TeachersFirst: Reading in the Content Areas

Reading in the Content Areas:

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Kids Know Your Rights Grade 6 to 12 - American Library Association- 8395

This pdf document explains in clear language the concept of intellectual freedom. Use this site as an extra resource when teaching the Bill of Rights. It is an excellent reference resource for ideas that older Americans assume kids know about. Subtopics include the history of intellectual freedom, the first amendment, an explanation of the role of libraries in exercising intellectual freedom as it applies to written materials and records of who's reading what, how the concepts of privacy and confidentiality apply to the use of intellectual materials, and what respecting the needs of others means. It ends up with an well-researched bibliography of further materials on the subject of intellectual freedom and the right to read. These books are fiction and non-fiction and focus on ages 10 and older.

In the Classroom:
Share this pdf on an interactive whiteboard or projector as part of a class discussion (great for reading comprehension in the content areas, too!). Then allow students to use it and other resources for a class debate on the pros and cons of intellectual freedom. The consitution will come to life in a context students care about.

New York Times Upfront Magazine Grade 8 to 12 - New York Times/Scholastic- 7684

This online version of the NY Times Upfront Magazine for youth offers a selection of current stories, special reports, news and trends of interest to teens, an opinion page written by NY Times editors, a section called "Debate" in which teens can read about a controversial issue from both sides, and a Q&A section featuring a teen involved in some aspect of the news. Teachers who advise a debate club or need topics for persuasive writing, this site has many options. There are links to Scholastic's lesson plans with more added every month.

In the Classroom:
Use this site for both history/world cultures classes and for reading comprehension in the content areas. For your basic and below-basic readers, this site provides current, meaningful reading material for practice with important reading skills. The reading selections could be projected on a screen or interactive whiteboard for students to highlight and practice summarizing, main idea, and more.

Create your own R.A.F.T.S. Prompts for Science Grade 4 to 12 - Northern Nevada Writing Project- 7371

Looking for writing prompts that are fun and geared toward a science? Look no further! This web site offers a great way to create writing prompts simply by clicking on an icon and receiving the luck of the draw. User chooses the subject and by random selection, the web site chooses the Role, Audience, Format, Topic and Strong Verb. May be tricky for lower grades and will require several walk-through lessons. Great for students who struggle with brainstorming writing topics.

In the Classroom:
This is a great way to find ideas for literature contracts, guided reading assignments, teachers who are having writer's block. Great way to tie science to language arts using a write-to-learn approach. This is a sure way to build content area reading comprehension of your science textbook.

Lesson Plan Unit: Slavery Grade 6 to 12 - New York Times- 7156

From the New York Times, this site contains a series of thirteen individual lesson plans focused on the issue of slavery. Many of the lesson plans focus on the use of narrative (e.g. "I Heard it Through the Grapevine," "Held Accountable," "Life in Letters," "Revealing Untold Stories") and the importance of primary sources in understanding the perspective of others. There is a lesson plan on slave quilts and the stories they tell. Another plan focuses on the issue of perspective in history text books ("Undercover-ed"), a topic always of interest to students ("You mean my textbook isn't always right??"). There are also a series of plans that focus on modern international affairs in Africa and across the world that deal with slavery. You will find lessons that connect to current events also. The lesson plans are frequently updated; include McRel standards, links to more information, and lots of detail!

In the Classroom:
Teachers can pick and choose easily from among several strands of thought among these lesson plans, either to supplement a unit on the Civil War, for use during Black History observations, or in an English class focused on story telling and personal voice. It could also provide interesting materials for reading comprehension practice using content area materials. All the plans follow a pretty regular format: link to the Times article, read it and discuss, but this kind of break from the use of a standard textbook can be refreshing. Many plans include a vocabulary list, ideas for extension activities and focus on making the lesson as interdisciplinary as possible. As you celebrate Presidents Day (especially Lincoln's 200th birthday in 2009), check out this site for Lincoln resources!

Reading Comprehension Test Grade 6 to 7 - Texas Education Agency- 6499

Use this interactive test simulation to help improve reading comprehension skills. Each reading sample is followed by a series of multiple choice questions on content. After completion of the test, click the "score test" button for a detailed report.

Reading Comprehension Connection Grade 4 to 11 - Merit Software- 5814

Give your students some independent practice in reading comprehension with this collection of interactive lessons. Select a subject (vocabulary in context, reading for understanding, or reading strategies) and a skill level. Check out the lesson summaries for guidance in determining the reading levels addressed by each module. This site offers great practice for state assessments. Be aware: this site does sell software but teachers can use this portion of the site for free.

ESL Bits Grade 3 to 8 - Skip Reske- 9950

This site is an excellent way to help ESL and ELL students improve reading and comprehension skills using short passages of different kinds of reading. The site includes signs, multiple choice, true-false for details, questions on getting the "gist" of a reading, matching questions, and gap (fill-in) questions. This site is excellent for reading comprehension in the regular classroom too! Students select a "set" which contains a short sampling of each kind of question. Once they answer, they get immediate feedback.

In the Classroom:
Since the subtitle for this page is "Reading Comprehension and Test Preparation," recommend this site to ESL and ELL students preparing for standardized tests. Save it in your favorites on class computers and provide the link on your class website for students to access both in the classroom and out. The activities would also work well on interactive whiteboard.

Share the “Signs” link with your students. Challenge students to create their own signs, similar to those used at this site. Have cooperative learning groups create interactive posters featuring their signs using a tool such as (PicLits - explained here). Share the “PicLits” on an interactive whiteboard or projector.

Reading For All Grade K to 12 - TeachersFirst- 9628

This TeachersFirst professional page includes extensive resources for Reading in the Content Areas, Graphic Organizers, Reading Strategies, Vocabulary Development, Elementary Reading, independent reading, and special topics reading lists. The page also includes a link for you to purchase books from Amazon and have TeachersFirst receive a portion of the proceeds. TeachersFirst is a free service of a non-profit since 1998. Why not shop through this link to help TeachersFirst continue its service to teachers worldwide?

In the Classroom:
No matter what you teach, these resources will help you target reading and study skills for better comprehension and more.

Skip's Radio Scripts for Language Learners Grade 6 to 12 - Skip Reske- 8826

These adapted radio scripts assist ESL/ELL students with learning how to use articles and grammar correctly, increase vocabulary, and improve reading comprehension. A highly motivating site, students can see photos of old movies and even enjoy clips from the movies as they work with the scripts. Vocabulary definitions appear when you mouse over difficult words. There are vocabulary and comprehension quizzes at the end of the scripts. Students can choose normal or interactive versions of the movie scripts. In the interactive version, students must input articles. The link Skip's Bits provides additional reading comprehension practice.

In the Classroom:
This website is particularly useful if your ESL/ELL students want to perform a portion of a play. If your students are having difficulty with article usage, try a different approach to teaching the skill in the context of drama. If you have access to DVDs of the films used, you may want to play a few clips for the students.

Learning Resources to Promote Literacy Grade 5 to 8 - Western/Pacific Literacy Network- 6448

This literacy resource provides students with full texts of a wide variety of news stories, then challenges them with related interactive activities testing reading comprehension. Each full text is accompanied by an abridged version, and a story outline - great features for differentiating instruction as needed.

In the Classroom:
Use for independent, self-paced reading practice. An excellent preparation activity for state standards testing.

Reading Comprehension Grade 4 to 6 - RHL- 6440

This collection of printable worksheets addresses a variety of comprehension skills using short poems, essays, articles, and stories. Each text sample is followed by content-related discussion questions or multiple-choice quizzes.

In the Classroom:
Add to your arsenal of educational tools for state assessment testing preparation. Distribute the worksheets and divide your class into cooperative groups so that students can share in discussions of the readings and related activities.

