Berenstain Bears

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What it is: The popular children’s series, Berenstain Bears goes 21st century with their very own website. Students can visit the art gallery, read biographies of each of the bears, print out activities, read interactive story books, visit Barn theater for some Berenstain Bear videos, write an email to the Bears at the post office and more.

How to integrate Berenstain Bears into your classroom: Allow students to explore the Berenstain Bear site as part of their reading time. The site is sure to motivate students to read. This is a great site to have on hand for indoor recess days!

Tips: Make sure you have the most current Java and Quicktime players for the interactive books and videos.

 

 

 

Big Universe

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What it is: Big Universe lets you read, create, and share children’s books online.  Read hundreds of children’s picture books right from your web browser.  It’s like having a huge library of big books for your whole class to read and enjoy.  Publishers that contribute picture books to Big Universe include: Charlesbridge, SeaSquirt, Lobster Press, Saddleback, Matthew Price, ISSA Step by Step, Andersen, Dawn Publications, Tanglewood Press, ee, Teacher Created Materials, Illuminations Arts, Weekly Reader, and Elora Media.  Big Universe has both fiction and nonfiction picture books to read with your students.  Books are easy to search by category, grade, reading level, interest age, and language.  Students can create their own ebooks on Big Universe or share books on a virtual bookshelf.  The catch: the free version of Big Universe offers a limited look at the premium publisher books (you can read through half the book before being prompted to upgrade or close the book).  You can read any of the user created books for free.  With the free version you can only create one ebook per user account.  Students can create bookshelves and share an unlimited number of books, recommend books to others, and add friends.  The accounts on Big Universe are reasonably priced (especially considering how much it would increase your classroom library).

How to integrate Big Universe into the classroom: Big Universe is an awesome way to expand your classroom library and share quality picture books and stories with your students. The big books on Big Universe are ideal for use with an interactive whiteboard or projector.  Students can read along and see the rich detail in the illustrations.  Big Universe also makes for an excellent reading center on the classroom computers.  Allow students to create their own book on Big Universe to add to the library.  They will be published authors!  Students can share the books they are reading on Big Universe on their own virtual bookshelf.  They can swap book recommendations with friends and share stories they create.

Tips: If it is possible for your school to purchase a school license of Big Universe, students would have access to an extensive library of books at school or home.  This is a fantastic way to get hundreds of books into the hands of your students.  Because they can be accessed from any Internet connected computer, students can enjoy the books and stories from nearly anywhere.

Leave a comment and tell us how you are using Big Universe in your classroom.



Book Writer: create books on the iPad

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Book Writer app- iLearn TechnologyBook Writer

 

 

 

What it is:  Book Writer is a great app for the iPad (and iPhone or iPod Touch).  This app makes it a snap for kids to create books that can be read directly in iBooks.  With Book Writer, students can create their own ebooks with photos, video, audio and links.  Images and video can be annotated over in the book.  Finished books can be shared using iTunes and E-mail.  One of the best features of Book Writer is the huge number of applications that books can be shared through including: iBooks, Nook, Instashare, Bump, Evernote, Dropbox, and Send Anywhere.  This makes Book Writer wonderfully flexible no matter what apps your school uses regularly.

Book Writer- iLearn Technology

How to integrate Book Writer into the classroom: Book Writer is a great app for students to “publish” their writing in.  Students can compile research, notes, images and videos to create their own textbooks.  Why passively read through a text when students can be a part of creating their own?  This makes the learning so much more valuable and gives students the opportunity to “own” their learning.  Each student’s finished book will be just a little different.  Students can compile class notes, images of work and examples from class, and videos (either their own or other videos they’ve downloaded), reflections on learning, etc. into a book that can be shared.  This would be a fantastic way for students to share what they’ve learned at the end of a unit.  Because of the variety of content that can be included in Book Writer, it would make for a great science journal.  Students can take photos  of a scientific experiment or process, label the images, and reflect on observations, hypothesis, etc.

Students could also use Book Writer as a place to keep all of their creative writing based on visual writing prompts.  Students can include the picture prompt on one page and their writing on the facing page.  Students can add to this book throughout the year and share their “published” writings at the end of the year.

Younger students will find Book Writer easy to use.  These students could create their own word bank picture dictionary.  Ask students to create a new page for each letter.  Every time a word gets added to the class word wall, students can add it to their dictionary.  Students can also add pictures to accompany the words, or audio of themselves saying the word.

Book Writer can be used for a class yearbook and then shared with all students digitally.  The extra fun part are the videos that can be included!

Tips: Book Writer has a clean, easy to use interface.  If you are using with young students, you may want to walk them through where to find tools for the first time.

Compatibility: Requires iOS5.0 or later

Devices: iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch

Price: $3.99 (iTunes link)

Childtopia Games

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What it is: Childtopia is like 10 websites in one…they have so many cool things going on that I am going to break it down into sections so stay tuned… Childtopia Games is the biggest section with games that are psychologist recommended. Games include: memory games, language, math, skill, creativity, and observation. Each game is broken down by age group making it appropriate for three to nine year olds to play. Games are fun and interactive and reinforce skills that children are learning at school and at home. There are 1400+ games on this site and can be played in 5 languages! The site is completely free but they also offer a CD version available for purchase.

How to integrate Childtopia Games into the classroom: Childtopia Games are fun and interactive. With 1400 games to choose from you are bound to find one that fits the skill you are working on in any subject area. The games are truly great played individually, as a center, or at home for reinforcement. Childtopia Games are perfect for students who need remedial work. This site is easy for students to navigate and very user friendly.

