Phyllis' Favorites

Site found in:
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LII: Librarians' Index to the Internet
NEW THIS WEEK for September 2, 2004
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Why Leaves Change Color
This site explains, in simple terms, how summer foliage is
transformed into a vivid autumn palette; how weather conditions
affect colors; and how the "shortening days and the declining
intensity of sunlight" start the color transformation. From the
USDA Forest Service, St. Paul Field Office.

http://www.na.fs.fed.us/spfo/pubs/misc/leaves/leaves.htm
Subjects:
* Leaves
* Fall foliage
* LII classic content
Created by: jh

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Use of the annotations from this list must be accompanied by:
Copyright 2004 by Librarians' Index to the Internet, LII.
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Karen G. Schneider, kgs@lii.org
LII New This Week Listowner, and Director, Librarians' Index to the Internet
Information You Can Trust!
http://lii.org/

The Miracle of Fall
http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/fallcolor/about.html
From the site:
“Fall color starts in September with poison ivy and sumac and ends in November with the larches and weeping willows. Frost and freezing temperatures will stop the coloration process and blacken the leaves.”

Seasons Interactive (128.0K)
http://highered.mcgraw-hill.com/olcweb/cgi/pluginpop.cgi?it=swf::800::600::/sites/dl/free/0072465700/78778/Seasons_Nav.swf::Seasons%20Interactive
Shortened URL: http://tinyurl.com/682e5j
From the site:
“That our seasons come from the tilt of Earth’s axis relative to its orbit of the Sun is easy to grasp, once you have used this Interactive. It shows the flow of seasons as the planet orbits the Sun, the angle of the Sun’s rays for a given location on Earth, how temperature varies at that location, and how the Sun’s path varies in the sky by season. Choose from 3 planets to see how their seasons reflect their unique tilts, or customize the tilt. What would “winter” be like if Earth had no tilt? This Interactive will show you.”

Retrograde Motion
http://highered.mcgraw-hill.com/olcweb/cgi/pluginpop.cgi?it=swf::800::600::/sites/dl/free/0072482621/78780/Retro_Nav.swf::Retrograde%20Motion
Shortened URL: http://tinyurl.com/69sotm
From the site:
“This Interactive illustrates how the different planetary orbital velocities lead to “looping” or retrograde motion in the night sky. The Interactive will show the view at successive times from the Earth as well as from a “birds-eye” perspective in space. Users will be able to manipulate the size of planetary orbits, plus be able to view the retrograde motion from different perspectives, like what the retrograde motion of Earth looks like from Mars.”

See Also: http://www.mhhe.com/physsci/astronomy/applets/Retro/frame.html

eHow: How To Do Just About Everything!
http://www.ehow.com/

From the site:
eHow has a database of over 250,000 articles and videos. It's the world's most popular place to find clear instructions on how to do just about everything.

Subscribe to get Get the eHow of the Day delivered directly to your inbox! Learn something new each and every day with the eHow of the Day. http://www.ehow.com/MailingList.html

[NOTE: Previously posted. - Phyllis ]

Making Learning Fun (PreK-2)
http://www.makinglearningfun.com/
From the site:
“Welcome to Making Learning Fun: An early childhood education website filled with free printables designed to do just that, make learning fun! Whether you are a parent, teacher, or childcare care provider, you'll love our site filled with educational printables and activities for the children you love. You'll find that pre-kindergarten through second grade students will enjoy our activities most, but you'll find yourself having fun too!”

Encouraging Girls in Math and Science
http://dww.ed.gov/topic/topic_landing.cfm?PA_ID=8&T_ID=18&Tab=2

IES Practice Guide
View, or download and print the full guide as a PDF file (1.13 MB)
http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/pdf/practiceguides/20072003.pdf

From the site:
“The objective of this guide is to provide teachers with specific recommendations that can be carried out in the classroom without requiring systemic change. Other school personnel having direct contact with students, such as coaches, counselors, and principals, will also find the guide useful.

