Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Weally Wonderful Websites – V8.0
Author: Gerry Kennedy © December 2011
Numerous web sites that accommodate students who have different learning styles and needs exist and are used daily in
classrooms throughout Australia. It is often difficult to locate and remember the links for useful education based sites, as well as for
access, communication, use with Interactive Whiteboards, switches and other devices. Remembering and storing favourites and
keeping track of them are also difficult if educators move from one classroom to another or from one location (e.g. home) to school.
Programs such as Delicious (http://www.delicious.com/) provide opportunities for users to store and keep favourite and important
web URLs (an abbreviation of Uniform Resource Locator). Delicious uses a non-hierarchical classification system in which users
can tag each of their bookmarks with freely chosen index terms. A combined view of everyone's bookmarks with a given tag is
available; for instance, the URL "http://delicious.com/tag/maths" displays all of the most recent links tagged "maths". Its collective
nature makes it possible to view bookmarks added by other users.
Delicious has a "hotlist" on its home page and "popular" and "recent" pages, which help to make the website a barometer of
Internet trends. Users can access it on any internet connected PC or Notebook so that users can reference their own links, and
that of thousands of others who have stored and tagged similar content. It is a free service and is protected by password access.
Design Principles Employed in this Document
1.
To make it easier and faster to locate sites, especially when working with students for greater autonomy and independence, I have
chosen to record URLs in an MS Word Document, with the data arranged in a table format.
2. The document can then be stored on school servers or classroom computers or saved to external hard or USB thumb drives for quick
and easy access at school or at home. No need to remember a specific web address!
3. The MS Word file format can also be converted to a PDF, or to Large Print, or it can be converted into MP3 format (using free TTS
and text-to-audio software such as Balabolka (http://balabolka.download.hdttp.com/) or Wordtalk (see below). Reversioning into
alternate formats, as well as to hard copy, caters to different learning/access needs.
4. Each web site has a thumbnail representation to CRTL-Left click on (i.e. hyperlinked to the corresponding web home page or relevant
start page of a site). This provides a visual cue for students who are very young and also caters to non-readers, the print handicapped
or those with dyslexia or other learning difficulties or people who are ‘visual learners’.
5. To navigate to the site required, simply CTRL-Left click onto the graphic representation of the site in the left hand column.
6. The sites are grouped according to KLA (Key Learning Areas) and a brief description and blurb is provided so that teachers, support
staff, parents and students can quickly identify sites that might cater to their needs more quickly before randomly navigating to them. It
saves efforts to try to type the correct URL, some of which are quite challenging.
7. To assist students who require Text-to-Speech technology so that they can listen to the text being voiced as they read, download and
install a free copy of Wordtalk V4.2 (http://www.wordtalk.org.uk/Home/). It will appear as an ‘add-in’ in MS Word 2007/2010 or as a
new toolbar in MS Word 2003.
8. Another handy free program is Orato (http://www.fxc.btinternet.co.uk/oratosetup.exe). It will voice any text that is copied to the
clipboard (i.e. the user highlights or selects text in any application, website or CD and then presses Ctrl-C keys).
9. Sections are separated with corresponding page numbers and the headings are coloured for easier referencing.
10. Categories are all listed for easy location and navigation throughout the document. To navigate quickly to a page, press Ctrl-G and
type in the desired page number and then press Enter or click on the Go To button.
11. Sites added from a previous version are now marked in a yellow highlight with NEW added to suitability.
Please email or contact me and share other sites that you have discovered or use in your classrooms with students so that this document can
become an ongoing resource, to be updated every month or so and then republished and shared. This is Version 8.0 and the final copy for
2011. Please also report lost, missing or dead links to me at: specmelb@bigpond.net.au. Please feel free to distribute/republish this document
and post this document to other sites “as is”.
Note: Up-to-date copies of Weally Wonderful Websites, and other articles are available at: http://www.spectronicsinoz.com/blog/weblinks/weally-wonderful-websites-v8.0/ or from http://ndco.cds.org.au/index.php/at/60-gerry-kennedy-at-articles. These are resources are all
available as downloads in MS Word format with some in PDF format.
Note: The inclusion of a site or resource does not necessarily imply full endorsement. It is up to users of this document to determine the value of each resource
on its own merits and its relevance to their role and to their client base or students with whom they are assisting.
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
Page 1
Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Category
Research and Data Collection
Dictionary and Thesaurus
eBooks & Free Books Online - Updated
Talking Books
Literacy Activities & Games - Updated
Spelling and Phonics
Brainstorming & Mind Mapping
Organisation & Planning
Mathematics - Updated
Science - Updated
Cause and Effect and Switch Activities
(many activities also suitable for Touch Window and IWB) – Updated
Music - Updated
Problem Solving
Teaching Resources for Educators – updated
Disability Related Resources – Updated
Freeware & Open Source
Web Browsers Geography and History - Updated
Art & Design
iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch Resources - Updated
Typing and Keyboarding
Blogging and Online Communities - Updated
Web 2.0 Tools
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 Remember: Press CTRL-G and then the page number (e.g. 53) to move directly to that page.
 To decrease and enlarge the document view, hold down the CTRL key and roll the mouse wheel forwards (to increase) and
backwards (to decrease) the page magnification.
Some advice to parents and educators about using online resources:
Websites content sometimes changes in design, appearance and location and even functionality over time.
Some sites update daily (e.g. news services) whilst others may look slightly or completely different.
The URL (or web address) or web links can sometimes change, be redirected or fail (as there may be some short or long term
maintenance on the site).
Some sites are closed, shut down or taken over by other companies or individuals and redirection notices posted.
Add favourite or useful sites to the Bookmark’s or Favourites in logical sections/folders on a school or home computer
Use online sites such as http://www.diigo.com/, http://www.delicious.com/ and http://livebinders.com/ to store web links (with
annotations and tags) so that they can be located and referenced on any computer/location that has internet access
If you discover sites that are appropriate and meet your needs, use a text highlight colour and ‘paint’ or highlight the section(s)
in this document for easy referral for yourself, students or other colleagues. Blue highlights mean that they are newly added.
Be aware that some sites download large amounts of data (especially video, music and rich multimedia content) so be sure not
to over extend your internet usage allowance, particularly at home.
Some programs require certain privileges to download and/or to install them. If in doubt, ask for IT support or advice.
Some programs are very large in size so be sure to check available disk space or download usage/time so that the file can be
safely and securely acquired.
In addition:
Always have up-to-date firewall and virus protection software installed and active.
Make sure security, content and privacy settings are active and set to appropriate levels.
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Research & Data Collection
Description and Suitability
http://www.parkfieldict.co.uk/infant/ : A picture based interface encyclopedia for students in
primary of for students who have different learning needs. Navigation is easy and the topics cater
to younger students. An ideal resource to be used online in classrooms as content is relevant and
safe.
Suitable for: Very young children and those with different abilities.
http://www.encyclopedia.com/: Encyclopedia.com is an online library and research Web site.
Encyclopedia.com puts millions of articles from some of the world’s most authoritative and highly
respected publications at a student’s fingertips. It is a free online encyclopedia and features
premier titles like The Columbia Encyclopedia, Oxford’s World Encyclopedia, and the
Encyclopedia of World Biography.
Suitable for: Upper primary and secondary students.
http://kids.britannica.com/: Britannica Online For Kids is an essential online homework helper for
children aged 6-14 years. It covers core subjects - Mathematics, English and Science as well as
History, Geography, the Arts and many more subject areas. Britannica Online For Kids provides
access to curriculum relevant encyclopedia articles, learning activities, games and videos for
Years 3 through 10 in Australia and New Zealand.
Suitable for: Lower and upper primary and junior secondary students
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Children's_Encyclop%C3%A6dia: The Children's Encyclopedia
was an encyclopedia originated by Arthur Mee and published by the Educational Book Company,
a subsidiary of Amalgamated Press of London.
It was published from 1908 to 1964. Walter M. Jackson's company Grolier acquired the rights to
publish it in the U.S. under the name ‘The Book of Knowledge’ (1910). Each search will also
generate appropriate images, photographs, drawings, maps and other pertinent illustrations.
Suitable for: Lower and upper primary and junior secondary students
http://www.factmonster.com/ : The Fact Monster provides students with an Encyclopedia Search
that has access to more than 57,000 articles from the Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. It
offers an inviting uncluttered interface and the information is appropriate for most students in
primary and secondary schools.
Suitable for: Lower and upper primary and junior secondary students
http://www.rudimentsofwisdom.com/ : An interesting concept, with the rudimentary topics of an
encyclopedia represented in cartoon descriptors. This will appeal to students who enjoy cartoons
and require simplified content for research in an amendable format.
Suitable for: Lower and upper primary and junior secondary students
http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Info:Main_Page The New World Encyclopedia
organizes human knowledge in a way that allows a reader to learn information, not just for its own
sake, but for its value to the world as a whole. The underlying goal of the encyclopedia is to
promote knowledge that leads to happiness, well-being and world peace. The New World
Encyclopedia is an ever-expanding body of knowledge that currently contains thousands of
carefully selected articles.
Suitable for: Lower and upper primary and junior secondary students
http://www.freepedia.co.uk/ : Freepedia is a series of free encyclopaedias. They currently specialise in the
historical research of writers and period properties but they also intend to branch out into other areas.
Entries usually include a narrative, illustrations and primary sources. The text within each entry is linked to
other relevant pages in the encyclopaedia and on the web.
Suitable for: Secondary and tertiary students
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Dictionary and Thesaurus
Description and Suitability
http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/features/dictionary/dictionaryhome.aspx : This is a very clear and
uncluttered web site. The word definitions appear quickly and in a large clear font. All dictionary
words and definitions are sourced from Encarta ® World English Dictionary and 2009 Microsoft
Corporation. The site content was developed for Microsoft by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc.
Suitable for: Lower and upper primary and junior secondary students.
http://dictionary.reference.com/ : Provides meaning and definitions for millions of words. It also
has a Flash Card game across word puzzles and links to other sites for thesaurus and word
game activities. A free app for iPhones, iPads, Androids and other mobile devices is freely
downloadable for portable access to this very flexible dictionary.
Suitable for: Upper primary, secondary and tertiary students.
http://dictionary.babylon.com/ : Babylon online dictionary provides meanings for words in
numerous categories. More than 1400 dictionaries and 75 languages are available. Users can
search myriads of terms, expressions and phrases and it covers a wide range of fields such as
Law, Science, Medicine, Music, Business and many more.
Suitable for: Upper primary, secondary and tertiary students.
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/ : An extremely comprehensive and powerful online resource.
It is ‘busy’ and quite cluttered in design but it offers a great deal of flexibility with many options. It
provides some online activities such as a Spelling Bee, Hangman game and word of the day.
Multiple language support caters to LOTE students and those who wish to work in languages
other than English. Note: A free toolbar add-in is available for Mozilla Firefox browsers and has a
great deal to offer more capable students.
Suitable for: Upper primary, secondary and tertiary students.
http://www.dicts.info/ : Dicts.info is an extensive free Dictionary Project. It represents an
extremely comprehensive resource site that lists every conceivable resource to do with
meanings, derivations and contexts of words as well as free downloadable dictionaries, portable
apps and other related resources.
Suitable for: Upper primary, secondary and tertiary students.
http://www.lingoes.net/ : Lingoes is an easy and intuitive dictionary and text translation software,
It offers lookup dictionaries, full text translation, capture word on screen, translate selected text
and pronunciation of words in over 80 languages. These languages are English, French, German,
Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, Greek, Swedish, Turkish, Chinese, Japanese, Korean,
Polish, Arabic, Hebrew, Vietnamese, Thai and more...
Suitable: Upper Primary and Secondary through Tertiary and ESL students
http://www.sequencepublishing.com/thesage.html : The Sage's English Dictionary and
Thesaurus is a professional software package that integrates a complete dictionary and
multifaceted thesaurus of the English language into a single and powerful language reference
system. The Sage can look up words directly from almost any program (Internet Explorer, MS
Word, Mozilla Firefox, MS Outlook) and is also 100% portable. Due to popular demand, The
Sage's dictionary is online. Note: Only the definition database is consulted.
Suitable for: More capable Upper Primary and all Secondary and Tertiary students
http://www.ldoceonline.com/ LDOCE ONLINE allows students to use the Longman Dictionary of
Contemporary English Updated Edition to look up virtually ANY word on the Internet. The online
version of the dictionary contains over 207,000 words, phrases, and meanings including 7,000
references to people, places, events and organizations, such as Madonna, Milwaukee, and
Manchester United.
Suitable for: More capable Upper Primary and all Secondary and Tertiary students
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
eBooks & Free Books
Online
Description and Suitability
:
http://www.bartleby.com/ : Bartleby is an internet publisher of literature, reference and verse providing
students, researchers and curious readers with unlimited access to books and information on the web at
no cost.
Suitable for: Upper primary and junior secondary students.
http://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Main_Page: Gutenberg.org is one of the most useful web sites for locating
and obtaining free eBooks that are out of copyright (i.e. published over 50 years). Texts can be acquired
in a number of text, HTML and PDF formats as well as in popular eBook formats including ePub and
Plucker. Students can download over 33,000 free eBooks to read on a PC, iPad, Kindle, Nook, Sony
Reader, iPhone, iPod Touch, Android or other mobile phone. They provide high quality books. Their free
books were previously published by bona fide publishers and digitized with the help of thousands of
volunteers.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary and Tertiary students as well as all educators.
http://www.booksshouldbefree.com/ : ‘All Books Should Be Free’ is a source of free audio books. Books
Should Be Free hosts hundreds of free audio books in a wide range of categories and offers titles for
readers of all ages. The audio books can be downloaded from Books Should Be Free website and or via
iTunes software. All of the audio books in the collection are either public domain or Creative Commons
works. Books are illustrated with a cover page for easier identification. Suitable: Readers of all ages.
http://digital.library.upenn.edu/books/index.html : The Online Books Page is a website that facilitates
access to books that are freely readable over the Internet and aims to encourage the development of
online books, for the benefit and edification of all. Major parts of the site include:
An index of hundreds of thousands of online books freely readable on the Internet ; Pointers to significant
directories and archives of online texts ; Special exhibits of particularly interesting classes of online books
; Information on how readers can help support their growth
Suitable: Readers of all ages
http://www.e-book.com.au/freebooks.htm: A listing of sites that provide access to eBooks in the public
domain that may be freely accessed, as well as some other books under specified conditions. This
website lists links to free digital libraries in Australia and New Zealand as well as free eBook websites.
Suitable: For readers of all ages
http://www.bookshare.org/ : Bookshare offers accessible books to people all over the world with qualifying
print disabilities. Thousands of accessible books are available for download to International Members,
based on copyright permissions granted by publishers and authors. Currently Bookshare has over 90,000
books available to their members in over 30 countries.
Suitable: For readers of all ages
http://www.techsupportalert.com/content/50-places-free-books-online.htm: Gizmo’s Free Listings: This is
a listing of 260 sites that legally offer free books (eBooks) for download or for online viewing. The author
discovered these sites, all or most of which should offer free eBooks as a reference. They should be
authentic but some have not been thoroughly checked.
Suitable for: Readers of all ages
http://worldlibrary.net/: World Public Library is a subscriber service. The World Public Library Association
Collection boasts more than 500,000 eBooks all published in the PDF format and are available in over 90
languages.
Suitable for: Upper Primary through to adults. Subscription required.
http://bookbuilder.cast.org/ - UDL Book Reader Share publish and read books online or offline
Students can use Book Builder site to create, share, publish, and read digital books that engage and
support diverse learners according to their individual needs, interests, and skills.
Suitable for: Readers of all ages.
http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/meta/titles/A.html - University of Adelaide - The purpose of this site is to
provide access to the “classic” works of civilisation and to promote reading of the same. There are many
sites offering classic works in one form or another. Putting them into a format which readers might
actually enjoy using them is their aim. Suitable for: Readers of all ages.
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
eBooks & Free Books Online
Description and Suitability
http://en.childrenslibrary.org/ : These are not talking books but a treasure trove of stories from all
genres, catering to younger children and those that require illustrated texts. The books can be read
online. This site is very suitable for children using Interactive Whiteboards in classrooms and equally at
home with mouse or trackball or touch window/screen.
Suitable for: Junior Primary to Junior Secondary.
http://www.mape.org.uk/activities/BigBooks/index.htm : NAACE Primary - Big books. These do not have
speech but are designed to be used online (or offline) as Big Books. Thirteen books are listed. Each
book has text on the left hand side and photographs on the right.
Suitable for: P – Year 3 and children with different abilities.
http://www.auburn.edu/~murrag1/bookindex.html:
‘GenieBooks in PowerPoint’ are decodable books for beginning readers Books in PowerPoint format. All
are listed with brief descriptions next to them. They do not have speech but are colourful and well
designed. (Note: Some are in HTML format).
Suitable for: P – Year 3 and children with different abilities.
http://www.planetebook.com/ : Planet eBook is the home of free classic literature. All of their novels and
books are entirely free for readers to download and share with their friends, classmates or educator’s
students. There are about a hundred of titles including most of the classics. They are in PDF format and
can be downloaded as 1 page or as 2-page eBooks.
Suitable for: P – Year 12
http://www.poetryfoundation.org/ Free poetry. The Poetry Foundation offers news, articles, media links,
poetry events, videos, audio casts, podcasts and more! A very comprehensive site.
Suitable for: Years 2 – Year 12
http://www.inklesstales.com/stories/index.shtml Inkless Tales. Collections of stories, poems and
colouring-in activities, as well as a download section and games. Downloads are available as PDF files.
The DOLCH collection is wonderful.
Suitable for: K-Year 2
http://literactive.com/Home/index.asp: This site offers a number of different resources – all to do with
reading. There are eBooks, ePoetry, learning activities and blackline masters, with a very useful
download section. “Literactive was devised and developed by a professional team of educators and
technical developers. The program is designed to help early learners develop their reading and
comprehension skills through a carefully balanced and progressive reading program.” There are a good
range of Flash formatted activities to download and use, once users are registered (this is all free).
Suitable for: K-Year 3
http://reading.ecb.org/ : Into the Book is a reading comprehension resource for K-4 students and
teachers. They focus on eight research-based strategies: Using Prior Knowledge, Making Connections,
Questioning, Visualizing, Inferring, Summarizing, Evaluating and Synthesizing. Online interactive
activities, with engaging 15-minute video programs. ‘Behind the Lesson’ provides information and
teaching resources for each strategy.
Suitable for: Years P- 4
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
eBooks & Free Books Online Description and Suitability
http://www.jacketflap.com/?utm_source=Read+Print+Newsletter&utm_campaign=23d81f0af9Online_Resources1_5_2011&utm_medium=email JacketFlap - This is another site targeted at younger
students. It is a very comprehensive site for Children's Literature. They have a database of over
900,000 children's books, blogs, publishers as well as member bookshelves. JacketFlap connects
students to the work of more than 200,000 authors, illustrators, publishers and other creators of books
for Children and Young Adults. The site is updated daily with information about every book, author,
illustrator, and publisher in the children's / young adult book industry.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary
http://www.sparknotes.com/sparknotes/?utm_source=Read+Print+Newsletter&utm_campaign=23d81f0af9Online_Resources1_5_2011&utm_medium=email SparkNotes - One of the handy resources that students
can use is SparkNotes, which is a modern version of the old Cliff's Notes, with many new features. So,
if you are a student or know any who need homework help for English or Literature classes, be sure to
check this site out.
Suitable for: Secondary and Tertiary students and adults
http://www.flashlightworthybooks.com/?utm_source=Read+Print+Newsletter&utm_campaign=23d81f0af9Online_Resources1_5_2011&utm_medium=email Flashlight Worth Books - A curated list of book
recommendations. The site currently features 427 lists of books ranging from "Tween Romances to
Love" to "10 Great Books for Mother-Daughter Book Clubs" to "Malcolm Gladwell's Favourite Books"
helpfully categorized into areas like Award Winners, Health & Medicine, and Sea Stories.
Suitable for: Secondary and Tertiary students and adults
http://www.e-booksdirectory.com/ E-Books Directory is a daily growing list of freely downloadable
eBooks, documents and lecture notes found on the internet. Users can elect to submit and promote
their own eBooks, add comments on posted books or just browse through the directory below and
download anything that they need.
Suitable for: Secondary and Tertiary students and adults
http://www.learnoutloud.com/ We want to promote the use of audio and video educational material for
personal and professional development. What does this mean? It means that we want to help you to
see how you can turn 'dead time' (time spent commuting, exercising, doing chores, etc.) into 'learning
time.' Most of us have at least a couple of hours each day where we could be learning a foreign
language, deepening our spiritual or philosophical interests or learning about any of hundreds of
different subjects. We want to help you find material that is both entertaining and educational.
Suitable for: Secondary and Tertiary students and adults
http://www.hip-books.com/index.php - These books are not free but cater to disengaged readers
(predominantly boys) and are at an appropriate reading level. All eight titles in the HIP Edge series,
ideal for students in secondary school who are reading at a grade 3-4 level but with topics and stories
that are of interest to teenagers. All eight novels are set at Edgemont High, with some characters
appearing in three or four different books. Special price for the set: US $79.95
Suitable for: Secondary and Tertiary students and adults
http://marvel.com/digital_comics/ Marvel Comics will appeal to those students who may be reluctant
readers but who would enjoy reading and researching the vast array of Marvel Comics. It offers news,
games, videos, links, discussion boards and has downloads and extras for students to explore. A
comprehensive site with some great resources and with high interest content that may appeal to boys
who struggle with other genres.
Suitable for: Secondary students
http://www.shelfari.com/ Shelfari is a community-powered encyclopaedia for book lovers. Students can
create a virtual bookshelf, discover new books, connect with friends and learn more about their favourite
books – all for free. An excellent resource for teachers and students alike.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
eBooks & Free Books
Online
Description and Suitability
http://pdfsb.com/ A web resource that will search online for all PDF files – currently 7.3Million (as at Oct
2011). A handy site where users search PDF documents by title. It then displays each document with a
thumbnail of the cover page, the language, number of pages and file size. It also provides a brief
synopsis with a Download link. Uncluttered, easy to use, navigate and search. A great resource.
Suitable for: Educators and Secondary/Tertiary students
http://www.pdfgeni.com/ PDFGeni is a dedicated PDF document search engine for searching and
obtaining PDF e-books, sheets, forms and documents. They have an iPhone Edition as well as a
Firefox plug in.
Suitable for: Educators and Secondary/Tertiary students
http://www.freebookspot.es/ Free Book Spot is a free e-books links library where you can find and
download free books in almost any category. An extensive library with categories listed makes
searching easy. It is a free e-books library where users can download free books without registering.
They have more than 90 categories and 4000+ free e-books from which to choose. Registration is
free.
Suitable for : All ages
http://www.books4all.org.uk/Home/index.php CALL Scotland has worked with the Scottish Book Trust
to create free accessible digital versions of the shortlisted books available on this site. Children and
young people with physical, visual and reading or dyslexic difficulties, who can't read or access the
paper books, can read these digital books and take part. It provides learning materials in accessible,
alternative formats for students who have difficulty reading ordinary printed books.
Suitable for : All ages
http://www.bookyards.com/ Bookyards boasts a total of 17,202 books, 41,795 external web links, 4,198
news & blogs links, 384 videos, 32,969 eBook links and access to hundreds of online libraries (over
800,000 eBooks) for readers of all ages (as at October 2011). Users can search by book title or the
author’s last name.
Suitable for : All ages
http://www.scribd.com/ Scribd allows users to share documents online. It supports MS Word, Excel,
PowerPoint, Adobe PDF and other popular formats and it can be used to search for YouTube files.
Educators and older students can download e-books or embed them in their blogs. Some copyrighted
e-books are listed as well.
Suitable for : Secondary and older students and adults
http://www.e-booksdirectory.com/ E-Books Directory has downloadable e-books, documents and
lectures. Users can submit their own e-books or add comments on other e-books. They boast that they
have more than 600 plus e-books.
Suitable for : Secondary and older students and adults
http://www.memoware.com/ MemoWare is a unique collection of thousands of documents (databases,
literature, maps, technical references, lists) especially formatted to be easily added to people’s PalmOS
device, Pocket PC, Windows CE, EPOC, Symbian or other handheld device. Older standards yet could
still be valid for some users of these (outdated?) devices.
Suitable for : Secondary and older students and adults
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
Page 8
Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
eBooks & Free Books
Description and Suitability
http://www.readeasily.com/ Read Easily is an online e-book library. It has been designed to provide
users an adaptive reading experience. For the blind or visually impaired every book has been
formatted into HTML code, avoiding proprietary formats that are not friendly with Text to Speech
Software. They have around 300 plus free e-books.
Suitable for : Secondary and older students and adults
www.bookdrum.com With the next generation of e-readers in mind, the authors of this site are
boasting that they are building the biggest library of multimedia companion content for books on the
Internet. Designed using Wiki principles, anyone can contribute to it, adding to and refining each
others’ work, making Book Drum one of the liveliest online communities for booklovers worldwide. If
users would like to become a Contributor and build a profile of a favourite book, they can register.
Suitable for : Secondary and older students and adults
http://storybird.com/ Storybird - Collaborative Storytelling site has a great deal to offer as Storybirds
are short, visual stories that students can make at school or at home with family and friends. They can
then choose to share or print them. They are a valuable and fun literacy resource.
Suitable for : Primary and Junior Secondary students NEW
http://www.scholastic.com/kids/stacks/ This part of the Scholastic site offers a range of reading
activities and links to books. It is subscription based (at no cost) and will appeal to students who are
looking for suitable novels and reading content. They create an identity and an avatar in order to
navigate through the content and screens.
Suitable for : Primary and Junior Secondary students NEW
http://www.carnegielibrary.org/kids/storymaker/storymaker.swf
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Talking Books
Description and Suitability
http://www.priorywoods.middlesbrough.sch.uk/page_viewer.asp?page=Talking+Story+Books&pid=75
These are the very popular talking books from Priory Woods in the UK. Simple talking storybooks
can be created with commonly available presentation software such as MS PowerPoint enabling and
motivating children with poor literacy skills to produce meaningful, high quality work. All of the stories
featured on this site were created together with pupils from as young as Year 1. They give educators
and students some ideas for talking story books and what can be achieved.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students with special learning and/or reading needs.
http://www.speakaboos.com/corporate/about : Speakaboos provides a range of stories online for
retelling of a wide range of books including fairy tales, fables, folk tales, nursery rhymes and songs.
Most of the content is free. The high quality production provides animation, music and books retold
using actor’s voices.
Suitable: Junior Primary to Junior Secondary and especially children with different abilities.
http://www.aesopfables.com/aesop1.html : Online collection of Aesop’s Fables includes a total of 638
Fables, indexed in table format, with the associated morals listed. Many of the books are narrated
using children's voices. It is a very austere site with few tricks and graphics. It caters to students who
are familiar and comfortable with reading text, or listening to text.
Suitable for: All students who are studying or enjoy Fables.
http://etc.usf.edu/lit2go/: Lit2Go is a free online collection of stories and poems in Mp3 (audio book)
format. You can Download the files to your Mp3 player and listen on the go; listen to the Mp3 files on your computer
or view the text on a webpage and read along as you listen or print out the stories and poems to
make your own book.
Suitable for: Primary through Secondary
http://www.magickeys.com/books/ : Illustrated children's stories for children of all ages. The titles are
categorized for very young, young and older students. Each title has an associated graphic
representing the story. There are also links to games, colouring-in books and other relevant activities.
