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Website of Meghan Howard |
Software
Review of Starfall.com
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Starfall
Education Grades
Pre-K to 1st Language
Arts Reviewed
by Meghan Howard Software Description: Starfall.com is a colorfully
exciting interactive website that focuses on early literacy and math concepts
such as letter identification and sounds, phonetics, calendar skills, shapes
and colors, basic writing skills, number words, vocabulary, fluency, comprehension
and much more. The creators of this
website have modeled starfall.com after the “Big Five” reading elements. The National Institute of Child Health and
Human Development recommend this site. While teaching some of
the basic early literacy and math skills, the website incorporates many of
Gardener’s Multiple Intelligences.
For example, a user can learn and hear music from classical artists
such as Beethoven, Chopin, and Mozart while re-enforcing number and reading
skills. Specialized features include
a “speak” option, which allows the user to roll the mouse over a particular
word to hear and see the word up close.
In addition the “speak” option will break down the actual sounds in
the word and then blend the sounds together giving emergent readers the
opportunity to visually and auditorily see how sounds make up words. One particular noteworthy feature on this
interactive and stimulating website is the use of sign language to enhance learning. This feature allows non-verbal and verbal
users to learn and/or extend their knowledge through the use multiple
modalities. Accuracy of Content: The content being
presented in this website is priceless in the early primary years. This website has been used extensively not
only in my classroom but in classrooms across the West Hartford Public School
district in West Hartford, Connecticut.
No problems have been reported with this website in terms of content
and accuracy. The content of
Starfall.com is astoundingly motivating for young learners due to its colorful
and enticing graphics and auditory enrichment. Students at all levels within the classroom will be mesmerized
and challenged. While the creators of
this website have done a remarkable job at focusing on early literacy skills,
the makers should consider inserting additional questions to further extend
the users’ calendar skills. This
should include questions such as: what is the year, what was yesterday, what
will tomorrow be, what was last month and what will next month be. This website is easy for
young children and parents to use at home.
In addition, teachers and students can easily utilize this website in
the classroom. The user can quickly
and easily manipulate the site by accessing different sections with minimal
problems. Arrow keys allow the user
to move backwards and forward through the site. Furthermore, users are allowed to click on various icons to
hear sounds and words. Starfall.com is
set up in a manner that allows children to start at their individual level
and then progress through a series of teaching activities. These activities increase in difficulty
while still following the sequence of early literacy skills. Furthermore, this website is unbiased
regarding gender, race and ethnicity but the site could depict in some manner,
children with disabilities. Technical Quality: The layout, ease and
accessibility of the site are straightforward. However, younger children might have difficulty typing in the URL
address in order to access the site. One
solution to this problem would be to place the site in the favorites section
of the Internet on your desktop.
Young users could then be taught to access the website using the
favorites. In addition, young users
would need to be instructed on which areas they should navigate through
depending on their individual needs.
Teachers and parents can print out symbols to indicate to the child,
what section they should access.
Although this site does not create a finished product, it is an
interactive teaching instrument that reinforces early literacy skills. This website cannot be modified or
manipulated like other programs, but teachers and parents have the option of
choosing which level is most appropriate for the user. While, this site does not have the
capacity to track the users’ work, other programs can be easily utilized in
conjunction to track student performance and progress. Role of Students: Younger students feel
empowered by this website because difficult concepts are presented in an
exciting manner. Students can then apply
their new learning in fun, interactive games. While Starfall.com can be operated individually, it can also be
used with a partner. In addition, ESOL and Special Needs students can utilize
this program with a partner. This site
allows children to build upon previous skills while re-enforcing what the
child already knows. While
traditional ways of teaching students how to read are critical, alternate
ways of motivating and engaging the struggling reader can be accomplished through
this site. Role of the Teacher: Teachers need to give
students the opportunity to utilize this program in a systematic and
organized format. This would not be
an issue for teachers who have access to a computer lab. However, if a teacher only had access to a
few computers, then they would need to create a schedule for students so that
all children are able to reap the benefits of this website. Teachers need to somehow
monitor and track student learning and progress to further extend the child’s
learning. After initial instruction
on how to access and use the website, teachers should carefully and
meaningfully watch students to make sure that they are using the program
correctly and that they are in the assigned area of instruction. Teachers and parents have the right to
download leveled reading and writing activities that further connect to
student learning. These supplemental
materials can be downloaded in either block and/or manuscript writing. Classroom Usage: Teachers can use this website
in countless ways to build upon student’s early literacy skills by teaching
letters and sounds, word families, number words and much more. The presentation of books allows children
to feel as if they are readers even when they are still learning letters and
sounds. What a powerful tool for a
child learning to read! Several kindergarten and
first grade themes are present on this website. For example, Kindergarten students have the opportunity to tell
all about themselves in the “All About Me” activity. Users can tell if they are a boy or a
girl, how old they are and what they look like using both words and pictures
to create themselves. First grade
students have the opportunity to read stories of different genres that
include plays, fiction and non-fiction, comics, folk tales, Greek myths and
Chinese fables. Critical Summary: Starfall.com is a
fantastic website for all young children but especially those who are
unmotivated. The interactive graphics
and auditory features empower even the struggling child to feel as if he or
she is a reader! Overall Rating
(On a Scale of 1 to 10) Rating: 9
out of 10 Explanation of Rating: This website would
receive a rating of 9 due to its ease and content presentation. Many of the
site’s themes are consistent with Pre-Kindergarten, Kindergarten and 1st
Grade objectives, which makes it easy to incorporate into the classroom. A way to track and monitor student
performance and progress is the website’s only downfall.
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Homepage | Review
of Kid Pix | Last Revised: 6/11/2008| © M. Howard | email:
Mhoward@sjc.edu |
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