Liberty Kids

December 10, 2009Kelly Tenkely1 Comment2167 views

What it is: Liberty Kids teaches about Colonial life in America through a variety of educational activities. Students can explore the animated “Now and Then” segments which compare and contrast various lifestyles, cultural, technological, and health issues from the Revolutionary War period and life in the 21st century. The Liberty News Maker lets students create newspapers that include headlines, stories, and pictures. Students can engage in games and activities that allow them to discover important information about how the United States was founded. The Revolution Archive allows students to learn more about historical figures of the Revolution. Here students will find artists renderings and historical facts about important people, places, and events from the time period. The site also includes a great teacher section that includes ideas for making the Colonial period relevant to your students, on and off line activities for students to complete, and scripts for short plays that students can perform where they will hear the voices of slaves and free men, American Indians, women, and a poor immigrant.

How to integrate Liberty Kids into the classroom: My 5th grade students LOVE Liberty Kids. They especially enjoy watching the “Now and Then” video clips together as a class. (In fact, their homeroom teacher has started using these clips as a reward in her classroom.) This site bring history to a kid level and helps them understand history as it relates to them. Students get a great view of what life was like during the Revolutionary War as well as learn about key events, people, and places of the Colonial period. Use the play scripts to connect your students to the lesser known voices during the Revolutionary War. Let them explore the site individually on classroom computers or explore as a class with an interactive whiteboard or with a projector. The animated video clips and Revolution Archive can be used with the whole class but the games are best for students to play individually on their own computer. After students have a good understanding of Colonial Life, they can create and print out a newspaper cover that they create.

Tips: There are some CBS advertisements on this site that will be very appealing to students. Make sure that they know which portions of the site are advertisements and which are part of the Liberty Kids website. This is a great opportunity to teach students about how to spot an advertisement and why websites use advertising.

Leave a comment and share how you are using Liberty Kids in your classroom.

Vote for iLearn Technology in the 2009 edublog awards!

December 9, 2009Kelly Tenkely3 Comments7773 views

I am so flattered and excited for iLearn Technology to be included in the 2009 edublog awards this year. Thank you all for continued support, encouragement, and feedback!

To vote for iLearn Technology visit here.

Don’t forget to vote for all the other excellent education bloggers here. It is rough competition this year, there are so many talented educators! If you are new to the world of edublogging, the award lists includes must read blogs to get you started.

Secret Builders Update

December 8, 2009December 8, 2009Kelly Tenkely1 Comment2690 views

What it is: I have reviewed Secret Builders virtual world before, but some new additions and features deserve another post. Secret Builders is a virtual world for kids (8-12) that introduces them to fictional characters from history and literature. Secret Builders has added a host of new historical characters that students can interact with including: Jane Austen, Bach, Alexander Bell, Emily Bronte, Confucius, Marie Curie, Thomas Edison, Hafez, Magellen, Omar Khxyam, Motzart, Issac Newton, Rumi, and Lao Tzu just to name a few. Students can actually visit the historical figures house, learn more about them, interact with them by asking questions in a virtual chat (answered as the character would answer), and take a quiz to find out how much they know about the historical figure. Secret Builders allows kids to get up close and personal with history in ways not previously possible. It allows them to gain a better understanding of historical figures than a textbook offers. Secret Builders has additional school friendly features like areas for students to write, collaboratively draw and share, and play educational puzzle games. Secret Builders also has a great Internet safety quiz that tests students on their knowledge of what online behavior should look like. Secret Builders has just added a Teacher’s Console where teachers can add and manage their students from one central location. Teachers can also set up an online reward system for students where they can unlock special Secret Builder features by completing “quests” that you assign. For example, you may be studying Thomas Edison in class. You could send students on a quest to find and learn about Thomas Edison and give the reward to those students that correctly complete the quiz.

How to integrate Secret Builders into the classroom: Secret Builders is an excellent way to bring history to life for your students. They will understand historical and literary figures better as they interact with them in this virtual world. Secret Builders is best in a lab setting where every student has access to a computer. Be sure to sign your class up under a teacher account where you can control and monitor what students are expected to do in Secret Builders. Encourage students to interact and “interview” the historical figures that they encounter. They can then write an article about the historical figure for the Secret Builders virtual newspaper. Secret Builders is a great first stop for learning about important figures in history. It will leave them wanting more and excited to learn more about these interesting people in history.

Tips: Secret Builders also has a program that is connected called “One for All” students can raise money for their school by answering math, logic, geography, and vocabulary questions.

Leave a comment and share how you are using Secret Builders in your classroom.

Edublog Award Nominations 2009

December 7, 2009December 7, 2009Kelly Tenkely4 Comments1692 views

The 2009 Edublog Awards

After digging through 60+ feeds in my RSS reader, I have finally narrowed down my nominations for this years Edublog Awards. It is getting harder and harder to choose my favorites!

