The Answer is...JeopardyLabs.com

I flashback to Bill Murray in Groundhog Day joining the bed and breakfast guests as they watch Jeopardy. He answers all questions because of course he has lived it over and over. This website lets you create personalized Jeopardy games. I started to join but it required money and I am a poor college student so I declined. I did check out the already created games and there are many to choose from. I went through some of them and I have to admit I was a little disappointed. Not so much because they were asking me to pay but because I am not entirely impressed by the layout. Here is the deal, I have a PowerPoint template that I love to use. When a question is chosen and the viewers go back to the big board, you can see the question is off the board. On this format after a question you go back and all the questions look the same. Another disappointing part of this is the lack of the addicting Jeopardy game music. I also wish they had a place to keep score (at least I could not figure out a way to add a score on the site). All in all it is a fine site for many, I am sure, but I prefer using my PowerPoint template. What are your thoughts?

Checking Out Brainflips

I checked out the website brainflips.com today. This is an interesting site aimed at helping students or teachers create flashcards for fun or learning. It really looked awesome so I subscribed to the website. For the most part the user has two options: create a deck for yourself or check out (and join) other groups or individuals who have already created decks to use. Here is the skinny-I had trouble creating my own deck. I was confused on what to do. I finally figured out the process and realized I should have my questions and answers already determined before beginning. The group section was awesome and I saw many decks that would be very applicable in my classroom. I am going to benefit by having this website for future parts of lessons or to help students study for topics. I just have to get used to how to develop my own decks. The website also has other options to help people with memorization and brain activities. Check it out and tell me what you think of it.

Thinkfinity for an infinite number of lesson possibilities

Today I spent some time on the website thinkfinity.org. I signed up for free membership and then set off on an online exploration. What a tremendous tool for a teacher to have at his or her fingertips. The first thing that caught my eye was the search function to help narrow the seemingly endless amount of information. I typed in The Civil War and came up with 238 options. What I really liked was the opportunity to refine my search. With a few more selections I narrowed it down to 38 well developed lessons. This will be extremely helpful for lessons about specific themes. I can easily select a specific subject for a particular age group or I can see what is popular for others right now. The interactive student section is a tremendous tool to engage students in learning. I went back in time and and was able to experience being in Harlem with a few mouse clicks. So many adventures await you in this section. The site has so many aids for educators. I look forward to exploring more and implementing some of the lessons into my classroom. I'll keep you up to date as I discover more options. PS-don't forget to check out the professional development section.

Read/Write/Think.org Review

Hello again, I have another review today of an awesome website for students. The website is readwritethink.org and is a must visit for teachers looking for ways to implement technology into the classroom. The area I focused on is the interactive student part. Believe me, though, the rest of the website is well worth scouring through. The lessons are very interesting and will aid me in reaching my students. Also check out the after school resources. It reminds me of when I was young and we had an after school person come and offer various arts and crafts activities. Hmm, major flashback moment...okay back to the interactive student section.

The activities here are extremely effective in creating excitement to a tech savvy world. Some tried and true offerings include compare and contrast maps and guides. I also created an essay map that puts a visual outline for a student to use on one page. The site has a number of these awesome tools but the real eye-opener tools are ones like comic creator and flip book creator. These activities are fun and challenge the students to learn, through exciting mediums. Students use things like graffiti and music to write poems and create artistic designs. Create a mystery or a follow a hero through a story. This is a must for your classroom. Right now they have 55 interactive activities and the site is still growing. Remember to check out all the other links on this site as well.

I'll have another website review posted soon.

A "Wicked Cool" Puzzlemaker Site

Now that I am a saavy New England resident I have adapted to the lingo pretty well. I have integrated the word "wicked" into every sentence. Today I am using it as an adjective as I describe DiscoveryEducation.coms link to Puzzlemaker. The link is http://www.discoveryeducation.com/free-puzzlemaker/index.cfm?campaign=flyout_teachers_puzzle. This website is extremely helpful to aid in creating puzzles for the classroom. I was amazed at how easy it was to create all types of puzzles for my class. There are basic word searches and crossword puzzles but many other puzzles are also very easy to create. I made a cryptogram and a math block in seconds. This is a must for someone who wants to create a maze. The options are seemingly endless. I did notice some of the puzzles have limitations of 40 to 50 characters but this doesn't usually affect what a teacher is creating because the limits are typically what I would max out at anyway. Puzzlemaker is a real thumbs up.

Before we leave this website we must not neglect to check out the tabs for teachers, parents, and students. I was amazed at what is available on the tabs. Under the teacher tab I found countless lessons for every subject. I found a cool Algebra lesson on Chinese math connecting to real world Algebra. I can't wait to uncover other lessons I can integrate into my classroom. I use critical thinking activities with my class every morning and the brain boosters section will provide numerous activities to add to my collection. Do not forget to check out the featured programs for teachers. I uncovered numerous fun science experiments my class will really enjoy. A ton of hands-on learning is at your fingertips.

Under the student tab a child can learn about every subject. Homework help is available for students here. An amazing driving educational program is also a click away to help students use the virtual world for learning driving techniques. You have to check out the hidden treasures on this site. I have uncovered only a few gems and I intend to glean as much as I can to enhance my classroom for my students.

Four Wordles and Seven Years Ago...

Hey all, check out Wordle.net when you get a chance. This awesome tool allows you to enter words and create a unique visual, displaying the words you typed in. For example, I typed {actually it was a basic copy and paste...I'm not stupid :)}in the words to the Gettysburg Address. Check it out here http://www.wordle.net/gallery?username=Larry%20D. Pretty cool, huh? If you look at it you will notice a few things. The largest words are those that occur most often. This can be very helpful for someone trying to determine how effective their writing style is and what improvements can be made.

"Like I remember like my niece visited us once and like there was this like one word she used like all the time. Like when I like mentioned it like to her she like couldn't believe like she was like using it like all the time."

She is much older and wiser now but recording her and putting her words in Wordle would have opened her eyes to the way she was overusing a certain word. Wordle was a lot of fun and I enjoyed reading others that have been published. You can edit the content or let the program "randomize" it for you. You can change font, capitalize all words, remove words in many language, and change color layouts just to name a few options. I plan on using this next week in my classroom. I was going to have my class write a two paragraph summary of the life of Milton Hershey but I am incorporating Wordle into the lesson and they will create a Wordle with the end result. I will let you know how it turns out. See ya next post.