Digital Dozen

A dozen exemplary web sites for educators, hand-picked each month. Use the archive or search a subset of the collection to browse hundreds of carefully chosen sites.  

August 2004

1. Alive maths
   Grade(s): 5 - 8 ENC#: 030370
   Synopsis: So where is Lulu and will the two of you ever manage to meet up for coffee? And what about those frogs--can you get all of the red ones on one side and all of the blue ones on the other? Play with these and other applets to explore math concepts like patterns, probability and randomness, and iteration. For each applet, a mathAsides section provides teacher notes, curriculum connections, and discussion questions.
   (For more details, see ENC Record.)
   
   
2. Archimedes
   Grade(s): 9 - 12 ENC#: 009325
   Synopsis: Get to know the father of integral calculus at this site chock full of everything you ever wanted to know, or didn't know you wanted to know, about Archimedes. Did he really invent a mirror capable of setting a fleet of invading ships on fire? What other war machines did he invent? Read about the contributions of someone known as the greatest scientist and mathematician of antiquity.
   (For more details, see ENC Record.)
   
   
3. Biodiversity 911 on the web
   Grade(s): K - 12 ENC#: 029856
   Synopsis: Did you know that there are more than 1.7 million species of life on this planet? And scientists are pretty confident that there are millions more just waiting to be discovered! Biodiversity is what makes life on Earth so varied and rich--and it's being threatened by the way one species, namely humans, lives their lives. Through interactive quizzes and even an exciting music video, you'll learn more about why biodiversity is so important, how it's being threatened, and what is being done to preserve it.
   (For more details, see ENC Record.)
   
   
4. Chemistry coach
   Featured in ENC Focus  
   Grade(s): 10 - 12 ENC#: 013954
   Synopsis: Originally featured as a Digital Dozen selection in 1999, this site has only gotten better with time. You'll find an immense variety of online tutorials, which cover--among other things--how to write up data findings and how students will be evaluated in labs. Other tutorials cover chemistry concepts such as the Bohr theory, the Periodic table, and balancing equations. Written with humor and zest, this site is sure to spark your interest in all things chemistry!
   (For more details, see ENC Record.)
   
   
5. CHF chemistry webquests
   Grade(s): 9 - 12 ENC#: 030166
   Synopsis: Nothing like a good webquest to make chemistry more interesting and electrifying to today's high-wired students! Send your chemistry classes scouring the Internet and putting their creative problem solving to use on quests such as The Great PVC Controversy, in which they consider the benefits and the risks of PVC products.
   (For more details, see ENC Record.)
   
   
6. EggMath
   Grade(s): 11 - Post-Sec. ENC#: 030407
   Synopsis: Remember when everybody said eggs were bad for you? Clearly they hadn't been to this site, which teaches "eggs"actly the opposite! Eggs are a perfect way to learn about symmetry, axes of rotation, equations for an ellipse, and novel approaches to ovals. Slicing and dicing an everyday egg has never been quite this educational!
   (For more details, see ENC Record.)
   
   
7. emGames
   Grade(s): K - 4 ENC#: 030106
   Synopsis: Test your multiplication mettle by competing against a computer for the largest number of correct problems. Help the home team add its way to victory on the basketball court. Or play a money game where you add up coins to see whether you or the computer have grabbed more money. Fun and learning abound with these and other games. This site was created to supplement the Everyday Mathematics curriculum program.
   (For more details, see ENC Record.)
   
   
8. ENC classroom calendar
   Grade(s): Pre-K - 12 ENC#: 030258
   Synopsis: Not to toot our own horn--well, okay, maybe just a little toot--but ENC's own Classroom Calendar is a timely assortment of math and science entries that contain background information, teaching suggestions, and carefully chosen annotated links to related resources and activities. Using a 12-month calendar format, Classroom Calendar features each entry on an appropriate date--for example, an entry on Pompeii and Mount Vesuvius appears on August 24, which is the date that Mount Vesuvius began its famous eruption in A.D. 79. Categories of entries include inventions, biographies, reading lists, math, and science. Classroom Calendar is designed to help teachers enrich and supplement their lessons.
   (For more details, see ENC Record.)
   
   
9. Learning math: measurement
   Grade(s): K - 8 ENC#: 030051
   Synopsis: Take the measure of your math skills with this online course from Annenberg. It uses video and activities to cover both the fundamentals and the finer points of measurement, covering topics from the metric system to area to pi. Classroom case studies demonstrate how these concepts can be applied in actual teaching situations.
   (For more details, see ENC Record.)
   
   
10. National Geographic Channel interactives
    Grade(s): 4 - 12 ENC#: 030375
    Synopsis: How can you possibly go wrong with National Geographic? This site is packed with interactive explorations of exciting destinations such as the Titanic, which Dr. Ballard visited in June 2004 in an effort to determine ways to prevent the historic ship's deterioration after 91 years underwater. You can also view video taken by the CritterCam, a research device scientists use to explore animal behavior. These and other multimedia explorations can be accessed through the site archives.
    (For more details, see ENC Record.)
    
    
11. The Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine, educational
    Grade(s): 6 - Post-Sec. ENC#: 030356
    Synopsis: Why has Mr. Yellow been referred to you for an ECG? See if you can interpret his results and give him the correct diagnosis! Or maybe DNA is your thing--you can make copies of DNA molecules and see if you can identify which organism they come from. With these and other interactive games, you can emulate your favorite Nobel Prize winners and learn more about their famous discoveries.
    (For more details, see ENC Record.)
    
    
12. The science channel
    Grade(s): 6 - 12 ENC#: 030357
    Synopsis: Why risk life and limb running with the bulls in Pamplona when you can safely and educationally take part in the Science Channel's Dinosaurs on Parade? From dinosaurs to deep-sea diving machines--ever heard of the PX-15?--this site provides multimedia explorations of science in action. Come explore!
    (For more details, see ENC Record.)