portaportal

Hi, welcome to Mr. J's PortaPortal.

1. Maker Summer Website

1. Hack Your Notebook

ajohnson2's other portals

Makerportal
Sites about making stuff.
Fun2learn

Architecture

archkidecture
archKIDecture was established in 1996 to encourage visual literacy and explain math, science and visual arts concepts
Architecture for Kids: A History of American Houses
Exploration of design styles in American architecture.
KinderArt Architecture for Kids Links
Future Houses of the Past
Futuristic House Designs from the Past
Learning by Design in Massachusetts
Nova video: Building the Great Cathedrals

FabLab Model Maker

Frank Lloyd Wright

Architect Studio 3D
Design a house, walk through it in 3D, and learn more about FLW's architecture.
Wright on the Web: A virtural look at the works of Frank Lloyd Wright
This site offers a brief overview of Frank Lloyd Wright's life and works.
Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation
Fallingwater
The website for Fallingwater, Mr. Johnson's favorite buildiing.
Interior views and blog of Pope-Leighey House
Frank Lloyd Wright Road Trips

Thomas Jefferson

Monticello Explorer
Interactive exploration of the Monticello house and plantation.
Thomas Jefferson's Poplar Forest
Bluffton College: The Architecture of Thomas Jefferson
Pictures of Jefferson buildings
Jefferson's Architectural Drawings from the Mass. Historical Society
An electronic archive of Thomas Jefferson's papers

Art

Art Galleries

Mobiles

Calder's Balancing Acts
NGA Lesson Plan for Making Mobiles
Alexandar Calder, Master of Balance
Introductory lesson plan for Calder
Princeton on line Calder lesson
A summary of a lesson on Calder from a 6th grade teacher
34 Calder Lesson Plans and reviews
Need to set up an account to review lessons

Biographies

Academy of Achievers

Buckminster Fuller

Cartooning

Chess

Kid Chess
The place to learn about the game and practice playing.
Chess Rules Index
The Pawn Game
Good game to learn how the pawn moves.

Claymation

Clip Art

Clipart Etc.
An online service of Florida's Educational Clearinghouse. Free Clipart for students and teachers.

Computer Coding

A Teacher's Guide to Fair Use and Copyright

Creativity

Design

JMU: Children's Engineering Educators, LLC
The closest thing to an elementary design curriculum that I have found (so far).
Elementary Analysis and Design in Architecture
Yale-New Haven Teacher's Institute: Unit and lesson plans for architectural design, 6th grade.
IDEO for Educators

Differentiation

Bloom's Taxonomy

Strategies for Working with Bloom's
Suggestions for questioning and instructional activities for different levels of Bloom's.

Mathematics

Teaching Mathematics to Gifted Students in a Mixed-Ability Classroom

Digital Storytelling

Student Examples

Student stories from Scott's County Schools

Document Cameras

ETN Document Cameras in the Classroom

Engineering

Engineering Interact
Interactive science and engineering activities for kids.
Discover Engineering.Org
Biglearning.org: Engineering for kids
DuPage Museum Engineering Challenges
Children's Engineering

Invention

By Kids for Kids Inventor's Site
U.S. Patent Office Kid's Pages
Design Thinking for Educators
Makers Faire Magazine
Kids Invent!
Not an endorsement!
The Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation
Quirky
A site for collaborating inventive ideas.
Invent Now
Fostering the inventive spirit in all of us.
IDEO for Educators

ESL

English-Spanish Math Dictionalry
ESL Young Learners Worksheets
Boggle's World
Flashcards, puzzles, worksheets, and lesson plans for ESL students.
Activities for ESL Students
ESL Resources for Students
Vocabulary for English Language Learners

Gifted

Hoagie
Links for Parents of Gifted Children
Characteristics and Behaviors of the Gifted and Talented
Amazing Kids
Genie U
All children have genius

Albemarle County Gifted

ACPS Gifted Services
Look here for any questions you have related to Gifted Education Services in Albemarle County.