Suitable for: Readers of all ages who require illustrated books.
http://tarheelreader.org/ : Tar Heel Reader is a collection of free, easy-to-read, and accessible books
on a wide range of topics. The books may be downloaded as slide shows in PowerPoint, Impress
(i.e. Open Office Org – www.openoffice.org ) or in Flash format. Each book can be speech enabled
(online) and accessed using multiple interfaces, including touch screens, IntelliKeys with custom
overlays, and 1 to 3 switches. Books can be read in PowerPoint on a PC using PowerTalk freeware
(http://fullmeasure.co.uk/powertalk/). PowerTalk will voice any MS Windows PowerPoint file.
Suitable: Junior Primary through Secondary, especially reluctant readers.
http://librivox.org/ : LibriVox provides free audio books all taken from the public domain. There are
several options for listening. The first step is to get the MP3 or Ogg Vorbis (i.e. a sound/music
format) files into your own computer. There are over 4000 projects available.
Suitable for: Upper Primary and Secondary students
http://staff.prairiesouth.ca/~cassidy.kathy/browserbooks/index.htm: This website was created to allow
beginning readers to read books on their web browser. Readers can click on the triangle in the lower
right-hand corner of each page to turn the pages. If they are unsure of a word, they can click on it to
hear a child's voice read the word to them. The books have been sorted by level and by subject
according to the curriculum.
Suitable for: Upper Primary and junior Secondary students
http://www.randomhouse.com/kids/junieb/letter/letter.html This website features Junie B. Jones, the
character from the chapter book series. It is a creative resource for further reading about this popular
character and has activities and games. There are a variety of spelling games to learn new words.
Suitable For: Year 2 through 4
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Talking Books
Description and Suitability
http://www.esl-storybooks.com - ESL Storybooks: Appropriate storybooks for beginner students,
interest level 6 to 12 years. Storybooks and ESL Textbooks for English as a Second Language. This
website is for ESL Teachers who need ESL Instructional material for ESL Kids. Their storybooks
feature exciting adventure stories to encourage children reading and comprehension of English as a
second language.
Suitable for: Year 6 - 12
http://www.riverdeep.net/language_arts/edmark_lang_arts/MakeAStory/MakeAStory.html - Make a
Story - from Edmark. Use of simple yet effective animation with words closed out. Children click on
objects to complete simple questions. Engaging graphics and clear use of a child actor’s voice.
Suitable for: P – 2 and children with different abilities.
http://www.storylineonline.net/ - Storyline Online provides children with a number of books that are
read aloud by actors. Well known actors’ voices are used. The animation and colour is very engaging
and there are a number of stories from which to choose. There are follow-up activities online as well
as downloadable activities for each story. All of the stories are captioned.
Suitable for: Junior Primary to Junior Secondary.
http://www.oddcast.com/home/demos/tts/tts_example.php?sitepal : Children can type their own
sentence or short story and an online avatar (or character) will voice it back immediately. It lists a
very large range of text-to-speech voices and is ideal for ‘testing’ TTS voices with children, before
buying other programs. In addition, it’s just fun.
Suitable for: P – Year 2 and children with different abilities.
http://readingeggs.com.au/: A free 14 day trial is available to Reading Eggs, an ABC site. “ABC
Reading Eggs makes learning to read interesting and engaging for kids, with great online reading
games and activities. Children love the games, songs, golden eggs and other rewards which, along
with feeling proud of their reading, really motivate children to keep exploring and learning.” There are
plans for schools, classes and parents at home.
Suitable for: P – Year 2 and children with different abilities.
http://www.signedstories.com/index.cfm Signed Stories is a wonderful web site with animated
storybooks and stories with narration, music and sound effects, most particularly with signed English
(UK sign language). There are many stories in different genres – adventure, fairy tales and folk tales,
ones for toddlers, families and fun ones! A great resource for both students and people wishing to
use/learn/model sign language and practise skills.
Suitable for: P – Year 9 and children with different abilities, especially Deaf or staff dealing with
signing (UK based)
http://www.onlineaudiostories.com/ : Online Audio Stories – is a collection of children’s stories.
Online Audio Stories is the sister site of Tales of Time. The www.talesoftime.co.uk site produces
great quality audio stories and each story is layered in hundreds of sound effects and accompanying
music for a better and more enhanced audio experience. Both sites were created by Abigail Rice and
Dalibor Kozak in 2007.
Suitable for: P – Year 6 students and those who require audio
http://www.talesoftime.co.uk/ : Another site with story books targeted at children. Tales of Time
are high quality Audio Stories for Children with sound effects and music. There are some that are
free to download and use, with the text sent to the user. Others are at cost in UK pounds. A wide
range of titles are available.
Suitable for: P – Year 6 students and those who require audio
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Talking Books
Description and Suitability
http://www.shuifeng.net/Dic/LittleFox/LittleFoxShow.asp?id=702285481: Grandpa’s Farm has pages
of a story spoken in a female human sounding voice. There is also a movie as well from which to
choose. At the end of the story, young children can move the animals onto the farm page using a
mouse, touch window or IWB.
Suitable For: Prep – Year 1
www.simplyaudiobooks.com : Simply Audio Books allows users to download free digital audio books
and listen on a favorite MP3 player, computer, or simply burn the audio books to a CD. There are
over 6,000 audio books, lectures, radio shows. There is a 15 day free trial then paid subscription.
Suitable for : All ages
www.childrenstory.com : There are several types of children's books. The main categories are
picture books, fairy tales and folktales, traditional literature, fiction, non-fiction, biographies, and
poetry. Some in audio format is available as well. ‘All books written specifically for children would be
considered a children's story. Children's books are specifically for children up to the age of twelve.
Most of these books are illustrated, but as the reader gets older, the illustrations are less and less.
Suitable for: Junior Primary to Year 4
http://www.tumblebooks.com/library/asp/home_tumblebooks.asp TumbleBookLibrary is an online collection of
TumbleBooks that are animated, talking picture books that impart the joy of reading. TumbleBooks are created
by adding animation, sound, music and narration to existing picture books in order to produce an electronic
picture book that students can read, or have read to them. The TumbleBookLibrary collection is accessed
online from any computer in a school or library with Internet connection, or from home through a direct link from
a school or library website. A subscription to TumbleBookLibrary allows a school or library unlimited remote
access to the entire collection from school, library, and home.
Suitable for: Primary to Junior Secondary NEW
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Literacy Activities/Games
Description and Suitability
http://www.starfall.com : Starfall.com opened in September of 2002 as a free public service to
motivate children to read with phonics. Their systematic phonics approach, in conjunction with
phonemic awareness practice is perfect for preschool, kindergarten, first year, second year,
special education, home school, and English language development (i.e. ESL). Starfall is an
educational alternative to other entertainment choices for children.
Suitable for: Junior Primary and especially children with different abilities
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/websites/4_11/site/literacy.shtml : This website has many
different games for children to develop literacy skills. There are multiple games under each
category to keep children interested. Each game is challenging in multiple ways. A number of
different sites are provided to cater to different needs.
Suitable for: For Junior Primary through to Junior Secondary
http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/bll/ : The Scholastic Language and Literacy site has
some wonderful activities. This website focuses on rhyming, naming, and letters. Three
different animals encourage students to work with them to build vocabulary, identify letters, and
match rhyming words.
Suitable for: Junior Primary through Year 1 and children with different abilities.
http://pages.cms.k12.nc.us/tiffanyclarke/onlineliteracyactivities.html : Mrs. Clarke’s Welcome to
Year 1: A comprehensive list of online interactive websites. Students can practice correct
sentence structure using keyboard and mouse with this vast assortment of sites. Many are ideal
for use with an Interactive Whiteboard in the classroom with one or more students in pairs or in
small groups.
Suitable for: Junior Primary to Year 2 or students with different abilities.
http://www.pbs.org/parents/lions/activities/view-read-do.html : A useful website, full of viewread-do activities that connect to children and their imagination with clever use of video, online
books and other learning activities. It is based on the PBS show ‘Between the Lions’. There are
games, stories and video clips to watch.
Suitable for: Junior Primary to Year 4.
http://www.pbs.org/parents/lions/activities/view-read-do.html : This website features the Junie
B. Jones, the character from the Chapter Book series. It is a creative resource for further
reading about this popular character and has activities and games. There are a variety of
spelling games to learn new words.
Suitable for: Year 2 to Year 5
http://www.funbrain.com : This website offers games from different subject areas. These
games will help strengthen writing, reading skills and acquisition of vocabulary. The website
has multiple activities to encourage students to read and includes web books, word games,
grammar and spelling activities and word confusion. Navigate by selecting a year level or by
using the "reading" link.
Note: Incorporates some sign language.
Suitable for: Junior Primary to Year 7
http://www.learningplanet.com/index.asp : This is an interactive website that allows students to
play online learning games. It lists categories by Year level. The website extends activities up to
Year 8. It also offers other curriculum content (including Maths activities).
Suitable for: Junior Primary to past Year 8
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Literacy Activities/Games
Description and Suitability
http://www.tooter4kids.com/classroom/just4kids.htm : Tooter4Kids - This website offers
numerous links that take the user to other websites. Each link is for a different interactive
activity. Each activity focuses on improving literacy skills.
Suitable for: Junior Primary to Year 3
http://www.literacycenter.net/ : Literacy Centre.net - This is an interactive website for student
use. It has activities to assist children in learning the alphabet, write letters and words, as well
as learn colors, shapes and numbers. It also provides activities for keyboard practice and
developing skills.
Suitable for: Kindergarten to Year 1
http://pbskids.org/games/index.html : PBS Kids: PBS Kids is a website where children can play
interactive games online. They concentrate on some of the popular shows that they watch on
television, such as "Arthur." It is bright and colorful and very interactive. A great deal of content
is offered. There are video channels as well.
Suitable for: Kindergarten to Year 3
http://www.nickjr.com : Nick Junior: Noggin is part of Nick Jr. The website allows children to
play a variety of games featuring characters from television shows. Children learn literacy skills
as they play. There are printable pages of suitable activities for the children to complete after
they have finished the online games.
Suitable for: Kindergarten to Year 2
http://www.readwritethink.org : Read Write Think: This website has many games that have
multiple difficulty levels. It allows students to progress in their literacy development through the
interactive games. It guides students in the learning of the alphabet, rhyming, singular and
plural words, phonemes and capital letters.
Suitable for: Kindergarten to Year 8
http://pbskids.org/superwhy/# : PBS SuperWhy: This is an exciting website for children with
wonderful use of colour and animation. In Story Book Village, you can play games, read,
complete activities and explore the environment. Words pop up as the content in the site talks to
the students. This site offers Letter Bingo and the Super Readers' Challenge.
Suitable for: Kindergarten to Year 2
http://pbskids.org/wordworld/index_flash.html : PBS WonderWorld: This site offers many
educational games as well as activities to do. All of the animals and objects on this site are
made up of their written letters. For example, the Bear visual has the letters: b e a r. This
reinforces the print component of reading, as well as the sounds that are heard in the words.
Suitable for: Kindergarten to Year 2
http://pbskids.org/sesame/ : This website has many ABC and letter games, rhyming and
bilingual games, videos and activities that enhance children's literacy development. Children
learn with their favorite Sesame Street characters (Rhyme with Grover, Abby's Adventure,
Rosita's Fiesta, and Cookie Monster's Alphabet Soup). Learning with the Sesame Street
Muppets is engaging and motivating for younger students.
Suitable for: Kindergarten to Year 2
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Literacy Activities/Games
Description and Suitability
www.gigglepoetry.com : Giggle Poetry provides 100’s of funny poems for students of all ages to
to read and explore. It has poetry to appeal to all tastes and ages. It also provides poetry
workshops – how to write poems, limericks, fill-in-the-blanks activities and locate different styles of
poetry writing. It lists author and comments by famous poets. Extremely comprehensive and
makes poetry come alive!
Suitable for: Primary to Junior Secondary
www.indianchild.com/tongue_twisters.htm : This Indian Child site offers a number of great tongue
twisters for kids. ‘A Tongue Twister is a phrase or sentence which is hard to speak quickly, usually
because of alliteration or a sequence of nearly similar sounds. It helps develop speech skills &
helps in speech therapy. To get the full effect of a tongue twister you should try to repeat it several
times, as quickly as possible, without stumbling or mispronouncing.’
Suitable for: Primary aged students
http://www.roythezebra.com/reading-games-sentence-level.html : The interactive reading games
are ideal for developing the reading skills of students of all abilities. Educators can use the
reading games on their interactive whiteboard, or computer, at school or the activities can be used
at home. Users register if they intend to use these games. The games are listed by word level and
sentence level activities. To find a game quickly simply use the 'quick game finder'.
Suitable for: Primary aged students
http://www.scholastic.com/magicschoolbus/ : The Magic School Bus: This website has a wide
variety of things to do. There are learning games (I SPY, bingo and puzzles). There are games,
various activities, stories, printables and videos. There are science connections in many of the
stories.
Suitable for: Junior Primary to Year 4
http://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/en/fun-and-games Learn English online with the help of this
free website from the British Council with games, stories, listening activities and grammar
exercises. Students can search for their favourites, or have a look at the site map to find out
where everything is. Students will find many new listening activities and video content in Listen &
Watch. They also have a new Grammar section and new IELTS exam practice materials. There
are new sections about the upcoming Olympic Games in Britain as well.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students
http://www.shmoop.com/ Guides to about 200 classic school novels. Includes an Intro Summary
(Why Should I Care section), Themes, , Characters, Analysis, Quotes, Questions, Photos,
Quizzes, Best of the Web, Write Essay and a very useful and practical Teaching section for
educators. Also offers a wonderful step-by-step essay writing tool. Includes ads, as the only
downside.
Suitable for: Upper Primary and Secondary students
http://www.60secondrecap.com/resource/ This site has ads but is worth investigating. It has some
really practical tips on reading and writing. ‘60second Recap® wants to make the great works of
literature accessible, relevant and irresistible to today’s teenagers. Through their video albums,
they seek to help teens engage with the best books, not only to help them get better grades, but
to help them build better lives.’
Suitable for: Upper Primary and Secondary students
http://www.pixton.com/ Pixton is an online service with great ‘free’ resources ideal for making
social stories/storyboards. On the site users can create comics. There are some really flexible
abilities to change character postures, facial expressions, with zooming in and out, changing
colours, backgrounds, and ability to add text. It offers so many freebies that the ‘advanced
features’ seem unnecessary for general us. A colleague considers that is a great tool not only for
use with special needs students, but also with mainstream primary and secondary students.
Suitable: For Primary and Secondary students
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Literacy Activities/Games
Description and Suitability
http://www.wittycomics.com/ Witty Comics provides an effective and engaging scaffold that
students can use to create two character dialogues. To use Witty Comics students just need to
select the pre-drawn background scenes and characters they want to feature in their comics.
Writing the dialogues is the creative part where students add their own dialogue. Creating the
script and using word or text processors to develop the text invites students to participate and
engage with the comic strip illustrations. Simple and very rewarding.
Suitable: For Primary and disengaged Secondary students
http://superherosquad.marvel.com/create_your_own_comic Students of all abilities can create
their own comic strip using this wonderful Marvel resource. They can create a strip or entire comic
book. The goal of the Super Hero Squad site is to provide a child-friendly environment where
students can be entertained and educated about the Marvel Super Heroes they know and love.
Characters include Iron Man, Wolverine, Hulk, Thor, Captain America and Silver Surfer. Suitable:
For Primary and disengaged Secondary students
http://www.makebeliefscomix.com/ “MakeBeliefsComix is for people of all ages who like to play
and explore. They include, for example, those wanting a few minutes of fun; youngsters and their
parents; students and teachers; business executives trying to unwind from the stress of work, and
activities directors and social workers who try to help people express their deepest thoughts and
feelings. My intent is that you will regard this site as a safe place where you feel empowered to
create and to test new ideas and ways to communicate through art and writing.” An interesting
site with a great deal of potential for disengaged students. It also has a special needs section
devoted to students with different learning needs and styles.
Suitable: For Primary and disengaged Secondary students
http://www.readthewords.com/ An online service where students type text and it can be voiced
back to them. Nearly 100,000 members (and counting) use their text to speech service to create
affirmations, create messages for their loved ones, convert books or articles into recordings,
create pre-recorded messages for telephone response systems, teach pronunciation to kids, use
it as an English learning tool . A functional and useful resource.
Suitable: For Primary and disengaged Secondary students
http://www.literactive.com/Home/index.asp Literactive is a provider of reading material for preschool, kindergarten and Year 1 students. The program is comprised of carefully levelled guided
readers, comprehensive phonic activities and a wealth of supplemental reading material which
gradually develop a child's reading skills in a sequential and enjoyable manner. Developed and
approved by teachers and parents across the United States, Literactive is an acknowledged
leader in early learning online. All the material is available for free from the site but
parents/students and educators need to register.
Suitable: For Early Years and Junior Primary NEW
http://www.yowiebayps.com.au/interactive/IWB%20Links%20Englishyowiebay.htm Three screens
of literacy support links dealing with reading, writing and grammar and use of punctuation for
students in Primary.
Suitable: For Primary
http://learnenglishkids.britishcouncil.org/en/read-and-write A section on this fabulous web site
from the UK that has activities for reading and writing, accommodating younger children. The
talking books are interactive with support materials, PDF files and the ability to print the text.
Sections on cooking, word of the week, worksheets and stories. An excellent resource.
Suitable: For Primary and students with different learning needs
http://www.brucevanpatter.com/ Bruce Vanpatter offers over 300 pages of ideas, programs and
products for you to make writing fun. He hosts: Let’s Get Creative, a site devoted to encouraging
creative writing for students. He has motivated 100,000 students in seven states to put their ideas
down on paper.
Suitable: For Primary and Junior Secondary NEW
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Literacy Activities/Games
Description and Suitability
http://www.carnegielibrary.org/kids/storymaker/storymaker.swf My Story Maker is ideal for
students to write as individuals or a group. They can create a story with text using animated
characters, objects, backgrounds, characters and music. A delightful site, working within a Flash
movie context and is also ideal for use with IWBs. Upon completion, the new book can be saved
and then printed - immediately ready to fold and read as a book! Great for disengaged writers.
Suitable: For Primary and Junior Secondary NEW
http://www.primaryinteractive.co.uk/english.htm Nineteen Flash-based activities dealing with
literacy and language. These interactive files will engage primary aged students, withy many
being suitable for use with IWBs.
Suitable: For Primary students NEW
http://www.k-3teacherresources.com/ A site devoted to resources for early years, K-Year 3. It is
another subscription based service. Some free resources can be located at: http://www.k3teacherresources.com/free_stuff_for_teachers.html
Suitable: K-Year 3 students NEW
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/sample/index.shtml Another subscription-based teaching
resource, with this link to some free resources. It is a low cost, 12 month subscription.
Suitable: All educators NEW
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Spelling and Phonics
Description and Suitability
www.kidsspell.com : Kid’s Spell is an interactive website that teaches young children spelling
words. There are games to play that help them learn new words to increase their vocabulary as
well as spelling. There are different games such as letter drop and ‘spelloons’. Over 6,600
words are provided in an assortment of activities.
Suitable for Junior Primary to Year 3
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/wordsandpictures/clusters/blender/index.shtml : This is a good
website for learning phonics, especially blending sounds. It is interactive. The ‘blender’ provides
the word and asks the child for the beginning sound, and then the ending sound. It offers
phonics, CVC words, consonant clusters, long vowel sounds and high frequency words.
Suitable for: Kindergarten to Year 1
http://www.progressivephonics.com/ : This website offers many different things to learn about
phonics and reading. There are different levels from beginner to advanced level. In each level
there are many different types of books to read and things to learn. It is easy to navigate and
find what students need. It is appropriate great for children to use alone, or with a teacher,
parent, or tutor.
Suitable for: Junior Primary to Year 4
http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/interactive/literacy.html : The Literacy Zone; Interactive
The English Games and Activities site is a vast collection of spelling activities and exercises. It
is extremely comprehensive and offers hundreds of games and activities, all represented
graphically.
Suitable for: Junior Primary to Junior Secondary
http://www.efdlrs.com/~sunrise/parentsreading1/ : This website is a course that provides
participants with an overview of phonological awareness. There are handy and useful tips for
helping children to participate in their own learning. It is very austere but has some good advice
and activities.
Suitable for: Kindergarten to Year 3 and a great resource for parents
http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/Games/educational/literacy.html : This Woodland’s
School site offers a great range of literacy activities for students, including Word Work (26
activities), Sentence Work (8) and Text Work (12). It is a colourful and engaging site that is
comprehensive in its approach.
Suitable for: Junior Primary to Grade 4
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/bitesize/ : BBC Bitesize: Offers Reading, Writing Spelling and
grammar with games and activities and an area for teachers. Another comprehensive site that
offers numerous activities across different genres.
Suitable for: Junior Primary to Junior Secondary
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/spellits/home_flash.shtml : This site requires Flash software. It is a
thoroughly engaging online resource that will motivate students to practice their spelling skills.
Suitable for: Junior Primary to Junior Secondary
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Spelling and Phonics
Description and Suitability
http://newserver.iboard.co.uk/phonics.htm# : Some excellent activities to support the teaching and
learning of phonics. A dozen games are available. TESiboard resources are primarily open-ended
tools that enable teachers to engage their pupils in a learning dialogue around the resource. The
resources are designed for use by the teacher on an interactive whiteboard but many are also
suitable for student use, usually responding to a task or challenge set by the teacher.
Suitable for: Junior Primary to Junior Secondary
http://www.spellingcity.com/ : Vocabulary and SpellingCity.com has:
 Over 42,000 spelling words with customizable sentences and definitions
 A real person’s voice that says each word and sentence
 Free home pages for teachers and parents to save lists
 Teacher training videos to show teachers/parents how to use Vocabulary and the site
 Customizable sentences and definitions for words with multiple meanings (e.g., a scale for
weighing, to scale a mountain, the scale on a map)
 Free printable handwriting worksheets for handwriting practice with your saved lists
Suitable for: Junior Primary to Junior Secondary
http://www.abcfastphonics.com/ : ‘ABC Fast Phonics is a free tutorial that uses cartoons and
sounds with audio narration and clickable words to teach phonics. This method teaches just basic
phonics concepts without struggle or frustration and includes rules for vowels, consonants, and
blends along with practice pages.’
Suitable for: Junior Primary to Junior Secondary
www.spellingcentre.com.au The creators of the First 200 Words have just released a new online
Spelling activity. Their new ‘Literacy Intervention Program’ goes beyond the mainly visual and
phonemic strategies used in The First 200 Words. It uses the "Key Word Association" technique
to effectively treat students with mild to severe spelling difficulties. The program plays straight off
the web site using the Adobe Shockwave player, so depending upon a user’s computer
configuration; it should run after Shockwave installs/runs. Otherwise a school technician may be
required to install it. It will be in Beta version until early 2012.
Suitable for: Junior Primary to Junior Secondary
http://www.netrover.com//~crose/dolch/dolch.htm This site lists 108 different activities and games
for Dolch Words. It involves clicking on eleven lists, each comprising of Listen and Spell, Listen
Match, Jigsaw and Find the Word activities. Each list can be viewed before practise.
Suitable for: Junior Primary students NEW
http://www.mrsperkins.com/ Mrs.Perkins' Dolch Words is a website dedicated to providing
teachers and parents with everything they need to teach Dolch sight words to their children. In his
1948 book, "Problems in Reading", Edward William Dolch published a list of 220 frequently used
'service words' and a separate list of 95 common nouns. These lists are estimated to contain 5075% of the words in children's books. Vocabulary word lists, flashcards and PowerPoint
presentations, as well as a special sight words story using all 220 of the Dolch words.
Suitable for: Junior Primary students NEW
http://www.dolchword.net/ The Dolch Word site is where students will find a variety of free online
games, flashcards and printables to help them master the Dolch sight words. The first activities
they have developed are a set of memory games where students have to read a word and match
it to the spoken word. These games have been developed for different Dolch word lists so that
even beginners can have fun while they learn.
Suitable for: Junior Primary students NEW
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Spelling and Phonics
Description and Suitability
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Brainstorming/Mind Mapping
Description and Suitability
https://bubbl.us/ : A very simple yet powerful online mind-mapping tool. Users can work online,
print their work and/or save the image as a JPG or PNG file as an HTML outline. Easy to master
and learn and has useful online Help files.
Suitable for: Years 2 to Secondary
http://www.mapul.com/ : MAPMYself is a free Web-based online mind mapping tool.
MAPMYself is unique web based software that allows users to create completely organic
looking mind maps. Use your own ideas to accelerate learning, improve memory, increase
productivity and save time. The intuitive interface is easy to learn and use.
Suitable for: Years 2 to Secondary
https://www.mindmeister.com/users/signup : Users can sign up freely (with limited numbers of
maps). It will also import other mind mapping files from Freemind and Mindjet Mindmanager
software.
Suitable for: Years 4 to Secondary to adults
http://freemind.sourceforge.net/ : Freemind is a free app that can be downloaded onto a
Windows computer or downloaded as a portable App. It is predominantly a text based mind
mapping program and less ‘visual’ than Inspiration or Xmind. It appeals to people using it with
text-to-speech support and especially screen reading software.
Suitable for: Years 4 to Secondary to adults
http://www.edrawsoft.com/freemind.php : A free download for EDraw mind mapping software.
Users can create mind maps (graphical representations of thought processes) for brainstorming, problem solving, rational analysis, and decision making. EDraw Mind Map is a
freeware vector-based application with rich examples and templates. Mind Map makes it easy to
create basic flow charts, mind maps, brain-storming diagrams and sketch maps.
Suitable for: Years 4 to Secondary
www.xmind.net/ : Xmind is an intuitive and powerful mind mapping program that can be
downloaded freely and installed onto a computer. It has numerous functions and features and is
very visual. It offers versions for MS Windows. MAC OS, Ubuntu and has a free portable
version.
Suitable for: Years 4 to Secondary to adults
http://www.thinkgraph.com/ - ThinkGraph is a program for drawing 2D, oriented towards the
production of Concept Maps. A mind map is a diagram intended to represent ideas (each idea
being represented by a basic shape such as rectangle, ellipse or image) This diagram becomes
a concept map when relations are established between these ideas and as Hypertext Links
associated with these ideas in order to navigate to other ideas (i.e. a definition, a diagram or
another concept map).
Suitable for: Years 7 to Secondary to adults
http://keepnote.org/keepnote/ KeepNote is a note taking application that works on MS Windows,
Linux, and Mac OS X. Users can store their class notes, To-Do lists, research notes, journal
entries, and paper outline in a simple notebook hierarchy with rich-text formatting, images.
Using full-text search, they can retrieve any note for later reference. It has a notebook hierarchy
with rich-text formatting, images, and more. Using full-text search, users can retrieve any note
for later reference.
Suitable for: Years 9 to Secondary to adults
http://www.mind42.com/ Students can keep track of all their ideas, whether alone, with
colleagues and friends or working together. Mind42.com is a browser-based online mind
mapping application. Using the online Mind42.com resource, mind mapping tools are no longer
needed. Use it for a hassle-free mind mapping experience. Just open the browser and launch
the application when required.
