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Lesson Plan: Nouns and Adjectives Are Not Just Words - TeachersFirst
Grades
K to 3
11 Favorites
0 Comments
This lesson on parts of speech (noun, adjective) is part of a collection of lesson plans featuring multi-sensory approaches to help all learners, including special needs students who...more
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This lesson on parts of speech (noun, adjective) is part of a collection of lesson plans featuring multi-sensory approaches to help all learners, including special needs students who benefit from multiple experiences with concepts. The plans focuses on consistency, repetitiveness, tactile and visual reinforcement--great for children with special needs. The original lesson plans were written by award-winning teacher Nora Coyle of Colorado, a KOAA-TV "Teachers First" Award winner. The staff of TeachersFirst has incorporated technology options, tips, and templates appropriate for younger students into the lesson plan to add yet another way for your students to experience and interact with new concepts.
Many of these ideas and templates can be adapted for use with almost any subject or concepts, to differentiate for different learning styles. The lesson includes national standards.
Many of these ideas and templates can be adapted for use with almost any subject or concepts, to differentiate for different learning styles. The lesson includes national standards.
In the Classroom
Experienced and new teachers alike will find this example helpful in designing multi-sensory, technology-infused lessons.You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
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Lesson Plan: Silly Sentences - TeachersFirst
Grades
K to 0
9 Favorites
0 Comments
This lesson on letter-sound relationships is part of a collection of lesson plans featuring multi-sensory approaches to help all learners, including special needs students who benefit...more
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This lesson on letter-sound relationships is part of a collection of lesson plans featuring multi-sensory approaches to help all learners, including special needs students who benefit from multiple experiences with concepts. The plans focuses on consistency, repetitiveness, tactile and visual reinforcement--great for children with special needs. The original lesson plans were written by award-winning teacher Nora Coyle of Colorado, a KOAA-TV "Teachers First" Award winner. The staff of TeachersFirst has incorporated technology options, tips, and templates appropriate for younger students into the lesson plan to add yet another way for your students to experience and interact with new concepts.
Many of these ideas and templates can be adapted for use with almost any subject or concepts, to differentiate for different learning styles. The lesson includes national standards.
Many of these ideas and templates can be adapted for use with almost any subject or concepts, to differentiate for different learning styles. The lesson includes national standards.
In the Classroom
Experienced and new teachers alike will find this example helpful in designing multi-sensory, technology-infused lessons.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Lesson Plan: Billy Goats Gruff - TeachersFirst
Grades
K to 0
4 Favorites
0 Comments
This lesson for early literacy skills and creating a book is part of a collection of lesson plans featuring multi-sensory approaches to help all learners, including special needs students...more
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This lesson for early literacy skills and creating a book is part of a collection of lesson plans featuring multi-sensory approaches to help all learners, including special needs students who benefit from multiple experiences with concepts. The plans focuses on consistency, repetitiveness, tactile and visual reinforcement--great for children with special needs. The original lesson plans were written by award-winning teacher Nora Coyle of Colorado, a KOAA-TV "Teachers First" Award winner. The staff of TeachersFirst has incorporated technology options, tips, and templates appropriate for younger students into the lesson plan to add yet another way for your students to experience and interact with new concepts.
Many of these ideas and templates can be adapted for use with almost any subject or concepts, to differentiate for different learning styles. The lesson includes national standards.
Many of these ideas and templates can be adapted for use with almost any subject or concepts, to differentiate for different learning styles. The lesson includes national standards.
In the Classroom
Experienced and new teachers alike will find this example helpful in designing multi-sensory, technology-infused lessons.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Lessons for All - TeachersFirst
Grades
K to 6
3 Favorites
0 Comments
This collection of lesson plans features multi-sensory approaches to help all learners, including special needs students who benefit from multiple experiences with concepts. All plans...more
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This collection of lesson plans features multi-sensory approaches to help all learners, including special needs students who benefit from multiple experiences with concepts. All plans focus on consistency, repetitiveness, tactile and visual reinforcement--great for children with special needs. The original lesson plans were written by award-winning teacher Nora Coyle of Colorado, a KOAA-TV "Teachers First" Award winner.
Lesson content includes letter-sound relationships, parts of speech, paragraph writing, sequencing, earth science, animals, egg-laying animals, volcanoes, addition, and more. The staff of TeachersFirst has incorporated technology options, tips, and templates appropriate for younger students into the lesson plans to add yet another way for your students to experience and interact with new concepts.
