Module 3 Blog Post

Search Engines

Search engines are very powerful tools. They make life easier by allowing you to search most of the internet for whatever it is you are looking for. By learning how to properly use a search engine, you will get better, more accurate search results. 

Website Evaluation Video

This video about evaluating websites is a great way to demonstrate to students why it is important to make sure a website is credible. It is short and to the point, so students will not be confused or overwhelmed with what to check for. It gives an acronym (C.R.A.A.P.) at the end to remember all of the things to look for on a credible website, however, teachers may want to consider pausing the video before that part if they feel that acronym will not be appropriate for their class. 

Favorite Website 

http://www.turtlediary.com

One website I plan to use in my classroom in the future is TurtleDiary.Com. This website has (literally) thousands of games for pre-k through 5th grade. There are activities for math, science, and language arts. The website also has lesson plans, age appropriate math videos, worksheets, online practice, and so many other features. It can be projected onto a SmartBoard as a center rotation, or used independently on a device. 

Favorite Wiki

http://ig5thgrade.pbworks.com/w/page/4619994/FrontPage

This 5th grade class used a wiki as a class dictionary. Each time they discussed a vocabulary word, or just an unfamiliar word, they recorded it in their wiki. It is organized so that you can click each letter on the right hand side of the page and it will take you to the list of words for that particular letter. It is also cool that all students can access this from any device, as long as they save the web address. This example is not as neat as I would want my class' to be, however the idea is really good.