“This Practice Guide was developed by an expert panel convened by the Institute of Education Sciences. It offers five recommendations to encourage girls in math and science. A summary of the research evidence and a level-of-evidence rating are provided for each recommendation. This Practice Guide is the foundation for all the Doing What Works content on encouraging girls in math and science.
Contents: Essential Concepts. Recommended Practices, Planning Templates

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Other practice guides available:
http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/publications/practiceguides/
Improving Adolescent Literacy: Effective Classroom and Intervention Practices NEW
Turning Around Chronically Low-Performing Schools NEW
Organizing Instruction and Study to Improve Student Learning
Effective Literacy and English Language Instruction for English Learners in the Elementary Grades

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From: Back-to-School Message from the Teacher-to-Teacher Initiative
U.S. Department of Education

Sites found in:
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PBS Teachers Newsletter: August 31 - September 6, 2008
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Nature
Animals Behaving Worse
On-Air & Online
Gr. 6-8 / 9-12
Sunday, August 31, 2008
8 - 9:00 pm
Our natural neighbors can be ingenious, brilliant and scrappy
when sharing our cities and suburbs. We move into their
backyard and they move into ours. It is survival of the
shrewdest and the most tenacious … anyone who has tried to keep
a squirrel out of a birdfeeder knows exactly how true that can
be. This film presents new examples of animal/human conflicts
based on the highly popular "Animals Behaving Badly" format.
(CC, Stereo, 1 year)
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/episodes/animals-behaving-worse/introduction/907/
Shortened URL: http://tinyurl.com/6dblgb

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Media Infusion
August Media Infusion Focuses on Engaging Students in Science with
Active Learning

This month's Media Infusion blogger, Elizabeth Ross Hubbell,
discusses an instructional framework designed to help teachers
alleviate students' misunderstandings about basic science
concepts. Using this framework as the backdrop, Hubbell offers
a variety of resources for teachers to create high-quality
lessons that include: high-quality Content, opportunities for
Understanding, and an Environment conducive to learning for all
students (CUE). PBS Teachers invites educators to visit Media
Infusion in August and ask questions, comment on Hubbell's
suggestions or offer some of their own.

http://www.pbs.org/teachers/mediainfusion/

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Copyright 2008 PBS Online

Fast FAQs About Rocks and Fossils
http://www.childrensmuseum.org/geomysteries/faq3.html
From the site:
“What's a hardness scale?
Some minerals are very hard, others are very soft. We can use the Mohs Hardness Scale to compare the hardness of any mineral. The higher the number on the scale, the harder the mineral is. Each mineral can scratch only those minerals below it on the scale.”

Click on each of the rocks in the diagram to learn more about them.

Weekly Teacher Tip Newsletter
Subject: Teaching About Insects: Teacher Tips #405
Date: Sat, 12 Apr 2008 18:25:38 -0400

TeAchnology.com's- Tips for Teachers Issue #405
This week's teaching theme is Insects.
http://www.teachnology.com/newsletters/405.html

Insects Teaching Theme
http://www.teachnology.com/themes/science/insects/
Site contains links to Hands On Activities, Teacher Resources, Work Sheets, Lesson Plans, Web Quests, Interactive Sites, Background Information, and more. NOTE: Many are free, access to some requires paid membership.

Insects
http://www.teach-nology.com/teachers/subject_matter/science/biology/insects/
Shortened URL: http://tinyurl.com/rcny6
Annotated links to resources on insects

[NOTE: Previously posted. - Phyllis ]

From: The Academy of Natural Sciences
http://www.ansp.org/

Butterflies and 3 gallery pages
http://www.ansp.org/museum/butterflies/species.php

Interactive: Explore Butterflies!
http://www.ansp.org/museum/butterflies/new_interactive/butterflies.html

Life Cycle
http://www.ansp.org/museum/butterflies/life_cycle.php

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Teacher Resources: Online Supplements
http://www.ansp.org/education/resources/supplements.php

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An Educator's Guide to Butterflies!: Lessons and Other Resources for Teachers
(.pdf 1.6MB – 145 pp.)
http://www.ansp.org/education/pdf/Butterflies_Teachers_Guide.pdf
This teacher's guide is designed to complement the Academy's live butterfly exhibit, but a visit to the Academey is not required. Each lesson is classroom-based and are aligned with both Pennsylvania State and Philadelphia District standards. They address multiple curriculum content areas, including Science, Math, Literacy, Geography, Visual Arts, and Technology Education.