Suitable for: Years 9 to Secondary to adults NEW
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Brainstorming/Mind Mapping
Description and Suitability
http://debategraph.org/home A debate visualization tool to help groups think through complex
topics by building and sharing dynamic, collaboratively-editable and rateable maps of subjects
from multiple perspectives. Debategraph is a creative commons project to increase the
transparency and rigor of political debate around the world. It is also a global graph of all the
debates to visualise how different topics shape, and are shaped by, each other. An interesting
site and caters to older students who wish to debate or research and define a topic.
Suitable for: Years 9 to Secondary to adults NEW
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Organisation/Planning
Description and Suitability
www.evernote.com : Capture, store, save and retrieve any facts and data from any source and
access them anywhere at any time on a computer, iPhone or PDA. Data is kept safe and
secure. Users can search by keyword, tag or even printed and handwritten text inside images.
Download and install and it is free. Students are able to save their ideas, things they like, things
they hear, and things they see.
Suitable: Year 6-12 and adults
www.dropbox.com : Dropbox is an online storage service that’s free to use. Users can save files
on their computers and retrieve it from any other computer, once logged in. It saves using USB
devices and is safe and secure. Data can also be made ‘public’ and shared between users,
colleagues and friends. It’s a great way to keep your favourite or important files stored for
flexible access.
Suitable: Year 8-12 and adults
http://www.google.com/intl/en-GB/googlecalendar/about.html : Google calendar is a free online
calendar. Students and educators can organize their schedules quickly and easily and access
them anywhere online, at home, work or school. With Google Calendar, it's easy to keep track
of important events as they are all stored and accessible from all one place.
Suitable: Year 7-12 and adults
http://www.instapaper.com/ : Instapaper
Similar to Delicious, but with a focus on articles. Using a’ bookmarklet’, Instapaper allows you to
build up a queue of documents to read when you have the time to do so. It is an ideal method
for saving web pages, data and material. Educators and students might wish to investigate,
ready, study or extract information from this data at a later time, when more convenient. Users
need to set up an account, which is free.
Suitable: Year 7-12 and adults
http://www.posterous.com/ Posterous: Possibly the next big thing for collaborative projects.
Posterous is a blogging system that aims to eliminate the middle man. Instead of forcing
students to log into a back-end admin, Posterous works off 'post by email' and 'post by
bookmark' systems. Different Posterous blogs can have different users, allowing for unique
collaboration and group research. Useful for people who travel and then at a workplace or
classroom. It is a useful collaboration blog.
http://www.diigo.com/ Diigo is similar to Delicious but has more features and is more flexible
and powerful. Users can collect and annotate anything, including web notes, highlights,
documents, audio, bookmarks, photos, graphics and any required text. Students’ data can be
accessed on a PC or MAC, in any browser and on iPads, Android devices and iPhones.
Suitable: Year 7-12 and adults
http://www.delicious.com/ Delicious It allows users to bookmark their favourite websites and
then access them anywhere. It is a free service, engineered by Yahoo. Each user can opt to
share their bookmarks with anyone else. Each reference can be annotated and tagged for quick
and easy referencing. It boasts that it offers the largest number of bookmarks in the Universe!
Suitable: Year 7-12 and adults
http://livebinders.com/ Livebinders: A very flexible web online resource that allows users to
achieve many different things. It is a series of tagged binders that can contain PDF, graphics,
images and video. The 3-ring type binder provides easy and elegant access to all manner of
electronic data. It is free to join and there are many existing binders available for students to
explore (many involving iPads and new digital technologies).
Suitable: Year 7-12 and adults
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Organisation/Planning
Description and Suitability
http://www.myalltop.com/ MyAlltop: A RSS Feed aggregator that presents the five most recent
articles from various blogs. Students can curate their own content (check
http://my.alltop.com/robhanly for an example) so that they can keep up to date with topics/blogs
that interest them.
http://www.rescuetime.com/tour RescueTime: Caters to a very specific area of need, where
students or workers who need to concentrate, or be encouraged to remain on task whilst
working at a PC. A free version is available where the software tracks performance and provides
diagnostic feedback as to usage of sites. RescueTime is a web-based time management and
analytics tool for knowledge workers who want to be more efficient and productive. Ideal for
ADD/ADHD senior students who need to be more self-disciplined when online.
Suitable: Year 9, Tertiary and for adults
http://www.doodle.com/ Doodle: Designed for easily scheduling meetings and appointments
between multiple users. Ideal for organising small groups – e.g. students in study groups or coworkers across one or more sites or campuses.
Suitable: Year 9, Tertiary and for adults
https://spideroak.com/ SpiderOak provides an easy, secure and consolidated free online
backup, sync, sharing, access & storage solution for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux)
Configurable multi-platform synchronization; Preserve all historical versions & deleted files
Share folders instantly in web ShareRooms ; Retrieve files from any internet-connected device
Comprehensive 'zero-knowledge' data encryption; 2 GBs Free
Suitable: Secondary, Tertiary and for adults NEW
http://thinklinkr.com/ Outlines can be the answer to all of students' problems. Thinklinkr has one
of the fastest, simplest, and most innovative interfaces on the web and it will change the way
students and educators work. Meetings, brainstorming, and lectures will be fundamentally
different as disorganised students can be more productive, organized, and connected with
what’s going on in their brain. Leave Thinklinkr open for a day, use it to organize their thoughts,
and they might be pleasantly surprised. A new genre and one that may cater to students who
require a different way of planning their study and work habits. There is a basic free signup.
Suitable: Secondary, Tertiary and for adults NEW
http://knowcase.com Knowcase can be used to generate collaborative lists.
It is a free fast, easy tool for capturing and organizing information. Educators and students can
learn to brainstorm, take notes and track to-dos. It caters to individuals, study groups, classes
and groups. It is still in Beta so it might be an interesting experience and exercise!
Suitable: Secondary, Tertiary and for adults NEW
GoFileDrop is
another free Google service where users can access up to 50MB of free data. GoFileDrop
provides file drop functionality for Google Docs. There is a free trial with all users each
allocated 50MB of free data usage. With GoFileDrop users can now let the people you work
with securely "Drop" files directly into their Google Docs account. Think of GoFileDrop as a
mailbox to a user's Google Docs account, the sender has NO ACCESS to the Google account,
files deposited in a user's account are only accessible to him or her as the owner.
Suitable: Secondary, Tertiary and for adults NEW
www.google.com/enterprise/marketplace/viewListing?productListingId=8343+18364882357315493082&pli=1
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Mathematics
Description and Suitability
http://www.bbc.co.uk/skillswise/numbers/wholenumbers/ : BBS Skill wise – Numbers: Whole
Numbers. Sections include the Time Tables, addition and subtraction, multiplication, division,
negative numbers, and comparing numbers as well as multiples and factors, learning about
place value (10s, 100s and 1000s), writing big numbers, rounding and estimating, ratio and
proportion and a video guide.
Suitable for: Pre-school to Secondary
http://www.bbc.co.uk/skillswise/numbers/measuring/ : BBC Skill wise: Numbers – Measures,
shape and space. Sections include 2D shapes, money (in pounds and pence, though), reading
times and dates, calculation of time, temperature, volume, perimeter, area of rectangles,
distances, timetables, length, weight and capacity and a video guide discussing weighing
ingredients in metric.
Suitable for: Pre-school to Secondary
http://www.coolmath-games.com/ An extremely comprehensive site for maths activities including
lessons, games, puzzles, word games, jigsaw puzzles and quizzes. The games section
includes: Strategy, skill, numbers, shape/colours, pictures, logic, memory, and board games. If
offers arithmetic, pre-algebra, algebra, pre-calculus and other math lessons for older students.
Suitable for: Pre-school to Secondary
www.funbrain.com : Funbrain was created for students aged preschool through to Year 8. It
offers more than 100 fun, interactive games that develop skills in math, reading, and literacy.
Teachers and librarians can confidently encourage students to use Funbrain during their free
time in class, assured that students will enjoy an educational, safe online learning experience.
Funbrain's games help students build on what they have learned in class and acquire new skills
in reading, math, and problem solving. This is the maths section.
Suitable for: Pre-school to Year 8
www.mathplayground.com : ‘The primary goals of Math Playground are to help students feel
more confident about their math skills and to help them form more positive attitudes toward the
subject of math. I try to accomplish these goals by providing engaging games and activities that
students find meaningful and fun.’ Colleen King created Math Playground in 2002 for students in
her class who needed a fun way to practice math facts. Since then, Math Playground has grown
to include a wide variety of math topics, from problem solving and mathematical art to real world
math. Suitable for: Pre-school to Upper Primary levels.
http://www.dreambox.com/kindergarten-math-lessons : Aimed at teaching maths from K-3.
Online activities and games include high quality spoken instructions and directions and
engaging graphics. The differentiated learning content caters to all ability levels and the
activities are clearly labeled and described.
Suitable for: K to Year 3
http://www.amathsdictionaryforkids.com/ : Maths Dictionary for Kids. A useful resource for
students to investigate the terms used in mathematics. A Maths Dictionary for Kids is an
animated, interactive online math dictionary for students, which explains over 600 common
mathematical terms and math words in simple language with animated and interactive
definitions, examples, activities, practice and calculators.
Suitable for: Pre-Primary and to older students.
http://www.easymaths.com/ Easy Maths. The aim of Easymaths is to reveal the secrets of
maths in a way that is easy to understand and to make maths a challenge rather than a chore. It
offers tutorials, an exam bank, a list of useful books and resources, a practise room and a
section devoted to curious maths games and puzzles. It caters to students up to 16 years of age
and includes areas of number, shape, space and measures, algebra and handling data.
Suitable for: Primary and especially secondary students to age 16.
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Mathematics
Description and Suitability
www.mathisfun.com : This site started in 2000. It was originally aimed at assisting students (and
their parents) with their maths homework. The idea behind the site was to offer mathematics as
well as some fun bits, and to combine the two wherever possible. MathsIsFun.com is developed
and maintained by Rod Pierce, who loves mathematics and fun. The main content of the site is
aimed at Kinder to Year 12. However you will find some more complex activities. Sections range
from data to geometry, measure, algebra, numbers, money and offers games and puzzles.
Suitable for: K through to Year 12
www.mathscats.com : An extremely comprehensive, award winning site with ‘cats’ as the
theme. The site map shows the breadth and depth of this wonderful maths site. It offers a great
deal of content. The author, Wendy Petti, wants to help students to thrive on the joys of math.
She is a parent of three children and a teacher for over 20 years. She created Math Cats for
children to promote open-ended and playful explorations of important math concepts.
Suitable for: Primary through to Secondary (ideal for problem solving and extension activities)
http://www.amblesideprimary.com/ambleweb/numeracy.htm : The Ambleside School Numeracy Hour provides many online activities for maths. Very comprehensive support with a
wide range of topics and activities covered.
Suitable for: K through to Year 6
http://www.mathletics.com.au/ : Subscription based site (per student). It is very popular in many
schools and comprehensively covers the maths curriculum. It is used in all states and territories
in Australia and is popular overseas as well. The cost is approximately $2 per week per student.
It covers maths topics from Kindergarten through to Year 12 maths.
Suitable for: K through to Year 12
www.rainforestmaths.com : The Rainforest Maths activities are available as part of a Mathletics
subscription. Using Rainforest Maths is a way to begin integrating ICT into your Maths
curriculum. To explore all the possibilities, you can organise a free trial of Mathletics in your
school by contacting customerservice@3plearning.com.
Suitable for: K through to Year 6
http://www.studyladder.com.au/about/mathematics : Study Ladder (formerly known as Smart
Kiddies) his is a subscription based site with user access via an $88 yearly subscription. There
are different membership types and associated costs. It boasts over 4000 activities.
Suitable for: K through to Year 12
http://www.agrademath.com/math_games.htm : A series of online maths games. The site also
offers worksheets and printable lesson plans. If offers flash card games, the four operations,
speed math challenges and other maths activities.
Suitable for: K through to Year 8
http://mathematics.hellam.net/ : Links to hundreds of other websites, all dealing with numeracy
and maths.
Suitable for: K through to Year 8
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Mathematics
Description and Suitability
www.cut-the-knot.org/index.shtml : A vast array of activities with up to 800 maths puzzles and
games exploring maths logic, fractals, chaos, fallacies, visual illusions, calculus and other varied
maths topics.
Suitable for: Upper primary to secondary and ideal for extension work.
http://illuminations.nctm.org : Early years to VCE maths resources featuring 106 online activities
as well as 600 lessons for maths educators ranging from K-Year 12. There are web links to
hundreds of exemplary online resources.
Suitable for: K through to Year 12
www.mathforum.org/alejandre : A series of NCTM lessons and examples for secondary aged
students. The site is dated but the maths principles are still useful and pertinent. Covers a range
of topics for secondary maths. Topics covered include: measure, number and operations,
algebra, data analysis and probability, geometry and links to other related maths resources.
Suitable for: Years 6-12
www.shodor.org/interactive : This site caters to middle year students and offers maths and
science lesson plans, activities, tools, a dictionary and a useful teachers’ forum.
Suitable for: Middle Years students
http://mathworld.wolfram.com: MathWorld™ is the web's most extensive mathematical resource,
provided as a free service to the world's mathematics and internet communities as part of a
commitment to education and educational outreach by Wolfram Research, makers of
Mathematica. Since its contents first appeared online in 1995, MathWorld has emerged as a
nexus of mathematical information in both the mathematics and educational communities. Its
entries are extensively referenced in journals and books spanning all educational levels,
including those read by researchers, elementary school students and teachers, engineers, and
hobbyists.
Suitable: Secondary to Tertiary
www.conceptuamath.com: Conceptua™ Fractions helps math teachers and students work
together to master fractions. By combining interactive tools with scaffolded activities, students
use visual models to build conceptual understanding and procedural fluency.
Suitable for: Years 3 - 8
www.subtangent.com/maths/index.php: This site offers quite a number of different activities,
games and resources. It has teacher resources and links and maths investigations. The
graphics are a bit dated as the site was created about 4 years ago in 2007.
Suitable for: Years 1 - Year 3
http://www.dositey.com/2008/index-page-home.php Dositey – Online activities and printable
worksheets for years K-8. Some products are available for purchase with a number of activities
freely available to explore and play.
Suitable for: K - Year 8
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Mathematics
Description and Suitability
www.primarygames.com : This site was created by Susan Shuey Beasley. Prior to working for
PrimaryGames.com full time, she was a Technology Support Specialist at Thomas Jefferson
High School for Science and Technology. She graduated from Virginia Tech in 1995 with a B.S.
in Family and Child Development and in 1997 with an M.A.Ed in Curriculum and Instruction. She
originally designed the educational games in this site for her own students. However, once she
saw their growing popularity among children around the world, she decided to expand this site
and create games for students everywhere.
Suitable for: K through to Year 7
www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/maths : Topics include algebra, data handling, number,
shape, space and measure, and printable ‘mock’ exams. There are also links to other maths
sites as well as to KS3 Maths: http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/ks3bitesize/maths/.
Suitable for: P-Year 6
http://nlvm.usu.edu/en/nav/vlibrary.html : The National Library of Virtual Manipulatives (NLVM)
is an NSF supported project that began in 1999 at Utah State University to develop a library of
uniquely interactive, web-based virtual manipulatives or concept tutorials, mostly in the form of
Java applets, for mathematics instruction (K-12 emphasis). The project includes dissemination
and extensive internal and external evaluation.
Suitable for : K- Year 12
www.abc.net.au/countusin : A site to help students with basic number concepts. It is graphically
appealing and easy to navigate. It is an Australian ABC resource site. The activities and games
can be played online or all 14 games can be downloaded freely for Windows or MAC OS
computers - http://www.abc.net.au/countusin/games/download.htm.
Suitable for: K through to Year 2 or students with different abilities
www.bbc.co.uk/education/mathsfile/gameswheel.html : This site caters to younger students to
Year 3. It includes a series of links to activities, Number Time (P-Year 2), Little Animals Activity
Centre (P-Year 3 with magic letters and number game), Learning Zone Broadband - Maths,
School Radio – Maths, KS1 Bitesize Mathematics, Starship (Year 2 activities), Dynamo
Numeracy (designed for home use with parents), Digger and The Gang – Numeracy (number
work for Years 1-2), Ks2 Bitesize Maths (number, shape, space, measure and data handling
Years 2-3)
Suitable for: Early Years P-Year 3
www.playkidsgames.com/mathgames.htm : Play Kids Games.com is a site designed by parents
of young kids. It is their intention is to provide a web site that parents and students can use to
learn basic skills while having fun. It is their goal to provide a safe place to learn computer skills,
math skills, reading skills and problem solving skills in a context that is fun to use. A variety of
different activities and games are available.
Suitable for: P-Year 3
http://pbskids.org/cyberchase/games/calculator/index.html : Online large, talking calculator.
Great for working with four operations. Caters to younger students or to those who just need a
simplified, large print calculator.
Suitable for: P-Year 3
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Mathematics
Description and Suitability
http://www.math-aids.com/ Math-Aids.Com is a free resource for teachers, parents, students,
and homeschoolers. Users can make an unlimited number of printable math worksheets for
children, the classroom or homework practice. The flexibility and text book quality of the math
worksheets makes Math-Aids.Com a unique resource for educators wanting to create and use
math worksheets.
Suitable for: Year 1-9
http://www.bgfl.org/bgfl/15.cfm Birmingham Grid for Learning – excellent maths activities
designed for use with IWBs. Links for Primary and Secondary maths. Hundreds of links to a vast
range of maths activities on external websites as well as its own. Easy to access and navigate.
Suitable for: Years 1 - 10
http://numbergym.co.uk Number Gym – 14 day free trial of all activities with 2 free activities in
each section. Covers P-10 curriculum (UK). “NumberGym Software has been creating specialist
maths software since 2004. Many of the ideas for activities have been provided by Ian
Sugarman, teacher, maths advisor and Primary maths lecturer. These ideas are often based
around physical resources which Ian designed and used successfully throughout his career.”
Suitable for: Years 1 – 10
www.channel4.com/learning/microsites/M/mathszone: Maths Zone is an interactive role-play
adventure game. Ben and Mai have been kidnapped by two bank robbers and taken to a castle
on an island while the robbers plan the final stage of their getaway. Students can help Ben and
Mai to escape and reach the local police station in time to stop the robbers. It will take about 10
minutes to complete all four challenges. It's not easy but there are clues as the story unfolds.
Suitable for: Years 3 – 6
http://www.oswego.org/ocsd-web/games/dogbone/gamebone.html: Numbers 1-100. A game
that involves counting up to 100, problem solving and competing against a clock. A fun activity
exploring a 10x10 grid and locating ‘bones’ within the grid. Use of mouse or especially touch
window/IWB.
Suitable for: Years 1 – 3
http://www.gamequarium.org/dir/Gamequarium/Math/ GameQuarium -Hundreds of links to a
wide variety of maths activities. Very comprehensive site and has a great deal to offer.
Suitable for: Years 1 – 10
http://www.iboard.co.uk/curriculum.htm#newliteracy-topic1 Numeracy activities from Early Years
up to Year 6 with hundreds of activities all linked via graphical icons. Easy to use and navigate
with a great deal to offer students and educators. Ideal for home use, too.
Suitable for: P - Year 6
http://www.copacabanap.schools.nsw.edu.au/Get_Smart_Pages/Get_Smart_Maths_s1_Space&Measure.html Another
resource from this wonderful school. It involves Key Stage 1 learning support for maths involving
space and measurement. There are over a hundred activities and valuable links to other maths
web resources. Extremely comprehensive!
Suitable for: Year 1-2 and students with different learning styles
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Mathematics
Description and Suitability
http://www.mathsonline.com.au/ ‘Maths Online is a high quality, independent online maths
tutoring program based on Australian state curricula for Years 7 - 12. Maths Online was
developed by experienced Australian teachers. The program features hundreds of fully
animated and narrated maths lessons with over 15,000 exam-style questions to test a student’s
mastery of maths. Free to every secondary student, sponsored by McDonalds.
Suitable for: Junior Secondary to Year 12
http://www.mathematics.com.au/ The program is a support to in-class instruction by providing *
Video/Audio lesson demonstrations of a large number of concepts, with examples of each.
Every lesson is accompanied by a bank of questions for students to practice their newly learned
skill. Students submit their answers online, and the work is immediately marked and their score
given, as well as their result being recorded for both theirs and the teachers access. A wealth of
information with detailed reports showing the student's grade for every lesson; summary reports
showing the student's progress by topic. Registration is required and a cost. A trial is available.
Suitable for: All ages
http://www.efofex.com/ Thirty day trials of different maths and sciences packs and software
programs for generating and drawing maths problems. These onscreen programs might support
students with physical disabilities as they can use a mouse, keyboard or preferred pointing
device to generate graphs and maths/science tools and editing functions.
Suitable for: Secondary and tertiary students.
http://au.ixl.com/math/standards/ IXL's maths skills are aligned to the 2010 Australian
Curriculum, providing comprehensive coverage of maths concepts and applications. With IXL's
national curriculum alignments, you can easily find unlimited practice problems specifically
tailored to each learning objective.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary aged students
http://www.sumdog.com/teacher Sumdog's maths games are always free to play, either at home
or at school. They cover 100 numeracy topics, split into 10 levels. Most are multiplayer, so you
can play against thousands of students worldwide. Because the games are so engaging,
students can finally enjoy developing their numeracy skills.
Suitable for: Upper Primary and Secondary students
http://www.mathsisfun.com/numbers/math-trainer-multiply.html Math trainer is similar in some
respects to Mathletics.It offers some serious multiplication table training. It responds to students’
answers - so it will help support their weaknesses. They suggest using three sessions of 5
minutes each, per day for the best results. Students can train themselves to remember and not
just to calculate.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students for multiplication skills
http://www.compare4kids.co.uk/maths.php An extremely comprehensive list of maths related
web sites for Primary aged students or those with special needs who require differentiated
content in secondary classrooms. Hundreds of links are available all sorted into maths related
categories. An excellent resource.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students with special learning needs NEW
http://maths.nayland.school.nz/Year_12/AS_29_Trig_eqn/6_mixed_equations.htm A handy site
for Years 9-12 maths students and educators as it provides areas of number, statistics,
measurement, algebra, probability and geometry at each level. A very handy resource for
students who need online or electronic drills and content rather than paper based or printed
subject matter.
Suitable for: Years 9-12 Secondary students
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Mathematics
Description and Suitability
http://thinkingblocks.com/index.html Thinking Blocks is a suite of learning tools designed to help
students solve math word problems accurately and efficiently. Using brightly coloured blocks,
students model mathematical relationships and identify known and unknown quantities. The
model provides students with an image that organizes information and simplifies the problem
solving process. By modelling increasingly complex word problems, students develop strong
reasoning skills which will facilitate the transition from arithmetic to algebra.
Suitable for: Upper Primary and Secondary students
http://www.whizz.com/ An intriguing site with free registration for students (with parental
permission). The Maths-Whizz site offers interactive maths animations and unique tutoring
methods to deliver measurable results. Includes maths resources and interesting maths games
for students. Maths games cover primary maths. Developed by leading educational experts,
Maths-Whizz is aligned to national maths curricula across the world.
Suitable for: Primary and Junior Secondary students
http://www.yowiebayps.com.au/interactive/math.htm Direct links to web pages for use on IWBs,
Smartboard or on any computer. The layout reflects the format of the NSW Maths K-6
curriculum but applies universally to educators dealing with mathematics in Primary classrooms.
Suitable for: Primary students
www.coolmath4kids.com A ‘busy’ interface, but a useful maths site nonetheless with instant
links to a variety of games and maths activities, catering to younger students.
Suitable for: Primary students NEW
http://www.ababasoft.com/games/ A site devoted to Eidetic Games – “Eidetic memory
(Photographic memory) is found in 5% of children. These children can remember an entire page
of writing in an unfamiliar language after only seeing it for a short period of time. Only a few
have eidetic memory in adulthood.” A series of links to different types of eidetic games that may
accommodate children with ASD. Hundreds of links are available from this site.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students NEW
http://www.primaryinteractive.co.uk/maths.htm A very well designed page of links to maths
activities and games to play online. It suits primary aged students or older students with special
learning needs. The coins are UK based unfortunately but the main content is still suitable for
the Australian curriculum.
Suitable for: Primary and Junior Secondary students NEW
http://www.wmnet.org.uk/wmnet/custom/files_uploaded/uploaded_resources/503/clock.swf An
onscreen clock that can display day or night, digital time, with 1 to 5 minute intervals. The time
can also be displayed in words. A fantastic resource (thanks to Steven Jurgeit in Tassie).
Suitable for: Primary and students with special needs NEW
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Science
Description and Suitability
http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/Homework/scidex.html : The Woodlands School in the
UK has teaching and learning resources to help primary aged children. The links on the left are
interactive science games and activities. The links lead to pages with information and facts on to
help with homework topics.
Suitable for: Years 1 - Year 6
http://games.pppst.com/index.html - Greta's Game Station:
Hundreds of useful PowerPoint files based on game formats and activities. All science topics
are covered. The resources would be particularly useful in early and middle years.
Suitable for: Early primary and junior secondary students.
http://sciencezine.net/ : ScienceZine is a concise Illustrated Encyclopedia dealing with science
terms, themes and topics. It has high quality photos and illustrations with brief but interesting
facts and figures.
Suitable for: Upper primary and junior secondary students.
http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/ : A New Zealand site for science activities for children. Science
Kids is the home of science & technology on the Internet for children around the world. Students
can learn more about the world of science by enjoying their fun science experiments, cool facts,
online games, free activities, ideas, lesson plans, photos, quizzes, videos & science fair
projects.
Suitable for: Primary and junior secondary students.
http://www.erl.vic.gov.au/kids/science.htm : The science section of the Victorian Government
web site for kids. Contains many activities and links to other sites relating to science education.
Suitable for: Primary and junior secondary students.
http://bodybrowser.googlelabs.com/ Google Body – The detail would satisfy any senior student
studying human anatomy. It peels back the layers of the body to help visualise muscle structure,
organs, nervous system and skeleton. Fly-throughs, zoom in/out/3D rotation are all provided. It
is a great educational tool and caters to primary levels as well as to more senior students and
will generate interest, fascination and excitement. Note: GOOGLE Chrome browser will be
required as it uses Web GL technology.
Suitable for: Primary and junior secondary students.
http://www.educationusingpowerpoint.org.uk/ : “This site aims to make high quality PowerPoint
slideshows, presentations and other resources available for the teaching of Physics, Chemistry
and Biology according to the new GCSE courses. It also contains animations and other
resources. All of these resources can be used on interactive whiteboards.”
Suitable for: Secondary students.
www.bbc.co.uk/schools/scienceclips/index_flash.shtml: BBC Science Clips. These flash movies
cater to younger students. There are numerous links for appropriate science topics for children
aged 5-6 and up to 10-11 years old. Topics such as growing plants, light and dark, pushes and
pulls and sight and hearing are provided.
Suitable for: Year 1- Year 6 and students with different learning needs.
http://www.khanacademy.org/ An amazing collection of lessons in video format. They have been
compiled by educators and the vast majority are maths or science based lessons. An excellent
resource, especially for students disadvantaged economically or geographically.
Suitable for: Secondary and Tertiary students. NEW
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Science
Description and Suitability
http://www.nasa.gov/home/index.html : The home page of NASA. Information about NASA’s
missions with high quality photographs and videos, dealing with space exploration, the planets,
the moon and surviving and living in outer space. Also offers the history of NASA, the
technology developed and how it impacts on daily life.
