Tag: literacy

ipopetz.tv

Kelly Tenkely1 Comment on ipopetz.tv3756 views


What it is: ipopetz.tv is a fun web 2.0 site that your students will love to use.  Students can create their own 3-D mini cartoon show by selecting a puppet, creating and recording their show (with their own voice) and then sharing their show.  The puppets that students have to choose from are a lot of fun.  The shows are easy to create, students make their 3-D puppet move by using their mouse and keyboard and record their voice using the microphone.  The puppets lip sync to the words your students say!  

How to integrate ipopetz.tv into the classroom: The ipopetz.tv puppets would be the perfect way for students to display knowledge.  They can use their ipopetz character to give a book report.  Instead of standing up in front of the class and reading off of their book report, students can “advertise” a book using an ipopetz puppet.  Because they can record their own voice and manipulate their puppet, they display their knowledge in a new and fun way as well as become the directors for their own 3-D cartoon.  So much fun!  Have students create shows about any subject.  For example, students could create a show about a current science topic.  Instead of studying from a text book before a test, students can watch eachother’s informational cartoon shows.  If your students are like mine, they can’t recall facts from a textbook at the drop of the hat but they can all quote Kung Foo Panda.  Let them create and learn in a way that they love.  I garuntee this will be a huge hit with your students!  It is easy enough for as young as first grade but will hold the attention of students through middle school (maybe even through adults…I am throuroughly entertained!)  Create your own cartoon to teach a subject for a change of pace, it will give you a break and the students will enjoy something new.  You can create your show, save it, and use a projector to teach the whole class.  If you are lucky enough to have a projector in your classroom you could even start out each day with a message or brain teaser for your students.

Tips: ipopetz.tv does require a download plugin for Quick Time.  It is a quick and small download.  Make sure to download the plugin for every computer that you will be using ipopetz.tv on.  Also be aware that this site has advertisements, be sure to use this opportunity to teach your students about online ads and set up the rule that they not click on them before you start a project.

Leave a comment and share how you are using ipopetz.tv in your classroom.

Word World

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What it is: Word World is an awesome site for kindergarten-first grade and especially for students who struggle with reading and letter recognition. Every time I visit the PBS kids site I find a new fun game or activity for kids. Word World is a world of fun characters that are made up of the letters that spell their name. As I said, this would be an excellent site to visit for struggling literacy students. The Word World is very kid friendly and interactive. Students will enjoy spending time on this site!

How to integrate Word World into the classroom: This is a great site to used with kindergarten and first grade students at the beginning of the school year. Word World would be a fun one to use as a whole class on a projector or interactive whiteboard. It is also simple enough for students to play individually as a center or in a computer lab setting. For struggling readers, this is a really wonderful place for some one on one therapy. Encourage struggling readers to point out the letters they see making up the characters in Word World as they are interacting and playing games on the site.

Tips: As an extension activity, have students draw their own characters using the letters that spell their name. Or, take a word field trip around school and find items that are shaped like letters. Take digital photos of the letters found in the environment and create a digital storybook in a slideshow program.

Leave a comment and share how you are using Word World in your classroom.

Shelfari

Kelly TenkelyLeave a Comment on Shelfari2549 views


What it is: Shelfari is a virtual bookshelf that you create to show off books that you have read and recommend. It is a Web 2.0 site that allows you to connect with students, other teachers, and parents around books. Shelfari is a great way to discover new titles, discuss books, start an online book club, and show others what you are reading. You can show off your Shelfari bookshelf on your blog, classroom website, or other social networking site of choice. Really cool!

How to integrate Shelfari into the classroom: As summer break approaches, we teachers start thinking about how far we have come during the school year with our students. We also dread that they will be on their own for the summer and may or may not be reading. Shelfari would be an excellent resource to create today and introduce your students and parents to before summer break. Build a bookshelf of age-appropriate reading for your students. Post the bookshelf on your classroom website and encourage students to continue reading with you over the summer. Because Shelfari allows for you to create online book clubs and discussions, students can keep their reading and comprehension skills in tip top shape with you! Shelfari is also an excellent resource for parents who may feel overwhelmed when they enter a library with their child. They often aren’t sure of their child’s reading level and age-appropriate books. With Shelfari, they can visit your shelf before the trip to the library for some great suggestions. Shelfari is also ideal throughout the school year as a place for you and your students to connect over reading…reading is so much more fun when you have someone to share and discuss what you are reading with! Students can create their own bookshelves to show off what they are reading. Teacher to teacher book clubs on Shelfari are also a lot of fun! Connect with other staff members over books that you are reading (they can be school related or not.) Maybe in place of the traditional book report, students start a discussion on Shelfari about their reading. Where have you been all my life Shelfari? 🙂

Tips: Use Shelfari in conjunction with Book Adventure for some real reading fun!

