "The Language of Deception," and "Background Beliefs" among many others. Attachments for each activity include student and teacher handouts. Use these lessons for 21st century literacy skills as well as for traditional reading comprehension activities made relevant to today’s “reading” media.

Here's an on-line reference to thousands of facts, sorted into kid-friendly categories and with plenty of instructions. This site feels a lot like other search engines, but it's designed with kids in mind, and yields results that will keep young researchers enthused. Great starting point for any factual question or research topic. Ignore the advertising; the site content is worth it.
89

Be sure to include this site on your teacher web page for students to access both in and outside of class for further practice.

The University of Memphis has created a metasite for biographies of federal officials, including those in high and not-so-high office. Bear in mind that these are the “official” writeups, but the collection cannot be beat for ease of access.
4728

Help your students hone their online researching skills with this helpful tutorial that walks them through each step of the process. Concepts like "search engine" and "key word" are clearly defined along with criteria for evaluating the quality of a site. Download and distribute the "What's the Source?" worksheet - a handy tool filled with important questions for students to consider before selecting an online source.
5774

This online tutorial provides students, teachers, and parents with guidance and up-to-date information on understanding search engines, using search strategies, evaluating Web sites, and citing resources. There is A LOT of information here, but it is organized into manageable subdivisions that teachers and librarians will find useful. It’s fairly high-powered content, so sift through it to isolate those specific gems that your students will need before they jump into a research project.
5397

This site offers a quick way to find basic information on many topics written in very simple English. There are 9 major topic areas which users can choose from and each area has a variety of inside divisions. Of particular interest to K-12 students would be Government, History, Travel (includes maps), and Health. Especially useful for ESL students are the online magazines written in simplified language and the dictionary link.

Suggest this site to your students from other countries when they are assigned a research project. Keep this one in Favorites on your teacher web page or classroom computers for ESL students to use the Dictionary or find simplified information on your government, history and health lessons. Special Ed teachers with students of low reading ability can also find adapted resources here.

You may be familiar with Google Earth but may not have the ability to install their free software on your computer, either because you are not permitted to or because your computer is not powerful enough to handle it. Try Flash Earth for a simpler tool to explore the earth as you teach geography to any age from kindergarten to seniors. Perhaps you just want to quickly show which way the Conestoga wagons crossed the U.S., or maybe to show where in the world a current events story is taking place. This simple tool, on a projector or interactive whiteboard, is just the trick. Note: You MUST have FLASH on your computer.

Use a projector or whiteboard to share a location as art of the background knowledge for a lesson. Be sure to add this link to your teacher web page as a reference tool, as well. Be aware that some world locations have much "fuzzier" satellite images than others. Always preview before your lesson to be sure you can show the features you want students to see. Show elementary students where their "neighborhood" is, perhaps even their streets!

This page of fun activities to help children become more familiar with and more involved in using the school library includes making and printing out bookmarks, taking part in scavenger hunts, and finishing a story about the library (Mad Libs). It even includes a rap song about the library. Downloadable Word documents have all the details.

School librarians and reading teachers will want to use these activity offerings to familiarize children with the library. Make your library a happenin' place with a bookmark contest!

A useful, if slightly odd resource, Giga Quotes has quotes from hundreds of people and topics. Its search utility serves these up in unpredictable lumps, though. You get what you asked for, but something else frequently comes along too. Careful searching can reduce this behavior somewhat. Use this one when you’re after something really obscure; other resources will probably do a better job with routine requests.
4764

TeachersFirst Edge entry: for the moderately curious technology user. Research verifies the power of graphic organizers in promoting strong thinking skills and comprehension for all ages. Gliffy is a FREE online tool for creating graphic organizers without purchasing ANY software. Individuals or groups can create the organizers or the class can create them together, such as in a brainstorming session on a projector. You can assign students to "map" out a chapter or story or assign groups to create study guides using this tool collaboratively. Your students are certain to enjoy this tool and be forced to THINK in the process. You can export the graphic organizers to a blog or "publish" them on the web -- all for free. See an example of a published diagram/organizer made by our editors for more ideas.

Skills needed: join the Gliffy site (free), play with the tools and toolbars to create diagrams, access help and FAQ to collaborate, publish, or embed diagrams in your blog or other web page. Easy to medium difficulty. Note: collaborators need individual email accounts to gain access. If your students do NOT have personal email, you may want to create group email accounts on Yahoo or GMail for which only YOU know the password and can log in for groups to work in class in order to avoid the safety and school filtering issues of student email access. This would also be a great tool for group projects in YOUR grad classes!

Don't have a calculator handy? Check out this tip sheet that details Google's built-in calculation feature. In addition to basic addition, subtraction, multiplication and division, the tool can also compute advanced math functions, convert one set of units to another, and perform calculations using built-in constants.
6017

TeachersFirst Edge Entry: for any technology user allowed to install software. Bring the world into your classroom with Google Earth. This interactive view of the Earth (and more) is free for download. Find landforms, geographic locations features, pictures, and more from around the world using this satellite-powered software. As you spin the globe, you can tilt to view locations at an angle to show elevation, click to play a "tour" or "fly" from one location to another, or simply open tours and placemarker files created by others. Once you are comfortable, try making tours and placemarkers of your own. Note: this software uses more than the usual "bandwidth" to stay connected to the Internet while you are using it, so dial-up and slow connections will not work. Some schools block this tool because of the bandwidth needed, but teachers should not let this stop you from requesting this software to use in whole-class or group settings.

Skills needed: Permission and ability to download and install the free version. Use tutorials from this site to learn more, or try some Google Earth files from TeachersFirst's Globetracker's Mission to get a taste of what the program can do. Get started by exploring the different LAYERS available in the left side and searching a location you know. Locate and try the tools to drag, tilt, zoom, and even measure distance. Extensive user forums are available through the help menus.

Safety/security concerns: None. This tool is listed as "Edge" simply because it requires software download and installation (and may be blocked by some schools due to bandwidth demands). No log-in or memberships are required. Placemarker files created by you "live" on the computer where you make or save them and are not shared on the web. Note that your computer will ask whether you wish to save your “temporary places” (any places you have marked during a session) each time you close Google Earth. If many students use that computer, you may find you have a disorganized mess of saved places. Be sure to direct students to either name their saved places logically and file them into folders or NOT to save them to My Places! Students and teachers can create placemarker (.kmz or .kml) files and share them as email attachments, files on a USB "stick," or any other means you would use to share a file, just like a Word document.

Another practical tip: if students are using Google Earth on several machines at the same time, you may put a heavy load on your school network. Plan accordingly, perhaps having groups alternate their Google Earth time if it becomes sluggish.

Possible Uses: Use Google Earth to teach geography or simply give location context to class readings or current events, especially on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Ex. you can tilt to show the peaks scaled by Lewis and Clark or volcanoes that rise in the Aleutians. Have students show the locations of historic events or literary settings and create placemarkers with links to learn more. Placemarker text is editable by going to the placemarker’s “properties” or “info,” so students can enter the text description, place title, and any inks they want to include, such as a link to a certain passage of text, an image of a character, or news image/article for a current events map. Students who know html code can get even more sophisticated in what they include in placemarkers. Have students/groups create and play a “tour” of critical locations for global warming, a comparison of volcanoes, or a family history of immigration. Navigate the important locations in a work of literature using Google Lit Trips or search the web for placemarker files connected to civil war battles, natural resources, and more. Turn layers on and off to look at population centers and transportation systems. Teach the concept of scale/proportion using a tactile experience on an interactive whiteboard and the scale and measurement tools. See more ideas at the teacher-created Google Earth 101 wiki reviewed here. Even if you do not venture into creating your own placemarker files, there are many already made and available for use by teachers and students. TeachersFirst’s Globetracker’s Mission includes a weekly file to follow the Mission.

Google has pulled together descriptions of how to use some of the new features available by just using the search box. In addition to searching and finding driving directions, users can now check arrival times, do math problems, check the routes of packages, see travel conditions, obtain stock quotes, get definitions and more. At the bottom of the page, searchers can link to more shortcut offerings, including Google Guide's Cheat Sheet and Google Guide's Coffee page.

Show your students how to quickly find definitions and do simple math problems in an instant!

Use this search site to compare search results for different search terms or to search multiple items without losing one or more searches. The screen will divide into four separate search screens, so you are able to search items in each “mini screen” rather than opening four tabs. Each search has its own scroll bar though each screen has very limited area as it is a fraction of the total screen size.

Use in the classroom for a multitude of searches: Compare different ways of searching, such as using queries with or without quotes, to identify the differences in the results, research several scientists, musicians, or artists at once. Use the search results to continue to narrow searches on all and look for possible comparison and/or contrast. For example, use one search square to search an event such as World War II. Use the other squares to choose an item of interest to dig deeper, such as attitudes during the decade, change in economy, major battles in different areas of the world, etc. In Science, search different planets, cell parts or processes, air pollutants, types of cars or fuels, etc. all for comparison. Find unlimited possibilities for better searching. At the start of the year, use this tool to show how different terms yield different results and learn better ways to search. Consider using this resource to help identify different ways to search. This is a good link to provide on your class website for students to use both in and out of the classroom.

This website provides a one-stop adventure for anyone wishing to learn more about Great Britain. There are over 1500 pages of information and activities - all "kid-friendly", entertaining and educational. You will find information about British culture, history, flags, education, daily life, climate and weather, government, the royal family and more. There are also links available to classroom activities to use while teaching students about Great Britain. These activities include WebQuests, "Winnie the Pooh" adventures, comparisons of Great Britain to various states in the USA and other countries throughout the world, worksheets, interactive activities and other learning adventures. A true inspiration for your students is the fact that much of the content was created by students aged 7-11. Some of the activities require FLASH, get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

So many famous people and inventions are from Great Britain - J.K. Rowling, Shakespeare, the hovercraft vehicle, Darwin, Newton and countless others. If your class is learning about these famous people or inventions, use this website to further enhance their understanding of the people, inventions and culture of Great Britain.