Many of these ideas and templates can be adapted for use with almost any subjects and concepts, to differentiate for different learning styles. All lessons include national standards. Experienced and new teachers alike will find these examples helpful in designing multi-sensory, technology-infused lessons.
Lesson content includes letter-sound relationships, parts of speech, paragraph writing, sequencing, earth science, animals, egg-laying animals, volcanoes, addition, and more. The staff of TeachersFirst has incorporated technology options, tips, and templates appropriate for younger students into the lesson plans to add yet another way for your students to experience and interact with new concepts.
Many of these ideas and templates can be adapted for use with almost any subjects and concepts, to differentiate for different learning styles. All lessons include national standards. Experienced and new teachers alike will find these examples helpful in designing multi-sensory, technology-infused lessons.
In the Classroom
If your classroom includes special needs learners or simply students who need a multi-sensory approach in order to master new concepts, try these lessons or use them as prototypes as you plan for other curriculum content. If you mentor new teachers or student teachers, share these examples for infusing technology into lessons and for differentiating lessons.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Web Poster Wizard - 4Teachers.org
Grades
K to 12
8 Favorites
0 Comments
Use this terrific online tool for your students to create posters or short reports in a poster format. Create lessons, worksheets, or class pages and instantly publish them online using...more
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Use this terrific online tool for your students to create posters or short reports in a poster format. Create lessons, worksheets, or class pages and instantly publish them online using this free Web Poster Wizard. The teacher sets up an account (for free), and follows simple directions so students can upload images and write about their project or pictures. The site even includes management tools so you can keep separate classes of students and see their work by class.
Plan to spend some time reading through the directions and trying out this tool before you assign it to students. Teachers and students must register and login each time they use this tool. Students can share the URL for their posters with grandparents or parents to show off their good work!
Students will need to know how to locate and upload a file for an image (such as a digital picture) to place it in their poster. If you allow them to use images from the web, the tool asks them to give information on their image source, as well (hooray for ethical use of the Internet!). If you use digital pictures of students, be SURE that you do NOT use full names on the site. You should get parent permission for uploading any student images, even if anonymous.
This site includes advertising.
Plan to spend some time reading through the directions and trying out this tool before you assign it to students. Teachers and students must register and login each time they use this tool. Students can share the URL for their posters with grandparents or parents to show off their good work!
Students will need to know how to locate and upload a file for an image (such as a digital picture) to place it in their poster. If you allow them to use images from the web, the tool asks them to give information on their image source, as well (hooray for ethical use of the Internet!). If you use digital pictures of students, be SURE that you do NOT use full names on the site. You should get parent permission for uploading any student images, even if anonymous.
This site includes advertising.
In the Classroom
Some uses for this simple tool: book reports (take a digital photo of the book cover), biographical posters of famous people (images from the web), "all about me" posters, posters about community members such as veterans of World War II whom students interview and photograph, author posters, fictitious character studies, science posters on processes or terms with accompanying digital pictures to illustrate, etc. The possibilities are endless. Once students know the tool, they can use it over and over.Teachers, make sure you select the archive option to keep student projects live online for more than a month. Use the Teacher Feature option to create one web page of your class' archived projects. You will want to put your created web page link prominently on your class homepage.
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Think Tank - ALTEC at the University of Kansas
Grades
4 to 8
2 Favorites
0 Comments
The next time a research project comes along, send students to this site to help them get organized. Think Tank is designed to assist in the development of topics and ...more
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The next time a research project comes along, send students to this site to help them get organized. Think Tank is designed to assist in the development of topics and subtopics for reports and projects. After defining their subject or perusing a list of suggestions, students are asked to narrow the scope of their project by choosing from a collection of subtopics. Results may be printed.
In the Classroom
Share this site with your students before a new research project is assigned. Have students explore the site on individual computers while you model how to navigate the site on a projector or interactive whiteboard. Use this site to help students narrow down their research topic.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Pics4Learning - Tech4Learning,Inc.
