Link Shorteners

bitly

goo.gl

tinyurl

fur.ly

If you know about these sites already, you should at least read about fur.ly, it’s really cool.

Sometimes you want to give your students links to specific pages, but the address is just too long for them to type in.  Often times, we just give them the main page to type in, and then have them navigate through to get to the specific area we want them to visit. 

These websites that allow you to bypass this by shortening the link.   Bitly and goo.gl work pretty much the same and will  assign a random, but short, address to your site.  Tinyurl allows you to customize the address a bit.

Fur.ly is even better.  It allows you to add multiple sites to one link. When students enter the address, it will take them to one site with a bar on top that allows them to scroll through three preselected sites.

SAILOn

Subject Area Interactive Lessons On-line (SAILOn)is a website that has compiled hundreds of interactive websites with the goal of helping teachers integrate technology into their classrooms.  When navigating the website, you first select your grade level.  Once in your grade level, the site is organized by subject area and you will find dozens (if not more) of websites.  The site helpfully describes each site's contents and labels the math sites based on what skills the site focuses on. 

Can You Trust the Internet

Too often students will search for a topic using Google, click on the first link, and report the information found there as fact. Google does a good job at providing students information, and often times the best links are found in the first five.  It is not infalible.

Have students search for the following phrases, and they might learn to be a bit skepticle of the sites they are viewing. 

"The Tree Octopus"
"All About Explorers"

The first site returned from these searches look completely legitimate on the surface, but you'll be surprised at what you learn.  For instance, did you know Christopher Columbus was born in 1951 in Sydney, Australia? 

http://www.cafepress.com/zapatopi.509768159

MyFakeWall.com

Liz Kuhn found this great website that allows you to create a Facebook page for historical or fictional characters.  What a fantastic way to write a research report on someone! 

The page looks just like facebook complete with "friends," pictures, and wall posts from both friends and the page "owner." Through the series of posts, the student would be able to demonstrate understanding of key events throughout the character's life.

Take a look at Elizabeth I's page.  She has some ammusing back-and-forths between two suitors and even received a personal invite to a new play from Shakespear.

Elizabeth I Fake Facebook Profile - MyFakeWall.com

Quixey

Quixey is a fantastic web tool.  Searching for the right app is hard and time consuming.  Working within iTunes works great if you know what you're looking for.  Quixey is a search engine specifically for finding apps.  It allows you to narrow it down by platform (iPad, Android, Chrome, etc) and by cost.  Great place to start your search.