As you study about what unites cultures into communities and countries, ask your class what they would include if they made a similar site about the city, state, or country where you teach. Use a wiki to start just such a site, including digital pictures. You can always start out simple and make a guide to your school itself -- including playground etiquette and favorite foods.

Even the best of search engines can return frustrating results if your search strategy isn’t right. Subtitled "Deep Content," this site offers an extensively detailed guide to Internet search strategies and techniques. While there’s enough detail here for serious academic research, the essentials of this site would make a great introduction to web searching for secondary students.
4841

TeachersFirst Edge entry: for the more adventurous technology user. GuruLib is a great way to organize and annotate your classroom library. If you can find the ISBN number on your books or UPC codes on CDs/DVDs, you can enter the full information on these items into a library that students can use to find favorites to borrow (you can even sort them only shelves according to related units you teach). Another idea is to have students use this site (and your single log-in) to enter titles, authors, and reviews that classmates can read. Since "borrowing" an item requires having an account (not a safe idea with your students), why not allow all students to use your account and create a "shelf" for each student's initials?. Then students can drag books he/she has signed out from the classroom. Students can enter reviews (Sign with initials so others know who wrote it) and even comment on the reviews left by others. What a great way to promote reading in a motivational way! Parents and others see the site from the public side. If parents join GuruLib, they can even comment on the reviews their children wrote. Think of the excitement!

Skills needed: Join the site (free). Read and play (limited help given)to Add items, edit them (including a review), add or edit shelves, drag items to shelves, etc. Show students how to enter a book and review on a projector, then mark your class library in Favorites on the classroom computer for them to make entries as they read! .See our editor's sample library from the "public" side. Power users can even add "widgets" to the class blog from the GuruLib. There's a challenge!

Whether your students are learning how to spell the fifty states, reviewing chemistry terms, or trying out their foreign language skills, this collection of thematic hang-man games can provide a fun way to practice! Select a topic (most are curriculum-related, a few are just for fun) and try the interactive games, or print out the blank hang-man worksheets and create your own.
5267

This online glossary offers definitions and pictures of math terms. Click on the grade level to view terms and definitions that are appropriate for each grade level. Some examples from the 1st grade list include a bar graph, cone, minus, and pattern. Examples from the 6th grade list include absolute value, coordinate plane, Fibonacci sequence, and countless others. This is an excellent resource for all elementary and middle school math teachers. Even if you do not use the Harcourt math series, the terms are universal.

Make a shortcut to this site on your desktop for students to reference as needed during school hours. Be sure to provide this link on your class web page and in your class newsletter, so students can access the information from home.

Designed especially for the limited English speaker, this easy-to-use dictionary contains definitions in simple language ESL learners can understand, and each word is used in a sentence. Other features include pronunciation, synonyms, part of speech, word of the day, and activities; browsing and advanced search options are also available.

A great dictionary to bookmark for your ESL learners on your classroom computer for handy reference anytime.

This pdf file, organized by the American Library Association, lists sites to help teens evaluate websites, stay safe while using the internet,keep up with new offerings and technology (like blogs), and do research and citations correctly. This is an excellent overall compilation done by professionals in the library field and is a good source for instructors as well as students. You MUST have Acrobat Reader to open this site. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

A great resource for teachers to use with technology-wild students who need to use solid evaluation criteria to ground their internet usage decisions. You can print out the file as a handout or use the links as part of an activity prior to starting a research project.

This college-level writing guide for history papers from Bowdoin College may be beyond the scope of some secondary students. But for those who can already compose a cogent paragraph, it offers great suggestions on research process and assembling a paper that uses primary resources. AP history and social studies teachers may want to review this one and suggest or adapt it for their students. There’s a wealth of information here.
4426

Open this site on the interactive whiteboard or projector and have students read the information before beginning their first big research paper. (Teachers can also print the information, but why not save some trees?) The short introductory essay offers some great tips for paper writing and has reference points for students with more questions. Have students look at the rest of the information on their own or refer students with questions to it. Save this site as a favorite on the class wiki or webpage so students can access it both in and out of the classroom.

Students – ages 11 to 16 - can solicit the help of a virtual librarian on this British site that offers an "Ask Jeeves" style of homework assistance. A teacher-monitored live advice session is offered during evening hours (U.K. time - roughly 2pm-5pm Eastern time).

While this site does not have all of the answers, and the search method can be a bit awkward (correct spelling is a must!), it is still useful as a resource to point students in the right direction when they need more information about a topic. Bookmark this site on your classroom computer or suggest that parents make it available to their children as an at-home reference.

Divided into two levels of site listings, elementary and secondary, this web directory also includes a section of sites for teachers and general resources for Spanish speakers. Some sites are bilingual, however, so it's an interesting place to look around even if you don't speak Spanish but have Latino students. The range of subjects of the websites is impressive, from information about different countries, holidays, cuisines, to art, reference, and pen pal swap information. Some sites require the Real Audio or Flash plugin.

Explore this site's offerings when you want to include the cultures of non-native speakers or students with Hispanic background in your classes. It is also a great resource for Spanish teachers at all levels. Select a site each month to share on your teacher web page or even make a center in your elementary classroom.

Written for elementary and middle schoolers facing their first research project, this site offers both guidance and reassurance. Developed by a school librarian, it provides step-by-step instructions and lots of tools to help students get organized and find appropriate resources. Parents and teachers alike will find this one helpful, and we suggest introducing students to it early on, instead of after panic has set in.
3916

Weekly printable Hunt the Fact Monster activity sheets encourage students to build research skills and internet literacy as they use the Fact Monster search engine to find the answers to the questions in the activity. There are separate sections for grades 2-3 and grades 4-8. This site requires Adobe Acrobat Reader. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

This site can be used for individual students, in a technology class, or as a parent-and-student together assignment. Be sure to see the Ideas for Using Hunt the Fact Monster in Your Classroom page for tips on using the hunts in your classroom. Before you launch your research project with younger students, use this exercise to solidify research basics or as a pretest to be sure everyone is ready. Challenge your more able students to create their own Fact Monster hunts on individual research topics and share them with classmates. Reading teachers can also use these activities to help students practice skimming and scanning.

Looking for information on cities or want to make comparisons between different cities? Use iCityData to find information such as "Average Family Size," "Mean travel time to work," and many other categories. Choose "City Search" above the search box to find information about a specific city. To make comparisons, choose "Compare cities" to compare up to three cities located by city, state, zip code, or area code. Being specific with the information yields a better search. Advertisements are included on the ‘clarify choices” page. Students should be cautioned to ignore these. Of course, the data used is only as current as the recent census. See the notes at the bottom for the source of data.

Use this website for any curricular area, especially science and social studies. Students can create stories set in different locations or write blog posts about issues people face. Use data about your community and others for practice with creating graphs to compare information visually. Have groups investigate different places and create a class geography wiki about specific topics such as the impact of natural resources on the local economy. Compare your own community to others in other states as you learn the basics of community government and citizenship. Not comfortable with wikis? Check out the Teacher’s First Wiki Walk-Through reviewed here. Use this site to research quality of life today compared to in the past. View different locations to determine common problems and reasons for these. Look at population statistics to show percent growth and resulting issues from changes in populations. Research background information on environmental issues in each of the locations and use data from this site to make connections to those issues.

Teach your students to be savvy Internet users with this lesson plan that stresses the importance of carefully evaluating sites used for research. Using specific criteria and a checklist, students must "grade" informational sites using a downloadable checklist.
6172

Help students make smart decisions about choosing Web sites for research with this lesson plan that walks through the process of evaluating online material. Includes a printable checklist to guide the evaluation process. Aligned to ISTE National Technology Standards.
5604

This unusual website is interactive and provides students with the unique challenge of determining which types of reference books should be used to find specified information. Some of the reference books include an atlas, a book about flags, a book about wildlife, and a few specialized weather books. The website provides a Teachers/Parents link that provides general standards for this interactive game. The entire activity requires Flash, get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

Use an interactive whiteboard and let students take turns to help your students understand the various forms of informational texts. Or set up this site as a center in the library/media center to remind students where to look for information.

Here's a site that has automated the creation and deciphering of those tricky anagrams. It's a lot faster than rearranging the Scrabble tiles, and a lot more fun to play with. A great place to send a student who's a great wordsmith and wants a challenge.
189

This visual dictionary available in English, French, German, Spanish and Italian is a gem of a site for ESL or world language students. Visitors can choose a topic, view the associated words and pictures, then test themselves using the activity links on the left side of the page. Interactive practice options include flashcards, fill-in-the-blanks, "stinky spelling" (fix the mistakes), and more.
0

This site has factual information about arson. It includes video footage, authentic cases of arson, surveys, what to do to help, and more. Take advantage of this website, created especially for pre-teens and teenagers, as one of many current issues topics when studying current events or safety. Flash is required for some of the activities. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

Share this link as one of several project topics for health, current events, or a criminal justice elective. It could also be a good source for background information in a debate class or club.

Teacher's First Edge Review: For advanced technology users. Have a series of web pages you want to share with someone? Use Jog the Web to share links and a specific jogging pathway (“track”) through them. Look at some of these great examples: Google Earth in education and Find a Fallacy.

Search or browse existing “tracks.” Once clicked, a sidebar appears on the left that provides information about the track. The number of pages in the “jog” appears, as well as forward and back arrows. View the names and descriptions of the pages and any instructions that the author added. Click on any of these names to follow the link directly to the page. Register to create your own track. See TeachersFirst’s safety and use tips for using this site below under “In the Classroom.” Some content on this site may be inappropriate for the classroom. Always preview.

