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Cloze Test Creator - l.georges
Grades
2 to 12
2 Favorites
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Create your own cloze quizzes out of any piece of text. Paste the text into the box and select how you want the cloze test made. Select different sentence functions. ...more
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Create your own cloze quizzes out of any piece of text. Paste the text into the box and select how you want the cloze test made. Select different sentence functions. Choose to have every few words eliminated, or choose your own items to be removed for the cloze. Participants can choose either interactive or text only quizzes. The missing words appear at the top of the quiz. With the interactive quiz, the player types the missing word in the blanks. The site has a lot of flexibility in creating cloze tests. The site will work with world languages as well, but instructors have to choose the every few words option since the site will not recognize, for example, prepositions in another language.
tag(s): quizzes (99), reading comprehension (118), reading strategies (47)
In the Classroom
Use this site to review parts of speech or sentence functions. Teach ESL/ELL students to succeed in adding troublesome prepositions or articles, especially in their writing, since the missing word is at the top. Use a cloze test to have students review terms and concepts in science, geography, and history. Use this site in world language classes to help understand verb tenses and more!You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
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Learn 46 Languages Online for Free - Open Culture
Grades
4 to 12
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Find a complete listing of places to learn many, many languages, including free apps and websites. Among the languages one can study for free are Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Italian,...more
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Find a complete listing of places to learn many, many languages, including free apps and websites. Among the languages one can study for free are Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, Greek, Hebrew, and Hungarian as well as many others from around the globe. Each language has different offerings available. The language lessons are available in many different formats including Youtube videos, MP3s, feeds, apps, iTunes lessons, text, and websites. Since there is a variety of resources for most languages, pick the one that offers the way you are the most comfortable learning. Although most of these resources were developed with secondary students (or adults) in mind, a few are appropriate for upper elementary grades.
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tag(s): chinese (50), french (89), hebrew (19), italian (34), portuguese (20), russian (28), spanish (109)
In the Classroom
Share this site on your interactive whiteboard or projector in world language classes. This is a great tool for students to use to explore MORE of their new language both in the classroom and at home. Use this tool to enrich your classroom during world cultures units and let students explore a new language. Offer this site to gifted students to explore and learn (or compare) new languages on their own. This is a great site to help YOU learn some of the native languages of your ESL/ELL students, even how to say "hello" could make their day! If your school celebrates an ethnic heritage festival, you will find ideas for activities among these many resources.
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Calkoo - Trinity Capital
Grades
4 to 12
1 Favorites
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Other online calculators don't add up to the diverse collection of calculators Calkoo has to offer. Browse categories including measurement, wage, taxes, stock analysis, mathematics,...more
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Other online calculators don't add up to the diverse collection of calculators Calkoo has to offer. Browse categories including measurement, wage, taxes, stock analysis, mathematics, loans, health, saving, investing, real estate, and more! Calkoo can handle many tasks, including some rather complex calculations. Complete the various fields based on the type of calculation. Some utilize radio buttons and drop down boxes, while others ask for numbers only. Create almost any kind of calculation you need with this easy accessible calculating tool. Language options include English, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese and Russian.
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This site includes advertising.
tag(s): addition (239), area (68), calculators (41), division (169), fractions (237), measurement (160), multiplication (223), percent (83), quadratics (34), subtraction (199), volume (44)
In the Classroom
Calkoo is a great free tool to replace expensive graphing calculators that many students may not have. Calkoo works well on computers, mobile devices, and interactive whiteboards. Use this site during a unit on careers, economics, or financial literacy. Include it as part of a measurement unit. Share during Family and Consumer Science units to explore the cost of living and have students put together a mythical "budget" for living in their chosen career. Have students send you on a vacation and include calculations for the currency converter, fuel cost calculator, sales tax for souvenirs, and more! This is a great site to support many experiments in science. Calculate acceleration, velocity, and time, or use the mathematics category to complete problems. Use this tool in social studies class for quickly calculating years or months from important timelines or when figuring out geographical distances. In English or L.A. classes, quickly figure out the life span of authors or how long ago a story took place. In health or science classes, use the BMI calculator or get other accurate measurements. Visit Calkoo and select a calculator to meet your needs! Include this site on your class web page for students and parents to access as a reference. The various languages make this tool very useful for ESL/ELL students.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Quadblogging - David Mitchell
Grades
2 to 12
1 Favorites
0 Comments
Give your student writers an audience... possibly an international one! Sign up for Quadblogging and be guaranteed that your students will have at least three other classrooms...more
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Give your student writers an audience... possibly an international one! Sign up for Quadblogging and be guaranteed that your students will have at least three other classrooms to read and respond to their blogs. We all know that having an audience for our writing makes us better writers. The creator of this program has hard evidence of that. His students (in the UK) were scoring at 9% on the British writing achievement test before Quadblogging. After a school year of using Quadblogging, his students increased their scores to 60%. In subsequent years, these students continued to have their scores grow by two grade levels per school year. There are two short videos on the home page. One video explains the concept of Quadblogging, and the other is the creator speaking at BETT, the world's largest ed tech conference. You will also find the form to fill out to have your class join others in Quadblogging.