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An Educator's Guide to North American Hall (.pdf 1.8MB)
http://www.ansp.org/education/pdf/North_American_Hall_Teachers_Guide.pdf
Shortened URL: http://tinyurl.com/5beyon

The Educator's Guide to North American Hall provides teachers with lessons and activities that engage students both in the North American diorama hall at the museum and as pre/post lessons in the classroom. The guide contains 21 lessons; each with associated pre- and post-lesson exercises, designed for students in grades one through four and five through eight. General background information, a glossary of vocabulary terms, and content standards descriptors are also provided. All lessons have multi-disciplinary connections: exercises that target Pennsylvania State Standards and Philadelphia District Standards in areas other than just science. Each lesson is designed as an independent “stand-alone” and does not need to be taught in sequence with the other lessons. Teachers may choose to utilize the entire guide or only those lessons and activities that they consider most applicable to their students’ needs.

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Inspiring Future Scientists: Developing a Science Enrichment Programs for Teens
http://www.ansp.org/education/pdf/Inspiring_Future_Scientist.pdf
This 40 page handbook describes a successful science enrichment program designed for High School students by the Academy of Natural Sciences. It is available for individuals and institutions interested in initiating similar programs.

Download Inspiring Future Scientists (pdf 214KB)

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Water Resources
We All Live Downstream
Living Downstream is an exhibit at the Academy of Natural Science that's discusses the importance of the watershed concept and how human activities on land affect the quality of our water. The following Teachers Guide and Student Workbooks are available for download:

Teacher's Guide (.pdf 1.8MB)
http://www.ansp.org/education/pdf/Living_Downstream_teach_guide.pdf
Student Workbook: Grades 3-5 (.pdf 16.0MB)
http://www.ansp.org/education/pdf/Living_Downstream_wkbk_3-5.pdf
Student Workbook: Grades 6+ (.pdf 6.6MB
http://www.ansp.org/education/pdf/Living_Downstream_wkbk_6.pdf

(More information about this exhibit and related supplemental material can be found at http://www.urbanrivers.org/ (This is an external link).

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PBS: Blythe Bennett's Recommended Site

Digital Collections from the Ewell Sale Stewart Library
The Academy of Natural Sciences
http://www.ansp.org/museum/digital_collections/index.php

Visit digital collections of rare, beautiful, and important books most people will never see in their lifetimes. Exceptional fish, birds, mollusks, botany, herpetology, elephants, and microscopy.
[NOTE: Previously posted. - Phyllis ]

Eureka! Games
http://www.scienceworld.ca/fun_stuff/playstuff/eurekagames.html
From the site:
“Eureka! Games Can you lift a 200kg hippopotamus, or generate enough electricity to illuminate a light bulb with the power of wind? These five Eureka! Games are based on real exhibits at TELUS World of Science.”

dMarie Time Capsule
http://dmarie.com/timecap/
From the site:
“The "dMarie Time Capsule (tm)" is a historical database of facts from the past that you can use to spice up heritage pages for friends or family. Simply type in the date you're interested in (try your birth date!) and click the button -- an instant page all about the year you were born -- what famous people share your birthday, how much a gallon of gas cost that year, etc. Includes data for 1900 through about 1995.”

[NOTE: Previously posted. - Phyllis ]

dMarie Time Capsule
http://dmarie.com/timecap/
From the site:
“The "dMarie Time Capsule (tm)" is a historical database of facts from the past that you can use to spice up heritage pages for friends or family. Simply type in the date you're interested in (try your birth date!) and click the button -- an instant page all about the year you were born -- what famous people share your birthday, how much a gallon of gas cost that year, etc. Includes data for 1900 through about 1995.”

[NOTE: Previously posted. - Phyllis ]

The World War II Poster Collection
http://www.library.northwestern.edu/govinfo/collections/wwii-posters/index.html
Shortened URL: http://tinyurl.com/44aswe
From the site:
“The 338 items, primarily World War II-era posters, featured in this site's database were collected and preserved by the Northwestern University Government and Geographic Information and Data Services Department. Issued by various U.S. government agencies, these posters represent the government's effort, through art, illustration, and photographs, to pull the American people together in a time of adversity for the country and its population.”