Skills needed: Registration is free and requires a password and email address. Once validated by email, click "Create a New Track" and enter a title and description. Find all of your tracks on your page. Click on each to edit descriptions or add steps (these are the web address url's of the pages you are adding.) Easily delete your tracks by clicking on the trash can icon next to each track.

Safety/Security: If students are to create tracks, each student will need to create an account (with an email address) and then email verification. Check your school policies about accessing/sharing student email on school computers. You may want to create your own Gmail account with up to 20 subaccounts for each group of students (by code name or number) within your classes. Here is a blog post that tells how.

Consider creating a single class account using your “extra” email address, so you can monitor and submit student work safely. Student-created tracks can be identified through title or adding initials at the end of the title. The home page of this site includes changing “featured” content contributed by the general public. Be sure to preview the content ahead of time. You may want to send students to your track via a direct link.

Classroom use: Create your own tracks as webquests for students to follow for class assignments. Students can be assigned different subtopics of a subject such as biomes, find related pages, and create a track working through these pages. Students could also create tracks to annotate their sources for a research project, critiquing each source in the sidebar. Teach about evaluating web sites and reliability of sources by having students in small groups create tracks comparing different sources on the same topic. Create tracks as homework help solutions for parents and students. Use a blog, wiki, or website to share these tracks for students to visit for obtaining information. Want to learn more about Wikis? Check out the Teacher’s First Wiki Walk-Through reviewed here.

Send your elementary students to a safe search engine that guides them to quality, age-appropriate sites. A group of librarians designed this site to address concerns about young children surfing the untamed Web. While limited in scope, it does address more than 600 subjects. Search by keyword or letter.
5310

Elementary students can safely browse through this growing collection of Kidspace articles to find information about a favorite topic or resources for a school project. Topics include history, animals, crafts and activities, language arts, sports, and technology. The fun and informative articles - downloadable as PDF files - are engaging for parents and teachers as well and provide some great ideas for activities in the classroom or a home.
4988

Use this site to encourage students to become more involved with current events. Every week assign a group of students a news section to research and report back to the class about. Have students create a multimedia presentation using Voicethread reviewed here. This site allows users to narrate a picture. Challenge students to find a photo (legally permitted to be reproduced), and then narrate the photo as if it is a news report.

This website provides free PowerPoint presentations on various topics relating to library use and research skills. Some of the specific topics include Marc Brown, Dr. Seuss, dictionary definitions, Dewey decimal system, tall tales, and others. You may need PowerPoint software on your computer to view these files, depending upon how the site creators saved them.

Get your interactive whiteboard or projector ready and use these wonderful FREE resources in your classroom or library/media center. If you are planning to assign a research project or book reports, these shows may help prepare your elementary students. The site includes a disclaimer asking to be notified if users find any unauthorized, copyrighted material. TeachersFirst recommends that you NOT download copies but instead use them online, just in case.

This study tool and open content dictionary allows you to enter a web address (URL) and make all of the words on that page clickable for definitions and translation. A clicked word immediately displays its definition from the Lingro dictionary pages. The website looks visually the same within the LIngro window, but all words become clickable. You can also use Lingro to translate to and from English, Spanish, French, Italian, German, and Polish with more languages to be added. When students use the translation/definition tool, the site keeps a short-term record of their words and web pages, allowing them to study their own wordlists and to play games with these words. The wordlist and history feature only works short-term and at the SAME computer, unless you register for free to be able to take your personal history to any computer. With the translation capability, you can read websites in other languages. If you spell a word incorrectly, Lingro has a "best match" feature which finds likely definitions for your word of choice. There is also a tool to create electronic flash card type games from your saved wordlists.

Important technical note: Lingro cannot “see” words included in Flash interactives such as the “What’s New” rotating content on the TeachersFirst home page. If you RIGHT click on an area of text and see “About Adobe Flash Player…,” this means that the text is displayed in Flash and not “legible” to Lingro. Often pages offer a non-Flash version as an alternative.

When your ESL/ELL, learning support, or weaker readersdo internet research on sites above their independent reading level, have them open Lingro first and then enter the URL(web address) they wish to read. Mark this site as a favorite on your classroom computer or on your teacher web page so that ESL/Ell, world language students, or weaker readers can use the definition and translation feature and benefit from instantly-created word lists. If your school permits individual student accounts on web tools, this is a good one. If not, create a single teacher account to compile class word lists.

Imagine typing a note in Hindi! Simply click on the language of your choice and start typing! The “note” will show up in the text box in the new language. This site helps students search, type, and translate in more than 50 foreign languages. Of course the site has the more common languages: French, German, Spanish, Chinese, and others. But there is also an eclectic mix of other lesser known (to Americans) languages: Kazach, Latvian, Macedonian, Farsi Persian, Tamil, Thai, Swedish, and MANY more.

The FAQ section is extremely helpful, explaining how to use the site with different browsers and languages. It also instructs those who use the site how to zoom, change the "Skins" of the site, and how to convert text to html. Once a student or teacher clicks on a specific language, a separate keyboard appears on the screen that features any diacritical markings or other special language features. This page also contains links to relevant search engines, videos, maps, dictionaries, and other reference tools. Be aware: this site does include some advertisements. This site uses Java and Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

As you study English cognates and vocabulary, you can compare the same word in different languages or to make quick comparisons of multiple languages to see the “families” of world languages and etymology. Share this site with your international students and also with students studying foreign languages. They may already know about it as a tool for doing “translation” homework, but you can use it to demonstrate the power of idioms and why direct translation is not so simple! Another strength of this site is in being able to access web-based tools in another language.

Language students will be able to do a complete travel search in another language, for example, search, select, plan, and purchase a trip using another language before writing it up. You can also copy and paste the translations, by clicking “select.” Why not have students create a multimedia presentation using this site? Make an online book using the new language (with translations on the next page, if necessary). Or create personal vocabulary books of words from a given language or comparisons of words from multiple languages. Use a tool such as Bookemon (reviewed here).

This online dictionary claims to correct misspelled entries, so ESL and ELL students might want to try it. The spelling correction is a bit quirky, however, often suggesting an alternate word that is NOT the intended word. Students can download it to any web browser including those on cell phones. The dictionary itself is extensive; each item shows a series of definitions. Students can then click to see the word used in a sentence, synonyms, and related terms. There is also information on homonyms. Finally, definitions sometimes include a link to more information on the subject, including links to outside sources. The site can translate to and from German, Spanish, French, Portuguese, and Dutch. Note that there are Google ads on the page, so you will want to be sure that students know to avoid these. The necessary plug-ins for installation on other web browsers are included on the web page.

Mark his site as a favorite on your classroom computer for ESL and ELL students who have problems looking up words in the dictionary. Make a game with this site: have students deliberately misspell words and see what they come up with. Give prizes to those who can find the worst guesses in the dictionary. Have them calculate how many times the dictionary actually finds the words they were looking for. This will help students understand how important context clues and contextual “does this make sense” strategies are. Students can also opt to sign up for "word of the second."

This site contains an interesting meta-collection of full-text magazine and on-line magazine articles, sorted by general subject categories. This resource lets users quickly assemble several treatments of a given topic. Some of the publications may be unfamiliar, however, so expect authoritativeness to be an occasional issue.
97

Encourage your students to use this tool as a starting point for research projects and include this site on your teacher web page.

Part of "Interesting Things for ESL Students," this unadorned site changes daily and provides common slang (near the top of the page), idioms, or proverbs and definitions plus daily grammar quizzes. It also features an audio broadcast of a simplified news release backed up with archives (Click on links below Listening). Also available is a multilingual translating dictionary and access to three top search engines.

Use this to beef up vocabulary, to explore culture through idioms and proverbs, and for listening and discussion practice in response to news reports. Great to fill in 5 – 10 minutes at the beginning or end of classes! For the regular classroom teacher, this may provide an alternate way for ESL students to "study" current events. Be sure to mark it in Favorites on your classroom computer for these students to access (or place a shortcut on the desktop). Note: you need speakers for the audio!

This online mapping tool is really a “mash-up” (online technology combo) of many tools that allows you to see various cities and countries throughout the world. The site is powered by GoogleMaps, but clicking on Map opens up other content. There is a "place of the day" offered daily. In addition to showing the location on the map, there are photos, news stories, current weather conditions, articles about the location, events happening in the area, videos (powered by YouTube), and demographic information about the area. There is a link on the top of the page, Countries , as well as a search box to search by location name. Note that the “Social” link leads to many social tools possibly inappropriate for the classroom. Since much of the content is designed for the general public, it is s good idea to preview places you plan to “feature” in class.

Be aware: this site also has advertisements for books for sale. This site requires Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
3296

Navigating the site is fairly easy. Manipulate the map as you would on Google Maps (zoom, drag, etc). Simply click to read the articles, weather reports, and view the photos or video clips (teacher-previewed, of course). Use this fabulous site as an addition to your geography class or as a reference when looking up ANY world location from current events, literary settings, and more. Take your students virtually to a new location every day! Share the site on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Challenge students to write a blog as a native from the highlighted country. In world language classes, have students plot a trip or write an imaginary story of their dream trip to Spain, Mexico, France, China (or whatever country/language they are studying). Take your students on a virtual trip to the native countries where the language is spoken. Have your ESL or ELL students take the class on a virtual tour of their home country.

For a more extensive project, have your students work on "building up" the Mapdango resources available for your area using the various tools that Mapdango draws upon. Of course, you will need to work within school policies to access these tools. Add more pictures to Panoramio, contribute more detailed articles to wikipedia, etc. Be sure to include the link to YOUR town's Mapdango entry on your class web page!

Safety/Security Concerns: Registration is required to use the social features, but they are not necessary for “exploring” a location. Make sure you have a clear class policy and consequences regarding the social features of the site. This site is so rich in information that it is a good one to use to teach ethical and safe use of web resources, especially how to avoid non-essential portions of a good site.

