Group items tagged

Group 2: Wenzel, Getchius, McKane, & Hafermann Tool Name: Discovery Education URL: http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/ Category: classroom resources, assessments, lesson plans Tags: English, science, math, reading, writing, social studies Grade Level Use: K-12 Topic/discipline: English, math, science, reading, writing, social studies, and technology Tutorial Information: There is a help section in the upper right hand corner of the page as well as a contact us link at the bottom of the page Possible Uses: Teachers can use to create or edit lessons. Teachers can learn how to use media in the classroom as well as use some of the site's media information in creating lessons. Basics: Discovery Education allows teachers to utilize lessons and ideas to create new and improved lessons in the classroom. The site also has games available for classroom use. Positives: The site is easy to navigate and has a lot of useful information. The site also has a parent corner for parents to stay informed. Negatives: The school or teacher using the website must have an access log-in

Authors: (Group 1)Tim Sennett, Bulfer, Carl, Gourley Category: publish games and lesson plans Grade level use: all levels, but mostly jr. high and high school Topic/discipline: math and some science Tutorial information: links to many websites in math, and many games using math lessons. Possible uses: To introduce or review a topic or lesson in math through the use of games and activities. Basic explanation: A student, parent, or teacher can use this site to find lessons in math for better understanding. This can be done with games, puzzles, or activities. The student or teacher can also create their own game or activity and post on this site. Positives: Some games are good for reviewing lessons. Negative: Many games are difficult to use and don't have much mathematical concepts. Hard to relate to specific math topics.

Authors: (Group 1)Tim Sennett, Bulfer, Carl, Gourley Category: tutoring website Grade level use: junior high, high school Topic/discipline: math Tutorial information: help students find videos and games to review class lessons Possible uses: If a student needs more practice on a topic or lesson, they can watch a tutorial video or do practice problems at their own pace. Basic explanation: The tutorials, video, and lessons can be demonstrated by a math teacher and a shown paper, or through games. Positives: Many times will show lessons at a slower pace for the student. Has math from Algebra to Calculus. Negative: The tutoring questions sent in by the student will take about a half a day, at times, to get a response.

Costello, Regilio, Saal, Stroh; Group 5 Tool name: Illuminations http://illuminations.nctm.org/ Category: interactive Tags: math, lesson plans, activities, NCTM Resources Grade level use: All Grade Levels Topic/discipline: Math Tutorial information: There is no tutorial or help section however; this website is very easy to navigate. In each individual game there is a link for instructions. Possible uses for students, teachers, and/or administrators: Teachers find math lesson plans and activities for students at every grade level using every math skill you can think of. It also provides teachers with tools to create materials such as game spinners, times tables and graphs. There are also games and activities for students to so on the computer. Positives: This site is very easy to navigate. The search options for teachers are simple. The topics available for study are many. Negatives: There is no help or tutorial for this site. Some of the activities listed for multiple ages actually seemed to be a bit advanced for young children.

Authors: Group 2 (Hafermann, Wenzel, McKane, Getchius) Category: Online library Grade level use: All levels Topic/discipline: Social sciences, language arts, math, science, technology, history, primary sources (as tags) Tutorial Information: "Ask a Librarian" link is located at the top of the main page of the website. Once clicked, the next page is separated into 5 sections: 1) General Collections, 2)International Collections, 3) Digital Collections, 4)Special Formats and Genres, 5)Other Programs and Services Possible uses: Research projects, daily historical trivia, use of primary sources for lessons in Language Arts, Literature and Composition, and Social Studies. Basic explanation: The Library of Congress provides a vast amount of primary sources for teachers to use in the classroom. The site has five main features which can be found at the top of the main website. For example, the American Memory link provides free access to maps, audio, video, and pictures. Positives: Unlimited amount of resources to be used in the classroom. Free! Negatives: Too much information, students may not know where to begin.

Authors: Group 2 (Hafermann, Getchius, Wenzel, McKane) Category: Instructional videos Grade level use: All levels Topic/discipline: Social sciences, language arts, math, science, technology Tutorial Information: Help link located at the bottom of the main web page. Possible uses: additional resource to introduce lessons or reiterate past lessons. Basic explanation: Provides teachers "cartoon" like educational/instructional videos intended for students and learning. The videos cover a wide span of subjects and levels. Positives: Vast amount of videos to choose from. Negatives: Free trial basis, but then a purchase of a subscription is needed.