Suitable for: Years 1 -8
http://www.nasa.gov/audience/forkids/kidsclub/flash/index.html : NASA’s kid’s club. Online
activities and games relating to space travel, exploration, living in outer space and more.
Students can link to images and photographs and view current space travel footage and images
of expeditions. There are also four online animated games to play, with five levels of difficulty.
Suitable for: Years 1 -4
ACS Science for Kids: Activities are offered for Chemical and Physical Change; Characteristics
of Materials; Solids, Liquids and Gas; Motion and Energy; Planet Earth; Your Body; Art and
Toys and What Chemists Do.
Suitable for: Years 4 -9
http://www.questacon.edu.au/#canberra : Australia’s National Science and Technology Centre –
this site provides information about science in general with links to events, resources, research
and national science initiatives.
Suitable for: Years 4 -12
http://newserver.iboard.co.uk/player/ TES iBoard - A wonderful website with numerous activities
for all curriculum areas – most especially the science page.
http://www.iboard.co.uk/curriculum.htm#science-year1sci_yearyear1 Another wonderful section
in the TES iBoard site for science, accommodating Year 1 and Year 2 students with topics
including All About Ourselves, Animals, Health and Growth, Variation, Forces and Movement as
well as Electricity. Simply to use and navigate and ideal for students with ID.
Suitable for: Years 1 and 2
http://www.copacabana-p.schools.nsw.edu.au/Get_Smart_Pages/Get_Smart_Science1.htm Get
Smart - Science - Stage 1 : These pages contain a collection of links to suitable activities to
support and enhance classroom teaching and learning. They are kindly provided by teachers
and authors who freely share their classroom practice, ideas and strategies from the school.
Suitable for: Years 1 and 2
http://www.twofoods.com/ : Two foods is a site where you enter the name of one food and then
compare it with another food (e.g. bread – eggs). Then press Compare. It provides the calories,
carbs, protein and fat content in each food.
Suitable for: All ages
http://www.exploratorium.edu/ The Exploratorium isn’t just a museum, it’s an ongoing
exploration of science, art, and human perception—a vast collection of online interactive
activities, web features, other activities programs and events that feed student’s curiosity.
Suitable for: All ages
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Science
Description and Suitability
http://www.abc.net.au/science/ An expansive and comprehensive resource with audio and video
content on all aspects of science. It lists archival footage, provides podcasts and delivers on a
range of science topics, themes and current projects. An excellent resource.
Suitable for: Students of all ages
www.bbc.co.uk/schools/podsmission Aimed at younger students in Primary, this BBC resource
offers content on solids, liquids, bones and electricity. Suitable for students with different
learning styles and needs as well.
Suitable for: Primary Students
www.vssec.vic.edu.au The Victorian Space Science Education Centre (VSSEC) is one of three
Specialist Science Centres established by the Victorian State Government. It was officially
opened in 2006 and joined Ecolinc and GTAC in offering high quality science programs. VSSEC
uses the context of space to engage teachers and students in the teaching and learning of
science and is situated in the grounds of Strathmore Secondary College and offers a stimulating
environment for hands-on learning. All areas within the Centre are supported by an integrated
technology system which supports a rich learning environment.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary Students
www.re-science.org.au Re-science.org.au is an initiative of the National Science Week Victorian
Coordinating Committee, an Australian Government program supported through the Department
of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research at Questacon. It has detailed lists of science
resources and related events. Archival media and information about previous science events
are also available.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary Students
www.compare4kids.co.uk/science.php An extremely comprehensive resource with links to
numerous science based web resources. It is ideal for Primary schools and caters from P-Year
6. One of the better science web resources as it offers so much in a condensed and easily
accessible table of contents
Suitable for: Primary (and Junior Secondary Students with special needs)
http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/revision/Science/index.html Another wonderful
resource on the Woodlands junior school site for science revision content. Every topic is
included in a table with easy to locate and access links. Very comprehensive.
Suitable: Primary students
www.arkive.org ARKive is gathering together the best films and photographs of the world's
species into one centralised digital library, to create a unique audio-visual record of life on Earth,
prioritising those species at most risk of extinction. Preserved and maintained for future
generations, ARKive is making this key resource accessible to all, from scientists and
conservationists to the general public and school children, via its award-winning website.
Captivating footage, ideal for Clicker 5, PowerPoint and editing in Movie Maker.
Suitable for: All ages
http://www.yowiebayps.com.au/interactive/hsie_science.htm Science and technology links for
Primary classrooms. Some worthwhile resources are listed on this school’s web site.
Suitable for: Primary students
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Science
Description and Suitability
http://www.goforyourlife.vic.gov.au/hav/articles.nsf/html/index.html Weigh Up Your Lunch Healthy Eating How healthy is your lunch? Create various lunch alternatives and find out about
the food that students are bringing to school and consuming. Categories of drinks, snacks and
mains can be checked.
Suitable for: Primary students
http://www.planet-science.com/ This site has three parts – Under 11s, Over 11s and a section
as a teacher resource. A very comprehensive and resource rich science site with a great deal of
information and with numerous games to play and activities with excellent video footage.
Suitable for: Primary through Secondary NEW
http://www.sciencebob.com/index.php Science Bob site offers science experiments students
can do at home, as well as watch videos, ask questions and explore science facts. It is a
wonderful site for active and inquisitive students. There are experiment blogs to read with
research help and a wide range of science topics to explore.
Suitable for: Primary through Secondary NEW
http://www.sciencecomics.uwe.ac.uk/index.php Science Comics with Selenia. Students will
discover some great science comics to read and scientific games to play. More edutainment
style resource that will appeal to students who enjoy comics. Teachers will also find useful
classroom resources to support the teaching of scientific enquiry and materials. Selenia is
designed by the University of the West of England in Bristol. A clever and inventive way of
exciting children and offering science exploration and motivation to learn.
Suitable for: Primary through Junior Secondary NEW
http://www.primaryinteractive.co.uk/science.htm Four Flash-based activities on topics including
Growing, Parts of a Plant, RGB (Red Green Blue) and Solids, Liquids and Gas.
Suitable for: Primary NEW
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Cause and Effect
Description and Suitability
www.shinylearning.co.uk : A selection of online switch games to play with switch, mouse,
spacebar, return key, touch window or other pointing devices. Each game has a menu with
choice of foreground and background colour, speeds and response times. The games are
presented clearly and are uncluttered. Ideal for introducing a switch device or for practice. They
can also be downloaded freely. There are numerous other playable demos of different games as
well.
Suitable for: Pre-School to older students who use a switch/touch window
www.sarahgreenland.com : Inspirational games and multimedia for different abilities education
■ Designed for those with complex combinations of disabilities - physical, visual and learning
■ A wide age range of skills are covered
■ Includes both single switch access and two switch access
A number of free games can be downloaded
Note: Online games require Java software on your computer.
Suitable for: Pre-School to older students who use a switch/touch window
http://www.northerngrid.org/ngflwebsite/sen/NetSwitch/index.htm: SENSwitcher is a suite of
programs designed to help teach early ICT skills to people with profound and multiple learning
difficulties, those who need to develop skills with assistive input devices and very young children
new to computers. Offers cause and effect, switch building, timed activation, targeting and row
scanning. Very elementary graphics are used. The program can be run directly from this web
site or downloaded for use on stand-alone PC or Macintosh computers. Programmed by
Inclusive Technology, it uses the latest Macromedia Flash technology to deliver 132 high quality
animated activities which can be operated by a wide range of input devices.
Suitable for: Pre-School to older students who use a switch/touch window
http://www.switchmusic.org.uk/ : Switch accessible video and music clips, arranged in a 6 x 6
matrix. Users can independently access and listen to popular groups and artists and navigate
forward and back using one or two switches.
Note: Uses links to YouTube. If YouTube is blocked, try alternate site – http://www.rscnorthwest.ac.uk/acl/eMagArchive/RSCeMag0910/May10menu/switch_music.html
Suitable for: Primary and particularly older students and adults who use a switch/touch window
www.helpkidzlearn.com : It has some very elementary but engaging activities for students - this
page caters to early years but there are other activities for older/more capable students on other
links to stories, puzzles and games as well as creative tasks including jigsaws. The activities are
very well designed and vary in topic and theme. Games are accessed by mouse, keyboard,
touch window, IWB or switch. This free site was created by Inclusive Technologies in the UK.
Suitable for: Pre-School to older students who use a switch/touch window
www.oneswitch.org.uk/2/switch-downloads.htm : A resource site in the UK with fun ideas and
'assistive technology' aimed at moderate to severely learning/physically disabled people. The
OneSwitch games include games and activities that have been modified for people with limited
access. Genres include Arcade; Shoot ‘Em Up; Race Games; Adventure; Puzzle & Skill Games;
Platformers and Sport. All are free to download. Approximately 100 games are available.
Suitable for: Primary and particularly older students and adults who use a switch/touch window
http://studentswithdifference.wikispaces.com/Priory+Woods+Videos+Revamped Priory Woods
has developed a range of motivating programs to help students develop the skills needed to use
these devices in a meaningful way. Switch 'videos' are simple slideshows animations set to
music which can be operated by switch or touch-screen. They feature sounds and images from
popular music and TV shows and can be used with pupils of all ages. These resources have
been modified by Lynne Ryan (Tasmania) and are wonderful activities for many students.
Suitable for: Pre-Primary and to older students.
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Cause and Effect
Description and Suitability
http://www.redbackdesign.com.au/switchmusic1/index.htm : Switch music from Redbackdesign
includes video clips from YouTube that feature Australian artists. It is fully switch accessible via
scanning (users can also press the Space Bar) to select a scanned selection choice.
Suitable for: Pre-Primary and to most particularly senior students who use a switch.
http://www.setbc.org/curriculumset/default.aspx : CurriculumSET is a collection of resources that
facilitate the sharing of customized technology-based content among educators working with
students who use assistive technology. This searchable database enables educators to find,
download, and customize activities, templates and public domain accessible books based on
the ten areas of the curriculum as set out by the Ministry of Education. CurriculumSET
resources are created and updated by dedicated professionals working with students in British
Columbia.
Suitable for: Pre-Primary and to senior students and a useful site for all educators.
http://www.ngfl-cymru.org.uk/eng/vtc-home/vtc-als-home/vtc-als-switch_users : A range of
switch activities from this very comprehensive Welsh site in the UK. The activities are simple in
design yet effective with some students. Ideal for cause and effect.
Suitable for: Pre-Primary and to senior students and a useful site for all educators.
http://www.bltt.org/switch/activities.htm : Better Living through technology site provides a useful
selection of Switch Activities & Accessible Software. Also lists information about Switches and
their use at http://www.bltt.org/switch/index.htm. Has a comprehensive overview of Assistive
Technologies and represents a practical, easy to read about students with various disabilities,
including dyslexia and LD strategies.
Suitable for: Pre-Primary and to senior students and a useful site for all educators.
http://www.mousetrial.com/ : For students with Autism - Fun animated online exercises to help
kids with autism. It is also very suitable for other learners. MouseTrial is easy to use. If students
click on the correct item when asked to, they get rewarded with a short, funny animation about
the chosen object. If they click on the wrong item then MouseTrial flashes the correct image to
give them a hint. It's easy to change the number of objects shown, and students can control
which objects are available to make up the random array.
Suitable for: Pre-Primary and to students who need practise with a mouse.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbbc/games/switch/
A selection of games that provide switch options as well as keyboard controls or access via an
IntelliSwitch, Don Johnston or Crick USB interface or using IntelliKeys from Online BBC . Five
engaging games, suitable for more capable or older students who use a switch. Games can also
be accessed via keyboard, touch window or IWB.
Suitable for: Pre-Primary and especially catering to senior students.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/shows/ : CBeebie Shows - some of these are ideal for use with
students in the early years and also with older students who require this genre of software.
There are 16 activities from which to choose. The bright engaging graphics, music and sound
appeal to many students.
Suitable for: Pre-Primary and to students who need practise with a mouse.
http://www.switchintime.com/page2/page11/page11.html : MAC OS titles - Most of these
programs were originally developed to meet the needs of specific students and classes and
were never meant to be commercial applications. Certainly for these programs (by author Jon
Adams), many short cuts were taken in order to reduce development time. Still, they have found
all of these programs to be very useful and they are making them available in the hopes that
others will as well.
Suitable for: Junior Primary to Year 4
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Cause and Effect
Description and Suitability
www.levelgames.net/ : Simple arcade games that contain control panels for adjusting the
parameters of the game to match the ability of the players. Can be accessed via switch,
keyboard, Touch Window or IWB.
Suitable for: Pre-Primary and to most particularly senior students who use a switch.
http://hiyah.net : A very large collection of PowerPoint files that contain delightful colour photos
and animated gifs, with music, sound effects and narration by Sara, a mother who designed and
created these wonderful files for her two boys. They cover many different topics and themes
from everyday experiences. Ideal for children with autism/ASD.
Suitable for: Pre-Primary and to most particularly senior students who use a switch or keyboard
http://www.breakspeare.herts.sch.uk/Resources/parentspage.html:
On this site you will find various links, many directly linked to switch activities. Some are
duplicated in this document but the hyperlinks are handy and located on one site in a grid
layout.
Suitable for: Pre-Primary and to most particularly senior students who use a switch.
http://www.sesamestreet.org/videos A collection of videos, games and activities from the
popular TV show - Sesame Street. There are muppets to interact with and a channel for young
children. My Street is a free logon area where favourites can be stored and accessed easily.
Suitable for: Pre-Primary
http://www.tvokids.com/games : A colourful engaging and expansive website for children from
Toronto Canada, and caters to children under age 11, predominantly aged 2-5 years. Many
activities are offered. There are games, a video channel, and covers early learning and concept
development. There are free songs and wallpapers to download.
Suitable: K-Year 4 and students with difference
http://papunet.net/games/ : Papunet game pages. Games and exercises for adults, children and
everybody in between for learning, rehabilitation and fun.
http://www.gamebase.info/magazine/read/proteus_591.html The SpecialEffect Charity, which
runs the GameBase, began as a result of an award winning Ace Centre Project. SpecialEffect is
dedicated to helping ALL young people with disabilities to enjoy computer games. They proved
that games have an effect on motivation, inclusion and quality of life. They wanted a place
where they could use the knowledge and experience they have gained, to reach a wider
audience. Games for switch users, cause and effect, ones for IWB and more!
Suitable for: All ages
http://www.switchclimber.com/ SwitchClimber is an interactive website that teaches switch users
to access the computer through small sequential steps and data-based feedback. There is a
free trial version to try before educators or parents commit to this software. SwitchClimber.com
is full of activities to teach switch users skills like cause-effect, using two switches together, and
two switch step scanning. The activities are set up hierarchically, starting with cause-effect and
working up to two switch step scanning. Data is taken automatically and switch users are
advanced to subsequent levels based on criteria set by their teams. Switch users can access
their accounts from multiple locations, working on the same goals across settings e.g., home,
school, or therapy.
Suitable for: All students who use a switch – particularly younger students
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Cause and Effect
Description and Suitability
http://www.ngfl-cymru.org.uk/eng/vtc-home/vtc-als-home/vtc-als-switch_users.htm Online
activities for switch users. A list of simple yet fun activities that cater to younger switch users.
There are a number of choices for different activities, with thumbnail descriptors.
Suitable for: All students who use a switch – particularly younger students
http://www.hanselman.com/babysmash/ As babies or younger students hit random keys on the
keyboard, coloured shapes, letters and numbers appear on the screen. Baby Smash will lock
out the Windows Key, as well as Ctrl-Esc and Alt-Tab so the user can't get out of the
application. The program will check the computer for prerequisite programs - then it needs to be
downloaded and installed. Very effective and engaging. Ideal cause and effect program.
Suitable for: All students who use a switch – particularly babies and very young students
http://www.elbuhoboo.com/juegos-infantiles/juegos-infantiles-bichitos/cargador.swf
http://www.mothergoose.com/Games/flashGames/mmPartOne.swf A cause and effect Flash
movie file where a monkey can be dragged by a mouse/joystick or touched (using an IWB or
touch screen/monitor) animates and different music plays. Simple yet effective!
Suitable for: Very young students or those with ID
http://www.babytv.com/flash/gameFrame.swf?id=25 BabyTV allows the child to use the mouse,
keyboard or touch window to interact with transport related graphics. It has music and sound
effects as well as voiced feedback.
Suitable for: Very young students or those with ID
http://www.kneebouncers.com/ KneeBouncers is a fun site for children. It offers a variety of
educational games and activities to stimulate babies, toddlers or Pre-school children and helps
begin the learning process.
http://www.customsolutions.us/mouse/Access/Physical/Access_training_games.htm#teen-easy
This is a well researched site. It lists online games that can be effectively used with students
who require practise with their mouse skills and alternate input devices. A large range of
resources are listed with inks and screen graphic representations of sites.
Suitable for: Very young students or those with ID
https://wbx-files.s3.amazonaws.com/jacksonpollock_by_miltos_manetas.swf Use this site to
create Jackson Pollock inspired works of art. The site requires Adobe Flash. As the child moves
the mouse or pointing device (it’s ideal with Interactive Whiteboards and touch screens) paint is
splashed randomly onto the ‘canvas’. It is ideal for mouse training (moving, pointing, clicking to
change colour, relocating) and for children with access/intellectual disabilities. Also handy for
students with VI needs for tracking.
Suitable for: Primary and students with special access, vision and learning needs NEW
http://www.kenbrashear.com/drumkit.swf A Flash Movie plays a drum kit with drums and
cymbals. Simple yet effective. It also has each part of the kit labelled with keys so alternate
keyboards could be programmed for access (e.g. IntelliKeys, Helpikeys). Students could also
use a standard keyboard to ‘play’ or fun used with an Interactive Whiteboard.
Suitable for: P- Primary and students with special access or learning needs NEW
http://www.santagames.net/ A good selection of games with a Christmas theme. Christmas
games, advent calendar, eCards and colouring in pages.
Suitable: Primary students and those with special needs NEW
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Cause and Effect
Description and Suitability
http://www.shinylearning.co.uk/freegames/ShinySingingSheep.shtml Shiny Baa-bershop Choir.
A free activity just in time for Christmas. A flash movie with switch access. Four sheep play
Jingle Bells each with an instrument or vocal with fun animation. Note: Flash is required.
Suitable for: Early Years and students with special needs.
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Music
Description and Suitability
http://www.sfskids.org/templates/home.asp?pageid=1 : SFS Kids – San Francisco Symphony
Kids’ Site. A rich and diverse site of all things musical, with information and activities about the
orchestra, musical instruments and a wonderfully exciting Music Lab.
Suitable for: Primary and to Junior Secondary
http://podcast.fredflare.com/boombox/flare_player.html - Fred Flare’s Jukebox/Boombox. MP3
tracks will play at no cost with an option to purchase. It has a simple yet effective interface.
Suitable for : All ages
http://studentswithdifference.wikispaces.com/Priory+Woods+Videos+Revamped – Priory Woods
flash movies ‘revamped’ in Tasmania. All the popular music and theme based videos are
available from this terrific website. Some new ones with Australian themes and artists are also
available (over and above ones created by the inimitable Ian Bean).
Suitable for : All ages
http://freeplaymusic.com/search/ A search engine and database where users can locate music
across all genres. 7208 tracks are available and the search criteria includes by CD Volume, key
word search, style or feel.
Suitable for : All ages
http://access.mwjt.co.uk/youtube/index.php : A wonderful, simply yet extremely functional
resource for locating YouTube video or music clips. The clean intuitive interface provides
opportunities for students with physical or cognitive disabilities to easily access YouTube
favourites and search with an uncluttered screen.
Suitable for: All ages
http://urthots.com/ : ‘Music & Social Discovery Great music. Sharing stuff with friends. Talking
about whatever is happening in your life right now. Some things should never be more than a
click away.’ A site devoted to people haring their music. Users elect to create an account and
conform to Policies set by this Dallas based site.
Suitable for: Secondary and tertiary students
http://mydoodlesongs.com/ MyDoodleSongs is a free to use website that features a virtual
guitar visitors can play. The guitar can be played either by strumming the strings through your
mouse or by pressing the keyboard keys. Site visitors can also create their tunes and share
them with the world by typing the keyboard key combination of their tune. Visitors to the site can
then view your tunes, play it through the key combinations, and rate it out of 5 stars.
Suitable for: All ages
http://www.tubemystuff.com/ : TubeMyStaff is an application that enables users to listen, using
their iPhone or iPod, to all of their music wherever they go by putting them on the Cincopa cloud
– no need to upload music in advance. Users need to create an account and login.
Suitable for: Secondary and tertiary students
http://www.songsprite.com/channel/MPZw4Ia4kk : SongSprite lets you to listen to YouTube
videos as if they were just songs. Add as many tracks as you like, or invite friends to join you in
building up a legendary playlist. Locate and copy the required YouTube URL and paste it into
this window.
Suitable for: Secondary and tertiary students
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Music
Description and Suitability
www.jamendo.com/ All the music available on Jamendo is released under the Creative
Commons license. This means that it can be freely listened to and used and redistributed under
the same license. The artists then get rewarded via user donations and revenues from the
Jamendo’s commercial programs and partnerships. Users can browse through over 150,000
tracks by artist, album and genre, or they can use the tags for quick navigation.
Suitable for: Secondary and tertiary students
www.amiestreet.com Amie Street is an online marketplace for music by independent artists.
Only the ‘yet to be’ undiscovered ones are free, though. Initially, about all of the music that
appears on Amie Street gets released without a price. Users can then download it without
paying anything. However, as the popularity of the piece increases, the price goes up. The trick
is to browse the new releases, and find the musical pearls between them. Note that signing up
is required to download an album. Another great feature is that users can earn credits by
recommending songs to friends – up to 98 cents per song – which users can use to buy some of
the premium songs. The retail price of these premium songs never goes over 98 cents apiece.
Suitable for: Secondary and tertiary students
www.last.fm Last.fm is a streaming media service that also has a built-in social network. As
people use the service, it learns what they like and fine-tunes its recommendations. Users can
create their own radio station, make and share playlists and build a free media library. Last.fm
serves as a portal to purchase music tracks from the iTunes Store and 7digital music services.
As a music discovery tool, Last.fm is an excellent service that provides a wealth of content.
Suitable for: Secondary and tertiary students
http://www.appappeal.com/apps/music/?gclid=CLK5tdKbraoCFeNMpgod_E6hWw This handy
site lists a number of useful websites where users can obtain free MP3 and music tracks. It has
logos and links ready for quick and easy access.
Suitable for: Secondary and tertiary students
www.ccmixter.org ccMixter is a community music site featuring remixes licensed under Creative
Commons where students and educators can listen to, sample, mash-up, or interact with music
in whatever way they wish. If students are into sampling, remixing and mash-ups, they can grab
the sample packs and A Capellas for download and they can also upload their finished version
back into ccMixter, for others to enjoy and re-sample.
Suitable for: Secondary students
http://www.newgrounds.com/audio/ Just like flash games and movies, lots of royalty-free songs
are released daily on Newgrounds by aspiring musicians. The author must be credited upon
redistribution, and the music can only be used for non-commercial purposes. If students just
want to play it on their computer though, there’s even less they need to worry about. The major
part of the songs consist of house and trance music, but pop, rock and even classical music is
represented. Though a lot of the songs are only good to use in flash games and movies, there
are also many songs that would be on rotation on radio stations.
Suitable for: Secondary and tertiary students
www.mtvmusicmeter.com/ The MTV Music Meter ranks over a million artists and allows
students and educators to discover what is hot in the music scene. The ranking is not only
based on album sales, but also on how many times they are mentioned on the social networks,
in blog posts, news articles, and streams. Users need only to click on the little pull-down button
to expand more information for the respective artist. An excellent resource.
Suitable for: Secondary and tertiary students
http://www.tunecrank.com/ TuneCrank finds, ranks and streams the best independent music
out there for the whole world to hear. Touring bands, buskers and basement dreamers alike can
simply upload a tune and scale the CrankRank side by side. It is very democratic and allows
unsigned artists to share their work and creative exploits. Some students might wish to vote on
their favourites, too?
Suitable for: Secondary and tertiary students
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Music
Description and Suitability
http://artsalive.ca/en/mus/activitiesgames/ ArtsAlive.ca is a performing arts educational website
produced by the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The goals of ArtsAlive.ca are
to engage younger generations of Canadians in information, multimedia resources and activities
pertaining to the performing arts, and to provide free performing arts-related primary and
secondary resources to students, parents and teachers to aid them in learning about and
teaching the topics presented. ArtsAlive.ca is managed by the National Arts Centre New Media
department. The site has a great deal to offer with games, quizzes and activities.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students
http://thepuredrop.com.au/about/default.htm The Pure Drop is an exploration and celebration of
traditional and World Music. This website gathers together musical performances from all over
the global village, and explores the stories behind the music of multicultural Australia. The
stories are presented in eleven episodes that combine short video documentary with
interactivity. Each episode focuses on one artist and one aspect of the music such as the vocal
style and technique, instrumentation, lyrics, the tune or the passing down of musical traditions.
The Pure Drop also explores the cultural context of the music, and issues arising from
globalisation and the impact of digital technology.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students
http://learnenglishkids.britishcouncil.org/en/songs A site for enjoyment of listening to songs in
English. Singing songs is an ideal way to improving skills in speaking English. They offer
numerous great songs for students of all abilities to enjoy. The site also offers games, listen
and watch activities, read and write activities and making songs with lyrics. It has Nursery
Rhymes and Songs playlists on YouTube for videos of their most popular songs for younger
students.
Suitable for: Primary students
http://cooltoolsforschools.wikispaces.com/Music+Tools A comprehensive list of Web 2.0 tools
for music in schools and classrooms. It includes tools and programs for searching for songs by
lyrics, composer and song title. It also lists exercises and useful music tools. An excellent
resource.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students
http://www.musicplayforlife.org/ The creators of this proud Australian site believe more
Australians should be making music: in schools, communities, in fact - everywhere. Being
musically-active is good for individuals and for our society. As Australia’s only grassroots music
advocacy program, they provide information, inspiration and advice to help students start or
continue their musical journey. If they're already musically-active, they can provide appropriate
support to help them convert others to the cause. A positive way of providing opportunities for
Australians to enjoy and make music.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students
http://createdigitalmusic.com/2008/08/demystifying-sound-design/ Composer, musician and
sound designer W. Brent Latta knows something about sound design, currently working
professionally on sound for games. As an enthusiast of what it takes to craft sound, he’s put
together a list of where to go to learn more and hone students' abilities, from fundamentals to
the specifics required by film/video and games. Sound design is a fundamental aspect of nearly
every form of digital media, from music production to games to commercial radio. Sometimes
seen as a ‘dark art’, sound design can also be viewed as difficult and mysterious, often deterring
would-be creators. There are 15 sound design resources to help rookies and veterans listed.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students
http://www.jamstudio.com/Studio/index.htm This offers a virtual music mixing desk. Students
can create music by choosing from different pre recorded chord progressions, and can alter the
tempo and loop sequences. Users of all abilities can easily and intuitively mix different
instruments (including drums, piano, guitars, bass). The music tracks composed can be saved
or even emailed to other students or to home for sharing and further collaboration. An excellent
online music resource.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Music
Description and Suitability
http://www.musipedia.org/ This site is inspired by, but not affiliated with Wikipedia. They are
building a searchable, editable and expandable collection of tunes, melodies, and musical
themes. Every entry can be edited by anybody. An entry can contain a bit of sheet music, a
MIDI file, textual information about the work and the composer, and last but not least the
Parsons Code, a rough description of the melodic contour. Searching for music includes: Name
that Tune; Music Search; Melody Search and Rhythm-based Search. Users can elect to use the
SOAP interface, which makes it possible to search based on melody, contour, or rhythm.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students
http://research.microsoft.com/en-us/um/redmond/projects/songsmith/ Songsmith generates
musical accompaniment to match a singer’s voice. Just choose a musical style, sing into your
PC’s microphone and Songsmith will create backing music. Then share the songs with friends
and family, post students' songs online, or create their own music videos. The video on the
Home page demonstrates Songsmith at work in the classroom; Songsmith is free for teachers to
use in their classrooms. Songsmith is great for anyone who wants to create music at home.
