Fun With Language Arts

The Children's University of Manchester in the United Kingdom hosts a very nice language arts site for students and parents. On the site, you'll find an introduction to words, a world language map, jigsaw puzzles, and fun with nouns, adjectives, pairs, and much more. There's even a timeline of the English language. —And, if you don’t know what an EPONYM is, you should head to this very nice site, which also includes fun with history, science, and art and design.

The Amazing 2013 Vultures Rock Competition

The Halloween Vultures Rock Poetry Competition is open once more for entries. This competition focuses on the plight of vultures, whose numbers are dropping around the world mainly because people know so little about them and why they need to be protected.  To honor the job that vultures do in cleaning up our world, children, ages 8-12, are invited to submit original poems that describe how they think vulture’s rock. Poems, which do not have to rhyme, are to be submitted to the Vultures Rock website by October 18^th, 2013. Winners will receive iPod Shuffles.

The competition is an excellent way to help students learn about the importance of vultures in our world and celebrate the fall season. Be sure to check the rules for entry on the site.

Coursera Has 80 New Courses

The best teachers are always learning, be it on their own or through credit courses. One of the most convenient ways to learn what you want when you want at the right price (free) is through Coursera. Maybe you or your students want to jump into songwriting, explore digital signal processing, take on quantum physics, learn about comic books, or discover if plants have senses. You’ll find courses on these topics and more in the new Coursera catalog.  Check it out because you won’t believe how much is there for you and your students—cryptography, nanotechnology, Common Core, Surviving Your Rookie Year of Teaching, genetics, critical thinking, bioelectricity, Latin American Culture, Malicious Software, English Composition . . .

Miss Humblebee’s Academy

Miss Humblebee’s Academy for Pre-Kindergartners, Preschoolers, and Kindergartners offers a safe online learning environment free from pop-ups, advertisements, and links. Designed for young children, the Academy features hundreds of lessons, mobile access, and progress reports. Using the program, students study topics in core subjects such as math, science, social studies, language, art, music, and literacy with Miss Humblebee and her four “amazing” friends”.

Family and educator memberships are available as a free one-week trial.  Songs and albums are priced at $.99, $8.49, and $8.99. Classroom licenses ($299) are available as are monthly memberships ($7.95 first child; $5.00 for each additional child) for families. You can preview Miss Humblebee’s delight songs without signing up.

Blended Learning for Young Children

Vinci Learning features digital devices and programs for early childhood learning. The devices are 7” Android tablets specifically designed for our youngest learners. Apps for the tablets include Play and Learn studies in mathematics, science, and language arts & literacy. While playing with Vinci apps, student profiles are developed; learning activities are recommended based on the assessment. Information about the suggested activities is sent to teachers and parents, and teachers can adjust the program, as needed. This cloud-based analytical tool follows a blended learning approach that is structured to differentiate learning to fit individual needs.

Moving Students Ahead in STEM Subjects

Students entering Deptford High School and many other high schools throughout the nation can select a program that includes college-level courses in engineering, robotics, and Computer-Aided Design. The Deptford program will follow the Project Lead the Way (PLTW) curriculum, which is now used in schools in all fifty states and the District of Columbia.  The PLTW program considers classrooms as innovation zones where hands-on learning and critical thinking take place.

iTunes Virtual Field Trips

Open new worlds of knowledge by going to iTunes Virtual Field Trips. There, you’ll find “trips” to museums, historic sites, historic site apps, National Parks, National Parks apps, Libraries, Library apps, Performing Arts, and Performing Arts apps. There are Mummy Chamber videos from the Brooklyn Museum, Musee du Louvre HD app ($2.99), Beyond New York Sight (audio, Manhattan), Garden Grounds New York Botanical Garden (free, audio/video), Guggenheim app (free), Smithsonian Mobile app (free), National Parks by National Geographic app (free), Treasures of the New York Public Library (audio), Today’s Document from the National Archives app (free), MoMA Audio: Kids (free), A Jazzy Day: Music Education Book for Kids app ($4.99), and much more. By the way, A Jazzy Day has garnered great reviews.

Hollywood’s STEM Connections

Texas Instruments (TI) together with the Science & Engineering Exchange,  a program of the National Academy of Sciences has created STEM BEHIND HOLLYWOOD. The program, which features free STEM activities for students, is available for use on TI-Nspire CX handhelds, TI-Nspire Teacher and Student Software, and TI-Nspire Apps for iPad.  With the program, your students will learn about the science and math behind Hollywood’s depictions of superheroes, zombies, space travels, and forensics. Available now is the STEM OF THE LIVING DEAD or the Zombie Apocalypse. Students take on what brings zombies to life as they investigate a Zombie disease that is spreading throughout the world.

Sign up for email updates to learn about future volumes in STEM BEHIND HOLLYWOOD.

Sophia Learning—32,000 Tutorials

NetTrekker has added Sophia Learning to its list of resource content providers. With access to Sophia, students can access tutorials in subject areas such as mathematics, science, English, fine arts, social studies, and foreign languages. For those interested in college credit while in high school, there are nine self-paced Sophia courses. The Sophia offerings not only helps students get a head-start in their studies, but also gives teachers the flexibility to add courses and enrichment to their classrooms. All of the Sophia high school, college readiness (ACT Prep, Refresher, College Success) and college courses are free.

Guide to Free Online College Classes for High School Students

Online College Courses.net offers a list of free online courses for students in Grades 9-12. The courses are categorized by topics such as Arts Open Courseware, (art, music, and theater); Business Open Courseware (economics, finance); English and Communication Open Courseware (poetry, grammar, literature, cultures); Humanities and Social Sciences Open Courseware (U.S. History, Politics, Public Policy); Math Open Courseware (calculus, statistics, complex numbers, patterns & formulas); and Science Open courses (physics, biology, astronomy, oceanography). The courses listed are provided by universities such as Cal Berkeley), MIT, Michigan, The Open University, and Utah State.

If you are interested in free (non-degree) courses for your students, you should also browse the MOOC (Massively Open Online Courses) Directory, which lists available courses for higher education and Kindergarten through Grade 12.