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Pluto: How Does NASA Phone HOme?

9/12/2015

This past July, after traveling three billion miles, NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft reached one of its celebrated destinations, Pluto. How do scientists at ground control know when something flying through outer space that fast reaches its target? It phones home, of course! And that’s exactly what this spacecraft did. About four and a half hours after reaching Pluto, New Horizons' messages finally reached ground control to a myriad of cheers and celebrations. Check out this fun one-minute explanation of this amazing feat of technology, communication, and science.

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Virtual Urban Zoo

9/12/2015

As a teacher, it may not be easy to arrange visits to wildlife areas or zoos for your students to pursue animal studies. Engage your students in the study of urban wildlife instead, and open their eyes up to observing the world around them. Here you’ll find a 4-page newspaper for students, and lots of resources for teachers. These include background information, lessons, an assessment piece, a bird identification guide, bibliography, glossary, and videos. It also gives tips for teaching students to respect the nature around them. A separate area of the site offers ideas for taking action to care for the environment.

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9/11 Snapshots

9/12/2015

Fourteen years ago, on the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, members of the Islamic extremist group al-Qaeda hijacked four planes in a coordinated terrorist attack. Flash back to the tragic events of that day by searching through this archived snapshot of PBS's coverage of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. The site includes analysis and insight, background resources, thoughts and tributes, and resources for parents and educators. Students and teens were invited to share their thoughts and feelings about September 11 and you can read their stories here. A great means for teaching students about the historical significance of 9/11, terrorism, and the associated pain and impact on America.

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American Impressionism

9/7/2015

Impressionism is an art movement whose unique style is defined by small, thin, and visible brush strokes, and which focuses on accurate depiction of light. Subjects of paintings are ordinary subjects as seen from the human perspective. To learn more about Impressionist art, and especially American Impressionism, visit this site. Here there are examples of works by many of the American Impressionists. With each work there is a brief bit of information regarding the work. With the slideshow on the site, get an overview of the many paintings created by Americans. If you are looking for a particular painting, scroll to the index to find the painting you are looking for.

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Video on Slope Intercept FORM

9/7/2015

The topic of slope has so many meanings and is a vital part of advanced mathematics. From proportional relationships to linear functions to coordinate geometry, slope plays a part in so many topics. This site provides an excellent video overview on the topic of slope. The video explains all of the major components of slope-intercept form and how to calculate each of those. Students learn what slope means along with the meaning and usefulness of the y-intercept.

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Learn About Cultural Artifacts

9/7/2015

Learn about cultural artifacts around the globe by going on a Culture Quest. Choose a character and begin your travels by clicking on a destination. You have 12 days to stop at each point on the map and learn about a cultural artifact from that country including paintings, sculptures, functional objects, and more. Answer one question about the artifact, and you get to take it with you to add to the exhibition hall at the museum. Wrong answers will deduct days from your quest. This interactive Culture Quest is a fun and interesting way to learn more about the art, history, and culture of countries all over the world.

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Ellis Island Interactive Tour

9/6/2015

Here is a unique opportunity to explore the historic landmark of Ellis Island while learning why immigrants came to the United States. Brush up on immigration history as you take a virtual tour of the immigration station at Ellis Island. Listen to immigrants tell the fascinating story of their journey and with the help of historical photographs and film footage from the time period, students walk the route that all immigrants at Ellis Island followed in the hours-long process of entering the United States at the beginning of the twentieth century.

Finding Plot, Character, & Author's Purpose in Short Stories

9/6/2015

Are you looking for ways to revamp your short story unit so that students will see new meaning to some old favorites? In the Better Lesson: Reading Short Stories for Plot, Character & Author's Purpose Unit, students will improve their reading comprehension skills. Students will practice fluency skills, and they will deconstruct a story to understand the character's motivation, the plot, and the reason why an author chooses to use a certain point of view or setting. This unit uses the following short stories to explore these themes: “Flowers of Algernon,” “Tell Tale Heart,” “The Lottery,” “The Landlady,” “The Treasures of Lemon Brown,” “Raymond’s Run,” “A Rose for Emily,” “The Pit and the Pendulum,” and “Cora Unashamed.”

Free Classic Books Online with Classic Reader

9/6/2015

Need a book for silent reading time? Like to read on your tablet or computer? Then this site has you in mind. Classic Reader is a searchable website offering over 3000 unabridged public domain texts. Search from the following categories: Fiction, Non-fiction, Young Readers, Poetry, Shakespeare, Short Stories, Drama, Classical, or browse authors or titles. Free registration allows free access to download these primarily 19th and early 20th century works including such authors as Dickens, Shakespeare, Poe and even Abraham Lincoln. There are books for all ages, and biographies and pictures are available for some authors.

The Biomechanical Phenomenon of Usain Bol

9/5/2015

I've worked hard over the years, I've been injured and I've worked hard through it, and I've made it." This video details what a biomechanical phenomenon the Olympic gold medalist Usain Bolt is on the track. Engineers study Bolt's body: stride, strength, and size in an effort to understand and innovate methods to treat, train, and rehabilitate others to maximize the muscles in the body. Usain Bolt is both a World and Olympic record holder who has an appreciation for the strength and ability he has been able to develop, “As long as I’m in great shape, nobody beats me, for sure.”

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