tag(s): blogs (90), cross cultural understanding (117), writing (364)
In the Classroom
If you never blogged before, you might want to check out TeachersFirst Blog Basics for the Classroom. Have your students choose a question from Thought Questions reviewed here. Have students respond to the question, and then have them ask the reader to respond to their writing and answer the question from their point of view, too. The benefits go beyond just writing. You can also build cultural understanding and world language skills through blogs. Help your students become aware of environmental issues or how to live "green" for our planet. Try Greenlearning.ca, reviewed here, or choose something from the Environmental News Network, reviewed here, for students' Quadblog projects.Edge Features:
Includes an education-only area for teachers and students
Parent permission advised before posting student work created using this tool
Includes social features, such as "friends," comments, ratings by others
Requires registration/log-in (WITH email)
Multiple users can collaborate on the same project
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Chillola - Chillola
Grades
K to 8
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Learn the basics of English, Spanish, German, Italian, and French at Chillola. Use the interactives to learn the alphabet, numbers, colors, shapes, animals, fruit, vegetables,...more
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Learn the basics of English, Spanish, German, Italian, and French at Chillola. Use the interactives to learn the alphabet, numbers, colors, shapes, animals, fruit, vegetables, food, calendar, weather, time, body parts, house, positions, opposites, and more. One great feature of this site is that pronunciations are provided for many of the words within the interactives. Worksheets reinforce the basic words. Use the text links to access the various languages, NOT the ad links for Babbel!
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tag(s): french (89), german (65), italian (34), preK (291), spanish (109)
In the Classroom
Share Chillola on the interactive whiteboard or projector as an early literacy site for preschoolers. Use as a way to help ELL/ESL students to start learning the basics of English. Create a center and allow children to explore different sounds from other languages and stretch their learning. Add an extra dimension into learning about the setting of different books. Challenge your gifted children to compare or learn vocabulary in different languages. Add as a link on your class website.
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Words of the World - The University of Nottingham
Grades
6 to 12
1 Favorites
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Develop your vocabulary and understanding of culture through words. The site offers a series of short videos presented by experts from the University of Nottingham's School of Cultures,...more
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Develop your vocabulary and understanding of culture through words. The site offers a series of short videos presented by experts from the University of Nottingham's School of Cultures, Languages, and Area Studies. Each video takes an in-depth look at the story behind many words of the world, including where they came from, what they mean, and how the words have changed over time. Simply click on any word in the visual to view the video. Most videos are less than 5 minutes in length. This site was created in the United Kingdom, so you may notice some slight pronunciation (or spelling) differences from American English. Many of the videos are hosted on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, then they may not be viewable. You could always view the videos at home and bring them to class "on a stick" to share. Use a tool such as KeepVid reviewed here to download the videos from YouTube.
tag(s): cross cultural understanding (117), vocabulary (325), vocabulary development (125), word study (79)
In the Classroom
Words of the World is a great site for some quick vocabulary building, but even more it is a window into words as vital components of culture and history. Share these videos on your interactive whiteboard (or projector) for a quick lesson on the background and meaning of several words. Use it to talk about how words can also define a time period in history or a concept that is vital to a particular culture. Explore language as PART of a culture as you study different countries. Find out what words are unique to that culture. Use this site as an example, then challenge cooperative learning groups to create their own word background videos of culture-connected words and share them on a site such as TeacherTube reviewed here. Share a link to videos using links provided on your class website for students to view as a word of the week. Challenge students to use the word of the week in class discussions or other written work throughout the week.