Please leave a comment and share how you are using Shelfari in your classroom.

Interactive Word Tree

Kelly Tenkely2 Comments on Interactive Word Tree2066 views

 

What it is: The Interactive Word Tree is perfect for use on your new Wiimote Whiteboard (or any other interactive whiteboard.) The Word Tree allows students or teachers to input up to 26 phonemes or words that become apples on the interactive tree.

How to integrate the Interactive Word Tree into your curriculum: The Interactive Word Tree is very flexible based on your classroom needs. Type in short vowel and long vowels and have the students take turns moving all the short vowel words to one side of the tree and all the long vowel words to the other side. Or, type in spelling words and have students move the apples into alphabetical order. Or, type in science vocabulary and students can categorize words on the tree based on similarities. You can also type in words that form compound words, prefixes and suffixes, etc. for students to practice matching apples. It would also be a wonderful tool for matching rhyming words, synonyms, antonyms, the possibilities are truly limitless since you can type in your own words. Another great feature: your words are automatically saved in the list even if you close the web browser so you don’t have to re-type in the words or vocabulary each day. You can add, delete, or change words at any time. Such a cool tool! As I am writing this I keep thinking of additional uses like preparing for a matching test, simple math problems with the problem on one apple and the answer on another.

Tips: You don’t have to use this great tool with the interactive whiteboard, it would also be a great center for the one to two computer classroom or even for use in the computer lab.

Please leave a comment and share how you are using Interactive Word Tree in your classroom.

Super Why!

Kelly Tenkely1 Comment on Super Why!2421 views

 

What it is: Super Why is a great new website created by PBS. Super Why is perfect for kindergarten through first grade and for remedial readers. The site focuses on helping kids gain important foundational reading skills such as alphabet, word families, spelling, comprehension, and vocabulary. The Super Why team is a group of super hero’s made up of four cartoon characters who solve problems with their reading skills, this is based on the Super Why TV show on PBS. Although the site is intended to be used in conjunction with the Super Why TV show, it is valuable as an independent reading skill tool as well. The site, games, and activities are fun and will hold the attention of your students while teaching them important basic reading skills that are needed as the foundation of literacy.

How to integrate Super Why into your curriculum: Super Why is one of those websites that is very flexible in its uses and applications. The Super Why site can be used as a center in the 1 or 2 computer classroom, independently in the computer lab setting, and as a whole class with a projector. (This is also a fun one for interactive white boards!) The online games can be played as part of your regular reading curriculum or you can print out ready made lesson plans that use the site. The lesson plans are very through and fun.

Tips: Check out the teacher section of the Super Why site for printable lesson plans, worksheets, and a great list of resources both web based and books.

Please leave a comment and share how you are using Super Why in your classroom.

Virtual Author Series

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What it is: Simon and Schuster Publishing is offering a new unique experience to schools, a virtual author series. The electronic author visit brings bestselling and award-winning authors and makes them easily accessible to students and teachers. S&S creates a website specifically for each author visit that provides teachers with background information that will help prepare students for the author visit and provides interactive material that relates to the subject discussed in the author’s book. The program also includes a series of classroom activities and curriculum binders. The live web broadcast is the culmination of the virtual author experience. The 45 minute segment will include a presentation from the author, a reading from the book, and a question and answer session in which the author answers questions from the students.

How to integrate Virtual Author Series into the classroom: Bring popular author Andrew Clements (Frindle) into your classroom by signing up at the My Visit website http://www.bsu.edu/myvisit/ You need to sign up your class ASAP if you would like to participate in the first in the Virtual Author Series which takes place on March 18th. This is an outstanding opportunity for classrooms, libraries, and schools. Bring reading to life for your students with a virtual author visit. If you, like me, are on spring break during the first author in the Virtual Author Series be sure to check back for future Virtual Author events.

Tips: Check back for future Virtual Authors. The next Virtual Author will be D.J. MacHale (PENDRAGON) on April 29, 2008. This is an awesome way to bridge literacy and technology!

Please leave a comment and tell us how the Virtual Author Series went in your class. Specifically, I want to hear all about it since I won’t be able to participate!

Get Ready to Read!

