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Teaching That Makes Sense - Steve Peha
Grades
4 to 10
6 Favorites
0 Comments
This is an exciting site for teachers because of the practical worksheets and ideas that absolutely fill it. It is geared to writing, particularly writing about what we read. While...more
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This is an exciting site for teachers because of the practical worksheets and ideas that absolutely fill it. It is geared to writing, particularly writing about what we read. While it may seem geared for intermediate and middle school students, it has a lot to offer to older students as well-- particularly ones who are not good writers and need more engaging, closer work to become better writers. In light of NCLB, this is a great site for working with slow or disabled older students or really just any students who need to become better communicators.
tag(s): writing (308)
In the Classroom
The PDF files that are downloadable from this site are great! It is divided into 6 sections that you can use to plan, or you can use portions directly with students in a lab or on laptops. Have students do different parts of the same projects, working from the templates provided. A great exercise for older students is to go through the writing samples and evaluate them as a class. Since there are multiple examples posted, it would be an excellent lesson to work with an interactive whiteboard. The ideas are limited only by your imagination!
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Educator's Reference Desk of Lesson Plans - Information Institute of Syracuse
Grades
K to 12
4 Favorites
0 Comments
Over 2000 lesson plans are at your fingertips when you visit this site. Find lesson plans on these topics: Arts, Computer Science, Foreign Language, Health, Information Literacy,...more
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Over 2000 lesson plans are at your fingertips when you visit this site. Find lesson plans on these topics: Arts, Computer Science, Foreign Language, Health, Information Literacy, Interdisciplinary, Language Arts, Mathematics, Philosophy, Physical Education, Science, Social Studies, and Vocational Education.
tag(s): resources (80), substitutes (25)
In the Classroom
Some of the lesson plans are actually units designed for a week or more of study. The site allows for printer-friendly versions of the plans to make printing them a neat option. When you need quick plans for the substitute--or if you are a substitute-- this site is a must-have.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Word Search Maker - A to Z Teacher Stuff Tools
Grades
K to 7
1 Favorites
0 Comments
This is a time-saving online tool for any subject. Reinforce concepts and spelling with your own customized word searches. This tool allows for a variety of options for the ...more
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This is a time-saving online tool for any subject. Reinforce concepts and spelling with your own customized word searches. This tool allows for a variety of options for the placement of the words or even the shape of the grid puzzle. Teachers can personalize the font styles and sizes as well.
tag(s): spelling (93), vocabulary (251)
In the Classroom
Read the home page carefully for directions on setting your browser for a more customized look. Landscape mode works best for most puzzles. Make sure you take their suggestion of copying your word list onto your clipboard just in case you lose the word search. For younger students, consider sharing a word search on an interactive whiteboard and letting them "highlight" the words with a finger in different colors.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Bulletin Board Hang Ups - TeachersFirst
Grades
2 to 12
17 Favorites
0 Comments
TeachersFirst provides this collection of printable quotations, ready for your classroom or bulletin board. Inspire, engage, or challenge your students to think with quotes from famous...more
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TeachersFirst provides this collection of printable quotations, ready for your classroom or bulletin board. Inspire, engage, or challenge your students to think with quotes from famous leaders, sports figures, thinkers, and writers.
tag(s): bulletin boards (13), quotations (18)
In the Classroom
They look great printed on brightly colored paper! As an opening day activity, challenge small groups of students to interpret the quote hanging closest to them and predict how it may be important in your course this year. For younger students, ask them to write a paraphrase or to illustrate the quote. Be sure to change the quotes periodically and give a prize to the first student who notices. Or give a pop-quiz during the last week of school, asking students to recall as many of the year's quotes as they can (working in small groups will probably help). If you have classroom blogs, ask students to choose and reflect on a specific quote and its relevance to your class throughout the past year.