Best individual blog– Once Upon a Teacher because like Melanie, I am addicted to learning.
Best individual tweeter– Shelly Terrell because she is always tweeting and retweeting awesome resources for education and keeps the conversation going!
Best new blog- Favorite Parent because all parents should be armed with the power to make the school experience the best it can be.
Best class blog– Miss McMillan’s Blog because of the ways that she engages her students with technology and love.
Best student blog– EDucation ToGoBox because what is better than students recommending edtech?
Best resource sharing blog – Aside from iLearn Technology 🙂 Free Tech for Teachers is a must! Great resources, especially beneficial for middle and high school.
Most influential blog post– Random Musings because of Mike’s insightful look on education and the changes that must come.

Most influential tweet / series of tweets / tweet based discussion– Hands down Steven Anderson for keeping us all thinking, learning, and involved in change.

Best teacher blog- Math Models– Excellent ideas for the math classroom with step by step application.

Best educational tech support blog– edu.Mac.nation because they understand the genius of Mac and spread that joy around.

Best Library/Librarian blog- TLC = Tech + Library + Classroom because it is an excellent look at books, technology, and learning.
Best elearning / corporate education blog- Love Learning because it is an excellent look at multisensory strategies to reach every child.

Best educational use of audio– Cool Teachers Podcast because Chris always teaches me something new.

Lifetime achievement – 2 cents worth by David Warlick. Have loved reading since I broke into edtech.

Skratch Track

December 2, 2009Kelly Tenkely3 Comments3180 views

What it is: Skratch Track is an amazing virtual bookshelf for primary students. It uses the same idea behind Shelfari, giving students a virtual bookshelf where they can track which books they are reading, rate the book, write a little synopsis of the book, and even turn in a virtual book report to earn Skratch Track awards. The interface of this site is very easy for primary kiddos to use independently. Students can keep up to 15 books on their bookshelf at a time (for free account). Parents or teachers sign up for an account and add children accounts to their head account. Parents and teachers can then receive reports about what books kids are reading, and a copy of the book report they complete. The book report asks students questions such as: was this book real or make believe?, How did you complete the book? (someone read it to me, I read it by myself), genre of the book, favorite characters in the book, new words learned, favorite part of the story, moral of the story, how hard was the book to read?, how did the book make you feel?, did the book remind you of something that happened to you in real life?, and did the book remind you of another book you have read?.

How to integrate Skratch Track into the classroom: Skratch Track is a great alternative to the paper reading log. Students will be proud to show off their virtual bookshelves and awards on their Skratch Track account. No more keeping track of the reading log between home and school, no more extra copies, or ‘the dog ate my homework’ excuses. Skratch Track is a great way for students to show what they are reading, how it was read (independently or with help) and makes it simple to keep track of what your students are reading at home. The mini book reports help students to check comprehension. They can rate the book, think about genre, record new words learned, write about their favorite part of the story, rate how difficult the book was to read, and make connections to their life and connections to other literature. Each time a student completes a book report or earns an award, teachers or parents are notified by email and on the parent account page. Skratch Track keeps teachers and parents connected to what children are reading so that they can begin to gauge comprehension and writing levels.

Tips: The free Skratch Track account allows a parent or teacher to sign up 2 children, record up to 15 books, and earn the first 3 awards. To record additional books, earn all of the available awards, or sign up more children is $19.99 annually. Skratch Track will work with educators, schools, and libraries to make bulk accounts available and affordable. If you plan on using this with students as a reading log, it may be worth purchasing an account.

Leave a comment and share how you are using Skratch Track in your classroom.

Black Friday Giveaway from Currclick!

November 26, 2009Kelly TenkelyLeave a Comment1332 views

Big Huge Thesaurus

November 23, 2009Kelly Tenkely3 Comments2343 views

What it is: Big Huge Thesaurus is a must add to your classroom publishing center. The tag line of Big Huge Thesaurus says it all: “synonyms, antonyms, and rhymes (oh my!)”. Big Huge Thesaurus goes beyond other online thesauruses by giving students a wealth of synonyms (for each part of speech), words that sound like the original word, and rhyming words. When students find a word that they are curious about, they can click the link and it will send that word through the Big Huge Thesaurus.

How to integrate Big Huge Thesaurus into the classroom: If you have classroom computers, set up a writing/publishing center where students have all the resources they need to write. Big Huge Thesaurus should be one of those resources. Students can visit the writing center to add richness and interest to their stories, poems, and other writing. This Thesaurus does an excellent job of breaking down words. Use Big Huge Thesaurus on an interactive whiteboard or projector when learning new vocabulary. Type in the vocabulary word and have students construct its meaning using the synonyms that are generated.

Tips: I learned about Big Huge Thesaurus on Twitter this morning from several of my PLN. If you aren’t on Twitter with other educators, I highly recommend joining and following the fine folks I follow!

Leave a comment and share how you are using Big Huge Thesaurus in your classroom.