Voices of the Holocaust
http://www.bl.uk/learning/histcitizen/voices/holocaust.html
From the site:
“During the 1930s and 40s, the Nazis and their collaborators murdered six million Jews. Hitler's intention was to destroy all Jewish communities, and to build a 'master race' of Aryans. Many other 'non-aryans' were persecuted including Romanies, homosexuals, and the disabled, as well as those who were politically opposed to the Nazis. This terrible moment in history is now known as the Holocaust. It remains one of the most horrific examples in recent European history of indifference, inhumanity, prejudice and genocide.

“Voices of the Holocaust consists of oral history testimonies gathered from Jewish men and women who came to live in Britain during or after WWII. These testimonies are personal, individual, true stories, that describe the hardships of life during Hitler's reign.”

---------Forwarded Message--------
Hi! It's Thursday, April 3, 2008 and time for History at ClickSchooling!

Recommended Website:
Teach U.S. History
http://www.teachushistory.org/

Age Range: 11-17 (middle school through high school, approximately)

ClickScholar MaryAnna recommended this website that provides primary source
materials, lesson plans, audio and video presentations, and supplementary
resources such as worksheets and links to other informative websites to help
classroom teachers teach U.S. History. Most of the material can be adjusted
for use in the homeschool environment.

When you get to the site, you'll see a welcome message accompanied by a menu
on the left side of the screen. Click on "How To Use This Site" to read an
outline of what the site provides. Then, simply click on the topics of
interest from the menu that include:

American Revolution
DeTocqueville Visit to the U.S.
Indian Removal
Temperance Reform in the Early 19th Century
The Dred Scott Decision
The Kansas-Nebraska Act and Bleeding Kansas
The Second Great Awakening and the Age of Reform
War of 1812 and the Hartford Convention
Westward Expansion

As you click on each topic a new page opens. There is some inconsistency in
the format that can be a little confusing. Some pages open to a splash page,
others open to a menu of choices, and others open to a page with a brief
overview. On the latter, it may look as though there isn't any information
- but look on the menu on the left side of the screen and you'll see that
under that topic is a highlighted drop-down menu from which you can select
lesson plans and resources.

This site is deceiving. It contains a vast amount of content assembled by
teachers and museum curators as you will discover once you start clicking
through the resource links. Plan to spend some time here to pinpoint the
materials you'll want to use to supplement your study of U.S. history.

Diane Flynn Keith
for ClickSchooling
Copyright 2008, All Rights Reserved
http://www.Homefires.com/
http://www.Carschooling.com/
http://www.UniversalPreschool.com/

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Note: We make every effort to recommend websites that have content that is appropriate for general audiences. Parents should ALWAYS preview the sites for suitable content.

Click Schooling (Clickschooling) is a Federally Registered Trademark.

Planet eBook
http://www.planetebook.com/
From the site:
“Welcome to Planet eBook, the home of free classic literature. All our novels and books are entirely free for you to download and share with your friends, classmates, students, anyone! Scroll down the page to see the full list of free eBooks.”

Style & Diction
http://www.editcentral.com/.
From the site:
“This is an interactive web page for checking a sample of writing. It is modeled after the ancient Unix utilities style and diction. Enter or copy text into the first box below. The scores to the right give the readability of the text according to various formulas.”

ThinkTank
http://thinktank.4teachers.org/

From the site:
“ThinkTank is designed to help students develop a Research Organizer (a list of topics and subtopics) for reports and projects. Based on the subject assigned, the students can refine it by choosing from a variety of suggestions and by using a random subtopic generator. This helps students learn how to refine a subject so that it is more manageable for Internet research.”

[NOTE: Other pages from http://www.4teachers.org/ previously posted. - Phyllis ]

Sites found in:
Connect-Eng, March 31, 2008
The newsletter of Web English Teacher

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What's new at Web English Teacher?:

David Almond
http://www.webenglishteacher.com/almond.html
Lesson plans for Kit's Wilderness, Heaven Eyes, Skellig

Hans Christian Andersen
http://www.webenglishteacher.com/andersen.html
Lesson ideas and text of stories.