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Free Typing Games - TypingMaster
Grades
2 to 8
1 Favorites
1 Comments
Build keyboarding skills with these free online games. The bubble game with lower case letters is simple enough for very young ones, since they need only recognize single letters. As...more
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Build keyboarding skills with these free online games. The bubble game with lower case letters is simple enough for very young ones, since they need only recognize single letters. As students progress, they can move on to more elaborate games involving words (free downloads) or try the online typing test (also free).
tag(s): keyboarding (28)
In the Classroom
Share this link on your classroom computer, teacher web page, or in a class newsletter so students can practice keyboarding outside of class or at home. If you have some students who have computers at home and some who do not, give the less experienced students time during recesses or after work is done to improve their skills using these engaging games.Comments
Love this service, recommended.Adam, , Grades: 0 - 12
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Panoramas.dk
Grades
K to 12
6 Favorites
2 Comments
Have a high speed Internet connection? (Most schools do) Then you MUST visit these 3D virtual tours of beautiful sites all over the world with your students. Read the Welcome ...more
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Have a high speed Internet connection? (Most schools do) Then you MUST visit these 3D virtual tours of beautiful sites all over the world with your students. Read the Welcome message on the home page for directions and details, then explore the current features and several years of archives for 3D virtual tours from major world capitals to true "experiences" such as Times Square and white water rafting. Even the tour of a Banyan tree will amaze you. Bring the world into your classroom for geography, landforms, world cultures, foreign language study, or literary settings. Be in the midst of festivals or atop the Sydney Bridge.
tag(s): images (267), landforms (36), virtual field trips (139)
In the Classroom
Use a projector--or better yet, an interactive whiteboard--to take students atop the Eiffel Tower, to the high Sierras, or aboard a Mars explorer. Allow student to navigate on the whiteboard. Nte that Shift and Ctrl keys alow you to zoom, as well. Be sure to click at the top of the 3D view to Read More about the image. These tours will make landforms real, culture come alive, and science a visual art form. As you introduce terms and place, use images! You could even use a tour as a writing prompt for poetry or descriptive writing. Include the link on your teacher web page for students to "tour the world" outside of class or feature one location a week to broaden class horizons on a classroom desktop.Comments
What a GREAT idea! Thank you. I found one with mountain biking and vistas. I'll put it up early in the period and come back to it in the end and have them write their exit cards about it. Then I will revisit it in a week or two when we start talking about metaphorical language.Shirley, CA, Grades: 6 - 12
I plan to use this as a way to start the school year with my sixth grade G/T kids. I will display a panorama on an interactive whiteboard-- one of mountains with peaks and valleys. I will ask, "Why would I show you this and say that this is our classroom this year?" The students will write down an idea on a slip of paper, guessing why I might use this as an introduction to my class. They will most likely introduce all of the classroom conduct and learning environment issues that I want to touch upon that first day: peaks and valleys during the year, some rugged terrain, studying mountains and geography, some amazing views (everyone's opinions), and more. It will also get them thinking in analogies and allow me to see how quickly some of them do this and how literal others are.Thinking, PA, Grades: 5 - 10
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Colorin Colorado - WETA
Grades
1 to 10
1 Favorites
0 Comments
This totally bilingual website (a collaboration between Reading Rockets and the American Federation of Teachers) is packed with information for both ENL/ESL and regular classroom instructors...more
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This totally bilingual website (a collaboration between Reading Rockets and the American Federation of Teachers) is packed with information for both ENL/ESL and regular classroom instructors about how to encourage reading. Although the focus is on Spanish speaking students, the information is specific and easily adaptable for all reading learners. Lots of information is available on the site concerning not only reading instructional techniques, but building partnerships with families of Hispanic students, placement and assessment, and important authors. Webcast information programs include accompanying reading and discussion questions. Webcasts can be found under the Video tab on the top menu bar. This site is a good resource to help meet the needs of increasing numbers of students born speaking other languages. Videos and webcasts reside on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, they may not be viewable.
