Freely Educate

Librivox: Free Audio Books of Classics

The tagline of Librivox always makes me smile...

"Accoustical liberation of books in the public domain."

A more boring way of saying that is: Librivox offers free audiobooks of public domain books.

Thousands of books are available, read by real people (not a computer).   In our little school, we read a lot of classics, so Librivox has just about every book we need.  You may listen to the books via iTunes or mp3 and in most cases you may view the text of the book as it is read to you.

Thank you, Mandi, for reminding me of this high quality, 100% free, educational find!

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Have a resource or giveaway to share?  Email me at loriseaborg @ gmail.com

Mathway: Free Answers to Math Problems

This is a site for you, the educator, not for your students, unless you don't mind them knowing the answers to math problems!  Enter a math problem into Mathway, click "Answer," and you'll get your result immediately!

Visit the main site or go to the following links for solutions to arithmetic problems in the following subject areas:

• Basic Math
• Pre-Algebra
• Algebra
• Trigonometry
• Precalculus
• Calculus
• Graphing
• Glossary

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Have a resource or giveaway to share?  Email me at loriseaborg @ gmail.com

This is a site for you, the educator, not for your students, unless you don't mind them knowing the answers to math problems!  Enter a math problem into Mathway, click "Answer," and you'll get your result immediately!

Visit the main site or go to the following links for solutions to arithmetic problems in the following subject areas:

• Basic Math
• Pre-Algebra
• Algebra
• Trigonometry
• Precalculus
• Calculus
• Graphing
• Glossary

Subscribe to FreelyEducate here 

Have a resource or giveaway to share?  Email me at loriseaborg @ gmail.com

Storybook: Free Novel-Writing Program

I imagine it's a confusing business trying to keep track of character's traits while writing a novel or piece of fiction.  Your students, and the writers among you educators, may find Storybook to be the organizational answer you've been searching for.  Best of all:  Storybook is 100% free.

Below is a little about the program from the creators:

Storybook is a free (open source) novel-writing tool for creative writers, novelists and authors which will help you to keep an overview of multiple plot-lines while writing books, novels or other written works.

Storybook assists you in structuring your book

Store all information about your characters and locations in one place. Then, use the included Storybook features for managing chapters, scenes, characters and locations. A simple interface is provided to enable you to assign your defined characters and locations to each scene and to keep an overview of your work with user-friendly chart tools.

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Have a resource or giveaway to share?  Email me at loriseaborg @ gmail.com

Free Antique Book Art Illustrations

Old Book Art has become one of my favorite browsing websites.  I can see its potential for an educator as vast.  Peruse the files for antique maps, find an illustration to accompany a classic, have the children study an artist whose work was in an old book...

The mission of Old Book Art is:

To provide & facilitate access to free illustrations: pictures, drawings, maps and other images scanned from antiquarian, public-domain books and other old documents. We have over 3,200 images in our gallery with more added regularly, all at no cost and most available at very high resolution. Most of these we have scanned and edited ourselves. We will also screen and provide links to other high quality resources.

Here is a sampling of the book art I found on the Old Book Art site:

     

Let me know what you think of Old Book Art!

~~~~~~~~~~

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Old Book Art has become one of my favorite browsing websites.  I can see its potential for an educator as vast.  Peruse the files for antique maps, find an illustration to accompany a classic, have the children study an artist whose work was in an old book...

The mission of Old Book Art is:

To provide & facilitate access to free illustrations: pictures, drawings, maps and other images scanned from antiquarian, public-domain books and other old documents. We have over 3,200 images in our gallery with more added regularly, all at no cost and most available at very high resolution. Most of these we have scanned and edited ourselves. We will also screen and provide links to other high quality resources.

Here is a sampling of the book art I found on the Old Book Art site:

     

Let me know what you think of Old Book Art!

~~~~~~~~~~

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Keep up with FreelyEducate tweets (Twitter) here: @freelyeducate

Free Phun with Physics

I'm sorry, I couldn't resist that title.  Phun is a "2D physics sandbox" where your students can have fun while learning.

The creators of Phun describe the program like this:

Great for kids

Phun is a fantastic toy for children, where they can learn and appreciate physics, science and simulations in an open ended gameplay with rich creative and artistic freedom, including colorful freehand drawing.

