Team+2,+ref+log+2a

//The Old farmer's almanac for kids//. Retrieved (2010, February 21) from []
 * Team 2, Reference log 2a: Almanacs ||  ||<   ||
 * Reviewed by Sarah ||

//The Old Farmer’s Almanac for Kids// is an off-shoot of the original, //The Old Farmer’s Almanac.// While the information is similar, it is geared more toward the elementary student. Easier to navigate than its older companion, it is visually appealing and fun to look around. Especially interesting are the sky highlights. After looking up the when the full moon is for the month, I then proceeded to look at the sky section and found myself lost in NASA and Saturn. It was exciting to look at, to learn from, and easy to read. Clicking on the history section, one is able to find out what celebrities share birthdays. Imagine what fun it would be to find out who shares your birthday and their place in history. Also included on this page are interesting historical facts for the month and celebrity birthdays for the viewing week. This is all appealing and useful information for the elementary aged student. While much more simplistic than the companion site, this site would be a good addition to elementary schools. //The Old Farmer’s Almanac// is a place to which I have turned for years. Finding it online is a great addition to the printed material.

Grades: grade 2 and up. Subject(s): Science, Social Studies, History, and Language Arts Rating: 8. Information is good and the site is easy to navigate.
 * ||< //Sabrina's// comment : Sarah, Great minds think alike!! :) I, too, really liked this site, especially for younger students. It has a wide variety of information, and most importantly it is easy to read! Students can use the site to found out random pieces of trivia while teachers can use it along side their lessons.

//Lisa's// comment : I liked this site for children because of its focus on natural sciences and historical events centered around the calendar. Teachers will find it useful to teach phases of the moon and weather phenomena, especially with facts of the day for each of these categories. Young students will appreciate the unusual trivia and interesting animal sounds and songs on the Outdoors tab. It is a useful site that would be a welcome addition to any elementary online reference tool. || This online version of the Old Farmer’s Almanac is clearly geared towards younger students. The site itself is very colorful and eye catching, and the layout makes it easy to navigate. The home page comes up with a calendar, sunrise/sunset for a given location, the day’s forecast, and astronomy. Users have the ability to change their location. This is a good tool for teachers to have students compare and contrast weather conditions, sunrise/sunset, etc. of different locations in the world. The left side of the home page has a toolbar with many different options. The calendar link brings up the current week. Students can scroll across the days of the week to see what happened on that day in history. Other features on this screen include lists of celebrations for the month, birthdays in the month, and explanation of where the month’s name came from (“februa” means to cleanse- the Roman Februalia was a month of purification). The Skywatch link connects students to sunrise/sunset information and pictures/details of the moon phases for the month. The weather link gives the weather forecast for the week, descriptions of clouds, and word of the week (hail). This screen alone could be a great tool for science teachers, especially at the elementary or even middle school level because the students will not only hear about clouds, forecast, and moon phases, but they can also see images of all the information. It will be a great tool to help teachers differentiate instruction. The History link offers a way for students to find people in history who share birthdays and its lists highlights of what has happened in the month in history. This screen also connects students to the “Crypt of Civilization”. The Crypt is a time capsule sponsored by Oglethorpe University that is scheduled to be opened in the year 8113. Students can connect to the University site to explore the idea of the time capsule and the inventory of what’s inside. Other inks from the homepage include Pets, Outdoors, Puzzles, and Activity Guides. Each link provides a wealth of information that students can learn, and the activity guides provide “opportunities for extending the fun and learning beyond the pages.” This is a great reference tool for teachers, parents, and students. With the use of Smart Boards in the classrooms, teachers can pull up this source in class and use it alongside lecture. They could also have students interact with the site during lecture to keep them activitely engaged. Because this is a free on-line resource, students and parents can access it from hom to study, discuss, and extend learning. “We ask questions, but we don’t provide the answers. This is because looking for answers is often more important than the answer itself.” Grade level: 1st-8th Subject Areas: History and Science Quality Rating: 10 ||<  //Sarah's// comment : I agree completely with Sabrinia's review. This site has many good qualities and would lead to good discussion at home for students and parents. It's interesting that she found things I did not. Part of that may be simply because she works in a high school and I am in an elementary so we look for different sources of information. I do like the idea of using this in conjunction with the SmartBoards. Students will find this site interesting and fun.
 * Reviewed by //Sabrina// || Reinvented, Inc. (2010). The old farmer’s almanac for kids. Retrieved from []

//Lisa's// comment : I love the idea of Smart Boards and the almanac to use with students interactively. I have not had the opportunity to use Smart Boards more than once or twice, so I have yet to see its full potential. A great website for showing students various scientific and historical facts about curriculum matters at the elementary level. || //The writer’s almanac with Garrison Keillor.// (2010). Retrieved February 6, 2010, from []
 * Reviewed by //Lisa// ||

I have been a big fan of The Writer’s Almanac for years, as I heard it on public radio in Atlanta. I was delighted to learn that it was available online. The almanac is specialized to literature, both prose and poetry. There is a daily poem to be enjoyed by readers and daily literary highlights such as birthdays and publications in history. At the homepage, one can read the daily almanac or listen to Garrison Keillor’s broadcast. One can also download the podcast version, email it, or share it with someone via Digg, Del.icio.us or Facebook.

At the top right of the homepage, one can select archives for daily literary happenings all the way back to 1993. One can subscribe to the Writer’s Almanac via email, read featured interviews of poets highlighted on the show by selecting “Bookshelf,” find information on contacting Prairie Home Productions, view options for providing support, and locate public radio stations available by area. I will mention that along the center down the home page, one has options to perform searches by poem titles, authors, and date. There are other options available on this website, but too many to cover at length here. Students who love literature and poetry will love this daily almanac. Teachers can utilize it for creative writing classes or poetry in literature classes, but most likely only at the high school level. I personally think it would have been great to hear the daily broadcast in my lit classes in high school, and I hope there are teachers out there doing it for their students!

Grades: MIDDLE TO HIGH SCHOOL Subject(s): Literature, Writing Rating: // 10 //
 * ||< //Sarah's// comment : I have listened to Garrison Keillor and his //Prairie Home Companion// for too many years to count. Looking at and reading this website, I can literally hear his voice reading to me. This site would be a boon to teachers of creative writing and poetry and students who loves those subject. Especially enjoyable are the birthday listings on the main page. It gives us all a taste of culture and information we may have otherwise not had. Interesting, enjoyable to read and pleasing to the eye, I agree with Lisa's comments above.

//Sabrina's// comment : I also agree with Lisa's comments, and I am very glad to read this review. I honestly have never heard of Garrison Keillor's broadcast or this website, but I think it can be a great source for English teachers. I really like the option to subscribe to the podcast, because podcasts are actually one "new" form of technology that is not blocked in our county. I've used Grammar Girl's Quick and Dirty Tips for Writing podcast before and the kids like the variety it adds to lesson! I plan on adding this to my bookmarks immediately! Thanks Lisa! ||