Free

 http://librivox.org/

 http://www.openculture.com/2006/10/audio_book_podc.html

 http://www.booksshouldbefree.com/

 www.itunes.com

Paid

www.audible.com

http://www.audiobooks.com/

www.playaway.com

www.itunes.com

 http://www.mla.org/style – gives you an overview of MLA formatting

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/557/01/ – very good website that walks through all aspects of MLA writing

http://webster.commnet.edu/MLA/format.shtml – nice outline for MLA formatting

http://www.calstatela.edu/library/guides/3mla.pdf – has a sample paper to follow 

Works Cited Page

 www.easybib.com – will format your bibliography after you input information – will export into Word or you can copy and paste it

 http://citationmachine.net/ – similar to easybib – you put in the information it will create the citation for you

 http://webster.commnet.edu/MLA/preparing.shtml – gives you the information necessary for creating a bibliography

 http://www.studyguide.org/MLAdocumentation.htm – has lots of examples of bibliographic information

 http://www.flashcardmachine.com/ – free program – username/password so that students can share flashcards

 http://quizlet.com/ – free program – can do the same as the other – has numbers of sets of flashcards made – including for ACT/SAT that can be accessed

 http://flashcarddb.com/

 http://www.muchobeets.com/

 http://www.flashcardexchange.com/

 Math Flashcards

 http://www.aplusmath.com/flashcards/sub-flash.html – basic skills

 http://www.apples4theteacher.com/flash-cards.html – basic skills

 Vocabulary Flashcards

http://www.vocabulary.co.il/vocabulary_flash_cards.html

http://studybeans.com/vocabulary/ – flashcards and quizzes

http://www.plagiarism.org/ -gives an overview of plagiarism and the various types of plagiarism

http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/plagiarism.html – gives a nice overview and why teachers/professors are so concerned about it

Examples of Plagiarism

http://webster.commnet.edu/mla/plagiarism.shtml – very helpful examples of what is plagiarism and how to avoid it

https://www.indiana.edu/~istd/examples.html – examples of plagiarism and how to correct it

http://www.spiritus-temporis.com/plagiarism/famous-examples-of-plagiarism.html – famous examples of plagiarism

Avoiding Plagiarism

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/589/01/ – gives an overview on how to avoid plagiarism in a paper

http://www.indiana.edu/~wts/pamphlets/plagiarism.shtml – how to recognize and avoid plagiarism

Plagiarism Checker

 http://www.turnitin.com/static/index.html – ask your teacher for a username and password

Forgetfulness, Part II

Last week we gave you some tips on how keep track of all the many things we all need to remember. This week we’d like to share some tips from our readers on the subject. This particular group was very interested in post it notes! Here are a few:

• Use dry erase markers to write reminders on your bathroom mirror – that way you’ll see them first thing in the morning
• Write two post it notes for each important task and post in your special “to do” area. When you’re ready to take on a task, take one of the notes and put it somewhere obvious (shirt, calendar) until it’s done. The note that’s left behind reminds you again if you lose the first note.
• Leave medicine bottles near the coffee machine
• Put an erase board on the refrigerator to track daily tasks – then erase as you do them
• Save a permanent “to do” list for packing or leaving for vacation. Print it out each time you are ready to leave so you don’t have to reinvent the wheel during the busy time leading up to time off. As you pack, you can cross things off your list.

Higher-Order Thinking

Use graphic organizers to organize ideas. Encourage your child to map out what she wants to say before she begins writing. Have her number her ideas in order of presentation. Suggest that she diagram or draw her ideas before starting to write. You can find many examples of graphic organizers on the Internet.

Practice idea generation through storytelling. For example, present a picture and ask your child to tell you about the picture. He may need some specific, but open-ended questions to help him get started (e.g., “what happened just before?” “what will happen next?”).

Encourage your child to use brainstorming before starting an assignment. Start the brainstorming process with something of interest to your child. Allow her to brainstorm in any way she prefers – for example, if your child has difficulty with writing, let her brainstorm orally.

