- This webpage was created by Mrs. Mary Rydzewski to facilitate webquests by Venture students. Upon Mrs. R's retirement, Jan. 1, 2012, the site continues to be maintained. Former Venture students are encouraged to apply for the Somers Point History Grant. You may contact Mrs. R at jordanrd@yahoo.com. The Venture Program serves the needs of the 4th-8th grade Gifted and Talented Students of the Somers Point School District.
Past Projects:
Our 4-6th graders VENTURE CARES won First Place statewide and Third Place in the Community Problem Solving International Competition held in Lexington, Kentucky. The City Council of Somers Point passed a resolution honoring us!
The 4th graders joined Marine Biologists from the Wetlands Institute to assist in releasing Diamondback Terrapin headstarters. They presented their donation earned from their pretzel and bake sale fundraisers.
The 7/8th graders assisted in creating the Somers Point History: Facts and Folklore project displaying interviews of senior citizens, research and local folklore games. The 7th Graders role played a living timeline of local heros for the 4th graders. 8th grade volunteers role played historical characters at the Richard Somers Day ceremonies at the Somers Mansion. A big thank you goes out to the Foundation for Education for their support and to Mrs Hibbs for helping create costumes.
Science Fiction Scenario Writing Hall of Fame
2009: Celena Storck-Martinez won 3rd place statewide. 2008: Cleo Kordomenos captured 2nd place statewide. 2007: Becky Taylor won 3rd place, Amy Plantarich/Leah Seyfert tied for 4th, and Frank Minio won 6th place statewide. Maria Kordomenos won 1st place in our local competition.
2006: Maung Aung won 2nd place and Elliot Rollins captured 3rd place statewide.
2005: Jessica Pizzo. (7th grade) won 3rd Place and Frank Chipolone.(8th grade) won 5th place statewide. Paige O'Sullivan.(8th grade) won 1st place in our local competition.
2004: 2nd Place Statewide - Paige O'Sullivan; 4th Place - Stuart Rollins; 5th Place - Mike Bradley.
2003 Statewide results:1st place - Tom Davis and 2nd Place -Jacob GreenbergUsing innovative technology to extend creative ideas is an important part of the Venture experience. Visit Mrs. R's school website to participate in our blogs and podcasts. Visit our animated myths website to experience animations and sounds in powerpoint.
Our International Keypal projects and live video conferencing have included Australia and India. Venture students volunteered to come to school at 7:30am and 5:30pm to overcome time zone differences.
Visit our Venture egroup to view photos and videos of our activities and trips. Email Mrs R at jordanrd@yahoo.com for the password.We hope you will venture forth and explore the websites we use by clicking the links listed below.
Highlites!:
Terrapin
Troubles A site designed by Mrs. Rydzewski and the
Terrapin volunteers. It describes our efforts to raise
DiamondBack Terrapins.
GT egroup You must be a member to view all files at this site. Email Mrs. R at jordanrd@yahoo.com for help.
The Kidnapped Baby an animated myth created by 4th graders. You must have powerpoint to view this project.
I'm My Own Grandpa! Can you draw this family tree???
4th Grade Venture Webquest
5th Grade Venture Webquest
Terrapin
Troubles Designed by Mrs. Rydzewski and the
Terrapin volunteers to describe our efforts to help
DiamondBack Terrapins.
IZUMI-MINAMI Junior High School in Kumamoto City, Japan. Email exchanges starting June 2003
Discovery Channel's Brainboosters
Advertising:
History of Advertising includes examples. Provided by Duke University
National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution
Astronomy and Mars
Constellations and Mythology
NASA's Mars Exploration interactive game
Mars Facts by NASA
Mars Map
NASA's AstroAdventure interactive site
Tonight's Sky presented by Hubble Telescope provides a movie for each month
Tonight's Sky identifies stars and planets on any given date and pronounces the names.