Grades
2 to 12
1 Favorites
0 Comments
Pics4Learning offers free, safe images for educational use. Find pictures using the search feature or by choosing from the categories listed on the home page. Download selected images...more
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Pics4Learning offers free, safe images for educational use. Find pictures using the search feature or by choosing from the categories listed on the home page. Download selected images quickly using the included links to download to computers or Google Drive. Although it isn't required, each image also includes the citation for attributing work to the source.
This site includes advertising.
This site includes advertising.
In the Classroom
Use images from this site with any classroom activities including research papers, blogs, and multimedia presentations. Have students create a simple infographic using images from this site using Canva Infographic Maker, reviewed here, or Venngage,reviewed here. Include images from Pics4Learning when creating screencast explanations. Use a tool like Free Screen Recorder Online, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Writing for Business and Pleasure - Stephen Wilbers
Grades
9 to 12
0 Favorites
0 Comments
Are you looking for a site for students to practice parallel structure? Here is one with practice sentences and interactive answers. Clicking on "Other columns on parallel structure"...more
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Are you looking for a site for students to practice parallel structure? Here is one with practice sentences and interactive answers. Clicking on "Other columns on parallel structure" will take you to two columns defining the concept or parallel structure and explaining why it makes writing so much more readable and memorable. There are other links at the bottom of the page and clicking on the "Home" page provides you with information about the author as well as two 30-second exercises and a quote of the week.
In the Classroom
For a quick review as a class or as a supplemental practice for an individual student, this site is a good one. You might even use the short revision exercises on the home page as class starters to get students writing immediately at the beginning of class. To introduce or reinforce the concept, use your interactive white board and tools with these examples to color code the parallel structures so students can "see" the difference. Have STUDENTS highlight the parallel elements in colors so they see the color patterns and repetition. Make a class wiki page where groups create their own examples and use similar highlighting to SHOW the parallel patterns.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Picasso - Maryland Electronic Fieldtrips - Thinkport
Grades
3 to 12
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If you are teaching your students about Picasso, visit this website for some new ideas. This site focuses on the years of 1892-1906. There are links to learn more about ...more
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If you are teaching your students about Picasso, visit this website for some new ideas. This site focuses on the years of 1892-1906. There are links to learn more about point of view, reflection, focus, and more. The site includes a timeline of Picasso's life. Teachers, be sure to visit the "for educators" link to find math, social studies, and language arts activities to coincide with teaching about this amazing artist. Several of the paintings allow you to zoom in on certain features of the painting. Be aware, at the time of this review, the forums were closed to additional comments.
In the Classroom
Start out at the "for educators" link for some great ideas to create an interdisciplinary lesson using Picasso in art, social studies, language arts, or math class. Use this site for research projects. In art class, use your interactive whiteboard or projector to show students an up close look at several of Picasso's paintings. Analyze and notate the paintings' composition using the whiteboard tools!Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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The Biology Project - The University of Arizona
Grades
K to 12
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This site has something for every grade level - all about biology. It is a bit overwhelming at first, but easy to navigate. If you are a teacher (or parent) ...more
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This site has something for every grade level - all about biology. It is a bit overwhelming at first, but easy to navigate. If you are a teacher (or parent) of a K-8 student, go right to the "Young Explorers" link to find lesson plans, activities, puzzles, and more. If you are a high school biology teacher, you have just found a multitude of ready to go activities to share with your students (effects of tobacco, HIV virus, DNA, cell biology, and much more). There are lesson plans available for all grade levels. Most of the interactive challenges and presentations are designed for middle and high school students. Parts of this site require Flash and Adobe Acrobat. You can get both from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom
Take advantage of the free lesson plans available at this site. High school teachers (and middle school), share the tutorials and interactives on a projector or interactive whiteboard. Share this link on your class website, so students can access the information outside of your classroom.
This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.
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In Town - Linguascope.com
Grades
2 to 8
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CLICK IMMEDIATELY on "Free Preview" for the only free portion of this site. This humorous preview section of a larger, paying, site has beginning level vocabulary. Students pick which...more
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CLICK IMMEDIATELY on "Free Preview" for the only free portion of this site. This humorous preview section of a larger, paying, site has beginning level vocabulary. Students pick which activity they want to try after listening and seeing the basic vocabulary. Activities include dictation, writing vocabulary words in response to the pictures, hangman, matching, etc. Teachers or students are able to print some of the activities. This site also include beginner Spanish, French, Italian, and German - all perfect for beginning level world language classes. This site is also useful for ESL and ELL students. Click for a complete, 8-page list of all the vocabulary covered. Unit tests are also provided. This site requires Flash. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom
Send your Spanish, French, German, and Italian beginning level students to this site for review and practice. ESL and ELL students will benefit from the practice. Be sure to list this site in your class newsletter or on your class website, so students can practice at home.
