TeachersFirst - Featured Sites: Week of Mar 12, 2017
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
Musink - Musink
Grades
4 to 12
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Musink is a free software download for music composition for Windows devices. Create sheet music by easily placing and clicking notes onto the desired location. Musink automatically...more
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Musink is a free software download for music composition for Windows devices. Create sheet music by easily placing and clicking notes onto the desired location. Musink automatically moves notes, rests, and more when adding notes or marks to the score sheet. When finished, publish your composition as a PDF, XPS, or PNG image file. Listen to or download your music in MIDI format. Be sure to view the introductory video and example page for a full understanding of options when using Musink.
tag(s): creativity (81), makerspace (38), musical notation (34), Teacher Utilities (175)
In the Classroom
Demonstrate the art of composition while using Musink on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Share Musink with students and encourage them to create their own music. In Destination Imagination or Odyssey of the Mind, use your scores to showcase talent. In honoring multiple intelligences, highlight the students' with musical talent. While reading historical fiction novels, have students compose a song typical of that period with the commonly used instruments and style. Offer in after school clubs for music, guitar, or band.You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
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The Music of Hamilton: The Musical - Genius.com
Grades
6 to 12
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This site offers full lyrics to all songs in the Broadway play, Hamilton. Choose any song title to view complete lyrics and hear the audio. Most song lyrics include a ...more
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This site offers full lyrics to all songs in the Broadway play, Hamilton. Choose any song title to view complete lyrics and hear the audio. Most song lyrics include a link to listen to a preview of the original Broadway cast perform the song.
This site includes advertising.
This site includes advertising.
tag(s): 1700s (32), constitution (100)
In the Classroom
Use lyrics from Hamilton to introduce your unit on the Constitution. Have students explore the site on their own, ask them to take the time to through the annotations that provide historical context to the music. Challenge cooperative learning groups to create their own music related to the Consitution and record their music videos. Share them on a site such as TeacherTube, reviewed here. Have students make a multimedia presentation about events leading to the writing of the Constitution using a tool like Sway, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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The Museum of Modern Art Exhibition History - The Museum of Modern Art
Grades
3 to 12
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This Museum of Modern Art site, though "plain Jane" looking, shares a plethora of history of all exhibitions at the museum from 1929 through the present. Browse through collections...more
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This Museum of Modern Art site, though "plain Jane" looking, shares a plethora of history of all exhibitions at the museum from 1929 through the present. Browse through collections by date, or filter by type of exhibition including film series, performance programs, and others. Choose the link to Art and artists to find collections by specific artists. Of particular interest in this section are audio tours including some specifically for kids.
tag(s): 20th century (168), art history (102), artists (87)
In the Classroom
Art teachers will love this collection for use when teaching various types of arts and artists. Be sure to take advantage of the audio tours for a wide variety of art information for students. Include a link with specific information on your class website for students to view (and hear) at home. Have students create a multimedia presentation using Book Creator, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Of the People: Art and History of the White House - Discovery Education
Grades
6 to 12
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Go behind the scenes for an in-depth video discussion of the art and history of the White House with White House Curator William Allman. The actual discussion begins at the ...more
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Go behind the scenes for an in-depth video discussion of the art and history of the White House with White House Curator William Allman. The actual discussion begins at the 14-minute mark in the video, with an interview led by a high school student.
tag(s): art history (102), presidents (150), white house (14)
In the Classroom
Before viewing this video, challenge students to brainstorm what a curator's job is and what kind of artifacts they might find in the White House. After viewing, extend learning by having students create a simple infographic of important White House artifacts sharing their findings using Venngage, reviewed here. Ask students to curate their own collection of items such as things found in their room at home, a collection of items from your school, or a collection of artifacts from your hometown. Create a book featuring these items using Ourboox, reviewed here. Ourboox creates beautiful page-flipping digital books in minutes, and you can embed video, music, animation, games, maps and more truly redefining learning.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Math Art for Kids: Pi Skyline - Patria Lincoln
Grades
K to 5
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Combine math and art with this excellent Pi Day (or anytime) activity! Follow the easy instructions to draw, cut, and graph your way to represent the digits of Pi. Visual ...more
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Combine math and art with this excellent Pi Day (or anytime) activity! Follow the easy instructions to draw, cut, and graph your way to represent the digits of Pi. Visual learners will enjoy the many images demonstrating how to create the skyline.
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This site includes advertising.
tag(s): charts and graphs (166), pi (26), STEM (330)
In the Classroom
Create a classroom display with all of your students' Pi Day Skylines. Take this idea and apply it to other number series. Have students take pictures of their creations. Then show them how to embed media transforming their work into a true digital story using Ourboox, reviewed here. Ourboox creates beautiful page-flipping digital books in minutes, and you can embed video, music, animation, games, maps and more.
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Learn to Play the Piano - Hoffman Academy
Grades
2 to 12
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Learn to play the piano through a series of video tutorials offered by Hoffman Academy. Participate in over 100 lessons sequenced to build ability and understanding. Each lesson includes...more
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Learn to play the piano through a series of video tutorials offered by Hoffman Academy. Participate in over 100 lessons sequenced to build ability and understanding. Each lesson includes instructions and opportunities for self-paced practice. On the top menu click More and slide down to the link For Teachers to find advice, games, video lessons with printable sheet music, and more. The videos are hosted on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, then they may not be viewable; be sure to look at alternatives for sharing the videos on classroom computers.