Tina, a FreelyEducate.com reader, sent in the link to Phun. She said she appreciates why the creators are keeping Phun free: "We want to keep Phun freely available for non-commercial use, since we think and hope that Phun can make a difference in promoting science and art to the masses, in particular children and young people, through a constructionists learning paradigm."

Thank you, Tina, for sharing this high quality, 100% free, educational find with us!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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Have a resource or giveaway to share?  Email me at loriseaborg @ gmail.com

Free Math Program for K-12 & College Level

Khan Academy offers two things:  A free, adaptive math program and over 800 how-to videos on almost any math concept you can think of. 

About the math program: Our children are doing the math program this year and really prefer it over our past method of using a textbook math program.  Khan Academy's program "learns" how much you know after a couple hours of working on it.  Soon, it will have you up to the math level you should be on, and with the aid of the videos, you can keep learning math concepts, building on your knowledge. 

Khan Academy also has "over 800 videos covering everything from basic arithmetic and algebra to differential equations, physics, and finance," including many videos on the current economic crisis. 

About the professor (the following text is taken from the Khan Academy website) :

Salman Khan (Sal) founded the Khan Academy with the hope of using technology to foster new learning models. He is currently an investment professional in Palo Alto, CA and has held positions in venture capital, product management, and engineering. Sal received his MBA from Harvard Business School. He also holds a Masters in electrical engineering and computer science, a BS in electrical engineering and computer science, and a BS in mathematics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Testimonials:

Many testimonials are posted on the Khan Academy site, including these:

"I am a high school Math/Physics Teacher working in Toronto Ontario. I have been referring students to your videos for the past year and have referenced many of them on my website. Those that have used it find it very useful, and have commented that you explain content better than I do..."

"...Your videos have become very popular in my school, and my grades have sky-rocketed ever since I became accustomed to your methods of teaching..."

"I've never been very successful with algebra, I know this is pretty basic, but I have almost no comprehension of mathematics. I was honestly going to be kicked out of school for being non-productive, I was ready to be thrown out, but now I get this. Thank you so much..."

Linda Barger, who emailed me about Khan Academy said her son "loves the site."  Thank you, Linda, for this high quality, 100% free, educational find!

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Have a resource or giveaway to share?  Email me at loriseaborg @ gmail.com

Poisson Rouge: A Favorite Site of Ours for PreK-1st (-ish)

If you have preschoolers, especially, but also perhaps   elementary-aged kids, they will probably love Poisson Rouge as much as we do. 

Poisson Rouge, or, Red Fish Soup, is....um...it's a site that is hard to explain, that's what.  Here's a screenshot of it:

Your little student simply clicks on something.  Anything.  He or she can then move it, build it, learn the alphabet from it, listen to it, play with it...all depending on what he or she chooses to do.

The makers of Poisson Rouge didn't post instructions on the site, as they'd prefer that children freely do whatever they'd like to do on Poisson Rouge,  but with more than a little reluctance, they wrote up a User Guide for Teachers & Parents, which is well worth a read not only for the lesson tips, but also for their insight into how children learn.

Here are a couple of reviews posted on Poisson Rouge:

"The site encourages, relies on, and rewards exploration.  It's only gotten better as I let students cooperate with each other.  While some of the more complicated puzzles may not entertain many students, I was very pleased to find one autistic student who happily spent hours on those."

"I have a little girl just about to turn three and she loves it. It has done wonders for her mouse skills, unlike any other websites we have found she can use it completely independently and she is still finding new things to do on it."

See those little French and British flags (circles) at the bottom of the screenshot, above?  If you click on the flag of France, you'll read the site in French.  If you click on the British flag, you'll read the site in English.   A few of the children's games are affected by this, such as the alphabet.  I can see it as a neat way to teach the little ones a bit of French (or English).

I dare you to not get addicted to Poisson Rouge yourself! 

Updated 9/24:  I found Poisson Rouge TV on the site this morning.

~ Lori

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Keep up with FreelyEducate tweets (Twitter) here: @freelyeducate

If you have preschoolers, especially, but also perhaps   elementary-aged kids, they will probably love Poisson Rouge as much as we do. 

