DIY Open Source Sewing

If you like to sew, craft, and generally get into anything DIY, check out Burda Style...a community of online creators. All patterns are open source (free), and expanded, built upon, shared, blogged about, and built by the sewers themselves.

See a project-based learning commons in action.

Global Collaborative Projects

These sites were highlighted in an article entitled "Educators are Going Global" by Anita McAnear in the November 2007 issue of Learning & Leading with Technology. The sites are excellent and provide a variety of ways to connect globally. Some are focused on science projects and others include a more diverse range of subjects.

Global Education Collaborative
Taking IT Global
iEARN
GLOBE
Global Nomads
Thinkquest
Global Challenge Award

ePals

ePals is a great resource for connecting classrooms globally. Students and their e-mail pals around the world can work on projects such as global warming, solving water problems, coping with natural disasters, etc. or anything else they may choose.

Vocational Education

Many students will choose a career path requiring technical skills. These resources will steer them in the right direction.

• Dr. Steven Yuen's Homepage http://dragon.ep.usm.edu/~yuen/votech.htm

• Kathy Schrock's Guide to Technical & Career Education http://school.discoveryeducation.com/schrockguide/vocation.html
• K-12 Vocational Sites http://vocserve.berkeley.edu/k12.html

• Vocational Information Center http://www.khake.com/

Special Education

These websites will provide useful resources to guide students with special needs.

• Kathy Schrock's Guide for Special Education Teachers http://school.discoveryeducation.com/schrockguide/edspec.html

• Marc Sheehan's Special Education & Exceptionality Page http://www.halcyon.com/marcs/sped.html

• SERI-Special Education Resources on the Internet http://seriweb.com/
  

• Special Education Resources for Teachers http://www.teach-nology.com/teachers/special_ed/
  

• Special Education-Teacher's Guide http://specialeducationweb.com

Online Resources for Entire School Community

These information resources provide fast and reliable information for entire the school community and general public.

• ALA Best Free References 1996-2006 http://www.ala.org/ala/rusa/rusaourassoc/rusasections/mars/marspubs/MARSBESTIndex.cfm
• Bartelby http://bartleby.com/
• Info Please http://www.infoplease.com/
  
• Internet Public Library http://www.ipl.org/div/pf/
• Librarians' Internet Index http://lii.org/
• Ref Desk http://www.refdesk.com/
• WWW Virtual Library http://home.istar.ca/~obyrne/

Music Education

Soothe your weary soul with these available melodies.

• Educational CyberPlayGround- http://www.edu-cyberpg.com/
  
• Music Education Online By Children's Music Workshop- http://www.childrensmusicworkshop.com/
  
• Songs for Teaching- http://www.songsforteaching.com/
• Support the Music- http://www.supportmusic.com/
• Worldwide Internet Music Resources- http://library.music.indiana.edu/music_resources/mused.html

Replaying World History: Civ III

For his Ph.D thesis at MIT, Kurt Squire created a set of lesson plans for using the simulation history game, Civilization III, to teach world history concepts. To see the complete lesson plans check out his website:

Kurt Squire's Lesson Plans

Civ World contains historically accurate senarios and Squire's latest research.

Apolyton Civilization Site is a forum created for players by players. To collaborate with other players, get advice, and participate in the forum, visit Apolyton University. You can take AU "courses" such as "AU102: Give Peace a Chance" to win the game through nonviolence.

Find Careers with the Keirsey Temperament Sorter

Ever wonder which careers are your best fit? Different careers work for different people. This test will help you match careers with your unique gifts and talents. You simply register, answer a list of questions, and vwala! You are on your way to make informed decisions about your future success.

Kids games

Students love this game and when it is blocked, they seek out new ways to gain access to it. I am not sure why it is blocked, it teaches them math in a fun way. If you haven't been to it yet, go to http://linerider.com and soon you will be hooked.

posted by Ann S.

A YA Web 2.0 and Social Networking Possibility

Library Youth and Teen Services 2.0 http://libraryyouth.ning.com/ creates a forum for YA librarians and their patrons to discuss current Web 2.0 and Web 3D technologies. You may peruse discussions from My Space, Teen Ink, gaming, children's literature, etc. An interactive map on the main page links participants from across the country. You may join in the conversation as a new member.

