URL: http://members.turtlediary.com/

 

What is turtlediary?

Turtlediary is an educational website for students and teachers that contains games, stories, worksheets, videos, and more! You can get a free basic membership but some of the features are blocked (crafts, biographies, and phonics). If you would like a membership you can choose to get one for one month ($9.95), three months ($24.95) or one year ($79).

 

Educational Uses:

The videos are educational and they are relatable to elementary students. The videos cover different content areas as well (math, science, and geography). There are also a lot of short stories that the students can choose to listen to or read on their own. Within this site you can search for worksheets by grade level (k-3), subject (math, science), or the topic (letters, numbers, vowels)! Turtlediary also includes tons of educational games that students can play. The games are also sorted by grade level (toddler-5) and they cover different content areas as well (math, English, science, and more).

 

Content Standards:

There are endless content standards you could assess when students are playing the games. Since there are so many different content areas included within this website you could find a content standard to match all of the different games available.

Math:

Kindergarten: Understand addition as putting together and adding to, and understand subtraction as taking apart and taking from.

First: Represent and solve problems involving addition and subtraction.

Second: Fluently add and subtract within 20 using mental strategies. By end of Grade 2, know from memory all sums of two one-digit numbers.

Third: Use place value understanding and properties of operations to perform multi-digit arithmetic. Geometric measurement: understand concepts of area and relate area to multiplication and to addition.

Science:

Kindergarten: This topic focuses on observing, exploring, describing and comparing weather changes, patterns in the sky and changing seasons.

First: This topic focuses on the physical needs of living things in Ohio. Energy from the sun or food, nutrients, water, shelter and air are some of the physical needs of living things.

Second: This topic focuses on air and water as they relate to weather and weather changes that can be observed and measured.

Third: This topic explores life cycles of organisms and the relationship between the natural environment and an organism’s (physical and behavioral) traits, which affect its ability to survive and reproduce.

English:

Kindergarten: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.K.2d Spell simple words phonetically, drawing on knowledge of sound-letter relationships.

First: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.1.1c Use singular and plural nouns with matching verbs in basic sentences (e.g., He hops; We hop).

Second: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.2.1e Use adjectives and adverbs, and choose between them depending on what is to be modified.

Third: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.3.1g Form and use comparative and superlative adjectives and adverbs, and choose between them depending on what is to be modified.

 

Standards retrieved from: http://www.corestandards.org/ and http://education.ohio.gov/Topics/Academic-Content-Standards/Science

 

Assessment Tools:

One of the best features within this site is the way that teachers can easily assess students! After students have finished playing games and practicing their skills, teachers can access their reports to determine how well they are understanding concepts (e.g., addition).

You can also view details and see what problems the students got correct and which ones they missed! This will allow teachers to see exactly what the students need more help in understanding!

 

The value of turtlediary:

Turtlediary is  a fun way for students to practice their skills in different subject areas. The best thing about turtlediary is that there are so many games that cover different content area that the students can use to enhance their learning and understanding of the different concepts. The students can easily sort the information by their grade level, subject area, and the topic they want to practice or learn about. The assessment tool is absolutely amazing and the student’s progress will show if they are actually learning and benefiting from this program! There is so much you can do with the free membership and you do not have to deal with all of the unwanted ads!

 

Resources:

(N.A). (2012). “Grade Level Notebooks”. [Image]. Turtlediary. <http://members.turtlediary.com/>. Retrieved February 24, 2014.

(N.A). (2012). “Game Subject Icons”. [Image]. Turtlediary. <http://members.turtlediary.com/games-by-subject.html>. Retrieved February 24, 2014.

(N.A). (2012). “Student Overview”. [Image]. Turtlediary. <http://members.turtlediary.com/report.html>. Retrieved February 24, 2014.

(N.A). (2012). “Assessment Details”. [Image]. Turtlediary. <http://members.turtlediary.com/report/335-106135.html>. Retrieved February 24, 2014.

URL: http://storybird.com/

 

What is Storybird?

Storybird is a website that inspires students to create stories using images from artists! There are a wide variety of artwork images to choose from (people, nature, animals, and more). With each image you have the option to create a picture book or a poem! When you choose what you want to create there are even more images that you can choose to add to your story. It becomes your story, you create exactly what you want!

 

Educational Uses:

Students can use this website to create stories based off of different artwork from other people as well as real artists. They can also read stories that other people have written! Teachers can use this website to teach about different artists that they may be reading or learning about. Within this website teachers can create a class where they can view the stories that the students create! Teachers and students can also comment on the stories that their peers write.

 

Content Standards:

There are quite a few content standards within different grade levels that you could use when creating stories with Storybird.

Kindergarten:

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.K.1 With prompting and support, ask and answer questions about key details in a text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.K.3 Use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to narrate a single event or several loosely linked events, tell about the events in the order in which they occurred, and provide a reaction to what happened.

First:

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.1.3 Describe characters, settings, and major events in a story, using key details.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.1.1 Write opinion pieces in which they introduce the topic or name the book they are writing about, state an opinion, supply a reason for the opinion, and provide some sense of closure.

Second:

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.2.1 Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.2.2 Write informative/explanatory texts in which they introduce a topic, use facts and definitions to develop points, and provide a concluding statement or section.

Third:

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.3.6 Distinguish their own point of view from that of the narrator or those of the characters.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.3.3 Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event sequences.

Standards retrieved from: http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy

 

Assessment Tools:

Teachers can read their students stories and assess the students writing depending on what they are working on (punctuation: capitals and periods, story elements: beginning, middle, end, problem and solution, etc.). Teachers can also assess the students understanding of sequencing events in order to retell a story. The way you choose to assess your student’s stories will depend on their grade level and the content in which the students have previously learned or are just learning.

 

The value of Storybird:

The students can create and share stories while expanding their reading and writing skills. They can learn about different artists and I am certain every student can find an artist that will inspire them to write. It will help encourage students to write even if they think they cannot draw. I love the fact that teachers can add a class and easily view the students creations! This is a wonderful website for teachers, students, and others like are interested in creating and or reading stories. All classes are private and student’s names and comments are also hidden from the public! You can obtain a teacher’s membership for  only $23 per year!

 

Resources:

(N.A). (N.D). “Visual Stories”. [Image]. Storybird. <http://storybird.com/teachers>. Retrieved February 25, 2014.