tag(s): hispanic (55), parents (52), reading lists (76), reading strategies (93), spanish (112)
In the Classroom
All classroom teachers who have ENL/ESL students should consider this a primary source of information about how to teach and help second language learners. Share this link on your teacher web page and/or in a parent newsletter for those who are concerned with the challenges of the increasing number of ENL/ESL students.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Deluxe Paralaughs - Mr. Nussbaum
Grades
3 to 8
0 Favorites
0 Comments
This mad-lib-type exercise will build better understanding of grammar. Students start by choosing a story category. They then review parts of speech by "writing" the story. They insert...more
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This mad-lib-type exercise will build better understanding of grammar. Students start by choosing a story category. They then review parts of speech by "writing" the story. They insert a noun, a plural noun, a verb etc. When finished inserting the required parts of speech, they see the new story on the screen. The results are hilarious! students will be motivated to think of many examples of each part of speech in order to make their stories funnier, thus building a better understanding of the concepts of "noun," "verb," etc.
tag(s): parts of speech (40), speech (66)
In the Classroom
Use this site to reinforce the parts of speech with humor. Include it on your teacher web page for practice outside of class. Let your students copy and paste the funniest stories into decorative word processing documents and highlight the parts of speech in different colors as further reinforcement---then print and post them in your classroom! Now you have an instant grammar bulletin board, as well.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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SIKids - Sports Illustrated Kids
Grades
3 to 8
2 Favorites
0 Comments
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 ...more
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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.
In the Classroom
Share this site on your teacher's web page or classroom desktop for fast student access to sports 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-and-effect words, main idea, and more. Suddenly, your students will actually READ!Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Common Sense Media - Common Sense Media Inc.
Grades
1 to 12
0 Favorites
0 Comments
This site has current movie reviews from the parents' point of view: What current movies are appropriate? What ages are they appropriate for? In addition to current films, there ...more
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This site has current movie reviews from the parents' point of view: What current movies are appropriate? What ages are they appropriate for? In addition to current films, there are reviews of TV programs, new DVD's, games, websites, books, music, etc. The site uses its own rating system: "Appropriate for age," "Know your kid," and "Not appropriate for age." Along with written reviews and Q/A approaches, there are video clips and tips. Each category of entertainment has several recommended and reviewed items with age ranges. There is also a newsletter and in-depth articles on subjects of concern to kids and parents.
tag(s): internet safety (121), movies (52), parents (52), safety (63)
In the Classroom
Let your students' parents know about this site via your teacher web page or class newsletter. You may also want to share it with your school PTO or PTA.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Protopage - Protopage
Grades
K to 12
1 Favorites
0 Comments
This online tool creates a highly visual "home page" that can incorporate multiple elements simply by dragging and dropping them in place. Not unlike Google's personalized homepage,...more
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This online tool creates a highly visual "home page" that can incorporate multiple elements simply by dragging and dropping them in place. Not unlike Google's personalized homepage, the elements look like little sticky notes or boxes, but there is far greater flexibility and a wider variety of content readily available. You can also make the page local (simply use it as the "home" on your classroom computer), shared by a select group (passworded), or completely public. You can easily make a theme or unit page for quick access of resources, complete with directions.
tag(s): resources (80)
In the Classroom
How would you use this in your teaching? Create a set of RSS feeds for current events or a specific curriculum topic such as weather and make them available for an in-class activity, complete with directions. World language, world cultures, or geography teachers can profile a location on the globe, complete with local weather and news. Make separate tabs for separate activities. Students can access them by password or publicly from outside of class, as well. For primary grades, make simple instructions right on the desktop for a computer center activity. Use color coding of the instructions to differentiate for different children (Sam, I want you to do the yellow one). If your school permits students to set up accounts on web services, have groups make Protopages on an assigned topic, collecting and organizing resources, images, and information: "A Protopage Guide to Cells" or "Shakespeare's Times." Gifted and highly-able students will go crazy!Skills needed: Join (free). Check out the Intro, Overview, and Quickstart to see how it works. Play to your heart's content, including making tabs. Learn about RSS feeds and other Widgets-- including sticky notes. Share the URL with those you wish to have use it. Note: this works on Internet Explorer 6 and higher and on Firefox. If your users are on older web browsers, the developers recommend upgrading. This may be a problem for some. Check with your end-user computers before you spend too much time making the perfect Protopage!
