MaryJayne's+Best+Picks

Mary Jayne’s picks for the Information Power Tech Slam


 * [|**Anywho**] || Anywho is a great online phone book and people-finder sponsored by AT&T. Use the Yellow Pages for businesses, the White Pages for people, and the Reverse Lookup if all you have is a phone number. ||
 * [|**Citysearch.com**] || When you need to get to know a city fast, Citysearch.com should be your first stop! You'll find information and reviews of restaurants, hotels, places to see, shopping, services, and much more about major American (and some international) cities at this site. ||
 * Easy Bib || Use the free product on top and not the subscription sources below. ||
 * [|**IPL.org**] || The Internet Public Library, based at the University of Michigan, may be the next best thing to having a University library attached to your house! In some ways, it may be even better. ||
 * [|**Refdesk.com**] || You could spend tens and tens of hours browsing the huge catalogue of useful websites at Refdesk.com. You'll find newspapers, photo databases, reference tools, trivia, quotes, self-help advice, search engines, and much, much more at this virtual goldmine of the Web. ||
 * [|**iTools**] || Use the best tool for the job. This website finds the best of the web and posts links to the sites here. Split into five columns-Information, Language, Media, Internet, Money. ||
 * Filamentality || Filamentality is a fill-in-the-blank tool that guides you through picking a topic, searching the Internet, gathering good Internet links, and turning them into online learning activities. Perhaps a project-based learning activity???!!! ||
 * [|wikiHow: How to Choose an eBook Reader] || In light of our discussions about eBook Readers on Monday afternoon, I thought this article would help answer questions you might have. I found this article in the “site of the day” archive on Refdesk.com. ||
 * [|**MayoClinic.com**] || Simply put, the Mayo Clinic is one of the greatest hospitals and medical research centers on Planet Earth. In that tradition, the Mayo Clinic provides this excellent website devoted to the promotion of human health. ||
 * [|**Nutrition.gov**] || Nutrition.gov provides authoritative information about health and nutrition. You will also find the USDA's National Nutrient Database here, which will allow you to evaluate your diet with more knowledge than ever before! ||
 * [|**FirstGov.gov**] || The official portal of the Federal Government of the United States, FirstGov.gov puts you in touch with your elected officials and the agencies and people they govern. Lots of good information here. ||
 * [|**Vote-Smart.org**] || Enter your Zip Code and find links to your Congresspersons, your President, and your state representatives! Project Vote Smart will help you become an informed and effective voter. ||
 * [|**Findlaw.com**] || Findlaw.com provides a fantastic set of tools for anyone interested in American Law. Widely used by legal professionals, it can also be used profitably by laymen. Learn the facts about the laws that govern you from this excellent site! ||
 * Esther Morris || ** [] ** Here's an important woman in Wyoming history. This is a short biography that is a worthwhile read. ||
 * [|CIA: The World Factbook] || We use this website with our geography students. It has country maps, form of government, population stats, currency exchange rate, etc. ||
 * [|**Mathworld**] || "The Web's most extensive mathematics resource" will help you remember all the algebra, geometry, trig, statistics, calculus, and diffie-Q that you left behind years ago! And you'll probably learn a lot you never knew along the way. ||
 * **Math Worksheets** || []  Use the links on the side of the page to access pdf’s of worksheets with a worksheet on the first page and the answers on the next page—generally 40 page documents. This is a great resource whether for reteaching or enrichment. ||
 * [|**Online Calculators**] || A super collection of online calculators: probability, square root, online graphing, quadratic equation, vector, trigonometry, annuity, and many more. ||
 * //[|**Museums of the World**]// || Journey to a world famous museum without leaving the comfort of your home! From the Louvre to the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum to the Australian Maritime Museum and more. ||
 * **The Exploratorium** || The Exploratorium isn’t just a museum, it’s an ongoing exploration of science, art, and human perception—a vast collection of [|online interactives] [|,] <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px; line-height: 115%;">[| web features] <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px; line-height: 115%;">[|,] <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px; line-height: 115%;">[| activities] <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px; line-height: 115%;">, <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px; line-height: 115%;">[|programs] <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px; line-height: 115%;"> and <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px; line-height: 115%;">[|events] <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px; line-height: 115%;"> that feed your curiosity. ||
 * [|**Phases of the Moon**] || Although directed at junior high students, elementary students can easily understand the illustrations of the moon. There are pages about the moon for you to explore here. ||
