Posts Tagged ‘character’

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Make Your Own Music Online!

April 20th, 2013

Hi!  It’s Saturday, April 20, 2013 and time for Music at ClickSchooling!

Recommended Website:

Incredibox http://www.incredibox.com

Age Range: All (with parental supervision)

Become the conductor of a group of animated human sound machines and express your musicality through this free, fun, and easy to use interactive program.  Sponsored by a graphic design and mixed media studio, Incredibox lets you record your music composition to share with friends.

When you get to the site watch the short introduction that demonstrates how to use the program. Once the intro is over, the program will be ready to begin. You’ll see animated male characters without shirts. Drag and drop different effects, beats, melodies, chorus, and voices (from icons located below the animation screen). As you drop them onto the character, it will dress the character in a new outfit and demonstrate  the effect. Continue until you create a musical piece that appeals to you. 

Use the small icons above the music screen to record your music, shuffle the program (automate it), remove the sounds (start over), and change the settings.  It takes a little experimentation to get proficient at creating compositions, but the fun is in exploring and testing the possibilities.

Note: There is a big “Play Now” button located at the bottom of the screen that opens a page where you can download a game program. It was difficult to tell if it was an advertisement – but it’s not part of the Incredibox program.  My advice is to avoid it.

Enjoy

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Free Chemistry Activities for Kids 3-8!

October 2nd, 2012

Hi!  It’s Tuesday, October 2, 2012 and time for Science at ClickSchooling!

Recommended Website:

Styraki: Activities

Age Range: 3-8 (with parental guidance and supervision)

The author of the academic textbook, Conceptual Chemistry, for high school and beyond, created a series of educational picture/activity books featuring the main character, an apatosaurus named Styraki, who embarks on Earth Science related adventures. At the companion website, you’ll find information on purchasing the books, and you’ll also find a FREE series of experiments from the books that introduce kids to chemistry, along with fun coloring pages.

When you get to the site, just use the menu on the left side of the screen to access the activities that include:

  • Make a Volcano
  • Make a Miniature Tornado
  • Understanding Dimensions
  • Explore Geology with an Egg
  • Discover the Water Table
  • Investigate Glaciers
  • Learn About the Solar System
  • And more!

Just click on an activity and a new page opens with instructions, illustrations, pictures, and an explanation of the science behind the activity.

To access the free coloring pages, use the menu at the top of the screen and click on “Coloring Books.”

Enjoy!

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Little House on the Prairie Activities

June 27th, 2012

Hi!  It’s Wednesday, June 27, 2012 and time for Language Arts at ClickSchooling!
 
Recommended Website:
Laura’s Prairie House

Age Range: 7 and up (approximately, with parental supervision)

A Maryland ClickScholar suggested this ad-supported website that claims to be the definitive place for information, resources, and learning activities based on the Little House on the Prairie book series by Laura Ingalls Wilder.

A note before you proceed: This site is so heavily laden with Google Ad links, that you could inadvertently click on an advertisement by mistake. That said, the content here is terrific, even if the ads are a nuisance.

When you get to the site you’ll see Google ad links, followed by an introduction to the site and a list of the books written by Laura Ingalls Wilder. Click on the book titles to read a brief description of each book.

Then, continue to click on subsequent links, or use the menu to find:

*Crafts, Lessons, Recipes, Music, & Activities – Make maple syrup candy, do a book character word search puzzle, print out worksheets and lesson ideas that include how to grind wheat, churn butter, make a braided rug, and more! You’ll even find lyrics to some of the songs & hymns mentioned in the books.

*Laura Ingalls Wilder & Little House Historical Sites – Get suggestions for taking an educational vacation by visiting memorial sites across the US. 

*Biographies of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Friends & Families – Learn more about some of your favorite characters from the books.

*Little House on the Prairie Television Series – Find episode guides for all 10 seasons, the cast of characters, and more.

There is a great deal of content and resources here that fans of this series are sure to appreciate. Many of the activities can be enjoyed, even if you haven’t read the books. 

 

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Interactive Shakespeare!

June 6th, 2012

Hi!  It’s Wednesday, June 6, 2012 and time for Language Arts at ClickSchooling!

Recommended Website:
Globe Education: Playing Shakespeare

Age Range: 10 and up (with parental supervision)
 
This website, sponsored by the Globe Theater in London, provides a range of engaging activities that help students learn language arts through studying some of the plays of Shakespeare. Designed for classroom use, the activities can be tweaked for independent use. Students will learn about character development and motivation, themes and issues in the plays, and they explore the language of the text.