This site includes advertising.
This site includes advertising.
tag(s): music theory (47), musical instruments (54), musical notation (34)
In the Classroom
If you don't have access to a piano, don't worry, you can still learn how to play! Take advantage of the online virtual piano, reviewed here, to practice just like you would on a real piano. Share with your school's music teacher as an excellent resource for teaching students notes and piano keys. The self-paced videos offer a great opportunity to differentiate for different ability levels while achieving success for all. Share a link to this site on your class website for parents to use at home.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Philadelphia Museum of Art Teacher Resources - Philadelphia Museum of Art
Grades
K to 12
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This tool is a valuable lesson-planning resource for connecting art with other curricular areas. Teachers can scroll through the resources to find lessons that align with their instructional...more
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This tool is a valuable lesson-planning resource for connecting art with other curricular areas. Teachers can scroll through the resources to find lessons that align with their instructional goals. Curricular areas include Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, STEAM, Social Justice, Critical Thinking, and more. Each lesson opens as a downloadable PDF that includes direct links to artwork images from the Philadelphia Museum of Art, aligned Common Core standards, and a detailed, ready-to-use lesson plan that supports cross-curricular instruction.
tag(s): art history (102), artists (87)
In the Classroom
Bookmark and save this site as a resource for art projects throughout the year, especially if budget cuts have taken away your art teacher! Use this site as a way to get students interested in art and its relationship with other subject areas and its relevance in our life.
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Virtual Musical Instruments - Virtual Musical Instruments
Grades
K to 12
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Bring the world of music and instruments into your classroom. With Virtual Musical Instruments, you can explore the guitar, piano, pan flute, drums, bongos, and several others. Select...more
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Bring the world of music and instruments into your classroom. With Virtual Musical Instruments, you can explore the guitar, piano, pan flute, drums, bongos, and several others. Select the instrument, and follow the directions for using the keyboard to play the different notes. Create different melodies using different notes or rhythms. Use the guitar tuner to be sure you are in tune. There is no record option on this tool. If you want to record your beat, there are many alternative options (such as using a cell phone or an old-fashioned recorder). You can hear notes on your computer, but a touchscreen device would enhance the experience by letting you tap multiple keys/strings at once. There is an instructional YouTube video, so if your district blocks YouTube, you may not be able to view it.
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This site includes advertising.
tag(s): makerspace (38), music theory (47), musical instruments (54)
In the Classroom
Virtual Musical Instruments opens up the world of music to many other subjects. In music class, discover the different instruments, sounds, and rhythms the virtual instruments can produce. Allow your students to make their own compositions. Challenge them to determine a way to give the directions for their composition to another person so that they can repeat the original piece. In language arts class, discuss mood in literature. Determine the instruments used, the rhythms, and the sounds needed to make that effect. During Readers' Theater, add a musical score to heighten excitement and engagement while further analyzing the text. Have students create a musical composition that tells a story. Now, play that musical story for the class, and turn it into a writing prompt. Use musical sounds and beats to illustrate literary concepts and the use of plot. Determine a melody for each character. Write to explain why each character has that musical composition. Math class covers the study of fractions using note types: whole note, half note, quarter note, and eighth note. Let students create a musical sentence that represents them and write an explanation for why they chose it. Use whatever recording option is most practical in your classroom.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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I Am an Artist - RTE and the National Centre for Technology in Education
Grades
K to 5
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Bring art alive for young students. Paint and color, clay, fabric and fiber, drawing, construction, and print are the six strands of visual art covered by I Am An Artist. ...more
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Bring art alive for young students. Paint and color, clay, fabric and fiber, drawing, construction, and print are the six strands of visual art covered by I Am An Artist. Click on a strand to view short videos, about six minutes in length, designed to keep your attention. Each strand also has a "Look and Respond" stimulating slide show with discussion questions. The "Can You?" section under each visual strand provides steps for a hands-on explanation. I Am an Artist allows you to explore the visual arts with various materials and tools, allowing students to express their world in a visual, tangible form. The "For Teachers" section on each strand page provides child-centered lessons developed to foster creativity and design with printable activity sheets. The site also provides weblinks and interactive games on a wide range of visual arts topics. Explore the I Am an Artist Gallery for examples. Find information about how to submit your own work to the gallery. The content for I Am an Artist has been created in consultation with Irish teachers.
tag(s): colors (61), crafts (92), creativity (81), design (70), drawing (58), makerspace (38), painting (50), sculpture (17)
In the Classroom
Become art smart with resources from the I Am an Artist site. Use the collection of videos to flip your art instruction. Search through the lesson plans and activity sheets to provide hands-on, minds-on activities for your students. Use the videos or the slide shows as an anticipatory set or "activator" to introduce a unit or lesson on a projector or interactive whiteboard. Have students or groups collect ideas and thoughts from the slides using Padlet, reviewed here. Use a visual blogging tool such as Telegra.ph, reviewed here, to upload the students art work - no registration required! If you are teaching younger students try using Seesaw, reviewed here. The students can blog about their work, upload their artwork, and even create an online portfolio. Browse through the resources to see what can be used in your makerspace. Host an art show at your school for families and the communities to showcase the students' creativity. Your students can describe their work as visitors explore the gallery. Use the activities as stations during your art show for participants to create their own art. Many of the lessons on the site are cross-curricular.
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