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Firstly, you need to learn to use google.com. I don't mean to be rude. But you do.
If you are going to run linux, you have to learn how to figure out your own problems, because that is how you will learn.
I will answer this, only because I wish someone would have explained this to me when I was first starting out.
All operating systems, including Windows, have a kernel.
The kernel is the operating system. It is the piece of software running in memory that controls access to all facets of the computer. It handles the I/O from the disk, the memory, the PCI components, etc.
Because most kernels do not have the ability to "speak" to, or, address all makes/models/types of hardware, modules are sometimes used to allow the kernel to address, and therefore interact with a device. This is the same as using a driver in windows. Modules, and drivers, are simply software that allow a kernel that does not have native support for a device - to operate that device.
A shell, is a piece of software running in memory, that allows you to interface with the kernel, and therefore, the rest of the machine. You can manipulate files, devices, and run programs from a shell.
As far as installing a kernel, there are several ways that you can do this. You can compile it from source, which means that you are actully building the kernel, and then installing it. Another way, is to use precomiled "binary" kernels. These are available in many different formats, such as rpm's. The downside to this type of kernel, though, is that they tend to be "vanilla" kernels. This means that they don't support much in the way of hardware, requiring modules for most every component.
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