If It Was My Home - Oil Spill Visualization

If It Was My Home is a simple site that allows you to quickly compare the current size of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill to your city, county, state, or country. If It Was My Home is very similar to the Gulf Coast Oil Spill Map created by Paul Rademacher that I wrote about in early May. The difference between the two is Rademacher's map uses the Google Earth Browser Plugin while If It Was My Home uses the standard Google Maps interface. Below is an image of a map comparing the current size of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill to the size of South Paris, Maine where I work.














Applications for Education
If It Was My Home relies on the Google Maps interface instead of the Google Earth Browser Plugin which means If It Was My Home doesn't require anything other than a standard web browser to access the service. This difference is significant if you work in a school that doesn't allow you to install anything on the school's computers.

Here are some related items that may be of interest to you:
First-hand Accounts of the Oil Spill's Impact
More Google Maps About Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill
Tracking the Oil Spill - Interactive Maps

Togetherville - An Online Neighborhood for Kids

Togetherville is a social networking for kids that has gotten quite a bit of press lately. I was alerted to the site by Philip Cummings. Togetherville mimics many of the aspects of social networking that has made Facebook so popular. Using their Facebook login credentials, parents can create Togetherville accounts for their children. By using their Facebook credentials, parents can link their childrens' Togetherville accounts to the children of their Facebook friends. This system is designed to create a small network of trusted, verified contacts for children to interact with.

Learn more about Togetherville in the video below.


Applications for Education
Togetherville could be a good, safe environment in which children ages 6 through 10 can learn to conduct appropriate online interactions with their peers.

Gone Google - Calculate Savings from Using Google

Many of us already know that using Google Apps can save schools and businesses thousands of dollars every year. Now we have a tool to prove that. Today, Google launched Gone Google. Gone Google is a simple tool for calculating the potential savings organizations could see by switching to Google Apps. Gone Google is based on switching to Google Apps for Enterprise which costs $50/user. The savings for schools that switch to Google Apps for Education at $0/user (yes, free) are greater. Try Gone Google now to see how much your school district could save.

Applications for Education
If you're trying to convince the powers-that-be in your school district to try Google Apps for Education, Gone Google could certainly aid your cause.

Fuel the Brain - Free Math Games and Printables

Fuel the Brain is a nice collection of online mathematics games, interactive lessons, and printable materials for teaching mathematics. All of Fuel the Brain's offerings are intended for elementary and middle school age students. In addition to the standard collection of games and printable materials, Fuel the Brain offers "seasonal" activities designed to correspond to the seasons of the Northern Hemisphere.

Applications for Education
Fuel the Brain offers a games widget that you can install on your blog or website. Rather than directing students to yet another website, you can install the Fuel the Brain widget and have them play the games on blog or website they typically visit for your class.

Here are some related items that may be of interest to you:
Five Sources of Fun Mathematics Games
Ten Problem Solving Games for K-8 Students
The Importance of Proper Mathematics