Bubbles and Light
Bending Light; Bending Pencil
Chemicals & Mixtures
Light Thru Water; Coin
Surface Tension
Ecology and Environment
Wetlands
Institute
Global Warming for Kids by EPA 2003
Example of desertification: American Dustbowl
ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES:
RAINFORESTS AND MORE
Rainforest Issues List of sources
Environmental Law in NJ
NJ Dept of Environmental Protection/Statutes (Laws) and Regulations
Egypt
Common Symbols
University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archeology
Ancient Egypt presented by the British Museum.
Dictionary use this site to find pronunciations of words.
Hieroglyphs includes translator and e-cards
Secrets of the Pharaohs by PBS includes timeline, Tut's Tomb, Khufu's Pyramid, making mummies, ancient diseases
The Great Pyramid.Nova provides virtual reality to explore the inner passages.
Timeline of Ancient Civilizations
Videos of dung beetle and much, much more.
Elections and the Media
Select A Candidate Survey 2008
Voters Guide by
League of Women Voters provides candidates answers on key questions.
Analyzing Political Cartoons by Jim Lehrer's NewsHour
Build Your Own Political Commercial by PBS.
Political Cartoons of the Week by Time
Political Cartoons
Political Cartoons Today by MSNBC
Public statements of NJ elected officials provided by Project Vote Smart
Election 2008 by CNN
Galapagos
Charles Darwin's journal on the HMS Beagle
Create a Species by the Science Channel.
Hydrothermal Vents Scientists discover new life in the Galapagos Rift.
Galapagos Blog with Mrs R
Galapagos Conservation Trust. Visit the maps and the Junior Zone/Learning Zone for
an excellent description of animals and the maps.
Plate Tectonics animation
The Voyage of the Beetle
Follow the adventures of Rosie, a rose chafer beetle.
Animal Adaptations Game by EcoKids
Animals, Adaptation, and the Galapagos Islands
by Scholastic.com
Kids' Corner - Click on the turtle shell by the Charles Darwin Foundation.
Galapagos Teachers egroup
Rosetta Stone Online
Government
Greek Mythology (Greco-Roman)
New Myths created by Venture students
University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archeology
Constellations and Mythology
Greek Alphabet
Index by MythWeb to find your favorites.
Olympians provides brief explanations and cartoon images.
The Labors of Heracles
Heroes in Greek Mythology
Fun Facts Quiz
Greek Mythology Quiz
Maps
The Roman Empire
Holocaust/Genocide
Children of the Holocaust WebQuest created by Betty Garrity &
Rosemary Fedon, Galloway Township Middle School
Cultural Diversity Webquest using Hispanic and Native American
cultures.
Holocaust Unit created by Carol Ferguson, Northfield Community
School
Life in the Warsaw Ghetto a webquest suggested by Bernie Dodge.
Open Heart,
Open Mind Grant press release by AC-ETTC.
Open Heart,
Open Mind egroup a place to share email,bookmarks, photos, and
files.
Open Heart, Open Mind Website a joint project with Somers Point, Mullica, and R. Stockton College.
The
Holocaust: In Memory of Millions (Discovery Channel)
WWII/Holocaust
Images Gallery
ATT Virtual Classroom a website created by us in collaboration with Australian and Canadian keypals. We won the Special Merit Prize, Secondary Level in this competitive international contest.
International Keypals Homepage This website has been presented in statewide technology conferences. It presents all of our email projects.
AmBrit International School located in Rome, Italy. These 6th graders are visiting Pompeii!! Brazil keypals 2004 at the Yazigi Intenexus School in Natal
2001-02
Keypal exchanges Australia, Peru, Italy, Norway, South
Korea 2000-2001
Keypal exchanges - Japan,Australia, Peru, Norway
IZUMI-MINAMI Junior High School in Kumamoto City, Japan. Email exchanges starting June 2003 World Clockfind the current time any place in the world.
Immigration
Debates
Destination
America-Immigration Issues
Ellis Island/American
Family Immigration History Center
Genealogy.com
is a great place to search several sites for family ancestors.
Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) Immigration Records.
Japanese American The Densho
Project, 8/2001, includes personal stories for engaging students in
discussions about civil rights, immigration, the Constitution, citizenship
and discrimination.