Truman Capote
http://www.webenglishteacher.com/capote.html
Lesson resources for "A Christmas Memory" and In Cold Blood

Robert Hayden
http://www.webenglishteacher.com/hayden.html
Biography, poetry, criticism, and lesson ideas for "Those Winter Sundays,"
more

Robert Herrick
http://www.webenglishteacher.com/herrick.html
Biography, poetry, and criticism.

Gordon Korman
http://www.webenglishteacher.com/korman.html
Lesson plans for No More Dead Dogs, more

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Site to Check Out:

Using Documentary Film as an Introduction to Rhetoric
http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/public/repository/AP_CurricModEnglish.pdf
Shortened URL: http://tinyurl.com/65tea6
This extensive unit plan was prepared by classroom teachers and designed for
AP classes. This 65-page document requires Adobe Acrobat Reader or
compatible application for access.

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Retiring SCORE Language Arts Cyberguides

http://www.sdcoe.k12.ca.us/score/cyberguide.html
[NOTE: Previously posted. - Phyllis ]

The SCORE Language Arts Cyberguides were early forays into
technology-integrated instruction, and they were awesome resources. Someone
in the San Diego County Office of Education understood the power of the Web
early on. Designed by classroom teachers, the guides contain novel-based
supplementary literacy activities, many of which are still of solid
educational value today. No new guides have been created in the past few
years due to budget cuts.

I discovered this week that several of the guides are being retired, mostly
due to link rot. If you had a favorite guide, you might want to print it out
soon. If you haven't visited the guides, please do. Some of them are still
active, and you might find something either useful or inspirational.

Many thanks to the pioneers of the SCORE guides!

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Carla Beard
Web English Teacher
http://www.webenglishteacher.com/

This newsletter is copyright 2008, Web English Teacher.

Documents in the News
http://www.lib.umich.edu/govdocs/docnews.html
From the site:
“Documents in the News identifies issues about government making news headlines and web sources with additional information.”
[NOTE: Previously posted. - Phyllis ]

Sites to See: Labor Day
http://www.educationworld.com/a_sites/sites045.shtml
From the site:
“Labor Day is much more than the end of summer. It is a holiday unlike most others, honoring not public figures or war victories but the everyday worker. To commemorate Labor Day, Education World has found some of the best World Wide Web sites about the history of the holiday -- and labor -- in the United States.”

Facts for Features: Labor Day 2008: Sept. 1
http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/releases/archives/facts_for_features_special_editions/012085.html
Shortened URL: http://tinyurl.com/5hrnh9

From the site:
“The first observance of Labor Day is believed to have been a parade of 10,000 workers on Sept. 5, 1882, in New York City, organized by Peter J. McGuire, a Carpenters and Joiners Union secretary. By 1893, more than half the states were observing a “Labor Day” on one day or another, and Congress passed a bill to establish a federal holiday in 1894. President Grover Cleveland signed the bill soon afterward, designating the first Monday in September as Labor Day.”

2008 Presidential Nominating Conventions
http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/releases/archives/facts_for_features_special_editions/012522.html
Shortened URL: http://tinyurl.com/6lczto

From the site:
“Political parties in the United States hold nominating conventions every four years to formally select who will be their presidential candidate. This year, the Democratic National Convention will begin Aug. 25 in Denver. The Republican National Convention will begin on Sept. 1 in St. Paul, Minn. The U.S. Census Bureau provides social, economic, demographic and business data for the two host cities, or their surrounding counties.”

Genghis Khan: Treasures of Inner Mongolia
http://www.royalalbertamuseum.ca/vexhibit/genghis/intro.htm
From the site:
“an exhibition that featured archaeological treasures from one of the greatest empires in history.”

Sites includes:
Picture gallery: a glimpse of some of the stunning artifacts from the exhibit
Who was Genghis Khan?
Inner Mongolia: where is it?
Timeline: historical events
InfoBytes: interesting facts and figures
Follow-up: links for topics in the exhibit

The Innovative Teaching Newsletter
Volume 10, Issue 8 - April 2008

Topic: Presidential Election 08
http://surfaquarium.com/NEWSLETTER/elections2008.htm
List of more than 50 links to resources and sites

Walter McKenzie
The One and Only Surfaquarium
http://surfaquarium.com/
walter@surfaquarium.com

POTUS: Presidents of the United States
http://www.ipl.org/div/potus/
“In this resource you will find background information, election results, cabinet members, notable events, and some points of interest on each of the presidents. Links to biographies, historical documents, audio and video files, and other presidential sites are also included.”