Learning Resources Grade 8 to 12 - CNN- 6435

Improve reading comprehension of non-fiction text with this online activity that uses actual CNN news stories to strengthen skills in making inferences and drawing conclusions. Differentiate your reading instruction by allowing students to choose a story of interest, then select the full or abridged version, based on reading ability. Follow-up activities testing vocabulary and comprehension are provided (see links to the left of each story).

Brainchild Online Assessment Grade 5 to 7 - Brainchild- 5608

Simulate a reading comprehension assessment with this interactive quiz. Short texts are followed by multiple-choice questions. After completing the activity, students can view a summary report that provides links back to missed questions. Click on the "Study" buttons to practice specific areas of weakness. A great prep activity for state assessment testing.

Tween Tribune Grade 3 to 9 - Alan Jacobson- 10239

This site is jam packed with current news stories that are chosen by site coordinators for the "tween" (age 8-14) audience. Middle school audiences will find the article easy to read, relate to, and understand. The site is easy to navigate with a subject indexed toolbar and it is searchable. There is even a "your town" section for local news stories. All stories are current because the creators scour the internet weekly for age appropriate material. It greatly reduces the pressure of searching by giving an article research tool that is much more specific than simply using a search engine.

If you want to allow your students to post a comment on a blog, they do need to register with the site. Registration requires a username and password (no email address). Visit the “For Teachers” link to learn more about the site and how to use and customize (free) for use with your classes safely and in compliance with federal laws.

In the Classroom:
The sky is the limit for potential and possibilities with this website. There are some minor warnings. If you want to allow your students to post to a blog, you will need to create a class and then have them enroll. The great news is that is free. As the teacher, you can moderate or delete posts before they are public.

There are lessons available on the site as well as a "Teacher's Lounge" where lesson ideas can be exchanged.

In a language arts classroom, students could be assigned to read and blog as a weekly writing assignment. The teacher can assign a specific article or have students choose. Have students read their articles on a podcast using PodOmatic (reviewed here). In science, articles from this site could be used to supplement science textbook reading with current articles that better interest students.

Articles are short and provide quick practice pieces for non-fiction reading comprehension. Project a story and ask students to write their own sentence for the main idea or to summarize. These quick pieces would fit well on your interactive whiteboard.

Fact Check Ed Grade 4 to 12 - factchecked.org- 10230

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.

In the Classroom:
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.

Science News for Kids Grade 3 to 12 - Society for Science and the Public- 10157

Search news articles about various topics such as "Agriculture," "Animals," "Chemistry and Materials," "Finding the Past," and many other topics. Featured articles and pictures can be found on the front page in a section titled "The Weekly Scoop" and "Science Snapshots." View other pages in the site including "Puzzle Zone," "Game Zone," "SciFi Zone," SciFair Zone," and "Lab Zone." Click on the "Teacher Zone" to access question sheets, resources, and websites for classroom use. Some ads run along the sides of this site.

In the Classroom:
Use Science News for Kids as a great reading and reporting assignment. Students can find an area and article of interest to read, summarize, and report to the class. Have students create commercials about their topics. Video and share using a site such as SchoolTube reviewed here. Students can use these news articles to find additional relevant information on the internet. Students may find these topics to be great self-study topics. Use the question sheets when assigning articles for class reading as a guided inquiry. Teach reading comprehension using these factual articles on your interactive whiteboard, asking students to highlight key words and generate a “main idea” sentence using them.

Study Guides and Strategies Grade K to 12 - Joe Landsberger- 9842

If you haven’t been to seminars, college classes, or professional development lately, you may feel a little rusty on innovative study guides and strategies that will enhance learning. This site explains with clear language and no-frills web pages hundreds of ways to help our learners, from online test taking, memorizing, to managing stress and so much more. Another perk from this site is that it is available in over 20 different languages, so even limited English speakers can learn these helpful techniques. From this web link, you enter the “visitors center” where you grasp the impact this site has had on education. Millions of visitors benefit from its resources each year. Click on “index” at the top to access the page full of study guides and strategies options.

Each content area has successful resources that you can use.

Content areas include Preparing, Learning, Studying, Learning with Others, Online Learning/Communicating, Classroom Participation, Project Management, Research, Reading Skills, Preparing for Test, Science and Technology, Math, Resources, Vocabulary/Spelling, Writing Styles, Writing Basics, and Taking Tests. There are over 100 individual topics to explore: Time Management, Avoiding Procrastination, Learning with ADHD, Effective Study Habits, Peer Mediation, Problem Based Learning, Netiquette, Public Speaking, Citing Websites, SQ3R, KWL, Overcoming Test Anxiety, Ten Tips for Terrific Test Taking, Prefixes and Root Words, Seven Stages of Writing, and countless others!

There are some basic advertisements at this site. Flash and Acrobat Reader are needed for some of the links and can be obtained here: TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

In the Classroom:
This site is one to save in your favorites! There is so much here, it is hard to know where to begin. The language offerings provide opportunities for ESL and ELL students to learn study skills in their native language. This site could also be used in world languages classes.

Why not highlight a “study skill” each week using your interactive whiteboard or projector. Then have students TRY it. Most of the topics provide interactive learning or another assignment to help students practice the skill. Have students work individually or with a partner to explore the “topic of the week.” These life skills are so necessary, but hard to fit into the already crammed curriculum. This site does a nice job of integrating the study skills with curriculum content. Have students create their own multimedia projects about study skills using a current unit of study from your class.

Stories for Children Magazine Grade K to 7 - SFC Magazine- 9258

This delightful ezine offers many stories for children of a variety of ages, a monthly author feature, games, crafts, book reviews, and more. For those who prefer to print out the entire magazine, that option is available. The pictorial table of contents along the right border of the page entices children with attractive titles and graphics. Each story title indicates the target age for the story. Warning: most of this site is free, but there are items for purchase available. There are also some simple advertisements.

In the Classroom:
Choose one story a week to give children the idea of supplementary reading or to use as reading comprehension practice with main idea or other skills. Be sure to help your weaker readers and ESL and ELL students by sharing the vocabulary words prior to reading, either on a handout or by projecting them on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Have them highlight the vocabulary words in the text using the whiteboard tools as you come to them. Encourage students to write or verbally share their own stories after viewing this site’s offerings. Some school filtering systems may block this site because it it hosted on the tripod (user-created site) domain. Be sure to check it at school to be sure it will work in your classroom, and request that it be unblocked if it falls into the “tripod trap.”

Reading A to Z Grade K to 6 - learninga-z.com- 9050

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

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

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

UsingEnglish.com Grade 5 to 12 - UsingEnglish.com- 9011

Check this site for things you need to help for ESL/ELL students. You will find lesson plans, reference links, grammar practice, reading comprehension work, tests, word lists for specific tests, vocabulary offerings, professional articles, and more. The site is easy to searchand well organized, present exercises and tests in a consistent and easy to read format. The "question bank" offers difficult grammar points in a poll format, with results constantly renewed; some answers are obviously wrong, but grammar, too, has its debatable points! With free membership registration, teachers get access to even more activities, exercises, quizzes, games, a newsletter, and more. NOTE: There is a Forum (bulletin board) feature on this site. If your school does not permit students to use such tools, be sure to spell out the consequences as you tell students to avoid that area.

In the Classroom:
Regular classroom teachers will want to use this site with ESL and ELL students fwhen they need a quick review on a specific grammar point. Use the professional articles for your own edification as well as links to other topics of interest.

Using Timeline Games and Mexican History to Improve Comprehension Grade 3 to 6 - IRA/NCTE- 8606

The IRA/NCTE has created this wonderful resource that incorporates timelines, Mexican history, and comprehension. The unit is broken down into eight 45-minute sessions. The website challenges students to study some basic information about Mexican history. Then the students are asked to create an illustrated timeline. There are numerous other "mini" activities available within this lesson plan. If your class doesn't have the time to complete this entire unit, pick and choose what works for your class. The lesson plans are ready to go, easy to follow, include interactive elements, and are highly motivational. This website requires Flash, get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

In the Classroom:
The interactive timeline maker tool linked in this lesson is outstanding for ANY timeline you want students to make. The final product is printed and is NOT saved anywhere, however. Make sure you allow enough time to complete the work and print.

