January Features from Internet 4 Classrooms

January Blog | App of The Month | What's Happening |
New- Online Practice | New- Printables | New- Answer Keys |
Teacher Resources | Parent Resources | Technology Tips |
Other Areas of Interest | Common Core |
SAT and ACT Test Preparation

January brings National Staying Healthy Month, MLK Day, National Puzzle Day, and much more. Visit our monthly newsletter to see all the details.

January Blog: STEM Learning and How to Implement It in the Classroom

STEM Learning and How to Implement It in the Classroom

This month's blog is STEM Learning and How to Implement It in the Classroom.

STEM learning involves implementation of four subjects: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics as the core basis of teaching. This education technique gains its focus by embracing approaches such as observation, research, innovation and problem-solving. Experts have contended that in this information-based society, students require scientific and technological skills to face challenges that arise with the adjusting economy. The purpose of this article is to define STEM learning and how it can be implemented in classroom curriculum. STEM education is the key to finding solutions to problems that occur as a result of technology and globalization.

Guest blogger Paul Bates is a writer, speaker, and young entrepreneur living in Fresno, California. He likes to explore new things and then describe it in his writing.

App of the Month

Every month we are going to feature a different, and hopefully FREE, iPad/iPod/iPhone/Android educational application. Visit our ever-changing app page.

The App of the Month for January is Canva By Canva ( iOS and Android ).

Fabulous designs and templates! Perfect for teachers for posters, infographics and presentations.

Create beautiful designs and professional graphics with Canva. Whether it's a photo editor, pic collage, logo, invitation or poster maker you're looking for — Canva makes graphic design easy. Canva is available on your iPhone, iPad, Android and computer so you can create, edit and share your designs when it suits you most.

Edit photos, add text, elements, stickers, borders, frames and more. Get started in seconds with thousands of professional templates and just tweak them to suit your needs.

Use your own photos or choose from more than one million layouts, stock photographs and illustrations. Search for the best fonts, photo filters, graphics, stickers and shapes, then use Canva's simple drag and drop tool to create a design. Share your design directly to your favourite social media app, via email, text messaging apps or export to your camera roll.

BEAUTIFUL LAYOUTS

Choose from hundreds of professionally designed layouts for

1. Social Media & post maker – for Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest
2. Social Media Banners – Facebook cover, Twitter Header, YouTube Art
3. Snapchat Geofilter templates
4. Blog & Website Posts – Inspirational, Travel, Food, Music
5. Cards – Birthday, Thank you, Party, Wedding, Engagement, Love greetings
6. Invitations – Birthday, Party, Wedding, Engagement, Christmas, Baby Shower
7. Photo Collages – Birthday, Love, Family, Music
8. Posters – Sale, Events, Clubs, Party, Inspirational, Music
9. Flyers – Events, Clubs, Band, Real Estate, Business
10. Presentations – Sales, Business, Education
11. Business cards – Photographic, Modern, Minimalist
12. Logos – for your Event, Business, Team
13. Album & CD covers – Playlist, Podcast, Music Mix, Singles
14. Kindle covers & Book covers – Romance, Thriller, Non-Fiction
    

and much more being added every week !!!

ADD TEXT ON PHOTOS

Convey your message by adding text or captions to your designs. Choose from over a 100 fonts to suit your style, tone and voice. Adjust the font size, colour, line height, line spacing, alignment, position and rotation of your words to get your design picture-perfect.

ONE MILLION IMAGES

Choose from our library of more than 1 million premium images or design with hundreds of free elements and fonts. Use images from your Camera roll in your designs, or take photos on the go.

PHOTO EDITING

Take your photos to the next level with Canva's stunningly simple photo editor. Present a consistent look and feel on social media and in your marketing materials. You can edit your photos using preset filters or get advanced with photo editing tools like brightness, contrast, saturation, tint, blur, x-process and vignette. With more than six quadrillion options, you'll never be stuck for choice.

SHARE AND PUBLISH

Share directly to your favourite social media including Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram and Google +

Or, save your design to your Camera Roll and share via email, text, messaging apps and more.

GET IN TOUCH

Got questions or comments? Get in touch using http://canva.me/support. We're here to help!

Canva is available for Apple and Android devices.