This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.
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Humane Society Careers - Humane Society Youth
Grades
6 to 12
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0 Comments
Explore the Humane Society Career page to learn all about animal protection issues like puppy mills, fighting animal cruelty, the fur trade, factory farms, pet homelessness, cosmetics...more
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Explore the Humane Society Career page to learn all about animal protection issues like puppy mills, fighting animal cruelty, the fur trade, factory farms, pet homelessness, cosmetics animal testing, and other sensitive topics and what you can do to stop these tragedies. If you don't see your topic on this main page, type it in the search bar. This site features a FREE online webinar, printable PDF pages on HOT topics, and a podcast section cleverly titled Humane Voices. Other resouces interesting for teachers and students are from Nose to Tail, which has 5 lesson plans, a Farm Disaster Kit, and the Puppy Mills issue has a terrivic resource "7 ways to stop them." There is also an abundance of information in the category for animals, from alligators to zebras, including why they are important to our environment. Be sure to investigate the blog for current issues.
In the Classroom
Use this eye opening site in many subject areas. Share the issues on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Present this site and an opposing one as part of a discussion of web sites and even or slanted presentation of information. Ask students to decide whether they see any "bias" on this site. Use this site for research projects. Show students the list of protection issues and suggest they choose one as a service project to earn credit in community service. Use the site as one of several sources for a class debate on animal rights or charge students to explore alternate points of view on animal issues, such as from the AKC or the meat industry. Then invite students to create a multimedia "position" infographic of both sides with supporting facts to share with their peers. Suggested easy infographic creatation tools are Canva Infographic Maker, reviewed here, and Genially, reviewed here.
This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.
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Plurk - Plurk
Grades
9 to 12
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0 Comments
Plurk is a microblogging platform for quick 140 character "plurks" about what you are doing, thinking, or mentally asking. Plurks show as a timeline along with those of your friends....more
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Plurk is a microblogging platform for quick 140 character "plurks" about what you are doing, thinking, or mentally asking. Plurks show as a timeline along with those of your friends. Comments to plurks are attached to the original and conversations are easy to track and continue. Plurk brings interconnectivity between friends and is more like a social network than a blog. Registration with an email is required and managing login and password is necessary. Instant messaging and mobile blogging options are possible.
In the Classroom
This site is not difficult to navigate. Left click on the timeline to drag it to earlier posts. Unread plurks and replies appear as a number beside each plurk and in the timeline. Along the top of the timeline are user controls. "My profile" contains your contact information and details. Upload a photo, customize the colors of your outline, or add a widget to your blog or site that contains your plurks. Use "My friends" to invite friends, create cliques that allow you to segregate who sees certain plurks, and blocking other users. "Alerts" contain friend requests sent to you. Click on "Interesting plurkers" to see plurks from everywhere which you can customize to gender, age, city, state, or country. Use "My account" to change privacy settings and set up instant messaging. Create your plurks below the timeline and use the dropdown to change your verb from "is" to "says," wishes," "feels," and many others. Hover over a person's picture or name to send a private plurk. Plurk messages can be edited but replies cannot. Pictures, images, and links can be added as well. Also below the timeline are tabs to see plurks from you and your friends, your plurks alone, and private plurks. View your Karma -- which increases with plurks and friends and unlocks new features. Use "Embed your Plurk widget" easily to your blog by simply entering your login information.Create a written and signed classroom policy that outlines necessary privacy settings and actions that would be considered misuse. Check these regularly and take appropriate actions to enforce rules when needed. Students need to be guided in how to safely blog and share information. Students may come across questionable content if reading through the "interesting plurkers" tab. As with all social networking sites, students need to be aware of proper ways to communicate at school and at home. Teachers should be a part of all student groups to monitor use.