Use this lesson plan to teach your students Mexican history, how to use/create a timeline, and to improve their reading comprehension. Your students with family heritage from Mexico would benefit twice from using this lesson for comprehension activities. This is truly an interdisciplinary unit, and includes directions, objectives, standards, and more. The lessons would work well as independent study in the computer lab, cooperative learning activities, or whole class research using an interactive whiteboard.

Mother's Day in the Classroom Grade K to 5 - The Graphics Cupboard- 7917

This all-inclusive website provides language arts activities, math fun, and numerous crafts. Specific activities include similes, poems, reading comprehension, mazes, math worksheets, and more. There is also a simple list of literature to use in your classroom to acknowledge this special day. The printable pages require Adobe Acrobat. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

In the Classroom:
This site is a good one to search for quick and easy ideas to celebrate Mother's Day. Save this site in your class favorites and use this site as a learning center for partners to explore together.

St. Patrick's Day Theme Unit Grade K to 8 - edhelper.com- 7899

Visit this site to find "ready-to-go" critical thinking activities, math activities, reading comprehension activities, language arts fun, puzzles and more! The math and language arts activities include grade levels. There is Irish Sudoku, the story of "Leprechauns at the Amusement Park" and many more highly diverse and educational activities. Some activities are for "members only", but most of the activities are open to everyone.

In the Classroom:
Use an interactive whiteboard or projector and challenge your students with this St. Patrick's Day fun!

Headliners Grade 3 to 12 - Headliners/formerly Children's Express- 7817

Formerly Children's Express, this relaunched site offers contemporary stories, mostly about life in the UK, at levels children can easily understand. The site is intended to develop learning through journalism for ages 8-19. Stories are offered in writing, and some are also on video. Although a bit slow to load, the archive offers stories organized by subject matter. The focus is on young people, with lots of interviews and hot topics. Qualified UK youngsters can become writers for upcoming news pieces, and all users can read about how these young people became reporters. Requires Windows Media Player in order to hear the broadcasts.

In the Classroom:
Use the stories to teach reading comprehension skills, especially inferencing, since American students will need to use context to figure out some of the terminology and background written by British students. Try projecting a story and asking student how to find context clues to explain what the story is about. If you have an interactive whiteboard, use the tools to mark clues. Then use these stories as models for writing activities on topics that matter to your students.

Reading Strategies: Scaffolding Students' Interactions with Texts Grade 6 to 12 - Greece (NY) Central School District- 6812

Find resources for teaching and modeling MANY reading strategies in your classroom, including handouts for graphic organizers and vocabulary development, all from this school-district site. Each strategy is explained and classified as before, during, or after reading and then linked to further information. This is a one-stop shop for teachers in every content area, as well as those reinforcing study skills for learning support students and helping students prepare for standardized testing. Each strategy includes suggestions for how to differentiate instruction, as well.

In the Classroom:
Give students links from your teacher web page directly to the graphic organizer they must complete for homework. Then there is no excuse such as having the dog eat it! Files are all Acrobat files, and Acrobat Reader is a free download.

Starfall Grade K to 3 - Starfall Education- 6711

Find interactive reading activities for emergent/beginning readers at Starfall. It combines instruction in letter-sound relationships, word recognition skills, and reading comprehension strategies. The site also includes scope and sequence and a section to download worksheets and journals for additional practice of skills introduced. Seasonal activities can also be found on the main page. The four "levels" of reading at Starfall include "ABCs," "Learn to Read," "It's Fun to Read," and "I am Reading." Many of the interactives require Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

In the Classroom:
This website could be used for an entire class using your interactive whiteboard or projector. You could also set up a learning center for use during your L.A. block. Use this site to differentiate reading levels for your students. Be certain to save this site in your class favorites and list this site on your class website for students to access both in and out of the classroom.

Games Gallery Grade 6 to 8 - - 6558

Quick thinking and nimble fingers are needed in these fast-paced, off-beat, art-based games. Enter the gallery, read the brief instructions, and prepare to play. Each game is different, and the longer you play, the tougher they become! Color mixing, sculpture, spatial representation, and sequencing are among the content areas addressed.

Iraq Enters Fourth Year Grade 8 to 12 - MacNeil-Lehrer Productions- 6492

Increasing criticism and unrest toward the Bush administration mark the third anniversary of the U.S. Invasion of Iraq. This site provides an overview of the controversy, and a link to corresponding reading comprehension and discussion questions.

Extr@ Grade 10 to 12 - Channel 4- 6401

Check out these interactive offerings for foreign language students that provide practice in listening and reading comprehension, grammar, and cultural understanding. The real-life situations are presented "sitcom" style and are quite entertaining. But some border on the risqué, so please preview before using with students. Visit the "Teacher's Notes" section to find translated transcripts of each segment. Headphones suggested. This site requires FLASH. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

ABYZ News Links Grade 9 to 12 - - 6228

Choose a country and publication, then tap into the latest news of the day with this easy-to-use directory that links to newspaper Web sites from around the world. This is an excellent resource for building authentic reading comprehension skills in a world language class.

Cinco de Mayo Grade 2 to 6 - abcteach- 5842

Celebrate with this collection of activities that includes an informational essay with reading comprehension questions, a coloring page, and printable worksheets for poetry and creative writing tasks inspired by the Mexican holiday. Many of the printables require Adobe Acrobat. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

In the Classroom:
Share this informative site with your students on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Have cooperative learning groups explore this site together. Why not challenge students to create a news broadcast highlighting the holiday. Tape the broadcasts and share them on a site such as Teachers.TV (explained here).

Easter Egg-tivities Grade K to 3 - Chateau Meddybemps- 5761

This interactive collection of seasonal, secular games helps early elementary students strengthen mouse skills while tapping into several content areas. Hunt for eggs, play some matching games, decorate virtual eggs, and read an Easter egg story. This site requires Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

In the Classroom:
Share this colorful site on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Have students work with a partner during art class (or even in the regular classroom) and explore the various activities available at this site.

What Makes A Compound Word? Grade 5 to 8 - Education Development Center- 5586

This interactive tutorial introduces compound words and strategies for revealing their meanings. Includes an instructive slide show followed by some completion, click-and-drag, and reading comprehension activities. Preview content and difficulty level before turning your students loose on this one.

The Zoo in My Front Yard Grade 4 to 6 - ToonUniversity- 5462

Improve comprehension with this short but entertaining activity that requires students to read a passage of text, then respond to a series of multiple choice questions. Great practice for state assessment testing.

Animal Fact or Fiction Grade 6 to 12 - NY Times- 5331

This intriguing lesson plan challenges students to analyze written information about animals, discern fact from fiction, conduct research, and write informational articles that explain and debunk animal myths. Extension activities, interdisciplinary connections, and links to online materials are provided.

Sounder - Lesson ideas Grade 6 to 7 - Easyfunschool- 4077

Here’s one of the rare sites with a brief lesson for the well loved story Sounder. This one, created by Easy Fun School, has some facts about the author William Armstrong and a few vocabulary word suggestions. A set of Questions and Activities are included that can be great for reading comprehension, class discussions, and as short writing assignments. Teachers will find the questions useful when planning the study of this compelling story.

ESL Holidays Lessons Grade 1 to 8 - Sean Banville- 10409

Look no further for holiday activities for your ESL and ELL students (or for reading/listening comprehension activities you can use with all learners! This site lists conventional and unusual holidays by month. Click the holiday you would like to feature to find a complete lesson including a tape script, an oral recording of the script, and a variety of review exercises. The printable activities include matching, several varieties of fill-in-the-blank, word choices, spelling, reordering events and sentences from the holiday information, and writing activities. An online clickable reading activity presents parts of sentences, so students must select which sentence part comes first. The screen changes when the correct part comes up, and students select the next part.