Compatibility: Requires iOS 9.1 or later on Apple devices and Android version 4.1 and up on your Android device.

WHAT'S HAPPENING THIS MONTH?

Here are some of the January events that you can celebrate or make note of this month:

1. National Staying Healthy Month
   
   We're in the midst of cold and flu season - keep your students and yourself healthy! Here are some great tips for you to share to your classroom! Make sure to emphasize the importance of washing your hands and covering your mouth when you sneeze or cough!


2. Betsy Ross (1/1/1752)
   
   Did you know that Betsy Ross sewed the first flag of the United States? I4C has printables and other resources to help students learn about the evolution of flag of the United States of America.










3. Louis Braille (1/4/1809)
   
   Did you know that Louis Braille was blinded in a childhood accident and created the braille system when he was fifteen? I4C has resources for the visually impaired, including Braille and audio resources. Be sure to check out I4C's other Assistive Technology resources.


4. Martin Luther King Jr. Day (1/15)
   
   Honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in your classroom today! Learn about his life and his accomplishments, read and watch his 'I Have a Dream' speech, and learn about the Civil Rights Movement on our Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. resource page







5. Benjamin Franklin's Birthday (1/17/1706)
   
   Did you know that Ben Franklin invented the first American instrument, the glass armonica? Find out about other things that Franklin invented and contributed to from the Franklin Institute. Check out this great book recommendation for 6th grade about Ben Franklin. Lasalle University has a great Ben Franklin lesson plan for middle schoolers and Scholastic has a ton of Ben Franklin themed resources and lesson plans for all grade levels.


6. National Handwriting Day (1/23)
   
   I4C has tons of handwriting resources for you to use in your classroom! We have a page for kindergartners with tons of handwriting worksheets. Help your students with uppercase and lowercase letters. We also have resources for your students to practice manuscript and cursive and handwriting help for students with ADHD.


7. Jackson Pollock's Birthday (1/28/1912)
   
   Celebrate Jackson Pollock's birthday in your classroom today! Watch a short video about Pollock and read his biography. If you have a SMARTboard in your classroom, here is a great activity about action painting to do with your students! I4C also has art resources and lesson plans you can use in your classroom.


8. National Puzzle Day (1/29)
   
   Work puzzles in your lesson plans today! I4C has word search and crossword puzzle makers and tons of brain teasers!




9. FDR's Birthday (1/30/1882)
   
   Happy Birthday to President Franklin D. Roosevelt! Did you know he was the only president elected to four terms in office? Find teacher resources like curriculum guides and an interactive timeline from the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum and read and listen to some of his speeches and Fireside Chat radio addresses.

New- ONLINE PRACTICE AT I4C

Internet4Classrooms now offers Online Practice and Interactives, covering Kindergarten to Eighth Grade Common Core Mathematics. Look for a rapidly growing variety of thousands of practice quizzes tied to the Common Core State Standards, School Subjects, Activities, and Holidays.

Check out our Online Practice Quizzes! More grades and subjects coming soon!

New Online Practice Quizzes Made Available in AUGUST!

We have released many new online quizzes during the last months supporting the Common Core Standards.

Try them out, and then use them with your students as:

• Bell Ringers,
• In Class Assignments,
• Homework or
• Extra Credit.

Here is a list of the newest quizzes by grade.

New- COMMON CORE MATHEMATICS PRINTABLES AT I4C

Internet4Classrooms offers Printables, covering Kindergarten to Sixth Grade Mathematics. Look for a rapidly growing variety of thousands of practice worksheets tied to the Common Core State Standards, School Subjects, Activities, and Holidays.

Check out our Common Core Printables! More grades and subjects coming soon!

New Printables Worksheets Made Available in AUGUST!

We have released thousands of new printables worksheets during the last months supporting the Common Core Standards.

Try them out, and then use them with your students as:

• Bell Ringers,
• In Class Assignments,
• Homework or
• Extra Credit.

Here is a list of the newest worksheet sets by grade.

New- Answer Keys




New Worksheet Answer Keys Made Available in AUGUST!

We have released thousands of new answer keys for our printables worksheets during the last months supporting the Common Core Standards.

Remember that you can sign up for answer key access here: https://i4c.xyz/n89msyv.

Here is a list of the newest answer key sets by grade.





