netTrekker Blog

netTrekker Spotlight User: Marie Pearson Discusses netTrekker Search’s Collaborative Opportunities

netTrekker is excited to introduce this week’s Spotlight User. Marie Pearson is the Technology Research Teachers at Campbell County Schools in Virginia. Marie shares how netTrekker Search’s My Portfolio has opened up additional collaborative opportunities for her teachers.

We have had netTrekker Search in our division for about two years and have primarily used it as a safe, educationally-based search engine.  But, wow, after seeing the potential of collaboration that exists through the use of the My Portfolio options, I can see that we will market netTrekker Search differently this next school year.  I was impressed to see all the resources that could be saved in a Portfolio account and, with the addition of standards, one could have their units of study all set up for instruction.  I found the My Portfolio features very user friendly and look forward to using them as we prepare for the school  year.

As a technology resource teacher, I plan to use the My Portfolio features to train teachers on the expanded uses/benefits of netTrekker Search .  I’d also like to assist them in setting up units of study and assist in the classrooms when they are introducing netTrekker Search to their students.  Our division’s focus is on differentiated instruction and netTrekker Search provides many resources for this instructional method; therefore, I plan to emphasize to the teachers how netTrekker Search can help them accomplish this goal.

Tags: Spotlight User

netTrekker Spotlight User: Lisa Marlatt Discusses netTrekker’s Personalized Learning Tools

netTrekker is excited to introduce this week’s Spotlight User. Lisa Marlatt is the School Director for the Center for Educational Materials and Technology in Adrian, Michigan. Lisa shares how students, educators and parents use netTrekker’s various tools and features.

The more I looked into netTrekker, the more I realized what was included.  I was impressed that students would also have home access to the best of the web, because I know that is where many of them do their internet research or browsing.  The ability to choose resources by readability level and the read-aloud options are popular features for our students.  The dynamic timeline is fascinating to use and to see how various aspects of life are interconnected.  Our administrators, students, and parents have been very enthusiastic, and our statistics prove it.  We recently hit one million views countywide in less than a year!

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netTrekker Spotlight User: Mali Bickley Shares How netTrekker Inspires Teacher Collaboration

netTrekker is excited to introduce this week’s Spotlight User. Mali Bickley is a Teacher at W.H. Day Middle School in Midhurst, Ontario. Mali shares how netTrekker has helped foster collaboration between teachers and students at W.H. Day.

netTrekker has become an invaluable tool in my curriculum planning as I am able to search themes and concepts that I can integrate into programs.

I have also used netTrekker as I work with other teachers during Professional Learning Communities. Being able to plan units collaboratively and have a consistent and reliable resource to support students learning has been invaluable in integrating technology into classroom practice.

netTrekker helps me support my colleagues to engage students in 21st Century learning!

Tags: collaboration, Spotlight User

netTrekker Spotlight User: Dr. Hazlett Explains Why netTrekker is a Hit with College Education Majors

netTrekker is excited to introduce this week’s Spotlight User. Dr. Hazlett is a Professor and the Chair of Theil College’s Education Department, in Greenville, Pennsylvania. Dr. Hazlett shares how Theil College of Education students use netTrekker to prepare for their teaching careers.

Thiel College purchased netTrekker because the Education Department and its students value the product greatly.  From freshman students investigating education topics, to seniors doing their student teaching, Thiel’s students make great use of netTrekker.

Thiel College requires all education majors to develop standards-based lesson plans using engaging pedagogy, like Marzano’s instructional strategies, in fun creative ways using a variety of instructional strategies for all learners.  netTrekker is a tremendous digital assistant in this process.  I liken netTrekker to cheating on the test, as netTrekker provides all the answers for college students to design standards-based lessons to increase student achievement for all learners.

Special features like timeline are very popular with students especially history majors.  Science majors love all of the interactive websites that are suggested with a keyword search.  All students use the image search feature  to support and add excitement to their lessons.

netTrekker is just as tremendous a resource for college education majors as it is for K-12 teachers!

