PLATO Physical Science
The PLATO Physical Science 
courseware (www.plato.com) is standards-based curriculum that utilizes computer animation and multimedia instruction to address scientific concepts. The second of PLATO’s middle school science series (Life Science was released in 2003 and Earth and Space Science will be released later this year), each lesson is aligned to state standards, while its multimedia simulations provide an alternative to costly in-class lab experiments. Like the Life Science software before it, Physical Science features read-along text, as well as the ability for teachers to add their own documents or Web links into lessons through TeachLink.
This article originally appeared in the 04/01/2005 issue of THE Journal.