Samples are included and users can adjust tempo, styles and mood.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students
http://music.shanemcdonald.org/ An interesting and quite diverse and eclectic mix of resources,
all offered by Shane McDonald on his own Blog. It includes chords and tabs, keyboard and
chord shapes, guitar chords and information pertaining to music. Students can learn about
manipulating music, how to read notation and has a useful music reference section.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students
http://www.bgfl.org/bgfl/custom/resources_ftp/client_ftp/ks2/music/piano/ This is an online
virtual keyboard. It takes a while to load - so patience is required. The fully functional keyboard
is an excellent resource and ideal with the use of a touch screen or IWB/Smart TV. It has drum
tracks, chord arrangements and all manner of buttons to press! It can play back music as a
piano, flute, organ, saxophone, pan pipes, strings, guitar or even steel drums!
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students
http://www.thetabworld.com/ This is a very useful and comprehensive site with numerous guitar
tabs resources. Users will discover everything from guitar tabs, chords and song lyrics to
lessons, music gear reviews and the latest music news.
Users can elect to register a free TTW account and upload their own guitar tabs, song lyrics,
lessons and reviews for others to read and comment.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students
http://www.incredibox.fr/ Users of all ages will enjoy this site. Simply drag sound icons onto each
of the human beatboxers to build a choir. Also touch the screen (using an IWB or touch screen)
or click onto the screen to add or remove characters. Beatboxers is a free online music activity
that can be used with mouse or touch monitor screen access. An option to run in shuffle mode
and watch/listen to it all happening automatically might appeal to users with physical access
needs. Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students
http://livebinders.com/play/play_or_edit?id=32113 Music Websites are perfect for IWB use.
Fun musical Livebinder activities that have been compiled by Mrs Westwood of Cardiff North
Public School.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students
http://www.tubufy.com/ Music videos often add another dimension to the songs that students
and educators already enjoy. If they use Spotify to listen to songs and create playlists, finding
relevant YouTube videos manually can easily become a time-consuming task. There is now a
web service titled Tubufy that automates the task for them and plays relevant YouTube videos
for songs in their Spotify playlists.
Suitable for: All students NEW
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Problem Solving
Description and Suitability
www.theJigsawPuzzles.com This is an ever-growing collection of free online jigsaw puzzles. It
offers albums on the left side of the home page (all graphically illustrated) and has hundreds of
free jigsaw puzzles that students can explore and play. There are numerous categories from
which to choose. They also provide a Puzzle of the Day.
Suitable for: Year 1- Year 3 and students with different abilities
http://www.jigzone.com/ : Free online jigsaw puzzles. JigZone is an online Jigsaw Puzzle where
users choose the level of difficulty from a simple 6-piece cut to a challenging 247-piece cut.
Daily entertainment with a new puzzle-of-the-day every day is offered. Users can use their own
photos as puzzles by uploading photos and making them into jigsaw puzzles that can be shared
with others. Students can put a puzzle in their blog or embed jigsaw puzzles into their own web
pages.
Suitable for: Year 1- Year 4 and students with different abilities
http://www.dltk-kids.com/puzzle.htm: Hundreds of jigsaw puzzles all arranged by theme, with
sub-categories. A very comprehensive list of puzzles with links to other websites suitable for
young children. Colouring activities and downloaded puzzles are also available.
Suitable for: Year 1- Year 4 and students with different abilities
http://www.coloring.ws/free_puzzles.htm: Another site with a good selection of current and
archived jigsaw puzzles. Jigsaws range from 6 to 247 pieces. This site also offers colouring-in
activities. There are eight online games to play with some free games to download.
Suitable for: Year 1- Year 4 and students with different abilities
http://www.sjsu.edu/depts/itl/graphics/main.html The goal of Mission: Critical is to create a
"virtual lab," capable of familiarizing users with the basic concepts of critical thinking in a selfpaced, interactive environment. Critical thinking is part of the transfer core curriculum
recognized at all state-supported institutions of higher education in California. Approaches to
teaching critical thinking are as varied as the disciplines in which qualifying courses are taught.
An interesting site and one to challenge students who are at the other end of the 'special needs
spectrum'. Suitable for: Secondary and tertiary students
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Teaching Resources
Description and Suitability
http://www.inclusive.co.uk/downloads : Useful educational programs that are free to download.
All have been designed and created by Inclusive Technologies. Includes free resources,
communication board overlays for ‘Let’s talk On The Farm’ and software. Upgrades to some
popular Inclusive Technology programs and are also available. A very useful program worth
downloading is the “Interactive Visual Timetable.
Suitable for: Pre-Primary and to older students.
http://www.senteacher.org/Files/ : A good selection of suitable software for students with special
learning and/or access needs. All of these programs are free to download and use. There are a
number of categories and include favourites such as TuxMath. TuxPaint, TuxType, Photo Story
3, Childsplay, Zac Browser and the GCompris Suite. The site also provides resources for maths,
literacy and classroom practise.
Suitable for: Pre-Primary and to older students.
http://www.ngfl-cymru.org.uk/eng/vtc-home.htm : A wide range of teaching and learning
materials can be accessed from this very useful teaching resources area of NGfL Cymru. By
selecting a Key Stage (age range) and then a subject you will be able to browse through the
available resources and select those that are of interest. It is a Welsh site and ranges right up to
Post 16 and Vocational student needs.
Suitable for: Pre-Primary and to older students.
http://www.kidsites.com/ : The Kidsites.com includes topics such as animals, art, dinosaurs,
history, math, music, science and space. In 'Fun Stuff', there are activities, colouring-in sections,
comics, craft, TV, and video games. A section for parents and teachers is also included. This
section includes links to other sites for lesson plans and teaching notes and resources for
educators.
Suitable for: Pre-Primary and to older students.
http://studentswithdifference.wikispaces.com/ : This site has been created by Lynne Ryan to
share activities, tutorials and useful web sites. It includes a wide range of resources, articles,
links to sites, links to free software and other teaching tools and resources for students with
ASD and special learning/access needs. Lynne has also ‘revamped’ some popular Priory
Woods flash videos as well has made her own and modified others.
Suitable for: Pre-Primary and to older students.
http://www.setbc.org/curriculumset/ : curriculumSET is a collection of resources that facilitate
the sharing of customized technology-based content among educators working with students
who use assistive technology. This searchable database enables educators to find, download,
and customize activities, templates and public domain accessible books based on the ten areas
of the curriculum as set out by the BC Ministry of Education. curriculumSET resources are
created and updated by dedicated professionals working with students in British Columbia.
Suitable for: Pre-Primary and to senior students with special learning/access needs.
www.symbolworld.org : A very comprehensive and resource rich site in the UK with regard to
the use of symbols and graphics in communication systems, AAC and in teaching and acquiring
language skills.
Suitable for: Pre-Primary and to senior students with special learning/access needs.
www.boardmakershare.com : BoardmakerShare is an extremely useful community for finding
thousands of Boardmaker activities on hundreds of topics. The use of PCS symbols is targeted
at a range of student needs and is a fantastic resource for educators and speech pathologists.
Suitable for: Pre-Primary and to senior students with special learning/access needs.
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Teaching Resources
Description and Suitability
http://www1.teachertube.com/ : An alternative to YouTube and has more relevant videos and
teaching materials for educators. Also safer for students to access and use at home.
Suitable for: P - Year 12
http://www1.teachertube.com/teachervision.php : TeacherVision content is organized by subject,
grade and theme. Theme pages feature cross-curricular lessons for every area of focus,
making it simple for teachers to create a study unit that is inclusive and varied. Printable books
are compilations of the best materials within every topic studied in today's classrooms. The
content is drawn from trusted educational associations and the world's best children's
publishers, including the Council for Exceptional Children, Educators for Social Responsibility,
Houghton Mifflin Company, the National Association for Music Education, Penguin Group,
Simon & Schuster, Inc.
Suitable for: P- Year 12
http://www.ngfl-cymru.org.uk/eng/1-0-0-0_good_practice/gp-free-web-resources/gp-freesen.htm : A list of useful educational programs is also available from this site. Some are
mentioned elsewhere in this document but a few are especially useful at school and at home. All
are free to download and install on MS Windows computers.
Suitable for: P - Year 8
http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/Games/Index.html : Over a hundred games to use with
children of all abilities. It is part of the magnificent Woodlands school web resource at
http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/.
Suitable for: P - Year 8
www.tinsnips.org/index.html : Tinsnips is a special education resource that strives to share a
variety of specialized teaching tools, techniques, worksheets, and activities with teachers of
students who have autistic spectrum disorders and related developmental disabilities. Many of
these activities may be appropriate for Pre-K and Kindergarten children.
Suitable for: Pre-K and Early Years students
www.usevisualstrategies.com/welcome.aspx : This site was designed for Speech Pathologists,
educators, parents, therapists and others who work to support the learning of students with
Autism Spectrum Disorders and related learning needs. Students with Autism Spectrum
Disorders and many other students with behavior or communication challenges tend to be visual
learners. They understand what they see more effectively than what they hear. Therefore, they
benefit significantly from the use of Visual Strategies.
Suitable for: P- Year 12
http://www.wordle.net/ - Wordle is a resource for generating “word clouds” from text. The clouds
give greater prominence to words that appear more frequently in the source text. Users can
tweak their clouds with different fonts, layouts, and colour schemes. The images that are
created with Wordle can be used in many different and innovative ways. They can be printed out
or saved to the Wordle gallery to share with other students, users and friends.
Suitable for: Year 3 - Year 12
http://www.copacabana-p.schools.nsw.edu.au/Get_Quick_Smart/QS_writing.html Copacabana Public School: This school shares a really useful collection of web links for key
learning areas – these are the ‘Quick Smart Writing’ links.
Suitable for: Year 1 – Year 8
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Teaching Resources
Description and Suitability
http://www.techmatrix.org/ TECHmatrix – From the National Centre for Technology Innovation.
This is a very useful resource for locating & researching ICT technologies, particularly Inclusive
Technologies. Offers links to all major areas of the curriculum with support ideas, strategies and
documentation.
Suitable for: P-12 support for students with different abilities.
http://www.voki.com
Voki Avatars - Select a character from one of our many styles: Classic, Animals, Oddballs and
more! Change the look, clothing and accessories. Add your own voice via phone, microphone,
and text to speech or upload a file.
Suitable for: P-12 support for students with different abilities.
http://www.pppst.com/ - Pete's PowerPoint Station:
Offers numerous free MS PowerPoint presentations and resources for students of all ages and
abilities and thousands are available. The topics, themes and curriculum are extensively
covered. Some useful presentations for teachers are available from other countries on every
conceivable topic. Free activities and links to other resources.
Suitable for: P- Year 12
http://its.leesummit.k12.mo.us/powerpoint.htm : Lee’s PowerPoint Resources
This is a very comprehensive site with a great deal of information, Professional Learning,
templates and activities for PowerPoint use in education. Includes links to other sites for maths,
biology and language sites. Also offers links to templates, backgrounds and other examples.
Excellent resource for educators.
Suitable for: Year 6 - Year 12
http://www.clickspecialednz.com/links05.html Click Special Ed –- a wonderful New Zealand
website with many useful links. The Click SpecialEDnz online learning community is a dynamic
space for professionals in education to work collaboratively to improve the teaching and learning
opportunities for all students with special educational needs. It has links to many resources,
some being in New Zealand. Others are generic and appeal n design and nature. An excellent
resource.
Suitable for: P- Year 12
http://www.tizmos.com/teechkidz - Tizmos: quick links to early years and special education
sites. Great for teachers to have displayed on IWB for students to independently navigate to
their favourite sites and activities. Suitable for cause and effect, IWB and single switch activities.
Suitable for: P- Year 3 and students with different abilities.
www.animoto.com : Animoto - Turn photos, video clips, and music into masterpieces to share
with everyone. Fast, free, and very easy. A free option gives you 30 seconds of video, with extra
costs for more extensive productions and membership on a subscription per month/year basis
(and with extra effects and sound clips). Similar to Photo Story 3, but online. All you need are
some good photos.
Suitable for: P- Year 12
http://www.gamequarium.com/powerpoint.html: GameQuarium: Links to other sites for hints on
how to use PowerPoint, create resources, plan and design multimedia presentations and also
links to templates and online resources and tutorials.
Suitable for: Y6- Year 12
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Weally Wonderful Websites V8.0 2011
Teaching Resources
Description and Suitability
www.eduapps.org : A range of portable open source software and freeware programs are
available for download. EduApps (AccessApps, LearnApps and TeachApps that all run on USB
drives), MyStudyBar V3, MyVisBar, MyAccess and Convert&Create resources are all free for
educators and students. The site offers support with FAQs, videos, forums and case studies.
Resources were originally developed by Craig Mill and now hosted by Soffed Education.
Suitable for: P - Year 12 and Tertiary Updated
http://www.mnemosyne-proj.org/ Mnemosyne (Windows or Linux) - A 'build your own' flash card
program for learning just about anything. It is based on a system of repetition, similar to the
Pimsleur method. From the site: "The Mnemosyne software resembles a traditional flash-card
program to help you memorise question/answer pairs, but with an important twist: it uses a
sophisticated algorithm to schedule the best time for a card to come up for review. Difficult cards
that you tend to forget quickly will be scheduled more often, while Mnemosyne won't waste your
time on things you remember well."
Suitable for: Years 4 - 12
http://www.intrepica.com.au/index.html - Intrepica is a great early learning literacy tool with
plenty of visual feedback. Many schools in Tasmania have been using this at minimal expense,
but any State Library of Tasmania, a card holder can use the full program for free. It can be
used at school or at home with the same log in details. Parents can sign up the whole family at
no cost. (Thanks to Steven Jurgeit, Tasmania)
Suitable for: Early and Middle Levels or students with additional needs.
http://www.curetogether.com/ CureTogether - This website is extremely interesting. It covers
topics from inadequate sleep to memory, hacking, reading to improving knowledge formulating,
to illness and disability awareness. The author, Piotr A. Wozniak, is unique. Cure Together is
crowd-sourced information regarding symptoms, treatments and causes of different disabilities
and diseases. (Thanks to Rob Hanly, NSW)
Suitable for: Years 11- Educators trainers
http://www.echalk.co.uk/science/biology/eyecolour/inheritance.swf : e-Chalk Subscription - A
site where educators or parents can elect to subscribe to online educational activities, games,
quizzes, simulations and puzzles. Some samples are available on the Home page.
Suitable for: Year 1 - Year 10
http://www.schooltube.com/videos : A collection of videos that cater to educators and students,
showing videos appropriate to classroom practise.
Suitable for: Year 1 - Year 10
www.learningalive.co.uk/primary.aspx : Learning Alive is especially designed for primary &
secondary school pupils and teachers. It is here for educators to have fun and assist in
providing useful and interesting information. Three sections make up Learning Alive: Primary,
Secondary and Teachers'. These sections help users find the information that is most relevant
to them. By selecting the top right hand corner button, users can choose to automatically go
back to that section whenever they visit the website. Suitable for: Year 1 - Year 8
http://www.mylearningtube.com/c/19/Classroom_Management/ : Learning Tube: Educational
videos aimed at teachers. Caters predominantly to Secondary aged students and topics.
Suitable for: Year 6 - Year 10
http://www.tpet.co.uk/#/home This site offers displays, games, activities, resources and hard
copy printables. It is an engaging and colourful site with a great deal to offer. It was only recently
launched in April 2010 and users may need to install Flash for it to be accessed.
Suitable for: Year 1 - Year 7
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Description and Suitability
www.helpingchildrenwithdyslexia.com An extremely useful site that offers advice and support for
parents and educators in understanding dyslexia with students of all ages. This website has
been created by Liz and Andrew Dunoon with the sole intention of providing information,
resources and services to teachers and parents of children and adults who are struggling at
school and may have dyslexia.
Suitable: Students with learning disabilities, most particularly dyslexia
www.dyslexia.wordpress.com Dyslexia Tutor: News, resources, an array of web links to do with
phonics, reading, writing, spelling, autism, and other matters all relating to dyslexia.
Suitable: Students with learning disabilities
http://www.dyslexia.org/index.shtml A site advertising a program called “Reading from Scratch”.
It does have some very useful information about dyslexia and some worthwhile links to other
resources and sites.
Suitable: Students with learning disabilities, most particularly dyslexia
http://teacheffectively.com/ Teach Effectively is a source for current news and opinion about
effective teaching. Teach Effectively emphasizes evidence-based instruction and educational
practice. Although the majority of the content on Teach Effectively focuses on instruction for
students in special education (especially those with Learning Disabilities or Emotional and
Behavioural Disorders), the entries also address other disabilities (e.g., autism, ADHD) and are
applicable to students at risk for school problems.
Suitable: Students with learning disabilities
http://teachinglearnerswithmultipleneeds.blogspot.com/ : One of the most comprehensive and
resource-rich blogs on the net for valuable resources and ideas for teachers of learners with
severe, profound, intensive, significant, complex or multiple special needs. The author is Kate
Ahern. She is a teacher of learners with multiple or significant special needs. She has been
working with youngsters who have developmental disabilities since she had her first job when
she was 14 years old. Throughout high school she volunteered and then worked in special
needs classrooms and summer programs. Tens of terrific links to useful sites.
Suitable: Students with mild to complex physical and intellectual disabilities
http://newserver.iboard.co.uk/ : TESiboard resources are primarily open-ended tools that enable
teachers to engage their pupils in a learning dialogue around the resource. The resources are
designed for use by the teacher on their interactive whiteboard but many are also suitable for
pupil use, usually responding to a task or challenge set by the teacher. The TESiboard materials
were acquired by TSL Education Limited at the end of November 2009 and as a result of TSL's
current and planned future investment, all these popular resources are available for free.
http://www.dyslexikit.co.uk/ “Dyslexikit is a complete system of literacy materials for teachers
and parents who want to transform the progress of children who do not acquire the skills of
reading, spelling and handwriting in the same way, or at the same rate that most other children
seem to. Through Dyslexikit, adults will discover how to teach dozens of literacy skills and
strategies in a logical, step-by-step way using lively activities and games that readily engage the
interest of struggling learners.” Note: Packages are from the UK and are in Pounds
Suitable: Students with Learning Disabilities
http://www.adducation.com.au/ Rob Hanly works with individuals in NSW with clients who have
ADHD. “Finding out about all the facets of ADHD can be difficult, especially without the basic
foundations of understanding. To make the search for information on ADHD easier, I’ve put
together the following articles on ADHD. Before writing each article was researched using both
online and offline resources to ensure accuracy, and was then written in simple and easy to
understand terms. There are five videos as well that cater to the ‘YouTube’ generation.
Suitable: Students with ADHD
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Description and Suitability
http://www.doasone.com/ A site devoted to meditation and breathing and feeling calm. A
wonderful site for children who need to learn to relax and calm themselves. It has a number of
'rooms' - including Breathing, Laughter, Om and Full Spectrum Breathing. The site is devoted to
meditation and techniques to relax and soothe. Ideal for students with challenging behaviours.
Suitable for: All students
http://www.easilearn.com/au/ A resource site for schools using the EasiTeach suite of programs.
RM Easilearn is an online space that teachers can regularly visit to download resources, get
latest product updates, chat and share ideas with other users, and feedback on the functionality
and features within their software products.
Suitable: All students – with classrooms using IWBs with EasiTeach software
http://sites.google.com/site/huntedweb/ A very useful website that will help locate useful
websites for literacy, maths and free software programs. Each website has a thumbnail image
(similar to this document). A very useful resource for educators and particularly for parents.
Hundreds of useful and relevant websites are listed. An excellent resource to share with parents
and publish in your school newsletter or on your school web site.
Suitable for: Primary aged students
http://www.copacabana-p.schools.nsw.edu.au/Web2/web2_index.html This is one of the most
expansive and resource rich Australian school-focussed web sites. It has numerous pages and
links. This page is concerned with Web 2.0 tools. It is not exhaustive but is indicative of useful
Web 2.0 tools for Primary schools.
Suitable for: Primary aged students
http://www.commonsensemedia.org/educators : Common Sense Media is dedicated to
improving the lives of kids and families by providing the trustworthy information, education, and
independent voice they need to thrive in a world of media and technology. They exist because
children spend more time with media and digital activities than they do with their families or in
school, which profoundly impacts their social, emotional, and physical development. As a nonpartisan, not-for-profit organization, they provide information and tools, as well as an
independent forum, so that families can have a choice and a voice about the media they
consume. Suitable: Students of all ages.
http://fcit.usf.edu/matrix/matrix.php: The Technology Integration Matrix (TIM) illustrates how
teachers can use technology to enhance learning for K-12 students. The TIM incorporates five
interdependent characteristics of meaningful learning environments: active, constructive, goal
directed (i.e., reflective), authentic, and collaborative The TIM associates five levels of
technology integration (i.e., entry, adoption, adaptation, infusion, and transformation) with each
of the five characteristics of meaningful learning environments. Together, the five levels of
technology integration and the five characteristics of meaningful learning environments create a
matrix of 25 cells. Suitable: Students of all ages.
www.gosh.camden.sch.uk/page/?title=Games&pid=129 : Children's Hospital School at Great
Ormond Street. Activities for Early Years, Primary and Secondary aged students. Hundreds of
activities, games and animated sequences are available. An excellent site with numerous links
to other resources and web sites for students of all ages.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary
http://www.blake.com.au/Free-to-Download-Primary-Resources-s/1899.htm A selection of
Primary School related teaching resources – all in PDF format.
Suitable for: Primary students
http://www.primarygames.com/arcade/upbeat/index.htm A series of entertaining games for
younger students. They all involve animated effects with music and there a few from which to
choose.
Suitable for: Primary students
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http://www.e-learningforkids.org/courses.html#compskills A wonderful collection of games and
activities on many curriculum based topics.
Suitable for: Primary students
http://www.makeuseof.com/pages/the-best-of This site publishes information on a wide range of
topics dealing with ICT. This page has links to over 50 free articles and booklets, all in PDF
format, and also cover a range of important and interesting ICT areas of interest and need in
education. The ‘Best of” series is very handy as a guide to some of the leading programs and
Apps on iPads, MS Windows and MAC OS computers.
Suitable for: All students
http://www.bayswaterps.vic.edu.au/lote/interactive.html A very comprehensive list of useful
LOTE resources for education, with Bayswater Primary School as the host. The sites have been
chosen as ones that work well with Interactive Whiteboards.
Suitable for: All students
http://www.primaryresources.co.uk/ A very diverse and comprehensive list of resources from
RM in the UK. It covers practically all curriculum topics and has numerous areas of interest for
both educators and students. A wonderful online resource with practical and useful content. It
caters predominantly to primary aged students but resources could be easily adapted to suit
older students who require differentiated content.
Suitable for: All students
http://search.spacetime.com/ Fantastic visual search engine for locating graphics, Wikipedia
articles and especially for YouTube content. Visually exciting and easy to use. Ideal for IWB and
easy access for students. Caters directly to students with ID or who prefer visual information.
An exciting and engaging interface where links are launched in new tabs.
Suitable for: All students
http://www.21stcenturyschoolteacher.com/cool-websites.html On this site you will find a variety
of resources including cool websites and tip sheets that support 21st century teaching
strategies. Also check out Nicole's blog, an ongoing resource of new ideas and applications for
the classroom, as well as conversation about current events in education. It has links to all
number of resources, most particularly some great Web 2.0 tools.
Suitable for: All students
http://c4lpt.co.uk/top-tools/top-100-tools-for-learning-2011/ C4LPT stands for 'Centre for
Learning & Performance Technologies'. This is their 5th annual survey of learning tools that
they have built based on the contributions of learning professionals worldwide. An excellent
resource as it reflects what educators consider to be the most useful tools for classroom
practise. There are 229 favourites listed before the top 100 are selected for 2011.
Suitable for: All students
http://findpdf.net/ This is a useful site for students and educators to locate and download PDF or
convert them to text. It searches the web for a topic, name of title of potential PDF files that are
stored on the web. A very useful research tool! It boasts that it can locate over 250 million PDF
books, tutorials and eBooks.
Suitable for: All students
http://beanbaglearning.com/resources A very long list of appropriate and useful websites for
educators to explore. It has pages of links with descriptors to encourage teachers and trainers to
explore the wealth of information available online.
Suitable for: All educators
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Description and Suitability
http://www.online-stopwatch.com/ This is a functional yet fun site. It lists a series of online clocks
and timers. Teachers can use these effectively to set times, count-down clocks and alarms for
starting or finishing classroom activities. They can also be used effectively by aides or parents to
monitor computer usage and remind students to stop, or take a break. Also caters to students
who are reluctant to finish – unless the computer tells them to!
Suitable for: All educators
http://newfreescreensavers.com/screensavers/category/clocks A series of free screen savers,
where classrooms can choose different themes. This link refers to the many online clock
screensavers. While the computers in the pod, classroom or library are not being used, the
screen will display the time, some with date and other functions. They are all theme based and
can be downloaded, saved and installed – freely at school or at home. There are numerous
other categories as well as free wallpapers.
Suitable for: All educators
http://www.bestwallpaperworld.com/page2.html?spu=true&partner=ZRxdm934 A large collection
of free wallpapers to download and install for classroom computers or for student Notebooks
and Netbooks. Ideal to engage students with special needs.
Suitable for: All educators
http://www.doodle.com/ An easy scheduling and collaboration tool for setting up an event across
a classroom or school. Ideal for home use for families as well. There is no cost and it is easy to
schedule an event and invite others to participate.
Suitable for: All educators
http://needtomeet.com/ Another handy web site that allows educators and/or students to create
a calendar of events and schedule appointments, meetings or events. Participants can interact
and be kept informed and up-to-date as long as they have an internet connection – anywhere,
anytime. People can see everyone’s availability at a glance. With no need for emailing back and
forth or playing phone tag. Educators can organize a recurring meeting and use NeedToMeet's
simple interface to find a regular time for their group or year level/faculty to meet.
Suitable for: All educators
http://www.wordnik.com/ Wordnik is all the words, and everything about them. The site’s
creators believe that students understand words best when they can see them in real-world
context, so there are some real-world examples for "Wordnik": Wordnik is based on the
principle that people learn words best by seeing them in context. An interesting concept and a
clever and engaging interface that might appeal to some students.Suitable for: Secondary
Suitable for: Students and to all educators
http://www.microsofttranslator.com/ A service from Microsoft via their Bing portal. This site will
translate a language into numerous other languages. It has a clean interface and is intuitive and
easy to use. Suitable for: Students and to all educators
http://translate.google.com/# Another useful translation service on the web. Google Translate is
a free translation service that provides instant translations between 58 different languages. It
can translate words, sentences and web pages between any combinations of their supported
languages. With Google Translate, they hope to make information universally accessible and
useful, regardless of the language in which it’s written.
