- Pamela
A. Berardino, Educator, Media Specialist and Technology Enthusiast!
also found as http://www.windham.k12.ct.us/wms/resources/onlinetutor.html
Welcome to the Internet! Now that you are online, what do you do? Here are a number of different activities that you can try. The links (connections) to each site (place) are included. After you've explored the possibilities, try an Internet project. You can take your class on an online adventure, start an e-mail project, research the latest topics you are covering in class, and be aware of special programming coming up to supplement your instruction. Your options are virtually unlimited!
These teacher resources are here for your convenience. Feel free to comment on any of the sites, notify me of problems with this page, or suggest sites to be added. To e-mail me, just click on the mailbox or my name. (You'll notice that the link changes colors after you click on it. This designates that you've been to that site or location.) Have a great time surfing the Net!
- Pamela
A. Berardino, Educator, Media Specialist and Technology Enthusiast!
Though I would like you to visit the entire site (page), I understand that your time is limited. Try the Quick Index to go right to the section that suits your needs best. Just click on any underlined blue phrase (a link) and you are there.
QUICK INDEX
Visit a Few Sites
Easy Projects
Online Adventures
Television Resources
Searching
Internet Indexes
Hints and Tips
The Cool Word of the Day site. Your middle school and high school students will enjoy this activity. Each day there is a new, often rarely used, word. The definition is provided for you on a second page. Have fun trying to figure out the meaning of the word. There is even a place where you can submit your own Cool Word of the Day.
Most everyone knows of the famous author/illustrator Chris Van Allsburg, but are you familiar with his book, The Mysteries of Harris Burdick? Check out this site to see what the mysteries are, and the stories that children have written about them. After you've read the book, you can write your stories and submit them too.
If you don't have a Harris Burdick story to share, but you have other writing you want the world to see, Kidstuff Children's Publishing is the place for you. Read a little of what other students have written, and then add your own! Right now the theme is space, as in outer space, but the theme changes, so check it out regularly.
If you are ready to try
a simple Internet project, you can subscribe to the listserv Hilites.
When you sign up for a listserv you and everyone else on the list get the
same e-mail. Anything that is sent out by one person, goes to everyone
on the list. The Hilites listserv is for educators who have projects they
want to do via the Internet with other schools around the country and around
the globe. Some projects are very simple and only require a one time commitment.
(An example might be answering a survey question.) Others can be quite
involved and last for months or the entire school year. The e-mail will
show the grade level and topic of the project in the subject area, so if
it's not for you, you can delete it. Even if you don't join in on a project,
it is interesting to see what others are doing. Your first e-mail after
subscribing will be all the information you need to respond or submit to
a project.
To subscribe to Hilites click here and type "Subscribe" in the subject, and "Subscribe to Hilites" in the body of the letter. Hilites is a project of the Global Schoolnet Foundation. Visit their web site sometime for additional projects or activities.
These are some expeditions that have been completed, are ongoing, or coming up in the near future. They all connect to any grade level curriculum in many, many ways. (Note: Some of these programs have fees, but many others do not.) See you around the globe!!!!
The
Iditarod Every March the mushers are off! It is called "The Last Great
Race" and there are plenty of reasons why. Get to know the mushers and
their dogs, as they travel through Alaska's wilderness. Zuma the sled dog/reporter
keeps you up-to-date during the race. It's a great project to use with
the books Stone Fox, White Fang, Balto, Dog Song,
Wood Song, and other
books about dog sledding. (Note: Author Gary Paulsen raced in the Iditarod
twice. His books Dog Song and Wood Song are from that experience.)
This is not the only Iditarod site. Try one of the search engines at the
bottom to find more.
Welcome
to GlobaLearn! My class traveled the Black Sea Nations a few years
ago, meeting children from different cultures and learning about how they
live. In other years, students from around the world visited Hong Kong
during its last days under British rule and joined an expedition in Brazil.
This year's adventure continues in South America. A well organized program
with a listserv and many teacher resources.
Jason Project Take your students on this online expedition. A long running project. Current expeditions are happening in Iceland and Yellowstone. An opportunity for students to connect with other students working on the project is provided.
Sites
Alive The person behind this site started it all for me. Rich Wilson
sailed the Great America II from San Francisco around Cape Horn
to Boston. My 5th grade class went with him all the way. The educational
program Ocean Challenge has expanded to include the following projects:
Oceans
Live '98, exploring the Caribbean waters, Rainforest
Live '98, exploring Australia's rainforest, Class
Afloat Live '98, where a group of senior high school students sail
around the world on the sailboat Concordia.
