sciencekids

I want to recommend this site http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/ they also have English and mathematics sites that are really useful and popular. I would like to use their science site this time because it offers a lot of different tasks for the children to do in rather simple but still challenging English. On the site they have different tasks such as experiments, interactive games, short fact about different topics such as animals, technology, chemistry, space etcetera which means there should be possible to find topics that suits all students. They also have quizzes that the students can take online to see how much they learned and for projects there are suggestions on the site and also you can borrow images and videos to use in the projects.  For teachers they also have a folder called lessons where you can find lesson plans planned for children in the United Kingdom and their curriculum but I find them useful in the Swedish classroom too if you make smaller changes.

To use the site for the interactive games and quizzes you need computers and internet access otherwise you can print out the facts and the instructions for experiments and hand out in the class instead.  Depending on which experiments you want to do you can need other materials too such as for example scissors, papers, glue etcetera.

The resource can be used by teachers as a way to find facts in English about science topics that are reliable and written on a level that children are expected to know. Off course since the site is for native speakers the English might be on a level too high for Swedish students even in the age 10-12, but I have used it and in my experience students are willing to try even when they don’t understand all when especially if they get to start by playing the games or watch the videos and then read.  In the suggested lesson plans they have both technology based lessons and experiments that are to be done without computers which gives a lot of ideas and choices.

The resource can be used by the students as an interactive platform that combines science and English in a rather commercial free environment, where the teachers don’t have to worry about ads with dubious messages as the risk are with free of payment sites. The site provides the students with information in several different ways which gives them variety and there should be something that suits everyone depending on learning style and interest. They can work both in pairs and alone with the sites depending on if it is a bigger project or just to immerse their knowledge.

Other considerations when using the source is probably that the subjects the students are to work with should be familiar to the students before to make it easier otherwise when it comes to study a new subject in a foreign language the teachers might need to prepare the classroom so that dictionaries are available and that they get more time to read and study.

/Frida E