Suitable for: Students and to all educators
http://au.babelfish.yahoo.com/ Yet another popular translation engine that will translate any text
typed into the window, copied from another source or it will even translate a web page, providing
the user pastes in the desired URL.
Suitable for: Students and to all educators
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Description and Suitability
http://livebinders.com/play/play/110653 One of the most comprehensive lists of teaching
resources that I’ve seen so far. The Livebinders site has been cleverly employed to categorise
and list a large number of useful resources. Well worth investigating as there will definitely be
something on this site for everyone. It’s also worth creating a Livebinder account yourself and
having a play. Suitable for: Students and to all educators
http://www.cereproc.com/en/sapivoices A selection of text to speech voices is available from
this UK site. A site where educators can listen to high quality voices from the UK and United
States. Users can also elect to purchase voices (offered in UK pounds sterling). One of the
companies that create and distribute TTS voices.
Suitable for: For all educators
http://www.nextup.com/?gclid=CJSo9pXQgqwCFY1S4godOFLxIQ Another site where users
can listen to a variety of voices from AT&T, Acapela Group, RealSpeak TTS and Cepstral. The
Next Up site also offers the TextAloud TTS program, available for MS Windows computers.
Suitable for: For all educators
http://www.lakemunmorah.ps.education.nsw.gov.au/onlineworksheets/worksheets.htm Lake Munmorah
Public School in NSW freely offer some online worksheets that are designed as a short research activity,
a quick and easy way to encourage students to actively participate on the internet, suitable for P-6. A
range of SOSE topics are covered with Cloze exercises and Treasure Hunts in PDF format.
Suitable for: For Primary
http://www.copacabana-p.schools.nsw.edu.au/tch_links/teachers_index.htm An extremely rich site for
teachers as this IT aware school in NSW has listed so many suitable resources for educators, all in one
location. It is well worth book marking and remembering this site for all Primary school staff.
Suitable for: All Primary students
http://www.bilambil-p.schools.nsw.edu.au/contents2.html Bilambi Public School min NSW offers a bright,
inviting graphics-based page with hyperlinks to maths, literacy, SOSE and history resources. Many of the
resources are ideal for use with IWBs and touch screens.
Suitable for: All Primary students
http://www.yowiebayps.com.au/interactive/General_NOTEbook_sites.htm Links from Yowie Bay PS in
NSW to a number of international sites for useful Smart Notebook resources. These can be used with
Smart Interactive Whiteboards using Smart Notebook software.
Suitable for: All Primary students
http://www.teachertechnologies.com/ A site devoted to inform teachers about IT resources. It has some
useful links, some free software and Web 2.0 tools and newsworthy items about IWB and teaching and
learning resources. Worth checking from time to time. The free Interactive Whiteboard links are useful as
well as the podcasting information and tips.
Suitable for: All Primary and Secondary students
http://www.anpslibrary.com/ Another school in NSW that has shared their wonderful links on every topic
imaginable! All links have icons and the site provides hundreds of links to teaching and learning resources
on atypical areas of need. One of the better school sites with appeal to almost anyone. One to definitely
bookmark!
Suitable for: All Primary students and educators
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Description and Suitability
http://www.mrsmacslibrary.com/research-tasks.html Webquests have been popular in many
schools. First invented by Bernie Dodge, a webquest is a web based research task where
students collect information from a series of links organised by the webquest author. They
originally were designed for group work, to foster co operation, but can also be completed by
individuals. The site also offers information on book week, teacher librarian links (cleverly
designed using Glogster) and information on Information Literacy.
Suitable for: All Primary students and educators
http://www.illawarrasouthcoast.sreg.education.nsw.gov.au/updates.html - These are useful
stage-based activities . The Teacher Resources section is well designed and easy to navigate
and explore. The Interactive Resou8rces offer some very worthwhile resources and links.
Suitable for: All Primary and Secondary students and educators
http://members.ozemail.com.au/~slacey/ An excellent site with numerous links to research tools,
encyclopedias, teacher resources and fun stuff for kids. Well designed and executed, it offers
hours of exploration. One of the best education and practical teaching and learning resource I’ve
discovered recently. [Note: Thanks to Lee Blunt for many of the new teacher resource links]
Suitable for: All Primary and Secondary students and educators
http://www.ideastoinspire.co.uk/ A visual delight with shared resources from educators around
the world. Each icon links to a resource or presentation that can be viewed, downloaded or
printed. Wonderful lesson plan and ideas, with a great deal of variety and choice.
Suitable for: All Primary and Secondary students and educators
http://people.uncw.edu/ertzbergerj/msgames.htm This site promotes the use of games to
enhance learning and to motivate students. This site contains downloadable games, game
templates, and utilities that teachers and trainers can use to enhance any lesson. Educators can
download the Games as MS PowerPoint Games, Excel Games, Word Games and Timers. The
utilities and timers are ideal for students with ID, ASD or short attention span.
Suitable for: All Primary and Secondary students and educators
http://2sparkley.edublogs.org/home/ Sparkley’s Edublog is a very useful site with regularly
updated links. Site includes Presentations, Wikis, Quotes, Resources, Fonts and Videos are all
available.
Suitable for: All Primary and Secondary students and educators
http://www.writingfun.com/ This site encourages and promotes the using text organisers to
assist students with the writing process. Free levelled examples and blank organisers are made
freely available.
Suitable for: All Primary and Secondary students and educators
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Description and Suitability
http://www.communication4all.co.uk/http/IWB%20Resources.htm A UK site devoted to the use
and promotion of Interactive Whiteboards, but with a clear emphasis on inclusion and
communication. It is ideal for special classes and special school settings. PowerPoint
resources are just a click away and the choice of Self Regulation resources is stunning. A
number of very practical and useful resources for busy teachers. Topics include: Seasons,
weather, timetables.
Suitable for: All Primary and children with special needs
http://www.edutecher.com/ EduTeacher Resources is a non-profit site that links to valuable
web tools and resources. All links contain an explanation and can be sorted by grade and
subject. Beautifully designed and laid out it is an excellent resource with some wonderful links.
Suitable for: All Primary and Secondary students and educators
http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/collection.jsp?id=447 The Scholastic - SMART Lesson
Collection provides classroom based ready-made Notebook lessons and a useful search facility
for IWB users.
Suitable for: All educators
http://www.interactivewhiteboard.net.au/lessons/primary.aspx All of the Primary SMART
Notebooks are organised into the specific year groups. Each Notebook has an accompanying
blurb, which briefly describes its content. Where necessary the SMART Notebooks contain
teacher's notes explaining what to do on individual pages. The Notebooks themselves can be
downloaded for free and again modified to suit the needs of your students.
Suitable for: All Primary and Secondary students and educators
http://www.center.k12.mo.us/contentm/easy_pages/easy_page_view.php?sid=1&page_id=334
Interactive Internet Resources is a very comprehensive list of interactive links sorted by
subject, to be used on SMART IWBs.
Suitable for: All Primary and Secondary students and educators
http://www.teacherled.com/ Teacher LED - Interactive Whiteboard Resources for Teachers site
provides practical teaching and learning resources to make the use of the interactive
whiteboard in the classroom easier and more productive.
Suitable for: All educators
http://www.symbaloo.com/mix/tools4teachers TOOLS4teachers represents an extensive
collection of tools for educators who teach with Interactive Whiteboards and particularly with
Web 2.0 site resources. Educators can create your their page. It is an ideal and powerful way
to graphically present, deliver and organise all of a teacher’s favourite links for the IWB and to
assist students who require visual supports.
Suitable for: Secondary students and educators
http://www.onlineuniversities.com/blog/2010/01/100-incredible-educational-virtual-tours-youdont-want-to-miss/ A terrific site for 100 Incredible & Educational Virtual World Tours. The 360
degree virtual tours bring opportunities to explore cities, famous landmarks and buildings,
museums, college campuses, and even outer space. Students can learn how things are made;
explore the human body or that of a life-sized whale, and visit ball parks and theme parks.
Suitable for: All educators
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http://livebinders.com/play/play_or_edit?id=39128 Christmas Activities galore. Fun Christmas
activities that have been compiled by Mrs Westwood of Cardiff North Public School. It is a very
extensive list of resources and links and will serve as a very practical one-stop shop site for
everything to do about Christmas in the classroom. Another great resource for parents as well.
Suitable for: All educators particularly K-6.
http://www.abcteach.com/ The ABC Teach site offers many wonderful items for class use and
also class tools for students to design their own work. They are really useful especially the word
find maker that can be made into different shapes. The attractive look and feel is inviting and it
is a very well designed web site and easy to navigate and explore the many and varied
resources.
Suitable for: All educators especially primary
http://cybraryman.com/teachertools.html Cybrary Man's Educational Websites - Teacher Tools
boasts having over 20,000 relevant links personally selected by an educator with over 30 years
of experience. The initial interface is a bit dry and text based - but the resources are extensive.
Suitable for: All educators
http://belm.wordpress.com/ Miss Martin's Classroom boasts a number of practical resources,
videos, displays. They are all sorted and categorised by topic as well as KLA. A really well
designed site and very appealing in design. Intuitive and east to locate teaching resources.
Suitable for: All Primary K-6 and educators
http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/training/FX100565001033.aspx%20 Sydney Region Software
Tutorials were provided to participants involved in Sydney Region ICT projects. All files are in
PDF format and are written for the MS Windows version of their Office software. These are the
exact course notes that you would receive if you attended any of these Sydney Region Courses.
Educators can also participate in free training tutorials directly from this Microsoft website.
Suitable for: All educators
http://www.teachingandlearningresources.co.uk/sitemap.shtml
The site is provides stimulating, interactive resources for children from ages 7 to 11 attending
Primary School. In the Learning section, educators will find specially created interactive
resources written to support learning in the UK. All the resources in this section have been
written by Dianne Hawkins, a teacher with over 17 years' experience in the classroom teaching
pupils aged 7 to 13. Resources include crosswords, multiple choice exercises, cloze procedure,
word searches, web quests, games and more.
Suitable for: All Primary K-6 and educators NEW
http://www.superteacherworksheets.com/ This site provides thousands of printables for
teachers, homeschoolers, and parents - and it's all free. The links are clearly clearly presented
and categorised. All curriculum areas are covered with maths, language arts, science, and
printables for spelling, phonics and grammar as well as teacher tools. An excellent resource for
teachers and their support staff working with children with differentiated programs.
Suitable for: All educators NEW
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Description and Suitability
http://www.fcrr.org/interventions/Interventions.shtm This site lists some useful interventions for
students who struggle with reading. This is only one section of the Florida Center for Reading
Research. Other interesting and valuable links are available to articles, documents, videos and
other sites pertaining to reading.
Suitable for: All educators NEW
http://www.lessonplanet.com/lesson-plans This site boasts having over 400,000+ Teacher
Reviewed Online Lesson Plans and Worksheets. It is beautifully designed and very easy to
search and locate suitable classroom lesson plans. An extremely comprehensive resource that
will save educators time and effort. It is subscription based with a ten day free trial period.
Suitable for: All educators NEW
http://www.adrianbruce.com/ In recent years Adrian Bruce has developed a reputation
nationally and internationally in the field of education as an, 'exemplary user of Information and
Communication Technologies in the modern classroom'. In his teaching career so far he has
taught all grades from Kinder to Yr 6. He has taught in various social contexts and has taught
Special Needs students as well as Gifted and Talented Students. This is his free site with links
to useful resources.
Suitable for: All educators NEW
http://www.primaryworksheets.co.uk/ Online worksheets for maths from P-6. The worksheets
can be regenerated then printed. An excellent resource for students to practise maths offline.
Quick and easy to create suitable lessons or worksheets for revision or practise.
Suitable for: Primary students NEW
https://www.studyladder.com.au/ Study Ladder is a highly effective, logically organised,
Mathematics and Literacy program. It has been developed by experienced educators to inspire
and motivate learning. It is suitable for Primary and Junior High School students and is very
easy to use - students simply login with a username and password to access all the learning
materials.
Suitable for: Primary and Junior Secondary students NEW
http://www.teachingideas.co.uk/ This site is hosted in the UK by RM software. It has been in
existence since 1998 and has a wealth of practical teaching and learning resources across the
entire curriculum. It provides lesson plans, activities with help sheets in PDF or MS Word file
format along with handy and informative videos.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students NEW
http://www.worksheets4teachers.com/ A comprehensive guide to free online worksheets for K12 Educators. On this site educators will find: Worksheets, Printables, Units, Theme Pages,
Crosswords, Puzzles, Workbooks, Awards and Certificates. They boast having suitable
materials for educators and support staff.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students NEW
http://www.worksheetlibrary.com/ The Worksheet Library is a subscription-based site hosted in
the US. It boasts having 19,340+ K-8 Worksheets, with printable worksheets with 972
Worksheets being provided freely.
Suitable for: K-Year 8 students NEW
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Teaching Resources
Description and Suitability
http://www.teachthis.com.au/ An Australian based site with a subscription cost. There are some
free printables and worksheets as well for educators. Popular fonts are also used in the design
and production of their resources. The site currently offers 7,881 pages of resources. Teacher
resources, classroom games and activities to print or purchase for teachers, parents, tutors and
homeschoolers
Suitable for: K-Year 8 students NEW
http://www.sitesforteachers.com/ There are hundreds of web sites all relating to teaching
resources that are rated by popularity. It is not an ideal guide to quality but at least educators
might be able to locate some useful sites using the listings.
Suitable for: All educators NEW
http://www.math-drills.com/ Math-Drills.Com includes over 10,000 free math worksheets with
answer keys. Classroom teachers can use the free math worksheets on this website to assess
students' mastery of basic math facts, to give students extra practice, to teach new math
strategies, and to save planning time. Parents can use the free math worksheets on this
website to give their children extra practice with essential math skills.
Suitable for: All educators NEW
http://www.cap.nsw.edu.au/ This is the NSW Country Area site that provides information and
links to education based sites, articles and teaching resources and news.’ This website is an
online repository of information, news, curriculum resources and activities predominantly aimed
at supporting rural and remote country schools of NSW that receive Country Areas Program
(CAP) funding. The material on this site is also highly applicable to Access and Distance
education schools.’
Suitable for: All educators NEW
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Disability Related Sites
Description and Suitability
http://www.disabilityfilms.co.uk/ Disabilityfilms.co.uk is providing films and information about
disabled. They make it easy for users to understand and take part of their films. UK based but
has global appeal and application. This is a new site so hopefully it will be populated by content
soon (as at April 2011)
Suitable for: All ages
http://www.iidc.indiana.edu/?pageId=34/ This is the Centre for Disability Information and
Referral (CeDIR). Users can browse through their library of over 8,000 disability-related books,
videos and kits. The links at left of the home page will help users navigate through the site.
Users may not be able to borrow the resources but can at least identify them and source locally
in Australia.
Suitable for: All ages
http://www.iidc.indiana.edu/cedir/kidsweb/ ‘Have you ever wondered what it's like to have a
disability? How does a person who can't see read? Can a person with a physical disability play
sports? If you couldn't hear, how would you talk with your friends? Do people with disabilities get
frustrated, or have friends or like ice cream?’
This web site can help users begin to answer their questions about disabilities.
Suitable for: All ages
http://www.thedailystar.net/law/2004/02/03/ Human Rights Advocacy – ‘One tenth of the world's
population live with some kind of disability. Human rights violations against disabled people are
widespread, and often acutely dehumanising. Across the globe, disabled people are routinely
subjected to horrifying denials of their basic human rights, suffering inhumane and degrading
treatment, discrimination and violations of rights to life, education, privacy, family life, education. In
addition to being disabled by institutions, social policies and attitudes, often the very laws intended to
protect and uphold our human dignity, undermine the enjoyment of disabled people's rights.
Critically, people with disabilities seldom enjoy equal access to justice and the ability to assert their
most basic rights through legal processes.’
http://www.newcastle.edu.au/service/ndco/what-is-a-disability.html - The University of Newcastle
has an excellent reputation for promoting issues relating to empowering students (and people in
general) with disabilities. It is well worth investigating the many aspects and links on this very
comprehensive site. Also refer to: http://www.newcastle.edu.au/service/ndco/useful-links.html
for a list of links to relevant peak bodies.
Suitable for: All ages most particularly University and higher learning
http://www.aacandautism.com/ ‘The Centre for AAC & Autism believes that every child has the
desire and the ability to communicate despite physical and neurological challenges. By
providing specialized clinical training to health care professionals, teachers, and parents...
empowering clients and families with education, resources, and information... and supporting
clinical research, our aim is to give all children the ability to speak their mind and heart and
become engaged in their world.’
Suitable for: All ages most particularly students with ASD.
http://www.yooralla.com.au/eci.php - Yooralla Early Intervention services. ‘The first few years of
life for a family with a child who has developmental delay or disability can be challenging. It is a
time when parents and care-givers discover new strengths and abilities to make a lasting,
positive impact on their family and child's lifelong development.’
Suitable for: Pre School and Kindergarten
http://www.scopevic.org.au/index.php/site/resources#Disability_awareness – SCOPE: Links to
disability services and many different areas of need, catering predominantly to people with
physical disabilities.
Suitable for: All ages
http://www.visionaustralia.org.au/info.aspx?page=629 ‘Vision Australia produces a range of
materials and resources that will benefit a variety of people such as those working with people
who are blind or have low vision, architects, school students, and business and government
wanting information about accessibility.’
Suitable for: All ages
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Disability Related Sites
Description and Suitability
http://www.svrc.vic.edu.au/ATdistributors.shtml An excellent and very useful resource from
the Statewide Vision Resource Centre in Victoria. Suppliers and sources of equipment and other
resources for students with vision impairments are listed alphabetically. The necessary and
relevant contact details and a brief description of products and services are included. Where
available, suppliers and sites in Victoria, Australia are provided.
Suitable for: All ages and adults with vision loss/impairment/needs
http://www.lazeetek.com/html/links.html#Keyboards Listed in clearly defined categories are an
extensive list of freeware and shareware programs along with a few of the more modestly priced
ones. These programs are designed to make interacting with a computer easier. They include
mice, keyboards, cursors, magnification and other navigation tools. The site creators do not
support, recommend, or sponsor any of these products or sites as they are provided only as a
courtesy. An extremely useful resource!
Suitable for: All ages and abilities/disabilities
http://mspilcare.com/Default.aspx This site provides a training course for school teachers who
are developing their ICT skills. "ICT Accessibility" focuses on the use of the PC for children with
disabilities, and describes how an MS Windows computer, Notebook or Netbook can work for
them and support their disabilities. Extremely engaging with high quality graphics, animation and
voiced instructions and feedback.
Suitable for: All ages and abilities/disabilities
http://newsok.com/blind-iphone-users-discover-a-wealth-of-useful-apps/article/3586744 A news
item and video of how the iPhone can accommodate those users who are vision impaired or
blind. It demonstrated the power of using the inbuilt camera with the use of ‘Voiceover’ to
identify and denote the value of American money. Hopefully the start of a trend for all
currencies?
Suitable for: All ages and abilities/disabilities
http://www.adhdsocialskills.com/925-2/ This site caters to students who have ADHD. On this site
there is a free guide that will show students the five habits that socially successful people have
in common with each other. It describes how ADHD sufferers can use these habits immediately
for making friends and improving social amenity and skills. It is a matter of knowing what to do
and when. A request is as simple as filling in the student’s name and email address. Rob Hanly,
the site’s creator, will send the student a free copy.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students
http://www.additudemag.com/resources/printables.html This web resource site will help adults
and children with ADD ADHD with links, free Resources and ADDitude Printables. It lists advice
on treatment, school and organization help for adults and children with ADD ADHD. Users can
download free PDF handouts about attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADD/ADHD), with
symptoms, medication, treatment, school, help, info, parenting and organization resources and
advice for adults and parents of children ADD/ADHD.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students and adults
http://www.ldonline.org/ This is a leading website on learning disabilities and ADHD, serving
more than 200,000 parents, teachers, and other professionals each month. LD OnLine seeks to
help children and adults reach their full potential by providing accurate and up-to-date
information and advice about learning disabilities and ADHD. The site features hundreds of
helpful articles, multimedia, monthly columns by noted experts, children’s writing and artwork, a
comprehensive resource guide, very active forums and a Yellow Pages referral directory of
professionals, schools, and products (note: US based).
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students
http://www.ldworldwide.org/ A very comprehensive resource that will provide information about
Learning Disabilities, its history, interventions and online resources that can assist students,
educators and parents. An excellent site. Learning Disabilities Worldwide envisions a world
where learning disabilities (LD) are universally understood, accepted, and effectively addressed.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students
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Disability Related Sites
Description and Suitability
http://www.abc.net.au/rampup/ This ABC site is all about disability issues, news, discussion and
debate. As it is local, it is a voice for parents, advocates and educators. Worth checking from time
to time or setting up an RSS feed. The audio feeds are very useful for people with vision loss, print
handicap and cater to struggling and non-readers.
Suitable for: Parents and educators of students with disabilities
http://www.communicationmatrix.org/ This is an online assessment resource designed for students
of all ages who function at the earliest stages of communication and who use any form of
communication. The website provides details about levels of communication, communication
behaviours, how to use the tool and how to interpret and use the results generated in the matrix. It
is a useful and practical tool for educators and therapists.
Suitable for: For all educators and therapists
http://faculty.washington.edu/dowden/tcollab_aac_files/aac_module_scanning/aac_scanning_about_intro.htm
An interesting site investigating how ‘scanning’ works – with switches. Scanning is where the items
in the selection set are presented sequentially over time and the user makes a selection indirectly,
typically via one or two switches. This is a handy online computer simulation of switching. After
users experiment they can read as the authors describe the aspects of scanning that are important
to understand.
Suitable for: For all educators and therapists
http://projectstay.com/index.shtml Project STAY originated as a special education grant in 1995 to
provide technical assistance to schools and families in Northeast Kansas, USA. During this time,
Project STAY field-tested a problem-solving model to be used with children exhibiting challenging
behaviours. This problem-solving model includes functional behavioural assessment, family and
school communication, academic curriculum assessment and development, learning strategies,
and system analysis.
[Thanks to Lee Blunt for this link]
Suitable for: For all educators and therapists
http://www.1800wheelchair.ca/news/post/A-Guide-to-Assistive-Technology-in-K-12-Schools.aspx A
guide to assistive technologies.
Suitable for: For all educators and therapists
http://www.readingrockets.org/article/33074/ This site is devoted to reading. This article discusses
Assistive Technology: ‘Assistive technology (AT) is available to help individuals with many types of
disabilities — from cognitive problems to physical impairment. This article will focus specifically on
AT for individuals with learning disabilities (LD).’ It is a very comprehensive site with multiple links
to reading resources, tools and research. An excellent site.
Suitable for: For all educators
http://www.dsaq.org.au/aboutus.htm A site for parents and educators that is devoted to students
with Down syndrome. It is Queensland based and has some useful links to resources. Some
objectives include to support encourage and inform people with Down syndrome and their family
groups; and to educate, inform and support health, educational and other professionals, students,
support network members and the wider community.
Suitable for: For all educators and therapists
http://www.senict.co.uk/index.php UK based site. ‘You are invited to explore the use of ICT support
for children with additional learning needs in mainstream schools within our Borough. To examine
the model initiated by the Special Educational Needs Support Unit (SENSU). To share good
practice, to act as an informative tool for SEN Coordinators within the Authority, to disseminate new
information from DCSF and to seek guidance from experts within our Authority.’
Suitable for: For all educators and therapists NEW
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Disability Related Sites
Description and Suitability
http://www.kenttrustweb.org.uk/senict/ This website contains information and resources designed
to empower schools and professionals to effectively support children with Special Educational
Needs through the use of ICT. The website offers information on interventions for pupils with
different needs types, a library containing downloadable teaching resources and publications and
information about how and where to find resources such as software and equipment. Designed for
schools in Kent in the UK.
Suitable for: For all educators and therapists NEW
http://www.connsensebulletin.com/ A really useful site with opinion pieces, reviews, articles and
information with links to disability related issues. It has handy categories on news of AT devices,
information, resources, videos and Podcasts.
Suitable for: For all educators and therapists NEW
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Freeware & Open Source
Description and Suitability
http://www.collegedegree.com/library/college-life/100_web_tools_for_learning_with_disability This
site lists 100 freeware and Open Source programs that cater to students and people who have
disabilities.
Note: This list was published in 2008 so some software has finished, some links are no longer
active and others have listed programs that have been made commercially and are no longer
available. It is still a useful list, nonetheless.
Suitable for: All ages
http://www.oatsoft.org/ OATSoft is dedicated to improving Assistive Technology and computer
accessibility through the power of Open Source development techniques. OATSoft makes the best
Open Source Assistive Technology Software (OATS) easy to find. Users and developers meet at
OATSoft to create better software. An excellent resource.
Suitable for: All ages
http://resources.imvc.com.au/broadenhorizons/index_new.asp?MainNavID=9&NavID=71&a=9&b=0
This is a Victorian based website accommodating students 16+ with information about post school
options. It is hosted by the Inner Melbourne Vet Cluster with NDCO support. It is a list of software
programs that I compiled in 2009 and is frequently checked and updated. If you link to ‘Home’ it will
provide users with an overview of the site. It is an excellent resource for educators and for parents
and students themselves to locate services for students after they leave school.
Suitable for: All Ages (Software) and particularly suited to Secondary (especially 16+ students)
http://www.ebility.com/links/software.php ‘The software links have been compiled as an information
resource and inclusion does not indicate endorsement by e-bility’. Another useful list of software
including about 40 programs explicitly for disability.
Note: Some programs may not be available any more.
Suitable for: All ages
http://fullmeasure.co.uk/ This site lists some of my favourite programs including PowerTalk (for
PowerPoint users), Touch CD and ClipTalk. ‘Full Measure helps users get the most from
computers and IT with free open source accessibility and assistive technology software.’ It is part of
the OATS initiative and has some useful links to other sites and resources.
Suitable for: All ages
http://teachinglearnerswithmultipleneeds.blogspot.com/2009/07/kates-list-of-free-software-forsevere.html Kate Ahern’s web site/Blog caters to ‘Teaching Learners with Multiple Special Needs’.
It has numerous links to many useful resources and ideas for teachers of learners with severe,
profound, intensive, significant, complex or multiple special needs. It is one of THE best sites for
disability. It is very comprehensive and has practical ideas, videos and articles as well as hundreds
of links to other resources. Suitable for: All ages
http://tux4kids.alioth.debian.org/ Tux4Kids develops high-quality software with the goal of
combining fun and learning into an irresistible package. Their software is free: uses can download it
for use at home or onto hundreds of computers in a school. They support all major platforms,
including Windows, MAC OS and Linux/Unix. The programs have been translated into dozens of
different languages. As open-source software, the programs can be freely extended or customized,
and they are supported by active communities of volunteer developers (Tux Paint/Maths/Typing)
Suitable for: Primary to Junior Secondary and to students with ID
http://www.theopendisc.com/ Open Disk (from Open Schools project) promotes freeware, more
particularly Open Source software aimed and targeted at schools. The latest Open Disk Project
V10.12 was released in 2010 on 7th December and is still current. It offers a range of some of the
most popular programs and utilities.
