Webquests

WebQuests -A WebQuest is an inquiry-oriented lesson format in which most or all the information that learners work with comes from the web.

WebQuest.Org – http://webquest.org/index.php
Includes resources on finding and creating WebQuests, along with research on the use of Web

InstantProjects.Org -http://instantprojects.org/
Includes software to create a WebQuest with no knowledge of html knowledge.

Pathfinders

Pathfinders – A pathfinder is a document that guides a person to resources on a particular topic. The resources usually include books, Web sites, helpful search terms for the Internet or OPAC and any other pertinent items.

Internet Public Library Pathfinders – http://ipl.org/div/pf/
IPL Expert Guides created to guide students in research on a particular topic or subject area.

The Pathfinder Project – http://www.thepathfinderproject.org/pathfinders.htm
Links to pathfinders on a variety of subject areas.

42Explore.org – http://www.42explore.com
Thematic pathfinders for all ages, searchable by subjects/themes.

Hotlists 

Hotlists – A hotlist is a collection of pointers to resources on the World Wide Web

Eduhound Hotlists – http://www.eduhound.com/hotlist/
Tool for creating your own educational Web page of educational resources. Free resource, however, you must register and login to view or create hotlists.

iWebQuests Hotlists – http://www.iwebquest.com/hotlists2.htm
Explore this page to view lists of hotlists by subject area, along with WebQuest hotlists.

Lesson Planning

The Educator’s Reference Desk – http://www.eduref.org/Virtual/Lessons/index.shtml
Contains more than 2000 lesson plans written and submitted by teachers across the United States and the world.

South Carolina State Curriculum Standards – http://ed.sc.gov/agency/offices/cso/
Links to Content Area Web Pages for all subject areas.

Discovery Education Streaming – http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/index.cfm
Discovery Education streaming is a digital video-on-demand and online teaching service to help improve students’ retention and test scores; it is aligned to U.S. state and provincial standards. See the DMS Media Center for the access code.

Discovery Education Lesson Plans Library- http://school.discoveryeducation.com/lessonplans/?pID=lesson#
Search for lesson plans by subject, grade level or both.

SCTLC – http://www.sctlc.com/sctlc/search/search.cfm
A search engine that is linked to over 10,000 lesson plans (including over 1600 Marco Polo and National Teacher Training Institute lesson plans).

Professional Development Opportunities

U.S. Department of Education continuing education resources – http://www.ed.gov/teachers/dev/contedu/list.jhtml

SC Department of Education professional development resources – http://ed.sc.gov/topics/profdevelopment/

TeacherPathfinder.Org – http://teacherpathfinder.org/ProfDev/professional.html
Links to inservices, preservices, professional development, professional organizations, tutorials and technology training.

SCTLC – http://www.sctlc.com/sctlc/training/
Use this resource to find a wide range of professional development, workshop, and training opportunities (including recertification courses) offered by a variety of different South Carolina educational groups. The materials are arranged by content, region, and date.

Internet Safety

IKeepSafe.org – http://www.ikeepsafe.org/
The Internet Keep Safe Coalition group teaches basic rules of Internet safety to children and parents, reaching them online and in school. Governors and/or first spouses formed this coalition in partnership with a growing list of crime prevention organizations, law enforcement agencies, foundations and corporate sponsors. Explore the whole site or click on For Educators for teacher specific information.

WiredSafety.org – http://www.wiredsafety.org/educators.html
Online safety information for teachers. In addition, provides links to teaching internet safety through information literacy.

Cyber Smart – http://www.cybersmart.org/for/teachers.asp
Contains links to resources pertaining to Internet safety as they relate to teachers.

Information Literacy

Big 6 Research Model – http://www.big6.com
Developed by educators Mike Eisenberg and Bob Berkowitz, the Big6 is a popular approach to teaching information and technology skills.

Nuts and Bolts of the Big6 Game – http://www.kn.pacbell.com/wired/big6/game
A game created to help reinforce the information literacy skills used by the Big6 research model.

Understanding Information Literacy – http://www.libraryinstruction.com/infolit.html
Contains definition of information literacy, along with articles about information literacy. Links to resources such as teaching copyright, citations, plagiarism, evaluating Web resources and more.

What Every Teacher Should Know About Copyright – http://www.2learn.ca/copyright/copy.html
Guide to assist teachers in the understanding of copyright laws as they apply to teachers.

Curricular Resources

Blue Web’N – http://www.kn.pacbell.com/wired/bluewebn/index.cfm
Blue Web’n is an online library of 2131 outstanding Internet sites categorized by subject, grade level, and format (tools, references, lessons, hotlists, resources, tutorials, activities, projects). You can also browse by broad subject area or specific sub-categories.

Kathy Schrock’s Guide for Educators – http://school.discoveryeducation.com/schrockguide/
A categorized list of resources useful for enhancing curriculum and professional growth. It is updated regularly to include the best sites for teaching and learning.

The Awesome Library – http://www.awesomelibrary.org/teacher.html
Organizes the Web into 35,000 carefully reviewed resources on all subject areas.

The Educator’s Reference Desk -http://www.eduref.org/cgi-bin/res.cgi/Subjects
Links to subject area specific resources.

SCTLC (SC Teaching Learning Connecting) – http://www.sctlc.com/sctlc/subjects/
Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment resources for each of the eight subject areas for which there exist South Carolina Academic Standards