Happy Tuesday!
Is the term 'pathfinder' a new one for you? If you, like me, have visions of a backpacker making his or her way through a thicket, then this is a new word for both of us. A pathfinder is, in fact, a sort of guide to the world wide web.
Let me introduce you to a sight called 42Explore. The name is kind of a hint about the site. This site allows you to pick a theme, from general to applied arts.
Why start with a search engine, when you can find a pathfinder to fit your needs at 42eXplore? When learning something new, it's nice to have more than one resource to explore. This web project provides "four to eXplore" for each topic. On each page you'll find definitions, activities, the 4 good starting points, and many more links and resources for the thematic topic. Go to the About Site page for more information about the website.
This is year five of our 42eXplore project. We now have over 200 themes in this topic archive! We frequently update projects in our Topic Index as well as each of the subject areas above. Go to What's New? to learn about recent changes.
So, they give you four good starting points and you can explore from there. I really like the part on their site about not just starting with Google when you already have some great resources on this site!
How would we use this in our classrooms? Well, to begin, if a child has an interest in a particular topic, send them here. In fact, I placed 42explore on the various grade level pages on our Resource Center Web Site. Just about all grade levels can access these 4 starting points. If a student wanted to do a "How To" assignment, exploring some of these links might help them learn more about their topic. If a child is interested in exploring a specific animal, the 42eXplore site might be able to guide them in the right direction. If the child wants to do an expert report on a topic and they are just sort of 'testing the waters,' this would be an outstanding place to begin their study.
What about you? Have you ever used pathfinders? How might you use this site in the future? As always, please post your comments on the T4 website so we all can benefit from your insight!
Thanks,
Todd
No comments:
Post a Comment