Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Weekly Core Subjects Resources - Social Studies

Since I took a substantial vacation from writing on the blog, my Weekly Core Subjects Resources post for this week will be broken down into each subject since I got so many resources over the past 3 weeks.  So here is the fourth entry for 2011, Social Studies.

1.) Fundrace 2010 is a map program via the Huffington Post that allows visitors to track Campaign Fundraising.  Visitors will be able to see who got money, where the money came from, and how much money was donated.  It really puts local campaign fund-raising into perspective.  

2.) Mapping America from the New York Times takes all the data from the U.S. Census and puts it on a map.  The data is easy to view and understand and can take the data to a local view for students and teachers.  It really helps to put demographic data into an easy graphic to read and search through.  

3.) Open Congress is a site that allows visitors to track bills, votes, senators, and representatives in the U.S. Congress.  This would be a great site for government teachers to share with students who are doing current events that relate to how the laws are changing and what is going on with Congress, especially this year with all the change over. 

In case you missed them, here are Science, English, and Mathematics as well. 

Weekly Core Subjects Resources - Science

Since I took a substantial vacation from writing on the blog, my Weekly Core Subjects Resources post for this week will be broken down into each subject since I got so many resources over the past 3 weeks.  So here is the third entry for 2011, Science.

1.) From Free Technology for Teachers, here are 11 Science Resources to try in 2011.  A great list and a great website.  There are several here that I have shared here, as well as some others that I had not seen before.  Check out this great list.  

2.) Scitable is a free science library and personal learning tool brought to you by Nature Publishing Group, the world's leading publisher of science.  Scitable currently concentrates on genetics and cell biology, which include the topics of evolution, gene expression, and the rich complexity of cellular processes shared by living organisms.

3.) A couple of links from the site Make Use Of.  If you have never seen this site, it is worth checking out for many resources.  The first site is 6 More Interesting Websites a Space and Astronomy Buff Should Visit and 6 Virtual Tours of the Human Body for Free Interactive Anatomy Lessons

4.) From Encyclopedia Britannica a great resource to learn about Discovering Dinosaurs.  

5.) From NASA, a great site for Solar System Exploration. Another feature from NASA is Visible Earth, which offers tons of images of earth from space. 

6.) Sixty Symbols is a site that provides videos to learn about the symbols of physics and astronomy. 

7.) Five videos and interactives to learn about the Scale of the Universe

8.) Ecofriend is a site to learn about renewable and green energy.  There is a great timeline to learn about the evolution of renewable energy as well.

9.) Cast Science Writer is a site to help students learn how to properly write a science report.  Science reports can be difficult because of terminology and organization.  This site offers tips and resources for assisting students with the process.

Here are the other resources for English, Math, and Social Studies.

Weekly Core Subjects Resources - Mathematics

Since I took a substantial vacation from writing on the blog, my Weekly Core Subjects Resources post for this week will be broken down into each subject since I got so many resources over the past 3 weeks.  So here is the second entry for 2011, Mathematics.

1.) Mathway is a math problem solver that students can use to get assistance with solving math problems.  Students do have to sign up to access the steps to the problem and there is a premium version as well.  As I have mentioned and wondered about with previous sites like this, why are students struggling with turning in math homework when you can have a website give you the answer?  It also brings up an interesting point mentioned in the video below (I know the kid can be annoying, but still worth watching)...why are we teaching something that students can learn and get from the Internet? 



2.) Museum of Math is a site dedicated to creating a space to share all there is to know about math.  They recently completed a goal of raising funds to open a museum as well.  They have a weekly post for using math in the classroom and is worth checking out.

3.) From one of my favorite websites, Free Technology for Teachers are 11 Mathematics Resources to try in 2011.  I could have easily listed all of them here, but I am no fan of reinventing the wheel, so I highly recommend checking out his list.   

Here are this weeks entries for English, Science, and Social Studies as well.

Weekly Core Subjects Resources - English

Since I took a substantial vacation from writing on the blog, my Weekly Core Subjects Resources post for this week will be broken down into each subject since I got so many resources over the past 3 weeks.  So here is the first entry for 2011 and let me begin with English.

1.)  FutureMe.org is a simple website designed for students to write a letter to their future self.  They use an email address and choose a date that they would like to receive an email.  This would be an interesting journal entry for your students. 

2.) OhLife is a site for people to write journal entries via email when it sends you a question "How did your day go?"  As you start to use the site, it will include a previous journal entry to help you "Remember when?"  Pretty cool and a great method for students to keep a journal.  Signing up is simple and free.

3.) Writing Fun is a site that contains online graphic organizers that teachers can use with students to help make writing fun.  It provides various examples as well.  Teachers can then use these ideas to create their own graphic organizers.

4.) MyVocabulary.com is a site to learn vocabulary.  They have various games and puzzles to help learn vocabulary.  There is also a section for test prep as well.

5.) FoldingStory is a site for group storytelling.  Think of it as writing version of the old game of telephone we all used to play, but the purpose is to add to the story, not try and remember it all.  You can create your own, add to one, or read previously submitted stories.  This would be a fun activity for students to participate in for a classroom assignment.

6.) After the Deadline is a site to help students polish their writing.  Think of it as an online spelling, style, and grammar checker.  It is very easy to use and is as simple and copying and pasting your text. 

7.) The Luminarium is an anthology of English Literature.  What a great resource for English teachers to share and use with students.  The information is broken down into four time periods: Medieval, Renaissance, 17th Century, and Restoration. 

8.) Here are some great resources from the Blog I follow; Technology: Figuring Out How the Pieces Fit.  The resources are about how Technology Can Help With Reading

Here are this weeks entries for Math, Science, and Social Studies if you are interested.