Category: Science

Kidz Online

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What it is: Kidz Online is a digital production and distribution organization with online learning. Kidz Online is the leading provider of training videos for students and teachers. Each of the 12 technology subjects is explored through five channels. The variety of formats draws students from a wide range of skill levels and interests. The teach IT section has videos that target viewers who are interested in hands on learning. A host guides students step by step through the concepts and tools behind each tech topic. Animations and screen demos aid in understanding. The KTK Live! uses sketch comedy to introduce the potential of technology. Streaming Features is an online career resource and shows students what kind of jobs are available in the field of technology. Gurl Tech emphasizes the importance females have in technology. Technology in Action is the final channel, it allows anyone to submit their work online, showcasing their learning to fellow students.

How to integrate Kidz Online into the classroom: Kidz Online is an amazing resource for teachers who are lagging in their technology skills or simply don’t have the time to teach technology skills. Students can learn at their own pace using the online instructional videos. Videos can be downloaded or streamed online. Students can learn about a topic or program that interests them or all students can watch and learn from the same videos. The videos are very well done and user friendly. Kidz online is the perfect tool to teach students self-directed learning skills. Challenge students to become the class “expert” in one of the programs featured on Kidz Online and let them teach each other. This site will excite your students about the possibility of technology in the classroom and in the future. Students can also create their own video tutorials and post for other students. Have older students create video tutorials of programs that younger students use.

Tips: Make sure to click on the “Lesson Plans” page for some great lesson plan ideas and teacher resources. While you are there, click on the Teacher’s Tool Kit for free resources including: instructional web videos, step-by-step tutorials, technology integrated core-curriculum lesson plans and streaming videos on various topics like girls and technology (gURL Tech) and career exploration (Streaming Futures). This is an amazing resource!

Knowledge Box

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What it is: Knowledge Box has math, science, language arts, and social studies games and videos for primary elementary students. These games are interactive and very impressive. The math section includes a video about finding numerals, a cute “ballet” and song about patterns, a shape game called Space Shapes, and a subtraction game called Math Maze. The language arts section includes a great little video called When Two Vowels Go Walking, a folk tale called The Wise Old Women, a picture pick game based on the short “a”, and a folktale. The science section includes a video about the basics of electricity, a health video about organs (catchy songs), a physical science game about force and motion, and a young scientist virtual experiment on growing plants. The social studies section includes a video about the balance of nature, a video about storms, a game about different viewpoints, and a game to teach map and globe vocabulary.

How to integrate Knowledge Box into the classroom: Use Knowledge box as an introduction to an activity or unit. Students can use some of the interactive science games with the scientific method. Have students experiment in the online environment and record their hypothesis, test and results of their experiments. Use the videos to support your curriculum. Students can watch the videos in a center setting or all at once with the projector. These are content rich games and videos and will support any curriculum well!

Tips: Knowledge Box is a media rich website and will require a fairly quick Internet connection. Make sure that your connection speed is adequate before assigning games on Knowledge Box.

Health Detective

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What it is: Health Detective is an interactive game developed by Kaiser Permanente that teaches kids how to make healthy choices. The premiss of the game is an outbreak of unhealthy habits hitting too many kids. The kids get ‘secret’ training on how to eat right an exercise. Students can investigate fun games like whack a snack, soccer, and zap the TV. Students and teachers can also print out classified clues on ways to be healthy.

How to integrate Health Detective into your classroom: This is a fun, motivating way to learn about making healthy exercise and eating choices. In the one computer classroom, set up the Health Detective as a center for students to visit during science/health class. In the computer lab setting each student can play individually (about 20min. game). If you have access to a projector, this would be a fun whole class experience.

Tips: Teachers can print out healthy habits “classified clues” to send home with students.

Mindomo

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What it is: Mindomo free web-based mind mapping tool that delivers the capabilities of desktop mind mapping software in a web browser with no software to install or maintain. Students can create, edit, and share mind maps with teachers and other students.

How to integrate Mindomo into your classroom: Students can use Mindomo to create mind maps for all subjects. Students can create character diagrams, comparison charts, story diagrams, vocabulary word diagrams, timelines, effect of events, experiment maps, food pyramids, scientific processes, life cycles, and more. This tool will be valuable for your visual learners!

Tips: Students have to sign up for a free account to use Mindomo they will need a email address to complete registration process.

