AH+Web+2.0+Tool+Review

1. http://broadband.ciconline.org/elections/Default.aspx This is an on line game, students role play their own virtual candidate who is running for President. The site also keeps track of other schools using the game. It is currently being used at all age levels, elementary, middle and high schools. I think this is a great way to bring political science, social studies and technology alive for kids.

2. http://www.hhmi.org/biointeractive/vlabs/cardiology/index.html This is an interactive lab web site for science or health classes. Students put information into the "virtual lab" and then try and diagnose a disease or some illness. The paticular one I visited was the cardiology lab and I found it very "fun." This might be more appropriate for middle and high school. What a great way to get kids curious and engaged in science!!

3. http://www.brainmetrix.com/ This site offers what seems like hundreds of games, they are interactive and fun! I actually found myself playing them a lot longer than I intended. I don't necessarily know if I would use this in my classroom but I think it could be a really fun extra credit project. They have games for pretty much all age groups and grade levels.

4. http://www.history.org/history/teaching/eft/index.cfm This site offers "virtual field trips" I absolutely love this site! It is a history site but there are lots of web sites out there that offer virtual field trips so it could be used in pretty much any content area. I think this is great for kids and schools where they don't have the means or time to go to places. What a great way for kids to learn other than reading from a book or listening to their teachers lecture.They are actually seeing them. Talk about making (in this case) history relevant.

http://www.virtourist.com/europe/versailles/01pano.htm. This web site offers a very similar thing, you pick a place and it gives you a 360 degree panoramic view of the place. The example I viewed was of the great wall of china.

5. http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/presentationsandactivities/activities/ This web site offers interactive activities for kids to learn all about various social studies themes. It might require some teacher direction but overall kids can do it themselves.

6. http://nationalzoo.si.edu/Animals/AfricanSavanna/default.cfm?cam=nmr This is the smithsoniam zoo web cam. This site could be used in science classes or in any class that wants to teach kids to study behavior or track research. It could also be used with elementary school kids as a class reward.

7.http://www.historyglobe.com/jamestown/is This is a history web site that offers an interactive game. First you pick where you want to settle, the type of food you want to grow, etc. You can ask a native or a colonist for advise if you are unsure. At the end of the game it gives you a good or poor health and a good or poor wealth score. I thought it was really fun and could work with any age group, even elementary school kids.

8. http://www.jeopardylabs.com/ This site offers a jeopardy quiz for your students. I think you could use it for just about all age groups because you can build your old or use the sites templates. I think it would be really fun to divide the class into groups and play this before a test, like a pre-test review sort of thing.

9. http://www.teach-nology.com/cgi-bin/bingo3.cgi This site helps you build bingo card games. You create the words you want your students to know and they web site creates the bingo card. This could be used for any age because you can create the content. I think this would be a good pre-test or used as a formative assessment with kids.

10. http://www.mapmaker.com/products.htm This is a great web site that allows you to make your own maps. This would probably be best for middle and high school age kids. It would be a great tool for geography teachers.