Authors:(Group 1) Sennett, Bulfer, Carl, Gourley Category: blog Grade level use: all levels Topic/discipline: math and technology Tutorial information: find books, topics, lesson plans for teaching math; blogs for connecting with other math teachers Possible uses: finding a creative lesson plan for a given math topic Basic explanation: A math teacher can connect with other teachers, or their ideas put on this website, to use in their classroom. Positives: Easily move throughout the website to find information. Negatives: There is a lot of information on this website. You need to be specific on the topics you want to use.

Group 2-Tera Hafermann, Ruth Getchius, April Wenzel, Trish McKane Category: online presentation maker Grade Level Use: all levels Topic/Discipline: all topics and disciplines can use this tool Tutorial Information: On the Prezi homepage click on the Learn tab at the top of the page. This will direct you to a variety of how-to topics. Click on the Prezi in 3 Minutes lesson to read about creating a Prezi and to see an embedded YouTube video on creating a Prezi. Possible Uses: A Prezi can be used by the teacher to introduce and then guide students through a unit of study. Students can create a Prezi as a culminating project for a topic of study. Basic Explanation: A Prezi is an online presentation tool. Unlike a PowerPoint presentation, which is linear in nature, a Prezi allows the presenter to go wherever they need to in the presentation quickly and easily. A Prezi allows the presenter to zoom in on a topic to highlight an important point. It is a more dynamic way to present information. Positives: This is a very dynamic way to present information and keeps the audience engaged. It allows for zooming in and out, layering of information, and grouping of information. Negatives: Presentations can cause motion sickness and feel chaotic if not done well. Time would need to be spent on teaching students how to make their presentations less chaotic. There is a tutorial on the Prezi site that addresses this issue.

Group Members' Names (Group Number 4: Belcher, Kaufman, Knowles, Duffy) Category- Instructional Videos, Presentation Grade level- All Topic/discipline - All Tutorial information - Video and text tutorials are available on the teacher section of the website. Possible uses- Students can share information and research topics on this site. Teachers can find resources such as lesson plans on School Tube. Basics - School Tube is similar to YouTube, but safer. This website only allows appropriate materials to be posted so teachers can feel safe about letting their kids view and post videos on School Tube. Positives - The site is a safe place for children and educators to visit. Negatives - There are many videos on the site. Finding an appropriate video might be a challenge for students.

Group 2: Tera Hafermann, Ruth Getchius, April Wenzel, Trish McKane Category: online poster maker Grade Level Use: all levels Topic/Discipline: reading, language arts, social studies, science, math Tutorial Information: On the homepage of the website you can choose to create a glog for free. This allows the user to play with the different features of making a glog without committing to signing up for an account. Possible Uses: Students can use this to create posters for any subject as the culminating project for a unit. Basic Explanation: Glogster is a site that allows teachers and students to create posters and lessons online. Posters contain photos, videos, links to other sites, and audio explanations. It is an interactive way to get students more involved and engaged in learning. Positives: Glogster is engaging. It is beneficial to students who struggle with reading and writing because it allows them to show what they have learned through a multimedia presentation with less writing required. Negatives: Does require an account, however a basic educator account is free.

Group 3: Sarah Vaughn & Sara Reich Category: interactive poster Grade level use: junior high, secondary Topic/discipline: any Tutorial Information: Very intuitive- a little bit of playing around and students can figure out most everything you can do with a glog Possible uses: posters for presentations, summative assignments Basic Explanation: Glogster takes the idea of the old posterboard assignment and allows students the opportunity to "paste" in pictures, add information, add video and music, include podcasts Positives: Easy to use, students enjoy presenting this "posters" Negatives: Some difficulty saving and finding glogs, students may need to convert files to add to glog

Group 1 (Bulfer, Sennett, Gourley, Carl) Category: History Grade level use: 6-12 Topic/discipline: Social Sciences Tutorial Information: The interactive map does not come with information, but it is easy to navigate. Possible uses: Support a World War II Lesson in U.S. or World History. Basic explanation: This website breaks down different topics from WWII in each theatre (U.S. Europe/Africa, and Asia. The students choose a theatre and then can choose various topics from that happened in the area. Once the topic is chosen the website offers information on the topic as well as pictures, video and useful primary sources. Positives: Has many quality primary sources and it is information. Negatives: There are a few topics that could use more information or more primary sources. The video does not always load quickly on a few of the topics.

