It’s Saturday, and time for Foreign Languages. Charlie and I will be checking into these resources this week. If you have used these can you let me know what you thought of them and why.
Age Range: 6-18 (Grades 2-12, with parental supervision) This site has a kid-friendly format that claims to make learning Chinese easy and fun.
When you get to the site, you can start on Lesson 1, or view the “Lesson Index” to view the choices including:
- Hello! How Are You?
- Numbers and Counting
- Today, Tomorrow and Yesterday
- Let’s Eat!
- and more.
Each lesson explains how to draw the character and has helpful hints on how to memorize it. As explained at the site, “All of our online Chinese lessons are free and include Chinese lesson materials such as printable flash cards, online memory testing, puzzles, written and audio versions, and much more.”
| National Museum of Wildlife Age Range: All (All grades; children with parental supervision) View the amazing artwork featuring wildlife at this museum. When you get to the site, choose from: Current Exhibits, Upcoming Exhibits, Past Exhibits, Long-Term Exhibits. Click on any piece of artwork and a new screen opens with a photo of the artwork and detailed information about the painting and the artist. When you are through exploring the art exhibits, scroll over the word ‘Learn’ to find ‘Online Programs’ in the ‘Teacher Resources‘ section. There are lesson plans and more. |
THE COMPLETE MARCHES OF JOHN PHILIP SOUSA
| Age Range: All (All grades; children with parental supervision) This website features a lot of the works of John Philip Sousa – most famous for his marches, particularly, “Stars and Stripes Forever,” the official march of the United States of America. When you get to the site, click on any of the marches listed to read a little blurb about each work. You can download the track, download the full score and parts, and/or listen to the U.S. Marine Band play the piece. You can also download each of the 4 volumes to listen any time! To learn more about Sousa’s life, The Library of Congress has links to a biography and articles about “The March King” and a timeline. Start the parade! |
George Washington – A National
Age Range: 7-18 (Grades 2-12, with parental supervision) Learn all about President George Washington with this website from the Smithsonian Portrait Gallery.
Using the full-length portrait, Lansdowne, by Gilbert Stuart as the focal point of this study, visitors can explore the interactive presentations and games to not only examine the portrait but discover interesting facts about George Washington and the time period in which he lived.
When arriving at the site, use the upper menu to navigate to your area of interest. Select from:
- The Portrait – Geared towards older students and adults, use the interactive portrait to examine it in detail from three different vantage points: symbolic, biographic, and artistic.
- Kids – Solve clues to not only discover what is missing in the portrait but also learn interesting facts as to why the items may have been included in the painting. The kid section also includes:
- The Patriot Papers – interactive activities such as matching games, crossword puzzles, word searches and more as well as downloadable articles from The Patriot Papers published by the Office of Education at the National Portrait Gallery which include a student and teacher version of the publishing
- Teacher Guide – Find extra activities and lessons plans to further enhance your studies here.
- Family Guide – Discover great topical discussion ideas as well as interesting information.
- Wallpaper – a couple of downloadable images of Washington for your desktop
- Washington’s Life – Explore the life and times of George Washington with this timeline.
- Exhibition – Learn more about the painting and its artist as well as try out a couple of samples of the traveling interactives.
This website provides a unique way to learn about the first president of the United States and a fun addition to your history studies.
Thank you,
Glenda, Charlie and David Cates
