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The Digital Classroom: Primary Sources, Activities, and Training for Educators and Students. Welcome to the Digital Classroom! To encourage teachers of students at all levels to use archival documents in the classroom, the Digital Classroom provides materials from the National Archives and methods for teaching with primary sources. Visit our page regularly as we expand our offerings.
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Presidential Libraries |
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Art |
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A Lifetime of Color
Explore color mixing and matching activities and learn how the "mood" of a painting changes if you magically switch to different colors. Learn about proportions and portrait techniques. |
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Arthur: Welcome to D.W.'s Art Studio
Select your online brush, choose a color, and you're good to go. Have fun with the coloring book pages here. Based on Marc Brown's "Arthur" series characters, your artist in residence is D.W. She'll explain how you can use the paint features as well as the rubber-stamping tools. You can also choose to clear the canvas and "draw" on a blank screen. |
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Kaleidoscope Painter
We won't spoil the surprise! Just click and drag your mouse slowly across the screen and watch what happens. If you just want to relax and watch, click on Auto. Note that you can select your brush size. |
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Snowflake Designer
Around the holidays it's fun to fold little squares of paper and snip them here and there to make a lacy snowflake. The trouble is, you can never visualize what all your cutting will look like before the paper is unfolded. Now you can! Try this array of snowflake designers, and make a whole blizzard! |
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The @rt Room
Explore art "sparkers"?activities to jump start your brain into its most creative thinking. For example, draw a storm, or a picture of your favorite hero. You can learn to "think like an artist" by exploring "@rtrageous" ways to make the familiar strange, and see the world in a completely new light. Play artist scrabble and art trivia, or view artwork from kids around the world. You can also find out all about the greatest art theft of the twentieth century: the day the Mona Lisa was stolen! |
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The Imagination Factory
There is no machinery at The Imagination Factory, and smokestacks don't pollute the air. Instead, we teach children and their caregivers creative ways to recycle by making art. Recycling is one way to minimize or lessen the amount of trash we have to throw away. When we recycle, we make a new product out of waste materials. This process helps save natural resources like trees as well as landfill space and the money needed to get rid of trash. |
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TUKIDS Art Barn
Make wind chimes out of old keys or jar lids. Mold a bracelet out of tissue paper and white glue. Construct a squishy anti-stress ball from balloons and cornstarch. The possibilities for fun are almost endless at this extensive resource! Besides craft ideas, you'll find games, downloads, and lots more from the people who run the TUCOWS software archive. |
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Children With Special Needs |
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Children with Special Needs
Children with special needs can often benefit from the use of assistive technology to support communication, self-expression and positive social interaction. Parents and teachers tell stories of children who overcome obstacles and achieve success online--the child with a writing disability who wins second place in a nationwide writing contest or the teenager with a learning disability who becomes an electronic pen pal with a scientist across the country who shares his fascination with fossils.
Technology is available to help people with special needs. If your child has a mobility or sensory impairment, for example, you may decide to replace the mouse with another device for giving the computer commands. A joystick, for instance, can be controlled with the entire hand. Other devices require only a single finger for control. Magnifying the screen can help individuals with low vision, while voice synthesis technology can read screen information to those who are blind.
The ERIC Clearinghouse on Disabilities and Gifted Education operated by the Council for Exceptional Children offers information about disabilities and accommodations. Call 1-800-328-0272 or TTY 703-264-9449 or send e-mail to ericec@ericec.org.
Other Web sites are also helpful. For example, Winners on Wheels is a team-oriented youth program that uses learning and fun to promote self-esteem and independence in children with disabilities.
Visit EASI which provides information on adaptive computer technology for individuals with disabilities.
