TeachersFirst - Featured Sites: Week of Oct 6, 2013
Here are this week's features. Clicking the tags in the description area of each listing will present a list of other resources with this topic. | Click here to return to the Featured Sites Archive
Treasure Hunt: Longitude and Latitude - ABCya
Grades
3 to 7
3 Favorites
0 Comments
Learn the definitions of longitude and latitude and embark on a treasure hunt! Find the correct coordinates before the pirates get to the treasures! As you correctly answer problems,...more
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Learn the definitions of longitude and latitude and embark on a treasure hunt! Find the correct coordinates before the pirates get to the treasures! As you correctly answer problems, you are moved to more difficult levels.
tag(s): coordinates (15), earth (184), latitude (10), longitude (9), map skills (56)
In the Classroom
Use this site as an introduction to longitude and latitude. Share the activity on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Ask students to find coordinates for other locations on this map. If the music is distracting, click the little speaker icon to turn it off.You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
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Sort My Box - Sortmybox.com
Grades
4 to 12
0 Favorites
0 Comments
If you use Dropbox or Box to collect student work, don't miss this site! Use this tool to move files out of Dropbox...more
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If you use Dropbox or Box to collect student work, don't miss this site! Use this tool to move files out of Dropbox or Box and into a different or private folder for grading. This is especially useful if you have a "Turn In" folder where students place completed assignments. Use to sort pictures or videos easily and make the organization of Dropbox easy and automatic. Login easily with your Dropbox account. Create "rules" in this tool that are automatically used in your Dropbox account to move your files around to folders you designate. Files and folders are checked against these rules frequently to keep your Dropbox or Box account neat and tidy.
In the Classroom
Use to manage pictures or videos taken in the classroom and uploaded to Dropbox. If you are using Dropbox in your class, set up this site at the beginning of the year to save you time! Create a rule that moves them all into the same folder (or folders) for easy organization and location of files later. Assignments that are turned in can be moved by a rule you create to go to a private folder that can be accessed later for grading.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Ice Age Floods - Tom Foster
Grades
8 to 12
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Ice Age Floods offers photographs, information, and video explanations. Learn about how the Ice Age created various lakes and dramatically altered the Earth's landscape. Explore...more
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Ice Age Floods offers photographs, information, and video explanations. Learn about how the Ice Age created various lakes and dramatically altered the Earth's landscape. Explore different sections with specific lakes and areas or choose feature types to learn about different features such as drop stones and coulees. Choose the video section to explore the many videos offered including some interesting 2 minute Geology sessions.
tag(s): glaciers (17), landforms (37), rock cycle (12), rocks (36), volcanoes (56)
In the Classroom
Use as part of a flipped lesson. Have students watch videos or read portions of the site and create blogs sharing their learning and understanding using Penzu, reviewed here, with Penzu you can add images or your own artwork as illustrations. Take this a step further and challenge students use a mapping tool such as MapHub, reviewed here, to add points of interest with display markers featuring text, photos, and videos. Share videos and site information on your interactive whiteboard for viewing together.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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StoryToolz - Chuck Heintzelman
Grades
2 to 12
2 Favorites
0 Comments
StoryToolz offers many different tools for authors: story generators, word count meters, a readability analysis, a random conflict generator, a title generator, a cliche buster, and...more
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StoryToolz offers many different tools for authors: story generators, word count meters, a readability analysis, a random conflict generator, a title generator, a cliche buster, and more. Choose any of the topics to begin. Story generators offer suggestions for conflict within a story or half a title. Choose from random title beginnings and endings to generate your title. Don't miss the Readability area: paste up to 5K of text in the box to check the readability of any source. Registration isn't required; however, it offers the opportunity for additional resources within the word count meter section and a larger portion of text for analyzing in the readability section.
