Researcher's+Workshop

=Internet Resources=

[|Web Tutorial] - a 6 lesson tutorial for kids (and adults!) to teach the basic concepts about navigation with browsers and search engines.

Safe Search Engines for Kids
[|Kids Click] - designed by librarians, a simple search will lead you to a variety of safe and reliable external sites. Sites also have reading level attached.

[|Awesome Library] - all sites have been reviewed

[|Yahoo Kids] - sites are organized into websites and pages from the yahoo site itself

[|Fact Monster] - searches will turn up information from the encylopedia, atlas, dictionary or almanac attached to the monster.

[|Google Docs] - make your own list of safe, reliable web links

Evaluating Sites
[|Kathy Schrock] has a great website with lots of activity sheets and links to sites teaching students about website reliability.

[|Evaluation sheet] - a very simple sheet for early intermediate students

[|ABC's of evaluation] - a simple online sheet for intermediate students. For a better printable version click here [|The ABC website evaluation.doc]

[|Evaluation tutorial] - an excellent tutorial site but definitely for older students

[|How to evaluate a website] - lists the domain name suffixes and what they mean (eg. <.edu>)

[|More information] - need something slightly different? Check out this extensive list of resources.

Animals
[|Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus] - Very attractive site with pictures and text about the Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus. A simple google search will turn up other sites about this fictitious creature.

[|The Jackalope Conspiracy] - information about the rare antlered rabbit

Environment/Chemistry
[|Dihydrogen Monoxide]- an article which paints a grim case demonstrating how this chemical compound (water) is destroying our planet. The page was the 1997 Science Fair winner, produced by a junior high school student in Idaho Falls. More on this topic can be found at [] or [|Snopes.com], a myth buster for web related topics.

Extreme Weather
[|Killer Tornado]- report on the tornado that carried Dorothy over the rainbow

World Cultures
[|Ruritania] - homepage for this fictitious location

[|Wikipedia] - phony article about Ruritania

[|CIA Factbook] - phony article about Ruritania

[|Wikipedia] - another Wikipedia article debunking the Ruritania myth

[|CIA Factbook] - the real CIA Factbook, try to find Ruritania now!

[|Mankato, Minnesota] - fictitious homepage

[|Mankato, Minnesota] - real homepage

[|Fredericton, New Brunswick] - fictitious homepage

[|Fredericton, New Brunswick]- real homepage

Personal Planning
[|Women and Aids] - obviously false information

Art/Biography/Plagiarism
[|Jacopo di Poggibonsi] - a fictitious artist from the 15th century who copied other artist's work. It is very tricky to see this is a hoax site so it is probably best used with older students. Check out the link to the Encyclopedia Britannica! It has been faked! Only by typing in the actual Encyclopedia Britannica website can you reveal the truth. There is a lesson plan around this site at []

Referencing Websites
[|Citing Online Resources] - printer friendly, this gives examples and formats for a variety of online resources [|Children's Library]- website for kids giving MLA citation examples and format for a variety of resources [|Referencing Websites] - a link to colourful examples of MLA citation information for a variety of resources [|Teacher Help] - link to more sophisticated explanations for details you may need

Paragraph Writing
[|Concluding Sentences] - powerpoint to help practice choosing good concluding sentences [|Transition Sentences]- transition words and paragraphs to help practice identifying the transition words