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Thursday, October 2, 2014

BrainPOP - by: Tyler Miller

I stumbled upon a website called BrainPOP ( http://www.brainpop.com/ ). BrainPOP creates animated, curriculum-based content that supports educators and engages students - in school, at home, and on mobile devices. Their resources include movies, quizzes, games, mobile apps, experiments, activity pages, and much more covering hundreds of topics within Math, Science, Social Studies, English, Technology, Arts & Music, and Health. All content is aligned to and searchable by state standards including Common Core. 
WEBSITE IS NOT FREE UNFORTUNATELY. HOWEVER, BRAINPOP DOES HAVE A SECTION OF FREE APPS AND MOVIES OF THE DAY.
Here is link to free section on BrainPOP (  http://www.brainpop.com/free_stuff/  )

What to Evaluate
High
Med
Low
Score
Instructional Aspects:
Objectives clearly stated
5
4
3
2
1
4
Objectives appropriately sequenced
5
4
3
2
1
4
Instructional strategies appropriate for the objectives
5
4
3
2
1
5
Instructional activities/process clearly described
5
4
3
2
1
5
Tasks adequate/significant for achieving objectives
5
4
3
2
1
5
Resources adequate/significant for achieving objectives
5
4
3
2
1
5
Learning achievement adequately evaluated
5
4
3
2
1
5
Evaluation criteria clearly expressed
5
4
3
2
1
3
Motivational Aspects:
Gaining and maintaining learners’ attention
5
4
3
2
1
5
Relating to learners’ interest and goals
5
4
3
2
1
5
Building on learners’ prior knowledge & foreshadowing what the lesson is about.
5
4
3
2
1
4
Providing positive feedback and feeling of accomplishment
5
4
3
2
1
4
Motivational strategies serve for objectives
5
4
3
2
1
5
Web Design Aspects:
Navigation is clear and easy to access
5
4
3
2
1
5
Authorship and date is clearly stated
5
4
3
2
1
5
Text follows the rules of grammar, spelling and literary composition
5
4
3
2
1
5
Use of multimedia (Text, graphic, audio, video, animation, etc.) is visually appeal
5
4
3
2
1
5
Mechanical aspects (No broken links, misplaced or missing images, etc.)
5
4
3
2
1
5
Web design appropriate for objectives
5
4
3
2
1
5
Web design appropriate for learner characteristics
5
4
3
2
1
5
TOTAL
94

94/100

Over all, BrainPOP is an amazing site. I found myself watching many of the videos and even playing around on some of the interactive games. If I was a teacher right now, I would absolutely use this in a classroom setting. If I was back in elementary school, I could see myself spending hours learning and playing games on here.

The navigation through the website was very easy too. The links never left me to dead areas or dysfunctional links. All the buttons and links even had animations to draw in users to any section they wanted to participate in.

The other thing I liked about the site was they had their own mascots that were in a lot of the movies to help kids learn about the certain topics the students were viewing. Their names are Tim and Moby. They even have reoccurring characters, and their names are: Cassie, Rita, Bob, and the father and son duo of Gary and Gary.

I’d have to say the only negative about the site was that it wasn't free. But they did do a great job of setting multiple prices for different institutions. You can purchase the site for at home use, home-school, classroom, school, and even district prices. If you buy in bulk, (school, district, etc.) they give you a certain percentage off by however many years you subscribe for (ex: 35% off, if you subscribe for 5 years).


In conclusion, I think every school should look into this site for their students. It was very fun, interactive, and I even learned a lot myself even being older for the site. 

16 comments:

  1. SORRY ABOUT THE ONE PARAGRAPH. I DON'T KNOW WHY IT IS SMALLER THAN ALL THE OTHERS!

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  2. BrainPOP is awesome! I used to work at a school that had a subscription and I used it frequently, but my current school doesn't buy it. Great job with this Tyler!

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  3. This would be a valid technology purchase for schools to use especially since it is linked to state and common core standards. Love the variety of options for school and home use!

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  4. I like Brain Pop as well but there are other great sites for interactive learning that does not cost the district additional funds that (in the case of PCSSD) we just don't have. It seems that today it is up to the teacher to buy an individual subscription if they want to use really cool sites in their classroom. BrainPop is user friendly which is important because it caters to younger children.

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  5. Our school has a subscription, and I love it. It is a bit cheesy at times, but that catches the kids' attention. We use it for seventh grade, special ed and remediation.

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  6. BrainPOP is a very interesting site. I liked the summaries at the beginning of each subject. They were written in such a way that captures your interest, and makes you want to dive into the module and find out more. If it was all free, that would be great. If I was a public school teacher, I would definitely look into purchasing a subscription.

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  7. I used a couple of the freebies on BrainPop and have liked the results. I too which I were free because, from the other comments, it appears that others who have had access to the subscription site were able to incorporate it often. BrainPop was one of the first sites the kids in our district were allowed to visit during computer lab sessions (freebies only, of course).

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  8. I have used BrainPop in the past for my engineering classes- in particular simple machines. I was able to watch some videos and even print off the quiz for my students to take. I had forgotten my login information, so I was not able to login to access anything- I do remember; however, once you've registered for an account, that you get a LOT of SPAM from them, so booo! I do LOVE the robot avatar which always kept my students interested in the videos! Great job!

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  9. This site is a great resource. The welcome page is a little overwhelming. There are many sections of the site. I liked the section for educators to locate lessons by your state, course, and grade level. There are a variety of lessons. It also allows for extending your knowledge in the lesson plans.

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  10. I love BrainPop as well. I first learned about it when my son was in 2nd grade and loved playing it. We then got the app for our phone and while my daughter was in Kindergarten she would watch the videos. It is a great way to keep kids engaged and help them learn a topic. I think the quiz is a good idea after the video to assess students learning. I agree with you and others, it would be a lot better if it were free. Great job Tyler!

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  11. We don't have a subscription to BrainPop, but I do like the website. I have looked at the free site and it is great for gaining attention and the videos are great. I wish it was free, I would be able to use it more.

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  12. Yes we have brainpop and brainpop jr. The students do enjoy it and it is an excellent website for them to use. Anything that relates to the standards is always a plus.

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  13. I have heard of BrianPop, but had never visited the site. This is a really amazing site. It has a lot of good information presenting in neat ways that included a lot of interactivity. ways to introduce. The only downfall is that it has to be purchased.

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  14. Good post! I really like this website. It is very informative and yes I agree that it sucks the website isn't free. The good part about it is, if you invest in the subscription you will definitely get your money's worth.

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  15. Yes, BrainPop has been around for a while. It is great with interaction, animation and other resources. Even better now that it has been connected the the Common Core Standards and it has apps that we can use on Mobile devices with kids. Great find!

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