Tech & Learning — February 2018

20 | FEBRUARY 2018 | WWW.TECHLEARNING.COM

By Joan Gal Peck

Quality and Effectiveness: PebbleGo is a simple,

quality program from the Capstone Community

for grades K–2. It provides multimedia databases,

all in one place, for students in primary grades to

do simple research. Many teachers in the primary

grades spend a lot of time trying to find resources

for research. They have difficulty finding a variety of

resources at appropriate reading levels that will enable

students to do authentic research and keep them safe from general

search engines With PebbleGo, K–2 students can find the resources

they need to research topics in five different areas: animals (also in

Spanish), science, biographies, social studies, and dinosaurs. All of

these resources are leveled for beginning readers.

Ease of Use: PebbleGo is Web-based and users point and click

to navigate. Students choose their topics and drill down to the

subtopic they choose. All have passages that can be read to them with

highlighted texts. Highlighted glossary definitions automatically pop

up. Users can search for specific information or use a pinwheel to spin

and go to random topics. At the bottom of the screen students find

additional options, including buttons for printing and citing sources

(which is very important but not often addressed), as well as relevant

articles and activities that open in ready-to-print PDF files.

Creative Use of Technology: PebbleGo allows children to research

safely, with age-appropriate databases that are geared to their

abilities. The multimedia approach means that students aren’t limited

to text alone. They also have access to audio, pictures, videos, and

PDF files that support the topic they’re researching. File tabs across

the page help students stay on topic as they move from one subtopic

to the next within their main topic. After teachers show students

how to use the program on their laptops or iPads, students can work

individually using these special databases. They can work online

using one computer, in small groups, or even in large groups using a

whiteboard to learn about many curriculum topics.

Suitability for Use in a School Environment: PebbleGo gives primary

students the ability to search six interactive tabbed databases, easily and

safely, to find grade-appropriate information. Teachers can print PDFs

of each database and can see what topics are available to guide students

to a topic choice. With the “share what you know” sheet that students

can download as a PDF, they have a built-in, ready-to-use, and topic-

appropriate sheet for inputting their research. Students can also play

games on their selected topic in addition to sharing their opinions on a

“question of the day.” The program meets curriculum standards in such

subjects as science, where topics are correlated to Next Generation

Science Standards and STEM requirements.

PRODUCT REVIEWS

PEBBLEGO

pebblego.com/ n Licenses and Price: See website for pricing details per database.

TOP FEATURES

• All-inclusive databases are ready for primary students to use for focused
  research.


• Database on animals is also available in Spanish.


• Each topic has a printable article list, so teachers know what topics are
  available for each database.

WWW.TECHLEARNING.COM | FEBRUARY 2018 | 21

OVERALL RATING:

PebbleGo is an

excellent resource

that integrates content

curriculum, early literacy

skills, and information

literacy skills for

primary students.