Group+3+-+Allison,+Angelica,+Kayana,+and+Syana

Resources for: The Inquiring 3rd Grade Learner

Greetings 3rd Grade teachers! On this Wiki page you will find an amplitude of resources that can be used by your dynamic third grade students. These educational resources and activities will allow you to make use of innovative instructional technologies and strategies. Students will find these activities and resources engaging and useful throughout their journey of gaining knowledge. Also these technologies are easy to integrate in the classroom so there is no need to feel any apprehension about using these valuable assets. So without further ado, we invite you to explore our Wiki page, with much anticipation and excitement; because we are sure that you will find multiple resources that will be of great usage in your classroom!

__ Educational Activity Websites __

[] This explorative website lets students explore what it would be like to live in another country. Students will be able to compare a numerous amount of countries to each other, including the United States, as well as other countries in the world that they might want to explore. Aspects such as money, electricity, consummation of oil will be available for students to compare. Usage of this website will be greatly integrated with Social Studies lessons in order for the students to be able to be exposed to other elements and living conditions of societies in the world.
 * If it were My Home Website **

[] Edheads is an educational website that offers free educational activities for students. Some of the exercises include Deep Brain Stimulation, Simple Machine, Weather, and Crime Scene Investigation. These activities all focus on the elements of math, science, and critical thinking. It also has been recognized by almost every major awards for its superb educational content. Edheads is truly an engaging and stimulating website that will keep involved and interested in learning.
 * Edheads Website **

 [] KidsKnowIt Network is a great educational website for both teachers and students. Their mission is to provide the highest quality educational activities, products, games, learning programs, textbooks and more, while distributing them completely free of charge. On this website students will explore the many components of the world including animals, the human body, and overall geography. A website such as this will prove to be beneficial for students as well as teachers.
 * KidsKnowIt Network Website **

 [] PrimaryAccess is another educational website that focuses on writing. It is a dynamic website in the way that it has free online tools which allow students and teachers to use primary source documents to complete essential learning activities with storyboards, digital movies, perplexing stories, as well as other online tools. This will enable students to be engaged and insightful while they create their own literature while also grasping the fundamentals of English and Language Arts.
 * PrimaryAccess **


 * Kid’s Vid **

<span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 12pt;">http://kidsvid.4teachers.org/

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Kid’s Vid is a website that allows students to create video productions in a different and lively way. The purpose of this instructional website is to help teachers and students use video production in the classroom in order to support project-based learning. Kid’s Vid gives step-by-step instructions on how to create productions starting from scripting, to making the video, editing, and showing the video. Such practices as these will help to keep students engaged and active in learning.

__<span style="color: #538135; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',sans-serif; font-size: 20pt;">A Technology Tool for the Classroom __ <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">SmartBoards are a great tool to be used in any classroom, especially the third grade. It is an interactive whiteboard that is sure to keep the class engaged in all of the lessons that are taught with it. The SmartBoard encourages collaborative learning in education. Since the SmartBoard reacts to touch interactions, it will enable students to have a deeper connection and involvement in the material they are learning through the use of the SmartBoard. Smart Notebook is a type of software that is included with the SmartBoard and it entails the usage of many types of tools and media that help to keep an interactive learning environment. With the SmartBoard, students are sure to be the center of every learning activity. Below you will find a link to a video about a teacher who uses a SmartBoard in her third grade classroom every day for multiple lessons. __<span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">3rd grade Smart Board Usage __

__<span style="color: #548235; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',sans-serif; font-size: 20pt;">“Tips for Technology Integration” __ <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Technology integration is an important aspect in today’s classroom. It is very important that students are exposed to technology in schools in a way that will be beneficial to them as citizens of society. Below you will find **10 Tips for Integration**, from the Education World website, which will help in your quest of integrating technology in the classroom. <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Put last year into perspective. To achieve this perspective, ask yourself these questions:
 * <span style="color: #548235; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 13pt;">10. GAIN PERSPECTIVE **
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Did I use technology?
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">If I did, did the technology enhance the lessons? If not, why not?
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">If I didn't use technology, how can I use it this year to enhance and/or reinforce what I teach?
 * <span style="color: #548235; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 13pt;">9. GET ORGANIZED **


 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Go through old files and delete those that are useless or outdated.
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Group remaining files in folders by subject and/or topic.
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Back up important and regularly used files.
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Transfer all previous student projects to a flash drive.
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Check all bookmarked Internet sites, and delete those that are no longer valid or useful.
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Organize remaining bookmarks by subject or topic.
 * <span style="color: #548235; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 13pt;">8. TAKE A COURSE **

