The Best Resources for Elementary Schools Think Quest (http://thinkquest.org) Think Quest is a free online community for learning. Learning is social, Think Quest engages and inspires students by providing a wider (but protected) audience. It turns students into multimedia authors for their classmates and allows them to think and learn together. This is more than a blog, students can hold debates, brainstorming sessions, polls, and more. Only teachers and students from your school can enter this password protected learning community (or you can open it up a little more so that other schools can communicate with yours...virtual pen pals). Think Quest allows members to use websites and interactive tools to publish their ideas, collaborate on projects, and build knowledge together. Think Quest also holds competitions where students are challenged to globally think, create and innovate using the Think platform to work together on projects, digital media, or application development.
Think Quest is a highly motivational environment for students. It can be integrated into any subject and any curriculum. Give students a writing assignment and have them brainstorm and write together using Think Quest. Have them post project they have been working on and encourage them to view other students projects and sites (this doesn’t require much prompting!). Students will use this tool outside of school and naturally extend learning on their own. They can create their own “homework help� page where they are the expert. Think Quest offers the interactive learning tool to thousands of schools around the world in eight different languages, get real world foreign language experience for your students! Think Quest can be used with students at any age. A teacher registers the school for an account and manages student accounts. Send home the included Think Quest permission slip to be signed by parents.
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