3 Great Typing Sites

Typing is something that schools and teachers take for granted, but it's a necessary skill that must be taught.  Here are three great sites that I've found useful when teaching students how to type.

1) Dance Mat Typing 
Grades: 2-4

Summary:  BBC brings a great way to teach kids how to type.  There are four levels that teach students  the basics such as home row and proper posture when typing.  Each of the 4 levels are divided into 3 stages. Begin at Level 1 and build up your skills gradually through to Level 4. Here is the breakdown of the levels.

Eco-Friendly Awareness in the Classroom

As the curriculum continues to evolve to include the environmental issues (Earth Day, Earth Hour, Eco-Schools etc), here are a few sites I've used and how I've integrated them into my program.

Zerofootprint: Kids Calculator 
Grade: 3-5
Summary:  The Zerofootprint helps calculates how much carbon footprint each of us make on a daily basis.  It takes into considerations where you eat, what you do and how you get to school.

How to use it: Independent
I use it in my graphing unit.  Then I issue a challenge to the students to reduce their carbon footprints before the end of the unit. The class can graph the data in various charts and graphs. 

Café des MATHadores - en francais

Bonjour! I admit my french is only comme ci, comme ça at best, but I can't forget the french immersions teachers and kids so I went searching for something that would work in a classroom.

Café des MATHadores from TFO has four great games that target a different math strand.

Grammar for Older Students

Every language program has the nitty gritty task of dealing with grammar and spelling.  At the older level, we assume our students know the difference between a noun and verb, but do they?

During the summer as I taught a 7&8 ESL program I turned to the BBC Skillwise a lot to help me with my lessons. 

Skillwise - Grammar
Grades: 5-8
Summary:  There are eleven activities on this site ranging from how to insert commas to advice on writing and following instructions.  Games/Activities are great to use on interactive boards - drag and drop!

Clocks, clocks and more clocks

In an effort to help my students tell time, I have been hunting high and low for great sites to showcase this essential skill.  Here is what I found -

This TeacherLed Interactive Whiteboard Clock shows students how the hour hand moves with the minute hand (a hard concept for tiny grade 2's).

Great to model on the SmartBoard!

A great tool by Amblex shows elapsed time.  It is also great to show students what five minutes looks like.

Beat the Clock Challenge  by TVOKIDS is my go-to game to start a lesson or check for understanding.  The game heats up when the timer is involved!

Also great on the SmartBoard or independently in the lab.

Top Five Digital Storytelling

Digital Storytelling is a great way to model lessons or to let students to practice literacy skills independently.  Below are some of my tried tested and true sites.

1) Bitstrips for Schools -http://www.bitstripsforschools.com/

 Summary: Bitstrips for Schools is an excellent site that is engaging and fun to use.  Students create their own avatar and then put themselves in a comic. They can also create other characters and submit their entries to the teacher electronically.   Teachers can also share different lessons.

 How to use it: Independent
Great as an alternative book report and other comprehension lessons.  Use lessons shared by other teachers for all subjects.

Grades: 3-8 English or French
Note: All Ontario teachers have access to the site.  Teachers have full access to all comics created by students and have full control over passwords and sharing abilities. 

2) Tell-a-Story http://kidsspace.torontopubliclibrary.ca/story.html

Summary: Students can create their own pages using existing characters.  Text and speech can be added by the student.

How to use it: Independent
This site is best used if students have their own computer and have their own time to edit and play around with the story.

Grades: 3-5 English or French

3) Storybird - http://storybird.com/

Summary:  Get inspired by artists and create your own story using pictures provided.

How to use it: Model / Shared/ Independent
Some students need a little help releasing the creative storytelling juices.  Choose a set of pictures and let the imaginations run wild with endless possibilities. 

Grades: 3-8 English or French
Note: Why not try using it as a drama activity like Reader's Theaters afterwards.

4) Garfield Comic Strip Creator - http://www.garfield.com/fungames/comiccreator.html
Summary:  Have students create their own Garfield comic.  Students can choose between one to three panels to create their story.



How to use it: Independent
Have students work in partners or by themselves to create simple short comics that are easy to read.

Grade: 2-4

5) My Story Maker - http://www.carnegielibrary.org/kids/storymaker/

Summary:  My Story Maker lets students create their own story by click on actions for the characters.  Sentences will match the actions the students choose.


How to use it: Independent
Students can read along with the actions they have chosen to increase vocabulary and fluency.  The story will then be published as a PDF.

Grade: 1-3 English
Note: The book is not movie file so actions created by the student will not appear in the final product - only screen shots of their work.