Beginning with subsequent issues, The Help Desk will be sent once every other week for the duration of the summer. Have a good break!

http://www.getty.edu/artsednet/

A service of the J. Paul Getty Trust, ArtsEdNet has lots of educational ideas and lesson plans for teaching art, and incorporating the arts across the curriculum. Plans are sorted by subject as well as grade level, and are complete with objectives and materials. An excellent art spot!

Teacher2Teacher

http://mathforum.org/t2t/

Teacher2Teacher is a part of Math Forum, a service of Dexter University. The more familiar face of Math Forum is Ask Dr. Math, an interactive resource for math students. Teacher2Teacher offers a similar service for math teachers, including threaded on-line discussions with searchable archives by grade level. Hear how other math teachers have discovered new ways of teaching particular problems or concepts!

SCORE Cyberguides

http://www.sdcoe.k12.ca.us/score/cyberguide.html

Produced by the San Diego County Office of Education as a part of S.C.O.R.E (Schools of California Online Resources for Educators), this resource provides " . . . supplementary, standards-based, web-delivered units of instruction centered on core works of literature." The units are arranged by grade level, with extensive activities and instructional materials. They are tied to California curriculum standards, but are very complete and usable by any  reading teacher!

http://www.howstuffworks.com/

The product of Marshall Brain (yes, that's his real name!), HowStuffWorks is a website packed with information about, uh, how stuff works! There are no lesson plans or classroom integration guides, but there's information and ideas on lots of subjects. The site is particularly heavy, as one might guess, on science and computer stuff, though the site also explores business, government, even community help projects. There's even a "How 'How Stuff Works' Works" section! The site is financed through banners and side venture initiatives, but its information remains free.

http://www.dearpresidentgeorgewbush.com/

The sitting President of the United States has provided this website to provide the ability to send his office email on issues of policy. The kid's section include information on the official White House pets. Previous messages can be read, and the site also serves as a clearinghouse for email communication with soldiers overseas. 

The Center for Digital Storytelling

http://www.storycenter.org/

This is not so much an Internet site as it is an instructional movement. Using simple still photographs, background music, and personal narratives, digital storytellers create moving and meaningful portraits of themselves in video. In turn, teachers gain an important motivator for reluctant writers! The website has examples, and a full set of resources, to help your class become digital storytellers.