This art dictionary was not helpful at all when I searched for information to use with my students. It features the infamous "scroll of death" on practically every page. The alphabetical sorting in the left hand navigation index runs together and could have been broken into smaller sections for easier reading. If not paying attention, one would miss that there is another LONG list of terms to click on below the alphabets. Font sizes are inconsistent throughout the site as well.

Crayola is like the McDonald's of art supplies. I cannot deny that there they don't make decent products and that there are actually acceptable projects lurking within the search engines. Visually and navigation-wise, this site is great. Why isn't it one of my favorites? Coloring sheets!!! I abhor coloring sheet advocates. While coloring sheets can be temporarily useful for training students to stay inside lines, they are definitely not beneficial for much else.

This site is a visual nightmare! Obviously, there is quite a bit of information to be found. However, category lists are lengthy and not always in appropriate categories (in my opinion). The times I did search for projects, I can't recall finding much other than "school art" or "cookie cutter" recipes. I suppose that's what my brain is for...One thing this site doesn't lack is variety!

Artcyclopedia was one of the least student-friendly sites I have accessed for locating artist information. Although it has a wide range of artist names and listings, one must click several links before finding a substantial amount of information. The lists of associate links can be very lengthy and undesirable to scroll through. By far, this was the most deceptive resource I've located and the least immediately helpful.

A. Pintura was actually one of my favorites back in 2002. This site creates a simple way to get students involved in solving a mystery while drawing conclusions and learning about art styles. Students can make inferences using the information provided even with little prior knowledge. When I used it with elementary children, I was able to hold their attention as I talked them through steps in the computer lab. Unfortunately, this activity has not been updated since then and still needs improvement. It has unnecessary links making navigation slightly confusing. The site lacks variety as there is only one mystery to solve and it could have addressed other art vocabulary.

An archive of images and information, the Artchive provides an abundance of traditional art history and images for student and teacher access. I have used this site in the past for information retrieval and image use, but always found myself comparing historical information with that of other sites. For the most part, it was helpful for reminding me of artists' names and periods that may have slipped my mind.

Clearly, there are several icons to choose from. When looking for still images to analyze with students, I typically just stick to Mona Lisa.

Kodak has a plethora of advice and images for students to access. I used this site with a yearbook class and it was very helpful in guiding them towards more successful photography and photo selection. It has several categories that include subject matter, lighting, camera tips, etc.

Although there are several tabs, I usually use the Tips & Projects Exchange that is already selected. Review the lists either in the left hand navigation or the center of the page with thumbnails. You can begin by clicking any topic that interests you!

This site about English grammar can be used practically with any grade level who can read, I suspect. I typically used the site as a teacher resource for the discussion of abstract and concrete nouns with my high school Art students. We used the abstract nouns for project ideas; sometimes I would choose and other times I would let them vote.

The concepts found in the abstract noun table are all great for classroom discussion, especially high school students. However, many ages could benefit from defining and discussing these nouns.

A basic reference site, this was second in line to Google for my former classroom information retrieval activities. Since we had to define and discuss big ideas just prior to art-making, we almost always used dictionary.com along with an old Merriam-Webster paperback (donated by the library) to make comparisons. Advantages are that a list of synonyms and antonyms, sample sentences accompany definitions. There was a drop-down search option for the thesaurus are available here, but I presume it became its own separate identity...

Featuring the work of contemporary artists, PBS Art 21 focuses on real-world concepts as they relate to artists and their work. The site features still images, videos, interview transcripts and detailed descriptions of the artwork included. The site has resources available for teachers and can be viewed independently by students as well as with teacher guidance. I prefer to use the series with high school students since the text and images can be quite complex and potentially disruptive. With the right group and selections, it could probably work for middle school.

PBS offers a variety of resources for students and teachers. They can be found under the education tab in a drop-down menu. Of course, you can view the other options to see what more the site has to offer.