Here’s another place to find resources, this time on Internet Safety: HCPS ISAFE. These activities, ready for you to use in your classroom or in the computer lab, were shared by the ITRTs from Hanover County at the VSTE conference! Check them out!
Category: Links
Resources for Integrating Technology with Marzano’s Instructional Stategies
I have had the opportunity to attend some really great sessions in the last two days at VSTE, and I am trying to get around to posting what I’ve learned. This site, Putting the Pieces Together: Integrating Technology with Marzano’s Instructional Strategies, is at the top of my list because it matches so closely to some of our division’s goals…and it’s just an incredibly huge resource! It was put together by Sheri Miller, an ITRT for Gloucester County, VA. It contains resources to match the instructional strategies from the book, Classroom Instruction that Works by Robert J. Marzano, Debra J. Pickering, Jane E. Pollock. Sheri has taken the researched-based strategies from the book and compiled ready-to-use resources that allow teachers to integrate technology with activities that match the strategies:
- Similarities & Differences
- Summarizing & Note-Taking
- Effort & Recognition
- Homework & Practice
- Non-Linguistics Representations
- Cooperative Learning
- Objectives & Feedback, Hypotheses
- Questions, Cutes, & Advanced Organizers.
The section on Summarizing and Note-Taking even includes strategies for integrating technology into Interactive Note-Taking (an upcoming in-service at our March 7 Professional Development Day)! And the best part? The activities are all ready-to-use in programs our schools already have: Kidspiration, Inspiration, Kidpix, Word, Excel, PowerPoint or on the web. It’s incredible!! Thanks Sheri, for a great session and an invaluable resource!
If that’s not enough, Gloucester County has also put together a great repository of websites matching the SOLs on their Elementary K-5 Resource page! I will definitely be spending some time looking through all these resources in the weeks after the conference!
Online Testing Practice Sites
Just wanted to pass along a website that was mentioned for SOL practice in the 5th grade meeting yesterday. It came from Mary Hollar at West Salem Elementary. It’s called www.thatquiz.org, and it has online review problems for Math…including a way to practice with a protractor and a ruler (be careful, though, since the cm ruler on this site starts at the end of the ruler).
There is also an entire page of links that Pam and I have put together to allow you to practice for SOL tests using computers, including released practice tests from prior years (they don’t look exactly like the test, but they are still good practice). Take a look when you have a chance. To find it, go to Your school’s homepage>Students>Links for Kids>Your Grade Level>Online Testing Practice or click here.
If you know of anything else that should be added to this page, please, please let me know. The more ideas and resources we have, the better!! 🙂
Websites to Use with the Smartboard
Finally, this wasn’t really a question, but it is a reminder from me. Don’t forget to use websites with SMART Boards.
I’m creating some ready-to-go pages listing websites (by subject) with links to sites that work well with SMARTboards. It’s taking me some time because there are so many out there. You can check out what I have at the moment on the SCS SMART Board Sites for Kids page (Your school homepage > Students > Links for Kids > SMART board sites for kids). Meanwhile, if you want to start looking for your own, or suggest some to me, that would be great! Here are a few sites that already list a bunch…
And this is a great blog to follow…Teachers Love SMART Boards….there’s always new and exciting posts about using SMART Boards in the classroom.
I keep a list in my delicious account too (though it is getting very long): http://del.icio.us/tcoffey/smartboard
While you are looking, if you find a good one, please, please leave me a comment and share it. I’ll add it to the SCS SMART Board page so that others can use it too!!
National Geographic Magazine Links
If your class receives one of the monthly editions of National Geographic Explorer, you might want to check out the website that goes with the magazine!
National Geographic Young Explorer (Grades K-1)
Even if you don’t subscribe to the magazine, you will love this site! Here you will find an interactive version of the magazine posted online. It will read the stories to the students and allow them to virtually “flip” through the pages.
Suggestions:
Talk about a great way to use the Smartboard! Have your students find and underline important words, sounds, or punctuation and/or write in the answers to the question with the Smartboard pens.
National Geographic Explorer (Pioneer Edition) (Grades 2-3)
National Geographic Explorer (Pathfinder Edition) (Grades 4-5)
Here you will find online activities (games, quizzes, videos, pictures) to go with each month’s topics. They also link to the full text of one of articles in the magazine.Suggestions:
Have the students individually complete the online activity with the laptops after reading the corresponding article. If time is limited, the class could also complete the activity together using the Smartboard. Also, use the Smartboard to read the online version of the article together. Use the Smartboard pens to find important context clues, vocabulary words, main ideas, facts, etc. directly on the online version of the article.
Also…while you are looking at National Geographic, make sure to check out the main kids site… National Geographic for Kids
I could get lost on this site for hours. It contains articles, games, pictures, videos, news, activities….all in a very interactive and kid-friendly way.
Suggestions:
Have students watch videos and play games that align with units in Science, Health, and Social Studies. Read the stories and complete activities and games in Language Arts (like Photo Fill-ins or the Cartoon Factory). Have students research animals for projects and find information in the form of pictures, words AND video. Check out the Young Explorer World Atlas in Social Studies. There are so many things to choose from…take a look and see what you find!
How Your Students Can Find These Links:
I’ve posted a link to the site on the SCS Links for Kids Page. To find it, go to your school’s website and click Students > Links for Kids, choose your grade level, and look under Science.
Teaching with Technology 