school.nettrekker.com
A safe search engine and resource management tool. The thinking person’s Wikipedia.
The Perfect Tie into our Black History Month Focus
Log-In Steps:
1. Log in or choose “register” if not previously registered
A. Consider creating a class-wide user name and password that all students may log into simultaneously to avoid having to create a log in name/password for each student.
B. Create a personal log in name/password for yourself.
“Famous Person” Feature
1. Click “show” if the Tool/Feature bar is not automatically listed
2. Click “Famous Person” feature
3. Choose your search parameters (male/female, time period, profession, culture)
4. Click “Search” and view the source generated.
Selecting Readability
1. Click the readability drop down menu and select a level 1-5
2. Click “Refine Search”
Read Aloud Feature
1. Click the “Open Read Aloud” button (upper right corner).
2. Click on resource and highlight the text. (Don’t highlight more than a paragraph at a time.)
Resource Management & Distribution
1. Hit the check box for 1 or more resources and click “save search.”
2. Save the link to your site in “My Portfolio”
3. Consider making a folder for each student in the class-wide user log in side.
4. If you want the ability to share resources in the “Willow Crest” folder, click profile and enter “polarbear” in the Teacher Code box.
Let us know how we can help!
Notes:
Other Resources: http://www.worldbookonline.com
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Nettrekker.com
Hello All!
Recently, I attended a training on Nettrekker and I wanted to share. Some of you may know what it is, but in a nutshell; Nettrekker is a safe search engine for kids that also has some very cool management features for teachers to create folders for web sites you want to refer back to and also create classes or groups of students that you want to see specific web sites. One trainer described Nettrekker as "The Thinking Person's Wikipedia." All web sites that you find through Nettrekker have been evaluated for quality and they also include a readability scale. Using Nettrekker you can do specific key word searches or you can "drill down" preselected subject areas and categories that they give you. In either case it helps to find web sites that you can choose to be focused for an Elementary, Middle School, or High School audience. Furthermore, you can also search for sites that are geared towards English Language Learners.
My two favorite Nettrekker features are the "Famous Person" link and the "Timeline" link. If your tired of all students wanting to do reports on the same sports stars and teen heart throbs then the "Famous Person" link is for you. You can search for famous persons by isolating male/female, specific time periods, occupations/professions, and ethnic/cultural heritage. Searching for famous persons by "Ethnic/Cultural Heritage" especially interests me so we can better connect with our diverse student population. Unfortunately, "Alaskan Native" is not included as a category, but many others are included here.
The "Timline" link allows you to create time lines based on specific dates you enter or subject areas you choose (i.e. world history, U.S. History, music, visual art, etc...). Once you log in and create your account look for these two links on the right side of the page, if you don' t immediately see the tool bar containing "Famous Person" and "Timeline" make sure to click "show" just below the orange Nettrekker banner at the top of the page.
Another very cool feature/option is that once a student finds a useful site, Nettrekker has the ability to read aloud any text that you highlight within the page. Choosing appropriate web sites with Nettrekker's readability scales and using the "OPEN Read Aloud" is a powerful combination to increase student comprehension. Look for the "OPEN Read Aloud" button just below the Nettrekker banner at the top of the page. You must then find the web site you want and highlight the text.
To find Nettrekker go to:
http://school.nettrekker.com
Recently, I attended a training on Nettrekker and I wanted to share. Some of you may know what it is, but in a nutshell; Nettrekker is a safe search engine for kids that also has some very cool management features for teachers to create folders for web sites you want to refer back to and also create classes or groups of students that you want to see specific web sites. One trainer described Nettrekker as "The Thinking Person's Wikipedia." All web sites that you find through Nettrekker have been evaluated for quality and they also include a readability scale. Using Nettrekker you can do specific key word searches or you can "drill down" preselected subject areas and categories that they give you. In either case it helps to find web sites that you can choose to be focused for an Elementary, Middle School, or High School audience. Furthermore, you can also search for sites that are geared towards English Language Learners.
My two favorite Nettrekker features are the "Famous Person" link and the "Timeline" link. If your tired of all students wanting to do reports on the same sports stars and teen heart throbs then the "Famous Person" link is for you. You can search for famous persons by isolating male/female, specific time periods, occupations/professions, and ethnic/cultural heritage. Searching for famous persons by "Ethnic/Cultural Heritage" especially interests me so we can better connect with our diverse student population. Unfortunately, "Alaskan Native" is not included as a category, but many others are included here.
The "Timline" link allows you to create time lines based on specific dates you enter or subject areas you choose (i.e. world history, U.S. History, music, visual art, etc...). Once you log in and create your account look for these two links on the right side of the page, if you don' t immediately see the tool bar containing "Famous Person" and "Timeline" make sure to click "show" just below the orange Nettrekker banner at the top of the page.
Another very cool feature/option is that once a student finds a useful site, Nettrekker has the ability to read aloud any text that you highlight within the page. Choosing appropriate web sites with Nettrekker's readability scales and using the "OPEN Read Aloud" is a powerful combination to increase student comprehension. Look for the "OPEN Read Aloud" button just below the Nettrekker banner at the top of the page. You must then find the web site you want and highlight the text.
To find Nettrekker go to:
http://school.nettrekker.com
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