Articles

Gifted Identification

The Identification of Students Who Are Gifted
article by Mary Ruth Coleman, June 2003
Assessing Gifted Children
article by Julia Osborn
HIgh Achiever, Gifted Learner, Creative Thinker
article by Bertie Kingore, Ph.D.

Strategies for Teaching Gifted Learners

Kid Source Online
A number of educational articles focusing on the characteristics and needs of gifted learners.
Duke University: Parenting Strategies to Motivate Underachieving Gifted Students
Reading Instruction for the Primary Gifted Learner
Considerations and Strategies for Parenting the Gifted Child
NRC GT Article

Inspirational

Randy Pausch Last Lecture: Achieving Your Childhood Dreams

Internet Safety

NetSmartz Workshop
Excellent resource for child safety on and offline
Iggey & Raser's Internet Safety Game
A game for teaching kids how to be safe on the internet
Safekids.com
Rules for online safety
Safekids Online Safety Quiz
http://www.safekids.com/quiz/index.html

Keyboarding

Easy Typing Games and Tutorials

Language Arts

Teach-nology Timeline Maker
Interactive Student Materials Index
Noodle Tools Search Strategies
Internet Search Strategies and Organizers
Copyrights for Kids
Great information on copyrights and trademarks
Jarret J. Krosoczka, Studio JJk
Kid's Page Archive Worksheets
Lots of worksheets for all subject areas
Rockingham County Schools Integration Resources
Awesome site that includes resources for all SOL's
Elementary Test Prep Center

Comic Life

Macworld Weblog

Dr. Seuss

Seussville's Playground
Sessian games and such
Seussville Home Page
Dr. Seuss National Memorial
Learning with Dr. Seuss
Teaching activities
Dr. Seuss Activities
Cross-curricular activities for 15 Dr. Seuss Books

Early Literacy

Early Writing Activities

Games

Handwriting Activities

Reading activities

Vocabulary

Schoolhouse Technology Vocabulary Worksheet

Writing Prompts

Learning Spaces

Book Review: The Third Teacher
Brief summary of The Third Teacher
Pedagogy and Learning Spaces
Universal Design of Instruction
7 UD principles, definitions, guidelines, examples
The Third Teacher Website

Make games, cards, etc

Jeopardy

Classroom Jeopardy Games
Jeopardy games made by Kentucky teachers.
Jeopardy Template
Make your own Jeopardy Game.

Math

Library of Virtual Manipulatives for Interactive Mathematics
Quia Multiplication Activities
Fact Monster
Math Baseball
Teddy Bear Mix and Match Games
snowflake micro photos
King
NZ Maths
Internet4classrooms
Home School Math
Apples4theteacher Interactive Math Games
Funbrain Changemaker
Interactive Math Quizzes by Tami Maloney
Magic Squares
Lights Out Game
A+ Math
Amby's Education Site for Math Resources
Shodor Interactive Math Activities
Center for Innovative Mathematics Tutorials
Don't pass this one by! Good for independent student review.
Math Vocabulary Jeopardy Games
Aunty Math
Brother Barry's WebPage
commutative and associative properties
Commutative Property Quiz

24 Challenge

24 Tournament Rules

Abacus

Arrays

Multiplication Array Applet
Making Arrays Activity
Students make multiplication arrays on interactive site
Multiplication Array Worksheets

Calendars

Calendars Through the Ages
Find the Day: The World of Stuff
Use some simple tricks to predict the day of the week, past and future

Multiples, Factors, and Prime

CSMP Math

The Visual language of CSMP
Introduction to the symbols for expressing abstract mathematical concepts in CSMP
Comprehensive School Mathematics Preservation Program

Estimation

Estimation

Famous Mathematicians

University of St. Andrews Biographies List
Brief biographies of Mathematicians, 500 AD to present.
Famous Mathematicians from Underrepresented Groups
Biographies of Women Mathematicians
Mathematicians' Quotes
Mathematicians Quiz
Take this quiz to find out which mathematicians you might like to study.
The Greatest Mathematicians of All Times
Short biographies of famous mathematicians