Group 1 (Bulfer, Sennett, Gourley, Carl) Category: Creative Art Grade level use: 3-8 Topic/discipline: Art, English, Reading, Spelling Tutorial Information: Click on "How to Play" Walks you through making a movie and picture. Tutorials, Top 10 Questions, Tips and Tricks, Kids FAQ, Teacher FAQ, Contact Us. There are also YouTube videos available. Possible uses: Create a storybook, spell a picture, make a picture, make a movie, make a card, make a story, doodle pad, make a drawing. Basic explanation: Kerpoof Studio lets a student create the above mentioned. They can also save their creations, share their creations, vote on shared scenes, create an avatar, and earn Kerpoof Koins. The Koins can be used to buy more features to use when creating things. There are more benefits if you buy a membership (1 month is $4.39, 6 months is $24.79, and 1 year is $44.79) the benefits are that you can chat with friends, create with friends, and share Kerpoof Koins. Positives: Has a separate section for teachers with lesson plans and other ideas. The website offers many creative channels for students. The registration goes through the parents email. Negatives: A solid program, but I wish it had more for older students.

Authors: Ruth Getchius, April Wenzel, Particia McKane, Tera Hafermann (Group 2) Category: practice, games Discipline: most school subjects are represented, grade 7-12 Tutorial information: tutorial center, frequently asked questions, and help options all available at bottom of the page. When clicking on the tutorial, there are many categories available, with quality answers and help. Possible Uses: lesson review, practice games, student competitions Basics: database of educational games organized by subject and then content of game Positives: Engaging to students, many choices, games are involved, have to spell correctly, a lot of free content that does not involve log in Negatives: Some things you must log in and create and account to do

Authors: Ruth Getchius, April Wenzel, Patricia McKane, Tera Hafermann (Group 2) Category: practice, games, lessons Discipline: English, Language Arts, Writing, grades 9-12 Tutorial information: There is no tutorial or help. The website has highlighted links and gives directions as you work through the site. Possible Uses: grammar and mechanics practice, learning grammar and mechanics rules Basics: Grammar and mechanics tutorials and practice games are set up for students or classes to work through. There are pictures, noises, and sometimes fake prizes. Positives: Engaging to students, good information on English grammar and mechanics, game format is appealing, lots and lots of content Negatives: Some of the prizes or consequences for a wrong answer are iffy on appropriateness. It is loud.

Authors: (Group 1)Sennett , Bulfer, Carl, Gourley Category: blog Grade level use: all levels Topic/discipline: all classes Tutorial information: Help teachers and parents stay connected and promote their childs education. Possible uses: networking, journals, blogs Basic explanation: Give some ideas and discussion topics to help the teacher and parent work together to better the students education. Discuss how the teacher should instruct each level of student. Positives: It has some good ideas for the teacher to better handle and improve parent involvement in the classroom. Negatives: None. It is a good site for discussion about the classroom atmosphere itself instead of what lessons are taught.

- Authors: Reglio, Saal, Costello, Stroh - Group #5 - Tool Name: Starfall - Tool URL: http://starfall.com - Category: educational reading site -Tags: education, reading, phonics - Grade level use: pre-school - 3rd grade - Topics/Discipline: pre-literacy through early literacy practice, supplement - Tutorial information: none found, user learns through practice - Possible uses: small group, individual phonics practice - Basics: The user accesses a range of phonics skills on the homepage. After selecting a skill, the user selects an activity to practice the skill. -Positives: This site is visually appealing, easy for young children to navigate, provides auditory cues for sounds/symbols, is not too busy to the eye. -Negatives: The songs/rhymes do not change often enough. For a frequent user, this may become monotonous and steer them away from the phonics lessons or activities.

Group Name: (Group 4) Belcher, Kaufman, Knowles, Duffy Category: Multiuser virtual environment Grade Level Use: Middle School and up Topic/Discipline: Across curriculum Tutorial Information: A video tutorial is available on the second life wiki. Possible Use: simiilations, collaboration, virtual science labs, educational gaming, professional development opportunities Basics: Students and teachers create avatars and then live in a virtual world where they can interact with different people and take part in activities. Positives: Gamelike feel for educational lessons, opportunities for collaboration all over the world Negatives: Can be difficult to focus attention due to interaction in virtual world; I'm finding it a bit overwhelming