Web Portals for Educators

Alicia Eames, Curriculum Connections -- School Library Journal, 4/7/2009

Professional reading, grade-level meetings, coaching, and collaboration have taught us that students benefit when lessons incorporate suggestions from a variety of sources and people. While consistent opportunities to exchange and refine ideas are optimal, they aren’t always possible. If you are in need of a little inspiration, the Internet may be your answer. This month we present three of our favorite portals offering free resources including lesson plans, animations, primary documents, videos, and suggestions for activities for students in kindergarten through grade twelve.

FREE: Federal Resources for Educational Excellence: Teaching Resources and Lesson Plans from the Federal Government. 
http://free.ed.gov Office of Communications and Outreach, U.S. Department of Education. (Accessed 3/26/09).
"More than 1,500 federally supported teaching and learning resources” made available by 60-plus government agencies, from the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission to the United States Mint, are linked here. Materials include animations, primary documents, photos, and videos. A detailed subject map allows searching by curriculum area, such as language arts, math, and U.S. history. Access is also provided through an alphabetical listing of specific topics.

Education: The Gateway to Smithsonian Educational Resources. http://smithsonianeducation.org Smithsonian Center for Education and Museum Studies. Washington, DC. (Accessed 3/26/09).
Designed for use by educators, families, and students, this portal offers entry to the Smithsonian’s vast resources. Teachers can search for lesson plans aligned with each state’s standards in the areas of art, science, history, and language arts. Additionally, a section on “Field Trips” offers downloadable worksheets that encourage meaningful interaction by students on visits to any museum.

Teachers’ Domain: Digital Media for the Classroom and Professional Development.
www.teachersdomain.org WGBH Educational Foundation. (Accessed 3/26/09).
Searchable by curriculum area and grade level, this “online library” organizes “video and audio segments, Flash interactives, images, documents, lesson plans for teachers, and student-oriented activities” from public television programs, such as Nature, NOVA, and American Experience. Funded by the National Science Foundation, registration is free and the site allows users to correlate resources to state standards.

Share your favorite online resources in the "feedback" box below.