Dr. John Snow

Estimation

Flashcards

Aplus Math Flashcards
All kinds of flashcards for fact practice. You can also create youir own.
Flashcard Exchange
A huge library of flashcards for all subjects.
Mental Arithmetic Drills

Fractions

Fraction Tutorial
Visualizing Fractions
Interactive visualization of fractions
Fraction Bar Applet
Interactive fraction bar for visualizing fractions
Fraction Worksheets
Fraction worksheet activities grades 3-5
Identify Fractions with Circles
Type in numerators and denominators to identify circular fractions.
Learning Wave online interactive Fractions
Great activities and tutorials for upper elementary grades.
Fresh Baked Fractions Game
Fraction Inequality Flashcards
Fractotron
Compare Fractions
Decifractator
Compare fractions and decimals
Who Wants Pizza?
fun ways to explore fractions
Finding Common Multiples
Fraction Soccer Shootout
Game for practicing operations with fractons
Fraction Inequality Flashcards
Fraction/Decimal/Percent Jeopardy
Fraction Games & Models from Illuminations
Fractions from the Flashcard Exchange

History of Fractions

Enriching Mathematics the History of Fractions

Fun With Math

Geometry

Measuring Angles

Graphing

Create A Graph
Interactive Stem and Leaf Plotter
Purplemath Stem and Leaf Plots
Line Plots
Harlan Community School District basics of line plots

Math Games

Math History

Famous Mathematicians

Math History Videos

Who Invented the Number System?
Critique this video
Voyager Space Crafts: The Golden Record and Discoveries

Math Project Ideas

Mathematics Projects...Showcasing student's work
Examples of student projects
Math Projects.com
guidelines for a variety of math projects

Math Vocabulary

Salem-Keizer Public Schools
Math.com Glossary
Maths Dictionary for Kids
A math dictionary from Down-Under
Harcourt Multi-media Math Glossary

Measurement

Mental Math

Multiples, Factors, and Prime

Eratosthenes' sieve
Use this sieve to find factors and patterns
About Eratosthenes
What is a Prime Number?

Napier

Undusting Napier

Order of Operations

Mr. Nussbaum Order Ops Game

Place Value

School Express Place Value Worksheets
edHelper.com
First School Years
Enchanted Learning
Teach-nology
Busyteacherscafe
Decimal and Whole Number Jeopardy
Decimal and Place Value Review
Comparing Fractions, Decimals and Percentages
Interactive games, quiz, and visual fact sheets for comparing parts of a whole.
Decimal Ordering and Place Value

Probability

Math is Fun: Probability Tree Diagrams
Learn how to use a probability tree diagram to calculate probabilities.

Tessellations

Tessellations Coolmath 4 Kids
Tessellation Creator
Totally Tesselated
M.C. Escher Website
Fun with Shapes
Play to learn about polygons

Word Problems & Performance Tasks

Math Performance Assessment Tasks
Math Portal Performance Tasks
Math Performance Task Bank
Franklin Institute Resources
Math Problem-solving from Houghton Mifflin
Mental math/Word problems
NZ Maths Problem Solving
MathProjects Journal
A variety of performance assessments

Mindmapping

Music

Blues

Harmonica

Kid Musicians

Quinn Sullivan 8 year old blues guitarist with Buddy Guy

Music/Learning Connections

Train recordings

Paper Engineering

100 Extraordinary Examples of Paper Art
paper folding project
create a geometric structure with easy paper folding

Origami

Origami Club
animated origami folding

Origami

Paper Airplanes

Build the Best Paper Airplane
Alex
Joseph Palmer
Paper Airplane Links
Paper Airplane Association
Lots of facts and Guinness records related to paper airplanes
Paper Airplane Science Fair Questions
Questions about the performance of paper airplanes related to their design
Scholastic's National Paper Airplane Contest
Paper Airplane Theme Page (links)

