EDUC 632, Fall 2000
Laura Dougherty
Recommendations
 
  Item (linked) Rationale
Listservs or 
Forums
 IECC Intercultural E-Mail Classroom Connections is a free service to help teachers link with partners in other countries and cultures for e-mail classroom pen-pal and project exchanges. 
 Wa-be-me-do This is a discussion group established to encourage dialogue among K-12 Business Education, Marketing Education, and Diversified Occupations teachers and students and the larger educational community.  This site aspires to help improve learning for students of all ages. 
 CCB-C Cooperative Children's Book Center provides opportunities for spontaneous as well as guided discussions of literature for children and young adults.  It includes multicultural literature and award winning books.  This listserv also informs the subscriber about book publishing, school library media centers, and public libraries.  It allows opportunities for all subscribers to dialogue with educators, librarians, and critics. 
Telecollaborative 
Projects
 iEARN In this telecollaborative web site, students are invited to write about a place that is important to them.  They select one location that gives them a very special feeling and write a story about it.  They can select any writing genre (creative, informative, humorous, ect...) to explore as their imagination takes them away.  Students are permitted to write very short stories (just a few sentences) which should be no longer than one page.  A book of student/teacher/family stories is mailed to each participating school.  It is hoped that, in thinking about their own special places, children will take action to preserve these places, and strengthen their commitment to preserve the earth.  I feel that this would be a good web site to use for any writing activities.  It targets all ages and can be incorporated across the curriculum.  This would make a great project for Geography Awareness Week, as the students choose a target location or specific region to explore and share its unique qualities with others.     
 Favorite Foods From Around the World Students will compile information on favorite foods from all the regions of the world.  The hope is to hear from students in many different countries to learn what others enjoy.  Students in all grade levels can participate in this project and it would be particularly interesting for a thematic language arts or social studies class.  Teachers may register their classes by contacting the  Project Coordinator and providing school name, grade level, email address, and a list of students' ten favorite foods.  It would also be fun to share in a culminating activity by having students bring in a variety of international foods and having a tasting party.     
   
Search Tools
 Lycos This web site is an invaluable search engine for both children and adults.  You can find quick and updated information referencing weather, holidays, travel, etc.... 
 Excite This web site makes learning fun and easy for children.  It has well organized categories such as "Homework Helpers," "Ask an Expert," and "Interactive Projects" to aid in the educational process.
   
Lesson Plan 
Sources
 Education World This site is a fabulous resource for teachers.  It is set up so that you can view lesson plans by grade, subject, or topic.  New lesson plans are submitted weekly, and an endless amount of resources are recommended to further enhance the topic at hand.  I have used this for Social Studies when we are discussing "Current Events." 
 The Academy Curriculum Exchange The Curriculum Exchange is a site where teachers can find a variety of lesson plans.  These lesson plans, written by a consortium of teachers, share ideas in subjects including Language Arts, Social Studies, Science, and Math  There is also a "Miscellaneous" topic which highlights special activities from Chinese Kite Making to interactive classroom game shows.  There is definitely a wealth of information on this site and there are applicable lessons for ALL. 
Data Sets or
Online Tools
   
 National Geographic's Family Expedition  As the Social Studies coordinator for Geography Awareness Week, I was eager to find some interactive geography activities for our students to check out.  National Geographic's Family Expeditions offers students information while challenging them with a variety of engaging scenarios. 
 The mission that I chose was entitled "Quest for Gold."  Students are invited to discover the importance and value of gold while traveling all around the world.  Their starting location is Rome, Italy and their final destination is Xi'an, China.  The mission is to make it through sandstorms, food and water shortages, and raiding parties without running out of gold.  "Travelers" are forced to make immediate and educated decisions to ensure their safety. 
 This adventure not only helps to teach students geographical locations, but mapping and directional skills as well.  I would recommend this site for Social Studies classes with students 4th grade and above.  It would also be beneficial for children to work in groups of three or four so they can make joint and cooperative decisions.