Educational Technology Spotlight: Favorites from an Elementary Teacher

Margie Christoffer is the computer teacher at Pleasant View Elementary School.  She compiled a list of educational websites to let grade school children use during computer class.  We thought you might like to see it too!

pbskids.org – games

crayola.com – treasure hunt

earthsky.com – universe info

madsci.org – science

historychannel.com – history info

jackhanna.com – animals pictures

funbrain.com – games

geographic.org – countries info

learn2type.com – typing practice

google.com/sky – galaxy live shots

h t t p ://bit.ly/le1ES – Cool Brain info

wordworld.com – reading K-2

vocabulary.co.il – games about words

AAAmath.com – math games

coolmath.com – math games

Educational Technology Spotlight: TheToyMaker.com

Your art budget may be shrinking, but www.TheToyMaker.com has lots of printables that you could use in your classroom, youth center or home:

Animal & Bug Friends
A Sun Box	Bear Wagon	Bunny Bowling!	Marble Mice!	Snail Mail	Bug Box	Penny Butterfly	Butterfly Basket
Bunny Basket	Patrin’s Frog	Animal Friends	TRex Card	Racing Turtles	Rocking Horse	Panda Palace	Adventures of Florimel
Koi Kites	Polar Bear	Finger Puppets	Laughing Ponies	Paper Butterflies	The Dog Show!	Butterfly Card	Paper Birds

Educational Technology Spotlight: National Gallery of Art

National Gallery of Art presents a series on exploring art through technology.  Here are their featured programs, all available for free:

Collage Machine • Mobile • PixelFace • 3-D Twirler • Cubits • Diamonds • Dutch House • Photo Op • PaintBox

Wallovers • RiverRun • SwatchBox • Flow • Jungle • Brushster • Still Life • Faces and Places • Sea-Saws

NGAkids Home

Educational Technology Spotlight: Neuroscience for Kids

Neuroscience for Kids – Letting kids take a trip inside of a brain.  Check out all of these resources that help kids figure out how their brains work:

Brain Games
Can your eyes deceive you? How good is your memory? Do you like to play games or challenge your friends? Then check out the brain teasers, puzzles, games and jokes related to the nervous system. Also, get in on the neuroscience web search treasure hunt and compete for the “Golden Neuron Award”.

Outside Games
Anyone ready for a game of “Synaptic Tag”?

Neuroscience Coloring Book
Color any or all of these pictures to make your own coloring book.

Brain Worksheets and Lessons
Games, puzzles, activities and lesson ready to print. Some require access to this site; others are great off-line activities to keep your brain busy.

Creative Writing Projects
Don’t settle for a boring report. Try a creative writing project!

Reflexes
Quick! What was that? Jump, kick, and grab it before it hits the floor. How good are your reflexes? Quick and easy experiments are here for you to try.

The Senses: Taste–Smell–Vision–Touch–Hearing
Lots of experiments to explore how we learn about the world around us: smell, taste, touch, see and hear. Great teacher resources and plenty of links. Perhaps a science fair project too.

Sidedness
Most people are right-handed. Are they also right-footed? Right-eyed? Right-eared? Find out here.

Sleep and Dreaming
Do you remember your dreams? How much do animals sleep? Why do we sleep? Go here to find out.

Memory and Learning
Would you be a good detective? Have you noticed what color eyes your best friend has? Can you remember what you had for dinner last night? Techniques and activities to help us remember and understand how our brain “arranges” information.

Biological Rhythms
Keeping track of time with our internal clock. Our sleep patterns, body temperature, and our alertness are controlled by an internal clock. Would this internal clock still work if you were in the dark 24 hours a day? Do other animals have an internal clock? Find out…

Brain Injury
Protect your brain! It’s the only one you’ve got.

Working Students
See photographs of students working on “Neuroscience for Kids” projects.

Gallery of Student’s Work
See what projects and artwork some students have created and add your own masterpiece to the collection.

Brain Songs
Sing along with songs about the nervous system.

Friday Playday: Games That Give

GamesThatGive.net is a new website that allows you to play online games free, and they make donations to the charity of your choice. I love it!  I’ve included some of the games below.  They don’t have direct academic correlations, but you can use the opportunity to educate youth about some great charities, including Ronald McDonald House, CityYear, DoSomething, United Way, and many others.  So go play – and feel great about the time you spend building your brain AND your community!

Educational Technology Spotlight: Math is Fun

My mother-in-law is a 3rd grade teacher, so she enjoys collecting online resources that build a commitment to learning. She sent me a great website for helping kids realize that math is much more than just boring numbers.

Math is Fun is a free website with games, worksheets, puzzles, and activities that help children practice and master math skills – while having fun!

It’s a great resource for teachers, after-school program coordinators and parents to introduce to children!

Educational Technology Spotlight: Charitii Crossword Game

Play a crossword-like multiple choice word game at http://www.charitii.com/ and donate money to charity for each question you answer correctly.  You get to choose the charity for your donations – see the list here.

**This builds the Commitment to Learning Assets**

Educational Technology Spotlight: www.edhelper.com

www.edhelper.com is full of unit studies for elementary school.    Click on the links below, or visit their site for more info.

Educational Technology Spotlight: www.abcteach.com

www.abcteach.com offers a plethora of educational resources for multiple subject areas.  Primarily for K-8 classrooms.  Here are some of the categories that you can explore for printables and lessons:

• Art
• Science
• Counseling
• Social Studies
• Handwriting
• Sports / P.E.
• ESL/Languages
• Reading
• Language Arts
• Technology
• Math
• Testing (Practice)
• Music

• Interactive
• Audio and Video
• Powerpoint
• ABC Activities
• Fun Activities
• Holidays/Seasonal
• Theme Units
• Research/Reports
• Teaching Extras
• Think Green
• Learning Centers
• Clip Art
• Reading Comps
• Flashcards

Pre-K / Early Elementary

Middle School

Homeschoolers and Parents

Montessori

Special Needs

Educational Technology Spotlight: Change your World Videos

Change your World Videos – our collection of youtube music videos and movie clips chosen to inspire youth to serve.  We’d love to add YOUR favorites to the collection!  You can add them directly on the youtube site or add them in the comment box below.

Educational Technology Spotlight: Sparks

A spark is something that gives your life meaning and purpose. It’s an interest, a passion, or a gift.”  —Dr. Peter Benson, author of Sparks: How Parents Can Help Ignite the Hidden Strengths of Teenagers

Learn about Sparks: 

• What Are Sparks?
• Why Do Sparks Matter?
• What Is a Spark Champion?
• What Is Thriving?

Use the Sparkfinder tool to help young people identify their sparks and find resources to help them discover more about themselves.

The “Make Sparks Fly” program is a series of 15 student lessons based on the “Fifteen Actions to Support 15-Year-Olds” outlined in Best Buy’s Teen Voice 2009: The Untapped Strengths of 15-Year-Olds. The lessons are most appropriate for language arts, social studies and career exploration and advisory classes. The program will help teens reflect on their “spark,” find their voices and develop the relationships critical to success in their endeavors. In each lesson, students will engage in self-reflection, read about relevant topics in USA TODAY and be directed to take action on the @15 website. At the end of the program, students will have a portfolio of ideas and inspirations that will help them turn their sparks into achievable goals.

All resources are free, but you must first log into the site.