Thinkfinity.org provides handy teaching tools

As teachers head into the classroom for the new school year, there is one more item they can add to their back–to–school list: Thinkfinity.org. It’s free, and it makes life easier for teachers. Thinkfinity.org is for teachers looking for a quick and innovative way to find compelling lesson plans and interactive learning tools to engage students. Thinkfinity.org is the Verizon Foundation’s, comprehensive program and online portal to 55,000 educational resources, including standards–based, grade–specific, K–12 lesson plans and other student interactives provided in partnership with the International Reading Association and many other leading educational and literacy organizations. And, Thinkfinity.org requires no downloadable software.

“As an instructional technology coordinator, a big part of my job is helping teachers incorporate technology into their lesson plans,” said Barb Thorson, instructional technology coordinator for Iredell-Statesville Schools in North Carolina. “Thinkfinity.org is a tremendous resource for me, supplying well-respected and reliable content in a manner that is easy to use and engaging for students.”

From science to English to mathematics, Thinkfinity.org offers something to teachers from elementary school through high school, across eight academic disciplines, to improve student achievement. Among the resources available on Thinkfinity.org:
•Gravity Launch, an interactive resource created by Science NetLinks that uses a computer game to help children visualize how the earth and moon’s gravitational force affects the path of a rocket launched into space. In the lesson, students select the thrust and angle needed to successfully launch a rocket into orbit. The lesson is designed for children in grades 3–5.

•Bobbie Bear, an interactive resource, created by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics’ Illuminations Project to help children learn about combinations and practice multiplication skills by determining how many outfits Bobbie Bear can create using a set number of shirts and pants. In this activity, children can guess the number of outfits Bobbie Bear can make; then, using a computer mouse, they can “dress” Bobbie to see how many combinations there actually are. This lesson is designed for children in pre–K through grade 5.

•Getting to Know You: Developing Short Biographies to Build Community, a lesson plan created by the International Reading Association’s ReadWriteThink.org to help pupils learn more about their teachers and fellow students. During the lesson, the teacher shares personal information with the children, who then pair up to interview each other and create “bio-cubes,” an object they can print out and put together. This lesson is designed for children in grades 3–5 and here is the link to the Bio-cube tool.

Content for Thinkfinity is provided through a partnership between the Verizon Foundation and 11 of the nation’s leading organizations in the fields of education and literacy: the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the International Reading Association, the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, National Center for Family Literacy, National Council on Economic Education, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Council of Teachers of English, National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, National Geographic Society, ProLiteracy Worldwide and the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History.

The Verizon Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Verizon Communications, is committed to improving literacy and K-12 education; fostering awareness and prevention of domestic violence; and promoting the use of technology in health-care delivery. For more information on the foundation, visit www.verizon.com/foundation.