If you allow students to create their own Protopage, you will need to have very specific rules about content, since there are non-educational elements available.
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The Music In Poetry - Smithsonian Institute
Grades
5 to 12
6 Favorites
0 Comments
If you want to get students involved in listening to poetry, try this site featuring real life SOUNDS of poetry in both ballads and the blues. Ballads are traditionally taught ...more
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If you want to get students involved in listening to poetry, try this site featuring real life SOUNDS of poetry in both ballads and the blues. Ballads are traditionally taught as story poems and, while this site does that too, it makes ballads more relevant to the music that kids listen to today. Use this site to teach about meters (iambic triameter and iambic tetrameter) in ways that students can HEAR. The images of the short films are great, too. The site includes readings and singing of great, classic examples of ballads as well as some rarer film footage of great blues singers (ex: John Jackson singing "Steamboat Whistle" at Wolf Trap in 1997). There is a wide variety of tracks to choose from and the site includes lesson plans.
In the Classroom
Play the sound files on speakers in your classroom and be sure to include the link on your teacher web page for students to play at home, as well. If you are into podcasting, consider having students make their own recordings of ballads after hearing and studying these. Challenge cooperative learning groups to modernize one of the ballads and augment classroom technology use by creating a podcast by using sites such as podOmatic, reviewed here, or Buzzsprout, reviewed here. Help students create a checklist or rubric to use for self-evaluation or peer review. Use a tool like Quick Rubric, reviewed here, for the checklist and rubric. Use this same document to help students make constructive suggestions for story revisions. The lesson plans are printable PDFs and work with units/lessons on Langston Hughes and the blues as well as the meters of poetry.
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Henry Wadsworth Longfellow - Maine Historical Society
Grades
3 to 12
2 Favorites
0 Comments
This website examines Longfellow's life and work, his homes, and his family. It includes a searchable database of his poems, lesson plans for teachers, a filmography, and more. This...more
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This website examines Longfellow's life and work, his homes, and his family. It includes a searchable database of his poems, lesson plans for teachers, a filmography, and more. This site is divided into 7 areas: biography, his poems, works, home, family, resources for teachers, and other resources. The lesson plans in the teacher resource section are pretty good, broken down into curriculum blocks. There are 21 lessons written for across-the-curriculum study in creative and solid ways. They are each geared to specific grade spans (clear in the lesson)that include not only English and literature, but composition, American history, humanities, art, fine arts, language arts, and interdisciplinary studies. A great smorgasbord for a teacher who works with early American authors!
tag(s): authors (113)
In the Classroom
Find a great lesson among the many in the Teachers section or use the site as a resource during the study of American poets. The images of Longfellow's homes and other artifacts from the Maine Historical Society would help make the 19th century more "real" on your projector or interactive whiteboard as you read the poems.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Renaissance: The Elizabethan World - Maggi Ros
Grades
4 to 12
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0 Comments
This site has links to everything you ever wanted to know about the Elizabeth world from a Compendium of Life in Elizabethan England to Heraldry to the transcripts of the ...more
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This site has links to everything you ever wanted to know about the Elizabeth world from a Compendium of Life in Elizabethan England to Heraldry to the transcripts of the trials of the Earls of Essex and Southampton. It also includes a link to a list of more than a hundred recommended sites for the Renaissance and Elizabethan times.Teachers of everything from world history to Shakespeare will find something to mine at this site. The Compendium of Elizabethan Life is especially interesting to those students who want to know "how things worked" 500 years ago in the time of Will Shakespeare. While this is a great research sourcefor Shakespeare, it is also good for drama, literature, and history for all sorts of activities.
