About the Site

At last you have computers in your classroom, and better yet they're wired for the Internet. But do you know how to mine the Internet so that it becomes your best teaching ally, and not a tangled web of flashing advertisements and dead-end leads?

At this website I invite you to try out a few resources, some of which you may already know about, some of which may lead to new discoveries. For example, the page called "Amazing Teachers Who Use Technology to Foster Reading and Writing" introduces you to movers and shakers who have expanded their influence far beyond their classroom walls.

If you decide it's time you had your own website, you can learn how to create one--cost free--on the page called "Productivity Tools to Save Time and Make Us Smarter." There you will also find lesson plans, resources for English teachers, and collections of cool sites such as "Education World," also known as "The Educator's Best Friend."

If these resources don't get you moving, check out the page called "Professional Development Opportunities." Here you might just find a new way of thinking about your teaching, whether it involves catching up on educational software, listening to an expert discuss strategies for teaching young readers, or locating funding opportunities to support, say, a classroom publishing center.

At "Julie's Top Picks for Literacy Development" you'll find resources galore for developing kids' reading and writing skills. Check out the link to "ePALS Book Club" or download lesson plans for classic literature, such as The Great Gatsby, at "Outta Ray's Head."

To help all your students succeed as readers and writers, spend some time browsing through "Teaching Students with Individual Needs." You may figure out how to supplement what you already know about teaching learning disabled children (see, for example, "LD Online"). Dig deeper and find out how to connect with ESL and EFL educators from all over the world. Intrigued? Then go to "Dave's ESL Café" where you might find like-minded educators. Dave also offers a treasure trove of teaching tips. The vocabulary section alone offers more activities than there are weeks in a school year. Learn how to play classroom-tested games such as "Word in a Word" and "Vocabulary Baseball" just for starters.