New Americansincludes a citizenship test. (6/02)
Search the US Census
records no fee to search for ancestors.
Babelfish a website by Altavista that translates websites written in another language.
Inventions & Motion
About Inventions A-Z by About.com
Archimedes Death Ray- Myth or Fact? MIT students test the idea!
Simple Machines by The Franklin Institute describes the six basic machines.
Six Simple Machines with photo examples and animations.
NASA Aviation includes the Wright Brothers Game
DaVinci's Mysterious Machines an interactive game!
Da Vinci, Leonardo visit this museum website to see his machines and more
Email Engineers
Hubble Space Telescope
Interactive Timeline by PBS/American Experience
Inventors by Yahooligans
Junk Yard Wars provides a variety of challenges useful for Independent Project Presentations in Venture.
Kids' Pages at
US Patent and Trademark Office includes games!
Sir Isaac Newton
Physical Processesincludes interactive games for motion.
Parkworld Plot- a Force and Motion Game & Quiz
Trail
Corps describes people.
Corp of Discovery
US Army Corps of Discovery
Lewis-Clark.org
AOL
Lewis and Clark-2004
UCDS.org
St Joseph Museum.org
42 Explore2.com Descriptions of each member of the expedition
The Jesse Owens Story - Berlin 1936 Olympics
Berlin Olympics -US Holocaust Memorial Museaum
Thornwood Publishers - Photos
Berlin Olympics 1936 - photos
Jesse Owens photo
Atlantic City Press
Cyber Camera
Create a cross word puzzle
Create Puzzles and Games with a photo
Greeting Cards
International Radio Stations
Left Brain Right Brain Color Test
MapQuest
Mars Pathfinder Mission
Multicultural Calendar
National Hurricane Center/Tropical Prediction Center
This Day In History
Graph a word using Visuwords. A 21st Century innovative way to work with new vocabulary.Just For Fun - Adult Evening Class
Edmunds.com gives accurate prices for new and used cars
KODAK
Moviefone provides local listings and previews.
Realtor.com presented by National Association of Realtors to located houses for sale across the country
Snapfish for photography
SuperPages find people and businesses
Tax Records provides tax assessments and sales history.
Ten Hottest Zip Codes includes Somers Point
Ticketmaster
Travel Agencies online: Travelocity, Orbitz, Expedia
Web Cams Live at the Jersey Shore
Nazca
lines: Peru ,
NOVA Online/Ice Mummies of the
Inca/Sarita's Land
Easter
Island,
Maya
Virtual Tour,
Amazon:
Kayapo Natives,
Warriors
of the Amazon,
Mesoweb (Aztec,Maya,Olmec)
Maya Ball Game
Mummies in Atacama Desert (Peru and Chile)
Cultures Alive
Current Events Example Cape May County Murder Trial - Teens Fighting
Logic and Lateral Thinking Puzzles
Finding Patterns and More Fun
Discovery Channel Brainboosters
More Challenging Logic
Middle Ages:
Battle of Hastings-animation of 1066 tapestry
Battle of Hastings reenactment
Black Death affect on Europe in the Middle Ages
Black Death
Chess
Geoffrey Chaucer
Christmas in the Middle Ages
No Christmas Tree in the Medieval Times!
Medieval Castles
3d Reconstructions of Castles and Abby
Hats Game
Medieval HealthCure the patient game
The Lost Village is a story about village life created by Stockton professor Ken Tompkins
Unicorn Tapestries
The Battle of Hastings on the Bayeux Tapestry
Battle of Hastings Game by the BBC
Nova’s Medieval Siege interactive examples of trebuchet and capturing a castle.
Kid’s Castle explore the castle.
Stained Glassexamples in a German cathedral
Projects and Contests:
Somers Point History: Facts & Folklore. Our 2006 project won a grant from the NJ Association for Gifted Children and the SRI-ETTC.
TERRAPIN TROUBLES Our website won the Global Schoolhouse Cyberfair and SRI-ETTC contests.
The Global Schoolhouse International CyberFair 2002 We won the Gold Award in the Environmental category!!!
ATT
Virtual Classroom/VC-45