tag(s): elizabethan (12), renaissance (38)
In the Classroom
Share this resource on your teacher web page for students to choose different research topics related to Elizabethan or Renaissance times. As you teach Shakespeare, bring up a daily "factoid," text snippet, or image on a projector to take students back in time before you start class.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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The History of Costume - Braun & Schneider
Grades
6 to 12
2 Favorites
0 Comments
This is a simple site, but extremely useful in helping students understand how "clothes make the man." Whether you are talking about costuming a play or how clothes represented classes...more
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This is a simple site, but extremely useful in helping students understand how "clothes make the man." Whether you are talking about costuming a play or how clothes represented classes in social studies, this site will enable students to see how clothing has helped make that "first impression" since the beginning of time.
The "History of Costume" was printed from 1861 to 1880 in Munich by the publishing firm of Braun and Schneider. It was originally published as individual plates in a German magazine. Later, these plates were collected and bound into book form. The total publication consisted of 125 pages, with four pictures per pages, for a total of 500 costume designs. These plates consisted of historical dress from antiquity to the end of the 19th century. This book is an excellent source for students who are studying the history of fashion and for costume designers. One must be aware though, that these illustrations have a Victorian perspective to their designs. The last 35 pages consist of contemporary folk dress (c.1880) from most European, Asian, and African countries. These provides a source for researching plays which take place during the Victorian period, such as "The King and I" or "The Sea Gull". The original book was published in German, so at times, the English translation is confusing. This is especially noticeable in the contemporary folk dress plates where many of the countries mentioned now have different names or no longer exist.
The "History of Costume" was printed from 1861 to 1880 in Munich by the publishing firm of Braun and Schneider. It was originally published as individual plates in a German magazine. Later, these plates were collected and bound into book form. The total publication consisted of 125 pages, with four pictures per pages, for a total of 500 costume designs. These plates consisted of historical dress from antiquity to the end of the 19th century. This book is an excellent source for students who are studying the history of fashion and for costume designers. One must be aware though, that these illustrations have a Victorian perspective to their designs. The last 35 pages consist of contemporary folk dress (c.1880) from most European, Asian, and African countries. These provides a source for researching plays which take place during the Victorian period, such as "The King and I" or "The Sea Gull". The original book was published in German, so at times, the English translation is confusing. This is especially noticeable in the contemporary folk dress plates where many of the countries mentioned now have different names or no longer exist.
tag(s): costumes (4)
In the Classroom
Share some of the images on a projector as you read literature or study the cultures of these time periods. You should also make the link available as students create their own plays, presnetaions, or posters about people from history. FCS students could also use the images to help them plan advanced sewing projects.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Amazing Kids Ezine - amazing-kids.org
Grades
3 to 8
2 Favorites
0 Comments
This site encourages children to read and write by sharing what other students have written and inviting them to submit writings of their own. They can write poetry, fiction, or ...more
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This site encourages children to read and write by sharing what other students have written and inviting them to submit writings of their own. They can write poetry, fiction, or non-fiction, including essays. The authors featured on the website are international, too. A carefully screened pen pal option allows children to sign up for pen pals from around the world. In the Global Village section, articles featuring countries around the globe change monthly.
tag(s): poetry (196)
In the Classroom
Use this site and its opportunities to submit work as an writing motivator to encourage development of more in-depth writing. Students will also enjoy "meeting" pen pals from around the world. Always get written parent permission before submitting student work.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Story Writing Tips for Kids - Corey Green
Grades
3 to 8
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0 Comments
By breaking down the process of story writing into six accessible steps, this site provides a good outline for a lesson on writing an original story. Getting ideas, organizing, filling...more
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By breaking down the process of story writing into six accessible steps, this site provides a good outline for a lesson on writing an original story. Getting ideas, organizing, filling in, writing, and revising are all covered here in upbeat but concrete sections with plenty of tips and alternative approaches. The patterns follow the story mapping you study in reading class, so you will be reinforcing story patterns as students write. The writer is a published author of books for middle school kids. Links provide fun breaks for kids and they include jokes, animal info, and word games. A more important link leads readers to steps for writing a book report.
