Digital Story Telling
with Jason Ohler - Internet Library
Keane Richards
Internet Library
We all need a place to go as teachers to get ideas for engaging lessons, or supplement the lessons we already have. Below is a list I compiled of my top sites.
Alaska Teacher Placement Forum
This website is a great resource for teachers and potential teachers. It allows for networking, asking questions about locations and schools, and conversation about the challenges and rewards to teaching (especially in rural Alaska).
Association for Experiential Education
AAE is one of the biggest organizations promoting experiential education. The website provides resources like research articles, networking, conferences, and professional development.
TED Ed (and TED in general) provides educational and inspiring lectures on all subjects. My favorites are 5-10 minute presentations as a supplement to more hands-on activities. TED Ed is a link to expert knowledge.
Most people might not think of YouTube as a resource; my students are not even allowed to access it through our district filter. However, YouTube provides an unlimited number of video resources. This can be a great way to get students curious about different subjects. For instance, I often start my earth science class with videos showing the concept.
Wilderdom is a resource with great experiential education activities. Some of my favorites are teambuilding activities, where students can gain experience working together.
The Khan Academy site is devoted to furthering learning for students and teachers. Whether pulling a lesson plan, video, article, or just browsing to learn more about a math concept, the Khan Academy is a fantastic resource.
Google Drive is the best way to share documents between parties. It allows for easy transfer, control of privacy settings, editing of multiple drafts, and much more. I use Google Docs to share assignments with my students and also encourage students to share their work with each other over Docs.
ALEKS is regarded by many as the best online math program. Unlike some math programs (IXL, for instance) ALEKS is “smart” in that it figures out where students are having trouble and provides detailed explanation. I never think an online math program is ideal, but for a demonstration of mastery, ALEKS is a fantastic tool. It allows educators to free up time they would spend designing and grading assessments to plan engaging and relevant math activities.
Teaching Channel provides a networking resource for sharing and learning from other teacher’s ideas in various subjects and grades. I browse Teaching Channel similar to how I might browse Khan Academy, when I’m looking for some piece of information or tool to supplement a lesson.
How Stuff Works is a great site, and not only for the mechanically inclined. How Stuff Works has branched to include articles about social studies, psychology, biology, and much more. For instance, check out this article I am providing as a resource for my students to use for their presentation on ancient Roman society’s influence on the rest of the world.