Phyllis' Favorites

Super Scientists - California Energy Commission - Grades 4 to 10
http://energyquest.ca.gov/scientists/index.html

Site found on TeachersFirst.com

“This site is a great mini reference site for students who need a place to start research on famous scientists or to learn about a number of scientists in a very short span of time. Each scientist is listed with a photo and a brief synopsis. There are links to additional information on specific scientists on the individual pages.”

Entire review and suggestions for using this site “In the Classroom”:
http://www.teachersfirst.com/single.cfm?id=10180

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NOTE: Home page previous posted. Site updated. - Phyllis
Previous posting from:
The NSDL Scout Report for Math, Engineering, and Technology
June 7, 2002

Energy Quest
http://www.energyquest.ca.gov/

Created by the California Energy Commission, Energy Quest is a great site
for kids to learn about energy, how it is produced, and why conservation is
so important. Version 2.0, a large update of Energy Quest with expanded
features, was put online on May 27, 2002. There are plenty of resources on
the site to keep kids entertained for hours, including educational stories,
science projects, games and puzzles, tips to save energy, a timeline of
historical energy events, and an energy art gallery. If a student has a
question that is not answered on Energy Quest, he or she can send an email
to Professor Quester. In addition to the wide variety of material for
children, there are resources for teachers and parents as well. [CL]

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From The NSDL Scout Report for Math, Engineering, and Technology, Copyright
Internet Scout Project 1994-2002. http://scout.cs.wisc.edu/

Explore Nature - Canadian Museum of Nature - Grades 0 to 8

http://explore.nature.ca/default.jsp?lang=EN

Site found on TeachersFirst.com

“Enjoy a virtual journey to the nature museum. Learn facts and see/do interactives about fossils, birds, mammals, and other topics. The gallery includes dinosaurs, volcanoes, insects, the continents and much more.”

Entire review and suggestions for using this site “In the Classroom”:
http://www.teachersfirst.com/single.cfm?id=10338

Sites found in:

NEAT NEW STUFF, May 1, 2009

America's 11 Most Endangered Historic Places
http://www.preservationnation.org/issues/11-most-endangered/

The National Trust for Historic Preservation, which helps people "protect, enhance and enjoy the places that matter to them," regularly focuses on treasures in particular danger from neglect or nearby development. Find out here about the threats to this year's 11. There are also links to Resources (for funding, technical assistance, disaster recovery, etc.), and Issues (community revitalization, neighborhood schools, public lands, etc.).

[NOTE: List from 2008 previously posted. - Phyllis ]

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Encyclopedia of Earth
http://www.eoearth.org/

These articles about the earth, its environments, and its interactions with human society, are written in non-technical language by scholars, professionals, educators, and experts, and are both searchable and browsable by topics, article titles, authors, "environmental classics," and collections.

[NOTE: Previously posted. - Phyllis ]

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Library of Congress Channel - YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/user/LibraryOfCongress

This pilot project offers samples from the Library of Congress collection of early motion pictures, along with recordings of events, lectures and concerts. It currently includes 74 videos, as well as links to LoC's webcasts, podcasts, motion pictures, and digital collections.

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Neat New Stuff I Found This Week
by Marylaine Block
Copyright 1999.
http://marylaine.com/neatnew.html

Sites found in: ******************************************
PBS Teachers Newsletter: October 18-24, 2009
******************************************

Latin Music USA
The Chicano Wave/Divas & Superstars
On-Air & Online
Gr. 6-8 / 9-12
Monday, October 19, 2009
9 - 11:00pm
Mexican Americans in California, Texas and throughout the
Southwest created their own distinct musical voices during the
second half of the 20th century. As studios concentrate on
star-driven pop, Latino youth have gravitated toward urban
fusions like Spanish rap and reggae, as well as rock en
Espanol. (CC, Stereo, HD, 1 year)
http://www.pbs.org/latinmusicusa

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Nature
Rhinoceros
On-Air & Online
Gr. 6-8 / 9-12
Sunday, October 18, 2009
8 - 9:00 pm
Today, the rhinoceros is one of the planet's rarest animals,
with three of its species on the brink of extinction. (CC,
Stereo, HD, 1 year)
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/episodes/rhinoceros/introduction/1179/

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NOVA
Lizard Kings
On-Air & Online
Gr. 6-8 / 9-12
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
8 - 9:00 pm
This program follows monitor lizards, the largest lizards to
walk the planet, and looks at what makes these tongued reptiles
such unique survivors. (CC, Stereo, HD, 1 year)
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/lizard/

[NOTE: See guide pasted below. – Phyllis ]

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Copyright 2008 PBS Online

*********

---------Forwarded Message--------

From: NOVA Teachers
Date: Wed, Oct 14, 2009 at 5:43 PM
Subject: [NOVA Teachers] Lizard Kings airs October 20, 2009

Hello Educators,

Next week NOVA premieres "Lizard Kings." They look like dragons and
inspire visions of fire-spitting monsters. But these creatures with
their long claws, razor-sharp teeth, and muscular, whip-like tails
are actually monitors, the largest lizards now walking the planet.
This program looks at what makes these long-tongued reptiles so
similar to mammals and what has allowed them to become such unique
survivors.

