Rita+Kerr-Vanderslice

1. This program is designed as a tool for middle and high school social studies teachers to enhance their lessons with primary source documents, short video clips, pictures of critical moments in history, etc. The program includes everything from lesson plans, to review questions and suggestions for lesson activities. It is specifically designed to meet state and federal teaching standards. 2. This software could fall under drill and practice and tutorial. These materials are meant mostly to enhance lessons and to give teachers fresh ideas about making history real and relevant to their students. The drill and practice component comes with some of the classroom activities and review questions provided by the software. The tutorial portion is perhaps more for the teacher who is being instructed by the program on how to incorporate maps, primary source documents, and video into their lessons effectively. 3. This program would work great with a lesson on a really dramatic moment in history from the last century such as the Holocaust because it would probably provide video and some narrative accounts of that terrifying time in world events. I could foresee using some short news clips from that era detailing the horror that was discovered at Auschwitz or of the refugee crisis caused by Jewish migration to Western Europe and the United States. I think it would be really great especially with high school kids because they are covering historical material at a much more in depth level and could really benefit from some stimulating resources. The interactive maps and review questions would be great to incorporate as a way to break up the usual history lesson lecture. 4. The program’s strengths lie in the sheer volume and diversity of materials provided. It is also great for teachers to already have materials tied to state and national standards as those become more and more important to teaching with the federal push for measurable school improvement. The major weakness of this program is that it is expensive. The teachers and schools that most likely have the budget for these resources are not the ones that need them the most. 5. The program’s cost varies, depending on how much of the material one wants to purchase. The cheapest components start at $439.95, and the most expensive run up to $1,499.95. This software can be purchased at this link: [] but it does not list system requirements, saying only that it comes as a package, most likely indicating it is compatible with most operating systems.
 * 1) **Global History Multimedia Package:**

1. This is another social studies software program but is meant for slightly younger children, namely 4th through 8th grade. The program is meant to provide a fun and engaging way for students to interact with geography, economics, history, and culture. Students have to answer questions about the United States in all of these subject areas in their quest to track down the elusive Ms. Sandiego. 2. This program is an instructional game as well as a problem solving program. The instructional game component is the detective work required by students in order to solve the mystery. The problem solving comes in the form of the questions given to students to answer, many of which may be posed as riddles or puzzles, requiring them to use problem solving skills to find their answers. 3. I see this game as an activity that would probably be offered to students who finish their work early. I do not think I would incorporate it into a regular lesson because I think the game component could distract from some students’ learning. I could foresee using this in a 6th or 7th grade classroom while students are learning to write essays. For students who write quickly and well, they might be allowed to use this program instead of sitting idly at their desk while I work individually with students who have to work harder to get their ideas down on paper. 4. This program’s greatest strength lies in the fact that it is extremely engaging and fun, but still fairly educational. Students get to work on their problem solving skills while enjoying the hunt to solve a mystery. The weakness may lie in the wide breadth of knowledge that the program covers. It does not delve into any specific area in any depth, but just touches on the surface of a variety of concepts. For instance, you wouldn’t want to use this as a tool when talking about a specific moment in history because, while there may be history questions used within the game, there will most likely be just one or two on any specific historical period. 5. This is program appears to come in a variety of prices. The base price appears to be $700.00 but there are additional components that can be purchased, such as a $50 package specifically for schools that contains some additional educational components to the program such as a keyword search that allows students to look up specific information. The program requires Windows 3.1/95/98, Me, 2000, or XP. The Macintosh version requires OS 8.6-9.2.2, OS X.2.x-OS X.4.x. It can be purchased at []
 * 1) **Where in the U.S.A. is Carmen Sandiego?**

1. This program is meant as a tool for guiding middle and younger high school social studies students through the process of early immigration to the United States. The program includes simulations of official questioning where students have to answer correctly in order to be allowed into the country. There are also slide shows, videotaped first hand accounts, and images. 2. This program is a simulation and tutorial program. The simulations are the components of the program that allow students to experience the immigrant experience first hand, and the tutorial component encompasses all the other learning materials contained in the program and linked website. 3. I could foresee using this with an 8th grade lesson about Ellis Island. Students would all undergo the questioning of an immigrant and then have to write a short response paper about what that experience was like and how it may have changed their ideas about immigration to their country. It could also be used in a lecture setting, incorporating some of the primary and secondary source materials into a lesson about the Ellis Island experience. 4. According to reviews of the program, the strengths lie in the historical accuracy of the program as well as the simulation experience which is very interesting to kids. The downsides are mostly technical: small screen size, a registration hassle, and a not fully functional component that is supposed to allow students to look up their relatives. 5. The program is relatively inexpensive, only $35 on Amazon ([]) and is compatible with Windows 98/Me/95. Computers must also have a Microsoft compatible sound device and the Internet.
 * 1) **The Ellis Island Experience**