Suitable for: All ages
www.tucows.com and http://www.butterscotch.com//top-100-free-software.html TUCOWS has
always been one of the more comprehensive sites for locating and acquiring Shareware (try before
you buy) and Freeware (completely free or free to trial or demos) programs
Suitable for: All ages
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Freeware & Open Source
Description and Suitability
http://web.mac.com/simon_elliott/simon_elliott@mac.com/Software.html : This site offers a
complete range of MAC OS freeware and open source software. There are over 100 programs
included in the Education and Science section. The software is all arranged by icon and
descriptor. The links navigate to sites where the MAC software can be downloaded and then
installed. Be sure to check the Operating System that caters to your MAC computer. One of the
better freeware sites.
Suitable for: All Ages
http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/unix_open_source/ : This is a list of freeware that is
either Unix or Open Source based that will operate on a MAC computer. By clicking on the ‘Home
and Learning Tab’ users will discover a range of free programs that are available for download.
Widgets are also available from this site. Programs for maths, science, productivity, imaging and
3D, art and design as well as calendars, icons and screensavers are listed.
Suitable for: All ages
http://www.freemacware.com/ : FreeMacWare lists Apple MAC OS and iPod/iPhone and iPad
apps. It highlights a program every day. It offers a worthwhile list of education focussed programs
as well as all other genres. There are 110 programs listed as educational software, each with a
descriptor. Users can request RRS feeds or email contact to locate software automatically. ‘We
only review freeware for Mac OS X, and we aren’t trying to find all the freeware out — just the
best. We review freeware that both we and our readers have found, and we post everyday’.
Suitable for: All Ages
http://www.schoolfreeware.com/Downloads.html : A list of suitable free software that
accommodates students with varying degrees of difference. The software is either Freeware or
Open Source. Most of it will install and work on Windows XP-Windows Vista versions. Note:
Some may not work with Windows 7 or 64-bit versions of MS Windows.
Suitable: Students of all ages. Some specific to disability groups/needs.
http://www.serif.com/free-graphic-design-software/?mc=SETWj100 : A free drawing program,
DrawPlus design is easy to use, is ideal for designing web graphics and creative print projects
where students can draw, paint & sketch. They can design professional-quality logos and
graphics. The software has web support with ‘How To’ guides and a comprehensive help system.
The software is free to download, install and use.
Suitable for: Upper primary and Secondary
http://mediaaccess.org.au/latest_news/general/a-comparison-of-free-and-low-c
ost-screen-magnifiers. This site lists the free screen magnifiers that are available for download
and use on computers. Media Access Australia’s web accessibility team has reviewed several
free and low cost screen magnifiers and their common features
Suitable for: Upper primary and Secondary students and for adults
http://www.microsoft.com/australia/education/teachers/teachertools/free-tools.aspx There are
free, captivating, digital tools from Microsoft including AutoCollage - create an artful photo poster
using this fun collage-making tool; Microsoft Photosynth - explore famous places with cinematic
quality using these virtual, visual 3-D tours; Windows Live Movie Maker - the fast, easy way to
turn photos and video clips into great-looking movies and slideshows to share in class or on the
Web. Educators/parents can download the Teacher's Guide and learn about 12 free tools.
Suitable for: Upper primary and Secondary students and for adults
http://www.makeuseof.com/tags/royalty-free / The MakeUseOf team lists the most tagged (or
labelled) royalty free resources that can be accessed on the web at no cost to educators and
students. It features resources such as music, photos, sound effects and graphics. Links are live
and the most popular 'viewed' are rated according to popularity.
Suitable for: All students
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Freeware & Open Source
Description and Suitability
http://www.appappeal.com/apps/education/ This site lists 40 useful applications for free download
and use for education. It has links to many other applications as well. Every entry is rated and has
a well written review and also mentions comparable applications.
Suitable for: All students
http://www.greyolltwit.com/educational.html#English A wonderful site created years ago by a
gentleman by the name of Grey Olltwit. The site offers a number of simple yet very effective
software programs for MS Windows. They are well designed and many cater to students with
different learning needs and styles. It is well worth joining as educators receive a free CD or DVD
with many more games and other content for use in classrooms. One of the best sites on the web.
I have used his resources for over 20 years in schools.
Suitable for: Primary and junior Secondary students
http://www.techsupportalert.com/content/best-free-online-applications-and-services.htm A very
useful list of free online applications, many of which will cater to educators and trainers. They
range in usage and functionality and cater to classroom application. They are all listed under
categories for easy reference.
Suitable for: Primary and junior Secondary students
http://www.wix.com/missdiscepola/freewebtoolsforschools# Free web tools are listed graphically
and contain some very handy online tools that are suitable for classroom use. Some of my
favourites are Animoto, Prezi, Wordle and Glogster.
Suitable for: Primary and junior Secondary students
http://www.spoonbillsoftware.com.au/sightedgamers.htm This site is essentially a resource for
students who are blind or vision impaired. All of the games and activities have been designed to
suit their needs. An excellent and handy resource from Western Australia. All activities are free.
There are two sections – one for blind gamers, the other for sighted users.
Suitable for: Primary and junior Secondary students with vision loss
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Web Browsers
Description and Suitability
http://tweensbrowser.com/ Tween Online: For students 7-12, a series of browsers that are safe to
use and link to Key Learning Areas. Predominantly graphical in design, they are intuitive, safe and
easy to navigate. Download the free program, install and use straight away. No advertising, pop
ups or security issues and it’s safe to use at home or at school. Only educational and leisure
based sites are listed, all catering to student needs.
Suitable for: 3- Year 7 and students with different abilities
http://www.clubpenguin.com/parents/club_penguin_guide.htm - Club Penguin is free to access
and use club online for junior students. Theme based, it provides many activities that are suitable
for early years and students with different abilities. Ideal for home access. It is free but there is a
cost for advanced and extra features.
Suitable for: 1- Year 3 and students with different abilities
www.zacbrowser.com : Zac Browser is a totally free software package. It is the first Internet
browser developed specifically for children living with variants of autism spectrum disorders (ASD),
Asperger syndrome, Rett syndrome, childhood disintegrative disorder, PDD not otherwise
specified and PDD-NOS, also called atypical autism. Zac Browser was designed to offer a
pleasant, rewarding and secure experience. Children sing, play and discover the best that the
Internet has to offer with only a few clicks of the mouse
http://www.mykidsbrowser.com/ - Kid-safe Internet browser made just for kids! Designed to be
simple for parents to install and to use. It is actually ready for children to use right after the
installation finishes! Protects children from pornography and Internet predators. There are NEVER
any subscription fees! Uses a white-list technology so parents can decide what is suitable for their
children and what isn't. There is a cost involved.
Suitable for: 1- Year 3 and students with different abilities
http://www.webbie.org.uk/ : WebbIE is a web browser for blind and visually-impaired people,
especially those using screen readers, used since 2001 all over the world. It comes with the
Accessible programs, letting people of all ages access news and audio on the Internet in a simple
and accessible way, also allowing them to use podcasts, listen to the radio and read RSS and
news with a screen reader program or other access solution. Together they provide a way to
access websites and other great things online - and they are all free.
Suitable for: P-Adults
www.mozilla.com : Firefox has hundreds of add-ons and plug-ins that are free. It supports
students with different needs and is more flexible than Internet Explorer. It is safe to use and less
likely to be compromised as well. There is also a portable version (that is included on EduApps
USB menus in AccessApps.
Suitable for: P-Adults
http://webanywhere.cs.washington.edu/wa.php: WebAnywhere is a non-visual interface to the web
that requires no new software to be downloaded or installed. It works right in the browser, which
means students with vision impairments or reading disabilities can access it from any computer,
even locked-down public computer terminals. WebAnywhere enables anyone to interact with the
web in a similar way to how they may have used other screen readers, such as JAWS or WindowEyes, at no cost or set up for the user.
Suitable for: P-Adults
http://www.readonweb.com/ : Read on Web - CleanPage™ strips all advertisements and other
junk from a webpage, and extracts the main text-based content: This main body text is then fit on
the screen, spoken aloud, imported for speed reading or editing, emailed, printed, zoomed in, and
zoomed out All the features can be easily accessed by one click on the toolbar or through a
keyboard shortcut.
Suitable for: All students who require uncluttered web pages.
http://open.live.bbc.co.uk/atk/start?atk_url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/mydisplay/#sldforum MyDisplay is a new tool from the BBC which allows people to get BBC Online in a way
which better suits their needs and preferences. This trial release allows users to change the way
the whole BBC Online site looks by choosing a theme for how the site should look on a user’s
computer.
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Web Browsers
Description and Suitability
http://www.kidzui.com/ - Kidzui is a free web browser for children. It has links to suitable YouTube
content and is curated by hundreds of teachers and parents. It is a free download. KidZui gives
kids the freedom to explore the Internet safely with millions of kid-friendly YouTube videos, online
games, and websites. These are all pre-screened and approved by editorial staff, teachers, and
parents. Weekly activity reports keep educators and parents in touch with children’s' evolving
interests.
Suitable for: Primary, middle years and students with special access or learning needs NEW
http://www.buddybrowser.com/Buddy-Browser-Selection.cfm This browser caters to parents,
educators and students and is available for MS Windows and MAC OS computers. Children can
safely explore the web, chat with friends, play games and access appropriate YouTube content all
in the one safe interface.
Suitable for: Primary, middle years and students with special access or learning needs NEW
http://www.greyolltwit.com/search_engines.html There are 90 search engines/directories that
students can submit to a website for free. They are sorted on each page into groups of 10 on each
page to make it easier to use. The first two pages contain the top twenty search engines. The rest
are sorted in alphabetical order. Clicking on the links to the search engines/directories in the table
below will open each site in the window on this site so that students don’t navigate ‘off’ this site.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary as well as educators
http://www.atbar.org/ ATbar is free and allows you to change the look and feel of web pages,
have text read aloud and spell check forms. It is a simple tool which will be available for most
popular browsers. Alternatively you can add the Lite version which works in any browser as it is
simply a bookmark. As a developer ATbar is free and easy to add to web pages, offers user
preference options and comes free with the added benefit of advice on accessibility if required.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary as well as educators
http://kidoz.net/ Is a safe, easy and fun way for young students to surf web sites, watch videos,
play games and learn. Pre-approved video clips for young children as well as creativity tools,
games and activities are all available from a child friendly interface. Fully compatible with MS
Windows, Mac OS, Linux, Android environments. Note: Adobe Air is required for this site – it
downloads as well as the application at no cost. There is a free 7 day trial with their East Asian
version supporting Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Japanese and Korean.
Suitable for: Primary and children with special needs NEW
** Links to multiple browsers for children - http://kids-browser.software.informer.com/
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Geography and History
Description and Suitability
http://www.iboard.co.uk/curriculum.htm#geography-year1geog_yearyear1 Elementary activities
for Years 1 (15 activities including Around Our School and Where is Barnaby Bear?) and Year 2
(9 activities) dealing with geography. It is UK based. Content is quite generic in content though.
Suitable for: Years 1 and 2
http://www.iboard.co.uk/curriculum.htm#history-year1history_yearyear1 Elementary activities for
Years 1 (7 activities – Toys from the Past) and Year 2 – (9 activities dealing with Transport), all
dealing with history. It is UK based. Content is quite generic in content though.
Suitable for: Years 1 and 2
http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/ : A very interesting, if a tad disorganised website that lists
hundreds of links pertaining to history – in all of its aspects. Not easy to navigate easily as the
main page is many screens long with lists of links, interspersed with ads. Useful, nonetheless
and will appeal to anyone researching articles, books, authors, Wars and major world events.
Suitable for: Secondary to Tertiary students
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/ One of the most highly regarded and useful resources. The
National Geographic Society has been inspiring people to care about the planet since 1888. It is
one of the largest non-profit scientific and educational institutions in the world. Its interests
include geography, archaeology and natural science, the promotion of environmental and
historical conservation.
Suitable for: Primary through Secondary and to Tertiary students
http://www.historytoherstory.org.uk/learningresources.html The website has been broken down
into eight key themes intended to guide users to collections that readers may be interested in.
The learning resources have been developed to cover a range of levels, key stages, and
abilities. They include free downloadable PDF source-work activities, quizzes and tables to
complete. The learning resources are an introduction to topics and material available via the
History to Herstory site that students, teachers, researchers and the wider public can explore
further. A perspective on history for significant women and their influence in history.
Suitable for: Upper Primary through Secondary
http://www.reachtheworld.org/geogames/index.html GeoGames was created by
Reach the World and the National Geographic Society Education Foundation. They rotate the
planet, test their geography skills, and print a copy when they are finished the session. Simply
drag and drop the countries onto the globe. Ideal for use with IWBs.
Suitable for: Upper Primary through Secondary NEW
http://www.livebinders.com/play/play_or_edit?id=46461 Countries for Kids Livebinder folders
lists hundreds of links to other countries on a variety of topics.
Suitable for: Upper Primary through Secondary NEW
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Art & Design
Description and Suitability
http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/REVart.htm : This is a comprehensive web site with lists
of art and design web site resources. Created by an author of numerous books, John Simkin
has created a very comprehensive body of work that allows students to locate artists and their
works.
Suitable for: Secondary and Tertiary students
http://cooltext.com/ Users of all abilities can quickly create logos, buttons, signs and printed text
for banners, MS Word and MS PowerPoint files. Cool Text is a free graphics generator for web
pages and anywhere else students need an impressive logo without a great deal of time or
complex design work. Users simply choose what kind of image they would like. Then they fill out
a screen with colour, size and dimensions with their desired text and they’ll have their own
custom image created on the fly.’ Users can download the new image, obtain the HTML code or
email it. Suitable for: Junior Primary to Secondary
www.office.microsoft.com/en-us/clipart/default.aspx Useful and appropriate clipart that
provides all genres and types of graphics, photos, animations and sounds that will be
downloaded right into a user’s clipart library. A great web site resource that is often forgotten.
Suitable for: Junior Primary to Secondary
http://www.dreamstime.com/ You can subscribe to this online stock photo service and/or
download high quality images at no cost. Dreamstime is a distinguished leader in stock
photography and a major supplier of high quality digital images. All stock images available are
provided by Dreamstime community's photographers, shot on film or digitally captured.
Structured on categories and subcategories, the database is renewed with thousands of fresh
images and titles on a daily basis. As of December 2007, Dreamstime numbers 500,000
registered members, more than 26,000 contributing photographers and over 2,000,000 images
online. Suitable for: All ages
http://www.publicdomainpictures.net/ Public Domain Pictures.net is a repository for free public
domain images. Users can download high quality photos or upload their own pictures. If schools
or students intend to use an image they find on this site for commercial use (i.e. selling a
product outside of school), be aware that some photos do require a model or property release.
Pictures featuring products should be used with care. The pictures are free for schools to use
and people should feel good about doing so.
Suitable for: All ages
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Main_Page Wikimedia Commons is a database of
10,634,831 freely usable media files to which anyone can contribute. If people are browsing
Commons for the first time, they may want to start with 'Featured' pictures, Quality images or
Valued images. Students can also see some work created by some highly skilled contributors in
'Meet ' photographers' and 'Meet ' illustrators'.
Suitable for: All ages
http://www.imageafter.com/ Image After is a large online free photo collection. Students and
educators can download and use any image or texture from their site and use it in their own
work, either personal or commercial. It offers thousands of resources and also has website
templates and a large range of stock photography.
Suitable for: Secondary students
http://vintagejs.com/ VintageJS is where students can add some interesting retro-look to their
images. VintageJS is a tool where users can upload their images and apply a custom retro,
vintage look to them for free. Teachers and students can simply upload their photo, apply the
vintage effect and share the retro image it with their classmates or friends via social media tools
such as MySpace, Flickr, Facebook or Twitter.
Suitable for: Secondary students
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Art & Design
Description and Suitability
http://www.sxc.hu/ Users can browse through the categories of this huge gallery containing over
350,000 quality stock photos by more than 30,000 photographers. It has wallpapers for desktop
or illustrations for users' blogs and pictures and photos for Nings or website design. Users can
your photos with fellow designers. SXC is a friendly community of photography addicts who
generously offer their works to those who need them free of charge. Not only it feels great to
share, users will also get a huge exposure for their work.
Suitable for: Secondary students
http://www.public-domain-photos.com/ The 5,000 photos and 8,000 free clip arts on this page
can be used for any purpose, including commercial. The photos are typically provided in a single
high resolution. They are tagged and sorted into categories, offering educators and students two
ways to easily locate and find them.
Suitable for: Secondary students
www.flickr.com - Flickr is an obvious resource, yet it is often neglected. Using the advanced
search feature, users can search only photos with a Creative Commons license that allows them
to use the content commercially and/or modify, adapt, or build upon the content. These two
licenses in combination essentially make the image ‘public domain’ in that students can use it
for anything. However, the license restriction is that students have to credit the original creator.
Suitable for: Secondary students
http://www.aviary.com/tools/vector-editor Users can gainfully employ Raven to create fully
scalable vector art appropriate for logos, art work and design creation or tee shirt designs.
There’s no real comparable site or similar tool on the web.
Suitable for: Secondary students
http://www.picnik.com/ Picnik is an American based company that allows users to edit and
manipulate their photos online, for free. Students can elect to upload photos from their hard
drive and edit them using a multitude of powerful photo editing tools. It is also possible to draw
photos directly from an account at other online photo sites, such as Google Picasa or Flickr.
This allows users to edit their photos without the need for expensive computer-based graphic
manipulation software.
Suitable for: Secondary and tertiary students
http://www.splashup.com/ Splashup is an online image editor that looks and feels like working
directly in Photoshop. Splashup (formerly Fauxto) is used to both modify and create images on
the fly. With a similar setup to Photoshop or Gimp, Splashup provides an interface that makes it
quick and simple to modify any image from a computer or the web. In addition to simply
uploading images, Splashup allows free-transformation of the image, layer effects with multiple
brushes. With the ability to share and download images when complete, it could replace a
desktop image editing program very quickly.
Suitable for: Secondary and tertiary students
www.sumopaint.com Sumo Paint serves as a full-fledged online image creating and editing
gear that has all the ingredients to lure budding imaging buffs. The website incorporates
proficient support that guides users to utilize its full range of features. After creating images,
Sumo Paint lets its users assemble them in attention-grabbing Cool Iris 3D gallery. In addition to
creating and editing images, users can also enjoy viewing stunning images featured in the
category of top-rated images.
Suitable for: Upper Primary, Secondary and tertiary students
www.pixlr.com Pixlr is a user-friendly online image editing application that is essentially
designed for non-professional users. It allows students to effortlessly edit images. Pixlr comes
across as an effective application for editing images if one needs to use them in their blogs,
image galleries, and social networking sites. However it not suitable for editing large images.
Pixlr also offers its users with a good collection of filters and adjustment options that may bring
more polished results at their end and enables them to create appealing effects with minimum
effort. Pixlr is a Flash based imaged editing tool and users must have installed a Flash plug-in to
use this service. Suitable for: Secondary and tertiary students
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Art & Design
Description and Suitability
http://discover.odai.yale.edu/ydc/ Students can search on 1.5 million records and choose from
over 250,000 assets all freely from the Yale Digital Commons. Collections include art, natural
history, books and maps as well as photos, audio and video content. An excellent and very
comprehensive resource.
Suitable for: Secondary and tertiary students
http://www.cartoonize.net/index.php A site for converting a photo to a cartoon image. Students
can elect to take a photo using a digital camera, select an image from the web or scan a photo
and use it to create some fascinating and interesting new images. These can be the catalyst for
a piece of writing, a mind mapping web or PowerPoint/Photo story file. A fun and engaging
online resource. Students can also add effects to images as well.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students
http://research.microsoft.com/en-us/um/cambridge/projects/autocollage/ Photo collages
celebrate important events and themes in our lives. Pick a folder, press a button, and in a few
minutes AutoCollage presents you with a unique memento to print or email to your family and
friends. Note: Already installed on MS Windows 7 computers and embedded in the EduStar
image in Vic Government schools.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students
http://www.posterini.com/ Posterini – Posters combine images and text to create a useful
simulation of an effective marketing medium. Posterini is an online tool that lets students quickly
create posters with a WYSIWYG interface. The user selects an image (photo or drawing) and
starts by uploading an image from his or her computer. Then choose from style, an art filter and
some special effects. It does prompt for payment for very large sized posters – so beware.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students
http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/illustrations/index.html The SurLaLune Illustration Gallery
presents over 1,400 illustrations of popular fairy tales by more than 50 illustrators. Many of the
originals from the last century are in black and white. A stunning collection.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students NEW
http://www.befunky.com/ Be Funky Digital Artworks is a wonderful site that allows students to
upload photos and turn them into digital artwork (cartoons, oil paintings etc). It provides over
147 effects at no cost. It is ideal when educators and students have little or no art software
and/or sufficient skills.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students NEW
http://www.mrpicassohead.com/ Mr Picasso Head is a fun site if students would like to draw
similarly to that of the great artist, Picasso.
Suitable for: Primary students NEW
http://sketch.odopod.com/ At Odosketch students can create their own sketches and post them
on the website and share them with others. Ideal for students who wish to use astylus or
graphics tablet as well as a mouse. Also ideal for use with IWBs and touch tablet notebook
computers.
Suitable for: Primary and particularly Secondary students NEW
http://www.roxik.com/pictaps/ Use Roxic Pictaps to create a virtual person. The website will
animate the image and add it to the thousands that have already been created.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students NEW
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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Art & Design
Description and Suitability
https://wbx-files.s3.amazonaws.com/jacksonpollock_by_miltos_manetas.swf Use this site to
create Jackson Pollock inspired works of art. The site requires Adobe Flash. As the child moves
the mouse or pointing device (it’s ideal with Interactive Whiteboards and touch screens) paint is
splashed randomly onto the ‘canvas’. It is ideal for mouse training (moving, pointing, clicking to
change colour, relocating) and for children with access/intellectual disabilities. Also handy for
students with VI needs for tracking.
Suitable for: Primary and students with special access, vision and learning needs NEW
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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iPad Resources
Description and Suitability
http://www.autismqld.com.au/userfiles/Autism%20Applications.pdf : A PDF file that is available
from this link. It was written as a resource for people with ASD to access suitable apps on
iPhones, iPods and iPads.
Suitable: Students with Autism – and many others
http://www.ipadineducation.co.uk/iPad_in_Education/Welcome.html : ‘Although the vast majority
of iPod Touch & iPhone apps will scale up to fit the iPad, or can be used in their original format,
I am mainly focusing on educational apps which have been written to take advantage of the
larger screen size and processing power of the iPad.’. This is a well organised and
comprehensive site with a great deal of useful information about iPads and their place in
Education.
Suitable: Students of all ages and abilities
http://a4cwsn.com/ An excellent resource. ‘a4cwsn is committed to helping the families and
carers of children with special needs and the wider community of educators and therapists who
support them, by producing videos that demonstrate how products designed to educate children
and build their life skills really work from a user perspective. Our aim is that these videos, along
with relevant information and advice from an independent source you can trust, provides
valuable insight into whether a product is suitable for its intended purpose or not, enabling
sensible buying decisions to be made.’
Suitable for: Junior Primary to Year 4
http://www.appolicious.com/curated-apps/3167-top-apps-for-nonverbalautisticspecial-educationstudents Hillary Brumer lists Apps for students with ASD and communication needs. She
constantly reviews Apps and writes about them so it’s worth revisiting from time to time.
Suitable for: All ages
http://www.appolicious.com/: Reviews and lists of iApps from various writers and contributors.
General in nature but some reviews are centred on students with different abilities. A handy
source of new ideas and perspectives of emerging/new Apps.
Suitable for: All ages
http://www.bookroomreviews.com/2010/08/16/best-ipad-apps-for-autism-and-aspergerssyndrome/ : Best Apps for students with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Aspergers. It is written
by a mother in the USA. The site offers a range of book reviews and other resources as well.
Suitable for: All ages
http://www.abiq.org/autism_apps/iPhone_iPad_iPod-touch_Apps_AUS.pdf : this links directly to
an PDF file, written by Eric Sailors. It contains 24 pages and is a useful resource for educators
and parents. Clearly presented with brief descriptors, icons of each App and direct links to the
Apps.
Suitable for: All ages – especially students with different abilities/needs
http://www.timobrienphotos.com/large-print-ideas/iphone-access/ : An excellent review of the
accessibility and functions of an iPhone. There are many interesting links and topics to review
and read. Excellent resource to cater to people with different vision, access and cognitive
needs.
Suitable for: All ages
http://www.ipadcurriculum.com/ : Some interesting Apps are reviewed in some detail. A whole
range of Apps for education – particularly science.
Suitable for: Secondary aged students.
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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iPad Resources
Description and Suitability
http://www.spectronicsinoz.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/iPads-in-SE_Handout.pdf is a
very recent and up-to-date article published on Jane Farrell’s Blog on the Spectronic’s website.
It is a useful and practical resource for students of all ages and abilities as it lists the significant
resources that are now promoting iPad use in schools.
Suitable for: All ages
https://sites.google.com/site/bloomsapps/home : ‘Using Blooms Taxonomy in education is a
highly effective way to scaffold learning for the students. With the recent popularity and
pervasive nature of iOS devices in school regions it is essential for educators to understand how
to implement Blooms in the classroom using the Apps that are available. It will assist educators
in getting started when implementing iOS devices in the classroom. This site will change almost
daily as it will be updated with new and exciting apps.’
Suitable for: All ages
http://learningwithipads.blogspot.com/2011/02/apps-for-dyslexia.html A very useful and dynamic
site that has reviews, comments and discussions about the efficacy and use of iPads in
Education. The aim of the iPad Pilot Program is to evaluate the role of the iPad in supporting
learning and teaching in today's world. The pilot program is being coordinated by Learning
Exchange, Catholic Education Diocese of Parramatta. It has some great resources and trial
history, comments and useful feedback.
Suitable for: All ages
http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-31747_7-20002462-243.html?tag=mncol Lists 5 iPad books for
children with handy and useful reviews on each with video support. A good resource and worth
reading/watching if teachers are interested in using iPads for literacy and reading.
Suitable for: Primary aged students and those with different abilities
http://www.multi-sensory-room.co.uk/page76/apps/files/Recomended%20Apps.pdf A wonderful
PDF file that can be downloaded freely. It lists some fantastic multisensory Apps for students
with special access, communication, sensory and learning needs. It is comprehensive with
graphics of each app and a short concise synopsis and description. A must have resource for
special educators and parents! Worth downloading and sharing.
Suitable for: Primary aged students and those with different abilities
http://www.technologybitsbytesnibbles.info/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/IPAds-for-LearningGetting-Started.pdf A very useful publication, downloaded as a free PDF resource from the
DEECD site in Victoria. The PDF was published in January 2011 and contains 41 x A4 pages. It
is still a useful resource although out of date as there have been so many other Apps created
since early 2011.
Suitable for: All ages
http://www.makeuseof.com/pages/best-ipad-apps On this page, educators and student alike will
find the best 102 iPad apps for general iPad use. They’ve taken the effort to categorize the apps
and choose only those they believe to be the best ones and which will most likely be useful to
the majority of users.
Suitable for: All ages
http://appshopper.com/utilities/creative-book-builder-create-edit-publish-your-ebooks This is an
individual App but has huge potential for educators and students to create their own eBook. The
reasonable cost of $4.49 is ideal as the capabilities and features and expansive. An excellent
App and one that is strongly recommended.
Suitable for: All ages, particularly upper and primary and middle years
http://appshopper.com/bestsellers/education/paid/?device=ipad The Appshopper lists the most
popular Apps that have been downloaded with prices and ratings. Useful for quick reference to
see what others are purchasing.