 * [|**__A Touch of Class (__****__classification game)__**]  || Here’s an online activity for science students that teachers can use to reteach or use as an enrichment activity. It does ask for students to check in with the teacher as they progress through the activity. ||
 * Human Anatomy Online || A super cool way to study human anatomy online. Ignore the advertising and go straight to the system of your choice. There are also “brain training” games offered on this site. ||
 * [|**Chemistry**] || What a great resource for chemistry teachers—quizzes galore. ||
 * [|**RottenTomatoes**] || <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt;">Which movie should you see this weekend? Rottentomatoes.com lets you read the opinions of over 100 critics (for most movies) to help you decide. The "Cream of the Crop" critics list may include your favorite critic. The popular "TomatoMeter" gives you a running average of the critics ratings for each film. ||
 * [|**Classical.net**] || <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt;">Classical music lovers of all different levels of experience and sublety will love this site devoted to the history and ideas of great western music. ||
 * [|**Allmusic.com**] || <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt;">From Beethoven to the Beatles and beyond, you'll find Allmusic.com a treasure-trove of musical knowledge. ||
 * [|**NYTimes.com**] || <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt;">The New York Times online does require (free) registration, but it is well worth that small investment of time. Keep up on events that shape the world by visiting often. ||
 * [|Crayon] || <span style="color: #0f243e; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal;">Customized web newpaper created just for you everyday. ||
 * [|**Gutenberg.net**] || <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt;">Project Gutenberg presents a collection of over 15,000 electronic books ("ebooks") available for free download! Most are older literary works in the public domain, many of the considered classics. An amazing and useful monument to the volunteer labor of thousands of participants! ||
 * **Booktalks – Quick and Simple** || <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt;">In addition to Nancy Keane’s tips on booktalking, booktalks, etc., what I enjoyed about this resource is the lists of other states award books. It interests me to see which books are flying off the shelves in other parts of the country. ||
 * **Learning About Authors and Illustrators** || <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 12px;">If you or your students are curious about the people who create books, there may be a link to a web site dedicated to the writer of your favorite book. An excellent reference from Rutgers University that needs to be in your bookmark file. ||
 * **Literature Learning Ladders** || <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px; line-height: 115%;">Many of us are already familiar with Annette Lamb’s and Larry Johnson’s website Eduscapes. This is one of their many pages which offers detailed instructions on how to create “Learning Ladders” to help students read actively. ||
 * [|**Word Search Maker**] || <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt;">It seems like I am always searching for a free website to create a word search. This one is easy to use and you can choose the level of difficulty. ||
 * **Livemocha** || <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 12px;">Livemocha <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 12px;"> offers basic instructional tutorials and exercises in some 30 different languages, but the service's real value is in its community. ||
 * **SitesForTeachers** || <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">[] <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;"> Many of the sites listed there are offer free access for teachers and students while some the sites require a nominal fee. Some of the sites listed above were where I found some of the listed here. ||
 * **BestEdSites** || This award winning website offers Janice Berthiaume's, MEd, picks of the web. Again some of the sites on this list came from this site. ||
 * **100BestWebsites.org** || **<span style="color: #000066; font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-weight: normal;">Welcome to the widely-watched list of the 100 Best Websites maintained by the editors of 100bestwebsites.org! These are not educational websites, but they meet the high standards set by the selection committee. I selected a few of the sites l listed from this list as well. ** ||
 * 25 Great Websites for Teachers || This web page was prepared by Ken Wiseman, Educational Technology consultant. The links below are not meant to comprehensive or complete, but a sample of what teachers can find on the web. Lots of tech tools. ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 15px; line-height: 115%;">[|**411.com**] || <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">411.com is a combined online Yellow Pages, White Pages, People Finder, and more! ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 15px; line-height: 115%;">[|**411.com**] || <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">411.com is a combined online Yellow Pages, White Pages, People Finder, and more! ||