Not just any job...a job you love

It's never too early to search for a career. Visit Trekkings blog to participate in building the job of your dreams website. Yes! there are jobs for

• super manga anime lovers
• cricket obsessed fans, or
• paintball loving hippies

http://trekkingsdm.blogspot.com/

Judgement at Nuremberg

History is more vibrant when students place themselves hypothetically in the position of the historical figures. The Nuremberg trials are one of the most influential legal trials in the 20th century. Visit the Waverly blog to join the process of examining this historical trial from the viewpoint of the prosecutors, defendants, and witnesses.

http://summerdoc.blogspot.com/

Use Google Docs to help you write your personal essay

Many seniors will be working on personal essays as part of their admissions and scholarship applications for university. Why do it alone. Google docs communities can help students collaborate and offer critical support in the personal essay.

The Library Media center can help you build a Google docs community linked to your school e-mail. Upload drafts of your personal essays for others to read and review. Meet online to discuss writing techniques and the admissions process. Be a mentor or just call out for help. :)

Google docs can be accessed from any computer at home or at school.

(This post is the brainchild of Leslie Liberman)

Why Research Alone/ Collaborate

When students come to the school library to research projects they often do so in isolation. Consider changing the research process from the individual looking for content to a student-centered research community by building a custom Google search engine. Using this IGoogle gadget and the metasearch engines like Dogpile, classes can create a community search engine specifically designed for any research subject.

Search engines can easily be added to any teacher or student IGoogle page for easy access.

Global Schoolnet - a collaboration toolkit

Move curriculum projects beyond the classroom and the school and join global education and collaboration via http://www.globalschoolnet.org/gsncenter/

The program incorporates a number of collaborative tools including bookmarking, document sharing, chat tools, web accessibility tools, animation, photoshares,and web publishing. Many of these tools are free.

Develop international partnerships which allow students to collaborate world wide on projects.

Basic membership is free. Super collaborative membership is $45.00.

Post A Review

Share what you loved about what you've read. Write a review for the books you are reading now and post them here. Everyone loves to find out what books shouldn't be missed on their reading list, give your opinion and let them know.

Include in your review:

Your Name:

Your Grade:

Title of the Book:

Author:

What did you like about the book?

Is there anything about the book that could be better?

Rate the book:

***** Fantastic Read - Not to be missed

**** Great Read - Can't put it down, but probably wouldn't read it again

*** Good story but there are some elements missing to the story

** Okay but you won't remember it 15 minutes after you've finished

* Not really worth reading unless your bored and stuck in an airport

tech4teaching

tech4teaching is another great resource that suggests ways in which technology such as nings can be effectively used in the classroom.

Assessment Tool for Information Literacy

I don't know how many know about this tool or if it has already been posted but if you can get teachers to give you their students for 2 or 3 days, you can teach then assess on basic information literacy tools.

http://trails-9.org/index.php?page=home

You need to sign up in an account, then drop students in by name or generic number, then give them the online assessment, then read the results. You can use this as a pre or post test on info literacy. posted by Ann S on 7/16/08

Students Teaching Teachers

I came across this website called Generation Yes-Youth and Educators Succeeding. http://www.genyes.com/



Students gain the opportunity to train teachers on implementing technology into the curriculum. This supports student interaction with the learning process. (Web 2.0 student participation, hint--hint)

Run a million miles for Ryan Hall

Ryan Hall is a US Olympic runner from Big Bear, CA. The Lighthouse Project is asking people to support Ryan's efforts at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing by exercising. You can walk, run, dance, etc. to help other participants "run a million miles" for Ryan. Currently, the amount is 660,000...just 340,000 short of the goal.

To join in, go to http://www.moveamillionmilesforryanhall.com/

World History and Culture

Visit the World Cultures website at http://msgutierrezworldcultures.blogspot.com/ to find links and support to help you in your world history and social studies coursework.

Image: Tiergarten - House of World Cultures (Haus der Kulturen der Welt) in Berlin, Germany

Learning from the Past

When Hurricane Katrina hit, the devastation was beyond the resources and preparation of emergency services. In Ms. Bradley's website, students have the opportunity to collaborate and address the challenges and consequences of this natural disaster. Click on http://uslibraryblog.blogspot.com/

School to Career

The working work creeps up and before you know it, it's time to go job hunting. Join librarian April Geltch as she takes you through the job search process at her blog: A School Librarians's Journey at http://ageltch.blogspot.com

Teen Book Review Blog

Teen Book Review http://teenbookreview.wordpress.com/
consists of whole multitudes of links of YA book reviews, authors blogs, and other worthwhile reading and writing sites. These will provide useful ideas for student interactions and Web 2.0 applications.

