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A cite-worthy site
Students conducting research online commonly start with a search engine such as Google. Often, in the top three results returned by a Google search, they’ll find a Wikipedia entry. Although the online encyclopedia is a veritable vault of information, the facts contained 
within can be suspect; many entries
are posted by anonymous volunteers and can be edited by anyone with a keyboard.
So that students have access to concrete facts about topics such as genetics, the structure of DNA and disease, Nature Education, a division of the Nature Publishing Group, has created www.scitable.com. The site is in keeping with the collaborative nature of open-source sites like Wikipedia. Scientists and researchers from all over the world post articles, and some experts are even available to answer student questions. A classroom section provides guided-research lessons on a variety of topics.
Start your own wild rumpus
In conjunction with the release of a movie based on Maurice Sendak’s children’s book Where the Wild Things Are, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has introduced a series of public service announcements aimed at combating childhood obesity.
The announcements, part of a campaign with the Ad Council, feature characters from the book and encourage kids to make time for play every day. Watch the videos by clicking on the wild rumpus graphic at www.smallstep.gov, where you’ll also find entertaining information on healthy eating and physical activity.
More peas, please
What’s for lunch has become a topic of national discussion. Congress is in the process of debating changes to the Child Nutrition Act, which includes standards for the more than 30 million lunches served in public schools each day.
Ann Cooper, a former executive chef and current director of nutrition services for the Berkeley Unified School District in California, has been an outspoken proponent of providing students better food. As such, she has created www.thelunchbox.org in partnership with Whole Foods. The Web site features resources for creating better school nutrition along with simple recipes developed by Cooper and nutritionists. The site also features tools and worksheets to help schools change their lunch plans, an informative news blog and educational information, such as the history of the school lunch program.
©istockphoto.com/kativ-dna,catherine yeulet-playtime, heidi anglesey-lunch girl
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