MayaQuest was one of the first online expeditions set up specifically to be interactive with the classroom. Bicyclist Dan Buettner and his crew travel throughout the world, with their laptop computers, seeking knowledge about cultures and the environment from the past and the present. Excellent updates and teacher resources. The Learning Company has developed software and other materials for the classroom for this and previous expeditions. Registration for 1998 is going on now!
World
Flight 1997 Amelia Earhart would have been 100 years old in 1997. Linda
Finch wanted to do something to commemorate the spirit of a woman who thought
woman (and men) should follow their dreams. With assistance from Pratt
& Whitney, Ms. Finch found a Lockheed Electra, the same type of plane
as Earhart had flown, resorted it, and set off to complete the trip which
last time ended in the disappearance of Earhart. This two and half month
adventure was covered in the newspapers, on T.V. and, at this site, World
Flight 1997. In addition, this site includes the You
Can Soar site for students and teachers. The site is filled with so
many activities, you couldn't get them all done before Linda Finch landed
in Oakland! This adventure may be over, but there is great information
about flight and history in this site.
The Oregon Trail Online! MECC brings a favorite education software program to the Internet! Students can join an Internet wagon train where they collaborate with other classrooms to re-create an amazing journey across our country. Check it out at The Learning Company site.
The Discovery Channel has a wealth of information
on their educational programing. For general information, visit Discovery
Online . To find out more about programming on the Learning Channel,
visit Discovery
- Learning Channel . Interested in animals, then don't miss Discovery
- Animal Planet. Finally, a must see site is the Discovery
Channel School. Information about programing and curriculum connections
are waiting there for you.
Biography
and Biography for Kids has a monthly airing schedule on this Arts and
Entertainment web site. Excellent source of information for students and
adults alike. Exceptional biography programs for children.
Teaching science is never a problem
when you have Newton's
Apple as a resource. You can search by topic for the creative information
and activities available here. Of course programming information is available
too. Excellent teachers' guides are included at this site. They can accompany
the show, or be used independently.
Here are a few favorites to try out!
(Note: In this section, click on the logo (image) of the search engine
to go to the site.)
This search engine, like many others, allows a general search, or you
can refine your search by looking in the following categories: Arts &
Entertainment, Business & Investing, News, Careers & Education,
People & Chat, Computers & Internet, Politics, Games, Shopping,
Health & Science, Sports, Lifestyle and Travel.
HotBot is made available by the people at Wired Magazine. What
makes this site a great place to visit is the ease and versatility of the
search. Other search engines often require capital letters or quotations
marks, or the use of "AND, OR, etc." HotBot has a pull down menu that makes
searching a breeze!
A popular and reliable search engine is Yahoo. This search engine has
been popular since its inception. The sites are categorized to help you
limit your search. You can submit your site(s) for possible inclusion in
this popular search engine.
Kids love Yahooligans a search engine designed for children. Lots of graphics are used for easy searching. There are some words and text format is available. Colorful and good graphics. Kids love it. (Note: this site is geared towards children, but that does not mean that only "children oriented material" will be found.)
There are many search engines on the Internet. Use one of the Internet Indexes below to see more, or try these...Infoseek, AltaVista, or Northern Light.
American Library Association's 700+ Amazing Sites for Kids is just that. More than 700 sites that have been tested by librarians, parents and educators. They are divided into subject areas for easy searches.
HotSheet, the Internet Index. This was recommended by another educator. Links to Internet sites are easily found using this website.
B.J. Pinchbeck's Homework Helper. Web page development is not only for adults! When B.J. was ten, he and his dad created this great Homework Helper page for kids. It has over 440 great sites to visit.
* Searching takes time, it isn't always successful, and you can get some interesting (but not necessarily appropriate for school) results. It is best to search ahead of time, or use another educator's site list (bookmarks.) Security systems do not guarantee appropriate sites!
* Don't do too much at once. Start small, maybe an e-mail project or simple research on a topic you are covering in class.
* Let students who are already online at home operate the computer the first few times. This gives you more time to monitor and teach the class. After that, let everyone have a try. You won't have any problems getting volunteers. (Don't forget to give yourself a turn!)
* Find a colleague (or a student) who is already a web-aficionado. Work with them, they'll show you the ropes.
* Enjoy yourself! The kids are having a good time, you should too!
- Pamela A. Berardino, Educator,
Media Specialist and Technology Enthusiast!
Graphics downloaded from MediaBuilder.
Site Logos: The sole purpose of the logos used at this site is to depict the recommended web pages(s) to educators. They have not be altered and are not used for any other purpose.