Starbright, another site, applies the latest advancement in technology to positively affect the lives of disabled children. |
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Fun and Learning |
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Bonus.com - The SuperSite for Kids
The way to find family-safe places to visit. Head in any direction and play a game, enter a contest, find homework help, or learn about dinosaurs, the United States, or what's under the sea. For rainy-day fun, remember this site! |
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CBC4kids
From the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, this action-packed site quizzes you on rock themes that are actually from classical music compositions, blasts you into space to attack asteroids in a wild space game arcade, and forces you to think quickly (and creatively) to help save a sleepwalking diplomat. |
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Funschool.com - Free Interactive, Educational Software for Kids
Expect LOADS of fun, engaging, and educational Java games here. There are separate sections for preschoolers, kindergartners, first graders, and second graders. Are you in third through sixth grade? There is one catchall section for you, with loads of interactive stuff?be sure to look for The Spot. Don't miss the Stone City adventure?can you solve the puzzles and retrieve all the gemstones? |
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Harcourt School Publishers - The Learning Site
Click here for a spectacular collection of entertaining and educational games for all age levels. There are spelling, reading, math, science, social studies, art, health, and other games and activities that you can use for free. |
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Kid's Domain
This is a must-see site for all families. Lots of games and pictures to color, software downloads, clip art, and a list of links to similar sites. Click on Surf Safe and learn what rules you should follow when using the computer. Or go to Kids Can Program, and find software that will help you develop your computer skills. Finally, take a minute (or lots of minutes) to scroll through the ?What's New? section to find new games, ideas, activities, and more. |
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Kids' Space
This internationally recognized and award-winning site will become one of your favorite Internet destinations because it has something for everyone. Older kids might want to see KSC (Kids' Space Connection) to visit lots of home pages created by other kids?and they can list theirs here, too. Toddlers will love the detour to HPT (Hop Pop Town) to try out the many interactive musical experiences. |
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Knowble
There are a number of cool things to do here, such as Explore an Ocean (choose Stuff, then select Games). Click on some seaweed and a scary shark pops out! Don't worry?his false teeth pop out, too, and embarrassed, he slinks back into the shadows. Look for coloring books, paper airplane directions, online and offline activities, and more. |
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Learning Planet Kids Page
Choose a level: pre?K, grades 1?3 or grades 4?6+. Preschoolers can guess what number comes next as they load up train cars, count chickens, and explore an interactive alphabet. Older kids can play games involving geography, fractions, and more. |
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Lycos Zone
The Lycos Zone selections for kids are arranged in several big areas: Fun, Games, Alfy's Playground, Homework, and Comics. Don't miss the fabulous game called CyberSurfari, which involves an Internet scavenger hunt! |
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MaMaMedia
This jazzy site offers lots of fun activities and games, but let's look closely at the Surprise area. You do have to sign in (it's free, and they notify your parents), but after that, you can design your own town in the Surprise area. Just click on Presto. You can change things around in your personal town until you're satisfied. Then other kids can visit and play with your stuff. There's a lot more to do here at MaMaMedia, so check it out! |
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Math |
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A+ Math
Loads of math drills are found at this site; one of our favorites is Matho?it's like playing bingo, except you have to know your multiplication tables and other math facts to win. You'll also discover interactive flash cards and homework helper tips. |
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Absurd Math
The Powers2B are holding the DVine PImander in an unknown location. Members of the Society of the Half-closed Eye will appear to you and assist you in your quest to rescue the Dvine PImander?an alien being with fabulous mathematical knowledge. You'll have to know (or learn) some pre-algebra skills, and the way is treacherous. |
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Coolmath.com
Want to multiply your fun on the Net ? as far as arithmetic, geometry, algebra, trigonometry, or calculus goes? You can learn about tessellations and all kinds of other really neat math stuff here, including puzzles and math tricks. Also offers useful tips for parents and teachers. |
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Cynthia Lanius' Lessons: Let's Count!