Kelly TenkelyLeave a Comment on Get Ready to Read!2654 views

What it is: Get Ready to Read is a site that supports early childhood literacy. I don’t know how I have missed this one in the past! It is an excellent resource for teachers. If you teach pre-k through first grade or are a remedial reading teacher, make sure to take a look at all this site has to offer. The program is designed to help early education professionals to equip children with the basic skills necessary for learning to read. The site offers tools for screening children for pre-reading skills and provides skill strengthening activities both on and offline to ensure reading success.

How to integrate Get Ready to Read into the classroom: Use the Get Ready to Read Program to screen your students for reading skills. Use this assessment to guide your reading program and help individualize instruction based on your students needs. Print out and use the 36 offline activity cards with your students. These can be used as reading centers, for individual learning, or for whole class instruction. Set up your classroom computers with the Get Ready to Read online activities. These interactive stories about Inky and Gus’ underwater adventures can be used with a projector for whole class participation, in centers, or on individual computers in a lab setting.

Tips: This site is a completely free resource for teachers and parents, be sure to involve parents in early literacy activities. Print out the parent brochure for additional information on the Get Ready to Read program for parents.

Please leave a comment and share how you are using Get Ready to Read in your classroom.

Bubblr!

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What it is: Bubblr! is a tool to create comic strips using photos from flickr.com. You can use others public images or images from your own flickr.com account.

How to integrate Bubblr! into the classroom: Bubblr! would be a wonderful site to use after a class field trip. Have a parent (or yourself) take pictures during the field trip. Create a flickr (www.flickr.com) account for your class. Upload the photos to the flickr account for use in the Bubblr! project. Students can create comic strips with the field trip pictures documenting the learning experience in a fun way. Bubblr! would also be fun to use for character education. Take picture of different scenarios (for example, a student taking a toy away from another student). Upload these pictures to Flickr and have students use Bubblr! to show what the different characters might be thinking and possible solutions to the problem. Bubblr! could also be used to help create a word wall…find pictures that represent words and add the word to the comic. Print out and create a Bubblr! word wall. Pictures can be found by keyword (tags) or by user. When students are finished with their comic strips they have the option of sending them via email, printing, or posting on a blog.

Tips: Since Flickr and Bubblr! are online applications, be sure that you have permission to post student pictures on either site.

Please leave a comment and share how you are using Bubblr in your classroom.

Roy the Zebra

Kelly Tenkely1 Comment on Roy the Zebra3162 views

What it is: Roy the Zebra is a site for emerging readers complete with interactive stories, games, and lesson plans. The site can be used with interactive white boards or on computers. Emerging reader skills include capital letters, full stops, words that rhyme, high frequency words, alphabetical order, question marks, singular or plural, long vowel phonemes, words within words, and consonants. The Roy the Zebra story collection is online and includes literacy worksheets, before reading discussion sheets, and after reading discussion sheets.

How to integrate Roy the Zebra into the classroom: Roy the Zebra is an excellent literacy website. Use daily with your emerging and struggling readers to enhance your literacy time. Set up Roy the Zebra as a center during literacy time in the one computer classroom. Because of the sites interactivity, it is also an ideal site to use with an interactive white board. If you have access to a computer lab your students can practice the skills learned for the day all together.

Tips: There are advertisements on the site but be assured that all activities, books, lessons, and games are completely free to use. Roy the Zebra does accept donations.

Please leave a comment and share how you are using Roy the Zebra in your classroom.

SuperThinkers

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What it is: SuperThinkers is a website that encourages students to become thinkers as opposed to memorizers. The goal of SuperThinkers is to teach children how to think by creating connections, look for meaning behind facts, and analyzing in order to understand. Even reluctant readers enjoy using this site to read for meaning. The Peetnik Mysteries are stories that the students read and interact with. In the mystery game, students use common tools such as maps, phones, and phone directories to follow up on hunches to solve the mystery.

How to integrate SuperThinkers into the classroom: SuperThinkers includes quality mysteries from author Peter Reynolds. Use SuperThinkers as part of a larger mystery unit or as a reading activity that encourages logic, problem solving, critical thinking, cooperative learning, analysis, pattern interpretation, mystery solving, writing, observation, sharing, discovery, imagination, self determination, reflection, and opportunities for self expression. The mysteries take about 30 min. to solve and would be best utilized in a computer lab 1 to 1 setting or as a whole class with a projector. The mysteries are popular with students, even the most reluctant readers enjoy working with the mysteries. The Peetnik Mysteries can also be used to teach students how to create a time line, compare and contrast skills, and as story starters.

Tips: Be sure to visit the Educators section of SuperThinkers for curriculum tie-ins, lesson plans, and posters.

Please leave a comment and share how you are using SuperThinkers in your classroom.