TeachersFirst - Featured Sites: Week of Jul 5, 2015
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
City Technology - The City College of New York
Grades
K to 6
City Technology offers resources for students and educators to learn about engineering. You learn through the creation of projects and integration across curricular areas such as math...more
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City Technology offers resources for students and educators to learn about engineering. You learn through the creation of projects and integration across curricular areas such as math and science. The page for kids shares projects for kids to create on their own. Each project features a video showing how to make the item and a list of materials needed. Choose the section for educators to find complete units on Energy Systems, Force and Motion, and Stuff that Works correlated to math and science standards. Each unit includes a video and downloadable lesson plans.
tag(s): circuits (19), energy (133), engineering (137), forces (37), friction (9), gravity (43), motion (47), STEM (304)
In the Classroom
Use this site as part of any unit about force, motion, or energy. Have student groups create the different projects found on the site, and share their creations with classmates. Have students upload a photo they took of their project, and add voice bubbles to explain what they learned using a tool such as Phrase.it, reviewed here. Have students create projects found on City Technology, then host your own Science Fair!Newswordy - Josh Smith
Grades
K to 12We hear new buzzwords all of the time, but what do they really mean? Newswordy provides those answers. Each day Newswordy features a buzzword, definition, and its uses in articles ...more
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We hear new buzzwords all of the time, but what do they really mean? Newswordy provides those answers. Each day Newswordy features a buzzword, definition, and its uses in articles and tweets from trending topics. Find the previous day's buzzword by clicking the link on the bottom of the page or click the three bars on the top-right hand side of the page for a list of previous words. Click the title to have random words revealed.
tag(s): media literacy (109), news (228), vocabulary (243), vocabulary development (95)
In the Classroom
Newswordy is perfect for use on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Display the word of the day as students arrive in class as a great warm up for current events lessons. Share a link to the site on your class webpage. Tweak your students' interest in what is happening in the world by reading the excerpts of the articles and tweets at Newswordy. Have students bring in examples they find on the Internet or when watching T.V. Next, students can create a word cloud of the important terms they learn from this site using a tool such as WordItOut, reviewed here.Roadtrippers - Roadtrippers
Grades
1 to 12Jump onto your computer and start your road trip! Choose a destination, and start planning the Hotels, Attractions, Natural Wonders, and Weird Stuff for your trip. Plan your trip by...more
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Jump onto your computer and start your road trip! Choose a destination, and start planning the Hotels, Attractions, Natural Wonders, and Weird Stuff for your trip. Plan your trip by entering the starting address and the final destination. Instantly discover the journey's duration, the amount of money needed for gas, and the mileage. Choose the dates you will travel and save your trip. Print your plans, email them to yourself or others, or access your trip plans on the app. Plan several trips and save them in your account. Not sure where you want to go? Discover interesting areas by viewing the stories posted on Roadtrippers. Be sure to preview what you will show students as not all journals are kid friendly.
This site includes advertising.
This site includes advertising.
tag(s): DAT device agnostic tool (146), field trips (8), virtual field trips (132)
In the Classroom
Bring the world of road tripping to your class! Plan journeys as math challenges to determine the amount of money required. Give students a budget and see what happens. Challenge students to create a dream trip and a budget trip. Find the difference between the two. You could use an online tool such as the Interactive Two Circle Venn Diagram, reviewed here, to replace a paper and pencil Venn Diagram. Bring the settings of your favorite stories to life! Introduce a travel blog by pursuing the saved trip journals. Again, preview what you will show students as not all journals are kid friendly. Post the trips with pictures and a travel diary on your class blog or learning management system (LMS) class group.
This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.
Squirt - Squirt io
Grades
2 to 12Start speed-reading with Squirt! Just install Squirt on your bookmarks bar. Clicking Try It Now will show you how this tool works. Back on the home page, click Install Squirt...more
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Start speed-reading with Squirt! Just install Squirt on your bookmarks bar. Clicking Try It Now will show you how this tool works. Back on the home page, click Install Squirt to read the FAQs and install the bookmarklet. When visiting a page on the web, select the text you would like to speed-read. Click on the bookmarklet, and watch the magic of Squirt begin. Squirt shows one word at a time while you adjust the speed of the words you read.
tag(s): independent reading (82)
In the Classroom
Want to take away the distractions of advertising or annoying graphics on a page? Use Squirt to only look at one word at a time. Squirt can also help struggling readers to practice their speed and accuracy rate. Squirt aids readers who may have problems with tracking. Use as an example of speed reading versus comprehension. Discuss the difference between reading with and without illustrations, tables, pictures, and the difference they make to comprehension. Use as a way to challenge students for reward certificates or extra computer time using an interactive they love. Use Squirt yourself, to get caught up on articles you need to read.Africa - The Nature Conservancy
Grades
7 to 12Journey deep into Africa's environmental challenges and solutions in this blog-style offering from the Nature Conservancy. Learn about initiatives to save the elephants, promote sustainable...more
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Journey deep into Africa's environmental challenges and solutions in this blog-style offering from the Nature Conservancy. Learn about initiatives to save the elephants, promote sustainable grazing, establish fisheries, protect and conserve water, and much more. Don't miss the interactive section about the elephants accessible by clicking "#SaveElephants." Much of the Nature Conservancy's efforts focuses on raising funds for their endeavors. However, the many articles and rich images on this site explain and illustrate the issues well.
tag(s): africa (170), animals (293), earth day (61), environment (252), water (105)
In the Classroom
With reading levels from middle to high school, the many posts and articles on this site would be excellent background information for students exploring environmental issues around the world, in this case in Africa. Some of the sections are more image-heavy and could even be accessible with an upper elementary class on a projector or interactive whiteboard. Challenge students (or small groups) to delve into an issue of their choice and explain what has caused the problem and how people are trying to solve it. Their explanation could be a traditional oral presentation, an infographic created with Canva Infographic Maker, reviewed here, or a creative video using a tool from the TeachersFirst Edge. Offer this site as an optional extension for your more able students who are passionate about animals and/or the environment. Share it around Earth Day as an option for students to create posters or even raise funds for an environmental cause.America Goes to War: an Infographic - New England College
Grades
8 to 12What does it mean to go to war? This simple infographic shows the Constitutional process by which the United States declares war, traces the history of each of the U.S. ...more
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What does it mean to go to war? This simple infographic shows the Constitutional process by which the United States declares war, traces the history of each of the U.S. declarations of war, and differentiates among formal declarations, military actions, and Presidential or Congressional authorizations of force.
tag(s): civil war (140), congress (40), constitution (99), presidents (136), war of 1812 (15), world war 1 (79), world war 2 (161)
In the Classroom
Was the U.S. at war? What powers does the U.S. President have to declare war, and how have Presidents used those powers historically? A powerful, but simple infographic delineates the legal and Constitutional differences among U.S. wars historically. Share the infographic on an interactive whiteboard, or embed on your classroom website for reference.Choosito! - Eleni Miltsakaki
Grades
K to 12Choosito! is a search engine providing safe access to the worldwide web through filtering of reading levels and subject areas for education. Create an account to add class information...more
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Choosito! is a search engine providing safe access to the worldwide web through filtering of reading levels and subject areas for education. Create an account to add class information and add your collections. Search Choosito! using filters for reading level and subject. Limit searches to Choosito's Library, your collections, or Choosito! Web. Easily share searches using social networking links or save to your library. Be sure to check out the Choosito! Start Guides for a quick overview to getting started with this search engine.
tag(s): bookmarks (43), learning disability (21), Learning Management Systems (20), search engines (48), search strategies (22), Special Needs (53), Teacher Utilities (203)