Web Site Reviews: September, 2004
-- School Library Journal, 9/1/2004
Math Excursions
Bina Williams Public (CT) Library
Archimedes Lab. www.archimedes-lab.org. Archimedes Laboratory. (Accessed 7/15/04).
Gr 5 Up–Started by a consulting firm that specializes in creativity, this site improves mathematical thinking skills through logic puzzles, visual games, and problem-solving exercises. While the site won’t show students how to solve a particular geometry or algebra problem, it will push them to use their brain "outside the box." And speaking of boxes, an encyclopedia of pasta, outside of their boxes, shows all the shapes (and names) for pasta. Puzzles of the month, curiosities, ambigrams, droodles, Leonardo rebuses, and other topics offer hours of brain-bending activities. "O-powers" tests users’ powers of observation in examining shapes, patterns, text, and other visuals. There are hypnotic illusions, and students can also custom design puzzles for friends. Another section incorporates art and language. These activities really encourage students to use their eyes and brains to see beyond the obvious.
Ask Dr. Math. http://mathforum.org/dr.math. DrexelUniversity. (Accessed 7/25/04).
Gr 1 Up–Since 1994, DrexelUniversity college math students have been answering math homework questions for their elementary and high school counterparts (and the teachers) in this online forum. Students can submit questions to be answered, but it is recommended that they search the Web site first since most of the basic and not-so-basic problems have already been answered. Dr. Math will help students with homework questions, but won’t give them answers. Dr. Math asserts that "it’s your job to solve the problem. Our job is to help you find out why you’re stuck, so you can get un-stuck." Dr. Math also gladly links to other sites that they feel do a great job with whatever math topic is being studied, especially for worksheets and flashcards. When looking up multiplication, for example, Dr. Math discusses everything from the "order of operations," "multiplication facts," and classic problems, to associated topics and specific themes such as "Russian Peasant Multiplication." Teachers will want to visit the parent site of the Math Forum for lots of great ideas for their curriculum needs.
Brain POP Math. www.brainpop.com/math/seeall.weml. Brain POP. (Accessed 7/25/04).
Gr 4 Up–Brain POP is a lively, interactive Web site where users can view short animated films, participate in an exercise (Experiment with Bob, the ex-lab rat), or do a related activity. Registered users, for free, can ask Tim and Moby homework questions or ask Cassie and Rita personal questions. Parental permission is required for registering users under 18. Students, registered or not, can view two of these movies per day. (There is also a subscription option which allows unlimited access to the film clips.) The extensive math area covers all the basics of elementary school math from Pi to square roots, slope, and intercept to using proportions and the probability of independent events. (Check out the other topic areas covered: Health, Science, Technology, English, and Social Studies.) Teachers will find help here as well.
Cool Math Games. http://www.coolmath-games.com. (Accessed 7/25/04).
Gr 4-8–Created by a math teacher, this selection of math games is part of a larger site called coolmath4kids. The gangly front page has links to addictive games like "Lemonade Stand" where players must estimate the amount of sugar, ice cubes, and lemons that will be needed on a given day. The main problem is that it is not always obvious how to play a game or how to find instructions. For students who don’t mind blundering their way through the game, this is fine. There is a link to science games as well.
Gr 3-6–Cyberchase is the wonderful math show on PBS starring Motherboard’s helpers Dr. Marbles, Inez, Jackie, Matt and Digit vs. the evil Hacker and his lackeys Buzz and Delete. The helpers find their way out of a variety of tough situations where math concepts come in mighty handy. The Web site is an interactive extension of the TV show filled with games that use measurement, shapes, patterns, reasoning, and many more mathematical building blocks to solve problems. In addition to the treasure trove called "Games Central," students can join the "Cyberchase Club," send e-cards, go on "Web Adventures," get background information on all the characters (good or bad!) and look at "Today’s Stuff" related to the current episode. With hilarious names like Poddle Weigh-In, Double the Donuts, and Bugs in the System, Cyberchase is guaranteed to offer hours of fun—and learning.
Games and Puzzles from the Jefferson Lab. http://education.jlab.org/indexpages/elementgames.html. Southeast Universities Research Assn. (for U.S. Dept. of Energy). (Accessed 7/25/04).
Gr 5-12–These educational activities include not just math games, but also a number of elements-based and scientific games. They are addictive, though, as one tries to beat the computer to become Top Quark in a minesweeper-like game, to fill in the proper signs in an equation to turn four given numbers into the given answer in "Speed Math," and figure out "Mystery Math" and "Element Math." While there are fewer games here than on many of the other sites, the quality is excellent.
Mrs. Glosser’s Math Goodies. www.mathgoodies.com. Gisele Glosser. (Accessed 7/25/04).