Government

Federal Election Commission http://www.fec.gov/

SmartVoter http://www.smartvoter.org/

California Legislative Analyst's Office http://www.lao.ca.gov/

California Voter Foundation http://www.calvoter.org/

Center for Responsive Politics - Political Action Committees http://www.crp.org/pacs/

White House http://www.whitehouse.gov/

Supreme Court Home Page http://www.supremecourtus.gov/index.html

Senate http://www.senate.gov/

House of Representatives http://www.house.gov/

US Census Bureau http://www.census.gov/

Political Science Links http://7-12educators.about.com/msub62historypoli.htm

Economics

Hoover's Online: Company Information http://www.hoovers.com/free/

Stock Maven -- find a list of industrials, transports, and utilities by symbol and name. There are also links to the company histories and company web sites. http://www.stockmaven.com/industrials.htm

Barchart.com - Top 100 Stocks http://www2.barchart.com/sectors.asp?sort=2&sec=top~100~stocks.sec

NASDAQ Stock Market Home Page http://www.nasdaq.com/

New York Stock Exchange http://www.nyse.com/

CNN Money http://money.cnn.com/

California Budget and Expenditures:
California Department of Finance http://www.dof.ca.gov/default.asp

Legislative Analyst's Office http://www.lao.ca.gov/

California Budget Project http://www.cbp.org/index.html

Navigate the World

STUDY GEOGRAPHY

Finding Your Way with a Map and a Compass http://erg.usgs.gov/isb/pubs/factsheets/fs03501.html

Internet Geography http://www.geography.learnontheinternet.co.uk/

Rethinking Schools Map Quiz http://www.rethinkingschools.org/just_fun/games/mapgame.html

Library of Congress - Geography and Map Reading Room http://www.loc.gov/rr/geogmap/

Social Studies/Geography links http://7-12educators.about.com/msub62historygeo.htm

National Geographic Xpeditions http://www.nationalgeographic.com/xpeditions/atlas/

Science Fair Ideas

What are some ideas that you have for your Science Fair project?

Did you find any from the web sites given on the previous post that you would like to pursue?

Post a comment responding to the questions above.

Social Networking For Book Lovers

Shelfari

Cool interactive website that I would use for a book club or literacy website. It's at www.shelfari.com and allows a user to set up a bookshelf of favorites. Then people can make comments on this book or the author. I think it is pretty new because there isn't a lot of information on the books or authors yet. Teens would totally love this site. Ann S 7/14/08

Shelfari is the premier social network for people who love books.

Create a virtual shelf to show off your books, see what your friends are reading and discover new books - all for free!

Stephen Krashen

Books and Articles by Stephen Krashen -- A great place to keep up-to-date on current research focusing on students and reading. -- Heather 6/19/08 http://www.sdkrashen.com/index.php?cat=2

Share and Create Your Personal Library

Publicly created/ shared personal libraries -- There are a few different sites that allow the public to share their book collections with the world. LibraryThing allows users to catalog their books online and then they can see who else has the same book in their library. They can then see what else these other people have in their libraries and use it for book recommendations. Goodreads allows users to share reviews of books and can be used as a resource for book recommendations. -- Heather 6/19/08

LibraryThing http://www.librarything.com/

Sample Library Thing widget is located on the sidebar of this blog

Intute for Lessons and Lectures

Intute.ac.uk is a clearinghouse of web resources based mainly out of the UK. There are college level materials as well as course lectures on math, science, arts and health topics. I learned about it from noodletools.com and have recommended it to several teachers for curricular support ideas. www.intute.ac.uk
posted by Ann S on 7/14/08

Deviant Art weblink for student artists

This site is often blocked at schools but if your school allows it, then your students will love it.
It allows students to post their artwork and writings for comment and sharing.
www.deviantart.com posted by Ann S on 7/14/08

History of the United States of America

Library of Congress: American Memory http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/browse/

American Cultural History 1930-1939 http://kclibrary.nhmccd.edu/decade30.html

Cold War Policies 1945-1991 http://history.acusd.edu/gen/20th/coldwar0.html

CNN - Cold War http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/cold.war/guides/about.site/

Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs - Walter P. Reuther Library http://www.reuther.wayne.edu/