BrainPop Jr.: Thanksgiving

November 23, 2009November 23, 2009Kelly Tenkely1 Comment2905 views

What it is: BrainPop is usually a paid service. This week, BrainPop Jr. is offering their Thanksgiving with Annie and Mobi for free. The video teaches students about the first Thanksgiving and includes plenty of facts about the Pilgrims, the Wampanoag, and the famous harvest feast. The video includes several discussion and dig-deeper questions throughout. The questions appear on a notebook next to the video. You can pause the video when the questions appear for a class discussion or for independent reflection in a journal. You can print out an accompanying notebook page that lists all of the questions from the video. At the end of the video, you can choose to “learn more” about the first Thanksgiving with additional activities, crafts, games, suggested reading, drawing, writing, interactive word wall, and quizzes.

How to integrate BrainPop Jr.: Thanksgiving into the classroom: The BrainPop Jr. Thanksgiving video is a fun way to teach about the history of Thanksgiving to younger students. The video is about 4 minutes long and includes multiple opportunities for discussion and check points for understanding. There are also additional follow up activities. Some of the activities are for print (a Thanksgiving “what I’m thankful for” turkey), and some are to be completed on the computer. Watch the video as a class with an interactive whiteboard or projector. Set up your classroom computer with the “learn more” activities for students to complete as a center activity. Alternatively, students could watch and complete the activities independently in the computer lab setting. The interactive word wall is a great way for students to learn some of the vocabulary associated with Thanksgiving.

Tips: Print out the Thanksgiving Notebook for your students to fill out as they watch the video. Thank you to @mrscoggin for sharing this freebie on Twitter!

Leave a comment and share how you are using BrainPop Jr.: Thanksgiving in your classroom.

Track My T

November 19, 2009Kelly Tenkely5 Comments26866 views

What it is: Track My T is a truly impressive website that I learned about from @dianadell on Twitter. Track my T lets students type in the unique lot number on their t-shirt and then go through an amazing interactive journey tracking their t-shirt from its very beginning as a cotton seed on a farm, to every step before they bought it. Students can track their actual t-shirt or choose a random t-shirt to follow. On their journey students will learn about picking cotton, the cotton gin, yarn spinners, textile mills, cut and sew factories, and distribution centers. This is an incredible journey that teaches students the process that goods go through before they end up in the local store. Each stop on the journey includes video, images, and information about what happens during that part of the t-shirt creation process. In addition, students will learn about and encounter historical figures like Eli Whitney. At the end of the journey students can check out their custom T tag, learn more about the screen printing process, and learn how to reduce their carbon footprint.

How to integrate Track My T into the classroom: Track My T is an amazing site. From beginning to end your students will be engaged and enthralled with this website. The ability to track their actual t-shirt is really something! Use this activity as a whole class with an interactive whiteboard, as a center activity in the classroom, or individually in the computer lab setting. As a follow up activity, have students put placemarks on a Google Earth map on the location where their t-shirt/pants/shoes were made. This activity could easily be expanded to the geography classroom (perfect for national geography week which is this week!). Students could do additional research about the country where their t-shirt originated from. To expand the activity even more, have students Tweet about their findings, see if they can get a response from someone that lives in that country.

Tips: Be sure to take a look at the accompanying lesson plan on Track My T. The lesson teaches students all about fair trade.

Leave a comment and share how you are using Track My T in your classroom.

Scholastic’s The First Thanksgiving

November 18, 2009Kelly Tenkely1 Comment3577 views

What it is: Scholastic has amazing resources all year long but the interactive on The First Thanksgiving is topnotch! Students learn about how the Pilgrims reached America, and what daily life was before the First Thanksgiving. Students can take a tour of the Mayflower, take the virtual journey to America, compare and contrast modern life with when the Pilgrims lived (housing, clothes, food, chores, school, games), and the Thanksgiving feast. There is a great slideshow and play a webquest feature where kids can learn more about the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag and the famous harvest feast. The site includes audio for every page and activity. This is great for younger students.

How to integrate Scholastic’s The First Thanksgiving into the classroom: The First Thanksgiving is a collection of great activities for students to learn about Thanksgiving and the Pilgrims. Students can use this site independently as young as first grade because of the audio features on The First Thanksgiving. The site can be used as a center activity that a few students can explore together, independently in the computer lab setting, or as a whole class with a projector or interactive whiteboard. The webquest at the end of the activity checks for student understanding with a quiz. Increase students participation further with some The First Thanksgiving bonus features and extras. Print out a Thanksgiving Readers theater, door signs, a fact hunt, a vocabulary quiz, and some letters from historical figures. There are also research and historical fiction journals that students can continue learning with. These range from a Plymoth Colony research starter to Our America: Colonial period.

Tips: Check out Scholastic’s Teaching resources for The First Thanksgiving as well as the literature connections that are available.

Leave a comment and share how you are using The First Thanksgiving in your classroom.