In the Classroom:
Use this site to help ESL/ELL students improve listening, reading, writing, and cultural knowledge. Invite an ESL/ELL student to present a holiday from their home country to the class using an interactive whiteboard or projector. Many of the review activities would also work well as reading comprehension practice on interactive whiteboard, especially if students use highlighters and pens to mark up the text passage to locate key terms, etc.

Have students create online holiday posters on paper or do it together as a class using a tool such as Project Poster (reviewed here or PicLits (reviewed here. Share this site with families of your ESL/ELL students to learn more about American holidays.

Trailfire Grade K to 12 - Trailfire Inc.- 10396

Teachersfirst Edge Entry: for anyone who can click and type! Trailfire is an online tool for making "trails" for others to follow on the Internet. You can also find "trails" created by others willing to share their work. Simply by clicking the various "stops" along your guided trail, you can add notes telling people who should stop here or what they should do, comment on the pages' content, etc. Click "explore" to browse or search (by tag or keyword) the many trails already available. Click "Learn" in the tag cloud to see examples of "how to" trails. There is even one on how to make lesson plans! Navigate the "trail" with small blue arrows at the very top and read the creator's comments as little pop-ups that look like sticky notes. As with any public site, there are topics NOT suitable for the classroom, so preview, preview, and preview. Buried among the trails are some created by teachers, such as the Great Pumpkin Adventure or this sample trail by the TeachersFirst review team. Trails YOU make can be shared by URL or kept private to share with your selected viewers. NOTE: the site seems a bit sluggish at times, so resist the urge to click into "mouse panic."

In the Classroom:
Skills Needed: NO skills are needed to view and use trails created by others. Explore, find, and save the URL for the trail you want your students to use. To be able to create trails, join the site (email required, but no waiting for verification email). Download the Trailfire toolbar (you will be prompted to do this when you register). You do NOT need this toolbar to FOLLOW trails, only to create them or "see" marks left behind by others on the web. Note that any computer equipped with the Trailfire plug-in installed will also "see" any public "marks" left on pages by other Trailfire users. If your school computer does not allow downloads, you can create trails at home for use by students.

Getting started: Once you join and download the plug-in simply click the Trailfire "mark page" button on your toolbar whenever you visit a site on which you would like to comment. The sidebar (which you can keep open or close with the x) offers hints as you learn to use Trailfire. If you are preparing a trail for students to follow, Add "marks" (like sticky notes) to each web page on your trail. These can include comments, directions, etc. To share your trail, go to "My stuff" and get the trail URL (tiny orange text!)

Safety/security concerns: If you are only USING trails or creating them for your students to use, there are no safety issues. If you are having students create trails they will need to log in and work on computers with the Trailfire download installed. You might want to consider using a whole-class account with your own (extra) email as the log in or setting up a GMail account with sub-accounts. 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. Since the Trailfire site offers Recent, Popular, and Hot trails on the home page, teachers allowing students to create trails will want to have strict policies about avoiding these areas where the general public could create topics for trails inappropriate for the classroom.

Possible Uses: Have students create visual bibliographies of sites they used for a project and what they learned there, or create student trails of different types of volcanoes (explaining them in markers). Challenge students to create trails of examples of the bill of rights in operation or the three branches of government in real life, or student commentary on web page bias, or even student explanations of grammatical errors they find---with markers explaining the CORRECTIONS! Teacher-created trails for students doing project-based learning, including notes on which sites might be more challenging reading or include a good introduction, key terms and definitions in markers on a page with challenging reading, purpose-setting "markers" for reading comprehension practice using web articles. What other ideas can YOU add?

The Life and Voyages of Henry Hudson Grade 7 to 12 - Ian Chadwick- 10324

This site details the life and many attempted voyages of the English explorer Henry Hudson. Although the site is very “wordy,” it is very inclusive and excellent for research. It includes a lot of facts, maps, information about each voyage, information about nautical measurements, and details about his ships and crews. The information and maps available here are based on the author combing historical books and documents and information. An extensive bibliography and list of weblinks relating to Hudson adds interest to the maps and history on the site.

In the Classroom:
Have the students make a cumulative map of all Hudson’s voyages together in order for them to get a chance to become intimately familiar with the map making process. Try a site such as Woices (beta) (reviewed here). Woices allows students to create audio recordings AND choose a location on a map where each story takes place. Have each cooperative learning group focus on a different exploration. Compare their creations with the online map which has all four voyages combined. Assign students in a group each a few pages of an imagined journal Henry might have written on each voyage. The most interesting part will be to imagine what happened to him after people no longer heard from him! Use this site as the starting point for individual research papers. Encourage students to find other resources that contribute to their knowledge of Henry Hudson. Have students write a talk Hudson might give if he suddenly woke up today (like Rip Van Winkle). Or make it more Web 2.0 and have students write blog entries. The text passages on this site are also ideal for reading comprehension practice. Project them on an interactive whiteboard for practice in main idea, summarizing, and more.

Bad Science Grade 8 to 12 - Alistair B. Fraser- 10300

“Be very, very careful what you put into that head, because you will never, ever get it out” warns the quote at the start of this page. Bad Science is the site that debunks the "myths and legends" that are sadly distributed by the misinformed. It is a great site for checking understanding and pinpointing student misconceptions. Many popular ones are addressed in the links offered on this site. Learn about Bad Astronomy, Bad Chemistry, Mad Meteorology (including clouds, rain, greenhouses, and others), and the Pathetic Fallacy. The drawback to the site is that it can seem a little condescending but it may be a byproduct of the author's disgust with bad science.

In the Classroom:
Students could be assigned different false science statements to research and design their own science news articles comparing fact and fiction. Why not make this a multimedia project and have students complete a podcast, online poster, or narrated photo! For podcasts, try PodOmatic (reviewed here). To create an online poster use a site such as Wallwisher, (reviewed here). Challenge cooperative learning groups to find a photo related to their topic (legally permitted to be reproduced), and then narrate the photo using Voicethread reviewed here.

A class could also be assigned a specific false science fact to research and participate in a class blog or message board discussion via the class web page or wiki site. Students could also use the fiction as the basis for their own "Myth busters" episodes. .

Reading teachers looking for passages to use in reading comprehension practice, such as finding main idea and supporting details will find these non-fiction passages informative and interesting for their students. Make a temporary copy of one of the explanations to display in your interactive whiteboard software as students highlight key ideas and separate out supporting details using the whiteboard tools. Your science teachers will LOVE you for it!

Dummies.com Grade 6 to 12 - John Wiley & Sons - 10250

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.

In the Classroom:
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.

EtherPad Grade 2 to 12 - App-Jet Inc.- 10147

TeachersFirst Edge review: for even slightly adventurous technology users. Ether pad is a tool for writing and collaborating in real time between up to 16 different contributors-- without erasing or overwriting each other's work! This tool starts up instantly, requiring no log-ins, tricky features or difficult tools. If you can type (and choose your favorite color), you can work on an EtherPad, a "pad" of virtual paper out in space on the Internet. The free version allows you to invite others to join you, either by sending them an email or, even easier, giving them the URL to your "pad." Here is a sample EtherPad, ready for you to add your own ideas for using EtherPad in the classroom! Unlike Google Docs, this tool does not require user accounts or email addresses, so even young students can participate in an EtherPad.