Regards,
Teachers Editor
NOVA Web Site
http://www.pbs.org/nova/teachers/
E-mail: NOVA_Teachers@wgbh.org

* * * * * * * *

NOVA presents "Lizard Kings"
Broadcast: Tuesday, October 20, 2009
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/lizard/

(NOVA airs on PBS at 8 p.m. ET/PT. Check your local listings as
broadcast dates and times may vary. This program can be used up to
one year after it is recorded off the air.)

Wild Lizard Chase
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/lizard/chase.html
In this slide show, producer Gisela Kaufmann illustrates the
challenges of filming monitors, the planet's wiliest lizards.
(Grades 6-8, 9-12)

Links & Books
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/lizard/resources.html
Find links to websites and articles, as well as suggested books,
about monitor lizards and those who study them. (Grades 6-8, 9-12)

NEW!
Media-Rich Lesson Ideas from NOVA
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/teachers/
NOVA is delighted to bring an exciting new way to engage your
students in the wonders of science. These media-rich resources help
you navigate the myriad resources on the NOVA website and integrate
NOVA video, interactive features, lessons, and much more into your
science or social studies classroom. Lesson Ideas for "Lizard Kings"
will be available on the website on premiere date, October 20. Come
back each week for a new collection centered on a different topic
area. (Grades 6-8, 9-12)

Program Transcript
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/transcripts/3616_lizard.html
The transcript is usually available one to three weeks after the
original broadcast date.

Plus Watch a Preview http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/preview/i_3616.html

NFB kids
http://nfbkids.ca/
“The National film Board of Canada presents NFB kids, a safe place created for kids where they can play free games and learn with different pedagogical activities.”

Fun Stuff
http://nfbkids.ca/handson/html/en/fu/

From the site:
"Combining creativity with media literacy, Hands-On offers
workshop plans, curriculum information and a kids section with interactive
games and child-friendly instructions on how to animate, from the basics of
storyboarding to making own claymation figures. Besides giving some know-how to
beginners, the site also provides info on what's happening in the animation
world, with links to other NFB animation sites."
[NOTE: Previously posted. - Phyllis ]

Storyboarding
http://nfbkids.ca/handson/html/en/fu/storyboarding.html

Learning Games For Kids
http://www.learninggamesforkids.com/

From the site:

“A great way to build the foundation skills that today's elementary school curriculum requires. These learning games and songs are fun, teach important skills for preschool and elementary school kids and they're free. Want educational games that help build skills? You've come to the right place!

Click on the games below to play. Sometimes you may have to click twice.”

----------Forwarded Message--------


From: NOVA Bulletin
Date: Tue, Oct 13, 2009

The Secret Life of Scientists

THIS WEEK ON NOVA'S WEB-ONLY SERIES

Nate Ball: Mechanical Engineer

What he invented: The Ascender rope-climbing device

Who uses it: Soldiers and rescue workers

What it does: Save lives

How often his projects work on the first try: Never

His Secret: Daredevil

How he dares the devil: By free running up walls and trees

What happened once when the devil got mad: Nate's toes got pushed
all the way back to his shin

What Nate gets from free running: The thrill of doing something
scary... and succeeding

Watch videos, join the conversation with Nate, and more on The
Secret Life of Scientists.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/secretlife
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/secretlife/scientists/nate-ball/

The Flight of Amelia Earhart

http://teacher.scholastic.com/earhart/index.htm


The World of Amelia Earhart Timeline
http://teacher.scholastic.com/earhart/timeline/timeline.htm
Learn about Amelia Earhart's short life, and the events that shaped the twentieth century.

