4Kids.org - Week of January 14, 2001

Week of January 14, 2001

Take The Internet Challenge

Congratulations to Geri Ruane, computer lab teacher at Durkee Elementary School in Houston, 4Kids.org's Teacher of the Month. Ms. Ruane manages the school's computer lab and maintains the Durkee Elementary School Web site at http://ES.houstonisd.org/DurkeeES. In addition, Ms. Ruane has created the Internet Challenge, an exciting way for students to learn on the Internet. The Houston Independent School District hosts the Internet Challenge archive at http://dept.houstonisd.org/ techlessons/ pages/ ChallengArchive.htm. Each Internet Challenge is created for a specific grade level and varies in subject matter, such as sea turtles, money, the rain forest or the human body. You can also have a parent help you and try them from home. Congratulations, Ms. Ruane. Enjoy your 4Kids award pack. (The second site is no longer available.)

Nominate a cool Tech Teacher at 4Kids.org/nominations

Visit the Featured Web sites to find the answers

What animal is the leatherback sea turtle related to?

the chihuahua
the aardvark
the dinosaur

In what year did the Berlin Wall start to come down?

1990
1988
1989

How many complex numbers activities does ExploreMath.com offer?

five
four
three

Writing on the Wall

Take a look at a fascinating piece of history at "A Concrete Curtain: The Life and Death of the Berlin Wall." This Web site is part of an exhibit of photographs dedicated to preserving the history of this Cold War symbol. Break through the wall at www.wall-berlin.org/gb/berlin.htm. Enjoy the photographs in all six sections, capturing the creation and destruction of the Iron Curtain. (This site is no longer available.)

Math Mania

Grab a pencil and your math book, and head to the cool interactive math Web site at www.exploremath.com You'll find more than 30 Shockwave-driven activities in categories such as inequalities, trigonometry, probabilities, complex numbers and much more. Try the Area Probability where you can throw darts at a bull's-eye. Or find out what a hyperbola is. Each activity includes buttons and sliders for you to customize and practice math at your own pace. ExploreMath.com can help you master math. (Disclaimer: This site is now included in www.explorelearning.com.)

What would you do with an extra two hours per day?

Speak Out Here!

Dear Amy: How do computers know which computer they're asking for information from? --Jennifer, Cooper City, Fla.

Dear Jennifer: Computers use HTTP, or HyperText Transfer Protocol, so that you can view a Web page. Both browsers and Web servers understand HTTP. Each computer also has a unique address, known as an IP number, so that the browsers and servers know which computer is which. After that, Web sites have unique domain names. For more info about the basics of computer-to-computer communication, try http://coverage.cnet.com/Content/Features/Techno/Networks/ss04.html (This site is no longer available.)

Dear Amy: Where does snow come from? --Wes, McComb, Miss.

Dear Wes: Snow is actually just a collection of ice crystals that stick to each other as they fall toward the earth. It arrives on the ground in frozen form because it never passes through an area warm enough to melt it. You can find out more about where snow comes from at ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/guides/mtr/cld/prcp/snow.rxml.

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