In the Classroom:
Skills needed: Nothing special. No log-in needed Simply click "Create a new pad" or click/paste the link for an existing one, and away you go. Enter a name for yourself in the box at the right of the pad and click the colored square to set a color for the highlighting on your typing. Type away. Delete, add, etc. To Save, click "Save revisions" and SAVE NOW. Be sure to click SHARE and copy the URL (Ctrl+C to copy), so you can keep it in your favorites or recorded somewhere. Or you can email it to yourself. It will be impossible to find your "pad" without it! Up to 16 others can work on the pad at the same time, and their work will show in their own colors. When you and your collaborators are done with your "pad," click "Export" to save it as a word doc or other option. Try looking at the different versions you can "revert" to as your group works, too!

Safety/Security Concerns: Be sure you are within school policy to have students put work online. Have them use initials or a coded identifier instead of their real names. Each pad is public, if someone knows the URL, so outsiders could possibly add inappropriate content, but there is no display of "recent pads" or other ways someone could discover students' work. Students could also locate another student/group pad by URL and vandalize each other's work. Since changes can be reverted, all will not be lost.

Possible Uses: Have students make multiple "pads" to comment and write on several class topics. Ex. students add responses to questions, evaluations of web links, or critiques of passages assigned for in-class perusal and discussion... create an Etherpad collaborative "study guide" for the passages. A social studies teacher could provide links to seven articles on Iran today and students respond, explaining what they think is important about each article (a "pad" for each). Use Etherpads to evaluate web site/blog authority or bias. Younger kids could write cooperative stories on the pad(s) to use vocabulary, grammar skills, practice punctuating dialog, etc. World language teachers could have students compose dialog or scenes to act out on video. In Reading class, have students collaborate to compose a "main idea" statement or summary of a written passage, including in higher level content area reading. Pass-the-pad: use the pads to "jigsaw" summaries or explanations of new content knowledge between expert groups. Keep a master list of the pad URLs so groups can access and change as they learn. Eventually publish the "final" version by exporting it. Cooperative writing groups can revise on drafts (copy/paste in from other docs) - then export the version the writer likes best. BRAINSTORM in real time or across times and places. Write cooperative lab reports. "Meet" with another class (or screenpal) using Skype to talk and Etherpad to write, making notes together of your plans for an upcoming event or working together to compose a story, letter, or script. Write cooperative stories or poems. Keep student council or club "minutes' and plans. Be sure to add your own ideas on the sample EtherPad made by our review team.

Find a Book Grade 1 to 12 - lexile.com- 10138

This site allows teachers and students to go through four simple steps to find a book that has a lexile rating. The steps include entering a lexile range (if unknown: enter grade level and ease of reading), interests (similar to a keyword search), search of all items that come up, and list-making.

One disadvantage of the site is that you can only enter a keyword when you get to the third step. After a book list based on interests appears, then you can search by keyword to make the search zero in on specifics. When teachers or students select books for a reading list, they can then click to see the complete list of books they have selected. Clicking on a book title leads to another screen, but it does not contain a book summary; instead, it has a list of other keywords for the book along with other book data.

In the Classroom:
This site is great for teachers searching for books at specific lexile levels. Learning support and ESL/ELL teachers can find books to accompany units in content area classes but on the correct lexile level. Students can also use the site by entering their grade levels and what kind of readers they are. Use this site to differentiate the learning experience for all levels of students. Rather than having students complete traditional book reports, why not have them complete a multimedia project? Provide some choices such as a podcast, using PodoMatic (reviewed here), interactive venn diagram comparing characters (reviewed here), or online book using Bookemon (reviewed here).

DoGo News Grade K to 10 - DoGo News- 10079

Need kid-friendly online news? This safe site, written for kids, by kids, offers news from a younger point-of-view. Written in easy-to-read language, your students will enjoy reading each article. Some of the articles include short video clips. Students may leave brief comments about each article (no login required). All content is approved by an adult editor before being posted. Some difficult words are defined through an integrated dictionary. A map mash-up provides information about geographical context. For intriguing new websites that are kid-friendly, click on the Sites link at the top of the page. (Beware: Even though these sites have been pre-approved, they will take your students outside of this safe site.) Click on Earth to see a 3-dimensional Earth rotating in real geo time, where students can click on articles from around the globe. This site does require Flash. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

In the Classroom:
Use articles for current events. For a writing assignment, have students study the way these articles were written, then practice writing a similar article about a school or community event. Create a class magazine from the articles. Or better yet, 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. Strengthen reading comprehension by having an ‘article du jour’ on your interactive whiteboard or projector as students arrive. Link this site on your homepage.

Google Earth Lessons Grade 4 to 12 - David (a Central Florida Computer Teacher)- 10069

This site offers a collection of lesson plans to correlate with Google Earth. There are lessons in math, social studies, language arts, and science. View "How To" videos, "Student Controlled" lesson plans, "Teacher Controlled" lesson plans, "mini lessons," or search the lessons by content area. Click on Home to read the latest news at the site. The lessons are ready to go. Some include standards. This site does require Flash and Adobe Acrobat. Google Earth How-To links use Quicktime video. You can all these plug-ins from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

In the Classroom:
Search the site for your content area. Take advantage of the free lesson plans. If you aren't familiar with Google Earth check out the site (reviewed here). There is a lot to explore with this multi-faceted tool, Google Earth. If you do not have it installed for FREE on your school computer, use this lesson blog to demonstrate to your administration why you should.

Action Bioscience Grade 8 to 12 - American Institute of Biological Sciences- 9919

Spark interest and discussion about class content using these peer reviewed articles on current topics in Biology. The articles would also be excellent choices for non-fiction reading comprehension practice. View a variety of articles and links in "Biodiversity," "Environment," "Genomics," "Biotechnology," "Evolution," and "New Frontiers." A link to featured articles can be found on the main page as well as a link to educator resources such as lessons, articles, blog posts, and media. A “donate” link exists on the page, so caution students about this. Read additional information given, especially the reprint policy.

In the Classroom:
Engage students in topics relevant to today and students' lives by reading and responding to a variety of timely and peer reviewed articles. Use your own class blog or wiki to elicit responses and conversations from your students. Use this site for research and lesson ideas. Additionally, teach students to review and annotate articles while searching for more information to validate or refute those viewpoints. Have cooperative learning groups create multimedia projects to share their findings: wiki, video, or podcast. Not sure what a wiki is? Check out the TeacherFirst Wiki Walk-Through (reviewed here). Share the video using Teachers.tv (reviewed here). Create a podcast using a tool such as Podomatic (reviewed here). Learning support teachers working to build content-reading skills will find these articles ideal for practice. Share an article on an interactive whiteboard for students to highlight key terms and generate a sentence for the Main Idea of the article. Cooperate with the biology teacher so students practice with topics currently being studied. If you are not sure of the reading level, check the URL for the article using a tool such as Juicystudio, reviewed here.

VizLab Grade 5 to 12 - IBM Research/ New York Times- 9792

Wonder what information really means? Use Viz Lab to make meaningful representations of data and statistics in a graphical format. Use data from the day's news by clicking on "Get Started." Choose the "Visualize" button to choose data sets and then the manner to be displayed. Show the data sets as a tag cloud, word tree, wordle, bar graph, matrix, bubble chart, and much more. Click "Publish" at the bottom and "Share this" to embed a live or static image on a wiki, blog, or site. This site uses Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

In the Classroom:
You will want to familiarize yourself with this tools a bit or have some students play with it then demonstrate how it works. Share these visualizations on an interactive whiteboard to teach both how to CREATE and how to INTERPRET visual representations of data. Use the news in a different way to look at and analyze trends. Use these tools for discussing data that most students would not tackle. Look at statistics and meaning in data sets. Research reasons for the data sets for presentation to the class or in a blog.

With many states requiring interpretation of graphs as part of their standards for reading in the content areas, this site provides both constructive and interpretive experience for your students –using meaningful and current data from the news. Make it real with hands-on manipulation of REAL information, on a whiteboard together or in small groups. Assign students in small groups to create and explain a visual representation of information that they believe their side of a debate topic on current events. Embed the graphics in your class wiki so both sides can refer to them during the actual debate.

