This document summarizes and reviews several educational simulations and activities for teaching kindergarten through second grade students. It reviews simulations for teaching weather, patterns, money counting, and probability. Each summary includes the name, age level, creator, ease of use, pros, cons, and potential integration into classroom lessons. The reviews indicate that the activities are generally easy to use with simple and colorful graphics but that some could benefit from audio instructions or more engaging designs.

1. Simulation Reviews
By Erin Markus
EdTech 541
Fall 2010

2. http://www.fossweb.com/modulesK-2/AirandWeather/index.html
Name of Activity: What’s the Weather?
Age: K-2
Ease of use:
Educational Appropriateness:
Creator: Foss Web (www.fossweb.com)
This activity that teaches young students about how to
read a temperature thermometer. The student can choose
between Celsius and Fahrenheit temperatures. They look
at the thermometer and determine what the weather is:
hot, warm, cold, freezing, etc. Once they click on what
they think the weather is, the bear if dressed in an outfit to
go outside. Once they click, “Go Outside”, they learn if
their choice was correct and can repeat if it is not.
Pros: Easy to Use
Fun Graphics
Choice of Celsius or Fahrenheit temperatures
Cons: Audio instructions would be helpful for kids
Integration to Thematic Unit:
This activity could easily be inserted into my Kindergarten
Life Skills Unit. This activity helps the child tell
temperature and decide what appropriate dress would be
for the weather. This is an important life skill. This activity
could definitely fit into the Personal Hygiene part of the
Unit.

3. http://nlvm.usu.edu/en/nav/frames_asid_184_g_1_t_1.html
Name of Activity: Color Patterns
Age: K-2
Ease of use:
Educational Appropriateness:
Creator: National Library of Virtual Manipulatives
(http://nlvm.usu.edu/ )
This activity is used for practicing the completion of
patterns. The lessons are very easy to use with simple
directions and large buttons for checking the answer and
new problems. There are links in the window for viewing
the instructions, standards addressed by the activity, and
activities that will extend the lesson for more challenge.
The NVLM site is easy to maneuver through and has a lot
of great interactive activities for all ages.
Pros: Easy to Use
Simple Graphics and sounds
Colorful displays
Instructions easy to access if help is needed
Cons: The design may not be appealing to a student for a
very long time and they may get bored with the simple
visuals.
Integration to Thematic Unit:
This activity could be used in a Kindergarten Life Skills
Unit for practicing the important skill of patterning. When
teaching a child to memorize a phone number or address
or memorizing a map, they use patterning to visualize the

4. http://nlvm.usu.edu/en/nav/frames_asid_325_g_1_t_4.html
Name of Activity: Color Patterns
Age: K-2
Ease of use:
Educational Appropriateness:
Creator: National Library of Virtual Manipulatives
(http://nlvm.usu.edu/ )
This activity is used for practicing counting money. The
lessons are very easy to use with simple directions and
options for 3 different activities that work with money.
There are links in the window for viewing the instructions,
standards addressed by the activity, and activities that will
extend the lesson for more challenge. The NVLM site is
easy to maneuver through and has a lot of great
interactive activities for all ages.
Pros: Easy to Use
Simple Graphics
Colorful displays
Instructions easy to access if help is needed
Cons: Some of the money is difficult to determine what
coin it is. The bills have an easy to read number on them,
but the coins are difficult.
No sound.
Integration to Thematic Unit:
This activity could be used in a Kindergarten Life Skills
Unit for practicing working with money. This activity may
be a little tough for Kindergarteners, but more advanced
students may be able to use this.

5. http://www.explorelearning.com/index.cfm?method=cResource.dspView&ResourceID=1015&ClassID=1880077
Name of Activity: Color Patterns
Age: K-2
Ease of use:
Educational Appropriateness:
Creator: Explorelearning
(http://www.explorelearning.com/)
In this activity, students distinguish between events that are
certain, likely, unlikely, and impossible. They understand that
probability refers to the likelihood of an event, but does not
allow the event to be predicted with certainty. They will
determine the probability of a given outcome, such as
winning a prize with a spinner and understand that
experimental results will not exactly match theoretical
probability.
Pros: Easy to Use
Simple Graphics and sound
Colorful displays
Assessment questions
Student exploration sheet pintables
Teacher or student can design their own game
Cons: Instructions not easy to find for student
Static graphics
Doesn’t explain how to spin wheel
Integration to Thematic Unit:
This activity can be used in a Life Skills unit to teach about
making informed decisions using probability. It teaches
looking at the big picture and using what is known to make a

6. Links
Foss Web
http://www.fossweb.com/
Explore learning
http://www.explorelearning.com/
National Library of Learning
Manipulatives
http://nlvm.usu.edu/