From: Women Who Changed History
http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/women/index.htm
[NOTE: Previously posted. - Phyllis ]

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Amelia Earhart Biography
http://www.biography.com/featured-biography/amelia-earhart/?HPF_rid=33046092&HPF_mid=2926_T1_Url11
Shortened URL: http://tinyurl.com/yl4ro2p

Full Biography:
http://www.biography.com/articles/Amelia-Earhart-9283280


Amelia Earhart Photo Gallery
http://www.biography.com/featured-biography/amelia-earhart/photos.jsp
Shortened URL: http://tinyurl.com/yjlcjxx

Web Tools for Teachers

http://explore.ecb.org/surf/surf_report?subject=0

From the site:

“Here is a sampling of the many tools on the World Wide Web you can use to help you with teaching, communication and administration tasks in your classroom.”

Includes: Productivity
Communication and Collaboration
Research and Citation
Assessment

Source: ECB Surf Report
Created 9/2009
Last updated 09/09/2009

Title: Crop Circles
http://www.emints.org/ethemes/resources/S00002499.shtml

From the site:

Please preview all links before sharing in class with students.

Description: These sites are about crop circles. Read general information about crop circles, including its history and different theories on how they are created, as well as a design aspect. Find out how to create crop circles using geometric knowledge and how to implement them on fields. Includes a photo gallery, lesson plans, and interactive reconstructions. There are also links to eThemes Resources on symmetry and circumference of geometry.

Grade Level: 9, 10, 11, 12

Source: eMINTS
http://www.emints.org/ethemes/index.shtml

How Much Do You Love Your Liver?

“Hi!...I’m Your Liver”
http://www.moneyradio.org/www/pdf/Liver.pdf

Sites found in:

NEAT NEW STUFF, May 8, 2009

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Cornell University Library Witchcraft Collection
http://digital.library.cornell.edu/w/witch/index.html
Search through over 23,000 digitized pages from Cornell University Library's extensive collection on witchcraft as theology and as religious heresy - including "works on canon law, the Inquisition, torture, demonology, trial testimony, and narratives."

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Crime and Clues - the art and science of criminal investigation
http://www.crimeandclues.com/
Links to articles on crime scene investigation, fingerprints, physical evidence, digital evidence, testimony, behavioral evidence, death investigation, and more.

[NOTE: Previously posted. - Phyllis ]

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Orphanet
http://www.orpha.net/consor/cgi-bin/index.php?lng=EN
"The portal for rare diseases and orphan drugs." Includes a database of rare diseases, searchable by name, gene, or clinical sign (using the provided thesaurus). Also, a database of orphan drugs searchable by drug name or the disease it treats, and a database of diagnostic tests. Other features include an encyclopedia for patients, an encyclopedia for medical professionals, a directory of patient organizations, and a database of research projects and clinical trials.

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Women, Power and Politics Online Exhibition
http://www.imow.org/wpp/index
Articles and interviews with influential women explore topics such as women's role in environmental protection, how "the female body is respected, used, abused and manipulated in the political arena," the "relationship between faith and politics in the lives of women around the world," and more. The site also includes maps, a timeline, recommended films and books, and podcasts.

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Neat New Stuff I Found This Week
by Marylaine Block
Copyright 1999.
http://marylaine.com/neatnew.html

Phyllis's Favorites from the CJRLC Blog – October 2009

http://cjrlc.org/blog/

About Foucault Pendulums and How They Prove the Earth Rotates!
http://www.calacademy.org/products/pendulum/

Abyz News Links: Newspapers and News Media
http://www.abyznewslinks.com/

Civil Rights Digital Library
http://crdl.usg.edu/

Constellations
http://www.seds.org/Maps/Const/constS.html

Table of Constellations (abbreviations hyperlinked)
http://www.seds.org/Maps/Stars_en/Fig/const.html

Constellation Families
http://www.seds.org/Maps/Const/const_family.html

Countries of the World
http://www.infoplease.com/countries.html

Heritage Teaching Resources - Smithsonian Education
http://www.smithsonianeducation.org/educators/resource_library/heritage_resources.html
Shortened URL: http://tinyurl.com/ytskr7

History and Culture of Pharaonic Egypt
http://www.reshafim.org.il/ad/egypt/index.html

History of Money from Ancient Times to the Present Day
http://projects.exeter.ac.uk/RDavies/arian/llyfr.html

MadSci Network
http://www.madsci.org/

Mark Twain In His Times
http://etext.virginia.edu/railton/

Picturing Women
http://www.picturingwomen.org/

Visible Proofs: Forensic Medicine
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/visibleproofs/index.html

Visual Sourcebook of Chinese Civilization
http://depts.washington.edu/chinaciv/
http://depts.washington.edu/chinaciv/guide.htm


NOTE: To receive daily posts via email, send your request to: anker @ hslc.org

NameVoyager: Explore name trends

http://www.babynamewizard.com/voyager
The acclaimed interactive graph of baby name popularity. Watch name trends rise and fall over time!