Spinning cars, dancing frogs, and bouncing puppies?can you count moving things? If that's too hard, try the other games: Which is more? What comes next? Stars or Hearts? There's also a "counting machine" that shows you how to count by twos, threes, fives, and tens. The site is in English and Spanish. |
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Figure This! Math Challenges for Families
It's good to work on a tough problem with someone else, because a second brain may be able to look at the problem in a whole new way. These family challenges involve interesting problems that encourage the whole family to do the math. There's also a list of questions that might help you to figure out your homework, and hints on how to get the most out of your math class. |
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FunBrain.com - Numbers
Can you use your arithmetic and pre-algebra skills to help build a pyramid? Maybe you can guess a hidden pattern and discover the missing number in a series. Or maybe you just want to kick back and eat some fresh-baked fractions. Much more than drill and practice, these games are also fun! |
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Math Advantage
Math games may be manipulated at this site, which offers learning for kids in kindergarten through eighth grade. Younger ones will enjoy sorting numbered bumper cars in Carnival Cars and playing tic-tac-toe with shapes. The eighth-grade challenges include solving extraterrestrial math problems in Cargo Bay and graphing coordinates to make a robot Elvis dance. In between are many more animated and talkative games to add interest. |
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Math.com
Math.com offers a clearinghouse of everything related to mathematics. Try "math in one minute" tutorials to brush up on the basics, or inspect the fractal of the day. There are math biographies, a history of math, plus formulas and even fun games. |
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The Math Forum - Ask Dr. Math
You'll enjoy finding out the answers to some of the questions that kids have already asked Dr. Math; for instance: What's the name of the "infinity" symbol? Why can't you divide a number by zero? And what happens if you bore a hole through the center of the Earth and drop something down the hole? Where will the item end up? Or down? Or...? |
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Music |
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Energy in the Air
Explore each instrument of the orchestra, see its range on the musical scale, and even hear sound clips from famous works featuring that instrument. There's also a section on the science of sound that features activities for you to try. |
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How MP3 Files Work
MP3 is actually shorthand for the audio level 3 compression standard developed by the Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG). It's a way to compress audio files without degrading the quality of the sound. At this site, you can find out how it works and what you'll need to both download MP3 files to your own computer and also create your own files. Once you have an MP3 file, you can share it with others or carry it around on a portable MP3 player, if copyright rules allow. |
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Juice Bottle Jingles
Have you ever tapped a half-filled glass and made a musical note? Behold a virtual six-bottle xylophone, and a tunebook for your playing (and listening) pleasure. Just follow the notes to tap out such all-time favorites as "Jingle Bells" and "Mary Had a Little Lamb." |
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Music Magic: A Piano Exploration
This great little tutorial features 15 interactive piano lessons with an on-screen piano you can play. Learn about rhythm, time signatures, notes, and even play a few simple songs. The lessons feature numerous MIDI files, so you can hear what you're supposed to sound like. |
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Popular Songs in American History
Find out what songs were popular during various periods in American history. This unique collection contains audio files, lyrics, and historical notes. "Greensleeves" was popular in sixteenth-century America. "The Drinking Gourd" was from the Civil War era. "I've Been Working on the Railroad" was what the forty-niners sang as they searched for gold in California. |
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Songs for Scouts
Gather ?round the campfire and share some singing ? here are silly songs, lots of gross songs, and songs that are just plain fun. If you want the definitive version of "Greasy Grimy Gopher Guts," look no further. |
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Studio to Stage
Follow the development of dance through the years as influences from France, Russia, and other places make their point. Check out first steps in ballet all the way through to comments on a performance from a dancer's perspective. |
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The Symphony: An Interactive Guide
What's the "symphonic form"? It's all explained here, from the sonata in the first movement, to the scherzos in the second and third movements, to the rondo in the fourth. Discover the guide to the instruments of the orchestra, complete with audio files. Learn about almost 20 different composers of symphonies at this slick site. |
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Science |
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A Science Odyssey
In the Technology at Home area, you can scroll through the Twentieth Century and see what changes happen in the virtual home. Appliances appear and disappear, telephone equipment changes ? what else will you notice? Now try the other explorations: human evolution, radio transmission, probe the brain, atomic structure, and several more. |
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BrainPop
Watch over 80 entertaining and educational animated cartoons that explain lots of scientific things, such as how your eyes work and how your sense of smell operates. There are other topics, too, such as the water cycle, electricity, and rainbows. Try some experiments with "Bob, the Ex-lab Rat" or register (it's free) to ask questions of your own. The more activities and you read, the more "points" you can get. Collect enough points and you win a T-shirt and are entered in other prize drawings. |
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Exploratorium: ExploraNet
Do you know what makes a fruit fly grow legs out of its head? Want to explore the science of sports? Care to slog through a creepy virtual swamp, looking for frogs? The Exploratorium, in San Francisco, California, is a huge hands-on science laboratory for kids of all ages. Click on Digital Library and discover the many interesting online exhibits. |
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Journey North
Journey North is a project where the Internet really shines. Click on Help Track Spring's Journey North. The results of your local observations will be combined with other reports from all over the U.S., and a map will be created to show where the ice has gone out of various lakes and rivers, where the tulips are blooming, where the spring frogs are peeping, and where the migratory monarchs have landed. |
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Little Shop of Physics
Welcome to the Little Shop of Physics: nothing here will harm you. They have concocted some interesting demonstrations using everyday objects that might amuse you and teach you something about physics. There are optical and auditory illusions plus lots of special effects you can try right on your computer screen. Come closer! |
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On the Prairie: Prairie Ecology
The Great Plains region of the United States was once covered by a prairie ecosystem, but only 2 percent of native prairie remains today. This site explains why prairies are important. See how good you are at prairie restoration by playing the outstanding "Build-a-Prairie" game. |
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Reeko's Mad Scientist Lab
It sure is dusty here in Reeko's basement science lab. Better put on this lab coat to keep your clothes clean, and this pair of goggles might not be a bad idea, either. Fun, educational experiments in astronomy, chemistry, physics, and earth science may be found here if you look around a bit. In the archives, you can examine the experiments by level of difficulty or by category. |
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Space Day 2000
Try the Night Watchman and see if you can click and drag the constellations to the correct place in the sky (if you've got sound, you'll even hear the crickets!). In The Phaser you'll learn all about the phases of the Moon (hope you know your waxing from your waning gibbous; if not, this site will teach you). |
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The Global Teenager Online Forum
For young people around the world to exchange news about what you are doing - and would like to do - to solve global problems in your schools and communities. |
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Homework Help |
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Ask Jeeves for Kids!