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Match the Memory - Curtis Gibby
Grades
K to 12
1 Favorites
0 Comments
Create your own matching games with Match the Memory. You can also play a ready-made memory game. Create your memory cards using themes provided. Customize cards with text, picture...more
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Create your own matching games with Match the Memory. You can also play a ready-made memory game. Create your memory cards using themes provided. Customize cards with text, picture only, or using other options. Easily add images, videos, events, and links to personalize a game. Choose a public or private option for sharing. Registration isn't required; however, it offers the option of editing games at a later date.
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tag(s): puzzles (208)
In the Classroom
Create matching games for words that begin with the same letter, color, or numbers for early elementary students. Use with older students to review concepts such as matching landforms, state capitols, or vocabulary terms. Have students (or groups) create matching games for others to play as review. in world language class, have students create games to reinforce vocabulary. Create a matching game with pictures and videos from recent field trips or class activities for students to share with parents. Learning support teachers can help students create their own memory games as a review activity. Encourage students to use a matching game as followup for oral presentations to keep their audience involved.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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40 Maps That Explain the World - The Washington Post
Grades
5 to 12
1 Favorites
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The Washington Post offers this interesting variety of maps illustrating many different viewpoints and realities around the world. Topics include best and worst place to be born, child...more
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The Washington Post offers this interesting variety of maps illustrating many different viewpoints and realities around the world. Topics include best and worst place to be born, child poverty in the developed world, and the world seen from space over a 12 month time-lapse. Click to enlarge any of the maps. Several include links for further information.
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tag(s): agriculture (57), cross cultural understanding (117), cultures (107), ecology (135), inferencing (5), maps (293), religions (67)
In the Classroom
Bookmark and save this site for use with many social studies, reading, and higher level thinking topics. Use them to teach about interpreting graphical information in texts. Display on your interactive whiteboard and explore with your students. Use these maps to ask deep questions about meaning in maps. What inferences/conclusions can you draw based on this map? These maps are a perfect starting point for research projects on many subjects. Have students brainstorm questions they wonder about or collect ideas for possible projects on a collaborative bulletin board like Scrumblr, reviewed here (quick start- no membership required!).
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ipadio - Andy Ayers, Mark Smith, and Giles Bryan
Grades
4 to 12
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Broadcast live to the Internet from any phone to create a phlog (live voice-blog) using ipadio. Register on the site with the phone number desired. Then call one of the ...more
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Broadcast live to the Internet from any phone to create a phlog (live voice-blog) using ipadio. Register on the site with the phone number desired. Then call one of the local numbers provided by ipadio. After the welcome message, enter your pin number and start recording for up to 60 minutes. Disconnect using the # button on your phone, and your phlog is complete! Once complete, login to your ipadio account to view the broadcast and find the embed code for sharing on your website. Ipadio has both iOS and Android apps, both free at the time of this review.
In the Classroom
One interesting option available with ipadio is the ability for other users to call in with your account. Have students call in with answers to homework using your channel. View how to do this at the help section located in ipadio. If you already do podcasts, use ipadio in a similar manner to share course content or describe step by step procedures for math problems, etc. Create a weekly phlog to embed in your class websites with a summary of the week's activities. Do this during class and allow students to add to the summary. Have BYOD? Create a class phlog and assign rotating student groups to make audio summaries/review podcasts of class content. Invite them to be creative by developing characters and their own creative podcast format. Library/media specialists can invite students to create ipadio book reviews. World language teachers can assign students to create ipadio podcasts of dialogs or cultural topics to build spoken language skills.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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MFL Ideas Factory - Eleanor Gordon
Grades
6 to 12
1 Favorites
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Visit the MFL Ideas Factory blog to find language teaching ideas to use in your classroom. Developed by teachers of world languages, each post is an activity that is context-free ...more
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Visit the MFL Ideas Factory blog to find language teaching ideas to use in your classroom. Developed by teachers of world languages, each post is an activity that is context-free so you can adapt to your planning. Tags accompany each activity to make your search more efficient. Sample tags are "Will it take long?" or "Does this require photocopying?" Various search options make it easy to navigate the MFL Ideas Factory. The search box on the right side of the page will search all text in the entire blog. Filter the activities by category in the box on the left side of the page or click on the tag that interests you. Click on "vocabulary" to find all the vocabulary activities posted. Some of the pronunciations and spellings may differ from those in American English because the site administrator resides in the UK.
