Science Resources on the Web Workshop

I attended the NHPTV Science Resources on the Web Workshop. Many great sites. They are all on a webpage at NHPTV. One of the presenter's favorite type of site is the online science museum. They have educational sections where there are lesson plans and activities. Some of them will let you create a profile so you can "collect" lessons that you found helpful. Some of the best are the Exploratorium in San Francisco (the Digital Library here has activities for in the classroom searchable by grade level, also check out the "cool sites" section) , the Boston Museum of Science and the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia.
The Teachers' Domain collections include classroom-ready multimedia resources for use in lessons. Search by grade level and subject (life science, physical science) and find videos, lesson plans and interactive activities. [Example - This interactive activity from NOVA Online lets you spin a spiral galaxy, including our own Milky Way. It demonstrates that what you can learn from visible light observations of a galaxy is largely determined by the angle from which you are observing it. (Earth and Space Science 6-8) ] It wants you to register but it's free.
One of the best websites I found while in the workshop was the Genetics WebLab. It has 14 interactive activities including: Mendel's Peas (you determne the number of traits and then try to create a specific kind of plant); Punnett Squares, Dragons (by manipulating the recessive and dominant genes you try to create a dragon); DNA Fingerprinting, natural selection and more.
A website with some fun activities involving genetics is Kids Genetics. They have some excellent interactive activities/ tutorials where students can learn about genetics.
The last website I'd like to mention is the Middle School Portal, a part of the NSF. Here you can choose, Math, Science or Technology. Has many lesson plans, activities, worksheets, exercises. For Example: The Virtual Body from MEDtropolis.com is an interactive overview of some of the basic structure and function of the human body. The site, available in both English and Spanish, is a mix of information and activities focused on four areas -- the brain, skeleton, heart, and digestive tract. The site's extensive array of diagrams and images, as well as its interactive nature, enhance the site's appeal and educational potential. Worth exploring.
Discovery school has some great Teaching Tools for Teachers. These include puzzle makers, lesson planner, worksheet generator and quiz creator. It will even correct quizzes and send the results to your e-mail address. All you need to do is register. You'll be able to save all your creations on the website for later use.
Finally, the presenter suggested we help students become better at evaluating web resources. Many students assume that if it's on the Web it's true. She defines sites as either Expert (NASA), Credible (TIME Magazine) or Unknown (site credentials are unverifiable). Students should learn to read a URL. Do they know that a .com is a commercial site, .edu is educational (probably a university or school), .gov is an official government site. I'll be putting together a PowerPoint presentation to help students become better at searching and to help them evaluate websites. FYI, the presenter showed us a website with the URL martinlutherking.org. Kids might find it when searching for information about Martin Luther King. But, it's a website created by David Duke to trick kids into distributing literature defaming Dr. King. I'd like to show this PowerPoint before the 8th graders do their research paper.