Suitable for: All ages, particularly upper and primary and middle years
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iPad Resources
Description and Suitability
http://www.techsupportalert.com/best-free-ipad-apps.htm A list of free iPad apps. In an iPad's
browser, tap a program title on this site to go the App Store, tap the "free" button and then the
"Install App" button. Or in a PC's browser, click a program title to go to the iTunes Preview and
click "View in iTunes", and then download the program within iTunes and sync to a classroom or
student's iPad.
Suitable for: All ages, particularly upper and primary and middle years
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-sOXct_Qy44&feature=related One of the MANY useful and
interesting YouTube videos that discuss the efficacy and use of the iPad and iPad2 in
classroom practise. Recently at Critical Agenda’s “Boys and Technology” conference conducted
in Melbourne in late August 2011, a great deal of information and a focus on portable learning
tools was discussed and presented by a range of speakers.
http://www.criticalagendas.com.au/National/boys-a-technology.html
Suitable for: All ages, particularly upper and primary and middle years
http://learninginhand.com/mmm A list of Apps to use for taking movies on the go. A useful link
as it details how to make video content and provides some practical and useful video content
with children creating and making movies.
Suitable for: All ages, particularly upper and primary and middle years
http://www.padgadget.com/ipad-apps-tracker/ PadGadget is a useful resource to locate and
track down gadgets for use with iPod and iPad devices. It also lists iPad Apps and costs in a
handy list. This is a list of the most popular 200 Apps (as at Sept 2011).
Suitable for: All ages, particularly upper and primary and middle years
http://apps4stages.wikispaces.com/ The Stages© framework takes a research-based approach
to defining developmentally appropriate observable learner characteristics for each Stage (Year
level) and recommends features to consider in computer software for learning, along with
teaching strategies that match and scaffold student need. This approach has proven very
helpful in supporting educators, therapists and families in selecting appropriate learning
materials. Suitable for: All ages, particularly primary and middle years
http://momswithapps.com/ Moms With Apps is a collaborative group of family-friendly
developers seeking to promote quality apps for kids and families. Most of our membership is
comprised of parents who have launched their own apps on the App Store, have their own
access to iTunes Connect, and have the time and inclination to share best practices with other
developers at the founder’s level.
Suitable for: All ages, particularly primary and middle years
http://techinspecialed.com/2011/10/08/middle-school-language-apps-for-special-needs-children/
and http://techinspecialed.com/2011/10/15/reading-comprehension/?mid=5041853. Two lists of
Apps devoted to older students who are in developmental level of younger counterparts. They
need to learn these skills but they don’t want nor respond to babyish themes. These apps are
intended to address those requests.
Suitable for: All ages, particularly upper primary and middle years
https://support.assistiveware.com/index.php?pg=kb.printer.friendly&id=6#p50 A really useful
website that lists FAQs regarding iOS devices. It has some good tips and some very useful and
interesting information for first time users. A great resource for educators with good, clear, well
organised documentation. Includes iTunes, iPod, iPhone, iPad, and iOS FAQs. Assistiveware is
the creator or the popular Proloquo2go software.
Suitable for: Great resource for educators and parents
http://appsforaac.net/applist A very comprehensive site for Apps for Augmentative and Alternate
Communication. It has some excellent information re the legal use of iTunes and a long list of
suitable Apps for clients who require a communication system.
Suitable for: All ages for AAC needs, particularly junior primary and middle years
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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iPad Resources
Description and Suitability
http://appsforaac.net/content/aac-apps-android-0 Another list of AAC Apps but for parents who
have Android based devices. Sixteen Apps are currently listed (as at Oct 2011).
Suitable for: All ages for AAC needs, particularly junior primary and middle years
http://learninginhand.com/blog/evaluation-rubric-for-educational-apps.html An educational rubric
for evaluating and documenting useful Apps. From this site educators can freely download a
PDF file.
Suitable for: Great resource for educators and parents
http://www.iear.org/ Education Apps Review website – I Education Apps Review is now a
community of over 500 educators, administrators and app developers. They now have over 30
volunteer "educator" app reviewers who are taking a closer look at the overall educational value
of "educational apps". Well worth a look. An excellent resource.
Suitable for: Great resource for educators and parents
http://www.spectronicsinoz.com/article/apps-for-literacy-support Another excellent online
resource for anyone researching Apps for literacy support. Greg’s list is well presented with
icons of each App, descriptors and live links to the App store.
Suitable for: Great resource for educators and parents
http://www.dolphin-browser.com/ This new browser for iOS and Android is fast, clean and works
differently from conventional browsers. It cleverly works with gestures and can be trained by the
user. It’s available for iOS and Android devices. Sixty add-ons are also available.
Suitable for: All Ages
http://www.spectronicsinoz.com/blog/apps-and-mobile-learning/access-options-andaccessories-for-ipads-gathering-strength-as-they-grow/ Accessories and gadgets that work with
iOS devices have matured and there are numerous options. Jane has documented many
access solutions. This Blog is very informative and it is particularly useful for educators and
parents alike who are supporting students with physical and cognitive needs as well as for AAC
users.
Suitable for: Great resource for educators and parents
http://www.spectronicsinoz.com/blog/workshops/ipads-in-special-education-presentationoctober-2011/ A presentation by Jane from Spectronics regarding the role, usefulness and
efficacy of iPads in special education. Note: This was used in September and October 2011 in
workshops across Victoria and in Perth.
Suitable for: Great resource for educators and parents
http://www.callscotland.org.uk/Common-Assets/spaw2/uploads/files/Using-Mainstreamhandheld-devices-as-communication-aids.pdf Sally Millar at CALL Scotland has assembled a
list of iPod and iPad apps for communication: A little outdated now, this links to a very handy
and well documented PDF document of 11 x A4 pages. It lists a number of popular
Communication Apps, published in April 2010. Prices are in UK pounds. It’s still worth reading.
Suitable for: Resource for educators and parents
http://www.scribd.com/mobile/documents/24470331 Eric Sailers created a list of iPhone and
iPod Touch Apps for Special Education and this list boasts over 150 apps categorised under
various headings including Communication; Organization; Reading; Writing; Math; Music;
Songs; Art; Games; Assistive Technology. This links to a download page to a 23MB resource.
Suitable for: Resource for educators and parents
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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iPad Resources
Description and Suitability
http://learninginhand.com/do This is a terrific resource. It lists the dos and don’ts of what to do
with iPods and iPads. Very practical and well written instructions, directions, strategies and
ideas. It is a bit dated, being published in February 2010 – especially with the advent of iCloud.
Suitable for: Resource for educators and parents
http://delicious.com/sprialis/ipad Jim Sprialis has listed a number of useful links for users of
iPads. His delicious account also lists numerous practical resources for Inclusion, Universal
Design, Assistive Technologies, literacy, maths and communication. Users can choose to
“follow” Jim as he enters new sites quite frequently.
Suitable for: Resource for educators and parents
http://kathyschrock.net/ipadblooms/ The Bloomin’ iPad site is where users can find links to iPad
applications that target the various levels of Bloom's Revised Taxonomy. Kathy Schrock only
includes free Apps that are "content-neutral" to make them usable across the curriculum. She
also tries to include apps for the iPad only with a few iPod ones included as well. Each app
image is clickable, and users will be taken to the iTunes Store to learn more about each one.
Suitable for: Resource for educators and parents
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/discovr-apps-discover-new/id440101665?mt=8 An Australian
company has created an App that helps users find other Apps. It's an interactive map of the App
Store and makes it easy to discover new apps for users’ iPhones & iPads Simply search for an
app or choose from one of their featured apps. They’ll show you how the apps users choose are
connected in a massive, never-ending map of the App Store, and they’ll also give
recommendations for other apps to download.
Suitable for: Resource for educators and parents NEW
http://www.appannie.com/top/ipad/australia/education/ Six hundred Apps for education are
listed. Based in the US but users can check the Apps purchased and available in Australia (as
well as many other countries). It charts Paid Apps, those that are free and the highest grossing.
An interesting and dynamic perspective on what Apps other people are purchasing and using.
Also shows newly released Apps!
Suitable for: Resource for educators and parents NEW
http://dyslexicadvantage.com/page/dyslexia-ipod-and-iphone Technology changes quickly so
the authors of this site continue to update their Apps page with the
best iOS Apps for students and adults with Dyslexia. A very interesting and informative
resource.
Suitable for: Resource for students with dyslexia, educators and parents NEW
http://www.childrenwithspecialneeds.com/index.php/special-needs-apps.html Based in the USA,
the author states: ‘There are several apps available geared toward people with special needs/
communication issues, as well as those geared towards babies/toddlers/pre-school that work
well for kids with special needs.’ This site lists some of their favourite Apps to accommodate
students with special needs.
Suitable for: Primary and special needs NEW
http://www.geekslp.com/ This is a very comprehensive resource targeted at Speech and
Language Pathologists, with articles, reviews, lists of Apps (by a number of category searches),
technology news, advice and comments from readers. A wealth of information about Android
and iOS Apps, all pertaining to education and SLPs.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary (ideal for Speech/Language) NEW
http://www.ikidapps.com/ iKidApps has been created by Berna Erol, PhD. A mum who simply
loves her iPhone. Within days of purchasing an iPhone, Berna set up iKidApps Blog to ‘share
my experience with all the parents, anything from how to kid-proof your iPhone, setting up
parental controls, to how to connect your iPhone to your TV.’ 350 Apps listed with free maths
Apps, iPad Apps, iPad Games and Android Apps – all targeted at children
Suitable for: Primary and special needs NEW
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iPad Resources
Description and Suitability
http://iheartthisapp.com/ Users can discover new iPhone/iPad apps that are highly
recommended by other App lovers. It’s fast, simple, and easy to search and locate suitable
Apps. If users enjoy the App, then they can nominate it on iHeart and provide comments or
mini-reviews to help other App users find them. A dynamic site with constant updates and new
reviews.
Suitable for: Primary and special needs NEW
http://edudemic.com/2011/11/ipad-middle-school/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter An
article written on why the iPad has more to offer than just browsing or games. It lists suitable
Apps for Education (in general) for students in middle years. Well researched and very useful to
educators working in Secondary settings. Apps for literacy, maths, science, SOSE and general
curriculum use are listed with a brief description.
Suitable for: Upper Primary and Secondary
http://edudemic.com/2011/11/palm-beach-apps/ Another article on the Edudemic site lists
suitable Apps for Education for students in junior primary classes Well researched and very
useful to educators working in Primary settings. Apps for literacy, maths, science, SOSE and
general curriculum use are listed with a brief description. Some double ups from article above.
Suitable for: Junior Primary students
http://palmbeachschooltalk.com/groups/ipadpilot/ An interesting WIKI site for educators. This
Wiki is tailored for in-house information related to the iPad in Education sponsored by the
Department of Educational Technology in the School District of Palm Beach County. It has
some interesting management documents, lists of suitable Apps and guidelines. It’s worth
reading to check how other school districts are accommodating schools with use of iOS devices.
Suitable for: Educators and IT managers
http://www.quixey.com/ This is a search engine where anyone can locate apps for all purposes.
It is a very quick and easy way to locate Apps for iOS (i.e. iPhone, iPod and iPad) and Android
devices. It also lists apps for Blackberry, Symbian, Web tools, MS Windows OS, MAC OS,
Windows mobile devices and Windows phone.
Suitable for: All students, educators, therapists and parents
http://www.mayer-johnson.co.uk/apps/ Picture Communication Symbol Apps (i.e. PCS files from
the popular Boardmaker program) for Flash Cards, Word Scramble, Match & Memory and
Bingo, help different people meet different needs. They can help students learn vocabulary,
language, articulation, cognitive and listening skills. These apps are deal for learners of all
abilities, including those with special educational or additional needs.
Suitable for: All students requiring PCS support, educators, therapists and parents
http://www.injini.net/ Project Injini creates educational games and assistive applications
specifically for young children with special needs. The children who play their games and use
their applications inspire them to create a high quality learning experience. Commercial
developer with 9 Apps for children and a newly released AAC App. They also offer learning
supports with manuals, printables and online videos.
Suitable for: Younger students and those with special needs
http://www.snapps4kids.com/find-an-app/ Easter Seals have always been at the forefront of
technology. SNApps4Kids is a community website to support Parents, Teachers, Therapists and
Doctors who want to use technology like the Apple iPad to help students with special needs and
other children of all ages and abilities to learn, grow and develop.
Suitable for: Younger students and those with special needs
http://www.spectronicsinoz.com/blog/web-links/iphone-ipad-and-itouch-apps-for-people-whohave-low-vision-and-teachers-of-students-who-have-a-vision-impairment/ An excellent article by
Anita Rafferty on iPads for students and users who have a vision loss, impairment or need.
Suitable for: Students and impaired vision
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iPad Resources
Description and Suitability
http://wikiguess.com/wikiGuess/ If students consider having with extensive Wikipedia
knowledge, then they will find WikiGuess thoroughly enjoyable. It is a fun Wikipedia game that
lets Android owners test their knowledge of Wikipedia articles. The app is basically a game that
asks users to guess the Wikipedia article it displays. It is currently available for Android devices
and soon for iOS devices.
Suitable for: Upper Primary and Secondary students NEW
http://oedb.org/library/beginning-online-learning/100-ways-to-use-your-ipod-to-learn-and-studybetter One hundred resources, links and Apps suitable for use with iPods are listed with a brief
description about each one. An interesting list, despite being from 2008, it shows that may Apps
are still current and popular. Some of the resources are also still current and offer great ideas
and teaching hints and strategies.
Suitable for: Students and educators NEW
http://www.patrickmlarkin.com/p/ipad-pickup-registration.html A Blog and resource from a
Principal at Burlington High School. It provides detailed notes and experiences of a high school
rolling out iPads to students. The invaluable insights are useful to teachers, IT departments and
school leaders embarking upon introducing iOS devices into their schools.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students NEW
http://italkmagazine.com/ A site devoted to new users of iPod Touches, iPhones and iPads.
Ricky Buchanan hosts this wonderful site (she is also the energy and talent behind ATMac site).
‘iTalk Magazine provides introductory tutorials, information, reviews, and step by step
instructions to help with every step from “beginner” to “expert”.
Suitable: All educators and particularly parents NEW
http://www.makeuseof.com/pages/best-android-apps On this page, users will find the best 100
Android applications (according to MakeUseOf). They’ve taken the effort to categorize the apps
and picked only those they believe to be the best ones and which will most likely be useful to
users.
Suitable for: Resource for educators and parents wishing to explore Android options NEW
http://www.squidalicious.com/2011/01/ipad-apps-for-autism-spreadsheet-of.html From these site
users can link to a very comprehensive list of Apps for students with ASD (there is a link to a
spreadsheet with valuable information about each App). There is plenty of information about
using devices with children with Autism. An interesting site indeed.
Suitable for: Resource for educators and parents NEW
http://www.scribd.com/doc/39018411/iPad-Apps-and-Accessories-for-Special-Needs A list of
Apps focussing on classroom practise as well as accessories (at the bottom of the page) that
accommodate students with different abilities and needs.
Suitable for: Resource for educators NEW
http://www.rjcooper.com/site-map/index.html#ipad RJ Cooper has been in the AT fields for
years. This list of accessories caters predominantly to users who have access needs.
Suitable for: Anyone. Great resource for educators and parents NEW
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iPad Resources
Description and Suitability
http://www.scribd.com/doc/24470331/iPhone-iPad-and-iPod-touch-Apps-for-Special-Education A very
comprehensive listing of Apps catering to children with special needs. Everything is listed in
categories for iPod, iPhone or iPads. It lists Apps for AAC, Speech and language, maths, music,
songs, art and design, games, early intervention, fine motor etc. An excellent resource.
Suitable for: Resource for educators, therapists and parents NEW
http://www.scribd.com/doc/29172122/iPod-touch-Apps-Accessories A very useful list of iPod Touch
Apps for special needs. It seems that the top 5 or 6 in each category are listed for language, arts,
maths, organisation and planning, music, songs and communication. A useful list. Accessories for
iPods are also listed at the bottom of the page.
Suitable for: Students and educators NEW
https://sites.google.com/site/learningcontinuity/with-ipod-touches This list can be sorted. It is hosted
by the Acalanes UHSD. ‘If you use iPod Touches in your classroom and students have access to
either an iPod Touch or an iPhone, here are some "Apps" that we have on the AUHSD iPod Touches
that can help with continuity of learning.’
Suitable for: Students and educators NEW
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AtmIIa0toLTdGVucnUxMUVMTUdmbWE5a0RrYTJtb1E#gid=0 This is quite amazing as all of the iPod Apps
recommended by Escondido Union School District by Grade Levels & Subject are listed in an online
Google Doc. A fantastic resource as it has been so well researched and documented.
Suitable for: Students and educators NEW
www.adesontheweb.com/ADEs_on_the_Web/ADE_Hottest_Apps_Blog/ADE_Hottest_Apps_Blog.html
Apps are described by Apple Distinguished Educators on this blog. These are the latest and greatest
Apps and this is a useful guide as to what other educators are promoting and using in education
around the world.
Suitable for: Upper Primary and Secondary NEW
http://oedb.org/library/features/top_50_iphones_for_educators Apps are listed as being relevant for
education and categories include communication, organisation, utilities, media, teaching tools,
references and miscellaneous. A good resource for teachers, trainers and lecturers.
Suitable for: All educators NEW
Note: Weally Wonderful Apps resource is available at http://www.spectronicsinoz.com/blog/weblinks/weally-wonderful-apps-v2-0/ that has all of the above Apps listed in one handy MS Word
document. It is a subset of Weally Wonderful Websites.
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Typing & Keyboarding
Description and Suitability
http://www.typingweb.com/ TypingWeb is designed to assist typists of all skill levels. Users can
learn how to type from the very basics using the site’s free comprehensive keyboarding lessons.
Learning games are also available to help users improve their skills while having fun.
Experienced typists can prove their abilities by taking speed and accuracy tests to earn printable
typing certificates offered by the site. Educators can use TypingWeb to enhance their student’s
experience. Teachers can grade, manage and report student’s abilities.
Suitable for: All students of all ages
http://www.powertyping.com/ PowerTyping is an online free typing tutor for Qwerty - US
standard 101 keyboard and Dvorak keyboard - the US alternative ANSI standard keyboard.
Learn to type with PowerTyping - online free typing tutor includes:
» How to learn typing
» Learn to type Qwerty - US standard 101 keyboard
» Free educational games
» Typing test
Suitable for: All students of all ages
http://www.goodtyping.com/ Another online typing tutor is Good Typing. Students or users of
any age can learn how to type correctly in just a few hours using all of their correct fingers.
Users will soon be typing faster than they ever imagined using 27 guided lessons to learn stepby-step from the beginning. Students can choose between 20 different keyboard layouts and all
content is in a Web-based course.
Suitable for: All students of all ages
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/typing/ Dance Mat Typing is an introduction to touch typing for
children aged 7 - 11 years. Each of the 4 levels is divided into 3 stages. Begin at Level 1 and
build up students' skills gradually through to Level 4.
Suitable for: Students up to 11 years
http://kids.learn2type.com/ Typing Test & Typing tutor at Learn 2 Type for Kids – a useful free
Web site that helps kids master the skills of touch typing. The interactive exercises in this Kids
Typing Tutor automatically adjust to a child's skill level. The more skilled and proficient they
become, the more challenging the Typing exercises become. Students can come and go as
they please and pick up the Typing lesson where they left off.
Suitable for: All students of all ages
http://www.freetypinggame.net/ FreeTypingGame.Net is the premiere site to play free typing
games, lessons and tests. Our Typing Tutor is the best way to learn to type. No downloads,
installations or registration required. It offers free games, lessons, drills and is very motivating
and entertaining. Ideal for younger or 'less enthusiastic' students!
Suitable for: All students of all ages
http://typingsoft.com/all_typing_tutors.htm#TIPP10 The most comprehensive site on the web
for Typing Tutors. Some are listed as online tools whilst others are freeware applications that
require downloading and installing. A fantastic site with many links to excellent typing and
keyboarding resources. TIPP10 is one of my favourites and is well worth investigating.
Suitable for: All students of all ages
http://www.cs.unc.edu/Research/assist/TarHeelTyper/StartPage.html Tar Heel Typer is an
interesting online resource. The educator, parent or students sets conditions and parameters
and then types into a designated area. This application is designed to give a voice to children
who may not be able to express themselves with a traditional pencil. The Tar Heel Typer project
serves as an "alternative pencil" for these children. To begin, go to "Start Page" and select the
configuration that best matches the ability of the user. It is more a communication resource than
typing tutor/practise. Suitable for: All students of all ages
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Blogging & Online Sites
Description and Suitability
www.edmodo.com Edmodo.com is a private online social platform for teachers and students to
share ideas, files, events and assignments. Built on a micro-blogging model, the site allows
teachers the ability to handle their class activity online. Teachers can send out assignments,
receive completed assignments and assign grades using the online platform. They can maintain
a class calendar, store and share files, have a public (RSS) stream, and conduct polls and send
text (SMS) alerts to students. Users have a home page where they can see a summary of
recent activity for their class. The home page allows the teacher to make new assignments,
assign an event to the calendar, send out an alert, and write a note to an individual or a group of
students, and share links or files with students. An excellent resource.
Suitable for: Upper Primary and Secondary students/classes
www.busuu.com Busuu.com is an online community for learning languages in a social
networking setting. Users can learn English, Spanish, German or French using the site. It uses
social networking to enhance the learning experience. Courses are organized into units that
contain more than 100 different topics. Each topic has a section for vocabulary, dialogue (i.e.
reading exercises), writing exercises, ‘Busuu talk’ (allows users to video chat with native
speakers of the language they are studying) and review. The Busuu talk feature provides an
experience similar to visiting a foreign country to learn the language. Most importantly, all of the
course material is audiovisual. Suitable for: Secondary students/classes
http://sclipo.com/ Sclipo is designed to help educators improve upon their work flow. The site
provides valuable resources that provide information and tips on teaching online and offline.
Educators can publish, manage and teach online courses in a face to face environment. They
can store and share vital educational content in their own online resource library. Sclipo groups
are available to allow users to connect and obtain information and suggestions from one
another. Users can also lead live classes, meetings and webinars intended for an audience of
one hundred or more. Sclipo provides educators with ways to improve their abilities, reach out to
more students, and make helpful learning resources more accessible through the internet.
Suitable for: Secondary students/classes
www.sophia.org Sophia.org is a social learning application that allows users to share their
knowledge and expertise while expanding their minds with information provided by other users.
To keep the data manageable, Sophia.org organized each item into a learning packet. A
learning packet is a small tutorial that covers a specific objective. A packet consists of a
question and answer conversation that allows users to learn from both content and
supplementary discussions. Each learning packet can be rated by users to help others decide
which are worthwhile. Self-declared “subject matter experts” are also found within the
Sophia.org community and spend some of their time rating packets. An interesting and useful
resource. Suitable for: Secondary students/classes
http://www.wikispaces.com/ If a classroom wiki is intended to e used exclusively for primary and
secondary education, then educators can apply for the K-12 plan. These wikis are free and adfree, and teachers can make them private for extra security for their students. K-12 wikis also
come with a User Creator tool that lets teachers and their students open student accounts in
bulk — without the need for student email addresses. One of my all time favourites is Jim
Sprialis’ Clicker 5 and resources Wiki at http://clickerpedia.wikispaces.com/ .
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students/classes
http://www.wikidot.com/learnmore:education Thousands of users found Wikidot a great tool to:
•discuss research topics and collaborate with co-workers,
•publish lesson / lecture notes and materials, including any PDF files or PowerPoint slides,
•inform students about upcoming topics and events, also using RSS feeds inform them
•publish homework tasks,
•create forums to discuss topics,
•organize whole classes and create separate wikis for groups or for each student.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students/classes
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Blogging & Online Sites
Description and Suitability
http://samcooltoolsfortheclassroom.blogspot.com/ This blog is all about cool tools to use in the
classroom. Several examples of different tools to use on an interactive whiteboard, laptop,
iPod/iPad, and other technologies are provided. A well organised and presented Blog with some
practical ideas and useful resources.
Suitable for: Primary and Junior Secondary students NEW
http://www.stumpteacher.blogspot.com/ Josh is the current 2011 Illinois Teacher Of The Year in
the US. His blog is an open reflection of his teaching. It is informative and thought provoking and
has a variety of areas of interest.
Suitable for: All educators particularly Primary NEW
http://www.edutopia.org/blog/ An all purpose education based Blog that I subscribe to with email
alerts and updates. It offers a very wide range of topics and it provides some interesting news
and developments from the US.
Suitable for: All educators NEW
http://www.cybraryman.com/ This is the most expansive internet catalogue for students,
teachers, administrators & parents that I've yet to discover.
It links to over 20,000 relevant links selected by an educator/author with over 30 years of
experience. The General Interest section lists a number of different and motivating links thast
might accommodate disengaged students.
Suitable for: All educators NEW
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Web 2.0 Tools
Description and Suitability
http://cooltoolsforschools.wikispaces.com/ A fantastic Wiki developed specifically to target useful
Web 2.0 tools to be used in education. Presentation , Collaborative , Research , Video,
Slideshow , Audio , Image , Drawing , Writing , Music , Organising , Converting , Mapping , Quiz
and Poll , Graphing , Creativity T, Widgets and File Storage & Web Tools are listed. An excellent
and resource rich award-winning Wikispace.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students/classes
http://www.go2web20.net/ Go2Web20 is probably the best source of information about the
emergence and use of Web 2.0 tools. It lists web 2.0 resources by their icons. All resources are
tagged and categorized. It lists hundreds of sites and is one of the most resource rich sites
about the web, with many relevant to students and educators.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students/classes
http://edudemic.com/2010/07/the-35-best-web-2-0-classroom-tools-chosen-by-you/ This is a list,
a little outdated, that was developed by requesting educators’ favourite Web 2.0 tools. It is a
guide to 35 of the most used or most popular tools and is by no means exhaustive, but
indicative of what other teachers are using in classrooms. The Edudemic site is worth
investigating as well for other resources and articles.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students/classes
http://web20guru.wikispaces.com/Web+2.0+Resources This Wikispace has relevant information
about the role and significance of Web 2.0 technologies as well as resources that are listed in
categories on this page. An interesting site with a great deal of content.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students/classes
http://cyber-kap.blogspot.com/2011/01/top-25-web-20-sites-for-education.html Web 2.0 is a term
that is used to describe the 2nd generation of the web that focuses on collaboration and
evolution of the internet. Examples of Web 2.0 include social networking sites, blogs, wikis,
video sharing sites, hosted services, web applications, mashups and folksonomies. This site
lists 25 of the most popular Web 2.0 tools for education.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students/classes
http://alew.hubpages.com/hub/Education20 Another list of Web 2.0 tools and sites that have
been successfully used by teachers in schools.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students/classes
http://edudemic.com/2011/11/best-web-tools/ 100 different Web 2.0 tools that have been
recommended by peers in education, taken from 900 submissions to Edudemic. All are
hyperlinked with brief descriptions. Most of them readers may know and use but it is an
interesting and useful list nonetheless.
Suitable for: Primary and Secondary students/classes NEW
Author: Gerry Kennedy (c) December 2011 V8.0 - Gerry Kennedy IT Consultancy E: specmelb@bigpond.net.au M: 0411 569 840 P: 03 9894 4826
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