tag(s): french (89), italian (34), russian (28), spanish (109), vocabulary (325)
In the Classroom
Search the archive of ideas for your language teaching techniques and activities. Find great ideas to introduce or conclude lessons. Search by categories or tags to find the best activities to meet your needs. Share this site with your world language teaching colleagues or ESL/ELL teachers. Adapt the activities for learning support students.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Story Maps - Esri
Grades
5 to 12
6 Favorites
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Story Maps takes learning in a new direction. Interactive maps tell a story through videos, images, audio, and links. Learn more about the topics in text that accompanies each map....more
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Story Maps takes learning in a new direction. Interactive maps tell a story through videos, images, audio, and links. Learn more about the topics in text that accompanies each map. A timeline of "dots" allows you to move through the story step by step. A satellite view is available on some maps, and legends give you important information to read the map accurately. A wide variety of topics are available to inform and educate. Use the search bar to find a map to meet your needs. Travel to the most visited National Parks or explore an interactive map of the three days and decisive moments of the battle of Gettysburg. It is important to pay as much attention to the text pop-ups as the cartography and other aspects of the map. New stories are added every two weeks. so come back often! This review was for the free area of the site that allows you to view the map stories. There are extensive directions on how to create your own maps, but these suggest purchase of maps, etc. from ArcGIS, an affiliate of Esri. Some of the map storytelling ideas could be used with other free mapping tools, however.
tag(s): gettysburg (26), map skills (82), maps (293), measurement (160)
In the Classroom
Map out interactive virtual field trips on Story Maps. Introduce this site on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Then have students explore this site independently or in small groups. Have a team competition as students navigate the site on an interactive whiteboard to complete a scavenger hunt. Students can find geometric shapes in real life objects on the images with the maps. Calculate distances or time if the map is a timeline of events. Use this site as an anticipatory set or "activator" to introduce a unit or lesson on a projector or interactive whiteboard. Make a shortcut to this site on classroom computers and use it as a center. Be sure to help your weaker readers and ESL/ELL students by sharing the vocabulary words prior to reading, either on a handout or by projecting them on an interactive whiteboard and highlighting them in the text as you come to them. Have students create online posters to summarize what they learned from the map, individually or together as a class using a tool such as Web Poster Wizard (reviewed here) or PicLits (reviewed here. Ask students to write informational essays on the topics or use the maps to write creative stories. Challenge your most tech-savvy or gifted students to explore the step by step map storytelling directions and try their hand using google Maps or other map tools. The advice in these directions is excellent.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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World Digital Library - Unesco
Grades
4 to 12
3 Favorites
0 Comments
The World Digital Library makes it possible to discover, study, and enjoy digitized cultural treasures from around the world. Resources include manuscripts, maps, rare books, musical...more
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The World Digital Library makes it possible to discover, study, and enjoy digitized cultural treasures from around the world. Resources include manuscripts, maps, rare books, musical scores, recordings, films, prints, photographs, and architectural drawings. Browse by place, time, topic, type of item, and contributing institution, or use the open-ended search available in many languages. Information included with items includes a description, place of event or item, date, location of the item, and tags for viewing items similar in nature or topic. Move the timeline to view items for specific time periods.
tag(s): 1600s (14), 1700s (29), 1800s (47), 1900s (36), 20th century (53), africa (180), asia (72), australia (35), china (68), cross cultural understanding (117), europe (75), images (273), north america (19), south america (40)
In the Classroom
Use this site as a resource for viewing and learning about the many cultural treasures around the world. Display the site on your interactive whiteboard or projector to view images and documents from American and World History. Have students choose an item of interest to research further and then share using a tool like Zoho Show (similar to Powerpoint, but easier and free) - reviewed here. World language teachers can underscore culture lessons using these resources or have students explore and share their findings.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Cool Ways to Use Skype in the Classroom - Annie Condron
Grades
K to 12
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Find many good ideas for including Skype in your classroom. See tips for making the most of your Skype experience and a video of an actual classroom Skype session with ...more
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Find many good ideas for including Skype in your classroom. See tips for making the most of your Skype experience and a video of an actual classroom Skype session with author Mike Artnell. Be sure to check out the embedded slide show that includes lots of tips for Skyping with students. The video clip is hosted on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, then it may not be viewable. You could always view the video at home and bring it to class "on a stick" to share. Use a tool such as KeepVid reviewed here to download the videos from YouTube.
tag(s): parent conferences (24), skype (13), virtual field trips (51)
In the Classroom
Bookmark and save this site to use as reference when setting up Skype calls. Share with other teachers during professional development sessions. After completing Skype sessions, have students create maps using Animaps (reviewed here). Students can add text, images, and location stops! Want to learn more about using Skype in the classroom? View TeachersFirst's OK2Ask: Skype archived webinar (here). This webinar is about 90 minutes long.
