Thursday, November 20, 2008

Schmoop It!



I wish I had more time to write and really tell you about this site. An evaluative piece will have to come later. What I do want to say is that this website is so convenient and easy that I plan to brush up on my history at least once a week now. I have never been good at remembering dates and historical facts so this came in handy. Cal Libbers are talking about it and it seems to be a quick way to get information. When I first visited the site http://www.shmoop.com I thought of wikipedia and all its information. But this website is much different because its not a wiki therefore the information is more reliable. According to the App Scout article of October 31, 2008, “Developed by students and faculty at some of the country's top universities"…..Shmoop is revolutionizing the way readers interact with literature. The service is designed to provide students, teachers, and everyday readers with a resource to help them get engaged. Shmoop also aids in finding audio and video resources, and in finding study tips and paper ideas.” My middle schoolers are not ready to utilize this resource but I can bet several teachers need it to enhance their lessons. The "Brain Snacks" will go along way. Since I was an ELA teacher I prefer the Literature section. The best links were "Did you Know?" Section with the following categories: Brain Snacks, Sex Rating, and Shout Outs. A Raisin the the Sun was given a PG rating because "Beneatha goes on dates and Ruth is pregnant. That’s about as sexy as things get". LOL, I like this site!

1 comment:

Jackie S, 2.0 project manager said...

Thanks for sharing the shmoop site. Sounds like a "must visit."