Minchau School

Great Site for interactive activities for Math, Science and Social Studies

A how-to guide to build and maintain a worm bin

Worm inquiry lessons for K-3

Weigh it Up lets students measure, and record the mass of objects using non-standard units. To use Weigh it Up, click on the "+" to add a shape. Click on the "-" to remove a shape. Click on the "check" button to see if the scales balance. To clear the scales, click the 'Reset' button.

A British site of math activities. Monetary value is in pounds, but the scale and number activities are good. 

Bunny Balance lets students estimate the mass of objects using non-standard units. To use Bunny Balance, drag the bunnies onto the seesaw. Try to make them balance.

Lesson on water and soap molecules from Magic School Bus. 

How to integrate the NOVA Design a Parachute interactive into the classroom: In this activity, students assume the role of engineer as they design a parachute that will slow the Mars Explorer Rover as it lands on the surface of Mars.  I like the authentic feel of this activity, students are led through the thinking process of an engineer as they consider all of the requirements the chute must meet before they begin designing. Approach this interactive as a class using an interactive whiteboard or projector-connected computer.  As a class, get "briefed" on the requirements for the parachute design.  Discuss how these requirements may impact the parachute design.  Treat this like an actual briefing and encourage discussion (all ages like to pretend!).  Before students access the interactive, ask them to sketch their thoughts about parachute design.  This lets them think through the design apart from the pre-determined categories presented in the interactive. Students can design and test their parachutes individually in a one to one computer lab setting or take turns designing and testing in a computer center lab on classroom computers. Debrief after the interactive to discuss the parameters that were the most successful and what students learned about volume, drag, strength and stability. Extend this activity by creating a mock-up of the parachute they designed online.  Find a high place on the playground or in the building where students can test these parachutes.  What did they have to adjust for an Earth bound parachute? Tips: The NOVA page has a great introduction paragraph about how engineers approach a problem.  Be sure to read it with your students!  Encourage students to learn more about the Mars Explorer Rover before designing the chute.  It may adjust their thinking!From I Learn Technology blog

An amazing video of what our future could look like....

What it is: Story Time for Me is a beautiful collection of digital children's books for primary students in kindergarten through second grade.  Each story includes charming illustrations, animation and professional narration with music and sound effects.  Activities accompany every story that encourage imagination and creativity (these are coming soon!).  The stories have been developed to teach important values through positive moral themes.   Story Time for Me currently has a library of over 30 books and growing.  Next Friday (April 22, 2011) Story Time for Me will be launching free personalized activity books where students can become the star of a book. Students can choose to read each story with or without narration, with or without animation and choose to highlight the words as they are read.

A blog post about using a green screen with your students to create movies

A blog post about using storyboarding as a pre-writing activity for podcasting or movie making. 

A blog post about using Podcasting to play with and understand language, using the Smartboard

A list of videos available to help teachers to understand and use Twitter for professional development

part book recommendation service and part social network for young readers. Hosted by Scholastic, You Are What You Read is place where kids can share information about their favorite books. After creating a simple profile You Are What You Read asks participants to name the five books that mean the most to them. Members of the network can then see who else likes the same books and discover other books that might also interest them. You Are What You Read offers some excellent resources that you and your students can access without joining and creating a profile. You Are What You Read has a lengthy list of famous people like Kevin Durant, Tony Hawk, and Ellen DeGeneres who have listed their favorite age-appropriate books. Take a look at the book page for The Giving Tree which Kevin Durant listed as one of his favorites. The Book Links feature on You Are What You Read offers webs of books that are related to each other. For example, if you enter the title Green Eggs and Ham a web of books that are likely to interest students is generated. Click on any book in the new web to generate yet another web of related titles.

 a youtube video readaloud of A Chair for my Mother. Remember to authenticate before you open the site! 

From the BBC, Children of World War 2 is a great resource for kids who want to get a better understanding of what life was like for children during World War 2.  History lessons will usually focus on the major events of the war: The Nazis  invade Poland, the German Blitz, the bombing of Pearl Harbor, D-Day, Auschwitz, etc. The human side of the story is often missed and that's where Children of World War 2 comes in.The well-presented, easy to explore site has 10 sections to delve into that inform kids about the war and what it was all about. From evacuations, to what homes were like,  food and shopping, daily life, and other interesting areas. Each section comes with some amazing photos with captions, some sections have writings (actual letters and speeches written by the various leaders), and also videos, and audio recordings of war-time events (Note: the audio and videos are not available in all countries).Also, within each section, there are activities, challenges, and quizzes that add a bit of fun to an often sad topic.