This site boasts more than a simple on-line dictionary. The site includes search features, a daily crossword puzzle, a word of the day, and more. This comprehensive site provides teachers and students with a reference tool that's actually interesting to use.
98

Some of the content on this site does require a premium membership; however, the free daily content links at the top of the page provide a great resource. Consider challenging students to a "word of the day" competition. Have students guess the meaning of the word of the day for an entire week, and reward students who guess correctly.

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.

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.

The Smithsonian's presidential biographies resource offers basic biographical information and images on all American Presidents, along with highlights of their administrations. Useful for both its content and its comprehensiveness. The site offers some basic information about all presidents (Washington through Obama).
1302

Use this site as a starting point for research projects. If you are teaching about the presidents, this site would be great on your projector or interactive whiteboard.

This all-encompassing atlas site provides a broad variety of information and activities. The subject areas include agriculture, biology, boundaries, climate, environment, geology, government, history, mapping, transportation, people, and water. All of the subjects incorporate the United States (for example, the agriculture pages discuss the agriculture of the USA). The map features are phenomenal and include both printable maps and "dynamic maps" which are interactive and awesome! Some of interactive maps include topics such as relief and elevation, West Nile virus, volcanoes and more. This site is a perfect addition to any science class that is studying volcanoes, climate, biology and more. It is also useful in a geography class studying the various uses and types of maps. Some of the activities at this site require Flash, get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

Have your students work in cooperative learning groups to investigate the "dynamic maps". Assign each group a topic to explore (there are 7). Have the students research the information using the maps and then report their findings to the class, perhaps displaying examples on a projector or interactive whiteboard. In teaching any of the related subjects, using a projector to share a map will make the content more "real," such as displaying the butterfly layer in the map maker so students can see how the butterfly population their home state compares with other locations.

Explore images, documents, and rare materials in this impressive collection of on-line archives. Search for a specific topic of interest by using the Archival Finding Aids, tour the many on-line exhibitions that cover a wide range of topics, or follow a link to one of beautifully presented portfolios on themes ranging from Small-town America to Surveyors of the American West. Use for your own background research or as a resource for your students. Created by the New York Public Library.
4976

Use this site to search for images that can be used in your classroom for a visual discovery activity. Select 3-5 of the more powerful images, placing them on separate slides of a PowerPoint show. Show each slide to the class for 1-2 minutes each, allowing students time to jot down what they observe, predict and infer about each image. After the class has finished with the slides, have a class discussion based on the notes that students took accompanying a replaying of the slide show. This is a great way to introduce or review a topic in a non-lecture format.

Watch, Learn, Research, Teach. Got your attention? View the statement, "Together We Learn" to understand the underlying purpose. This free beta site uses video that starts with many of the wonderful TED talks videos. “Nibs” provide the opportunity to view the best videos out there that are worthy of a learning adventure. Playlist subjects include architecture, the brain, business, chemistry, civics, computers and the web, cool stuff, design, education, Egypt, math, music, physics, sociology, sustainability, and several others.

As the site grows, others will have the opportunity to add videos to the growing timeline. At this point, there is only a select group of educators adding content (see the main page of any topic for more information). See the purpose of creating a smarter way to learn. Videos are "nibbed" (linked) to content on Wikipedia, as well as to equally worthy video that increases our knowledge and makes the experience smarter! The community is tightly controlled so only appropriate videos and resources are included. Clicking on a video link provides a biography or background information from Wikipedia, related information (nibs), and other videos. This site requires FLASH. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

Share these videos on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Search through the content to find topics relevant to your class. Allow students to use this site for research projects. Use Nibipedia to create smarter searches with purely relevant content. Use Nibipedia to find quality resources that links you to other quality resources. Learn and share information found in Nibipedia for use in class or by individual students. You may even want to list this site on your class wiki, blog, or website for students to access at home.

NoodleTools offers two research aids: a "fill in the blanks" search engine designed to help novice web users conduct complex searches, and an on-line tool to generate MLA style bibliography citations for a wide variety of sources. The bibliography tool is especially useful for its ability to spit out a technically correct citation for almost any situation.
100

This site requires a login, so consider setting up a single teacher account and have all the student use your login to avoid safety concerns.

Complete the free registration and explore the many features of this site that help prep students for SAT and ACT experiences. After creating an account, students can participate in an interactive course, tailored to their specific ability levels. The site even includes personal tutoring, immediate feedback on each incorrect response, and a vocabulary builder that allows users to build their own set of electronic flash cards.

This searchable collection of images from the New York Public Library contains thousands of items scanned from dust jackets, documents, posters, maps, illustrated books, and more. There is no fee for classroom or research uses, but the images may not be disseminated in any form (books, articles, brochures, Web pages, etc.). Please include the citations used in the "gallery" when incorporating these resources into your teaching materials. Encourage your students to do the same and introduce them to the concept of Fair Use!
5767

This unique dictionary brings up the word and its definitions as you type. One word may have as many as ten different definitions. It also features other words with the same root so that users can see the noun, verb, and adjective forms, as well as other related terms. Learning support students might find this more helpful in figuring out correct spelling without the confusion of spell-check dictionaries that misunderstand their intent. Another bonus to this site is a translating dictionary from English to Japanese, highly useful for Japanese ESL students.

A fun site when working on word form study. Keep this one in the Favorites on your classroom computer for anyone to determine spelling as they type, using trial and error to see their options.

Click on the interactive map of the United States to select a time zone and view the exact time (within .02 seconds) as well as a map of the world that shows where the sun is shining and where it is night.
5431

As the title implies, this site is a searchable archive of PDF images of old magazine articles. The majority is from the 20th century, although there are also entries from the 19th century. Because the articles are from magazines, they often include fantastic pictures that can illustrate fashion, culture and opinions of the time period. It's an eclectic mix of topics, with some emphasis on the early 20th century. Recent additions include articles from WWI and WWII eras, as well as flappers and fashion of the 1920s.

This is a fabulous primary document site packed with useful resources for social studies teachers. Because the entries are all in PDF format, each can be printed and copied for classroom list. According to the owner of the site, the information is all in the public domain and can be freely distributed. Entries are continually being added. For the serious researcher, there isn't always exact bibliographic information included with each entry for use in citations. However, for classroom use, or for use on interactive whiteboards, this archive is exceptionally useful... and it's FREE!

Become a smart online consumer and computer user. Use the Topics, Games, or Videos sections to learn Internet safety at home and through life. From Phishing to Computer Disposal and Health Online, find helpful information for all ages. At the topics link you will find information on Wireless Security, Social Networking Sites, Spyware, Kids Privacy, and many other topics. The interactive (games) are highly engaging and include “Online Lineup,” “Invest Quest,” “The Case of the Cyber Criminal,” and many other online topics. There are a few videos to view also. Click on Tools for other resources including subscribing to "Cyber Security Tips." Although this site is useful for teachers of all grade levels, if students are using this site independently it is best suited for secondary students.

Use this extensive resource site to teach students and their parents how to be smart cyber users. Students can create public service announcements or create messages to display on wikis or class blogs. Create infomercials and share them using a tool such as Teachers.TV reviewed here. Want to learn more about how to create and use a class wiki? Check out the Teacher’s First Wiki Walk-Through reviewed here. Another idea: create mini posters either in conventional or digital format (Use an online poster creator, such as Wallwisher, (reviewed here) to display throughout the school or on a district website. Teens could create a cybersmarts campaign for use in your local elementary schools. Service club advisors or technology/media specialists may want to initiate a family internet safety night using some of the resources from this site and other sources.

Designed with ESL students in mind, this dictionary allows students to type in phrases and questions. The dictionary comes up with lists of related words, definitions, and a link to other dictionaries. Although the list of definitions is extensive, the tool reminds the user that the first words found are the most useful.

Customize search results to meet your classroom needs! Make this site available in your Favorites for ESL/ELL students to access as needed.

as the author explains, "Etymologies are not definitions; they're explanations of what our words meant 600 or 2,000 years ago." Use this quick online reference to locate the point in time when a word entered into usage the way we know it-- or to find out what it used to mean, such as in Shakespeare. Use the richness of these historical meanings to understand literature or to illustrate the living nature of language.

Mark this one in the Favorites on classroom computers or in links on your English teacher web page. Feature a word a week on a projector before you start your lesson to help students think about the evolution of language.

While teaching the subtleties of oxymorons, tap into this site to provide some classic examples. Some are serious, some funny (some are seriously funny!), but all are paradoxical. The ever-growing list of examples is organized by subject, and the site also includes a collection of oxymoronic quotes from the likes of Mark Twain and Winston Churchill.
5233

Here is a remarkable resource for helping middle and high-school students master the art of putting their thoughts into words. An online handbook for writers, the site provides resources for writing different types of papers and gives helpful hints for organizing one’s writing. This is a great site to use in teaching expository writing, or to give to students as an additional resource when revising and editing their own written work.
4585

This site is designed for librarians and contains mostly professional materials. The site is helpful for school librarians looking to the types of resources other libraries in their state or other states provide on their webpages. Each state listing also contains state-specific professional resources.
101

Share this site with your teaching colleagues or school librarians looking to improve library resources.

Fairfield University’s introduction to “avoiding plagiarism” will also prove useful to secondary students who may be doing their first research involving documentation of sources. This resource is particularly useful in that it stresses the various “shades” of source notation and the requirements for each. Add this one to your collection of term paper writing aids. This site requires Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
4701

Share this site with your students on an interactive whiteboard or projector.

