Teachers First - Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers

Build your understanding of the U.S. economy through a creative, well-organized collection of short films (5-8 min) designed to explain 20 key concepts that any informed citizen needs to understand. Unlike many informational films, these are quite engaging. The collection is divided into five chapters on Economy, Money, The Role of Government, Globalization, and Inequality. All of us can better understand how our economy works from watching these films and exploring some of the follow-up discussion suggestions, even among adults. Teachers can obtain a link to free, downloadable lesson materials, activities, and extensions by filling out a form with their email address. (The email comes within a few minutes, but watch your SPAM filter. Requesting the link via a home email may be better to avoid school filtering!) The teacher materials include correlations to CCSS standards in ELA, Math, and Writing. The content of the films and lessons supports many major concepts of economics and government included in state and other standards. App versions are available for both iOS and Android.

tag(s): DAT device agnostic tool (148), financial literacy (92), money (117), supply and demand (5)

Kodable teaches coding to young children through programming logic, sequence, loops, functions, and debugging. Create one free class account for an unlimited number of students with twelve weeks of lessons. Find lessons with programming curriculum, explanations of key concepts, and Common Core alignment. You can play without an account; however, results are not saved.
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tag(s): coding (91), computational thinking (41), computers (109), DAT device agnostic tool (148), engineering (123), logic (163), problem solving (226), STEM (269)

Indiana University's Center on Congress partners with the Library of Congress and its effort to promote teaching with primary sources to provide a rich set of resources, lesson plans, and activities related to the history, function, and actions of the US Congress. Activities are divided by theme, such as citizen participation, criticism of Congress, and the impact of Congress. Many activities include comics to keep your attention. There is a good overview of using primary sources in teaching. Lesson plans are tied to state standards. In addition to the lesson plans developed by the Center on Congress, there is also a bank of teacher-submitted lesson plans.

tag(s): branches of government (63), civil rights (197), comics and cartoons (53), congress (39), politics (111), primary sources (118), womens suffrage (44)

The Undergraduate Student Loan Calculator shows the share of earnings necessary to service traditional loan repayment for 80 majors. Use selection boxes to choose different majors, loan amounts, interest, and length of term. Select approximate earnings from high, middle, or low-end of average earnings. You can also choose to work part or full-time. Compare two different majors to view the percentage of monthly income needed to pay off loans.

tag(s): calculators (37), careers (138), college (47)

Advanced study of history requires increased attention to primary sources. Collected here are over 1,000 newspaper editorials written in the 16 months leading up to the start of the US Civil War. Along with a useful timeline of events during the same period, the site offers search either by the location of the publication or by the name of the publication. Editorials come from newspapers across the US, not just from those in states most often associated with the Civil War. The opinion expressed may offer a fresh perspective on what people were thinking just prior to the firing on Ft. Sumter. For example, we might view Abraham Lincoln as one of the greatest of American Presidents, but an editorial from the Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Daily Patriot and Union concludes with the words, "We confess we shudder as we contemplate the future in the person of this weak and ignorant man." (February 21, 1861).

tag(s): civil war (135), newspapers (91), primary sources (118)

Learn more about bioengineering at this interactive site. Choose from an array of science topics from the drop down menu to view frequently asked questions. Click on the Interactive Exploration to view the Bionic Man. Click on the technologies found on the image to find out how bioengineering has changed medicine. Play Who Wants To Be A Bioengineer to test yourself on bioengineering for rehabilitation and treatments in medicine. Find information about careers under the Training and Careers tab. Find Resource Links for the public, teachers and parents, and students. A few of the video clips are hosted on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, then they may not be viewable.

tag(s): engineering (123), medicine (56), STEM (269)

Here is your one stop for FREE training on Microsoft Word and Excel, Typing challenges, and activities in several subjects. There are activities for typing, math, spelling, and life skills geared toward elementary and middle school students. The menu at the left provides links to all activities except Excel. Find those at the top of the page. If you find an activity you like, easily share using links on each activity via email or social networks. 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): grammar (133), keyboarding (28), Microsoft (80), operations (72), parts of speech (40), spelling (97), spreadsheets (22), vocabulary (237)

This site offers over 10,000 lessons aligned with the Common Core and the Next Generation Science Standards. The lessons were created by 130 Master Teachers. You can browse resources without registering. Click the blue "Browse" button to get started. Choose along the top from Common Core Math, Common Core ELA, or Next Generation Science. Lessons are arranged by grade level or Math, Language, and Science subjects. However, if you want to create your own resources, registration is required. After registering, create a class and then create a unit for that class. Finally, create a lesson for that unit, fill in an objective, select a state standard, and estimate the total time on task. Upload files (or drag and drop) to assign them to the lesson or keep them "unassigned" for later use. Additionally, simply add other members' files to your own curriculum. Search for files by keyword, age-level, and type of format. Click on a result to see every lesson plan using that file.

tag(s): commoncore (75), professional development (402), Teacher Utilities (156)