Technology Gems, Ideas, and Facts

Friday, January 29, 2010

Gem ~ a website or application that might work well for you or your students

Even if you’re not teaching students to read or write biographies, this site can be helpful.  SweetSearch Biographies is a search engine that “offers profiles and outstanding search results for thousands of famous – or infamous – people”. Results are gathered from sites that have been evaluated and approved for use by students. Students can type in a name or search through categories, using filters to narrow the search. Each entry includes links to more information as well as to the sources used to compile the entry. The reading level on this site is more suited for secondary students, but elementary students should be able to find the basics. Next time you or your students need to research a person, give this site a try. (http://www.sweetsearch.com/biographies)

Idea ~ a way to enhance your LFS lessons with technology

Skimming a webpage to find relevant information can be a chore for teachers and students alike.  When doing research online, there is a keyboard combination that will allow you to highlight a particular term each time it appears on the page.  On a Windows computer, hold down Ctrl+F and on a Mac, use Command (or Apple) +F. This will open a text box somewhere in your browser window. Type in a term and press “Enter” (“Return” on a Mac). For instance, on this page about photosynthesis try Ctrl+F or Command+F, and in the search box that appears type in the word sugar and hit “Enter”. The word sugar will be highlighted each time it appears in the text. This search tip can save you and your students a lot of time when searching a page full of text.

Fact ~ Just a bit of information

It’s almost February…and for a short month stuck in the middle of winter, there’s a lot going on. Click on the links to find resources about Black History Month, Groundhog Day,  the 100th Day of School,  The Vancouver Winter Olympics, and Presidents’ Day. I’ll keep adding more as I find them.

Have a great weekend,

Anne