Websites for Student Research

Here is a list of reliable places students can go for research in my class or other classes.  If you find other great resources, please share with me, so I can share them on my blog for others.

1.  Sam Yagan, M. K. (2011, 01 23). Spark Notes. Retrieved from http://www.sparknotes.com/ 

SparkNotes - This is a website in which students can look up information from any subject area and easily cite it. There is also celebrity news, quizzes, videos, test prep for the ACT, SAT and AP tests, and there is also a Spark Notes app to download for their Android or iPhone.

2.  ipl2: Information you can trust. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.ipl.org/ 

The Internet Public Library - This is a wonderful website for students who really do not know where to begin. This website is supported by many universities, and is considered to "contain information you can trust." Searches can be done by subject, newspapers or magazines, special collections, and by age, such as kids or teens. Students can even ask a librarian for assistance.
 

3.  Refdesk. (2012, febuary 06). Retrieved from http://www.refdesk.com/ 

RefDesk - This is a place for reference, facts and news, and seems to be family friendly. There is so much on this website, I am not sure where to begin. There is news, facts, thoughts, pictures, words and sites of the day, there are conversion tools, links to dictionaries, encyclopedias and newspapers, and too many other reference tools to mention here. This is a place to check out for yourself.


4.  Oxford University Press (2005). Encylopedia.com. Retrieved from http://www.encyclopedia.com/

Encyclopedia.com - This is a place which has more than 100 trusted sources, including encyclopedias, dictionaries, and thesauruses with facts, definitions, biographies, synonyms, pronunciation keys, word origins, and abbreviations.


5.  van Leeuwen, S. H. (2012). Bartleby.com: Great books online. Retrieved from http://www.bartleby.com/ 

Bartleby.com - This in an internet publisher of literature, reference, and verse providing students, researchers and the intellectually curious with unlimited access to books and information, free of charge. This website is mostly English based research, and not much other curriculum.

6.  http://scholar.google.com/

Google Scholar - This is a great site for research.  It does mostly bring up abstracts, but they are complete and concise so research can easily be done.

Resources for Professional Development and Use of Technology in the Classroom

This is a list of various webpages that can be used in the classroom, for reference to help teach in the classroom or for professional development.  This list will continue to grow, so please check back often.

 

1.  Hargadon, S. (2011). Classroom 2.0. [0]. Retrieved from http://www.classroom20.com/

Classroom 2.0 is a social network for those interested in Web 2.0, Social Media, and Participative Technologies in the classroom. This site can just be browsed or you can join and become a member for free. There are hundreds of topics and thousands of resources on this page. 

2.  Massengale, C. (n.d.). Biology Junction. Retrieved from http://www.biologyjunction.com/

Biology Junction is a wonderful website for the high school Biology teacher, whether it is for Biology, Pre AP Biology or AP Biology. The creator of the website, Cheryl Massengale, has an amazing abundance of information, powerpoints, games, worksheets, activities, and almost any other resource to help out in the high school Biology classroom.

3.  Hippo Campus. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.hippocampus.org/

Hippocampus contains free educational resources for middle school, high school, and college students and instructors. Teachers can create a free account and then create a playlist of videos and resources which then can be shared with the students. The site contains so much useful information but is quick easy to use and navigate.

4.  Ansari, Y., & Ceperly, M. (2010). Project Noah. Retrieved from http://www.projectnoah.org/

Project Noah is a tool to explore and document wildlife and a platform to harness the power of citizen scientists everywhere. This is a great resource page to look up and find information about a particular species of organism, and it is a place where pictures can uploaded and others will help identify the organism. Teachers can also create classroom pages where students can work. There is also an iPhone app for Project Noah.

5.  Polleverywhere.com. (2011). Retrieved from http://www.polleverywhere.com/

Poll Everywhere is a great place to create formative questions to assess the classes' understanding. The students use the texting capability on their phones to text in their responses, and the results are calculated in real time. Questions can be in a multiple choice format or in a written response format, and it a free always. I know most schools are against students having their phones, but this is a way to join them if you can't beat them.

Who am I?

My name is Kelly Scott, and I am someone who wears many hats.  I am a wife to my high school sweetheart and my best friend, I am a mother to Lucy, 22, and Billy Jack, 19, I am a daughter, I am a sister, I am a friend, I am a home chef, I am a lover of nature and the earth, I am a lover of life, I am a child of God, I am also many other things, and I am a teacher.  I teach and inspire students in grades 10 - 12 in Biology, AP Biology and AP Environmental Science.

I am writing this blog as part of a class while I am obtaining my Rank I certification.  Follow me to see where this adventure takes me.