Use sentence starters to trigger thoughts. Ask your child to finish a sentence, such as “Jack runs… .” Probe by asking him questions about the sentence starter, such as, “What kind of person was Jack?” and “Where was Jack running?”

Provide a story ending. Challenge your child to create the beginning and middle of the story to fit the ending.

Memory

Learn the rules of spelling, capitalization, and punctuation. An example of a spelling rule is “change the ‘y’ to ‘i’ and add ‘er’.” A sample capitalization rule is “always capitalize the names of places.” Ask your child to explain the rule as needed. For example, if she has spelled the word “easier” as “easyer,” she should be asked what rule applies, say it aloud, and then make her corrections.

Break writing assignments into steps or stages. Make brainstorming the first stage, drafting ideas the second stage, revision the third stage, and correcting spelling and grammar the last stage before the final draft. Spread out the stages over time.

Generate ideas apart from writing. Allow your child to record his ideas on a planning sheet or into a tape recorder that he reads or listens to later when he is ready to write.

Reduce the emphasis on certain subskills. Place priority on getting ideas down on paper, without worrying about spelling or punctuation.

Language

Create a personal dictionary. Encourage your child to write down words that interest her or that she learns from reading. These words can be used as a reference for writing.

Use a tape recorder to store thoughts. Discussing her thoughts might organize your child’s ideas before she begins to write. She can then transcribe her dictation.

Read writing aloud while editing it. Teach your child how to listen for where sentences begin and end so that he may apply proper punctuation and capitalization and listen for grammatical errors.

Practice the sequencing of ideas. Your child might write ideas or sentences on strips of paper and then order the strips before writing.

Use transition words. Give your child a list of transition words and phrases, and show her how to practice using these words to unite sentences and paragraphs. Examples of transition words include: “previously,” “afterward,” “finally,” “as a result,” “subsequently,” and “furthermore.”

Provide keywords. Help your child create a list of words related to the writing topic of his choice. Then encourage him to use all of the words in his sentences. For instance, a paragraph about spiders might include: “spider,” “legs,” “eyes,” “web,” etc.

Provide opportunities for your child to practice speaking. Encourage your child to express ideas and elaborate on them in everyday speech. Build in opportunities for oral reports and discussions on topics that interest her.

Practice elaboration. Use visual stimuli to trigger speech. Ask your child to describe, explain, or elaborate on photographs, illustrations, and pictures. Frame questions that are designed to elicit responses requiring more than one-word answers – for example, rather than ask him if he liked a television program (answer could be yes or no), ask him to describe what he liked best and least about the program.

Attention

Help your child get started. Assist your child by making sure she has the right writing tools available and has an organized workspace. If needed, provide a jump-start to help her begin, such as the first sentence of a paragraph.

Build in planning time. Give your child five minutes of planning time before beginning an assignment. Provide guidance in effective planning when necessary.

Provide guidelines for an age-appropriate narrative. For instance, provide a checklist:

• Characters (appearance and feelings)
• Setting (time and geography)
• Place (climate, government, economy, culture)
• Events (what happened, what was the cause, sequence, conclusion, far-reaching results)

Preview. Help your child get started on assignments by encouraging him to think ahead of time about the completed assignment and what it will look like or what he will do in the assignment. Have your child make a list of materials he will need to write his book report or have him outline what information he will include in his story or report. Ask him to consider what he will need to describe in the beginning and middle of a story so his ending will make sense.

Use a strategy such as PLAN to help organize writing and free your child to brainstorm ideas.

Increase awareness of writing quality. Ask your child to set a letter grade goal or other measure of work quality for her writing prior to beginning. Then have her self-grade or appraise the quality of her work before turning it in to the teacher.

Provide models of assignments and criteria for success. Give your child a clear sense of how a final product might look by showing examples and sharing exceptional products (e.g., essays or drawings). For instance, make work from last year available, and draw your child’s attention to specific qualities of the work (e.g., “Notice that a good paper has a clear topic sentence.”). Do not, however, compare your child’s work with that of peers or siblings.