While the LoC has lots of country study information, this page offers something different: a meta-list of web resources for dozens of countries. The pages send you off to many other sites, and the quality of these is predictably variable. Most of this content is intended for older audiences, but there are some elements that would be useful for students as well.
3637

This site presents a virtual reference desk from Princeton University Library staff. This is an easy access to online dictionaries, encyclopedias, data archives, government info, library resources, book/journal collections, measures and weights, currency converters etc. It is user friendly and updated regularly.
102

TeachersFirst Edge Entry: For very comfortable technology users who need more sophisticated capabilities than your TeachersFirst home page. This online tool creates a highly visual "home page" that can incorporate multiple elements simply by dragging and dropping them in place. Not unlike Google's personalized homepage, the elements look like little sticky notes or boxes, but there is far greater flexibility and a wider variety of content readily available. You can also make the page local (simply use it as the "home" on your classroom computer), shared by a select group (passworded), or completely public. You can easily make a theme or unit page for quick access of resources, complete with directions.

How would you use this in your teaching? Create a set of RSS feeds for current events or a specific curriculum topic such as weather and make them available for an in-class activity, complete with directions. World language, world cultures, or geography teachers can profile a location on the globe, complete with local weather and news. Make separate tabs for separate activities. Students can access them by password or publicly from outside of class, as well. For primary grades, make simple instructions right on the desktop for a computer center activity. Use color coding of the instructions to differentiate for different children (Sam, I want you to do the yellow one). If your school permits students to set up accounts on web services, have groups make Protopages on an assigned topic, collecting and organizing resources, images, and information: "A Protopage Guide to Cells" or "Shakespeare's Times." Gifted and highly-able students will go crazy!

Skills needed: Join (free). Check out the Intro, Overview, and Quickstart to see how it works. Play to your heart's content, including making tabs. Learn about RSS feeds and other Widgets-- including sticky notes. Share the URL with those you wish to have use it. Note: this works on Internet Explorer 6 and higher and on Firefox. If your users are on older web browsers, the developers recommend upgrading. This may be a problem for some. Check with your end-user computers before you spend too much time making the perfect Protopage!

If you allow students to create their own Protopage, you will need to have very specific rules about content, since there are non-educational elements available.

By teaching young students how to evaluate web pages early, this site helps create critical consumers of information. By clicking on items arranged in a circle on the screen, students go on to further explanations, examples, and quizzes about the main points of web evaluation.

This site would be great on a projector as a teacher-centered lesson, returning to each point as you build the understanding throughout the year. Use one point at a time as you show students various websites throughout the school year. Simply open this site prior to sharing a site with the class. You can use the points here to "evaluate" the source together. Be sure to include it as a reference link on your teacher web page, as well. Parents will appreciate it and students can "show" their parents how to judge sources.

This site has many quotes you can browse and download. This site is more for professional speakers and motivators but anyone in public speaking classes would find this site essential in preparing for a great presentation. This site could also be used by those wanting to motivate students. This site categorizes 13,000 quotes by topic and author and has a search engine.
107

Use this site to find a quote of the day/week/month for your teacher webpage, or use the quotes as prompts for student blogs.

This site offers quotations indexed by subject, author, type, and several other categories. It's an easy-to-use resource which makes finding quotations fun. This site is suitable for secondary students who understand how to use source materials.
108

Use this resource to create your own "quote of the week" on your teacher web page. Alternatively, have your students search for quotations to use as a starting point for a creative writing journal.

This page from the California Department of Education offers a fully searchable database of literature for K-12 students. Available search criteria include age, language, awards, and a variety of topical keywords. Each book listing includes a short synopsis.
3607

Teachers will find this a great tool for locating books appropriate to particular topics or student interests, especially in multi-lingual classrooms

Use this free site for finding the best information on the Internet. Enter the search term directly into the fields you wish. Refdesk provides many search engines to choose from. Use the dictionary and thesaurus, search literature, scan news, or read about articles, pictures, or headlines of the day. Refdesk provides one place to find an abundant amount of information at your fingertips. Students should be cautioned to not click on ads which are scattered throughout the site.

Use this link in the resources section of your wiki, blog, or website for students to quickly find or use information from the Internet. Build information literacy as your students do research. As a beginning activity, have students use the same search term but use different search engines and identify the differences in the top results. Use Refdesk to find interesting information for writing prompts or discussions/blog posts for the day. Use this site for research projects, homework help, and more.

RefSeek is a different search tool (beta—new in Nov, 2008) for beginning researchers as well as those already knowledgeable about the process. Although this search engine appears "plain vanilla," it is a great option for research purposes. As they explain it, they “search the entire Web for freely available academic information, providing relevant results while filtering out most commercial content.” This is different from Google’s standard search. RefSeek looks through web pages, books, encyclopedias, journals, and newspapers for your chosen topic. With special search features, students can also limit searches to specific web pages, search two topics (either-or option) at once, and even include search words usually dismissed by academic searches (like "the" and "if"). After starting a search, click on Directory to limit searches to certain types of publications and resources, including quotations, almanacs and teacher resources.

Use this site to compare the validity of various types of reference material sources. Compare results of searches to teach critical reading skills and 21st century information literacy. Compare info from sources on this site to those in print materials. Encourage your students to use this tool for individual as well as group projects. Encourage ESL and ELL students to find sources with lower reading levels that still give the necessary information.

Research 101 is an interactive online tutorial for students needing an introduction to research skills. The tutorial covers the basics, including how to select a topic and develop research questions, as well as how to select, search for, find, and evaluate information sources. This site teaches kids HOW to research so it works with ANY subject matter.Teaching kids how to research and the differences between kinds of sources can be challenging. This site makes it a little easier for you and simpler and more fun for them!

What is terrific about this site is its interactive capability-- so you can introduce it on a projector or whiteboard at the beginning of class, then let them continue by themselves as you go around and check on individual issues. After each section there is a "review quiz" that students can take right there and get their score immediately. Require them to raise a hand to report a score--or they risk a zero!

This site is a must for your teacher web page during research season.

Developed by a school in Rhode Island, this page does a nice job of helping first-time researchers get organized and started. The "getting organized" content is stronger than the "research resources," but it could be a great place to start on that first research paper.
103

Include this page on your teacher web page for students and parents to access as a reference.

This site is much more than an on-line rhyming dictionary. Use it as a thesaurus, spell checker, or on-line source for all of Shakespeare's works. Other features include interactive quizzes on a variety of topics (high-school level), thousands of searchable quotations and poems, and the complete texts of several famous documents.
5279

This Australian site is an excellent reference guide. Excellent links to any research and reference materials out there on the Web!! Very easy to use, well thought out reference guide with links to anything that has to do with academics! This guide also provides grade level information, professional resources, several other language resources, lesson plans, topic discussions, and research help and assistance.
109

This on-line version of the classic reference provides an invaluable resource for finding the best way to say exactly what you're trying to say.
106

Include this site on your teacher web page for students to access as a reference.

Deceptively simple and not at all pretty, this site offers a wealth of information on the historical governance of scores of countries. (Where else could you find a chronological list of the prime ministers of Spain?) It doesn’t offer complete histories, but secondary students studying the history of other countries may find its synopsis-by-ruler an interesting starting point.
4696

Save this site as a favorite on your class wiki or webpage and refer students to it for reference. It's best use would be to help students compile the executive history of a country and search that way, rather than searching for information on a specific ruler. This would be a great starting point for a student studying monarchy in a particular country such as Britain or Saudi Arabia.

Help students prepare for the vocabulary section of the SAT with this interactive practice test. More than 3,000 multiple choice items, organized into 21 groups, are included along with a database browser that enables students to display and print the questions and correct answers. Requires FLASH.
6298

This handy tool helps clear up the search engine confusion. It clearly and simply matches research needs with appropriate online resources. Point your students to this site before starting them on a research project.
5816

This visual dictionary is a Wiki which matches definitions of a target word with photos from Flickr, Google, and Yahoo (at the time of this review). Simple click the word you would like to search into the text box, and lists of definitions as well as MANY photos appear. As more words are searched, they simply are listed above the previous search. So a student could easily search several words together and visually see them all on the same screen. The definitions in the dictionary come from "WordNet." Within the definition, many words themselves are clickable; students can immediately find the definition of any of those words as well. Students learn about parts of speech, tenses, are given examples, and more. Note: Words and definitions available are from a "general public" dictionary and may include some words not appropriate for the classroom. Teachers concerned about students' accessing obscenities or body parts should test whether school filtering blocks such inquiries before allowing students to use the dictionary independently. Alternatively, use history to enforce school acceptable use policies, supervise usage, or use the visual dictionary as a whole-class activity.

As with any dictionary, this reference book contains all sorts of words including words of a sexual nature. So be sure to preview your search and give students warnings about appropriate use!

Share this site on your interactive whiteboard or projector. This is very helpful for all students. However, especially for ESL and ELL students, who might need a quick picture to help define a type of tree, plant, or food not familiar to them. Why not have students create their own wiki about your current science or social studies topic (or any other subjects). Have cooperative learning groups use vocabulary words, provide the definitions, AND find some photos to share. Not sure what a wiki is? Check out the TeacherFirst Wiki Walk-Through (reviewed here).

What student doesn't get excited about money? This highly motivating website is all about the stock market. This WebQuest challenges students (in groups of 3) to invest $5000 in a "virtual" stock market. Students must research, evaluate and choose stocks to track. Students must add, subtract and graph their stocks.

Be sure to visit the "teacher page" for a more in-depth lesson plan, standards, assessments, research resources and more. This is a great site to pull together and USE several math concepts. Consider it as a possible authentic assessment instead of a test.

Simple English Wikipedia is a new production of Wikipedia, focused on readers and learners with less vocabulary than native speakers of English. According to the producer, the pages featured here contain simpler words and shorter sentences than the regular Wiki pages. The number of pages is more limited as well, though this should grow with educators and learners contributing information. Another difference is that any slangs or idiomatic language is carefully explained to accommodate the ELL reader. The HELP pages explain how to write and submit articles for Simple English Wikipedia and have suggestions for simplifying English.