Tags: Spotlight User

netTrekker Spotlight User: Linda Steward Shares Her Favorite netTrekker Tools and Features

netTrekker is excited to introduce this week’s Spotlight User. Linda Steward is a Standard Support Specialist at Knollwood Elementary in Rapid City, South Dakota. Linda shares how netTrekker’s personalized learning tools have been an asset to her and her students.

I use netTrekker everyday!  I like it because I can always find something that fits what I am looking for – whether for the students or as a teaching aide. Once I set up My Portfolio and add sites, finding and using them is a piece of cake.  I have found many sites that I use over and over by searching netTrekker!

The search result icons are fantastic – I always know just what the site offers. I’ve also used the Read Aloud feature more often and shared it with my students. This feature enables all kids to use the site, no matter their reading ability!

Tags: Spotlight User

netTrekker Spotlight User – Emilee Ackerman Shares How netTrekker Drives Success with Student Projects

netTrekker is excited to introduce this week’s Spotlight User. Emilee Ackerman is a 3rd grade Science and Social Studies teacher at PA Cyber Charter School in Beaver, Pennsylvania. Emilee shares how netTrekker has been effective in her 3rd grade virtual classroom.

netTrekker has become an essential component of my third grade Social Studies and Science virtual classroom.  I am able to utilize many resources found through netTrekker to engage my students in enriching cyber activities. netTrekker has proven time and time again to be a safe place for young students to research and explore on the internet.

When I introduced netTrekker to my students this school year they were ecstatic to have a safe resource for finding information.  I had multiple students come to class the day after the introduction of netTrekker with new facts about our science topic, which they had found on their own and were excited to share with their classmates.

As a result of netTrekker I was able to create a personalized learning project by assigning a Social Studies assignment.  Each student was instructed to find information regarding a given state in the United States of America and encouraged to use the safe, educational search engine; netTrekker.  Their grades were fantastic and I believe netTrekker was the main factor in their success.

Tags: Spotlight User

netTrekker Spotlight User – Julie Bowline Uses netTrekker to Personalize Learning for 8th Grade Students

netTrekker is excited to introduce this week’s Spotlight User. Julie Bowline is the Director of Instructional Technology and Library Services at Adams 12 Five Star Schools in Thornton, Colorado. Julie shares her experience using netTrekker with 8th grade students.

Our district piloted netTrekker as part of our inquiry-based assessment of 8th-grade students’ technology and information literacy.  Instead of spending hours digging through the massive amount of information returned by standard search engines, our students used netTrekker to quickly uncover information that was relevant and at their reading level.

To save even more searching time, teachers created folders with resources that could be used by many different students.  As a result, students had more time to analyze and evaluate resources that were key to answering their inquiry question, and more time to synthesize their research as they created a digital product to share.

Recent budget cuts have reduced our teacher librarian support at the middle level, so we’re training classroom teachers to use all of netTrekker’s tools.  As everyone tries to do more with less, netTrekker will help us organize Internet resources, differentiate instruction, and address the language needs and reading levels of our diverse student population.

Tags: Spotlight User

netTrekker Spotlight User – Alice Sather Reflects on Lessons Learned in NT101

netTrekker is excited to introduce this week’s Spotlight User. Alice Sather is a Technology Specialist at St. Bernard’s School in Theif River Falls, Minnesota. Alice shares her experience from netTrekker’s NT101 online professional development course.

I was recently asked why I had taken nT101. The questioner couldn’t see how a class was necessary to learn netTrekker, nor why I would have put so much time and energy into it.

I found that I learned more in nT101 than our initial in-service gave me. Using it to develop units that were immediately usable was a big plus. However, the reason I could develop them to the degree I did was because of the steps we were taken through, week by week, in incorporating more and more tools as we considered various educational issues/formats.

As I moved on from this to begin my ISTE Capstone certification, I continually referred back to ideas learned from nT101. I sincerely wonder how I could have handled starting the Capstone without the background we gained from nT101. All the projects I had to develop in my first Capstone course used netTrekker along with other tools, and I know that will continue to be the case.

If I ever find myself in a teaching situation without access to netTrekker, I am going to have to write grants until I can obtain funding for it! Period.

Tags: Spotlight User