It’s that time of year — SOLs, AP tests, and then final exams. Testing can be a VERY stressful time for students, parents, and staff. So, I thought the best website to share this week would be one that was all about taking a break and having some fun. When it feels like testing will never end (I think I’m already there, and SOLs have only been going on for a few hours….), do yourself a favor and take a break. Here is a fun site where you can design your own kaleidescope. It’s very cool!

I know that we are all very busy, but it’s important to take mental breaks once-in-a-while.

I am loving Diigo. I know I’ve written about this site before, but the more I use it, the more I like it. I’ve been bookmarking sites like mad, and I’ve set up networks with a lot of the Edubloggers I read so that I have access to their bookmarks, too. It’s a bit of information overload, but most definitely provides a wealth of information and useful links. You can find my links at http://www.diigo.com/user/Tekkieteacher. If you decide to set up an account, feel free to send me a friend request and join my network. After all, in this Web 2.0 world, you are what you share!

One of my latest additions is Boolify Project. If you’ve ever wondered how to efficiently search the web, this tool will show you the way!

I love my PLN (Personal Learning Network). During the last few months, I’ve set up networks in Twitter, Diigo, Delicious, and Classroom 2.0 and I’m learning so much! Last night I needed to find another way to convert a .wav file to a .mp3 file because my converter wasn’t working. I posted a question to Twitter and had my answer within minutes!

This week’s featured websites are ones suggested by my “friends” in my PLN.

The first came from Jim Gates’ Tipline and is called Gadgets, Games, and Gizmos for Learning. The name pretty much says it all!

The second came from one of my Diigo contacts and is called 4Teachers. The primary objective for this site is to provide teachers with nice resources they can use to integrate technology with instruction.

The third one comes from Greg Smith at Tech Ed Know-How and is called Real World Math. This one looks really neat! It provides lessons where you use tools like Google Earth to teach math.

This week’s featured website is Diigo. It’s online bookmarking, social networking, and instant messaging all rolled into one site. Here’s a nice Wiki about how to use it, too!

How many hours do you think you’ve spent putting together presentations for you classes? Well, before you start you next one, check out SlideShare.net! They have a huge collection of slide shows. You might be able to find one you can use, or at the very least you can get some great ideas! Please be aware that some of the presentations posted here are going to be more (or less) appropriate for school, so search with caution. In addition, while this is a slide sharing utility, please be sure to always give credit to the original creator. It’s the nice thing to do!

This one from Alexei Kapterev is one of my favorites!

| View | Upload your own

Today I’m posting not one, not two, but THREE websites that our Social Studies and Science teachers might find useful. I can’t take credit for finding them, though. As usual, I depend on the generosity and intelligence of others to point me in the right direction.

The first site, Exploring Earth, was sent to me by our Oceanography teacher, Cathy L. Select a chapter from the left and then use the navigation buttons along the top to find some really neat resources.

The next two sites I discovered through Jim Gate’s Tipline. He is the bee’s knees (Do people still say that, or am I just a dork? – Don’t answer that. I already know the answer.) when it comes to wonderful tips and tricks. For our Social Studies teachers, check out 270towin.com to trace the history of our presidential elections. For our Science teachers, here is a nice ”clickable” periodic table.

Just two more days to go…..

This week’s featured website comes to us from Maryland, but it has some great stuff for those of us further south, too!

http://www.thinkport.org/default.tp

Looking for clipart, photos, templates, sounds, or just about almost anything else you can think of to make your PowerPoint, Word, Excel, etc., really “pop”?

Well, it’s here — Microsoft Office Online. Microsoft gives you lots of wonderful, FREE, resources.

This week’s featured website is Computer Literacy 101. The title says it all — it’s a great site with lots of basic, easy to understand, information on computers and technology.

Our new Web 2.0 tool, AfterClass, went live today! For those of you wanting to dive in to these nifty new instructional tools, here is an online help site from SchoolFusion.

http://www.schoolfusion.info/help/afterclass/teachers/

Thomas Friedman is the author of The World is Flat which is all about 21st century globalization and how it is affecting business, education, and our lives in general. By “flat” he means “connected”. I admittedly have not finished the book, yet. It is an endeavor “in progress”, but what I’ve read so far is very interesting.