TEACHER RESOURCES



1. Many historical events happened this month which you can cover in your classroom. Check outI4C's History page for lesson plans, videos, activities, and other resources to supplement your lessons!


2. In need of project ideas for the second half of the school year? We have them: subject areas, inventors, biographies, middle/high school level projects, and countries and continents.


3. Keep your students and yourself healthy this cold and flu season! Here are some great tips to share with your students and their parents.


4. National Handwriting Day - I4C has tons of handwriting resources for you to use in your classroom! We have a page for kindergartners with tons of handwriting worksheets, help for uppercase and lowercase letters, resources for your students to practice manuscript and cursive, and handwriting help for students with ADHD.


5. Looking for lesson plans to bring in the new year? We have a whole page dedicated to lesson plans by grades and subjects.


6. Are you using our Site Map? Don't forget it's an easy and quick way to search alphabetically by topic.


7. Be sure to check out I4C's collection of free educational iPhone and iPad apps!


8. Remember to visit our Teacher Tools section! This home page contains all the topics you need to use during the school year.


9. Go to our grade level help for lesson plans, activities, instructionals, and tools organized by grade and subject.



PARENT RESOURCES




1. Keep your children and yourself healthy this cold and flu season! Here are some great tips .


2. Work puzzles in to your day! I4C has word search and crossword puzzle makers and tons of brain teasers!


3. Want to reinforce a concept with your child? Check out our Grade Level Skill Help page for tons of resources in math and language arts covering a variety of topics.


4. Be sure to check out I4C's collection of free educational iPhone and iPad apps for you and your child!


5. You can always visit our Parent Resources page to get grade level practice sites, find online sources, and information pertaining to homework, special needs, reading help, and more.


6. Don't forget our Technology Tutorial section in case you need refresher courses in your computer skills.





TECHNOLOGY TIPS



1. A Cell Phone Policy that Actually WORKS!:
   Every school and every teacher seems to have a different philosophy with student cell phones -- and also with classroom management as a whole. Whether you are on the FORBIDDEN end of the spectrum or on the "do what you want, it's your grade" end, this article might just have a solution that will help in your classroom.
   
   Learn more in the article found: HERE


2. 8 Must-Have Websites and Apps for Science Reading Passages:
   Finding high-interest, informational text is an important part of locating just right resources for your classroom. If you're on the hunt for digital reading material for your students, there are a few different websites and apps that have science reading passages for kids. The resources in this article include text appropriate for a range of readers. Many of these resources let you search by grade level, reading level and topic to find a science reading passage that connects to your learning goals.
   
   Learn more in the article found: HERE.


3. 14 Virtual Tools & Favorite Math Apps:
   More and more classrooms are gaining access to technology that can be used with students. Whether you're modeling a lesson, creating stations, or working in a one-to-one classroom, virtual tools can promote student engagement while increasing academic success. Here are some apps for iPads — along with a few other tips — that can transform your daily lessons and are definitely worth checking out!
   
   You can find out more: HERE.






We also have other basic instruction in Microsoft Office, including Word 2007, Excel 2007, Powerpoint 2007.





OTHER AREAS OF INTEREST



1. Resources for Educators - In this section you can find classroom resources for Exceptional Children, Smartboards, Character Education, Web 2.0 Resources and other topics.
2. Resources for Parents - Parents can find resources
   on assisting their children with homework, time management, Internet Safety, subject area resources, grade level resources and more.




Common Core State Standards at I4C




Our Common Core State Standards are full of resources for every individual standard. Students can take control of their own learning by clicking on the page with the standard number, and choosing their own resource to practice that skill.




Check out our Common Core Math High School Algebra Standards, Common Core Math Standards, and Common Core ELA Standards.




SAT and ACT Test Preparation

Free Online Practice Resources for ACT Tests and SAT Tests! I4C now offers free SAT and ACT vocabulary and math quizzes. Join our SAT and ACT Test Preparation program and log in as much as you'd like. Students can take practice tests on 5000 vocabulary words or over 1000 math problems. Parents and Mentors can log in to monitor your scores - including seeing which vocabulary words that were missed. Interactive quizzes allow the test taker to retake and study as much as they want.




Sign Up Here for ACT Test & SAT Test Preparation!