[NOTE: Previously posted. URL updated. - Phyllis ]

Sites found in:
=======
The Scout Report
April 11, 2008
Volume 14, Number 14

Current issue: http://scout.wisc.edu/Reports/ScoutReport/Current/
This issue: http://scout.wisc.edu/Reports/ScoutReport/2008/scout-080411.php

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Mathematics Awareness Month 2008 [pdf]
http://www.mathaware.org/index.html

Voting is on the minds of many these days, including politicians,
statisticians, policy wonks, and a number of talking heads. With that in
mind, it's not surprising that the Joint Policy Board for Mathematics has
offered up "Math and Voting" for the theme of Mathematics Awareness Month
2008. The site is full of compelling activities, contests, and thoughtful
essays, and even those who feel some resistance to various forms of
mathematics may find themselves completely won over. Visitors should click
on the "Theme Essays" section to read insightful pieces like "Roles for
Statisticians in Elections" by John S. Gardenier, D.B.A, and "Fair Majority
Voting (or How to Eliminate Gerrymandering)" by Michel Balinski. After that,
visitors can click through to the "Activities" area, where they can try
different voting methods and watch and listen to talks on voting paradoxes
and the mathematics of voting. [KMG]

[SEE ALSO: Related Resources on Math and Voting
http://www.mathaware.org/mam/08/related.html - Phyllis ]

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Earth Revealed
http://www.learner.org/resources/series78.html

What goes on during an earthquake? Who came up with the theory of plate
tectonics? What can the fossil record tell us about the evolution of life on
Earth? These are all fine questions, and students and educators with a
thirst for geological knowledge will find the answers to these (and many
more) questions in the "Earth Revealed" television series. Offered as part
of the Annenberg Media website, the 26-part series includes such episodes as
"Geologic Time", "Mountain Building", and "The Birth of a Theory". As with
many of the Annenberg Media offerings, visitors can view entire episodes
here, and they can also take a look at a list of additional resources. [KMG]
[NOTE: Previously posted. - Phyllis ]

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National Geographic: History [Macromedia Flash Player]
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/

The National Geographic Society takes a broad and inclusive approach to
history in their print magazine, and their website dedicated to the subject
is no different. The site is full of multimedia features, such as video
clips, short interviews, and interactive maps, and it is updated frequently.
On the top of the homepage, new and timely history-related news stories
scroll through, accompanied by arresting visual images. Visitors can click
on the images, or also navigate their way through a list of stories below
the image box. Additionally, the site contains a "History Video" area,
which includes video clips documenting everything from the annual donkey
race in Italy to various archaeological museums. Because the site maintains
the high-quality standards of the print magazine, many visitors may find
themselves acquiring an enduring interest on some of the topics covered
here. [KMG] [NOTE: Previously posted. - Phyllis ]

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Inspiring Impressionism [Macromedia Flash Player]
http://exhibits.denverartmuseum.org/impressionism/

"Daring. Provocative. Revolutionary." This is how the curators for the
"Inspiring Impression" exhibit describe the Impressionists. But, this
exhibit does more than display Impressionist masterpieces, it also shows how
these "painters of modern life were influenced by artists of the past." The
exhibition explores the relationship between the Impressionists and the Old
Masters that inspired them. If you can't make it to Denver to see the show,
then this website provides a worthwhile taste of the exhibition. In the
"Featured Artworks" section, visitors can compare the likes of Hobbema and
Monet, Puget and Cézanne, and others. Here, an inspirational work by an
Old Master is set next to an Impressionist work clearly influenced by its
predecessor. The site also offers a timeline, which allows visitors to
"learn more about Impressionists and their relationships to the Old
Masters." Finally, the "Teaching Resources" section of the site provides a
wealth of information on where to find more on either the Old Masters or the
Impressionists in cyberspace. [CMH]

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>From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout 1994-2008.
http://scout.wisc.edu/