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Presentain - Neek Kurat
Grades
4 to 12
4 Favorites
0 Comments
Connect and engage your presentation audience with Presentain. Create a free account and link to your Google Drive account. Connect your social media accounts through your profile so...more
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Connect and engage your presentation audience with Presentain. Create a free account and link to your Google Drive account. Connect your social media accounts through your profile so presentation participants can view your connections. Access your Google Drive presentations in Presentain or upload a PDF version of a presentation created in PowerPoint or Keynote. Store your presentations in the Presentain cloud. Download the iOS or Android app on your phone or tablet to connect your mobile device. Use your mobile device as a clicker and connect your audience on their mobile devices. The audience can ask questions, take part in polls, send you follow-up requests, share your slides, and more. Record your voice while you present and publish the slidecast to your online audience. Presenting on a laptop that's not yours? Enter a presentation code that doesn't require a login. This is a great tool to involve your audience. Presentain users must be at least 18 years old.
tag(s): DAT device agnostic tool (170), multimedia (63), slides (64)
In the Classroom
Use your existing presentations and upload them as a PDF to Presentain. Use the many tools available at the site to engage your students. Use the question feature as a backchannel to address questions and concerns. Though students have to be 18 to create a Presentain, they do not have to be 18 to interact with your presentation. Collect data using polls to differentiate your instruction. A BYOD school? Connect your students on their mobile devices. Share your slidecasts for student access both in and outside of class for further practice. An excellent site to share your presentations on professional development with your teaching colleagues. A great tool to flip your classroom instruction. Record students' presentations (using your account) to share on a website or blog so families unable to attend can view. Create visual presentations for key concepts or vocabulary. Record descriptions and share the slidecast for student access both in and outside of class for further practice.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Kaizena - Kaizena
Grades
1 to 12
13 Favorites
0 Comments
Do you wish you had enough time in your schedule for one-on-one personalized writing conferences with your students or writers you know? Kaizena (previously 121Writing) can make that...more
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Do you wish you had enough time in your schedule for one-on-one personalized writing conferences with your students or writers you know? Kaizena (previously 121Writing) can make that dream a reality. Kaizena allows you to give feedback on writing via an audio recording. Writers often have difficulty reading the margin notes from teachers or other readers, or they need more explanation. An audio recording of the feedback provides a personalized experience to enhance the writing process. Kaizena works best by synching with your Google Drive account. There is an option at the bottom of the page to sign up by sending in your name and email address. However, this can take a while, so plan ahead! Sign in with your Google account to watch a helpful video and learn how to connect to your Google Drive account or school Google Apps account.
Start by highlighting a text selection, hit record, and provide your feedback. Writers will be able to listen to your feedback and revise or edit their writing as though you were face to face. Tag your highlighted text with keywords that can be tracked in a mastery-based rubric. You could tag conventional errors, mistakes, or selections that are amazing. Verbal feedback can be played on an iPad so students can listen in the best learning environment to meet their needs. Writers will progress as you enhance the writing process with explicit audio feedback. Kaizena can enhance feedback for written work for any school subject or even outside of school.
Start by highlighting a text selection, hit record, and provide your feedback. Writers will be able to listen to your feedback and revise or edit their writing as though you were face to face. Tag your highlighted text with keywords that can be tracked in a mastery-based rubric. You could tag conventional errors, mistakes, or selections that are amazing. Verbal feedback can be played on an iPad so students can listen in the best learning environment to meet their needs. Writers will progress as you enhance the writing process with explicit audio feedback. Kaizena can enhance feedback for written work for any school subject or even outside of school.