Self-monitor. During a writing task, teach your child how to stop and evaluate how well he is doing. For example, tell him, “Every ten minutes you will need to stop and check to see if you are getting your point across.” Teach your child to ask himself questions such as, “How is it going?” and “Do I need to make changes?”

Teach proven strategies. Provide your child with specific age-appropriate strategies to use in checking work. For example, use Dr. Donald D. Deshler’s COPS (Capitalization-Organization-Punctuation-Spelling) for proofing written work. Your child can create a reminder card to keep on her desk or in her assignment book for quick reference to the strategy.

Let your child delay editing work. The day before an assignment is due, have your child review his work and read it to an adult. This will give him enough perspective to catch errors or add more details and produce better results. Attention
Help your child get started. Assist your child by making sure she has the right writing tools available and has an organized workspace. If needed, provide a jump-start to help her begin, such as the first sentence of a paragraph.

Build in planning time. Give your child five minutes of planning time before beginning an assignment. Provide guidance in effective planning when necessary.

Provide guidelines for an age-appropriate narrative. For instance, provide a checklist:

• Characters (appearance and feelings)
• Setting (time and geography)
• Place (climate, government, economy, culture)
• Events (what happened, what was the cause, sequence, conclusion, far-reaching results)

Preview. Help your child get started on assignments by encouraging him to think ahead of time about the completed assignment and what it will look like or what he will do in the assignment. Have your child make a list of materials he will need to write his book report or have him outline what information he will include in his story or report. Ask him to consider what he will need to describe in the beginning and middle of a story so his ending will make sense.

Use a strategy such as PLAN to help organize writing and free your child to brainstorm ideas.

Increase awareness of writing quality. Ask your child to set a letter grade goal or other measure of work quality for her writing prior to beginning. Then have her self-grade or appraise the quality of her work before turning it in to the teacher.

Provide models of assignments and criteria for success. Give your child a clear sense of how a final product might look by showing examples and sharing exceptional products (e.g., essays or drawings). For instance, make work from last year available, and draw your child’s attention to specific qualities of the work (e.g., “Notice that a good paper has a clear topic sentence.”). Do not, however, compare your child’s work with that of peers or siblings.

Self-monitor. During a writing task, teach your child how to stop and evaluate how well he is doing. For example, tell him, “Every ten minutes you will need to stop and check to see if you are getting your point across.” Teach your child to ask himself questions such as, “How is it going?” and “Do I need to make changes?”

Teach proven strategies. Provide your child with specific age-appropriate strategies to use in checking work. For example, use Dr. Donald D. Deshler’s COPS (Capitalization-Organization-Punctuation-Spelling) for proofing written work. Your child can create a reminder card to keep on her desk or in her assignment book for quick reference to the strategy.

Let your child delay editing work. The day before an assignment is due, have your child review his work and read it to an adult. This will give him enough perspective to catch errors or add more details and produce better results.

Graphomotor

Find the right writing instrument. Make sure your child feels a sense of control with the pen or pencil. Try aids such as pencil grips. Suggest using pencils – they provide more friction on the paper than pens, do not smear easily, and can be erased.

Allow your child to print. If your child is having difficulty writing, consider postponing cursive writing or give him the choice of cursive or print.

Provide technology. Make tools available that facilitate writing, such as computers. Teach touch-typing. Allow your child to record her ideas on audiotape and then transcribe them, or take dictation of your child’s story and have her review and revise the written product.

Provide specialized paper. Your child can use writing paper with raised lines and cued left and right margins to guide letter formations, size, and spacing

Ensure the optimum setup for writing. Are your child’s chair and desk a good fit in terms of height, stability, and slant? (A child may find a slanted work surface, such as a desk easel, helpful for writing and drawing.) Is she more stable with the paper taped to the desk or held by a magnetic paper holder rather than having to hold it with her free arm? Is she more comfortable writing on the floor while lying on the carpet, or at waist level sitting upright at a desk, or at an upright surface like the chalkboard?

Provide a model. If your child presses down too hard on his paper, have him draw a line exerting appropriate pressure while you observe. Whenever your child is writing, have him compare the lines in his writing with the model line and adjust pencil pressure as necessary.