Why doesn't someone invent a kid-safe search engine that lets you type in a real question? So that you could just type in "I want information on Pokémon" and you'd get back just a few targeted sites, not 23,000 choices! And if you weren't the World's Greatest Speller, the search engine would check the spelling of your question, too. Why doesn't someone invent a search tool like that? Guess what, someone did. Why not go and Ask Jeeves? |
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Citing Electronic Resources
Using the Net to find information for research projects is great, but how do you give credit to, or cite, all those electronic resources? This useful list of guides from the Internet Public Library will show you the way. If the style sheet you need is not mentioned, try Karla?s Guide to Citation Style Guides. |
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e-nature
Audubon Field Guides online! There are over 4,800 animals and plants pictured on these Web pages, drawn from the well-known print guidebooks. The content includes: Amphibians, Birds, Butterflies, Fishes, Insects, Mammals, Reptiles, Seashells, Seashore Creatures, Spiders, Trees, and Wildflowers. Each specimen is pictured in a small thumbnail photo. If you click on it, you'll get a larger picture plus lots of information on the creature or plant. |
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Fact Monster
This is great! Has facts on everything from the Nile River to Michael Jordan. You can build your vocabulary with Word of the Day and find out whose birthday is celebrated today. |
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Homework Help - Geography - Discovery Channel School
Look up information on world cities, countries, rivers, lakes, and other geographical features at this easy-to-use site. Powered by World Book encyclopedia, the country articles feature a color flag plus maps and photos. Subsections cover the country's government, people, and way of life. There are usually links to related articles, study questions, and a suggested bibliography. |
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KidsClick! Web Search
Browse educational and fun Web sites in 15 different categories. All of them have been selected, categorized, and described by a team of librarians who know what kids want. How do they know? Because kids come into their libraries and ask for these types of things! There is a neat and fast search engine to get you where you want to go. |
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LibrarySpot
Offers a host of acronym dictionaries, biographical dictionaries, inventions, virtual math and science calculators?all are here for your use. Explore numerous magazines and newspapers, phone books, mapping programs, and more. |
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Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary
Look up definitions in this easy-to-use dictionary. One of the newest online features is that if you spell the word wrong, it quickly gives you a list of possible alternative spellings. For their "just for kids" version and a student dictionary, try Word Central. |
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My Virtual Reference Desk
My Virtual Reference Desk offers dozens of links ? to dictionaries, encyclopedias, reference/research materials, thesauruses, atlases, sports, entertainment, and much more ? as well as a search engine for locating more information. |
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Study Buddy: Your School Survival Connection
A wonderful collection of tips on everything from memorizing lines in a play to dealing with procrastination is in store for you at this site. You'll find lots of study "survival" information and a way to get a "study buddy" through a safe pen pal remailer system. |
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Yahooligans!