Tips: This is one that you will want to bookmark for easy access!

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

Class Tools

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What it is: Class Tools is possibly the most impressive, easy to use tool that I have reviewed to date! This allows teachers (even those who aren’t incredibly tech savvy) to create interactive Flash diagrams and games for learning and revising material. It is FREE! All diagrams created can be saved as data files or web pages to host on your school website or intranet. Quiz creators allow you to input up to 25 questions and answers an then choose a game to test student knowledge. Games include Matching Pairs, Manic Miner, WordShoot, and Cannon Ball Fun. Learning templates that teach and support chronological awareness include Time Line and Living Graph. Categorization tools include Post it, and a Target diagram. Linkage tools include Venn diagrams, and The Learning Puzzle. Priortization tools include Diamond Nine and a Priority Chart. Sourcework Skills tools include Lights Out and Source Analyzer. Essay skills tools include Fishbone and Hamburger diagrams. WOW!!

How to integrate Class Tools into the classroom: Class Tools may be one of the most versatile tools you can use in the classroom. Teachers and students can create learning diagrams together and upload to the school website for later study. Teachers, you can create games for your students to play focused on any specific curriculum. The sky is the limit for Class Tools in the classroom.

Tips: Print out a copy of the Class Tools Flyer, having a description of the tools handy is a must!

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

Clifford Interactive Story Books

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What it is: Clifford Interactive Story Books features Scholastic’s Clifford the Big Red Dog in four interactive books and four fun games. The games include concentration, make a word, letter match, and sound match.

How to integrate Clifford Interactive Story Books into your classroom: Use Clifford for beginning and emergent readers. Early readers can practice phonemic awareness and phonics skills as they actively listen to words read aloud and select which words to include in their book. Set up the Clifford site as a reading center.

Tips: Find lessons to use with Clifford on the Teacher’s Guide page. Lessons include beginning consonant sounds, letter recognition, short vowels, and long vowels.

 

 

Computer Lab Favorites

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What it is: Computer Lab Favorites is a collection of 50 one stop learning activities created
by Scholastic. The activities are self contained and interactive.
Students can play Dude the Dog, Scientific Labeling, Human Body Math
Hunt, Around the World, Mapman challenge, Puzzled States, Classify
This, Moon Olympics, Pick the Perfect Word, Choose a Word, and many
more. Students can spin a virtual game wheel to play a game. The site
is broken down by subject and also by grade levels k-2 and 3-5.

How to integrate Computer Lab Favorites into the classroom:
As the school year winds down, allow your students to review all they
have learned over the course of the year by playing these great
interactive activities. Students can spin the game spinner and have a
game selected for them or choose a specific subject or topic of play.
Save this site for next year, it is the perfect way to introduce a
topic or put some life back into reviews! The games are content rich
and a lot of fun to play!

Tips: This would be a good site to set as the home page on your classroom
computers. It has enough games and content to keep you coming back all
year long!

Please leave a comment and share how you are using Computer Lab Favorites in your classroom.

Crick Web Literacy Resources

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What it is:   Crick Web Literacy Resource is an excellent collection of interactive games for language development and practice in students.  The resources are excellent for individual student play, literacy group student play, or whole classroom play with an interactive white board.   Games include hangman, alphabetical order, collective nouns, compound words, sticky letters, matching pairs, street scene labels, seaside postcard, spelling checker, story sequencer, instruction sequencer, verb links, word dice, spelling word tester and word selector.  Yes, it is a treasure trove of literacy activities!

 

How to integrate Crick Web Literacy Resources into the classroom:  The Crick Web Resources can be easily integrated into your current literacy curriculum as an enrichment.  The activities fit right along side lessons you are already teaching but make them interactive for students.  I really like the Word Dice activity because students (or teacher) can add their own words to the dice to roll them.  The dice would be great for teaching nouns and adjectives (or any part of speech) on an interactive whiteboard or with a projector.  The dice are also outstanding for playing games unique to your classroom (maybe one that you created!)  The Sticky letters lets students create their own word wall or can be used with a projector for a class word wall.  I was also very impressed with the Spelling Rule Tester which helps students learn the rule for making singular nouns plural.  Students can input their own singular nouns and type what they think the plural is and then click on the tester to see if they are correct.  Take a look at the activities and see how they fit into your curriculum… my guess is that you will find at least one keeper in the group!

 

Tips:  If the Crick Web Literacy Resources look too difficult for your students, click on the Key Stage 1 tab at the top of the site for additional resources for younger students.

 

 

Leave a comment and share how you are using Crick Web Literacy Resources in your classroom.

Curious George

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What it is: PBS Kids Curious George website features several games featuring the popular Curious George character for kindergarten students. All games encourage growth in math and science. Students will use counting skills, observation skills, listening skills, logic skills, basic engineering skills, measuring skills, basic addition and subtraction, color creation, mouse manipulation skills, categorizing skills, and recording skills.

How to integrate Curious George into your classroom: Use the Curious George website during math and science time as a center. Students can stop by the center individually if you have a classroom with several computers, or in small groups in the one to two computer classroom. The site has 13 wonderful games that can be used as extended learning activities in math and science class.

Tips: Visit the Teacher section for Extended learning activities, lesson plans, and related video clips. Be sure to bookmark this page for easy access. Because there are so many games, this may be a site you use often to reinforce skills learned in the classroom.