When you get to the site, you’ll see an icon menu of 4 plays that have been performed at the Globe Theater:

  • Midsummer Night’s Dream
  • Macbeth
  • Romeo & Juliet
  • Much Ado About Nothing

Click on any play title and a new page opens where you can read the play, and learn more about it through the pictures, videos and interviews taken throughout rehearsals. Use the menu to find ingenious methods to engage students including:

*Language – Read every scene of the play online with links to definitions of the terminology in the script. Plus, you can use a “Tools” feature to find examples of literary techniques Shakespeare used in the text including iambic pentameter, onomatopoeia, couplet, simile, alliteration, and more.

*Character – The character pages on the website are intended to look similar to Facebook. Each character has their own page with a profile, photographs, and quotations. Listen to audio clips of actors discussing how they interpret their character by creating a back story with explanations as to what motivates them. Then, learn how the cast works with the director to further develop their characters

*Themes – Learn about the main ideas in the play such as love, family, ambition, duty, loyalty, violence, guilt, blame, etc. You’ll find discussion questions as well.

*Text In Performance – Discover the process of building a production including designing a set, creating costumes, and writing marketing materials. Read interviews with the creative team and crew.

This is a great opportunity to explore Shakespeare’s plays interactively through text, video clips, and commentary.

 

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Free, Fun “Parts of Speech” Tutorial & More!

May 23rd, 2012

Hi! It’s Wednesday, May 23, 2012 and time for Language Arts at ClickSchooling!

Recommended Website:
Sheppard Software: Parts of Speech Tutorial

Age Range: 7-10 (approximately, with parental supervision)

This fun “Parts of Speech Tutorial” is comprised of a series of animated games that help kids identify and use nouns, adjectives, verbs, commas, and capitals.  It’s part of the massive, ad-supported Sheppard Software website that offers hundreds of free learning games for children in language arts, math, science, history and more.

When you get to the website you’ll see a picture of a stage. Click on the word “Play” on the stage curtain to cre ate a character using nouns, adjectives, and verbs. If you’re uncertain of those parts of speech, then look at the menu on the left side of the page to find educational games that include:

*Noun Explorer – Learn the definition of a noun and use it to feed fish in the animated game.

*Adjective Adventure – Select fly adjectives and use them to feed the spiders. (My personal fave. :)

*Verbs in Space – Use verbs to hammer robot aliens in space.

*Comma Chameleon – Select punctuation marks and help the chameleon place them in a sentence correctly .

*Magical Capital – Help a fairy capitalize words in sentences.

Once you play those games, go back to the main page to build your character for the stage. This is an engaging way to help kids learn and practice parts of speech.

When you’ re finished, be sure to click on the words “Sheppard Software” at the top of the screen to explore all of the learning games offered at this site.  You’ll want to bookmark it to return often.

 

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Amazing Free Online Social Studies Books!

March 8th, 2012

Hi!  It’s Thursday, March 8, 2012 and time for Social Sciences at Clickschooling!

Recommended Website:
Go Social Studies Go!

Age Range: 9 and up (Grades 4-12, with parental supervision)

This is amazing! A Social Studies teacher created this ad-supported website to make social studies awesome and claims that it “brings to you the most complete Social Studies teacher resources in cyber space.”

The Social Studies material is all organized into free, engaging interactive books. You just click on a corner of the book to turn the pages that contain free social studies interactive lessons, games, videos, photos, and sound and music clips.

When you get to the site, you’ll see an icon menu that includes:

*Global Religions – Study African Animism, Buddhism, Christianity, Confucianism, Daoism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, and Shinto.

*History – You won’t believe the extensive content available under each major category that includes: Ancient History, World History, 20th Century History, American History I, and American History II. Topics include the Mayans, the Silk Road, the Black Death, Feudal Japan, Marco Polo, the Trial of Galileo, American Revolution, the Donner Party, Salem Witch Trials, Underground Railroad, the Hindenburg Disaster, the Dust Bowl, the Titanic, the Rwanda Massacre, and more!

*World Geography – Discover the countries and cultures of the U.S. and Canada, Mexico, Caribbean, Latin America, Europe, Middle East, Russia, Africa, India, Korea, Japan, China, and Australia.

*History Hunters – Go on an interactive History Adventure! Become a character in a story that allows you to make choices that determine the outcome.  Choose from “The Underground Railroad” and “Immigrant Experience.”

You’ll also find links to other cool websites and teacher resources.

This site is a brilliant example of how mundane textbook information can be transformed into an interactive learning extravaganza that your family will love!

 

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