Posts Tagged ‘tutorials’

Explore Digital Photography Techniques!

June 11th, 2022

It’s Saturday, June 11, 2022, and time for Art at ClickSchooling!

Digital Photography School

(digital-photography-school.com/)

Grades 5-12, with parental supervision

This ad-supported website created by Darren Rowse provides a bonanza of digital photography tutorials and helpful hints to make the most of your digital camera.

When you get to the site, click on “Start Here” on the upper menu. On this page, students can learn photography tips and techniques relating to:

  • Landscapes
  • Portraits
  • Composition
  • Beginner Tips
  • Post Processing
  • Cameras and Gear

Parents will want to check out the entry called “13 Lessons to Teach Your Child About Digital Photography” to help their children learn some basics of taking a photograph. (Put the title in the “search” box to get right to it.)

There are courses that can be purchased from this website, but visitors will find a lot of great free information about photography that they could easily create their own short course for their student. You can also subscribe to their weekly newsletter.

Interactive Pre-Algebra & Algebra Tutorials

May 16th, 2022

It’s Monday, May 16, 2022, and time for Math at ClickSchooling!

Visual Math Learning

(www.visualmathlearning.com/Lessons/lessons.html)

Grades 5-10, with parental supervision

This archived website provides free, interactive tutorials with diagrams, illustrations, animations and practice games and exercises for learning pre-algebra and algebra level mathematics.

When you get to the site you’ll see that the lessons are divided into two sections:

I. Pre-Algebra: Numbers and Arithmetic

  • Natural Numbers
  • Counting
  • Number Bases
  • Addition
  • Subtraction
  • Integers
  • Multiplication
  • Factors
  • Division
  • Fractions
  • Fraction Arithmetic
  • Inverses
  • Equivalence
  • Common Denominators
  • Decimals

II. Elementary Algebra

  • Basics of Sets
  • Relations
  • Functions
  • Equations
  • Substitution

Click on any lesson and enjoy a tutorial that includes narration, illustrations, interactive diagrams, and visual manipulatives to encourage active learning.

On the menu, you’ll also find a section titled “links” which will provide you with a list of other math resources.

Get Ready To Celebrate Cinco De Mayo!

April 28th, 2022

It’s Thursday, April 28, 2022, and time for Social Sciences at ClickSchooling!

Mexico For Kids: Fun Cinco De Mayo History, Lessons, & Activities!

All grades, with parental supervision

Cinco de Mayo is next week! The fifth of May marks the Mexican army victory over the French at the Battle of Puebla, and represents Mexican independence from foreign intervention.

I thought it would be fun to provide you with a fiesta of websites across the curriculum that celebrate Cinco De Mayo including the history of the festival, arts and crafts, Spanish lessons, math activities, mariachi music, recipes, and more.

Cinco de Mayo: History Channel Video Presentation

The History Channel website offers videos about the Aztecs, Montezuma, Cortez, Mesoamerican pyramids, the Cinco de Mayo festival, and an archive of articles about every aspect of Mexican history and culture.

Cinco de Mayo Paper Dolls & Crafts

Print and create Cinco De Mayo crafts.

Cinco de Mayo Recipes

Learn to make Menudo, sopes, and more!

Cinco de Mayo Piñata

Learn the history of the Piñata get instructions on how to make a piñata.

Free Spanish Lessons

Cinco de Mayo is a great time to start Spanish lessons and at this website you can take free Spanish tutorials!

Art Tutorials for Middle & High School

March 19th, 2022

John MacTaggart: Artyfactory

(www.artyfactory.com/)

Grades 6 and up, with parental supervision

This ad-supported website includes step-by-step, how-to art lessons. It also offers art appreciation tutorials on topics like “Still Life” or “Animals in Art” or broader “Art Movements.”