tag(s): writing (308)
In the Classroom
Use this site and its organized approach to teaching story writing to your upper elementary and middle school students. Include the link on your teacher web page for them to use as a reference outside of class, as well. Consider having students use a graphic organizer of a story map to plan their stories (make one for them or have them use one of the many tools you can find on TeachersFirst by searching graphic organizer on our keyword search.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Paul Revere Biography - Paul Revere Memorial Association
Grades
3 to 8
2 Favorites
0 Comments
A Biography of Paul Revere will tell you a little more about Revere's career as a silversmith and his activities as a patriot. ...more
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A Biography of Paul Revere will tell you a little more about Revere's career as a silversmith and his activities as a patriot.
tag(s): boston (11), colonial america (97)
In the Classroom
If you teach Johnny Tremain, you should include this site as a resource connected to the historical novel. Or share this as one of several sites for student reports on colonial times. Share this and other sections of the TeachersFirst Colonial America tour as part of your study of the colonies so students can see what these historic locations look like today.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Mindomo - Expert Software Application
Grades
1 to 12
6 Favorites
0 Comments
Create collaborative mind maps (graphic organizers), concept maps, and Gantt charts using this online tool. See an...more
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Create collaborative mind maps (graphic organizers), concept maps, and Gantt charts using this online tool. See an example created by our editors. The example provides some ideas for using this online graphic organizer tool. Sign up with your email or download. The free version gives you 3 graphic organizers with sharing, publishing and collaboration.
tag(s): graphic organizers (57), mind map (33)
In the Classroom
Have students create graphic organizers in cooperative groups as a study guide for unit content, to collect information for a group research project, or show examples of an important concept. Share and compare the organizers on an interactive whiteboard or projector in class and allow classmates to suggest changes. Skills needed: join the site, practice with the tools (don't miss the notes feature!). Save up to 7 "private" maps and an unlimited number of "shared" maps.Make a map available online by saving and clicking "yes" for sharing, then clicking the Save by URL icon. This will copy the URL onto your computer's clipboard so you can paste it into a word doc or even your teacher web page. Imagine sharing several student made "study guides" in the days before the unit test.
Note that maps that are shared can be seen by the public, but not altered. You specify members who may collaborate and make alterations. For students to collaborate using this tool they must have individual memberships, requiring an email account. These memberships must be activated from their email. So, if students do not have email that is accessible from school, classroom use BY STUDENTS will be severely limited. Editor's note: we asked the Mindomo folks about spell check and student safety issues. They are still developing this tool, so they MIGHT address these issues at a later date.
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A Teaching Unit for Treasure Island - Avon Middle School
Grades
6 to 10
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This well-organized teaching plan integrates technology and includes day-by-day lessons for teaching Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island over a seven-week period. Plans include...more
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This well-organized teaching plan integrates technology and includes day-by-day lessons for teaching Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island over a seven-week period. Plans include eveerything- even printables, web links, and assessments. The site organization is outstanding. Easily adaptable for other time periods, classroom levels, or study emphasis, this unit is comprehensive, complete, and innovative. The teacher's synopsis gives a weekly overview of the lessons.
tag(s): literature (215)
In the Classroom
Use the full unit or selected activities when studying Treasure Island. Include the Daily activity schedule link on your tecaher web page so students can access their work easily. The teacher's section indicates History Channel movies that complement your study. Even if you do not read this literature, some of the activities would go well with any study of maritime history, pirates, or the 19th century.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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