Resources
By Annelise Collins
10 Resources from List
Resource 1: Dot to Dot
Resource 2: Commonly Confused Words
Resource 3: Grimms' Fairy Tales
Storynory storyteller Natasha Gostwick reads sixteen Grimm fairy tales, for your enjoyment at the computer, or for downloading to your MP3 player. Take Storynory with you." Each illustrated story page includes both the audio version and a transcription, so your early reader can read along.
Website: http://www.storynory.com/category/fairy-tales/brothers-grimm/
Resource 4: Punctuation
One example is Eats, Shoots & Leaves. This interactive punctuation game from British author Lynne Truss is based on her best-selling "Eats, Shoots & Leaves" grammar book. The title of her book is based on the following grammar joke. Panda walks into a restaurant and eats lunch. When the check arrives, he takes a gun from his pocket, shoots into the air and runs out of the restaurant. The waiter chases after him, shouting about the bill. In response, the panda tosses him a badly punctuated wildlife manual and says "I'm a panda. Look it up." The waiter opens up the book and reads, "Pandas: eats, shoots and leaves."
Website: http://www.savethecomma.com/game/
Resource 5: Bald Eagles
There is a website all about bald eagles, it has everything you would ever need to know.
Website: http://www.baldeagleinfo.com/
Resource 6: Thanksgiving Writing Prompts
When you’re making your own list of things to be thankful for this Thanksgiving, be sure to include the joy on the faces of your students as they journal. With an effective list of elementary writing prompts. Journaling is a wonderful tool for students to explore their thought processes and to work on their communication skills. The website entitled Journal Buddies, has 78 elementary Thanksgiving writing prompts to choose one, there is bound for one to work in your classroom!
Resource 7: Eleanor Roosevelt
Although the full video from this PBS television special is not available online, there is lots ofmaterial worth seeing. It includes a biography, a time line, bonus video clips and an multimedia interactive about Eleanor's goodwill tour of the South Pacific in 1943. "To make her trip useful, Eleanor, traveling as a representative of the Red Cross, inspected the organization's installations on the islands. She kept the plans of her trip a secret and made the 10,000 mile journey to Australia alone so as not to incur criticism for disrupting military operations
Link: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/biography/eleanor-biography/
Resource 8: Money Smarts
At three to eight years old, your child may be too young to manage an actual bank accounts but this doesn't mean they can't start learning about them. With a Beanz account, kids receive a virtual currency controlled by the teacher. They can then put their Beanz into a savings or checking account and watch it grow. This is a fun way to reward kids for doing their homework or being on their best behavior. If you choose to, you can later reward kids by redeeming their Beanz for money or other rewards.
Link: http://countmybeanz.com/
Resource 9: Internet Safety
KidsCom presents ten rules for Internet safety (don't give out personal information), online manners (always be polite), and copyright law (don't use pictures from someone else's Web site). The best part of the site is the two games that reinforce the rules. Mouser is for four- to eight-year olds, with the questions read aloud. Keybo is for eight- to twelve-year olds, with multiple choice and fill-in-the-missing-word questions. This interactive component makes this safety site is must-see.
Resource 10: Renaissance
Like a mini-vacation, Italy Guides brings you the best of Florence with QuickTime Virtual Realty tours, downloadable audio tours in MP3 format, and a photo gallery. Virtual tours are available for the Duomo (cathedral) of Florence, the Giotto's Bell Tower, the Dome of Brunelleschi, and twelve other sights. Last month when I was in Florence with my family, our hotel was adjacent to the piazza Santa Maria Novella, so seeing that tour brought back some great memories.
Link: http://www.italyguides.it/us/florence/florence_italy.htm
3 Additional Resources
Resource 11: Rivers
"Rivers are an essential part of our world. Since the beginning of time, people have traveled on them and built cities along them. Rivers have provided food as well as a source of commerce and entertainment for centuries." This multimedia exploration for third through fifth grade students, introduces river basics, describes their importance, and includes a section on river explorers such as Henry Hudson, and Lewis and Clark. There is a Teacher's Guide that outlines classroom activities, and a River Resource page with additional site recommendations.
Link: http://urbanext.illinois.edu/rivers/
Resource 12: Neptune
"How much would you weigh on Neptune? If you weigh 70 pounds (32 kg) on the Earth, you would weigh 78.5 pounds (36 kg) on Neptune." Kids Astronomy's Neptune page has Fast Facts and a short Neptune lesson. At the bottom of the page is a link to a page about Neptune's moons. "Due to its great distance from the Earth it is extremely difficult for us to see any of Neptune's moons. For that reason most of its moons were not discovered until 1989 when NASA sent a satellite to explore the world."
Resource 13: Cleopatra
King Tut One presents Cleopatra's biography in five parts, with a special emphasis on her childhood years. Cleopatra's father, Ptolemy XII, was an unpopular ruler because of the greed and corruption that marked his reign. But he lavished his six children with luxury and the finest education his money could buy. "Because of this attention to education, Cleopatra studied philosophy, literature, art, music, medicine, and was able to speak six different languages. These languages were Aramaic, Egyptian, Ethiopic, Greek, Hebrew, and Latin."
Link: http://www.kingtutone.com/queens/cleopatra/
5 Videos
Video 1: Equivalent Fractions
Video 2: Phonics Song
Video 3: Liberty Kids: #06 "The Shot Heard Round the World"
Video 4: How to make a Paper Plate Duck!
Video 5: Space School Neptune
Edited using EdPuzzle
Original Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EmUvTH7sveg#t=26