Description: When you get to the site, choose from:

  • Art Lessons
  • Art Appreciation
  • Design Lessons

Little ones can’t interact with Artyfactory on their own. The content and writing are at an advanced level. (In fact, it is suspect most of the content doubles as MacTaggart’s college course material.) But there’s tremendous potential here for a creative homeschooler as follows:

  • Use it directly as reading or coursework for a high school student.

  • Adapt the lessons for younger pupils. The “Pencil Shading” exercises, for example, found under “Pencil Portraits” in the Art Lessons section, would be a fun challenge. The “How to Draw Animals” lessons might work with a talented middle school student, too, but these are no Ed Emberley thumbprints: they require a good eye and a controlled hand.
  • Fill in holes in your own knowledge. After spending some time on this site you’ll be able to introduce your children to Expressionism paintings and more next time you visit a museum.

There’s a wealth of information here: color theory (both technical stuff like the color wheel and the emotional impact of colors in painting), a thorough overview of African masks and Egyptian hieroglyphs, shading techniques in pen and ink, etc.

NOTE: As always, PARENTS SHOULD PREVIEW the site to determine suitability of content for your own children.

Boost Mental & Physical Skills with Speed Stacking!

March 12th, 2022

Speed Stacks

(www.speedstacks.com/learn/?lang=en)

Grades 1-12, with parental supervision

Cup Stacking (also known as Sport Stacking and Speed Stacking) is an amazing sport of fitness, agility, concentration and quickness.

Essentially, cup stackers take matching cups of any shape or size, and stack them in pyramids and then unstack them at an unusually high rate of speed.

At this website, you can explore this craze and watch cup stacking tutorial videos. Learn how to speed stack — a fun sporting idea that can be done indoors or outdoors to satisfy that P.E. requirement.

When you get to the site you’ll see the introduction video and 7 other “How To” training or rules videos you can watch for free.

This is a commercial site that sells stacking cups, mats, and various other paraphernalia — but you don’t have to buy a thing to watch the tutorials.

If your kids think this looks like fun, a set of stacking cups may make great stocking stuffers!

Explore Vedic Mathematics

October 25th, 2021

Vedic Mathematics Academy

(www.vedicmaths.org/#new-to-vedic-mathematics)

Grades 3 and up,with parental supervision

This commercial site provides information and free sample tutorials on Vedic Mathematics.

What’s “Vedic Mathematics”? As explained at the website:

“Vedic Mathematics is the name given to the ancient system of Indian Mathematics which was rediscovered from the Vedas between 1911 and 1918 by Sri Bharati Krsna Tirthaji (1884-1960). According to his research, all of mathematics is based on sixteen Sutras, or word-formulae… These formulae describe the way the mind naturally works and are therefore a great help in directing the student to the appropriate method of solution… The simplicity of Vedic Mathematics means that calculations can be carried out mentally (though the methods can also be written down).”

Words really don’t begin to describe this innovative way to solve math problems and mentally calculate answers to math equations. It almost makes learning math like learning fun magic tricks. When you get to the website, click on New to Vedic Mathematics, then “tutorials”, then Fun With Figures. Try the free sample tutorials that explain ways to find arithmetic solutions for:

  • Multiplication
  • Subtracting Fractions
  • Finding Square Roots
  • Division
  • and more!

Read the instructions and apply the Vedic method to find the solutions to an array of sample problems. Your kids will enjoy experimenting!

For those who have never heard of or tried this method before, it will really set your mind to thinking about math differently.

If your kids struggle with mathematics the Vedic system may provide an alternative method that suits the way your child learns best. This site sells products that teach the Vedic system, but the sample tutorials are free. It also provides many links to other websites with articles, downloads, activities, and further resources for learning Vedic mathematics. We have not reviewed these other websites.

Just FYI, YouTube carries some free Vedic math tutorials. Just go to YouTube.com and enter “Vedic math tutorials” in the search engine. A menu of free instructional videos on the Vedic system pops up that you can explore on your own. We have not reviewed the YouTube presentations on Vedic math, so parents AS ALWAYS should preview the material and supervise use.

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