Share this site with your school ESL teachers as well as classroom teachers who may have ESL students who are involved in researching and possibly even writing new articles. Bookmark this for your classroom computer. If you do recommend wikipedia as a source for research, be sure to have the discussion about its unknown authorship and usefulness as a general information tool but not as a "scholarly" resource. As a challenge to your better writers, consider asking them to write entries that you can submit to this encyclopedia on classroom topics in simpler English. They will have to analyze their own language and writing style with far greater scrutiny than ever before. Or have the class create a two-version wiki glossary of your own on curriculum topics in any discipline, using this as a model for the "easy reading" side.

The next time a research project is assigned, lead your students to this helpful site that provides useful tips, printable worksheets, and links to online tools that can help build information literacy skills. Includes hints on developing a focus, choosing a source, organizing notes, avoiding plagiarism, and more.
0

Although this site is plain vanilla in appearance, there are tasty mind-sprinkles all throughout! At the home page you are presented with the letters of the alphabet. Click on the letter that begins the word that you wish to find. Find everything from pesticide to energy to topography to deciduous trees. Search a word in the glossary. Read or listen to the pronunciation and definition of the words. You may have to wait a second or two for the sound player controls to show. This site requires QuickTime. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

Many students stumble over the meaning of words in their search for related classroom information. Many are afraid to ask and risk misunderstanding of material. Reference this resource for students to learn the meaning of words in order to understand classroom passages, resources, or materials. Allow students to use it as a reference before reading an assignment. Especially if you are a science teacher, save this site in your favorites and list the link on your class website. If there are specific vocabulary words that relate to your current unit of study, why not have students work in cooperative learning groups to find the definitions and create a class collaborative wiki to share the vocabulary words. They could even create their own recordings using a tool such as Podomatic (reviewed here).

Get an overview of any web search visually using Spezify. Spezify is a search engine that provides both visual and verbal results for the search terms you enter. It pulls in images from Flickr and anywhere on the web as well as print excerpts, and (coming soon) video. Click on the image or text box you wish to read just as you click on text in search results lists. Visually display the "big picture" on any topic. Searching "edison inventions" brings up pictures and articles for visual learners, ELL/ESL students, or non-readers to get the gist of the topic at a quick glance. Spezify also suggests possible additional search terms and related topics across the top of the page as white text within the narrow black stripe. If you click the plus sign (+) next to one of these terms, it will add that term to your search, narrowing the results. If you click on the word itself, Spezify will search that term instead (not adding it to your previous search). There does not appear to be any specific ranking (as Google has) or sorting of the results by reputation, popularity, etc. No "about" information is provided to explain how Spezify determines which results show first. The tool is still in beta and provides a way for you to provide feedback, as well. NOTE: as with any online image search, you should be careful what you enter as search terms, since Spezify will pull up images without any "filter."

Use Spezify on an interactive whiteboard or projector as you introduce a new topic in science or social studies or when the class asks "What is ____?" . With very young students or non-readers, use Spezify to help them find information they can understand and to inspire them to try to read some of the short text excerpts alongside the images. Activate students' prior knowledge as they recognize the images and remark, "I didn't know Edison was the one who invented that!" Visually show the "big picture" on any topic. As you teach research skills, try a comparison of Spezify results with Google results for both functionality of the search engine and reputability of the results. NOTE: Preview any search terms you plan to display in class if the terms could possibly bring up inappropriate images. You may need to adjust your terms. Of course your students know what they are supposed to do if something inappropriate comes up when using a search themselves, right? If you have not discussed this, now is the time!

Created by the Charlotte & Mecklenburg County libraries, this is an interesting, bilingual resource for finding children's books and related activities. In addition to a kid-friendly book search, there are theme reading lists for both elementary and preschool age groups. Inquisitive reading teachers – especially those working with Spanish-speaking students, will find this a welcome addition to their web lists.
6244

The federal government’s site to encourage young people to work for the government offers lots of information on job areas – from the state department to nursing – as well as tips on how to write a resume, required preparation, etc. While we suspect this site is intended for those seeking full-time employment, it’s an interesting tool for examining the range of career options available in government service.
4412

This site is filled with study tools to help students learn information in a variety of subject areas. Stacks of topics related to geography, history, math, languages, medical, tests (SAT, ACT, etc.), science and more are linked with collections of learning tools that include virtual study cards, matching games, word search puzzles, and hangman games. There really is something here for nearly all subject areas and grade levels! Students can select the tool that works best for them and work at their own pace until they are satisfied with their progress. If you can’t find a stack to fit your needs, you can edit existing lists or create customized study stacks. The site also allows you to print out study cards, or export flash cards to study them via cell phones, PDA, or iPod. Email the stacks to peers or connect with Study Stack through Facebook. Some of the activities require Java. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

Encourage parents to use this site as a study-at-home tool for their students. Link your blog or website to this site by entering your url at the bottom of the homepage. Make sure your guidance counselor at your school is aware of this site as a tool for studying those college entrance tests. Be sure to save this site in your favorites.

Teacher's First Edge entry: For slightly adventurous or curious technology users. Want to "stumble upon" some great sites? Use StumbleUpon to browse websites without having to enter search terms and click through search pages. Choose categories that you are interested in. These can be updated at any time. Choose hobbies, interests, or teaching subjects. When the StumbleUpon button on the tool bar is pressed, StumbleUpon presents a website to fit your interests. Simply click the thumbs up "I like it" or the thumbs down symbol on the tool bar to "teach" StumbleUpon what you like. StumbleUpon seeks out interesting pages you might otherwise not see. The more you Stumble and indicate your preferences, the more Stumble Upon will refine its understanding of what you like. On the StumbleUpon site, you can see your favorites, as well as the top rated websites, videos, and photos from their many "stumblers." Firefox or Internet Explorer is required.

The best use of this site is for teacher research. Hit the Stumble button once or twice a day to find new ideas and new sites for teaching. Skills needed: Join the site (free, but requires email). Download and install the tool bar for Firefox or Internet Explorer and create your "identity." Click the Stumble button. Though you may not get websites relating to just one specific topic, many in your field or interest group will come up. Bookmark these for later use. LOG OUT of Stumble Upon when you are not at your computer to avoid unauthorized use.

Safety concern: Be wise and choose your interests carefully. For example, if you are interested in photography, you will receive random photo sites. Though many have wonderful photos, a few may have questionable content not appropriate for education. Since StumbleUpon has other uses, such as "dating" and "friends," and the ability to see other "popular" sites, you will want to use a single class account to model and teach web site critique and evaluation as a whole class. Individual student profiles can be problematic to supervise unless your school has built a strong, enforceable Acceptable Use Policy, signed by both student and parent, that holds the STUDENT accountable for his/her behavior, not you.

If your school uses a filter (U.S. schools are required to do so by law), any streaming media and other sites may be blocked. If you "Stumble" at home and find a useful site, follow your school's technology policy to request unblocking of specific URLs that are directly related to curriculum.

Editorial comment: Be sure to SHARE your reason for using the site with administrators and school decision-makers to demonstrate why school policies should permit such powerful tools for teaching and learning. You may have to "prove" the worth of StumbleUpon by providing specific examples of the content you have found through this tool, especially since many schools prevent users from downloading and installing any software at all. Be sure to talk about -- and follow through on -- teaching students how to critique and evaluate websites as research skills. General surfing the web in the classroom is not considered best practice, and your example will speak volumes. You may need to become an expert "Stumbler" at home to build your case for accessing and demonstrating the tool at school.

This site is a great mini reference site for students who need a place to start research on famous scientists or to learn about a number of scientists in a very short span of time. Each scientist is listed with a photo and a brief synopsis. There are links to additional information on specific scientists on the individual pages.

For a short lesson, students could work in pairs to create "clue bags" about the scientists by reading the information and putting objects (drawings, science supplies, personal things from their book bags) into a paper bag. The bags would then be circulated between pairs where the site could be used to decipher the clues and identify the scientist. The site would be great for a "mystery scientist project" where you assign small groups of three to four students to a scientist and have them create a short presentation without the name of the scientist and have the groups that are observing solve the scientist mystery with the site. Why not create multimedia projects such as podcasts, online books, or a talking photo. For creating podcasts, use a site such as PodOmatic (reviewed here). Create online books using a tool such as Bookemon, reviewed here. Challenge students to find a photo (legally permitted to be reproduced), and then narrate the photo as if it is a news report using Voicethread reviewed here.

An online, interactive graphic novel(formerly known as comic book) created at Duke Law explains the highly-sophisticated concepts of "public domain" and other intellectual property issues related to using film clips, artwork, Broadway shows, and more in a documentary. In the digital world of the 21st century, copyright is a concept most foreign to our students, and this interactive book may only fan the flames of their outrage at such limitations to the "rights" they perceive in today's connected world. As one panel in the book itself says, "To many artists, the question of 'Fair Use' can seem like a game of blind man's bluff." These concepts are very challenging, even to adults, but this interactive comic book can at least alert users to what some of the legal issues involved with intellectual property may be. This site requires Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

Since this content requires concentration and understanding of concepts beyond the typical high schooler, you may want to share selected frames from the book on your interactive whiteboard or projector as discussion starters or inspiration for debate on copyright issues. Whether you are introducing a research project that requires adherence to Fair Use and proper documentation, are coaching a debate team, or prompting a piece of persuasive writing on this hot topic, this resource will provide fodder for discussion. Don't expect mastery of the legal concept, but you will certainly hear opinions as students navigate this "book."

In five lessons, students review what they know about plagiarism and copyright and update it to include aspects of copying in the digital age. In addition to the history of copyright (with application to proper documentation and annotation), students learn about concepts such as fair use, free speech, peer-to-peer file sharing, and the public domain. The most in-depth portions are definitions and history of copyright, the concepts of fair use and stakeholders, and finally, contemporary explanations of the interpretation of copyright today including material on the internet. The lessons include Notes for the Educator, Assessment, Extension Ideas, Objectives, and many other possible resources. Each lesson varies slightly in the additions.

