South America Research Resources

Following are some links about South America to assist 3rd grade teachers and students. Please comment if you know of other helpful links.

South America
CultureGrams via Pioneer Library
UEN - 3rd Grade Examine the Inca of South America
CyberSleuthKids - South America
Lizardpoint - Test your geography knowledge South America
National Geographic - guide to South America
Totally 3rd Grade
Aztecs, Mayas, & Incas: Study of Indigenous People (webquest)
South American Countries (webquest)
ProTeacher South America lesson plans and activities
WorldAtlas.com - maps of South America
PlayKidsGames - South America Country Find
Kidipede - Early South America
Kidipede - South America after 1500 AD

Peru
CultureGrams via Pioneer Library
National Geographic Kids - Peru
Kids Around the World - Peru
KidsKonnect - Peru
National Geographic - Peru
CIA World Factbook - Peru
CIA World Factbook Kids' Page - Peru
Come to Peru

Amazon Rainforest
Teachers' Domain: Amazon Rainforest (video)
Jungle Photos
Mongabay: Tropical Rainforest
Rainforests - curriculum research links
Amazon Rainforest Endangered Animals Game
KidsKonnect: Rainforest - link list

South American Food
FoodsofSouthAmerica.com
iTV Kids South American Food Recipes
Food of the Inca

The Incas
UEN - 3rd Grade Examine the Inca of South America
Aztecs, Mayas, & Incas: Study of Indigenous People (webquest)
The Incredible Incas for Kids
National Geographic Kids Brainteaser Incas Quiz
KidsKonnect: Ancient Inca
The Incas at ppst.com - free PowerPoint presentations

ESL Websites & Software

I asked my teammates if they knew of any websites or software that help ESL students as they learn to read and write. We came up with the following:

• RIF Reading Planet - Reading Is Fundamental - reading activities for kids
  
• Kidspiration - software that can help build vocabulary with picture support
• MES English - "free printables for teachers"
  
• Boardmaker - software - "symbol-based printed activities for students with special needs"
• Starfall - "where students have fun learning to read"
  

Do you have additional suggestions?

Science and Social Studies Educational Websites

Science

• BBC's Science Clips
• Monterey Bay Aquarium
• Toon University
• BBC's Bitesize Science
• Simple Machines
• Weather Maker
• The Water Cycle
• Wolfram Demonstrations Project
• Black Holes
• Electromagnetic Waves
• The Electromagnetic Spectrum
• NASA Science for Kids
• Science NetLinks
• Science Online
• Harcourt School Science
• Science With Tom
• Medical Mysteries
  

Social Studies

• Utah History Encyclopedia
• Utah.com
• County, State, & Country Reports
• The History Channel
• If You Were President
• Gilbert Stuart Making Faces
• The Underground Railroad
• Lizardpoint Geography
• Ancient Rome
• Pearson Social Studies Library
• Smithsonian's History Explorer
• National Geographic's Xpeditions
• EconEdLink
• EDSITEment
• The Kennedy Center's ARTSEDGE
  

Integrating Technology into the Curriculum

Online K-12 teacher resources:

• Canyons EMT
• UEN Core Curriculum
• UEN Student Center
  
• Thinkfinity
• Literacy Network
• Elementary Technology Lessons
  
• Miss Blunt's Engaged Classroom Blog - I frequently post ideas and links on my blog, so click on "Follow" at the bottom of the sidebar or get the RSS feed to receive notices about new posts. Also on my blog: use tags to make your search for specific topics easier, follow me on Twitter, and link to other Ed Tech and teacher blogs
  

**See also my "Reading and Math Educational Websites" post for a lesson plan outline.

County, State, & Country Reports

Several teachers have asked me to suggest online resources to help their students research for county, state, and country reports. Following are some sites I found. Please comment and share your favorite county, state, and country information resources.

Counties of Utah:

• UEN's Counties of Utah
• Pioneer Library - Pioneer has a list of Utah resources. On the Pioneer site, click on "K-12 Schools", then check out the "Utah Collection" column.
• UEN's Core Curriculum Links - UEN provides a list of helpful links for every Core standard and objective. Go to the UEN Core Curriculum page, and select the subject area you want help with. For example: Geography of Utah (SS Standard 1), Utah History (SS Standard 2), Government of Utah (SS Standard 3)
• Utah - Life Elevated (utah.travel)
• Utah.com
• Try searching the name of your county in Google. Most counties have a homepage with cultural, historical, and current information about their county.
  

The United States:

• CultureGrams - States Edition - My favorite! You can access this site through Pioneer Library. It does require a license to access. When you go to the site while on the canyonair network, you will automatically be logged in. If you need the login name and password to login at home, they are listed on the Pioneer homepage.
• Pioneer Library - Pioneer has a list of research resources -- everything from encyclopedias, to search engines, to image collections, to sound clips. On the Pioneer site, click on "K-12 Schools", then check out the "General Reference Collection" and the "Additional Library Resources".
• UEN's Core Curriculum Links - UEN provides a list of helpful links for every Core standard and objective. Go to the UEN Core Curriculum page, and select the subject area you want help with. For example: North American Colonies (SS Standard 1), American Independence (SS Standard 2), US Constitution & Bill of Rights (SS Standard 3),US Expansion (SS Standard 4), US as a World Power (SS Standard 5)
• FactFinder Kids' Corner - Fun State Facts! - from the US Census Bureau
• netstate.com
• 5th Grade State Report Websites - a list of helpful websites
  
• States Timed Test
• Sheppard Software Us Geography - states & capitals tests as well as state information
• Encyclopedia.com
• US States and Regions at ppst.com
• Infoplease Origin of State Names
• Regions of the United States
  
• Try searching the name of your state in Google. Most states have a homepage with cultural, historical, and current information about their state.
  

Countries of the World:

• CultureGrams - World Edition - My favorite! You can access this site through Pioneer Library. It does require a license to access. When you go to the site while on the canyonair network, you will automatically be logged in. If you need the login name and password to login at home, they are listed on the Pioneer homepage.
• Pioneer Library - Pioneer has a list of research resources -- everything from encyclopedias, to search engines, to image collections, to sound clips. On the Pioneer site, click on "K-12 Schools", then check out the "General Reference Collection" and the "Additional Library Resources".
• UEN's Core Curriculum Links - UEN provides a list of helpful links for every Core standard and objective. Go to the UEN Core Curriculum page, and select the subject area you want help with. For example: Ancient Civilizations (SS Standard 1), Middle Ages/Renaissance (SS Standard 2), Revolutions (SS Standard 3), Current Global Issues (SS Standard 4)
• Embassy.org - Click on the "Embassies" link at the top to get addresses to send letters to embassies of countries around the world. Many embassies will send information, recipes, and even music, books, or posters.
• Lizardpoint Geography - geography tests for various countries and continents
• CIA World Factbook
• Lonely Planet
• countryreports.org
• infoplease Countries of the World
• Encyclopedia.com
• Scholastic's Global Trek
• Try searching the name of your country in Google. Most countries have a homepage with cultural, historical, and current information about their country.