Teacher Web Tools

Thanks again for understanding about missing class last week. Hopefully this latest eye surgery for my Mom will work!

I'm not sure if you watch "The Office" on NBC, but last week's episode featured Second Life. It was a funny segment about how far removed users are from reality and featured some graphics from the site. Very funny, check it out!

World Book Encyclopedia allows you to search for available videos, atlas and dictionary. There is a wide range of tools that will apply to elementary and high school levels. Also, it is very user friendly for teachers providing helpful links to lesson plans (great ideas to use). I also like the tab about Connecticut. (Everything from entertainers to political leaders are featured) This could be used in several subjects, and will make it fun for students to learn about fun state facts

Brainpop appears to be modern and definitely appeals to a younger crowd. It incorporates fun graphics to grab the users’ attention. Under English, the tabs range from basic grammar lessons to more specific topics like poetry, outlines, public speaking and even features summaries of popular literature for young adults. I was immediately drawn to the movies about Harry Potter and author Agatha Christie, because these were the novels I was most interested in as a kid. By using Tim and Moby as guides to the site, students are drawn to the lessons.

TeAchnology is a bit more streamlined which appeals to parents and teachers. It incorporates tabs that most of the other sites feature, including lesson plans and worksheets. What I liked the best was the helpful tips on how to construct a rubric. Rubric Studio provided helpful ideas on how to get started and provided a basic template for any rubric.

I was a little confused by PrimoPDF because I don’t really have a need to convert files to PDF. I’m sure as I get older and start to teach, that need will shift, but as of now, no. Maybe when we start to build our websites for our final exam I will use this site more. The template was nice and it seems easy to do and the fact that it’s free doesn’t hurt.

I really liked Charts and Graphs because I’m so bored with Excel. This site is fun and attention grabbing and they are clearly targeting a younger crowd with its bubbly home page. This will help math teachers, but also any other teacher who wants to present information in a different manner. English teachers could use this if they want the class to create their own newspaper publication. Charts and graphs are very flashy and eye catching. It also helps you decide which type of graph would be appropriate for your lesson. I liked the grabbag tab that had several fun options like quizzes, videos to watch, word searches and other brain teachers. This is very interactive and students will appreciate this section.

I liked the competing websites for concept maps. This is a new term for me, but it sounds like it is a place to share opinions, facts, and critiques within the community. Cmap tools explained their purpose and goals better than Inspiration Software, Inc. leading me to explore their site more. I also felt their format was more appropriate, using a cleaner approach. Students might be more drawn to Inspiration Software, Inc. However, Inspiration Software, Inc reached out to businesses, students, and teachers in their own separate tab making it specific to the group.

As discussed in class, I enjoy using GradeConnect. I never had experience with WebCt as some of the class has, but it sounds like GradeConnect is more reliable. I like having all of my grades posted and my current average calculated for me. Parents can get more involved with their child’s education by signing up for a membership. From GradeConnect, you can access the course outline by going to the link section, making everything very accessible. Assignments are posted with due dates so there is no confusion. This site makes me feel more aware of what I need to do, and keeps me organized.

Internet4classrooms was a kind of culminating website of helpful teacher tools. Its tagline says it all-Internet tools which makes a teacher's life easier. Review sheets, test makers, and rubrics are all available to the subscriber. These modules are easy to construct and to be used in the classroom. I like the award certificate makers tool; this gives students tanglible praise that make them feel that they've been successful and achieved their goal. It's also fun for the teacher to distribute these awards.

Ok, done for now, but I would be happy to go over the rest of the tools with the class to see what they said about them when they were discussed last week. Also, the conference scheduled this week seems more innovative and exciting than the last!