Want a quick pointer to a valuable site to help with your homework? The Yahooligans directory can save your day. It arranges terrific Internet sites into six subject categories, and it's simple to use. There are also tons of downloadable pictures, sounds, and video clips. |
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Children's Museums |
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Art Museums |
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History Museums |
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Alexandria Archaeology Museum - Alexandria, VA
The Alexandria Archaeology Museum is the City of Alexandria, Virginia's community archaeology program and division of the Office of Historic Alexandria. Its exhibits, educational programs, and extensive collections are based on more than 30 years of excavations and research on Alexandria's history. |
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American Textile History Museum - Lowell, MA
This national treasure houses one of the largest textile history collections in the world -- books, images, textile samples, garments, household textiles, textile-making tools and equipment. Includes an on-going exhibition on the history of cloth-making, "Textiles in America." |
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Antelope Valley Indian Museum - Lancaster, CA
Located in the Heart of California's Mojave Desert, the Antelope Valley Indian Museum contains many rare or one-of-a-kind artifacts. This folk art structure is on the National Register of Historic Places. |
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Atlanta History Center - Atlanta, GA
The Atlanta History Center offers award-winning exhibitions on Atlanta history, the Civil War and southern folk arts and crafts, as well as regularly changing exhibitions and an extensive research library/archives. |
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Autry Museum of Western Heritage - Los Angeles, CA
Explore the myths and realities of the American West and its diverse populations. In addition to three major changing exhibits each year, the museum has more than 51,000 objects in 7 permanent collection galleries including fine artworks, folk art, and western memorabilia. |
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Battleship Cove - Fall River, MA
WW-II naval vessels: Battleship Massachusetts, Destroyer Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. and submarine Lionfish, as well as era PT boats. |
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Bishop Museum - Honolulu, HI
The State Museum of Natural and Cultural History. Pacific anthropology, botany, entomology and zoology. Includes on-line exhibits. |
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Buffalo Bill Historical Center - Cody, WY
The Buffalo Bill Historical Center is widely regarded as America's finest western museum. Located in northwestern Wyoming, 52 miles from Yellowstone National Park's East Gate, the Center features a library and four internationally acclaimed museums under one roof. |
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Golden State Museum - Sacramento, CA
The Golden State Museum brings California's rich history to life with a mix of traditional exhibits and state-of-the-art technology. Multimedia exhibits tell the stories of California's people, place, promise, and politics. |
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Technology Museums |
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Museum of American Glass - Millville, NJ
The only museum in the United States devoted exclusively to American Glass. Over 6,500 objects are on display ranging from Mason jars and paperweights to Tiffany masterpieces and the world's largest bottle. |
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NIST Virtual Museum - Gaithersburg, MD
The NIST Virtual Museum displays artifacts that illuminate the historical mission of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (formerly known as the National Bureau of Standards). Artifacts range from historical weights and measures standards to high-tech testing and measurement apparatus. |
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The Corning Museum of Glass - Corning, NY
The Museum houses over 29,000 objects representing 3,500 years of glassmaking. It also houses the Rakow Library, the most comprehensive research library in the world. Images of some of the collection are included on-line, as well as an extensive educational section called "A Resource of Glass" that is used as a syllabus for many schools and researchers. Recently added a new multi-million dollar Innovation Center that represents key stories of inventions and breakthroughs in glassmaking. |
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Miscellaneous Museums |
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EMuseum
A virtual museum of Anthropology, History and Natural History. |
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Kenneth G. Fiske Museum of Musical Instruments - Claremont Colleges, Claremont, CA
An ecletic museum of over 1,200 musical instruments made in Europe, America, Asia, Africa, the Middle East, the Caribbean, the South Pacific, and Australia dating from the 17th through the 20th centuries. Instrument types include keyboards, brass, woodwind, stringed, percussion, mechanical, and electronic. |
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Peabody Essex Museum, Salem, Massachusetts
USA's oldest continuously operating museum, founded in 1799. Maritime arts and history; American decorative arts; early American architecture; Asian export art; Asian, Oceanic, African arts and culture; natural history; native American arts. |
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The Virtual Smithsonian, Washington, DC
A virtual version of the Smithsonian's 150th Anniversary traveling exhibit, implemented with the most advanced 3D and video technology available, shows what will be possible when the next generation of internet becomes a reality. |
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Science Museums |
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The Parents at Home site, especially for at-home parents, offers e-mail pen pals, a booklist, and links to children's sites.
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The Partnership for Family Involvement in Education, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education, highlights school-community- business partnerships and includes a calendar of events. At the home page for the Department of Education, parents will find information about the President's education initiatives, college financial aid, and parenting publications, along with links to other useful education sites.
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