Crickweb - Free Online Education Resources & Games

Looking for ways to get your kids excited about learning? Crickweb is a fantastic collection of educational interactive teaching resources and activities. If you have an Interactive Whiteboard or Projector, let the kids take the controls and watch them learn. If you do not have an Interactive device, no problem! The activities and games are just as fun and beneficial when using a computer mouse!

Their resources are organized into Early Years (PK-K), Key Stage 1 (1st-2nd grades), and Key Stage 2 (3rd-6th grades).

 

Don't forget to check out the Fun Games and Links sections of the site. Be sure to check the activity first because of the terms this site uses aren't exactly the same ones we use on this side of the pond, and some activities might be confusing. 

What's your favorite Crickweb activity?

Technology Academy 2012

EM-S ISD Faculty and Staff are invited to the second annual Technology Academy.
June 5-6 @ Hollenstein Career & Technology Center

• Sign up in Eduphoria today.
• Don't miss Keynote Speakers Darrell Brown and Dr. Jim Chadwell! (Be sure to sign up for the Opening and Closing sessions too.)
• Smart phones and mobile devices are welcome, but not required.
• Door prizes ... really good ones!

See you then ... at the movies!

Dollar Days at Scholastic Teacher Express!

It's that time of year again ... Dollar Days at Scholastic Teacher Express! Better hurry though, because the sale is only good through Wednesday, 3.28.12.

These downloadable "e-books" and "e-pages" are PDFs and can therefore be read on a computer or most mobile devices.

You will need a Paypal account to make your purchase, but as soon as you do, you will be redirected back to the Scholastic site to download your items (including the items you downloaded last year if you took advantage of their Dollar Days then!)

I just downloaded two books ... what about you?

Tech Tip Tuesday ... Study Ladder

Study Ladder is an exciting online resource primarily for PK-6th grade students (older students may also benefit from some of the activities!). 5000+ interactive activities are available for nearly every subject - math, language, science, music, art, health, and more. Another biggie ... it's FREE for teachers!

You will need to sign up for an account, but then you can choose to use the activities in a computer center, as a class activity on the projector, or in the computer lab. If you set up your class, your students will have full access to all of the activities throughout the day and can even have some access at home (they are limited to 3 activities from home).

Even if you choose not to set up your students with accounts, you can still access the resources for class use.

Some of the activities could actually be used as lesson and others would be great for reinforcement. Each activities gives you the option to be opened in a "Whiteboard version", which simply opens it in a larger, new window.

Be sure to check it out!

Tech Tip Tuesday ... Spelling City

If you teach spelling or vocabulary (and really, who doesn't???) you will definitely want to check out Spelling City. 

Spelling City is a free online environment where kids can access their weekly spelling or vocabulary lists, practice their words with online games, and even take practice tests. 

The super simple way to use Spelling City is to encourage the students to visit the site, they (or their parents) type in their weekly spelling words, and take advantage of the online games and practice tests. Other than letting the parents know about it, this is all you have to do!

Spelling City is really quite easy to figure out, but if you want a little more instruction, they have several short & sweet videos that can be viewed here. Some of the videos include:

• Get Started – Demonstrates how a user enters words and takes a test. 
• Test Results – Explains the information that SpellingCity provides after taking a test. 
• Custom Sentences - Shows how parents and teachers can add their own sentences!  
• Student Writing Practice - Explains how to use the Sentence and Paragraph Writing Practice activities. 
• Handwriting – Details how to create handwriting worksheets using your spelling lists.  

Teachers, you can create their own accounts in Spelling City and enter the spelling lists yourself. When you sign up, you will want to select your school so that your students can easily find you. After you enter your preferred username, your email, and a password, you will come to a screen that explains the subscription costs. STOP - Don't pull out that credit card yet! Look down in the lower right corner of the screen for the No Thanks, I'm fine with the free version button. 

The last step of registration will be waiting for you in your email box. Be sure to check your junk mail, because it will most likely go there.  

What do you think about Spelling City? (Be sure to leave a comment below.)