Students can use Plurk to discuss group work on a project, create study groups, ask for help, or communicate with those who can mentor their class or subject they are learning. Many students will find success with sending bits of information at a time and letting the conversations evolve from there. Literature teachers may want to require students to plurk their thoughts within small groups as they read chapters or acts of longer works for homework, generating discussion and active reading. Social studies teachers could assign a similar task as students read about history. Math teachers may want to encourage "plurking" as students work on longer, more complex problems. Those writing lab reports for science class may find that plurking will help them collaborate in interpreting data. Consider setting up a regular class "plurk time" in the evening on certain nights of the week or for snow days.
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CyberBullying - Bill Belsey
Grades
2 to 12
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0 Comments
This portal site is loaded with links, information, and resources to use in your classroom to teach about this timely issue. Although it is a Canadian affiliated site, information applies...more
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This portal site is loaded with links, information, and resources to use in your classroom to teach about this timely issue. Although it is a Canadian affiliated site, information applies to all youth around the world. Highlights of this site include fact sheets (in PDF format), examples, warning signs, links to more resources, and others. Especially take note of the Resource tab on the top menu. Sliding down to Students find Tik ToK, Digital Dating Abuse, Cyberbullying Fact Sheet: Identification, Prevention, and Response, an several others.
In the Classroom
This is a great site for computer teachers (and regular education teachers using computers in their classrooms) to share with their students and parents. Please review the "What Can Be Done" section with students. Cut and paste, then laminate the rules into small posters to be hung near all computers. Create a notebook of cyberbullying facts, and include the fact sheets at this site. Be sure to share the link with parents and your PTO/PTA, as well.
This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.
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Google Lit Trips - Google Earth
Grades
3 to 12
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Google Lit Trips collects annotated maps on Google Earth to illustrate the travels found in great works of literature. The site presents the work of teachers and others and continues...more
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Google Lit Trips collects annotated maps on Google Earth to illustrate the travels found in great works of literature. The site presents the work of teachers and others and continues to add maps and content. Literary works are divided by grade level. Each map also provides links to other online material related to the work illustrated, and some trips are accompanied by related podcasts.
"Lit trips" can be reviewed by users so teachers can see comments left by other users. This site uses Google Earth which must be downloaded first. Find full info on Google Earth in the TeachersFirst review, including the link to download.
"Lit trips" can be reviewed by users so teachers can see comments left by other users. This site uses Google Earth which must be downloaded first. Find full info on Google Earth in the TeachersFirst review, including the link to download.
In the Classroom
Each "lit trip" is extensively annotated and linked to further content, making this an incredibly rich resource for teachers to use in conjunction with teaching works of literature. Students can see graphically the travels of such characters as the Joads in The Grapes of Wrath , or Odysseus in Homer's Odyssey . Using these lit trips on an interactive whiteboard or projector will greatly enhance a class study of the associated work of literature. Alternatively, students might be encouraged to explore these lit trips independently, at home, or in a computer lab, so they can follow links that are of particular individual interest. As a really ambitious project, make it a class task to create a lit trip for a work of literature you are studying, assigning student groups to choose locations and create the placemarkers, then submit it to the Lit Trips site.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Define It Fast - WordNet 3.0 Princeton University
Grades
K to 12
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The goal of this website is to become the easiest, fastest online dictionary available. Is it? Try it, you'll be impressed. An exciting tool is the audio component, allowing ...more
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The goal of this website is to become the easiest, fastest online dictionary available. Is it? Try it, you'll be impressed. An exciting tool is the audio component, allowing you to listen to the English pronunciation for selected words ( the triangular "play" button will show next to the word on the entry) . DefineItFast.com has a bookmarklet that you can drag and drop to your browser's link bar (if your computer is not "locked down" at school). When you look up definitions, highlight the word and click the linkbar button or you can directly type the word by clicking the button and click 'OK'. View the tutorial video to learn more about the bookmarklet feature.
Note: The dictionary, like many real-world dictionaries, includes words that may not be classroom-appropriate. Decide how you will handle students who make inappropriate choices in using this tool.