Read the Words Grade 1 to 12 - Educational Utilities- 9744

Read the Words is a site that allows students to download or upload any text material in order to HEAR it. The site will read the text aloud. Languages offered include English, Spanish, and French. Students can select the speed at which the text will be read. You can use a wide variety of formats including Microsoft Word, PDF, a website URL, anything copied and pasted, or from RSS feeds. Likewise, students can listen to the oral text online, download it to the desktop or MP3 players, post readings online in several forms, and even create podcasts with the selected material. Techie students can even modify the reading avatar's appearance by selecting from those available, both male and female.

The site requires users to register for a free login. Registration requires an email address. Rather than using personal email accounts consider creating a teacher Gmail account and set up subaccounts for up to 20 students to register (by code name or number). Here is a blog post that tells how to set up GMail subaccounts to use for any online membership service. This site requires Flash. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

In the Classroom:
ESL and ELL, and learning support students may wish to hear as well as read their online and written assignments to improve comprehension and get pronunciation. Weaker readers in a content area class will benefit from this adapted delivery method. Spanish and French language students will also enjoy hearing their target languages. Listening from this site would work well for individual or pairs of students in a lab or on laptops. (Dont forget the headsets!) Students with sight problems and limitations will benefit greatly from using this site with assistance. Primary teachers may want to set up links to an audio version of a story for a listening comprehension station.

Reading: Instructional Philosophy and Teaching Suggestions Grade 6 to 9 - Saskatchewan Learning- 9606

Saskatchewan Learning presents an all-inclusive site about the specifics of guided reading for grades 6 through 9. Teachers can find everything from pre-reading, during-reading, and post-reading characteristics to selecting appropriate literature, as well as any forms or templates that may be needed to implement the activities. If you are a new teacher or experienced with guided reading, this site can serve as a beneficial reference guide and framework. This site is “plain vanilla” but includes a lot of great ideas to implement in your classroom.

Some of the forms requires Adobe Acrobat. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

In the Classroom:
If you teach reading skills to any middle school class, , including in the content areas, take a look at this website. Use the many ideas and printables available at this site.

cloZure Grade 4 to 12 - Peter Shanks- 9599

This site creates Cloze tests from Wikipedia articles listed by category. Each test has a word order difficulty assessment as well as an indication of general difficulty. You are able to choose the topic by using the Search Box. Students click on word choices on the side to place words in order in the blanks. If they select the wrong word, it momentarily flashes in the correct place but will not remain until the correct choices are done in order. With a huge variety of articles to choose from, there are certainly tests suitable for students of every level and interest. There are background reading links to Wikipedia articles on similar subjects to those tested. Teachers can choose to have students do other cloze tests by clicking on links to related tests nearer the bottom of the page. As part of your discussion and use of this site, be sure to talk about the general-public authors of Wikipedia and the need to view it as a general resource, not an “authoritative” one. For purposes of teaching basic vocabulary in context, this is a terrific resource.

Be aware: ANY word can be used to search this site, and there are cloze tests for many words that you may not find appropriate to use in your classroom. So preview, preview, and preview!

In the Classroom:
Use these tests to help ELL and ESL and learning support or speech/language students develop vocabulary in areas of interest or curriculum topics. Teach all students how to use context clues to figure out the meaning of any word or, in this case, the missing word. Or print the tests out and give them for homework or extra practice. Have students do background reading on their chosen subject from other sources besides Wikipedia.

Share this site on an interactive whiteboard or projector and have students take turns answering the question, or work along with you at their seats. Use the cloze paragraphs to enhance units in science, social studies, and other content areas. With the current economic crisis, have students research Herbert Hoover or the Great Depression to link yesterday, today, social studies, and language arts class. Nearly all topics are available. If you allow students to search for topics on their own (which the editing staff of TeachersFirst does not recommend) – be sure to watch students carefully!

Better At English Grade 3 to 12 - betteratenglish.com- 9377

This site features podcasts on subject areas of interest to ESL and ELL students and their instructors. Since August 2007, all material is also available as videos. The material presented features teaching techniques, information on new available technologies that assist students with schoolwork and language learning, and grammar and other communication techniques. Although this site was created for ESL/ELL students, it would also be useful for any students learning grammar.. All podcasts include text of the spoken or video materials. The focus for these lessons is on acquiring more vocabulary and improving oral and reading comprehension. Some of the videos come from YouTube. If your school blocks YouTube, consider accessing this site and choosing videos at home, using a tool such as Vixy (explained here) to bring them in for class use.

This site does have several appropriate advertisements. There are also a few questionable links on the site (for example, “Uncensored English”), so be sure to supervise WELL. This site requires Quicktime, Adobe Acrobat, and Flash. Get them all from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

In the Classroom:
You will need headphones or speakers if you choose to assign students to listen to the podcasts individually. This site is excellent for enrichment or special topics. Include it on your teacher web page (with a disclaimer regarding content) for students to access both in and out of class. Use this site with intermediate and advanced level ELL and ESL students to help them improve their knowledge of English slang and idioms. If you are into video, consider creating your own student vodcasts about idioms and sharing them via TeacherTube ( reviewed here) and on your class wiki.

Apture Grade 9 to 12 - Apture. Inc.- 9301

Teacher's First Edge Review: This free site is for very adventurous technology users. With Apture, you can create a rich multimedia experience to your site, wiki, or blog, with instant access to video, audio, text, and more. Easily incorporate these multimedia objects into a page of your site, providing instantaneous information from Wikipedia, Washington Post, You Tube, Flickr, and many more. Adding these multimedia links creates icons next to your text. Hovering on the icon brings up the related multimedia items for any reader. Since learning and finding information is not linear, the discovery of your information’s deeper meaning occurs with richer context in a shorter time frame. This relevant content remains dynamic within your site. Apture's own example of a page using Apture can be found here. See another: a wiki page with class notes and Apture annotations created by a teacher..

At the time of this review, Apture is in “limited beta” but appears to be automatically accepting all new applications.

In the Classroom:
Skills needed: Join the site and wait for verification email to log in. Enter your site/wiki/blog’s URL. You are actually allowed to enter many of these, but try ONE first! The site’s detector tool will then “sense” common blogging software, such as WordPress, and prompt you on what to do next. You must be familiar with embed codes and how to place them into your blog or website. Apture’s video tutorial will help (it also pops up along the Apture dashboard when you first go to your “Aptured” site/wiki/blog). Other the simple directions shown in pop-ups for using Apture in various blog and wiki tools. Instantly add the embed code to the most popular blog and wiki platforms with one click. The code generated is easily copy/pasted into your existing website/wiki/blog. Once the embed code is there, visiting your site/wiki/blog automatically brings up an Apture “dashboard” (small toolbar in the corner) for you to log in and add things to your site/wiki/blog. Highlighting text or another item automatically brings up the site (if a site name or URL) you wish to add. Other material can be located by clicking "add related media." Entering a search term instantly finds related Wikipedia or Washington Post articles, You Tube videos, Flickr photos, and more. Subsequent visitors to your site will see the icons next to any item you have “enriched” with Apture-linked media content.

Safety/security concerns: Membership requires an email address log-in. If students will use Apture with their own classroom blogs/wikis, check your school district's Acceptable Use policy regarding student email and establishing site memberships. A single class account created by an extra email account and password (NOT the one you use for your own teacher-created sites) is an option, assuming students will not vandalize each other’s work.

Apture recognizes your any site/wiki/blog name you have entered into its system each time you go there. Therefore, enter only sites you intend for multimedia use. Do not check “remember me” when you log into Apture or others will be able to add mischievous links to your site from that computer! Apture may not be fully accessible inside your school filtering because of the bandwidth it requires or the sites it pulls up. Check in advance to be sure all portions you plan to use in class will be available at school.

