MarketaBrown's Trail

Scholastic.com.  (2008).  Online Activities and
     Interactive Learning.  Retrieved September 18, 2008,
     from Scholastic: http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/learn.jsp

This is a great site for anyone who wants to instill a love of reading and learning in their students or children.  The site has activities for all grades K-12 and content geared to all disciplines. The student activities page and book & authors page are particular favorites of my daughter.  I love how the site helps me find age & subject appropriate materials for my 6 year old.  The site makes learning fun by presenting factual information in engaging and unique ways.  The site also includes resources for teachers such as lesson plans, printables, books, contests and fund raising ideas to help get classroom materials.

Worcester, T. (1997, March 25). Tammy's Technology Tips
     for Teachers. Retrieved September 18, 2008, from: 
     http://www.tammyworcester.com/Tips/Tammys_Technology_Tips_for_Teachers.html

Tammy Worcester is a veteran teacher who now specializes in teaching other educators how they can effectively utilize computers and software in the classroom. The site has several tabs where you can find  different hints, tips, and other educational or technologically geared information and links to additional resources. My favorite is the ideas-activities page.  It shows you step by step how to create fun visuals that you can integrate in a classroom lesson, for example, how to create a bar graph using data from an excel spreadsheet.  This is a helpful site for any educator who wants to use technology more effectively in the classroom.

Fact Monster.  (2008).   Retrieved September 18, 2008,
     from Pearson Education: http://www.factmonster.com/

Parents have you forgotten how to calculate the median and the mode or even what they are? Have you forgotten the capital of Minnesota? FactMonster is the site for you. This page is a must have for parents trying to help students with their homework. This would also be a great site for teachers of kindergartern - middle school to recommend to their students as an online resource if additional help is needed on a topic. The site provide access to a number of  reference sources - dictionary, almanac, atlas and encyclopedia - in one site.  It also provides loads of information on a variety of subjects - math, science, reading & vocabulary as well as current events.  This site is loaded with games, historical tidbits, and just plain old useful information.

McIntyre, T. . (2007). Dr. Mac's Amazing Behavior Management
     Advice Site. Retrieved September 18, 2008, from :
     http://www.behavioradvisor.com/oldindex.html

One of an educator's primary roles is to ensure order and discipline in the classroom.  The challenges,  both mental and physical,  that today's students face can make achieving the goal of an orderly classroom rather daunting.  This site offers a number of suggestions for dealing with unwanted student behaviors.  It also has detailed directions for implementing common disciplinary measures.  Tried everything and your student are still out of control?  This webpage also offers a chatroom where you can post your problems and get feedback from other hopefully more savy educational professional. 

Holzberg, C. S. (n.d.). "Write" Path Lesson Plans. Retrieved
     September 11, 2008, from Swift River School:
     http://www.swiftriverschool.org/write_path/write_pathlessons.html

This website shows how one school used the NTeQ model to integrate technology in the curriculum.  The site emphasizes that the NTeQ model intends for technology to be as much of a tool that students use to learn as a pen or a piece of paper. The webpage gives background information on the NTeQ process including the 10 steps with a detailed explanation of each step, links to NTeQ focused websites, and lesson plans. This is a particularly relevant website to any educator who is interested in applying the NTeQ method in their classroom or for any student studying how to implement the NTeQ process.

 Education World The Educators Best Friend.  (2008).
     Retrieved September 21, 2008,
     from : http://www.educationworld.com/

This website is a great resource for anyone in an education-affiliated occupation. This page provides tons of information on technology integration, lesson planning, and professional development.   It also has useful tools and tips geared at making a teacher's job easier and more efficient .  You can view discussions and articles on issues that are currently impacting school systems nationwide.  The sight also provides information on commonplace issues such as retirement planning, incentives, and discounts specifically geared to teachers and administrators.

The Totally Free Children's Learning Network. 
     (n.d.).   Retrieved September 18, 2008,
     from KidsKnowIt Network: http://www.kidsknowit.com/

The widespread use and availability of computers have made them an obvious source of entertainment for kids. This site satisfies a child's desire to play with  fun games, comics, activities, music and videos and all of it educational.  It has information on a number of disciplines - Chemistry, Math, Spelling just to name a few.  Some notable features include the animal database with includes information on hundreds of little known animals and pages dedicated to kid tested favorites such as dinosaurs and outerspace. This site has something to offer young and old alike and parents  - IT'S FREE!

Brooks, S., & Byles, B.   (2008, April 13).   Lesson Plans.
     Retrieved September 18, 2008, from:
     http://www.internet4classrooms.com/lesson.htm

This webpage is a great site for any educator who is looking for lesson plans, help on creating lesson plans or ideas for activities to reinforce the information being taught.  It contains subject specific lesson plans and activities for all grades K-12 and links to numerous sites geared towards lesson plans, classroom projects, activities, and quizzes. 

Wiggins, D. . (n.d.). Classroom Management Plan.
     Retrieved September 18, 2008, from University of Minnesota:
     http://www.geom.uiuc.edu/~dwiggins/plan.html

Effective classroom management is an essential skill that teachers must develop in order to ensure that learning takes place. It is , however, not the easiest skillset to master.  This website gives a detailed plan on how to effectively manage discipline and implement a discipline regimen in the classroom. The author's discipline is divided into two main ideas of discipline - preventative and supportative & corrective.  All of the information is based upon C.W. Charles' book Building Classroom Discipline.  Definitely a site worth looking at if you are struggling to maintain control of the classroom.  I found the ideas and plan outlined to be full of common sense seems very feasible.  

Science Teachers' Resource Center.  (2006, August 7).  
     Retrieved September 18, 2008, from:
     http://chem.lapeer.org/Index.php

This is a great site for anyone who has been away from school and is currently reviewing for the Praxis II Content Knowledge exam in Chemistry. The site has a Chemistry test bank with answers so that you can quickly assess which areas need the most review.  It also has links to other sites that you may find useful as you prepare for the exam. The site also offers information on Biology, Physics and Life Science as well which may come in handy for those seeking endorsement in more than one area.

I Want to Teach. (2007). Retrieved September 18, 2008,
     from Teachers Count:
     http://www.teacherscount.org/wannateach/why/orgs.shtml

This is a great online community for anyone aspiring to become a teacher.  It has loads of information on state requirements, testing, and licensure requirements.  This site contains tools and ideas for use in the classroom from experiences teachers.  This page contains numerous links for resources specifically geared to students and new teachers - mentors, scholarships, opportunities to further your education, etc.  My personal favorite is the link Why become a teacher.  It is very informative and gives you  great starting material to pull from in your TEP interview.

Schrock, K. . (2008). Kathy Schrock's Guide for Educators.
     Retrieved September 9, 2008, from Discovery Education: 
     http://school.discoveryeducation.com/schrockguide/assess.html

This site is especially useful in helping to develop rubrics to assess how well the student is using the technology to grasp the information being taught. As technology becomes more
prevalent in the classroom, it is important that educators accurately assess how effectively the tool of technology is being used.  This site contains numerous links and articles with
information on different types of rubrics.  It also has useful gadgets such as graphic organizers, and rubric tutorials that can further assist the novice or the experienced with creating and understanding rubrics.