Enter the “Flat Classroom Project” where teachers and students from around the world are collaborating on projects using Web 2.0 tools. Just how cool is that?!?! And I really don’t think it would be that tough to do. I’ve already talked to our specialty program coordinator, Meg H., about the possibility of linking up with some of our partner schools from around the world. Check out the link and if you are interested in giving something like this a try, let me know!

This week’s featured website comes recommended by one of our wonderful Oceanography teachers, Cathy L.

http://www.vims.edu/bridge/

Don’t know what Flickr is? It’s one of the most popular photo sharing sites available on the Internet today.  For those of you quick-clickers — you’ve already figured out that the site is, of course, blocked by the county. Web 2.0 tools like Flickr have made publishers out of literally everyone! Problem is, some of the things folks publish don’t quite fit the “appropriate use” policy of our AUP, so it has to be blocked.

All that aside, it is a pretty nice service. And now the Library of Congress has joined the Flickr community! Why is this a big deal? After all, the pictures they posted were already available on the LOC site…

The big deal is that now the world, and I do mean the ENTIRE world, can provide comments, feedback, history, perspective, etc., to accompany the pictures. Does that mean some crap may be posted? Of course! But the tremendous community of knowledge that makes up our little world (and it IS getting smaller, at least as far as technology is concerned) most certainly outweighs the garbage that some goofballs post.

 THAT’S why this is a big deal….

This week’s featured website comes from Tim Stahmer who, in addition to being a technology specialist in a neighboring school district, is the author of the blog, Assorted Stuff. He has compiled a list of the top 101 websites for educators and it looks absolutely awesome! Check it out!

This week’s featured website is Students 2.0. It is an edublog (blogs that only deal with topics relating to education) written and published entirely by students from all around the globe where they express their views about education today. It’s pretty impressive and thought-provoking. Some of what they say may make you squirm in your seat a bit, but the posts are thoughtful and well-written. Be sure to check out the information under the About tab to learn more about their mission.

Welcome back and happy 2008!

The link for VDOE’s SOL electronic practice tests (ePats) has changed. Last year, we downloaded all these tests to the computers in the library and IT Lab to assist with SOL remediation. This year, a link has been added to our Novell desktop which is great! Now, you and your students can access these practice tests from anywhere in the building! At home, though, your students will still need to download and install the tests they wish to practice with. The link has been updated on our portaportal, and I’ve provided it for you above, as well.

We’ve added quite a few more links to Hylton’s PortaPortal that you will want to check out. One of these is Primary Source Learning that our Gifted Education teacher, Janice G., shared it with me. It looks like a great resource! She was also kind enough to share the training materials for the site. If you would like copies, just come by the IT Lab.

Additionally, if you are looking for the SOL remediation resource links, they are also now on the PortaPortal.

We’ve all heard about Facebook and MySpace, but for those of us just a teensy bit older than 25, there’s another social networking service called Ning. Just like MySpace and Facebook, the site is blocked by the school system. However, I found I could still get to a really great Ning community called Classroom 2.0. The pictures don’t work if you are in the school building, but the text is there. It’s a great resource! If you’ve been thinking about learning more about social networks, nothing’s better than giving one a try!

Today we have a whole list of featured websites–just slide your eyes a bit to the right and down and check out the Blogroll! Every blog has a listing of other blogs the author likes to read.  Therefore, if you like what you are reading here, chances are you’ll like what you find in the Blogroll. Although I read them all, my current favorites are Warlick’s 2 Cents Worth, McLeod’s Dangerously Irrelevant, Fisch’s The Fischbowl, and Gate’s Tipline. These blogs are much better written, much better researched, and way more interesting than mine. While my blogroll reflects my interest in technology and education, but there are over 50 million blogs out there on every subject. To find one on a subject of your choice, just google it!

Yes, today’s Website Wednesday features a two-for deal! In addition to the MyRocketbook.com site you see below, I’ve also found a couple of great sites for free Social Studies videos — John Stossel’s 20/20 segments and izzit.org.

Enjoy!