Practical Tips: Demonstrate first on a projector or interactive whiteboard with a teacher account so students see how easy the tool is for those familiar with embedding. This will allow you to discuss reliability of links and appropriateness of content to the audience for their educational projects. Enter additional search terms to add new media through the Apture pop-up dashboard. If you are Apture-enriching content on your site/blog/wiki for students to use independently, think of all the possible questions that your students may have about the content and vocabulary. For example, we know certain words are stumbling blocks for students, yet students are hesitant to find the meanings on their own. Link a Wikipedia or other definition for instant access to the meaning. Since Wikipedia is user-generated content, consider requiring students to link to two or three different definitions/articles so they can see first hand the variability of web information. You will need to be sure that students actually READ what they link and do not simply subscribe to “more links are better” to impress you. Consider asking for justification or critique of the links they include.

Possible uses: On your own blog or class information site, link videos explaining a curriculum topic or definitions so students understand the full context of the sentence. Use Apture to teach about evaluating the reliability of web sources by creating multiple links from the same term on a teacher-created page for students to compare and evaluate. Students can use Apture on a blog or wiki can to link content from the web to the information they are discussing. Special ed teachers may want to work with content area teachers to create enriched versions of key content on a class blog so students can experience a multimedia review. ESL teachers may want to create class blogs or wikis collaboratively with students to add visual stimuli and prompts. Consider having your more able students create some of these pages independently as a gifted project for learning support students to use later. Or allow gifted students to go beyond the usual “connections” to higher level, deeper understanding.

ESL Reading Lessons Grade 4 to 10 - 5 Minute English- 9170

This teaching site has a variety of short readings at various levels that could be useful in an ESL, ELL, special education, or regular ed classroom. Some of the topics include sentences with grammar errors, students must figure out what is wrong with each sentence. This is excellent practice for any student learning proper grammar. True/ false comprehension questions follow the reading in most cases. Most of the answers are provided at the bottom of the website – so don’t scroll too quickly. Before the reading begins, students can study difficult vocabulary words presented in an attractive format. There are full units (with many mini-lessons): grammar, reading, vocabulary, listening, pronunciation, and writing. This site does have unobtrusive advertisements, but watch out for the audio announcements when you open the site. Some of the listening activities require Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

In the Classroom:
Use this site if you want your students to do additional reading. Project the topic, story, and questions on an interactive whiteboard or projector for group discussion. Have your students make up their own questions to go with the site. Have your students write up a similar subject relevant to their own culture and present it, along with questions to check for comprehension. This is a fabulous site to list on your class website for students to use for at-home practice.

Munseys Grade 2 to 12 - munseys.com- 9091

Munseys is a library of free e-books which can be downloaded or read in pdf form. You have the choice of technology: Amazon Kindle (beta2!), Sony Reader, Mobipocket, MS-Reader, Palm, and more types of readers. There are numerous categories of books including Drama, Folklore, Classic, Biography, Religion, Science, Political Science, Periodicals, Renaissance, and countless others. WARNING! Do NOT provide this link to students for independent use. If they click on “popular,” they will find material inappropriate for the classroom. Download the books you wish to share in Acrobat form or monitor student use directly. The children's book section currently has 1502 offerings. New books appear in the library daily. If you choose to use Adobe Acrobat, you can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

In the Classroom:
Combine your students' love of technology with the joys of reading by letting them select from your download library. These books (in Acrobat form) also provide text selections for teaching about grammar, language structure, and reading comprehension on your interactive whiteboard.

Fill-It-In Outline Mathematics Grade 1 to 10 - Alexander Bogomolny- 8963

This website is truly a rare find - combining math and reading skills. Although the main page is aesthetically plain, the activities are very challenging. Most are set-up as word problems that require reading, comprehension, math skills, and more. The "outline math problems" provide students with 3-5 choices. You simply click on the blank and the choices for the answers are provided. There are activities for primary grades (such as basic addition practice) as well as advanced activities for secondary grades (such as geometry concepts). Many of the activities require JAVA. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

In the Classroom:
These activities are perfect for an interactive whiteboard (or projector). You could also provide a link to this website in your class newsletter or on your class web page. Many of the activities would provide excellent at-home practice and/or enrichment. Challenge your students to answer a question of the week for extra credit.

100 Free Short Stories for ESL Grade 6 to 12 - Rong-Chang Li & Bill Bailey- 8915

This website provides a large collection of short stories selected for beginning and advanced beginning ESL students. The subject matter of many stories is not appropriate for younger students. Some include topics you would find in newspaper articles, and some deal with dating. Preview! The website allows you to read the story yourself or click on the speaker icon to hear the story read aloud. The site could also be used to provide extra reading and reading/listening for struggling readers. There are also an online dictionary, numerous follow-up activities to check comprehension, and crossword puzzles. The questions and other review activities provide immediate feedback. This website requires RealPlayer or Windows Media Player. You can get both from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

In the Classroom:
Share these activities with individual students as an assignment or independent practice on your classroom computer and as a link from your web site. The reading and activities are easy to work on independently because of the listening feature and the available dictionary. Don't forget to provide headphones. Provide this link for the families of ESL/ELL students to read (or listen) to the stories together.

Alphabet Organizer Grade K to 12 - Read Write Think (Iron Monkey Interactive)- 8664

This Alphabet Organizer makes learning words and terminology exciting-- and organized. All levels may use this--from primary students learning the alphabet to secondary students learning advanced vocabulary. On the interactive keypad, key in the beginning letter of a word. Key in the rest of the word on the blanks provided. You also have the option of typing in the word's meaning. When your list is entered, you may choose a booklet or a chart format for the presentation of your information. Studying content-area words or vocabulary meanings have never been so easy.

In the Classroom:
Think outside the 'box' when considering this application. Teachers may opt to teach the elements of the story through entering character traits, setting, plot events, etc., then printing a chart to teach those concepts. Special Ed or ESL/ELL teachers and teachers will love using this organizer to help students organize new words they must learn. If students use a three-ring notebook, new words can be added over time. Mark this tool as a favorite on your classroom computer for students to access as needed.

SIKids Grade 3 to 8 - Sports Illustrated for Kids &CNN- 8270

All about sports: top sports news stories, sports polls, displays of readers' artwork, AND MORE, this site is sure to appeal to those reluctant readers and any sports lover. Users can get up-to-date statistics from the NBA, NFL, MLB, and NBA. Readers can enjoy sports jokes.This site requires Flash. Get them from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page..

In the Classroom:
Share this site on your teacher web page or classroom desktop for fast student access to sport statistics and a way to submit creative works. Use sports statistics for math practice and to teach graphing or data organization skills. Use the sports stories as non-fiction examples for reading comprehension. Share a Top Story on your interactive whiteboard as you ask students to highlight parts of speech, cause-effect words, main idea, and more. Suddenly your students will actually READ!

Citebite Grade K to 12 - - 7987

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!

In the Classroom:
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!

Public Domain Books On-Line Grade 3 to 12 - Jeff Kelley- 7820

This privately done digitized library focuses on books published before 1923, primarily those with magnificent illustrations. Books digitized are in the public domain and are also available to the large digitization projects going on now with the Google Books project. This site's charm is its ease of use. Users can search by author's last name or by using a list of subject categories. Because the project is fairly small, it's fun to browse through the offerings before deciding on a specific choice. The quality of the digitization is very good and appears to offer complete works. Some books have been reformatted, presumably to allow viewing consistency.

In the Classroom:
Because these books are in the public domain (i.e. older), their language is not "contemporary." The texts would make excellent pieces for reading comprehension passages or culture study of past times, and you need not be worried about copying/pasting text from these into other software and/or making copies. You could even use them as passages on an interactive whiteboard to practice "main idea" or parts of speech.

The illustrations are simple and beautiful. Print out some great artwork for your classroom bulletin boards, copyright-free!