Lesson Plans

Paper Fabrication

Digital Fabrication.org

Pop-Up Books

Pop-up Card Mechanisms

Scale Drawings and Models

Science

Exploratorium
Fact Monster
4th Grade Science Skills
The Yuckiest Site on the Internet
American Museum of Natural History
NASA Kid's Club
EdHeads Simple Machines
Fun ways to explore simple machines

Animals

Snakes of Virginia
The Biology Corner
Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries
Owl Pages
Yahooligans Animal Page
enature
Animal Group Names
Kidsconnect: LIZARDS
Animal names: groups, babies, male & female
Reptiles and Amphibians: Savannah River Ecology Program
Timber Rattlesnake.net
Hognose.
Hognose.
Hognose.com
Live recordings of animal sounds
Animal Life Spans
Find out about who has the shortest and longest lives!
Animal Skull Collection
Photos of animal skulls that can be used for identificaiton

Bats

Life-like Flying Bats
Make a flying bat
All About Bats
What Good Are Bats?
Educational resources
Bats 4 Kids

Biomes and Ecosystems

Biomes of the World

Birds

50 Birds
All kinds of great information about birds.
All About Birdhouses at ask.com
Complete guide to birdhouses (with plans)
The Birdhouse Network
Cornell University: What to do about predators.
Bird Feeder Plans
A variety of free birdfeeder plans using recycled materials
Backyard Birdfeeding
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Feeding Birds at School
Audubon Fact Sheet
Bird Habitat Necessities
Audobon at Home
Wayne of the Woods
Wood bird feeder plans
birdjam.com
Learn birdsongs organized by habitat
enature bird wildlife guides
Bird Calls, facts and photos

Chinese Water Dragons

General Care

Classification

Teachers' Domain Animal Classification
A Touch of Class
Classification game
Apples4Teachers Animal classification
Discovery Education Classification lesson plans
Classification Quiz

Coral Reef/Marine Life

NOAA's Coral Reef Conservation
Flying Fish Express
Wet Web Media Aquarium FAQ's
Virginia Institute of Marine Sciences
Virginia Institute of Marine Sciences Educational Bridge
Aware Kids
Marine Science awareness site
Australian Reef Education Network
Great information about the Australian reef. Check out the interactive notebook for storing facts and photos.
Mr. Kretsinger's Beach Walk Project
Get the latest on Mr. Kretsinger's incredible walk up the east coast!
NOAA's Gallery of Coral Photography

Echinoderms

Echinoderms
Sea and Sky.org
Oceanlinks
Life on the Rocky Shore
Library Thinkquest Tidepool Animals
Enchanted Learning Echinoderm Printouts
Great information about the echinoderms in our school marine tank!

Environmental

Madagascan Hissing Cockroaches

Mars

Plants

Raising Crickets

Scientists

Seasonal Changes

Simple Machines

EdHeads Simple Machines

Snowflakes

Snow Crystals.com
On-line guide to snowflakes, snow crystal and other ice phenomena. Great snowflake photomicrographs!
Make A Flake
Great fun! Cut out your own virtual snowflake designs.
Paper Snowflakes
Directions for making paper snowflakes.
How Do Snowflakes Form?
Brief description of how snowflakes are formed in our atmosphere.
Dave's Snowflakes Patterns
Patterns for making paper snowflakes

Soil

Ask the Answer Worm
KidZone Underground Adventure
Field guides and learning activities to learn about the underground.
Discovery Educations Dirt on Soil
Learn about soil by going on an underground safari.

The Brain

Neuroscience for Kids

Weather

Young Naturalist Award Winners

Search Engines

Social Studies

China

Civil War

Explorers

Geography

Virginia

The Virginia Map Project
Virginia Regions & Resources
World Book Virgnina Resource Guide
Monticello, Home of Thomas Jefferson
Visit Monticello and learn all about Thomas Jefferson.

Spelling Bee

Consolidated Word List
The Consolidated Word List is a compilation of over 100 Scripps National Spelling Bee word lists dating as far back as 1950.
Spelling Bee Contest Rules
Spell It
Spell It! focuses on about 1150 words, divided into sections by language of origin.
Visual Thesaurus Spelling Bee
Try it, you'll like it!