Poisson Rouge, or, Red Fish Soup, is....um...it's a site that is hard to explain, that's what.  Here's a screenshot of it:

Your little student simply clicks on something.  Anything.  He or she can then move it, build it, learn the alphabet from it, listen to it, play with it...all depending on what he or she chooses to do.

The makers of Poisson Rouge didn't post instructions on the site, as they'd prefer that children freely do whatever they'd like to do on Poisson Rouge,  but with more than a little reluctance, they wrote up a User Guide for Teachers & Parents, which is well worth a read not only for the lesson tips, but also for their insight into how children learn.

Here are a couple of reviews posted on Poisson Rouge:

"The site encourages, relies on, and rewards exploration.  It's only gotten better as I let students cooperate with each other.  While some of the more complicated puzzles may not entertain many students, I was very pleased to find one autistic student who happily spent hours on those."

"I have a little girl just about to turn three and she loves it. It has done wonders for her mouse skills, unlike any other websites we have found she can use it completely independently and she is still finding new things to do on it."

See those little French and British flags (circles) at the bottom of the screenshot, above?  If you click on the flag of France, you'll read the site in French.  If you click on the British flag, you'll read the site in English.   A few of the children's games are affected by this, such as the alphabet.  I can see it as a neat way to teach the little ones a bit of French (or English).

I dare you to not get addicted to Poisson Rouge yourself! 

Updated 9/24:  I found Poisson Rouge TV on the site this morning.

