All About life

http://www.brainpop.com/

I like this site a lot! The animations are well designed. The subjects and the topics are varied. Followed Tim and Moby, I tried to see the free ones for different subjects. It is audio without subtitles and you can see important names and phrases when the narrator mentions them. When you watch the animation, you really focus on it. Images show up in order, and there was nothing distracting to me. If the others were free too, I might keep watching them. I checked the free movies of math for some reasons. The questions are based on the stories, which I think are great. The sound of the robot was a little annoying to me though…

http://www.listentoyourbuds.org/

This is a not only cute but also informative website to warn different groups of target audience about losing hearing with loud music. The “Turn down the volume” song is the coolest one I have ever listened to for educational purpose, definitely caught young kids’ ears. The games are fun for kids too. For parents, they can choose to read, listen, play, or watch the information. The videos from the experts are clear and practical.  For educators, the website also provides downloading bookmarks, screensaver, lesson plans and activities. Overall, it is a thoroughly thought and designed website for its goal.  

http://www.fablevision.com/

     The goal of this site is to create meaningful and interactive experiences for kids at all ages. I found the animations are with high quality technically. The online books are really fun not only the images but also the content. The story is very creative. I read the eyebrow story by clicking the page myself, that is, I can control when to turn the page. And also, some stories are free to listen to instead of reading. Though I couldn’t play the games with my Macbook, but I believe kids can have a lot of fun in this website. There are some tiny things that I think they can improve. For example, the items on Fable Library can be organized better on the interface. And also, the button to homepage of every page can be clearer. Anyhow, the stories and animations are the real reasons that contribute to kids’ enjoyment to this site (Even to an old person like me!).