1. Maps 101 is a tool for social studies teachers of all levels. Due to its ability to be easily manipulated for a variety of classroom uses, it is not limited in the grade level it can be used for. Maps 101 allows teachers to zoom in on any area of the world, explore the basic history, ecology, and culture of the region as well as its geographic features. There are also games, Spanish language resources, and lesson plans available for teachers. 2. This program may fall under most categories, though perhaps not simulation. The drill and practice piece is included in its ability to be used as a geographical practice tool to familiarize students with geography and the world’s cultures. It can also be a tutorial, walking students through how to read maps and understand their globe. The instructional game piece is included in the games the program provides for students, and the problem solving piece is found in the program’s ability to make students find connections between geography, history, and world culture. 3. I can see using this game in a variety of ways, but one example might be in talking about early empires in a 9th grade World History class. The interactive maps would allow teachers to indicate how boundary lines were changing at that time, and how the collapse of the Holy Roman Empire created a splintering into many of the nations we recognize today. I could also see this program being incorporated into regular geography lessons in any classroom as well as serving as a research resource for students writing papers or doing projects. 4. The strength of this program is that it offers a wide variety of resources for classroom use, is fairly intuitive to use, and is aligned to many state educational standards. The major downsides appear to be small system quirks, like a tendency to open a new browser page whenever a student or teacher clicks on a new link. The price is in the middle of the road, but could also be seen as a downside if beyond a school’s budget. 5. That price comes in at $600 but is compatible with all systems and most browsers. It is a National Geographic program and can be bought at www.maps101.com, where a school can also receive a free trial, a big extra perk!
 * 1) **Maps 101**

5. **Jeopardy Cartridges for Middle School US History, Geography, Civics** 1. These jeopardy cartridges are basic software meant to be used in middle social studies classrooms to provide a fun way for kids to review material covered in class. 2. This is a drill and practice and instructional game software. The drill and practice component refers to how this program can be used to review basic concepts and material in a fun and engaging way. The instructional game component refers to the game atmosphere required for a good round of Jeopardy! 3. I could see using this in any high school or middle school history class as a fun way to review material covered in class before a test, or as a way to engage antsy kids the day before a school vacation when they are having parties in every other class. 4. The strength of this program is that it is a familiar activity to most students, and a consistently fun and engaging game. It’s also fairly affordable, making it an accessible resource for teachers with limited or no budget. The downsides to this software include the fact that all the material is already loaded and therefore may not fit precisely into what is being covered in the classroom. It is also only that single game, which the students could feasibly begin to tire of doing time after time. 5. This program is provided by Educational Insights and can be found at learningserviceus.com at []. It costs just $23 and is compatible with most systems.

The Ellis Island Experience sounds like a program I could use with my ELL students. It would be a great way to introduce them to a fun, stimulating application to social studies. The drill and practice category is perfect for younger children. It seems like the cost of programs are the least appealing. With all the budgets that go into school districts, it might be difficult to petition for certain programs to be added to curriculums on tight budgets. Thank you for such informative reviews! ~ Stephanie Amos

I agree with Stephanie the Ellis Island sounds interesting to me. I know though that none of my students have ever heard of Ellis Island, I think we should start of with Carmen Sandiago first. I do like the thought of using primary source documents in your first review, because they come with lesson plans. However, the national library of archieves [] is available free and there is a huge variety of primary souce documents as well as lesson plans, activities, and ideas for teacher use in the classroom.

Both Ellis Island and the Jeopardy Cartridges look very interesting. While I may not have the opportunity to include these in my classroom (my content area is math), I can certainly see the benefit of working with these resources with my children. Thank you for the thorough reviews. ~ Mary Ruff

The Ellis Island program looks really neat! I would love to be in your class if I could use such a program. I think simulation is so important for students to learn and retain information. Not to mention that nearly all US citizens are here as a result of immigration. The program definitely could be a tool to help students relate the history to their lives.- Maggie Bergant