Use when teaching essay writing and how to cite sources. Plan a unit on plagiarism using the resources on this site or incorporate them into your existing research units. Introduce this site on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Then have students do the activities on this site independently or in small groups. The culminating activity here is a trial; plan to use this with the entire class with each member having a distinct role. Why not video record the trial? Share the video using a resource such as Teachers.TV reviewed here.

This useful tool enables teachers and student writers to objectively analyze writing samples. Just copy and paste a piece of text into the analysis window, and receive a detailed report on sentence length (average, minimum and maximum), most frequently used words, complexity factor, readability, and average syllables per word. The tool can also be used to evaluate the text complexity of a Web page. Just type in the URL!
5115

This wonderfully informative website provides numerous "case files" about many famous people from the world of science and technology.. There are five major areas including computing, transportation, cosmic inquiry, energy, and communications. Once you click on one of the major areas, a list of names appears. Then click on the names of the famous people to learn more about their specific inventions and/or contributions to science and technology. The text also includes images of artifacts from each scientist's life: diaries, writings, and more, all clickable to bring up a larger image of the "real thing." Numerous famous scientists and inventors are included (Alexander Graham Bell, William Jennings, Marie Curie, Albert Einstein, Henry Ford, Catherine Gibbon, and many others).

There is a "teachers link" available to learn more about this website. Why not use this website as a resource for "case file" research projects. Assign each student (or groups of students) a different person to investigate. Weaker readers may need a partner with strong reading skills. Then have the students present a multimedia presentation about their "case file." Or have a day when students actually portray their scientist and interact with others “in character.”

This online encyclopedia provides definitions, pronunciations, descriptions, and uses for nearly every imaginable ingredient and kitchen tool – beyond the most basic - that students may encounter in a cooking class. Viable substitutions are also discussed. Use this site as the basis for a recipe-specific Web hunt before turning them loose in the kitchen. Search by keyword or category.
0

TGIF! The Great Idea Finder, that is. Inventive ideas and history abound here. Some helpful highlights are Facts and Myths, Inventor Biography, Innovation Time line, and Games and trivia. Within the features section, there is a "Did You Ever Wonder About?" which provides interesting history about common and popular items such as the American flag, the piggy bank, and the origins of holidays like Mother's Day.

Use this site as a research resource for students. It would be great to use the "Did You Ever Wonder?" information as class starters to encourage thinking and creativity. Have students use this site to research an invention or something else highlighted at this site and then create a class Wikinvention – a wiki all about inventions and innovative thinking, including invention ideas of their own! Not comfortable with wikis? Have no wiki worries – check out the Teacher’s First Wiki Walk-Through reviewed here.

This site provides an unusually comprehensive collection of Web reference resources on topics ranging from current events to zoology. Most of the content is at adult levels, and offers a truly international selection of resources which can be adapted for lesson planning or classroom use.
91

Include this site on your teacher web page and encourage students to use it as a starting point for research projects or for added enrichment.

This site offers concise, grade level reading about Leonardo Da Vinci, the inventor and scientist as well as basics on simple machines. Although not overly interactive, the site offers links to larger vocabulary words, a quiz on Gadget Anatomy and Leonardo's Mysterious Machines; a game using Da Vinci's sketches. Also included in the site are lesson plans for having students sketch and build their own inventions.

Use this site when teaching about Da Vinci, during an invention unit, a science unit on simple machines, and more. Share the identification quiz on your interactive whiteboard or projector as practice and review prior to testing on the concept of simple machines.

Here's a site which offers answers to imponderables such as, "Why is the ocean blue?" The site includes a search engine, a "Question of the week." and a list of questions and issues from past issues. The site is published by the British periodical New Science.
190

Share the site on an interactive whiteboard or projector, and use it as a springboard for an ethics discussion during science class. Though there are a wide array of articles, some capture and illustrate arguments over the debate of stem cell research, Pluto's classification, and climate change. At the end of a unit, open one of these articles and use the real-world information provided to spark a classroom debate. Students can use the knowledge they have gained, in addition to seeing its practical application. A very useful site for science enrichment!

Explore what made the 1920s "roar" with this interdisciplinary webquest created by an Arlington, Virginia teacher. The "task" of the webquest is a short paper AND portrayal of your chosen 20's figure at a "dinner party."

Although the teacher page does not provide a time estimate on the class time needed for this task, this webquest has a terrific list of web-based primary and secondary sources. If you team-teach with a social studies or language arts teachers, this is the perfect activity for you to do together. Or do it in your U.S. history class. Virginia standards are included.

The next time a research project comes along, send students to this site to help them get organized. Think Tank is designed to assist in the development of topics and subtopics for reports and projects. After defining their subject or perusing a list of suggestions, students are asked to narrow the scope of their project by choosing from a collection of subtopics. Results may be printed.

Share this site with your students before a new research project is assigned. Have students explore the site on individual computers while you model how to navigate the site on a projector or interactive whiteboard. Use this site to help students narrow down their research topic.

This informative website offers students "faraway places at their fingertips." There are countries included from Africa, Asia, Central America, Europe, North America, South America, and Oceania. Some of the specific countries include Nigeria, Tanzania, Pakistan, Thailand, Costa Rica, Norway, Turkey, Alaska, Chile, Peru, Australia, New Zealand, and more. Each country's information varies a bit. Most include some "native lingo," a sightseeing guide, a history timeline, current news, and other educational bits of information. The website also features lesson plans, worksheets, maps, and graphic organizers. Certain activities at this website require Adobe Acrobat and/or QuickTime Player. You can get both from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

What a fabulous resource for independent research projects or country comparisons. Put the names of all of the countries into a hat or jar. Have individual students or small groups pick a country. Challenge the students to learn the native lingo, the geography and climate of the area, the history of the country, and more. Have the students create multimedia presentations to share with the class or have a World Cultures day.

If you don't have time to complete a large research project, use your interactive whiteboard (or projector) and take your students "virtually" to a different country every week. Spend 10-15 minutes navigating the website. Challenge your class to learn some of the native "lingo" and practice native phrases throughout the week. Use this site for background when reading folktales and stories set in far-off lands. If you have a chance to do a collaborative project with students across the world, start with basic background knowledge from this site.

G'Day mate - welcome to Australia! At this informative website, students can take a virtual tour of Australia (see the "Sightseeing Guide") and learn native slang (for example, did you know that "grizzle" means "to complain"?). There is also a history timeline, highlights of many Australian animals, a quiz, and more.

Use your interactive whiteboard (or projector), and take your students on a trip "down under." Don't miss the virtual tour of the country. You will visit the Great Barrier Reef, Kangaroo Island, the Sydney Opera House, and many other famous cities and/or landmarks. Why not have your students write a letter to a friend using Australian slang. This website also provides excellent information for research projects.

Come take a virtual tour of India - the home of 16% of the entire population of the world! This website features an interactive map with a sightseeing guide, historical timeline, native lingo, an online quiz, numerous pictures, and more. The website also features lesson plans, worksheets, maps, and graphic organizers. Certain activities at this website require Adobe Acrobat and/or QuickTime Player. You can get both from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

Pack up your suitcase, and take your students on this interactive tour using your projector or interactive whiteboard. Share the native lingo and have your students try to pronounce the various words. Challenge your class to learn more words from the language. Do a class research project by dividing the class into cooperative learning groups to research various elements of the country. Have a group of "politicians" examine the government of India. Have a group of "tour guides" learn about famous tourist attractions in India. Assign other groups to "be" architects, religious officials, and whatever other role you want your students to learn about. Have the groups create multimedia presentations or wiki pages to share their discoveries with the class.

This translation site provides translations to and from English in 11 commonly spoken languages and offers both traditional and simplified Chinese. A useful site to bookmark on classroom computers for your students who need occasional translations of difficult words and concepts.

For teachers, this site also provides reverse translation in case students repeatedly say words you wish you could understand. NOte: some districts may block access to this site so foreign language students do not cheat on homework assignments. If you have ESL students, you may want to request that you be able to access the site just in your room to benefit students who really need it.

Improve keyboarding skills using this free typing tutor for all levels. Create a login using an email address or click "no thanks" to start typing without saving any of your progress. 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.

Choose from Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced courses to work on specific rows, keys, skill builders, and speed drills. If you register, you can save your progress. Great practice for any age!

Use for increasing skills and speed as students spend more time on the computer. Share the site on your interactive whiteboard or projector to demonstrate how to use this site (and see your own speed). Use in media classes, businesses classes, and anywhere students need to brush up on skills at the start of school. Use with gifted and other specialty classes. List this link on your class website for students to use to practice at home or during study halls or inside recess.

This site offers a VERY short video (under 3-minutes) that offers tips on how to get the best responses to your web searches. This is a perfect addition to your research unit, helping students to find information FASTER. There is a link provided to embed the video. The site requires Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
633

Share the video clip on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Have students apply the tips from this video during independent or cooperative learning research projects.

This well-illustrated visual dictionary has five categories of illustrations: biology vegetal, biology animal, human body, music, transport, and clothing.(For some reason, the clothing category is located toward the bottom of the page, near the Contact Us box.) Click on one area find many thumbnail graphics. Click on the thumbnail graphic for the fullsize, labeled image. For example, the human body category has 69 thumbnails. Click on the eye for an enlarged eye labeled with the scientifically correct terms. Definitions for the terms are at the bottom of the page. You can also search by the actual word. Click the Lexicon button to search all the detailed labels from all the illustrations, like "iris", a label on the "eye" page. The site is also available in French, so it would be useful for French language, ESL, or the general population.

Caution: Since this site was developed in France, the attitude toward nudity is different from that in the U.S. Illustrations under the human body section include nudity and labeling of ALL body parts. However, this is a very comprehensive visual dictionary and not directed just toward younger children.

