Teachers First - Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers

Immerse yourself in soundscapes from around the world! Soundscapes feature recordings of bird songs, frogs, insects, hippos in a pool, and more. Hover over the location points to view the title. Choose one of the locations on the World map to view information about the nature of the recording, a picture of the organism featured, a link to the recordist and videos, and a "Listen" button to play the recording. Move around the map as you would in Google Maps, reviewed here. Zoom in and out to see locations all around the world.

tag(s): animals (284), biomes (113), cultures (131), environment (237), habitats (86), plants (147), sounds (42)

Use Image Atlas to search images from several countries instantly! Click the words "Atlas selection" to checkbox the countries you want from among several dozen. Enter the image search term and choose to either sort them alphabetically or by GDP. For example, search the word "beauty" to view the differences in images of beauty in a variety of countries. Try "home" to see different homes or "lunch" to see differing foods. Try "school" or "teacher" to see how differently they are portrayed (or are they?). Click on each image to view the article from which the image originates. Some of this content may not be appropriate for the classroom. You may want to preview search results, before you share them. Or better yet, complete the searching together with a student or class.

tag(s): cross cultural understanding (160), images (261), photography (118)

Get a close-up view of one of life's most despicable creatures with this helpful guide about different types of cockroaches. Scroll down the landing page and click "what a cockroach looks like" in red text. You can read about the different stages and how they look. Also read about the differences in cockroaches and Palmetto Bug or Waterbugs. Though this is a site to sell Orkin services, thus the and get rid of them in the title, no registration is necessary to find out how to idetify them.
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tag(s): insects (68)

Experience Machu Picchu with this 360 degree virtual tour. Begin by clicking yhe "i" icon on the left menu, and read a short introduction to the history of Machu Picchu. Tour the 32 different vantage points (interactive 360 degree images) to enjoy your tour. Explore incredible panoramic views from different angles such as the subterranean path all the way up to the highest point of the Citadel. Control the screen on your own to move images up, down, and in different directions. Click to allow the view to rotate on its own. You will feel like you are really there! There is a VR tour available for headmounted devices. This review is for the 360 degree virtual tour only.

tag(s): architecture (62), explorers (65), peru (6), south america (38), virtual field trips (83)

Flippity is a versatile and useful tool for creating many types of educational activities, games, and assessments. Easily modify the included templates to suit any subject or content area. Flippity integrates with Google Sheets, allowing users to input and organize data to use in their activities easily; updates to Google Sheets are automatically reflected in the Flippity activity. Templates include flashcards,10-sided multimedia flex cards, quizzes, crossword puzzles, and more. Customization options include adding images and text, choice of fonts and colors, and the ability to embed videos or other multimedia elements into activities. Flippity offers helpful tutorials to guide users through the process of creating and customizing content.

tag(s): flash cards (42), game based learning (179), quiz (66), quizzes (91), test prep (67), vocabulary (237), vocabulary development (87)

Use Flipboard to collect, explore, and share information from many sources, all in a magazine-style format. Flipboard can hold specific articles and images you choose or a dynamic "feed" from a web source such as CNN, a Twitter hashtag, or a favorite blog. Most Flipboard consumers read their magazines on mobile devices, but you can manage and access your magazines from the "web tools" page (the link from this review) on a computer. Create your personal magazine(s) with things you care about: news, staying connected, social networks, and more. Create an account with Flipboard and then connect with LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or YouTube. Click the More panel to browse other categories and add them to your magazines. Drag the Flipboard button to your bookmarks bar or use the Flipboard app on your smartphone or tablet. Find an article you want to add to your collection? Click the + button next to the article to save it or simply click "Flip It" on your computer's browser toolbar to add that web page to your magazine. Edit your magazines online and share with friends and colleagues. View your RSS feeds or follow your news stream in social media with this magazine-style interface. Most of the tutorial videos are hosted on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, then they may not be viewable. Flipboard is a device-agnostic tool. Load the free app on mobile devices.
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tag(s): DAT device agnostic tool (148), news (227), social networking (64), video (260)

Explore this free curriculum for applying algebra in the creation of videogames. Students create code and learn the basics of program design and not just writing code. Though workshops are available to attend, at a cost, materials for teaching are also found online in HTML or PDF form. After Bootstrap I, continue with Bootstrap II which applies the fundamentals of Trigonometry. The activities align with Common Core Math and Engineering standards. Code writing in Bootstrap uses a tool that requires a Gmail account. Some of the video clips are hosted on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, then they may not be viewable.
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tag(s): coding (91), STEM (269)

Delivr combines a URL shortening/tracking service with a QR-Code generator to easily share web-based information such as links to videos or web sites. Copy/paste any url into the bar. Use the drop-down menu for sources such as YouTube or Flickr; then press enter to shorten the url and share. Share options include Facebook, Twitter, or as a QR code to save in several different formats. Free sign-up offers additional options such as an account dashboard that allows you to manage campaigns, produce reports, and download QR codes. The FREE plan requires email registration and allows five "active campaigns" or services for one user.
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tag(s): qr codes (17)

Learn basic computer coding skills using this tool. There are three difficulty levels: Code Monster for preteens (or even younger), Code Maven for teens and young adults, or Game Maven for ages 16+. Code Monster prompts younger students to change various parameters of an already given code. As they enter different parts to the code, the changes in the object can be seen immediately. Simply click on the dialogue bubble and a new lesson will appear. Unfortunately, creations cannot be saved. (Students can screenshot their creations.) Use Code Maven with older teens, though it appears to have the same lessons as Code Monster. Game Maven is the third and most advanced programming tutorial in this series. Use this to teach a little about programming by creating easy games. In all three tools, skip to further lessons by clicking on the dialogue balloons. Use the back button to return to previous lessons. It is also easy to undo a lesson and start a code over with the reset button. In all tools, if you return to the same browser on the same machine, it will return to the last lesson you were on. Note: Be sure to have played with Code Maven prior to using Game Maven as those lessons are needed to understand how to program (unless there is prior coding experience).

tag(s): coding (91), computational thinking (41), computers (109)