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User's Guide

The first step in making the most of a tool is to understand its purpose and how it is to be used, and this is especially true with the Teaching & Learning Center.

Most educational resources focus on the student. This is done with the best of intentions; however, the end result is that these resources often become one more thing for teachers to do, one more added responsibility.

The primary mission of the IAGC Teaching & Learning Center is to provide students, educators and families with quality resources, tools, information and support they can use (at home as well as in the classroom), and the TLC is first and foremost a tool for in-depth investigation and preparation. It is especially well suited for beginning teachers needing to strengthen their personal background in subjects being taught for the first time. It is also a great tool for emphasizing cultural diversity, in-depth student research, current events and academic competitions.

Features/Tool The IAGC Teaching & Learning Center
A Common Encyclopedia
Principal Application In-depth Research and Preparation
Using Multiple Sources
Quick Information from a Single Source
Sources All Public Domain Content on the Internet
Often from Primary Sources
Proprietary Content Owned by the Publisher
Secondary Source
Search Google-type results Pinpoint results, keywords often highlighted
Annual Expense $36 for Teacher or Family Subscription
$120 per School (unlimited access)
Often >$1,000

Reading Levels and Age-Appropriate Material

In the development of the IAGC Teaching & Learning Center the decision was made not to level the content according to grade, choosing instead to leave it to teachers and students to determine whether or not a resource matches the reading and comprehension levels of the students.

Selecting information you can read and understand is a fundamental skill that must be developed by students as researchers, and every effort is made to provide content on a variety of levels, so that each student can find material that is appropriate for them.


Today's Daily Exercises for Kids

Each day, the IAGC TLC provides teachers with three exercises they can use to develop their students' research skills along with their knowledge of history, currents events and famous people.

Gnus for Kidz offers 5 different news items each day, generally increasing in difficulty as the student moves from left to right. The Gnus for Kidz helps students to learn how to locate key ideas, and it is also a great tool for developing student appreciation for and understanding of current events and the world around them.

Who Am I? develops students' research abilities along with their cultural literacy and their familiarization with persons of historic note. Each day's beginner-level Who Am I? is generally intended for students in grades 4-8, while the expert-level Who Am I? is generally intended for students in grades 8-12.

5-Minute Quests use the content of each day's Daily Almanac to develop basic student research skills. The quests are presented at three levels: Beginner (approximately grades 4-7), Intermediate (approximately grades 6-8) and Expert (approximately grades 8-12).


Special Features:

Coordinator's Guide Getting Staff Started Getting Teachers Started
Getting Families Started Empezando Familias
IAGC TLC Power Point Overview Prepared by Janet Dubble, LLIU13, PA

The Teaching & Learning Center
- Since 1997 -
Creative Resources for Quality Education

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This guide last edited 08/17/2005
This guide last revised 08/17/2005
This guide created 08/17/2005