Making of America -- Cornell University - Primary Sources http://cdl.library.cornell.edu/moa/

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum http://www.ushmm.org/

American History Online and History Reference Center are both exhaustive sites and are geared for secondary school students or higher both can be accessed for free through the San Diego Public Library and probably through other libraries as well. Joanne 7/10/08

The History Guide - Resources for Historians (web site with links to resources geared to high school and college history students, including primary documents and resources for teachers) http://www.historyguide.org/resources.html

History of the World

The Ancient Greek World http://www.museum.upenn.edu/Greek_World/index.html

Renaissance - Learner.org http://www.learner.org/exhibits/renaissance/

eHistory at Ohio State University http://ehistory.osu.edu/

EyeWitness to History http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/

The World War I Document Archive http://www.lib.byu.edu/~rdh/wwi/

Internet Modern History Sourcebook http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/modsbook.html

Rutgers University Site Organized by Period http://www.libraries.rutgers.edu/rul/rr_gateway/research_guides/history/texts_by_period.shtml

Labour and Business History - International Directory of Web Sites http://www.iisg.nl/~w3vl/

China on the Net http://www.kn.att.com/wired/China/hotlist.html

CIA - The World Factbook https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/index.html

The History Place (Extensive list of links on a variety of U.S. and World history topics)
http://www.historyplace.com

History resources (Extensive list of history resources, from educationindex.com, listed alphabetically) http://www.educationindex.com/history/

The History Guide - Resources for Historians (web site with links to resources geared to high school and college history students, including primary documents and resources for teachers) http://www.historyguide.org/resources.html

Science Fair

Participating in this year's Science Fair? Here are some links that will help you narrow your topic and create an experiment.

Reeko's Mad Scientist Lab http://www.spartechsoftware.com/reeko/

Discovery School Science Fair Central http://school.discovery.com/sciencefaircentral/

California State Science Fair http://www.usc.edu/CSSF/

IPL: Science Fair Project Resource Guide http://www.ipl.org/div/kidspace/projectguide/

Physics

Physics Central http://www.physicscentral.com/

"Einstein's Legacy" (Brief background on Einstein's theories, from the University of Illinois web site)
http://archive.ncsa.uiuc.edu/Cyberia/NumRel/EinsteinLegacy.html

General Science

San Diego Zoo http://www.sandiegozoo.org/

Women in Science http://www.astr.ua.edu/4000WS/4000WS.html

Create A Graph http://nces.ed.gov/nceskids/graphing/

Levels of Organization http://www.schools.utah.gov/curr/science/sciber00/7th/cells/sciber/levelorg.htm

Science Master (Features "learning gallery" links to a variety of scientific, mathematical and related areas, including space, earth, life, physical science and technology) http://www.monkeytime.com/sciencemaster/galleries/galleries.php

Earth Sciences

Explore the vastness of the Earth.




Exploring the Environment http://www.cotf.edu/ete/

Recent Earthquakes in California and Nevada http://quake.wr.usgs.gov/recenteqs/Maps/Los_Angeles.html

USGS Earthquake Hazards Program http://earthquake.usgs.gov/regional/neic/

SCRIPPS Institution of Oceanography http://www.sio.ucsd.edu/

US Geological Survey http://www.usgs.gov/

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution http://www.whoi.edu/

NASA Home Page http://www.nasa.gov/externalflash/nasa_gen/index.html

Earth from Space http://www.earthfromspace.si.edu/default.asp

Human

NATOMY

Human Body Structure http://training.seer.cancer.gov/module_anatomy/unit1_1_body_structure.html

Digestive System http://www.innerbody.com/image/digeov.html

Words, Words, Words

The following links are a collection of online dictionaries and thesauri. The resource, Information Please, also contains an encyclopedia and almanac.