In the Classroom
Definitely investigate the free Search Engine download that's available to make this tool even more useful. This may become your favorite dictionary-- bar none. You may want to save this site in your favorites on your class computer(s), but see the cautionary note above about the FULL database of words available.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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TeacherTube - Teacher Tube, LLC
Grades
K to 12
4 Favorites
0 Comments
Move over YouTube! Teachers now have their own place to learn and to teach: TeacherTube.com. Since this site is designed specifically for education, there is not as much concern about...more
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Move over YouTube! Teachers now have their own place to learn and to teach: TeacherTube.com. Since this site is designed specifically for education, there is not as much concern about "public" contributions and appropriateness for school! Teachers will find videos suitable for classroom instruction, such as Ben Franklin chatting with a group of students, or there are also professional videos ideal for staff training (such as Classroom Strategies for Differentiated Instruction). Search and view videos or click on the subject area that interests you, and then click on a video to view. To leave comments, save your favorites, or upload your own video, you will need to register. It's all free. Obviously, this isn't a site for students; however, there are many educational videos suitable for all subject areas that you could share with your students. If your school blocks streaming video sites, consider accessing this site and choosing videos at home, or they may not be viewable.
In the Classroom
If you are looking for a specific topic, save time and use the search option If you wish to add comments or upload your own Teachertube video, you must register as a user at the site. Create and save your edited videos where you can find them on your computer. (Windows Movie Maker or iMovie are great, free tools for video). Then upload to TeacherTube. You will also receive comments on your uploaded videos. If the teacher is the one uploading, the only potential concerns include posting videos with identifiable information or images about your students, school, or class. Check your school policies about posting pictures of your school. If you post student videos, obtain written parent permission to post student work, again within school policies. Any student visible in a video should also have parent permission in accordance with school policies. The most common classroom use would be viewing many videos that match curriculum content. Rap math, visit Anne Frank's historical locations, or view a grammar lesson--these are just a sampling of videos that you may want to use to enhance your curriculum lessons. Use your interactive whiteboard or projector to share the videos with the class. Use the site's videos as an anticipatory set to a new unit or lesson on a specific topic. Have your students create their own TeacherTube video together as a class on any lesson/topic that you are teaching. Have a contest for the best videos and upload the winners to the site (within school policies, of course). Once the class has videos hosted at TeacherTube, you can also embed them in your class bog or wiki for easy sharing with those in your extended online "community."Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Spore Creature Creator - Electronic Arts, Inc.
Grades
2 to 12
7 Favorites
0 Comments
Use Creature Creator to make interesting and imaginative animals. Your students may recognize it as a tool for making characters for the Spore video game, but it is actually a ...more
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Use Creature Creator to make interesting and imaginative animals. Your students may recognize it as a tool for making characters for the Spore video game, but it is actually a useful tool for learning, as well. Use a pre-made creature or create your own custom creature. Add carnivore features to your creation that include mouths, ears, eyes, arms, hands, feet, and legs. Weapons such as horns, spikes, and clubs can also be added to the creature as well as wings. Change the position of the features and alter them through unbelievable joint changes which then alter how your creature walks and moves. Paint your creation when done and place it in its woodland environment. The creature can walk, show emotion, have offspring, and make sounds. Use the software to take a picture, record a movie, and make an avatar. By adding a description and tags, your creation can be uploaded to the spore website or to a You Tube account. Here is the first Spore tutorial , which is hosted on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, it may not be viewable.
Creature Creator is a free download but is a limited version of the original purchased program. The purchased program provides many more choices for the features and environments used to make the creatures. The download is available for both PC and Mac.
Creature Creator is a free download but is a limited version of the original purchased program. The purchased program provides many more choices for the features and environments used to make the creatures. The download is available for both PC and Mac.
In the Classroom
User needs to be able to download and install the free program. Easy to use interface. Start with a blob, which you manipulate into a shape, pulling its spinal cord in any direction with the mouse, before adding a head, limbs and various optional extra body parts. Choose your part by using the onscreen catalog. Manipulate it further by changing the position of joints or through adding or deleting segments. Add a background and move your creature by dragging your mouse for it to follow. Continue to alter your creature to get the movement or features needed.Pressing "H" brings up the spore guide which includes topic categories such as "Welcome to Spore," "Getting Started," "Build Mode," "Test Drive," and "Paint Mode."
Check your district policy on downloading and installing of programs. Check with your IT department. Teachers who must request software installation by tech staff may want to try this tool at home and create some sample projects to convince administration of its educational value.
