Nifty Freebie

Answers.com has a free download for both PC's and Mac's. The download and installation take less than 5 minutes. Once the program is installed, you can point to any word in any program (or at least in all programs I've tried), hold the Alt key down and click on the word. When you release the Alt key, a little window pops up with the definition and/or additional information about the word. For example, I clicked on "Oneida" and was given information about the town of Oneida, including its current weather. When I clicked on the "More" button, I was shown information from a variety of encyclopedias covering the Oneida Community and the Oneida Indians. In addition, there is always a sound icon that allows you to check pronounciation.

Think of the uses you and your students might make of this. I can imagine all kinds of "lists" a teacher might make for students, with the pronounciation and basic info available through Answers. In any case, give it a try. You can certainly uninstall this gizzmo easily, but 'til you test it you can't really envision it!

While you're at it, explore the answers.com home page. I haven't spent much time there, but it seems intriguing.