There has never been a better time for finding online resources to support learning. I subscribe to the RSS feed from my delicious network and my Google Reader is regularly bulging with useful links to sites that can support the work going on in the classroom. Here are three highlights that use video as the central media to help support curriculum work.

Spelltube

Spelltube brings the weekly spelling list into the technological age.

 

Spelling videos have been created for each of the 3000+ words in the National Spelling Bank, from which teachers can generate and assign a word list to their Key Stage 2 pupils. Memorable characters help to reinforce spelling concepts in an enjoyable way that will appeal to various learning styles.

The site allows a teacher to sign up for a free class account, which then provides children with individual login details. Spelling lists can be assigned and scores tracked within the site. It is tailored towards the UK national curriculum and supports the spelling objectives within it. I think it provides a great alternative toSpelling City.

Simple Science

The idea of SIMPLE SCIENCE is to have informative music video presentations for use in the primary school classroom.

They are designed to be used as part of a lesson to reinforce learning objectives and scientific concepts and also as a useful revision tool for the SAT exams. They work particularly well on a large whiteboard but can also be viewed on the computer screen and TV.

Once again the resources support the Key Stage 2 QCA Science units in the UK and each of the sections provides a video of the science behind the topic and a song to help the children too. The films can even be bought as a DVD or the songs on CD. There is no sign up or login needed to watch the films.

The site uses Vimeo embedded films and you can see Simple Science on Vimeo here. The fact they have not used YouTube makes it much more accessible in schools. Apparently they have a whole stack of early years songs and films planned for next year which should be worth looking out for.

Learning Clip

Learning Clip is an online resource to support teachers, teaching assistants and parents implementing the renewed primary mathematics framework. 

The resources are structured to follow precisely the learning objectives of the renewed framework. For ease of navigation the resources are also listed by topic.

They all have the same easy to use format. Each clip comprises of, a short introductory video, an interactive activity, a worksheet and a set of notes.

After an initial registration a user needs to login to access the resources. It is worth noting that on the home page it states that the resources are being made available to teachers for free “during the development phase”. I assume from this that there may be a time when the resources require a fee to use them.

I hope you find the three resources useful and find a place in your classroom for using them. Please let me know of any other video based resource sites that you know of or have found useful in the classroom.

1) Spelling City

This has proven to be a highly valuable resource. You are able to save spelling lists for the children to access beyond school. It comes into it’s own as each list is used in a variety of different games to help the children learn them. Each word that you add to the list is automagically linked to a snippet of audio pronouncing the word and there is even audio of the word used in a sentence.

Lists can be downloaded, printed and there is even a handwriting sheet that you can print off for your spelling list. There has been a big take up by KS2 teachers in my school and Spelling City is a firm favourite of my class. My only grumble is that some words are difficult to understand in the audio as the pronounciation is American.

2) TutPup

No problem in TutPup with the English pronunciation of the words as the lady who has done the audio, I am told, did the announcements for the London Underground system! TutPup provides a social competitive edge to the children’s practice which they really enjoy.

The main bulk of games are maths based but the audio quiz for spelling is excellent too. The children listen to a word and type in the spelling, they are of course paired with another user from somewhere in the world giving it that competitive fun. Why not finish your session with a look at Google Earth and map where the competitors were from.

I am pleased to note that since I began using TutPup last year they have added a link to the word lists used for the different levels so you can point the kids at the right one.

3) Look Say Cover Write Check

There are a whole bunch of these resources but the best in my opinion is the Crickweb version.

You can add your own 10 words, practice using the look, say, cover, write and check method and there is even facility to print paper based resource cards and review and assess progress. Simple and very effective.

4) Spin and Spell

A lovely interactive site for the simple practice of common key words. Children can choose from a range of different word topics such as “In and around the home” and “Animal Kingdom”. The children then are presented with a big wheel in the centre of the screen with all of the letters on it. They choose a little image from the many that populate the rest of the screen and they hear audio of that word and then have to spell it using the dial.

You can select to have the words chosen randomly and they can reveal and hear the word again as they are working. Again the American pronunciation can cause some confusion but otherwise it is worthy of a spot in my top 5 spelling resources.

5) GeoGreeting

A bit of fun for number five – this resource will help children to see their spellings in a different way. 

GeoGreeting finds satellite images of buildings and other objects from around the world that resemble the letters in your words. Great to get the kids using them to see the words in an alternative visual way.

These are my top 5, but I know that there are a huge variety of online games and interactive resources that can be used. What do you think of my list? What would make it into your top 5 online spelling resources? I hope you have found something useful here to use with your class.