Research & Information Fluency

Technology Tip of the Week: Kid Friendly Research Sites

Information is expanding exponentially.  Thanks to the internet we have access to much of that information at our fingertips.  Research and Information Literacy skills are vital to today's learners.  These skills include the ability to locate, evaluate, and record information from a variety of media formats.

The BISD Digital Learning Online Resources page is a great starting place for kid friendly research sites.  Here you will find links to encyclopedias, online databases, and image search sites.  Your campus librarian and digital learning specialist would be happy to assist you with any of the sites listed here!

Another great tool for research is a new kid-friendly safe search site by Google called Kiddle.co.  Kiddle provides a safe place for young students to search the internet.  The search results are filtered for safe and easier to read content.  

App of the Week: SimpleMind+

App Store Link:

• Click here to download SimpleMind+  

Description:

• Mind mapping tool that turns your iPad into a brainstorming, idea collection, and thought structuring device. 

Integration Ideas:

• Collect notes for a research topic.
• Describe the character, plot, and setting of a story.
• Brainstorm ideas for writing.
• Document the results of a science experiment.
• Create a mindmap to illustrate the steps for UPS-Check problem solving model.

Support:

ReadWriteThink

Technology Tip of the Week: ReadWriteThink

ReadWriteThink.org Student Interactives are wonderful free tools for students to create a variety of digital products using a computer or laptop.   

Here are just a few of the many interactives you can choose from:

• Acrostic Poems

• Alphabet Organizer

• Cube Creator

• K-W-L Creator

• Theme Poems

• Timeline

App of the Week: ReadWriteThink Apps

Description:

• Many of the ReadWriteThink.org Student Interactives are available as iPad Apps!

• Trading Cards

• Timeline

• Venn Diagram

• Acrostic Poem

• Theme Poem

• Haiku Poem

• Diamante Poem

• Alphabet Organizer

• Crosswords   

Technology Tip of the Week: Graphic Organizers using Google Drawing

You can create, share and edit drawings with Google Drawings.  There are also templates of graphic organizers that have already been created on the web.  For example, a Venn Diagram can be created to show similarities and differences on a topic.  This can be done in a digital format.  In this Ditch That Textbook article, by Matt Miller, there are templates of graphic organizers and instructions on how to add them to your Google Drive.

App of the Week: Skitch

App Store Link: 

• Click here to download Skitch

Description:

• Skitch is a free app that allows you to draw or write on top of photos, screenshots, PDFs and webpages.  It can also be used as a whiteboard.  There are features including shapes and arrows that can be used to help explain a thought or concept.  It is a great tool for students to label or highlight important information.  Once complete, the Skitch can be saved to the photo roll, emailed, or shared with other apps, including Google Drive.  

Examples:

• Using Skitch in Your Classroom

Integration Ideas:

Skitch can be used in all content areas.  Some examples include:

• Math: Use the Draw feature to illustrate and solve problems or draw and label shapes
• Language Arts: Illustrate vocabulary words, create thinking maps
• Science: Label pictures, create diagrams
• Social Studies: Identify points of interest on maps, label regions or landforms

Support:

• Getting Started with Skitch