There are many excellent online English-Chinese dictionaries. Some even have audio. Here are three that I use most frequently:
nciku.com: Not only does this site have a great dictionary but it also allows you to save your vocabulary lists so you can review them often.
mdbg.net: You can search for words by Chinese, Pinyin, or English definition. Very comprehensive.
zhongwen.com: Search for words by pronunciation, radical, stroke count or English definition. Many interesting FAQs about characters on this site.
If you would like to purchase traditional dictionary I recommend the Oxford Beginner's Chinese Dictionary. It is an excellent dictionary for beginning Chinese students. Here is a review of the dictionary at amazon.com.
2. Pin Yin Practice
We will be spending lots of time in class practicing pinyin. This is essential for correct pronunciation as well as Chinese word processing. When you go to this site you will be able to click on and listen to the four tones, all the pinyin sounds, numbers, personal pronouns, and also some simple classroom greetings.
To play a Chinese Tone Game go to this site.
3. Stroke Order
Following the correct stroke order is very important when writing Chinese characters. It makes the character look more beautiful and helps you memorize the character as well. You can look up the stroke order for most frequently used characters by pinyin at this site.
To play a Chinese Character Writing Game go to this site.
Another great site with animated character stroke order can be found at this site.
4. Gridded Paper
If you run out of gridded paper for practicing your Chinese characters you can print some out from home. Go to this site. The size of the squares I use are .8 for sixth grade, and .6 for seventh grade.
5. How to Display Chinese Fonts On Your Mac or PC
Word processing skills are an essential part of learning Chinese. Here are directions for installing Chinese fonts onto your PC or your Mac so you can practice Chinese word processing at home. Go to this site.
6. Flashcards
Here is a link with some ready made flashcards of useful Chinese vocabulary. The flashcards are arrange by basic concepts such as colors, animals, fruits, vegetables, furniture, etc. They are beautifully illustrated and fun to use. Go to this site.
To see some flashcards and quizlets I have created specifically for my classes go to this site.
7. Character worksheets
Enter your characters in the spaces and worksheets with the stroke order for each character will be generated. Go to this site.
8. Pinyin Conversion Tool
This is a fantastic tool! When submitting assignments in pinyin you can use this tool to type in the tone marks. Type in your word(s) followed by a number to indicate the correct tone (i.e. ni3 hao3), click on "Tone Marks" and the tone mark will be generated for you. Go to this site.