Be sure to save this site in your favorites for your visual learners! As its name implies, this dictionary ‘defines’ the word a student types by providing a detailed, labeled graphic. In 15 category themes, there are over 6000 images and 20,000 definitions available. Use the index for easy access to the words you need locate. Once the image is seen, click on the audio button to hear the correct pronunciation. Scroll down the page to find words and phrases that relate to the word being investigated. This site requires Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

Science teachers will love this site. Most of the 15 categories revolve around science terminology that benefit from images. ESL and learning support students who have difficulty with verbal definitions will also find this resource helpful. Speech and Language teachers can use the Clothing and Articles categories to build student vocabulary. Use your whiteboard alongside your science text to clarify terms. Encourage students to study for tests by perusing this site.

This graphical online dictionary will make looking up words and figures of speech addictive, and visual learners will start to understand meanings as never before. The dictionary pulls it information from Princeton's WordNet, an opensource database built by University students and language researchers. A WORD OF WARNING: because the source of the words is a university, where speech is completely open, there are word included in this "dictionary" that are NOT classroom appropriate. Use it only under teacher monitoring.

The color-coded word "entries" display like a mind-map or graphic organizer, showing parts of speech in different colors and showing related words and phrases, as well. Be sure to look at the color key at the bottom to understand all the information presented. This site requires FLASH. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

Introduce new vocabulary before reading or starting a new unit, using this site on an interactive whiteboard or projector. The distinctions, examples, and relationships the site features for new words will help students build better connections and understanding as they read and study the words in classroom context. English teachers will love this as a learning tool for teaching distinctions between similar words. Just remember to use it in a monitored situation (see above).

Search like a librarian using the hints on this page! This re-do of a Google search page helps searchers know exactly what they’re searching and what types of answers they can expect to receive without understanding the complexity of Boolean search terms, etc. Especially valuable are tips on how to search precisely and, at the same time, avoid certain results such as bookstores or pages with only commercial intent. Use of the wildcard search "*" is explained so that it seems easy and useful. Searching sentences, phrases, and other collocations is simple after looking at this page. There is also a link to the original Google search page. Not only ESL teachers, but also all instructors looking for specific types of info will find ways to make their searches more fruitful and economical.

Show your high school students doing research how to use these search features to save time.

Launched in Spring of 2003 by the Library of Congress, this site provides helpful resources for librarians interested in finding the best ways to utilize technology in their libraries. Committed to raising awareness of public access resources, this site has tips, tools, and practices for updating libraries in the information age. There are even online courses for those who want a full introduction to the range of possibilities the internet holds.
4565

Feeling like you’re in the techno-dark? If you are clueless about IT terminology and programs, check out this site for your answers. Use its extensive search engine to search whatever you need to know. This site is designed to mostly serve the business community, but teachers who live on the techno-edge will enjoy prowling around the offerings.

Although this site is basic in design, it does offer a lot of information. Some of the links that teachers may find useful include security threats and countermeasures, wireless and mobile, data and data management, and a few others. There are advertisements on this site (including an ad to “skip” at the start), so if you allow students to explore on their own, watch carefully.

Computer technology teachers will want to save this site in their favorites. As a class project to promote community technology literacy, have your students design their own techno-dictionary to share with their parents or other adults who are still living in the “Dark Ages.” A wiki would be an ideal place to create this and allow for ongoing additions. This site may be appropriate to list on your class website for some additional technology information for students and their families.

Find yourself stumped by all the strange questions students have? Are you looking for somewhere to go where adults can find the answers? Use this site to ask your question. Just type your question into the text box and several options for answers appear. The site was created for use by parents with young children, but it can really appeal to any age. Answers are written by site experts and by users themselves. Talk about the “source” of information as you share this site with yoru students! Registration is not necessary to ask questions. In order to add comments or an answer to another question, you must register. Registering requires use of an email address. If you choose to register your class, here is a tip: rather than using your personal or work email, create a free Gmail account to use for memberships. If you plan to have students register individually, you may want to create your own Gmail account with up to 20 subaccounts for each group of students (by code name or number) within your classes. Here is a blog post that tells how to set up GMail subaccounts to use for any online membership service.

Once registered, your whyzz are kept as a record for review later. Site members can also comment on whyzz answers which are offered by many professionals. Each answer also features a section called "exploration" where additional learning can take place as well as "related whyzz." Check the spotlight, browse categories, and look at a featured answer.

Teachers may be the experts but the greater gift is helping students find answers. Use this site as a class to receive kid friendly answers to normal and weird kid questions. Whyzz not only give the why, but also the hows and the whats! Have students create interactive projects that share the answers to the “WHY.” Have students create online posters on paper or do it together as a class using a tool such as Project Poster (reviewed here or PicLits (reviewed here. Share the link with parents of younger elementary students to use at home, as well!

Enter the hallways of Word Central for an unforgettable online dictionary experience. In addition to finding correct spellings and definitions, you can look for the daily Buzz Word and listen to the pronunciation, or create poems in a snap with Verse Composer. Then walk up to the second floor to the Build Your Own Dictionary room and Computer Lab coding chamber.
5292

This series of free translating dictionaries allows students to search to/from English in these languages: French, Spanish, Italian, Russian, and German. Once a definition comes up in English, there are links to other dictionary pages where the word appears in a sentence. You can click on the audio button to hear the word spoken in both languages. This feature is only available in more commonly used words

There are also immediate clicks to other languages, so a student could check the same word in Spanish and French very easily. In addition to the translation dictionaries, there are also “English Dictionaries” (non-interactive) available in Portuguese, Polish, Romanian, Czech, Turkish, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Arabic (coming soon). Many of the foreign language dictionaries will increase in volume as the site developers add more vocabulary.

Be aware: this site does include minor advertisements. There is a link to Language Forums. It is probably best to advise students to stay away from the forums.

Save this site in your favorites on your classroom computers for use by ESL/ELL and foreign language students or for use when studying derivations and word families in English (compare the same word across several languages to see how close they can be!). Students can take an active role in vocabulary preview work by using this site in prior to reading. Be sure to list this site on your class webpage so students can access this information both in and out of the classroom.

If you are introducing new vocabulary words to your foreign language class. Have them use this site to find the appropriate translations. Then have the students work in cooperative learning groups to create online vocabulary guide books using a tool such at Bookemon (reviewed here). Have the groups share the online books on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Be sure to keep the links for future students to use the guides, as well.

Here’s a handy tool from Princeton University that provides word usage information in a format that’s, well, useful. Students can see the various "senses" or meanings of a word, and can drill down for more information on specifics.
4765

Language arts teachers should spend a few minutes exploring the capabilities of this one, and even serious writers will find it useful.

This simple text-based timeline (shown as a list, not on a number line) can be set to show world history or subsets of events by continent. The timeline events are color-coded, as well. The "Examination Chapters" show images of artwork, text of literature, etc.

Use projector to show images from a given time period. You will definitely want to include this link as a reference for any ancient or world history class. Mark it in Favorites on a classroom computer to bring up in response to questions and include it as a link on your teacher web page.

This is a wonderful compilation site of news from all over the world. Users can read the home page or search news of a specific geographic region. An excellent plus here is the ability to choose to read the news in a variety of languages. World Photos today, multimedia, global weather, and sports are just a few of the many attractive sections that add to this site's appeal.

Share this site with your school's foreign language teachers. Have students do comparisons between English and foreign language versions of the news. If you teach writing, you can find controversial topics as writing prompts for persuasive writing among the articles, as well, and have students find facts to support their positions. Make this site available from your teacher web page for current events assignments. Reading teachers will want to use the articles on an interactive whiteboard to teach main idea and summarizing: highlight key words to use in a main idea or summary sentence you write together below the article.

Word origins and meanings can be great fun, and the answers you get from this page aren't always what you were expecting. There are numerous theme-based sections, new material posted each day, and the definitions go well beyond American jargon. Great site for vocabulary building.
3392

Teachers who are developing on-line materials face a new challenge in the writing style required for these project. While this British treatment is likely overkill for the casual web page developer, writers can apply the general principles to even the smallest web endeavor. Mark this one as a useful reference tool.
3927

A definitive authority on words, this free site gives you definitions, thesaurus entries, spellings, pronunciations, and etymology results. Add to that list an audio pronunciation system that allows you to hear the word as well. YourDictionary also provides resources to help you find foreign language translation sites. It even directs you to medical, computer, or electricians’ dictionaries, and many more. Haven’t you always wanted to say a tongue-twister in the Asante language? Words have never so much fun. This site does include some advertisements.

Send students to this site to look up those difficult words. ESL and ELL students can use this site to practice the pronunciation of new words. Be sure to mark this site as a favorite or share on your teacher web page for easy access.

A useful little site for research or idle curiosity, this site offers some basic demographic data about the communities that make up each U.S. ZIP code. The ZIP code, first developed in 1963 to assist the U.S. Postal Service with automated mail delivery, has become a powerful demographic symbol and is frequently used by researchers to compare U.S. communities. This site, which ties its data to information gathered in the 2000 census, offers no commentary--just the facts ma'am--and includes statistics on education, income, population, race, gender, and marital status. There is a utility for comparing any ZIP code with up to 20 other ZIP codes. Students may be interested in the specific data provided for each public school within a given ZIP code. Serious researchers are cautioned, the data comes from the 2000 census, and may be outdated. In addition, there is a lot of advertising on the site, although the majority of it in the form of text links rather than annoying pictures or dancing silhouettes.

Teachers or students seeking some basic demographic data about their own town or city, or wishing to compare it with another location, will find this site useful. Civics, government, or economics lessons could be enriched with local data which might be compared to the more general information offered by textbooks in answer to the question "How do we compare to this?" Math teachers and reading teachers who teach graphical data analysis might get some mileage out of using the graphs and tables from their own towns or communities for computations rather than using generic information from a textbook. Project the graphs on a whiteboard and have students manipulate to explain the meaning of changes in the visuals. Think of the higher level thinking questions you could generate during a political year! Of course, the terminally curious can probably waste a good hour or two just noodling with the data.