TeachersFirst - Featured Sites: Week of Sep 18, 2011
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
Kids Web Japan - Ministry of Foreign Affairs Japan
Grades
3 to 9
Introduce Japan to school-aged students around the world through this site. It is divided into several different portions for exploring, beginning with Explore Japan (scroll down to...more
Here is the direct link to share this resource review. Feel free to copy and paste this URL into an email or place it on your web page or blog so others can read this TeachersFirst review:
Introduce Japan to school-aged students around the world through this site. It is divided into several different portions for exploring, beginning with Explore Japan (scroll down to Learn) which contains maps, calendars, and basic facts about Japan. Learn about popular culture in the Play portion where information is presented about biggest fads in Japan, virtual culture to try out online, games, and quizzes. Another interesting part of the site is the Explore section to discover different aspects of the country from climate to housing and government. Find out about Japanese schools, cities, and young artists in the Try box that offers information and virtual visits to different areas of the country. This site is viewable in seven different languages.
tag(s): cross cultural understanding (176), japan (61), virtual field trips (132)
In the Classroom
Introduce this site on your interactive whiteboard and allow students to explore on their own or in pairs. Use the site to create Venn Diagrams to compare and contrast life in Japan with life in the United States. Take a virtual field trip to Japan by exploring different cities and cultural activities offered on the site. Find a recipe for one of the Japanese foods listed on the site and make it to try in class. Assign cooperative learning groups a specific part of this site to explore. Challenge groups to choose and make a multimedia presentation using Genially, reviewed here where they will find nteractive prese ntations, images, infographics, charts, and more.LITCHARTS - Get Lit - LitCharts
Grades
6 to 12LitCharts is an online site similar to the familiar Cliffs Notes but with their own spin. Charts are available for literary classics such as Romeo and Juliet, Lord of the ...more
Here is the direct link to share this resource review. Feel free to copy and paste this URL into an email or place it on your web page or blog so others can read this TeachersFirst review:
LitCharts is an online site similar to the familiar Cliffs Notes but with their own spin. Charts are available for literary classics such as Romeo and Juliet, Lord of the Flies, Jane Eyre, and several more. Charts can be viewed online, downloaded in a PDF file, or accessed through an iPhone app (apps are 99 cents each). Each chart offers a side by side summary and analysis of story events making events easier to follow and understand than typical summaries. In addition, they include a color coded theme tracker to help follow themes throughout the book. Each LitChart is 10 pages or less, making them concise and easy to use.
This site includes advertising.
This site includes advertising.
tag(s): literature (221), summarizing (22)
In the Classroom
LitCharts is a great resource to use with ESL/ELL and intervention students to reinforce concepts in texts provided. It is also helpful for students who lack experience with challenging literary classic. Share a LitChart with your class when reading one of the books on the site then have students create their own LitChart for the next book or to improve on the ones offered here. Provide a link to LitCharts to students to use as a study resource for end of novel assessments. Hint: make sure any assessments you use ask questions that go beyond what these charts offer, or students will not even try to read the actual texts! An intriguing challenge would be to ask them what else they would include in a study guide for the work.
This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.
Soungle - Southern Codes
Grades
5 to 12Royalty Free Sound Effects Library for Download by Soungle.com is a go-to resource to keep in your bookmarked favorites for easy, free downloads of sounds, and the best part ...more
Here is the direct link to share this resource review. Feel free to copy and paste this URL into an email or place it on your web page or blog so others can read this TeachersFirst review:
Royalty Free Sound Effects Library for Download by Soungle.com is a go-to resource to keep in your bookmarked favorites for easy, free downloads of sounds, and the best part is it is searchable! The sound effects are short, and there is no membership required. Cautionary advice would be to direct students to type in a search term and avoid clicking on word links which will actually lead away from the webpage.
This site includes advertising.
This site includes advertising.
