http://www.kidtopia.info
Kidtopia is a search engine created by school librarians for elementary students and teachers. It is a Google custom search engine that only includes websites recommended by librarians and teachers. I would feel comfortable with my students relying on Kidtopia for their information because the results are filtered so that only appropriate and credible websites come up.
How can learning to use search engines help you/students find better information?
Knowing how to decide whether a search engine is credible will greatly increase the reliability of the research students and teachers find. It will also prevent students from coming upon inappropriate information on the Internet. Learning how to use key words in searches is also a vital research skill. This skill will make the research process much more efficient. Classroom time should be spent on learning, not searching for websites.
Website Evaluation Video
This video would be a great compliment to a lesson on evaluating websites. It shows different elements of websites that students can use to evaluate its credibility, including the purpose of the website, domain designators, authors, references, and published dates. I especially like that it compares how we would be skeptical of what strangers say to us on the street to how we should also be skeptical of websites online.
http://www.teachertube.com
The website is an excellent resource for teachers because it provides instructional videos that can be used in the classroom to compliment lessons. The site also offers professional development videos created specifically for teachers that provide information about new resources in the education world.
I think that TeacherTube meets some of the criteria for good website design. The site does include clear text/graphics links and it is easy to navigate. The front page is slightly long and cluttered so it could be overwhelming for first-time users. However, I feel the site is still good because it is meant for teachers to use mainly instead of elementary students.
Favorite Website #2:
https://mrssheftelsclass.wikispaces.com
My next website is a class wiki. I chose this particular class wiki because it had several features I would like to include in my own class wiki. The homework page link is an excellent weekly reminder for students when they are at home. It is also helpful for keeping parents informed. The wiki includes a page link specifically for parents as well. This page describes what is being learned in the classroom currently. Each student also has their own page within the wiki where they upload samples of their work to share with parents and classmates. This class wiki was extremely easy to navigate and it seemed like the students used it often throughout the year.
I really liked the teacher tube channel that you posted. I think that could be really beneficial to teachers.
ReplyDeleteOne of the sites I posted was also a class wiki and I really like the idea. That way the class is more of a community and it gets everyone involved, including the parents.
Wow! Kidtopia is really neat! I love how it breaks down into subcategories. I am definitely adding teachertube to my list of resources. I completely forgot about this website, but now I remember some of my teachers used during school. I like that it is specifically structured for teachers, therefore you don't have to worry about any inappropriate content popping up when you are trying to show your students a video.
ReplyDeleteDana, Kidtopia is awesome! Thank you for finding that! I've definitely bookmarked it. I love that it helps create that peace of mind when you're allowing your students to use computers to research.
ReplyDeleteI chose a class wiki for my wiki too. I appreciate the opportunity that we have in this class to check out other things and compile a list of things we would and would not like to use in our classroom.