tag(s): editing (66), process writing (45), writing (364)
In the Classroom
Editing and revising are better with audio feedback. Provide explicit details to improve student performance. Students can record peer edits and share audio recordings with classmates. Classroom time is more efficient and effective when students can listen to your feedback before meeting face to face. Have students highlight passages of text and provide their reflections on the selection. World language classes can speak text or respond to questions in their new language. Learning support students will better understand audio feedback on their writing than detailed comments written in "teacher-ese." This is a great tool for students to highlight poetry and record their thoughts and feelings on the text. Students can highlight and record their thought process as they solve math word problems. Highlight and record opinions on current event articles. Highlight an entire passage of text to model reading fluency. Students can listen and read along with the recording to help with phrasing and expression. Highlight text and model fluency for ESL/ELL students. Highlight assessment questions or text for lower-level readers to provide a level playing field in the classroom. Challenge students to provide audio feedback to their peers on passages where they would like to know more, questions they have as readers, and positive feedback on passages they enjoy.Edge Features:
Includes social features, such as "friends," comments, ratings by others
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The Secret Door - Safe Style UK
Grades
2 to 12
6 Favorites
1 Comments
Open a door to tour worldwide locations with this intriguing site. Clicking on the door transports you to indoor spaces from all over the world using a Google StreetMap mashup. ...more
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Open a door to tour worldwide locations with this intriguing site. Clicking on the door transports you to indoor spaces from all over the world using a Google StreetMap mashup. Click on the door again (or click "take me somewhere else") to be transported to another place. Visit famous landmarks, museums, and more. What a treat! The entire Secret Door interaction can be embedded in your blog or wiki using the embed code provided by clicking "embed this." Secret Door is random, so going to the same place again could be tricky. To return later to the same location, make a note of the location in top left (or copy it). Use Google Maps (reviewed here), search for the location that was named in the top left corner, and use Streetview (drag the little orange man on top of the landmark to look inside).
tag(s): cross cultural understanding (117), landmarks (27)
In the Classroom
Teacher-librarians can use this to inspire research or non-fiction reading by embedding it in their website or displaying it on a computer in the media center! Use this site to learn drawing inferences about each of the places visited. Use the images as a class or in groups to determine where in the world it is located using clues from the picture. You will want to "hide" the location that shows in the top left corner. This is a great introduction into culture, building, design, etc. Project an image on an Interactive Whiteboard as a prompt for a short story, poem, or essay inspired by the image. Share an image as your students enter the classroom as the daily "travel mystery." Give your students 2-3 minutes of time to investigate WHERE the image is from. Brainstorm how the image is related to a story being discussed in class, a unit of study, or parallels to our culture. What creatures and cultures would be seen in this place? Ask and answer interesting questions related to the images. Teachers of gifted can use these images to inspire creation of text-based games to take place in these settings using descriptive writing and a tool such as Quest, reviewed here, or Playfic, reviewed here.Comments
Very cool, easy to use site for when you have a few minutes. I think the age range could be k-12 as my 4 year old loved seeing where the door would take us. The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars is because it is really hard to get back to a place that you previously visited.Diane, PA, Grades: 0 - 4
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Pursued - Street View Game - Nemesys Games
Grades
6 to 12
1 Favorites
0 Comments
Pursued is an engaging street view game using Google Maps. Begin with the first level as you look around an unknown city. Use your surroundings to guess the city. Each ...more
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Pursued is an engaging street view game using Google Maps. Begin with the first level as you look around an unknown city. Use your surroundings to guess the city. Each correct guess moves you to a new level. Once you reach the "top," you can unlock additional levels by liking the game on Facebook. Additional packages include European Capitals, US State Capitals, and others. Submit your own game as an advanced user using prompts and tutorials provided. As the name states, this activity involves helping a cartoon character who is being pursued. Although it is a cartoon, the opening scene shows the cartoon character being put into what appears to be a trunk. The activity is extremely engaging, but be certain that students are mature enough to handle the content!
tag(s): capitals (24), cities (25), continents (49), countries (78), cross cultural understanding (117), map skills (82), maps (293)
In the Classroom
Use this as a fabulous geography and problem-solving activity. Play different levels together as a class or in small groups on your interactive whiteboard (or projector). Allow students to explore on their own. In a science class, you could use this game to teach observation and hypothesis testing. (What do you observe? What city might this be?) Social studies or world language classes can explore the signs of different languages or other cultural observations. Challenge students to create their own game including geographic locations within your state, hometowns of famous writers, or any other activity using a map. Have students use a mapping tool such as Mapskip (reviewed here) to create a map with audio stories and pictures included! This is perfect for gifted students who want an open-ended challenge.
