Gateways to K-12 Online Resources

I.  K-12 lesson plans and related resources aligned with the Wisconsin Standards

"Where can we find classroom resources aligned with state standards?" Website

http://www2.dpi.state.wi.us/sig/practices/high_2.asp

Maintained by the Wisconsin DPI's Curriculum Resource Center and supported by the MarcoPolo Education Foundation and the Wisconsin Educational Communications Board, this site provides "thousands of high-quality lesson plans, classroom activities, instructional television programs, and more, all provided by leading professional education organizations, and aligned to Wisconsin's model academic standards."

IDEAS (Interactive Dialogue from Educators Across the State)
<http://ideas.wisconsin.edu/>

IDEAS provides Wisconsin educators access to high-quality, highly usable, teacher-reviewed web-based resources for curricula, content, lesson plans, professional development and other selected resources. These resources help Wisconsin educators use technology to meet the Wisconsin Model Academic Standards and create the foundation for a statewide knowledge management system.

Thinkfinity

http://www.marcopolo-education.org/

Thinkfinity is the Verizon Foundation's digital learning platform designed to improve educational and literacy achievement. Includes, among others, over 3,600 lesson plans which are developed to support (and are aligned) to the various state standards (including those of Wisconsin).

ECB Education ServicesInstructional Television

http://www.ecb.org/education/itv_basics.htm

The Wisconsin ECB (Educational Communications Board) and the Department of Public Instruction collaborate to select and develop instructional resources that align with Wisconsin’s model academic standards and the Framework for 21st Century Learning. These video programs, Web sites, lesson plans, and additional materials are available at no cost both online and via broadcast on Wisconsin Public Television and Radio. A great resource for teachers and teachers-in-training.

Education Place 
<http://www.eduplace.com/ss/>

Textbook support site created by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt; provides resources to align Wisconsin Standards to corresponding section in its text book series (Social Science; features of potential interest: unit on current-event topics (Social Studies and English); also provides some educational resources, such as current event topics and map outlines.

PBS Teachers 
<http://www.pbs.org/teachers/>

This site offers a wide variety of educational materials for teachers, education students and parents. Curriculum materials can be selected by grade level, subject area, topic, or resource type. The site also serves as a clearinghouse directing users to PBS programs and offerings by other providers.

II. Other sites for K-12 lesson plans and related resources

Gateway to Educational Materials (GEM)--NLE, US Department of Education
<http://thegateway.org/>

GEM provides access to online lesson plans, instructional units and other educational materials in all forms and formats. GEM's goal is to improve the organization and accessibility of the substantial collections of materials that are already available on various federal, state, university, non-profit, and commercial Internet sites.

Kathy Schrock's Guide for Educators
<http://school.discovery.com/schrockguide/>

Special features/comments: covers all subjects; provides easy subject access to resources in support of the curriculum and professional growth.

Discovery Education--Lesson Plan Library

http://school.discoveryeducation.com/lessonplans/?pID=lesson

Search for lesson plans and curricular activities by grade level and subject area.

Blue Web'n
<http://www.kn.pacbell.com/wired/bluewebn/>

Covers teaching and classroom activities in various subject areas. Use the "Grade Level link" to search resources by grade level and by content area.

Academy Curricular Exchange
<http://ofcn.org/cyber.serv/academy/ace/>

Selected by teachers involved in the Columbia Education Center's Summer Workshops, this site provides access to

over 700 lesson plans, which are organized by subject area and grade level.

Edsitement
<http://edsitement.neh.gov/>

Covers both the arts and humanities; includes  lesson plans by grade-level and a careful selection of curriculum-supporting web sites.

Educator's Reference Desk
<http://www.eduref.org/>

Provides access to 2,000+ lesson plans (written and submitted by teachers), 3,000+ links to online education information, and 200+ question archive responses.

National Science Digital Library (NSDL)
<http://nsdl.org/>

Includes, among others, a vast assortment of peer-reviewed science-related materials, including lesson plans, videos, lectures, examples and teacher guides. Level: K-12, as well as college.

 

Academic Info (Gateway to Quality Educational Resources)
<http://www.academicinfo.net/index.html>

Online subject directory of over 25,000 educational resources for high school and college students. Academic Info also features subject guides with information about distance education and online degree options, as well as admissions test preparation resources (SAT, GRE, LSAT, MCAT, GMAT, USMLE, TOEFL).

Merlot
<http://www.merlot.org/Home.po>

A free and open resource designed primarily for faculty and students of higher education. Provides links to online learning materials along with annotations such as peer reviews and assignments. Potentially suitable for advanced high school classes.

IV. State and National Academic Standards -->see Finding Curriculum Guides, Standards and Frameworks

Created by Axel Schmetzke, Library, University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.
Last updated 04/07/09 .
Comments are welcome! aschmetz@uwsp.edu