REVIEWS - Digital resources

RM Number Magic 1.4

RM

www.rm.com

F, KS1, KS2

Number Magic is designed for ages four to 11. It aims to provide children with the data handling skills needed to use spreadsheets across the curriculum particularly in ICT, science, maths or geography. Children are able to input data, calculate results with a formula bar and a formula builder and use this information to form different types of graphs. These in turn can be used with inserted pictures (from a topic bank) to create reports.

Number Magic has four levels enabling a progression of skills to be built in when using the program across the primary age range. The resources on the RM website can be used in a computer suite with an individual or pairs of children or as a whole class activity using an interactive whiteboard.

2Calculate

2Simple

F, KS1, 2

2Calculate is an easy-to-use spreadsheet program offering the same powers as a traditional spreadsheet but using language and mathematics that everyone can understand. The product is aimed at primary school children. 2Calculate is an excellent tool for the teacher to demonstrate a range of mathematical concepts for whole class numeracy teaching on an interactive whiteboard or by small groups or individuals to develop mathematical thinking and problem solving skills.

Excellent on-screen videos and linked activities give you many different exciting opportunities of how the program can be used with children from year 1 to year 6. Each example comes with a clear description and direct page reference to the objectives from the NNS.

Join the Activaters

Food and Drink Federation

KS2

Join the Activaters is an informative, activity-based program, which aims to encourage children to think about healthy lifestyles. The activities are aimed at differing levels of ability. The product aims to be non-judgemental and the messages are clear and understandable. The philosophy it promotes is that a healthy life-style is fun.

There is something for everyone, although only the older and more able children would be able to access the full range of activities, as they become more text-based.

It is a useful visual resource and could be used selectively as part of a PSHCE topic on Health. The issues raised are extremely topical at the moment and it would certainly serve to raise awareness of health issues.

Human Body Systems 2

Cambridge - Hitachi

KS4, 16+

Human Body Systems 2 is one of three CD-Roms about the human body. Designed for use with students studying for GCSE biology, double science, AS and A2 biology, human biology and health sciences courses, it provides good coverage at GCSE and will extend the able and interested student. It provides a good foundation at A-level. It covers the nervous system (including the senses) and the endocrine system. The program presents information about the systems and organs in a variety of ways, from text and photographs through to interactive animations and video clips. This program could be used either in a classroom with an interactive whiteboard (IWB) or multimedia projector, or by individuals for a reference or as a revision aid.

Touch It - Animals

SEMERC

KS1, KS2

The Touch It - Animals CD-ROM allows pupils who need support with the development of coordination and motor skills to practice mouse control.

The product is best suited to being used on an individual computer, but can be used effectively on an interactive whiteboard. The teacher's page allows control of the speed, size and orientation of the pictures. Whilst this product does not cover any obvious areas of the National Curriculum, there are opportunities for discussions of the pictures and references to number and time.

Spark Learner

Spark-Space

KS3, KS4

Spark Learner enables teachers and students to organise their ideas in an idea or concept map, which can be used across the curriculum and age range. You can quickly assess students' knowledge, in a visual and interesting way. After studying, say, Macbeth, this program could be used with an interactive whiteboard to create an idea map representing different parts of the play. Spark Learner automatically converts the idea map into a text version. Pictures can be easily added. It is an ideal program to prepare students for organising their ideas into paragraphs and could be particularly valuable to visual and kinaesthetic learners.

Virtual CD

H+H Software GmbH

F, KS1, KS2, KS3, KS4, 16+

Virtual CD is an application to simplify the use of CDs and DVDs on a school computer or network. The concept is that a teacher can copy one or more CDs or DVDs directly on to the computer's hard drive.

Virtual CD will create up to 23 emulated CD drives, which you can work with simultaneously. The main practical advantages of this include the fact that the original CDs can be kept safe and students do not need to open CD drives and handle CDs. In addition, using the computer's hard drive means that the application will run quicker and quieter than using a physical drive.

Primary School Monitor

TW Information Systems Consultancy

F, KS1, KS2

Primary School Monitor offers teachers the facility to produce pupil assessment records, tracking files, timetables, long-, medium- and short- term plans with National Curriculum copy and paste links, IEPs, incident recording and annual reports, all combined and cross referenced in an easy-to-use package. One of the major strengths is that it can be used by head teachers, senior management teams and teachers to keep a close overview of exactly what is going on in school. Whilst `Primary School Monitor' can be used effectively as `stand alone' software, most benefit will be derived by adopting it as part of an agreed schoolwide record keeping strategy.

Maths Connect Interactive Presentations 1

Heinemann Secondary

KS3

Maths Connect Interactive Presentations 1 is an invaluable piece of software for teaching key mathematical concepts in year 7 with an IWB or data projector. It is clear and easy to use and it will stimulate and engage students providing wholeclass lessons linked directly to the Framework for Key Stage 3 mathematics. The bank of teaching tools - such as number grids, coordinate grids and ready-made presentations to introduce important concepts - are supported by lesson notes for the teacher, ensuring minimal preparation with scope for amending or extending existing lessons or even preparing new ones using the teaching tools. It makes excellent use of an interactive whiteboard.

Living Worksheets

Living Worksheets

KS3, KS4

Living Worksheets provides a set of self-marking exercises running on Excel which can be used on an IWB, a network or a standalone machine. The self-marking worksheets means that the students get instant feedback and can work at their own pace. The worksheets are also useful for whole- class demonstration using an IWB.

This software would be particularly helpful for a non-specialist to use when staff are absent. All areas of the National Curriculum from year 7 to year 11 are covered, making it particularly useful for revision lessons leading up to SATs and GCSEs. It would also be helpful to encourage students to use it independently for individual revision.

Maths-Whizz Teachers' Resource

Whiz-biz

KS2

This is a whole-class maths teaching tool designed for use on an IWB or with a data projector. It has follow-on interactive activities for individuals, pairs or small groups and paper-based exercises that can be printed off. It is designed to cover the full numeracy curriculum and is divided into different topic areas such as number, data handling, shape and space and measures. The curriculum content for an academic year is broken down into three CDs, each of which contains between four and seven differentiated topics.

Maths-Whizz is very simple to navigate and straightforward to find and print the paper-based activities.

Primary Games Vol.3

Primary Games Ltd

KS1, KS2

Primary Games Vol.3 provides a wide range of highly engaging and enjoyable mathematical games for use with an interactive whiteboard, allowing children to learn whilst having fun. It can be used with the whole class, demonstrating and allowing pupils to interact and discuss key concepts. Children can also work in pairs, individually or use customised worksheets. This audio-visual teaching and learning is good for all children, particularly for less able children who benefit from the repetition of basic skills. The differentiated activities with easy-to-follow links to the NNS allow a range of pupils to benefit from this resource, with activities ranging from fun grid-style activities to animated screens where hens lay eggs and divers recover treasure! Great fun and good motivation for children.

Key

Resource title

Software publisher

Website (where applicable)

Recommended age group: KS1, KS2 = Key Stage 1, 2 etc