Marc's+Web+Evaluations

Web Evaluations
 Interesting things is full of games and activities all geared towards making it easier for non-native English speakers to learn the language. Although ESL students are the site's primary focus, any student would enjoy the many crossword puzzles, jokes, podcasts, tongue twisters and poems. There is even a section devoted to English slang phrases and idoms. The site also provides Spanish and Japanese translators. The only limitation to the site would be its appearance. It's not visually appealing, which may cause problems with younger students, but since I plan on teaching high school English/ESL, the content more than makes up for the lack of visual fluff. If each student has their own computer, the instructor can assign them to complete activities. Many of the games score results and it could be turned into a competition in which whomever gets the highest score gets rewarded. There are "listen-and-repeat" podcasts in which students listen to an English word or phrase and then are given time to repeat it--practice makes perfect.
 * Title**: Interesting Things (Fun English Study)
 * SIte URL**: http://www.manythings.org
 * Comments**:

This website would be great for an ESL student. It has many games and puzzles that make learning fun and much more interesting. Personally, I would love to complete a cross word puzzle than read book. This site even has games that make grammar easier to learn. Another positive is that this website is easy to navigate and understand. However, a negative is that the level of difficulty does not change. Overall, I would say this would be a great website to use in your classroom. MV

Fact Monster focuses on the difficult parts of spelling and grammar. This includes exceptions to rules, plurals, compound words, and indentifying explaining parts of a sentence. There are spelling games like hangman and crossword puzzles. The site is very visually appealing, using bright, bold colors and funky fonts sure to catch a reader's attention. The only hangup is that the explanations of grammatical rules are very wordy, and could easily confuse a student, especially an ESL student. For the classroom, there are lists provided for spelling bees and spelling quizzes, including an activity named "Spell That City!" I think that this website would be extremely helpful for children who are just beginning to learn grammar rules because it explains the grammar in simpler terms that makes it easier for them to understand. The webpage will also keep a younger child's attention more than a page with more words. This webpage would be useful in explaining the basics to a child when they are just starting to learn grammar. AZ 
 * Title:** Spelling and Grammar - Fact Monster
 * Site URL**: @http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0882902.html
 * Comments**:
 * Web Evaluation Rubric:**[[file:moffitt_web_rubric.doc]]