Are you aware of the current environmental disaster that is happening right now in the Gulf of Mexico?

You can use technology to find out about all sides of this story.

Use Google Earth, type "Gulf of Mexico", and then click on the numerous links available: videos, news reports, etc. You can also download special "layers" which will show you how big the oil spill is.

Use Google's news search to compare different news reports of the oil spill. Read, for example, British Petroleum's news releases and compare them to Canada's CBC, the United States' CNN, or England's BBC.

http://www.cbc.ca

http://cnn.com

http://www.bbc.co.uk

Could another oil spill be on the way near Canada? Some peo ...

Did Microsoft founder Bill Gates really say the words:

"Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one."

Let's find out!

Use a search engine like Google or Bing (which is owned by Bill Gates) and find some sources of information.

For any website you find, look for who is the author. How can you be sure if the author can be trusted?

See if you can find the same information from more than one reliable/trustworthy source.

Who are some trusted sources? Major newspapers like the Globe and Mail, USA Today, or the Winnipeg Free Press are usually reliable (but they sometimes make mistakes too!) Also, you can usually trust news from television/radio stations like CBC, CNN, CTV, or Global Television.

A great website to learn about Internet safety is the "Cyber Pigs" website.  You can play games and do quizzes to teach about safety.

Find out the different reasons people make web sites for children. Sometimes, they are trying to make you want to buy something. You have to use your thinking skills! Find out more by going to this link:

Click here to visit Cyper Pigs.

Once you have played the game and finished the quiz, answer these questions:

1) What was your favourite part of the website?

2) What did you learn about Internet safety?

• cross-reference using reliable sources
• cross-reference author's credentials
• apply prior knowledge about topic
• use clues in URL and website to determine purpose of website

Click here to visit a website about the Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus.

What do you learn from this website?

A blog is useful when you want to discuss something very new, like the Canadian federal election. The owner of a blog can quickly add a new topic, and visitors can post their opinions and feelings.

Blogs are great for having discussions, but it is important to remember some basic blogging rules:

1) Never give out personal information like your address, phone number, or even your birthday.

2) Always be respectful to other people. It's okay to disagree, but you don't need to call people names or hurt their feelings.

3) Remember that blogs are public. Anyone can read a blog. So be careful about what you write.

Yesterday, Canada had a federal election. Here are the results as reported by CBC News.< ...

CoCo's Adversmarts is a website that teaches younger children (ages 5-8) about advertising and marketing techniques businesses use on webpages.

It is an important topic, as many young children visit webpages.  They should be aware of the purpose of different websites and what people do to try to sell their products.

Students may click this link to get to the website.  Please share what you learned after yo ...