NameMapper: Explore name by state
http://namemapper.babynamewizard.com/namemapper/
The NameMapper tracks names of babies born in the United States, as reported by the Social Security Administration (SSA).

Namipedia: The Encyclopedia of Baby Names
http://www.babynamewizard.com/
Find reliable expert information on baby name meanings and popularity

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

--------Forwarded Message--------
Hi! It's Wednesday, December 3, 2008 and time for Language Arts at
ClickSchooling!

CLICKSCHOOLING REVIEW:

Recommended Website:
BillzTreasureChest: Writer Prompts
http://www.billztreasurechest.com/blog/

Age Range: 9-17+ (Approximately. Younger children may enjoy some of the
ideas as well.)

In February 2007, ClickSchooling featured MakeBeliefsComix.com
( http://www.makebeliefscomix.com/ ) where
children of all ages create their very own comic strips while improving
literacy. It is the brain-child of journalist and author Bill Zimmerman.

Well, we just discovered that Bill has another website-blog featuring WRITER
PROMPTS that regularly offers new ideas to spark students' imaginations and
encourage them to write more.

When you click on the above url, it takes you to Bill's blog page where he
regularly adds the "Writer Prompts." Just scroll down the page to see the
most recent entries, and then explore the archive of writing prompts by
using the menu on the right side of the screen. Here are two examples from
the site:

*Tell Me About Your Name - What is it? Does your name have a special
meaning? Is there a special story about your name and how you got it? Were
you named after someone - a relative or a hero or a person from history or a
character in a book? Were you named after a flower or animal? How do you
feel about your name?

*What Are the Things That Give You Hope? When I read recently that the
ivory-billed woodpecker, once thought to be extinct, had been seen in
Arkansas, I thought of the words in a beautiful poem by American poet Emily
Dickinson in which she wrote: "Hope is the thing with feathers -- that
perches in the soul..." How does "hope" look to you? What are the things
that give you hope? Write about them and remember what you write so you
won't ever forget hope, no matter what life brings to you.

Students who write responses to these prompts, may have their writing posted
on Bill's blog to reinforce their writing efforts.

This website also contains selections from the books Bill has written as
writing prompts. Use the menu on the left side of the screen to explore th
virtual "Treasure Chest" that includes the following writing prompts, based
on Bill's books (with actual descriptions from the website):

*Find Sunshine - Get some words of cheer that will "encourage you to think
some new thoughts to replace the tired, gloomy old ones you'd like to
escape; maybe, they'll even make you smile or chuckle."

*Record Your Life's Stories & Memories - "Each of us through our years of
living and experiences acquires knowledge and wisdom worth recording. Doing
so helps affirm the value of our lives." These prompts "will help you
reflect on and better understand what you have learned on your life's
journey."

*Learn The Wisdom of Animals - "My little dog taught me how to have fun, to
relax more and to enjoy the fine weather and new grass. She has shown me
what loyalty is. In short, she has helped me become a better human being."
Use these prompts to imagine what words your pet or other animals would use,
if they could, to impart their simple truths.

As you can see, the writing prompts are designed to help students tap into
their own creativity and express their deepest thoughts and feelings.
Bookmark this site and check in regularly to see the new writing prompts as
they are posted.

Diane Flynn Keith
for ClickSchooling
Copyright 2008, All Rights Reserved
http://www.homefires.com/
http://www.carschooling.com/
http://www.universalpreschool.com/

DID YOU MISPLACE A ClickSchooling Review? Do you need to find an educational website - fast! Visit the ClickSchooling archives at:
http://www.homefires.com/clickschool/archive.asp

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.

Storybook Corner

http://www.hfrp.org/family-involvement/storybook-corner

From the site:

“This section of the Harvard Family Research Project website is a unique new source for information on using children's storybooks with family involvement themes to engage families in their children's education and encourage family–school–community partnerships, all while supporting literacy.

The Storybook Corner offers resources to help educators, families, and those who work with families promote the awareness, discussion, and practice of family involvement in children's education in a wide range of settings. Launched in partnership with Reading Is Fundamental, Storybook Corner provides a list of storybooks with family involvement themes and tools for using the storybooks, as well as our own original bilingual online storybook.” <<>>

The Camelot Project:

http://www.lib.rochester.edu/camelot/cphome.stm

A scholarly and detailed site about all aspects of the
Arthurian legends. Largely text-based it is very much
no-frills, but positively bursts at the seams with
fascinating information.

Source: Rob's wURLd

[NOTE: Previously posted. - Phyllis ]