<span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Subscribe to online or print publications, such as [|Learning and Leading with Technology] (International Society for Technology in Education), Reading Today (International Reading Association), and Instructor (Scholastic), to learn more about integrating technology into your teaching and student learning! (Visit Educational Technology Journals for a list of online educational technology publications.) <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Locate, install, and practice using technology that can make your job easier. Consider programs such as an electronic grade book to record student work, an electronic lesson planner, a word processing program to create parent letters (add clip art for interest!), and a database program to create labels and mail merge word-processed letters. > Eduhound to find technology ideas, lessons, and activities that match your curriculum. If possible, find activities and projects that incorporate more than one curriculum area. <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">The number one way to prepare to use technology in the coming year --
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Take an online course to learn about teaching and learning with technology. There are tons of tutorials on the Internet on a variety of topics. (Check out Bob Bowman's Guide to Free Educational Technology for links to free online tutorials and how-to guides.)
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Attend local workshops on software or hardware you might want to use. (You won't have the time or energy once school starts!)
 * <span style="color: #548235; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 13pt;">7. NETWORK WITH PEERS **
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Join a networking goup for teachers, such as the Google for Educators Discussion Group . Or start your own group. (Visit Social Networking for Teachers for more information.)
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Contribute to a discussion or message board.
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Subscribe to a mailing list or newsletter, such as those offered at Surfing the Net with Kids or [|Education World].
 * <span style="color: #548235; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 13pt;">6. EXPLORE THE LITERATURE **
 * <span style="color: #548235; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 13pt;">5. EXPERIMENT WITH SOFTWARE **
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Explore new software programs to use with your students. Create a temporary folder and practice using the programs. If what you do doesn't work, don't save it. If it does work, save it as a template or guide.
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Choose the best programs and decide which lessons might fit best with each. Practice teaching a sample lesson. Trying new programs for the first time in front of students is the wrong time to find out it doesn't work.
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Design student instruction sheets for simple projects or activities using the best programs. Easy, short, step-by-step directions will allow students to use the software independently.
 * <span style="color: #548235; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 13pt;">4. INSTALL TIMESAVING TECHNOLOGY **
 * <span style="color: #548235; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 13pt;">3. CREATE A CLASSROOM CLIMATE **
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Visualize the climate you want to establish and organize your classroom accordingly. Decide where to locate the learning centers, the writing center, and the computer center. (Be aware of the physical limitations of your classroom computers. Cords, for example, are only so long!)
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Set up a computer-learning center and create a launch page of curriculum-related sites for students. Provide technology-related activities for each unit of instruction you plan to teach.
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Decide how often and under what circumstances students will use technology. Post a list of rules.
 * <span style="color: #548235; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 13pt;">2. PUNCH UP EXISTING LESSONS **
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Take a look at the previous year's lessons and decide which ones can use more punch or a technological boost. Many pencil and paper activities can easily be adapted to word processing, or a drawing program. Another easy way to integrate technology into the curriculum is to give students several options when creating book reports. [|Better Book Reports -- 25 Ideas!] and More Ideas Than You'll Ever Use for Book Reports are two Web links for book report ideas that can easily be adapted to the computer. Making slide shows, multimedia reports, and posters are other options students might choose to explore individual learning styles.
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Explore lesson plan archives to see what other teachers are doing. Visit such sites as [|Education World's Technology Archive], Awesome Library, and
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Search the Internet for Web sites that complement and extend your already successful lessons. Look for interesting text, pictures, movies, and activities that convey the message you want to give students.
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Create a book-marked list of the best sites, and include the URLs in the appropriate places in your plan book. That will help you remember to use them when you get to the lessons and avoid the search for that slip of paper that has sunk to the bottom of your book bag.
 * <span style="color: #548235; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 13pt;">1. PREPARE SOMETHING NEW **
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Locate tools that will make learning more exciting, interesting, and relevant for students: A multimedia encyclopedia adds sound and video clips to basic information and provides links to related topics. A word processing program helps students with the steps in the writing process. Quality software can be individualized to allow students to practice curriculum skills at their own ability level. WebQuests can help students use the Internet to work toward curriculum goals. Telecollaborative projects, such as those found at Global Schoolhouse are a wonderful way to integrate curriculum while students work with their peers around the world.
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Learn to use technology that extends the power of the computer, such as a scanner, digital camera, video camera, and projector. Use your new tools with presentation software to create curriculum-related presentations for the computer learning center. (If you use pictures or movies from a Web site, be sure to get permission to use the items.)
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Plan lessons to teach students to use those tools to enhance their own curriculum projects.
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Work with a partner to plan new curriculum units or lessons. It's lots more fun that way, and you and your partner can brainstorm ideas, share the planning, and contribute your individual strengths.
 * <span style="color: #494949; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">Design new curriculum incorporating technology. Design at least one brand-new adventure for this school year. Starting the school year with a newly designed unit will negate students' thoughts of "Oh, no! The same old stuff again!" and rekindle the spirit of adventure that got most of us into teaching in the first place.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">For more information on Integrating technology in the Classroom feel free to visit []

**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Works Cited **

Starr, Linda. "Education World: Integrate Technology: Ten Tips." //Education World: Integrate Technology://

//Ten Tips//. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Nov. 2013. [].