Uploading pictures and videos of creations to You Tube or the spore site may expose students to advertising as well as inappropriately created creatures. You may want to send students directly to URLs for their own projects, maintain the creatures on the classroom computer itself, or use Teacher Tube to upload the creations. Uploading creatures enables outsider comments without teacher control. Outsiders can interact or mark the creations as favorites. Many school policies prohibit such interaction, so be sure to check your school policy. You will want to discuss these features in the context of Internet Safety or establish specific written class rules and consequences for interacting with outsiders. Student work can be saved as a picture and printed, as well, for sharing and showing. Check your school policies on whether student work may be displayed online and what information is permitted, then enforce that policy with your students.
The tool does not show which work is attributable to each student. You may want to require student initials on projects in order to get credit.
Use Creature creator to create an unusual creature as a class project. Create a classification system of all the class creatures to demonstrate biology classification skills. When discussing the groupings in the Animal Kingdom, use Creature Creator to create a new organism for that group. Use the tool to create a class creature with adaptations to a specific environment. Have students create a creature and then write a story or poem about it and how it lives. Have students create a creature as a self-portrait of personality or other traits the students possess. Students can design and draw habitats that would house their creation including the calculation of the volume and area the housing would require. Use a classroom projector or white board to share/create creatures in class and discuss specific features of the creatures.
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bubbl.us - Kirill Edelman and Levon Amelyan
Grades
K to 12
14 Favorites
1 Comments
This simple and free online tool allows you to brainstorm ideas and create concept maps with no special software! Bubble.us features some highly interactive abilities: saving your mind...more
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This simple and free online tool allows you to brainstorm ideas and create concept maps with no special software! Bubble.us features some highly interactive abilities: saving your mind map as an image, sharing (emailing) your work with a friend, printing your organizer, creating colorful mind map organizers, embedding your work into a website or blog, and working with friends. You are able to "play" at this site without registering; however registration is necessary for saving, embedding, emailing, and other features. NOTE: the free version only allows you to SAVE three maps, so you will want to save your completed maps as images, then deleted them from your membership to make room for more freebies.
In the Classroom
Click "Start Here" to type the subject of your concept map. Hitting your Enter key creates a new level (branch) within the map. Tab creates an additional branch on the same level as the current topic. Experiment with the small icons on each "element" to change colors, drag, make new connections, etc. Save and set sharing (read-only or open access) in the area at the right. You can "send" a read-only link via email or copy the embed code from the Menu at lower right), but you cannot find the URL directly from your map. "Send" it to yourself via email to copy the actual URL.There are countless possibilities at this mental mapping site. Demonstrate the tool on an interactive whiteboard or projector, and then allow students to try to create their own graphic organizers. Use this site for literature activities, research projects, social studies, or science topics of study. Use this site to create family trees. Have students collaborate together (online) to create group mind maps or review charts before tests on a given subject. Have students organize color-code concepts to show what they understand, wonder, question; map out a story, plotline, or LIFETIME; map out a step-by-step process (life cycle); map a real historical event as a choose-your-own-adventure with alternate endings(?) based on pivotal points; plan a "tour" for a "thought museum." Use this mapping website as an alternative to a traditional test, quiz, or homework assignment in literature or social studies: have students demonstrate their understanding by completing a graphic organizer about the main points. To minimize the number of maps on a free account, have students screenshot or print their results to turn them in. See more ideas in the linked example above!
Comments
david, TX, Grades: 9 - 12
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Stories to Grow By - Whootie Owl Productions
Grades
1 to 6
0 Favorites
0 Comments
This site has free stories, mainly fairy tales and folk tales, indexed by topic. Highlights include various holidays, international stories of all types, free reader's theater pieces,...more
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This site has free stories, mainly fairy tales and folk tales, indexed by topic. Highlights include various holidays, international stories of all types, free reader's theater pieces, and free online recorded stories (click "Stories on CD" to access free downloads). All stories are "kid-tested" and uplifting. Students are able to make comments (and read other viewers' comments). They are able to search for stories by age (ranging from age 6-14), theme, type of story, and location.
Be aware: this site does include some advertising. This site requires Quicktime. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
Be aware: this site does include some advertising. This site requires Quicktime. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
In the Classroom
Check with your administrator about students submitting their own names or making comments about the stories. You may want to give the students a classroom name so their identities remain anonymous. Use this site to find stories that represent cultures of the students in your classroom, whether they are ESL or students with different ethnic backgrounds. Use this site also to find stories for various school holidays. Play a story aloud on your speakers, then allow students to record their own stories with musical backgrounds.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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