~ Lori

~~~~~~~~~~

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Keep up with FreelyEducate tweets (Twitter) here: @freelyeducate

Free Music Composer Study @ Classics for Kids

Again, I'm sharing one of our family's favorite sites. 

Classics for Kids is a kid-friendly website that teaches children about, well, classical music. 

Each month, a different classical composer is highlighted.  This month:  Zoltn Kodly. 

Each week, a different score of music is highlighted through a weekly "radio" show.  This week: Classical Composers Who Used Folk Music

From the introduction on the Classics for Kids website:

This site is designed to help you introduce your child to classical music. Music not only has the power to stimulate the mind, enrich the heart and soothe the soul; it can help children to think more creatively, develop craftsmanship and discipline and learn the value of excellence.

What is available at the Classics for Kids website?  Here is just a sample:

• Lessons plans for K-5th are available for certain composers.
• Games, including Compose Your Own Music (our children's favorite on the site)
• A weekly radio show, based on the current month's composer's music
• Music selections from various classical composers
• An interactive chart of Instruments of the Orchestra

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Have a resource or giveaway to share?  Email me at loriseaborg @ gmail.com

Free Music Lessons (including piano, guitar and music theory)

Piano Lessons, Music Theory, Guitar Lessons, and Harmonic Dictation are the courses offered through G Major Music Theory, a site dedicated to providing music lesson free and free of membership.

The site is not pretty, and it has more ads than I normally tolerate, but I took a look at the lessons and think it's a pretty good deal at the price of ...free!

Mandi, a FreelyEducate.com reader, sent in the link.  She wrote this about the free piano lessons:  "[This site] provides everything you need for piano lessons, even theory work pages and first pieces.  There are familiar favorites and original pieces.  This is a fantastic resource."

Thanks, Mandi!

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Have a resource or giveaway to share?  Email me at loriseaborg @ gmail.com

Free Curriculum for Preschoolers & Beginning Readers

Okay, I have a good one for you today, especially if you have preschoolers and beginning readers traipsing around the house.  We have a couple of those in our house, and Starfall.com is definitely a favorite site for them! 

Starfall teaches children the alphabet and how to read.  It's interactive, brightly-colored, and fun (that opinion is based on my children's frequent requests to visit the site). 

Here is a screenshot of the "Learn to Read" area of the Starfall.com website:

Click on a "book," such as Zac the Rat and the program reads a book to the child, sounding out, through audio, each word in the book.

Do you want to know exactly how Starfall teaches students how to read?  Visit the Educators' Page for a full description of the teaching methods used.

Enjoy!

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Have a resource or giveaway to share?  Email me at loriseaborg @ gmail.com

Free Online Training Courses for Educators & Businesses

Michaels & Associates is a business analysis and custom training development company that offers free courses which are primarily targeted to assist folks in training departments responsible for developing courseware. The following courses are currently offered, with more added soon.

Storyboarding Strategies for Success

Storyboards are the blueprints for e-learning courses. But how do they help set expectations for the final product? Effective storyboards define all aspects of the training so you can get reach a consensus on the design before starting development. In this course, you will learn the importance of storyboards, the components of an effective storyboard, your roles and responsibilities as a storyboard developer and some tips for writing storyboards. 

 Accelerated Learning: The Extreme Training Makeover

Many organizations want to improve job performance but at the same time reduce training expenses. Accelerated Learning (AL) is a system for speeding up and enhancing both the training design process and the learning process. In this course, you will discover how effective AL can be to your learners, trainers, and department’s bottom line.

 Blended Learning: Filling the Gaps of Traditional Training 

During this training, you will analyze the pros and cons of traditional training approaches and discover the benefits of a blended learning solution. You will also determine key factors in choosing a learning solution and consider multiple options to meet your learners’ and organization’s needs. Hear how some companies have gone beyond traditional training to offer effective, outside-the-box solutions to their workforce. Although there’s no single formula for a “perfect” training program, this session can help you build unique, customized strategies for success.

Best Practices for Managing Vendors and Consultants

In this training, you will learn how to take on a new training development project with a vendor or consultant and address some of the issues and challenges you may face because of this opportunity. You’ll learn how to set objectives and plan the project, and you’ll see how to evaluate vendor partners, maintain a project and handle exceptions when Murphy strikes. 

Surviving the Job Famine: ADDIE for Job Searching

Looking for a new job? Don’t know where to start? In this course, you will learn some valuable tips for finding the job of your dreams, even in the toughest of times. Using a core concept of instructional design—the ADDIE method (or Analysis, Design, Develop, Implement and Evaluate)—you will learn how to develop a job finding strategy that sets you apart from the throngs of applicants out there in today’s market.

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Have a resource or giveaway to share?  Email me at loriseaborg @ gmail.com

Free Current Events Lesson Plans

Izzit offers free daily current events lessons that are not only kid-friendly, but also teacher-friendly.  Here's how it works (the following text is from Izzit):

The FREE lessons are updated daily throughout the school year. Each lesson includes a news article and discussion questions designed to promote critical thinking, challenge assumptions, and stimulate class discussion. Note: Each new lesson remains on the website for one week.

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Have a resource or giveaway to share?  Email me at loriseaborg @ gmail.com

Free Economics Booklets

These days, everything seems more expensive, school costs included!  Even though it's terribly tempting, we need to watch out that we don't over-borrow, whether we are parents who just want the best for our children, or students who are hoping it will all get paid off easily when we graduate.  

Check out these recent statistics from Consolidated Credit's debt consolidation guide:

• • 83% of undergraduate students have at least one credit card.
• • Nearly 40% of students now graduate with unmanageable student loan debt.
• • A third of college seniors graduate with $20,000 or more in student loan debt.
• • Just over half of students who used loans to pay for college say they feel burdened by their debt
• 78% of college students have at least one credit card.
• 8.7% of bankruptcies are from people under 25 years of age.

If you are already deep in debt and wondering what to do, consider Consolidated Credit, a debt consolidation company for debt management, credit counseling, and help with credit card debt. 

If you'd like to give your students an education in credit and debt management, check out the free booklets at Consolidated Credit. The topics and e-booklets range from Budgeting101 to Youth & Money, and from Avoiding a Foreclosure to Saving Money.  The booklets are typically 10-20 pages long, .pdf documents.  I read a few and think they'd be great supplements to math and economics curriculum or for just good parenting.

“If we aren’t careful, our children will come down with ‘affluenza,’
a disease that causes them to confuse wants and needs. We need
to teach our children what my grandmother taught me: Think twice
about spending money you don’t have on things you don't need, to
impress people you don’t like anyway.”

— Michelle Singletary, Washington Post syndicated personal-finance columnist

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Patriot Day: Remembering 9/11

PBS.org has a list of lesson plans available for all grade levels.  The subjects range from Afghanistan to Emergency Preparedness, but all are on the topic of what happened on 9/11/01 in New York City.

God Bless America and your country, too!

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