The World Wide Web is
vast. Students often need direction to the resources that will best serve their
research goals. Creating a launching point for students’ research projects will
save time, supply appropriate resources, ensure equitable access to
information, and promote basic research skills. ThingLink is such a tool that allows
teacher-librarians to begin and guide students’ use of online sources in a
unique and engaging way.
With ThingLink, you can turn
any image into an interactive experience by embedding “targets” that take users
directly to pre-selected websites and other rich media (i.e. music, video, images).
You decide where on the image you would like each “target”, creating a layer of
interactive links. When students access your ThingLinks, they will have access
to content you deem most appropriate in one, easy to find location. Below you
fill find a ThingLink I created to help students navigate news articles, video
clips, and reading passages on the exploration of Antarctica. You too can
explore this interesting topic by simply clicking on each “target”.
ThingLink can also revolutionize
the way your students present and share their work. Below you will discover how
one of my third grade students presented research on cheerleading via ThingLink.
To encourage students to create their own intellectual property, we used a cheerleading
image that this student created herself. We then added “targets” to the image
that direct the audience to each element of the student’s research project.
Google Drive allowed us to convert the student’s images, videos, and audio
files into shareable URL’s. This way, all aspects of the student’s research are
accessible online.
Take your students
research projects to the next level with ThingLink. This platform not only
impacts how your students conduct research, it transforms the way they present their
research to others.