Dictionary.com http://dictionary.reference.com/

Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary and Thesaurus http://www.m-w.com/

Information Please -- Reference site that has access to an encyclopedia, almanac, dictionary and more.http://www.infoplease.com/index.html

Rhyme Zone - Definitions, Synonyms, Antonyms, and more http://www.rhymezone.com/

The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th Edition, is a collection of over 50,000 article entries, 40,000 bibliographic citations, and over 80,000 cross- reference entries. http://www.bartleby.com/65/

Preparing Your Bibliography

How to do a MLA-style works cited page: kclibrary.nhmccd.edu/mlastyle.htm

OWL (Online Writing Lab) - MLA Citations http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/research/r_mla.html

A Checklist for Papers in MLA Form http://www.aug.edu/writing_center/docs/mla.htm

Noodle Tools - Citations, Plagiarism http://noodletools.com/

It's Elemental My Dear Watson

ChemiCool: Periodic Table of Elements http://chemicool.com/

Chemical Elements.com -- An Interactive Periodic Table of Elements http://www.chemicalelements.com/

Biology

The Biology Project -- University of Arizona http://www.biology.arizona.edu/

Biomodel 3 - Proteins http://biomodel.uah.es/en/model3/index.htm

World Index of Molecular Visualization Resources http://molvis.sdsc.edu/visres/index.html

Cells Alive http://www.cellsalive.com/

The Smallest Page on the Web http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/mag/wimsmall/x_smal1.html

Delve Into the World of Mathematics

MATHWORDS -- Bruce Simmons, a math teacher at St. Stephen's Episcopal School in Austin, Texas, designed Mathwords for students who need an easy-to-use, easy-to-understand math resource all in one place. It is a comprehensive listing of formulas and definitions from Algebra I to Calculus. Over a thousand illustrations and examples are provided. Use the alphabetical sidebar to browse, or type the word you are seeking in the search field. http://www.mathwords.com/

History of Mathematics - Resource for information on mathematicians and the history of math. http://www-groups.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/index.html

Biographies of Women Mathematicians - Part of a project at Agnes Scott College in Atlanta, Georgia, to illustrate the numerous achievements of women in the field of mathematics. http://www.scottlan.edu/lriddle/women/women.htm

Möbius Strip - A resource for a definition and directions on how to create one. http://www.cut-the-knot.org/do_you_know/moebius.shtml

Spanky Fractal Database -- This is a collection of fractals and fractal related material for free distribution on the net. http://spanky.triumf.ca/

High School Hub Math page. http://highschoolace.com/ace/math.cfm

Francais

Studying French? Here are some links to help you.

Google Language Tools: http://www.google.com/language_tools?hl=en


The ARTFL Project - University of Chicago The Project for American and French Research on the Treasury of the French Language (ARTFL) is a cooperative enterprise of Analyse et Traitement Informatique de la Langue Française (ATILF) of the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), the Division of the Humanities, the Division of the Social Sciences, and Electronic Text Services (ETS) of the University of Chicago. http://humanities.uchicago.edu/orgs/ARTFL/


France A to Z - Embassy of France in the United States http://www.info-france-usa.org/atoz/index.asp

Tennessee Bob's Famous French Links http://www.utm.edu/departments/french/french.html

France - Portals to the World http://www.loc.gov/rr/international/european/france/fr.html

techlearning.com

techlearning.com is a great resource that provides ideas about incorporating blogs, podcasts, collaborative writing tools, etc. into the classroom. It also includes tips for getting grants.

Habla espanol?

Need help studying the Spanish language and Latin culture? Check out the links below:
Spanish Web Sites http://www.uni.edu/becker/Spanish3.html

Culture and Society of Mexico http://www.public.iastate.edu/~rjsalvad/scmfaq/

Google Language Tools: http://www.google.com/language_tools?hl=en

Copyright and Fair Use

Confused about copyright and what constitutes fair use? This short video provides an overview of what "fair use" means and its implications for the public.

Galleries

Web Gallery of Art http://www.wga.hu/index.html

Art History Network http://www.arthistory.net/

Museum Collections:
Getty Museum http://www.getty.edu/

Huntington Library http://www.huntington.org/

Louvre Museum http://www.louvre.fr/llv/commun/home_flash.jsp?bmLocale=en

Musei Vaticani http://www.christusrex.org/www1/vaticano/0-Musei.html

Everything Art

This online art encyclopedia is a great resource for learning more about specific artists and art movements. It also provides links to images of the works of the artists.

http://www.artcyclopedia.com/

Photography

Interested in photography? Explore the many facets invovled in being a professional photographer. See some professional photos.

Professional Photographers of America http://www.ppa.com/splash.cfm

Photo Travel - Travel Guides for Photographers http://phototravel.com/

Photo.net http://photo.net/photo/index.html

Fine Arts Links

Get the latest news on what's playing on Broadway and the people who light up the stage.

Playbill Online http://www.playbill.com/index.php