The myths/legends collection would be great for upper elementary or later mythology units. Students can also use the passages and illustrations to create multimedia "tales" of their own. Give them the opening passage and let them write the rest.

See user comments on this resource. -

Kidspired Tales: A Collaborative Project Grade K to 3 - Patricia Knox and Susan Silverman- 7812

Are you interested in using concept mapping but don’t know where to begin? This site is loaded with activities teachers have created using Kidspiration. For this project, classes read a book and wrote a different ending or sequel as a class. Teachers then created a follow up activity in any content area using Kidspiration. Samples of the projects, tutorials and templates are available. Kidspiration is required to fully view the samples. Get a 30-day trial from the link provided. TeachersFirst is not recommending purchase of this specific program and is not affiliated with Inspiration or Kidspiration.

In the Classroom:
Choose a book and template that fits your curriculum. Load Kidspiration on a classroom computer for students to complete when they have time. As always, follow your district's policies on loading software onto district computers. Many of these activities are easily adaptable to Inspiration, the "older" version of the concept-mapping program.

Free online software alternatives include Gliffy and Kerpoof .

Note: This site is on a school server and gets busier during the school day. Be patient waiting for it to open!

Graphic Organizer Maker Grade 1 to 12 - Recipes4Success/Tech4Learning- 7688

This handy online tool lets you create customized graphic organizers "on the fly" and print them from the web site. There is a paid version of the site, but this FREE tool lets you choose the type of organizer you want, customize the Title and Directions, and print. Organizer types include Venn diagrams, KWL, scientific method, and many more. Learning support teachers will want to use this for students to create study materials.

In the Classroom:
Use these printed organizers as study support for any content area topic. Many are excellent options for reinforcing reading skills in the content areas, even for senior high students. Include this on your teacher web page so students can create their own organizers to study for tests or prepare presentations.

To make a new organizer, simply click "new," write title and directions, and print the small "print" icon. It may be easiest to take their default directions and change them for your purposes. Note that you LOSE your work when you close the page, so make sure you have printed first!

English Language Proficiency Standards in the Core Content Areas Grade K to 12 - TESOL- 6927

This site has the PreK-12 English Language Proficiency Standards in the Core Content Areas. Particularly helpful for classroom teachers are sections within the pdf document listed at the bottom of the page [click on Preview: PreK-12 English Language Proficiency Standards in the Core Content Areas (PDF)] It would be most helpful for you to print these out.

Page 15 which describes the 5 levels of proficiency for ESL students in public and private schools from preschool through high school. It also describes “Grade Level Clusters” for such students, as well as defining standards for the students in school and academic fields.

Pages 20 and 21 which have a chart of appropriate student abilities by language domain (reading, writing, speaking, and listening) in the 5 levels of proficiency.

Standards for 16 states including Washington DC can be found beginning on page 22. This document requires Acrobat Reader. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

WorldWise Schools Lesson Plans Grade 2 to 12 - Peace Corps- 6854

This site is a much-expanded remake of the Peace Corps collection of lesson plans and activities for cross-cultural understanding around the world. Teachers can search for lesson plans by topic, region of the world, grade level, or academic subject. All readings and materials are included (many as pdf - Acrobat Reader files). Many lessons include readings that would also work well for teaching reading comprehension, espceially for your less-than-proficient readers. Simply choose the area of the world, subject, and/or grade level for which you want a lesson plan, and you will see quite a list.

In the Classroom:
Search for lessons on a specific region as you teach about it or use these selections as general readings for comprehension. They may also be helpful in getting to know students who enter your classroom from other cultures. The lessons would be very helpful in developing background knowledge to understand cross-cultural literature selections in a language arts class.

Black Wings: African American Pioneer Aviators Grade 5 to 12 - Smithsonian- National Air and Space Museum- 6800

Inspire future aviators or encourage students to pursue their dreams with this site that traces African American aviators through the years. There are many images and short passages of text. The reading levels are not for younger students. The site includes three classroom activities. One activity actually guides students through a series of questions they answer on a web page as they learn about a single aviator. Black Wings permits students to download and use images in their reports, as long as they are classroom projects, either printed or electronic, such as in PowerPoint. Images may not be published on web pages or burned to CD. Be sure to visit the What's New section for featured interviews with aviators. What a terrific and interesting primary source!

In the Classroom:
Use this one as part of reading comprehension practice and find that your students are actually interested in what they read. Have students create projects about their favorite aviator or aircraft on a poster, in a PowerPoint presentation, or using Inspiration software.

Finding Similarities and Differences in Ideas Grade 3 to 5 - IRA/NCTE- 6532

Refine your students' ability to compare and contrast with this literature-based lesson that focuses on nonfiction writing. Using common objects, followed by an article on whale species, students are asked to evaluate by isolating similarities and differences. A printable handout helps guide students as they identify ways in which an author relates ideas and relationships. Includes an interactive Venn Diagram Tool. Aligned to standards.

Summarizing Grade 4 to 8 - Educational Development Center, Inc.- 6434

Students can practice the art of summarizing a text with this interactive quiz. Short passages are accompanied by multiple-choice questions challenging students to zero in on the best summation of the story. Immediate feedback with explanations is provided. The activity is rounded out by an interactive review of main idea vs. detail. Requires FLASH.

Children in Victorian Britain Grade 4 to 7 - BBC- 6416

Catch a glimpse of what life was like for children in England during the age of Queen Victoria with this delightful resource. Enter the Interactive portion of the site and choose one of three portals – school, work, or play. Each section offers a captioned video presentation, audio clips with accompanying transcripts, and an interactive game. Printable activity sheets are included.

In the Classroom:
Use as an independent computer station in your classroom to strengthen reading comprehension. Just add a worksheet of content-based questions. Or project and view the videos in class to generate a discussion of how the lives of children in Victorian England differed from the lives of children in 19th century America.

Looking for the Fine Print Grade 5 to 7 - - 6319

Hone skills in critical reading with this interactive tutorial that challenges students to carefully read and analyze advertisement, then respond to a series of content-based questions. This site requires the current version of FLASH. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

The Inside Story Grade 2 to 5 - Microsoft- 6028

Non-fiction writings are not frequently on the list of student favorites, but this activity may inspire your students to gain a new appreciation for this genre. Using common objects in the classroom, students are encouraged to visit pre-selected Web sites to "find the inside story" about each one. After responding to a series of guided questions, assembling the facts, and synthesizing them into a PowerPoint show, each group of student "experts" must present their findings to the class. Downloadable worksheets and a PowerPoint template are provided along with a helpful list of online sources. Aligned to National Standards.

Expository Escapades Grade 6 to 8 - IRA & NCTE- 5942

Using the detective mystery genre, this lesson helps develop writing and critical thinking skills. After reading a mystery, students are asked to analyze the elements of detective fiction, develop and defend a hypothesis, complete journal entries using expository, descriptive, and persuasive writing techniques, and apply process writing skills. Includes downloadable worksheets and materials.

English Projects and Activities Grade 1 to 7 - - 4962

Tap into a treasure chest of ideas, lesson plans, and activities for the language arts classroom. This site offers a great selection of topics from basic grammar and spelling, to reading and comprehension skills. Activities are interactive and would work especially well in a computer room where students can progress at their own speed. Full lesson plans and worksheets (with answers) in PDF format are available for downloading. Requires Adobe Acrobat.

In the Classroom:
Beyond the excellent lesson plans, this site offers "interactive flashcards" that can help students review for quizzes and tests. Save this site on a classroom computer, and use it as a learning site during downtime. Allow students to pick their degree of difficulty, and they can review endlessly on a number of subjects.

Jakers! Grade 1 to 2 - PBS- 4904

Help young readers improve their comprehension and vocabulary with this delightful, interactive storybook. Students can follow along as Uncle Piggley Winks reads a story of their choice. Includes beautiful graphics. Encourage students to create their own drawings of the characters and events! Created by PBS.