Gr 5-9–Former math teacher, Mrs. Glosser, introduces math concepts and provides worksheets and online exercises. There are forums for teachers, parents (especially homeschoolers), new visitors, and students who can find loads of math homework problems with suggested ways to think about them. Students 13 and older who are registered can post their own questions. There are several categories of members including junior, senior, and advanced, as well as administrators and moderators. It is not clear how the first three of these categories are decided. As with many of these sites, there is also an opportunity to purchase a CD-ROM with much more math help. Still, there is plenty of free content here to keep students thinking and help them brush up on their skills.
Number Time. www.bbc.co.uk/schools/numbertime/index.shtml. British Broadcasting Co. (Accessed 7/25/04).
PreS-Gr 3–Designed for young students, this graphically appealing site uses short cartoons, games, and worksheets to introduce basic math skills. Very young children can go along with Addem the snake while he helps the ants order enough puddings or figure out if the houses have enough loos (bathrooms) for all of them. Addition and subtraction games include a dart board, "Toss the Toad," and "Snakes and Ladders." Worksheets offer appealing exercises.
Alphabet History
Jackie Partch MultnomahCounty (OR) Library
The Alphabet Is Historic. edsitement.neh.gov/view_lesson_plan.asp?id=517. National Endowment for the Humanities. (Accessed 6/17/04).
K-Gr 8–How did our alphabet come into existence? This site tackles that question by providing lesson plans for grades K-2. The information is presented in a way to interest older students as well. The four lessons cover the Phoenicians and the beginning of the alphabet, the Greek alphabet, and the Roman alphabet. The lessons are designed to teach students about the Phoenician, Greek, and Roman cultures as well as how our alphabet evolved. The site has a guiding question, learning objectives, and links to standards, as well as a good deal of narrative about the subject that older students could read. There is some animation that shows the evolution of the alphabet. The creators have also included several art and writing activities that can be used in conjunction with the lessons.
AncientScripts.com. www.ancientscripts.com. Lawrence K. Lo. (Accessed 6/17/04).
Gr 9-12–This site covers writing systems, historical linguistics, and sounds/phonetics. Lawrence K. Lo, a computer scientist with an interest in linguistics, created it in 1996. Students with an interest in the history of the alphabet should check out the section on writing systems, which begins with an essay on the origins of writing. The creator has classified the writing systems in several different ways. In one section, the systems are arranged according to the way they work (such as logographic or syllabic systems). In another section, they are classified by family (such as the Mesoamerican family). In the third section, writing systems are grouped by region of the world. For those who aren’t sure where to look, there is also an alphabetic listing of scripts. The page for each writing system begins with a list of quick facts, followed by a narrative. Many photos of artifacts and old documents are included, which sometimes results in slow loading. One of the most unusual features is a timeline showing when the different writing systems were in use. A bibliography of sources and list of links complete the site.
A Brief History of Type. graphicdesign.sfcc.spokane.cc.wa.us/tutorials/process/type_basics/history.htm. SpokaneFallsCommunity College Graphic Design Dept., WA. (Accessed 6/15/04).
Gr 6-12–Looking for a brief history of writing systems? The graphic design department at SpokaneFallsCommunity College created this one, which is part of a tutorial about type. The site explains different writing systems: pictograms, ideograms, and phonograms. A series of graphics show how our alphabet evolved from pictograms. The site also covers illuminated manuscripts and the invention of movable type and the printing press.
Evolution of Alphabets. www.wam.umd.edu/~rfradkin/alphapage.html. Robert Fradkin. (Accessed 6/15/04).
Gr 6-12–Have you ever wondered how one alphabet evolves to become a completely new alphabet? This site, created for a History of Alphabets course taught by Robert Fradkin of the University of Maryland, has eight animations that show the evolution of alphabets. For example, users can see how the Greek alphabet is descended from the Phoenician, or how the Cyrillic alphabet evolved from the Greek. The animation for the Latin character set shows how it evolved from Phoenician to Greek to Etruscan to variations of its present form. Students won’t find any explanatory text here, but the animations are worth viewing.
Gr 8-12–A British Web developer with a knack for languages created Omniglot, which has loads of information on writing systems and languages. The site is organized into alphabetic, syllabic, logographic, undeciphered, and alternative writing systems. In case you’re not sure where to look, an alphabetical index of all writing systems and languages on the site is available. For each writing system, such as the Latin alphabet, users can learn about its origin, notable features, and which people/languages use it. Sample text is included. If you want to use one of the writing systems yourself, there are links to download fonts for most writing systems to use on your computer. Informational pages about different languages are also available here, as well as the author’s tips on learning languages and careers for multilingual people. There is also a list of the sources used to create the site and numerous links to related sites.