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dotEPUB - Xavier Badosa
Grades
3 to 12
3 Favorites
0 Comments
Convert the content of any webpage into an e-book format to read on your tablet, phone, or other e-reader device using dotEPUB-- even offline! Install the browser bookmarklet in Firefox,...more
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Convert the content of any webpage into an e-book format to read on your tablet, phone, or other e-reader device using dotEPUB-- even offline! Install the browser bookmarklet in Firefox, Safari, Opera, Mozilla, or Chrome to begin. In Chrome and Mozilla use the dotEPUB browser extension to create documents. Once installed, click on the bookmarklet or browser extension while on any page to convert the page and send to your e-reader. Choose from either epub or mobi (Kindle) format for use in e-readers. View the instructional videos for complete directions on how to use the bookmarklet or extension. This site is also available in Spanish. The instructional videos are hosted on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube and you wish to share the videos in class, they may not be viewable. You could always download the videos at home and bring them to class "on a stick" to share. Use a tool such as KeepVid reviewed here to download the how-to videos from YouTube.
tag(s): DAT device agnostic tool (170)
In the Classroom
What a great find for BYOD programs! Use dotEPUB for students to take content from your course blog or website and put it on their e-readers for easy access wherever they go. Have students download informational texts from web sites to annotate in their e-reader software as you build comprehension and "close reading" skills a la CCSS. Elementary teachers will need to help students learn to use this tool. Use dotEPUB to create an ePub portfolio of your students' blogging efforts. In Spanish class, convert your website into an e-book for students to practice language learning. Make ePubs of any web content for portability and annotation tools available on e-readers.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Writer Igniter - Gabriela Pereira
Grades
5 to 12
3 Favorites
0 Comments
Writer Igniter is an "easy to use" writing prompt creator to set minds in motion! Choose the shuffle button then watch the four categories spin before stopping to set the ...more
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Writer Igniter is an "easy to use" writing prompt creator to set minds in motion! Choose the shuffle button then watch the four categories spin before stopping to set the scene for a story. Categories include character, situation, setting, and prop. Writer Igniter is also part of a larger website called DIY MFA offering articles and information for Writing with Focus and Reading with Purpose. Designed to encourage and offer tools for writers, it is a wealth of information for any aspiring writer, though it is intended for adults.
tag(s): creative writing (168), writers workshop (33), writing prompts (94)
In the Classroom
Engage students using the Writer Igniter for any creative writing assignment or to help them think about story patterns as you brainstorm as a class to generate a story outline. Click shuffle and let the fun begin! Use the Igniter for all members of a class to begin with the same scenario or allow students to shuffle their own story starter. Have students use Ourboox, reviewed here. Ourboox creates beautiful page-flipping digital books in minutes, and you can embed video, music, animation, games, maps and more. Share articles from Writer Igniter to teach writing skills, or assign students to read and share information from articles with classmates. World language students could write tales in their new language.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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The Question Generator - Department of Education, Victoria
Grades
1 to 12
5 Favorites
0 Comments
The Question Generator does just what its title says. Click on the "spin" button and question starters will appear for both closed and open ended questions. Closed questions are valuable...more
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The Question Generator does just what its title says. Click on the "spin" button and question starters will appear for both closed and open ended questions. Closed questions are valuable for acquiring background information on a topic. Open ended questions are valuable for research and discussions. Find it easy to create both at the Question Generator! View the introduction video to learn more about using this tool.
tag(s): questioning (33), writing prompts (94)
In the Classroom
Use the Question Generator along with any fiction or nonfiction reading to help your students think more deeply. Use as a starting point in research projects. With the Common Core State Standards and their focus on close reading, rigor, and critical thinking, this is the perfect tool to use to make sure you are challenging your students. Introduce students to this tool when they need to create essential questions for their research, or when developing questions for their literature circle group. Learning support students can gain practice thinking beyond the "facts" by creating and talking through their own questions. Before you start, generate a list of key words from the unit: terms such as arachnids or homeostasis or names of historic figures, so they can then insert the terms into the question starters from the generator. Your interactive whiteboard or projector would be an ideal place to generate some questions together before turning students loose to generate some of their own. Be sure to record/save the list of questions you create on a class wiki or blog-- or even on old fashioned butcher paper as students go off to resolve them. Revisit the questions late in the unit to see which are still unresolved. Ask the class which question would make the best essay question on the final "test." Maybe allow them to choose their own? In world language classes, these simple questions could lead to practice with dialog.
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