In the Classroom
Try sharing this resource with students when they are creating podcasts, slideshows, and other media projects. This would also be great for performance groups such as drama clubs or musicals that need sound effects. Very creative students might like to actually tell a story through nothing but sound effects. Have them try making a "sound rebus" story on your class wiki, with words and sound links to tell what happens. Download sound effects and add them, worry-free, to projects or productions. Make sure students realize that "royalty free" does not dismiss the need to give proper credit for their source!COLORCUBE: ColorFun - ColorCube
Grades
4 to 12Have lots of fun learning about color on ColorCube. Several different activities explore the world of color. In Color Paintbox mix colors from the 5 color palette to recreate the ...more
Here is the direct link to share this resource review. Feel free to copy and paste this URL into an email or place it on your web page or blog so others can read this TeachersFirst review:
Have lots of fun learning about color on ColorCube. Several different activities explore the world of color. In Color Paintbox mix colors from the 5 color palette to recreate the color given on the site. Explore the color systems of hue, saturation, and lightness with Color Slide by deconstructing images to find the various colors within. Try the Color Scrambles puzzle to practice color sequencing and recognition; choices at the bottom of the page allow for easy, intermediate, and difficult puzzles.
tag(s): colors (63), light (56), photography (131)
In the Classroom
Share this site on your interactive whiteboard or projector and allow students to manipulate the program. Share this site with the Art teacher in your building as a resource for teaching color. Photography teachers may want to use this site to reinforce color concepts and changes that can be made with digital photography software. IF you teach about light and the color spectrum in science classes, this site will give students a "hands on" way to "see" color.Blackbaseball's Negro Baseball Leagues - Blackbaseball
Grades
6 to 12This new site focuses on the Negro Baseball Leagues from their beginnings in the late 19th century until the time that Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in 1947. Much ...more
Here is the direct link to share this resource review. Feel free to copy and paste this URL into an email or place it on your web page or blog so others can read this TeachersFirst review:
This new site focuses on the Negro Baseball Leagues from their beginnings in the late 19th century until the time that Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in 1947. Much of the content is the work of James A. Riley, one of the foremost experts in the study of the Negro Leagues. The site includes information on players, teams, video clips, resources and current issues. Only a few items still require Flash. The other information and videos don't, and are well worth your visit. The videos reside on YouTube. If your district or school blocks YouTube, they may not be viewable.
This site includes advertising.
This site includes advertising.
tag(s): baseball (32), black history (135), civil rights (217), sports (84)
In the Classroom
Use the site as a resource during Black History Month for students who are researching the Negro Baseball Leagues, or players who were part of the leagues. Tie together current events (during baseball season) with this historical site. Have cooperative learning groups create venn diagrams using an online tool such as the Interactive Two Circle Venn Diagram, reviewed here to compare the Negro Baseball Leagues to the baseball teams of today. What was the same, what is different? The site might also be useful in discussions of the Civil Rights movement or as a part of a look at segregation in the early 20th century. Check back frequently, as the site is clearly expanding and will have more information in the future.Paper Rater - paperrater.com
Grades
6 to 12At Paper Rater you can check your grammar, detect plagiarism, and find writing suggestions all at one place. Use this site for sixth grade writing and above. With the free ...more
Here is the direct link to share this resource review. Feel free to copy and paste this URL into an email or place it on your web page or blog so others can read this TeachersFirst review:
At Paper Rater you can check your grammar, detect plagiarism, and find writing suggestions all at one place. Use this site for sixth grade writing and above. With the free version you are able to check for plagiarism, grammar, vocabulary, word choice and style (transitions). No login is required. PaperRater offers a premium version for a fee.
tag(s): book reports (28), editing (93), essays (21), grammar (138), plagiarism (34), proofreading (21), writing (325)
In the Classroom
Users must be able to find their document and copy and paste into the correct fields. Follow the easy directions to determine grammar errors and create a better document. Use without a login or sign up. Have students use Paper Rater to check their rough drafts. Have students work in pairs, as a peer review, to help each other improve their papers using the suggestions given by Paper Rater. Provide this link on your class website for students to access both in and out of the classroom.CanvasMol - alteredqualia.com
Grades
7 to 12Learn about simple or complex molecules and see them in 3D. Envision how molecules are put together. Choose various molecules listed along the left. The structural formula in 3D will...more
Here is the direct link to share this resource review. Feel free to copy and paste this URL into an email or place it on your web page or blog so others can read this TeachersFirst review:
Learn about simple or complex molecules and see them in 3D. Envision how molecules are put together. Choose various molecules listed along the left. The structural formula in 3D will appear in a window. Remove old structures by clicking the red "X" in their box. Change the rotating molecule by choosing the axis on which it is rotating (x, y, or z.) Remove the atoms, bonds, and colors. Read stats about the molecule. Click PNG to view a static image that can be saved.
tag(s): atoms (43), elements (33), molecules (43), periodic table (43), structures (18)