Internet Resources

I friend of mine made a comment on her Facebook page the other day trying to remember what she did on Sunday mornings before Facebook.  As I thought about her comment for a little while, it really struck me how much our society has fully embraced this new technology.  The Internet is a wonderful, valuable resource, and teachers should take full advantage of it.  The following are some Internet resources that I have found very helpful and valuable to me.

hippocampus.org

I found this website while doing some research for a lesson.  The short video clips for U.S. History are very in depth and to the point.  I have used them for gaining knowledge for myself and also as an anticipatory set or review.  The website was originally created to provided free multimedia content for general high school and college classes.  The lessons are thorough and engaging, and provide lots of information for discussion.

historyteacher.net

For a history teacher, this website is a bookmark must.  It was created by Ms. Pojer of Horace Greeley High School in New York.  According to the link on her website, it is ranked #7 on the best history websites page.  If you are looking for power points, test questions, proper citing webpages, maps, lesson plans, you name it, she has it.  There must be over a thousand links to everything related to social studies.  Awesome!

images.google.com/hosted/life

I have learned a lot this year about teaching history and one of the most important things is that many people can learn better when they can see what they are learning.  Life magazine recently put their entire collection of pictures on-line.  As a history teacher, this has been great. There are pictures of everything you could imagine dating back to when photography first started to become available during the Civil War.  This website has been a great resource for me as a supplement to my lessons  as it gives students a visual component to what I am trying to convey to them.

Assistive Technologies for Reading

Landon Roberts - Landonmroberts@gmail.com - 1-26-09

Assistive Technologies for Reading – Ted S. Hasselbring, Margaret E. Bausch

Overview:

Hasselbring and Bausch, both special education professors at the University of Kentucky, discuss the importance of assistive technologies for special education students.  The authors give facts throughout the article to emphasize their point that assistive technologies improve reading skills for special education students, as well as help students shed unnecessary attention upon themselves as they are able to work independently on improving their reading ability.

Click here to continue reading my assessment of "Assistive Technologies for Reading" in Google Docs.

The Overdominance of Computers

Landon Roberts - Landonmroberts@gmail.com - 1-26-09

The Over Dominance of Computers - Lowell W. Monks

Overview:

In his article, "The Overdominance of Computers," Mr. Monks examines the idea that computers may possibly be playing a role in young people's lives that might not be in their best interest.  He questions the long standing assumption that access to computers from a young age helps student achievement.  He also understands the power that comes with technology and believes that instead of giving younger children a free rein on technology, teachers should instill the qualities in the younger generation that will encourage students to use the power that comes with technology in an ethical manner.  Mr. Monk offers some helpful solutions such as waiting to teach technology instruction until after elementary school, and encouraging younger students to engage in hands on school experiences such as drama, and outdoor activities.

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