tag(s): creative writing (121), readability (5), stories and storytelling (44)
In the Classroom
Enhance and modify student writing by having them use StoryToolz. First, share it with students with a projector in your writing class to generate ideas for stories, possible centers of conflict to map out the new tale, and show them how to use the tool. Use the readability section with any writing to determine appropriateness for use with students. Have students paste their writing in the readability section to determine if their writing is at an appropriate grade level or to note information such as words per sentence or use of various parts of speech. Paste into the cliche buster to point out ho-hum wording and overused expressions. Suddenly, students may begin to write more complex sentences or use more vivid language. Be sure to include a link to this site on your class webpage and classroom computers for use throughout the year. The readability portion of the site is a great resource for ESL/ELL and Special Education teachers to help determine the appropriateness of reading materials.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Calkoo - Trinity Capital
Grades
4 to 12
3 Favorites
0 Comments
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 (128), area (52), calculators (37), division (98), fractions (159), measurement (125), multiplication (122), percent (58), quadratics (26), subtraction (109), volume (34)
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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Multiple Intelligences Posters - Marek Bennett
Grades
3 to 12
1 Favorites
0 Comments
Find two downloadable images for 11 by 17 posters about multiple intelligences in comic form. The first poster represents the different types of intelligences, such as musical or linguistic....more
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Find two downloadable images for 11 by 17 posters about multiple intelligences in comic form. The first poster represents the different types of intelligences, such as musical or linguistic. The second poster breaks down steps to use when working with different types of intelligences. For full information, click the link that leads to the full six page essay about multiple intelligences. Also check out the link at the bottom of the page to "psst! teachers!" to another multiple intelligences comic book.
tag(s): back to school (63), comics and cartoons (54), multiple intelligences (7)
In the Classroom
Print and share posters to get your colleagues and students thinking about their own multiple intelligences. Be sure to maintain the attribution and copyright information on the posters. Explore with students learning about their own strengths in learning. Hang the posters in your classroom. Share information during parent conferences and professional development. Share posters on your board during back to school information sessions to help parents understand different types of intelligences. Encourage students to create comics of themselves using their most comfortable "intelligence" and use it as a locker decoration or on a class bulletin board during the first part of the school year. Use one of TeachersFirst's many comic/cartoon tools reviewed here.
This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.
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GLOBE Scientists' Blog - The GLOBE Program
Grades
4 to 12
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0 Comments
Connect with students and scientists all over the world conducting science using GLOBE. GLOBE Scientists post their thoughts, comments, and philosophies about science topics...more
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Connect with students and scientists all over the world conducting science using GLOBE. GLOBE Scientists post their thoughts, comments, and philosophies about science topics that are sure to meet your curricular needs. Reading the blog entries is open to everyone (no registration). You must register with an email address at the bottom of the page for this free site to share comments and discuss the topics. Anonymous comments are not allowed, and moderators approve all posts before showing on the blog. This is a great science collaboration location!
tag(s): asia (69), climate (81), earth (184), europe (75), scientists (63), seasons (36), soil (16), watersheds (8), weather (165)
In the Classroom
Have students create a word cloud of the important terms they learn from this site using a tool such as WordClouds, reviewed here, or WordItOut, reviewed here. Use this great site for your students to interact with students and scientists all over the world. Have your students keep a journal of their interaction on the site. Post questions from class discussions and labs for GLOBE Scientists to answer. Teach digital citizenship skills (commenting etiquette) and blogging basics to your students. The text portions are challenging, so you should pair weaker readers with a partner as they research on this site. Include this site on your class web page for students and parents to access as a reference. Watch the website to see if your students' comments generate further discussion, and to read new topics as they develop. Encourage gifted students interested in science to participate in this community as a chance to learn above their grade level.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 (65), communication (133), cross cultural understanding (155), writing (318)
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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PDF Mergy - PDF Mergy
Grades
K to 12
3 Favorites
0 Comments
PDF Mergy is a tool for combining multiple PDF documents into one file. Select files from your computer or Google Drive account to merge, drag, and drop to reorder, if ...more
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PDF Mergy is a tool for combining multiple PDF documents into one file. Select files from your computer or Google Drive account to merge, drag, and drop to reorder, if desired. Click the merge button when ready. When the merge is complete, save the new file to your computer or Google Drive with any name you choose.
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tag(s): classroom management (126)
In the Classroom
PDF Mergy is an excellent resource for combining multiple ideas for lessons. Save fraction handouts, continent maps and worksheets, or plant identification activities all together as one file. Remember that copyright still applies to any copyrighted pdfs you combine! Save student reports in PDF and combine to put the entire class' work in one single document. Save project receipts in one easy to find file, the possibilities are endless! Want to make a cool flippable book from your combined pdf of student writings? Try PDF to Flipbook Converter, reviewed here to turn the PDF into a flippable online book.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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