 

 

Curious George

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What it is: PBS Kids Curious George website features several games featuring the popular Curious George character for kindergarten students. All games encourage growth in math and science. Students will use counting skills, observation skills, listening skills, logic skills, basic engineering skills, measuring skills, basic addition and subtraction, color creation, mouse manipulation skills, categorizing skills, and recording skills.

How to integrate Curious George into your classroom: Use the Curious George website during math and science time as a center. Students can stop by the center individually if you have a classroom with several computers, or in small groups in the one to two computer classroom. The site has 13 wonderful games that can be used as extended learning activities in math and science class.

Tips: Visit the Teacher section for Extended learning activities, lesson plans, and related video clips. Be sure to bookmark this page for easy access. Because there are so many games, this may be a site you use often to reinforce skills learned in the classroom.

 

 

Planetfesto

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What it is: Planetfesto is a website dedicated to creating an Internet ribbon large enough to stretch around the planet. Students add their own six inches to the ribbon by creating a simple panel expressing their love for the Earth and a pledge to change something small in their life that might affect the earth.

How to integrate Planetfesto into your classroom: Planetfesto would be a great Earth Day activity for the classroom. Students can create their own tribute to the planet (on paper and scanned in or in a graphics program) or choose a picture from the site that demonstrates how they view the planet. Students then type a paragraph about why they love the planet and their pledge to personally protect it. There are some ideas for students to choose from for their pledge.

Tips: Your students will be proud to be part of the “bigger picture” with this ribbon that wraps around the world. Students can share their work by using Planetfesto’s search feature.

Planetfesto has been nominated for an Edublog Award!!  Vote for them here.  Congratulations Planetfesto!

 

 

Secrets @ Sea

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What it is: Secrets @ Sea is the worlds first online ocean adventure learning game. This curriculum based adventure story is targeted for 4th through 7th grade students. The engaging website game complements ocean-theme units of study and enhances students learning experiences using the Internet. Student play the starring role of “Ace”, assistant investigator to Paula Pacific, who is assigned to examine unusual behaviors noticed in killer whale populations in the Alanamorris Strait. As Ace progress through the story, s(he) must successfully complete a number of ocean-related learning activities. The knowledge gained from completing these activities leads the student to the solution of the case.

How to integrate Secrets @ Sea into the classroom: There are four main ocean themes to complement units of study, marine mammals and food webs; salmon, herring and plankton; tides, oceans and mapping; and features of the ocean floor, currents. Individual sections can be completed during a typical classroom computer lab session (30-45 minutes), or all sections can be played together in a longer session. Students can work through the site individually or with the entire class, in partners, or in small groups.

Tips: Visit the Teachers Guide for an overview, introduction, important features, a break down of chapters, learning outcomes, technical specs, extension activities, and engaging science.

 

 

Inspired Learning

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What it is: Inspired learning is a collection of lesson plans and ideas for using visual software such as Inspiration, and Kidspiration in the classroom.

How to integrate Inspired Learning into your curriculum: Use Inspired Learning for ideas and lessons to integrate visual software into the classroom. If you don’t already have visual, mind mapping software, you can download Free Mind open source (free) software to use with the lessons and ideas.

Tips: Click on the Educators Resource page on Inspired Learning for a free trial version of Inspiration and Kidspiration.

 

 

Airtight Interactive

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What it is: Airtight Interactive is a Flickr connected program that allows students to search a word and see various other words associated with the initial word.

How to integrate Airtight Interactive into your curriculum: Use Airtight Interactive to build word maps for association. When students are given a new vocabulary word, they can create a map using software such as Inspiration with a definition, synonyms, antonyms and the word used in a sentence. Airtight will give students a starting point to understand how words are associated.

Tips: Be sure to search words that students will search before letting them loose on Airtight Interactive. Because Airtight is Flickr connected, pictures aren’t always school appropriate.

 

 

Pod’s Mission

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What it is: Pod’s Mission is dedicated to teaching kids science in a fun, interactive environment. Topics include bones, electricity, and solids and liquids.

How to integrate Pod’s Mission into your science classroom: Set up classroom computers during science time as an interactive learning center. Students can begin a unit by exploring on Pod’s Mission, as practice during a unit, or as a culminating activity at the end of the unit.

Tips: Visit the teacher guide for a site overview, curriculum relevance, lesson plans (online and offline), classroom activities, and printable worksheets.