Featured Sites Week of: Jul 8, 2018 -
Here are this week's features. Clicking the tags in the description area of each listing will present a list of other resources with this topic. | Click here to return to the Featured Sites Archive
Substitutes - Ideas and Resources - TeachersFirst
Grades
K to 12
2 Favorites
0 Comments
Stepping into a classroom you don't know, with students you've never met, calls for resources you can trust to work right away. This collection brings together ready-to-go educational...more
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Stepping into a classroom you don't know, with students you've never met, calls for resources you can trust to work right away. This collection brings together ready-to-go educational games and interactives that require little to no prep, so you can fill instructional time with confidence the moment you walk in the door. You'll also find classroom management resources, icebreaker activities, brain breaks, and teacher guides to help you build rapport quickly and keep the day running smoothly. Whether you're covering a single period or a full week, these tools are designed to make substitute teaching easier for you and more engaging for your students.
tag(s): substitutes (33)
In the Classroom
Whether you are a substitute looking for some "filler" ideas or a classroom teacher looking for new sites, check out this list of resources. Share this list on your class website for families to use at home. This list includes resources for young readers and secondary students.You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
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Math Resources for All Grades - TeachersFirst
Grades
K to 12
1 Favorites
0 Comments
Find an extensive collection of resources for math. Curated lists are based on NCTM standards and divided by grades K-2, 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12. Topics include Numbers & Operations, Algebra,...more
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Find an extensive collection of resources for math. Curated lists are based on NCTM standards and divided by grades K-2, 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12. Topics include Numbers & Operations, Algebra, Geometry, Measurement, and Data & Probability. Each reviewed resource includes a description and technology integration ideas for your classroom.
tag(s): charts and graphs (183), data (214), equations (128), estimation (35), exponents (38), geometric shapes (150), integers (26), measurement (123), number lines (32), number sense (75), numbers (117), operations (70), order of operations (30), probability (134), sequences (12), sequencing (22), vectors (16)
In the Classroom
Save this list for when teaching any math class in grades K-12. Many of the resources would work in a BYOD environment. Share these lists on your class website for students to access for additional practice.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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TeachersFirst Reading Treks - Make Learning a Journey - TeachersFirst
Grades
K to 12
0 Favorites
0 Comments
Your students can visit the world and build their background knowledge when they choose to read a book in conjunction with Reading Treks. Find fiction and informational books at every...more
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Your students can visit the world and build their background knowledge when they choose to read a book in conjunction with Reading Treks. Find fiction and informational books at every reading level. Each Reading Trek unit has a downloadable PDF with Common Core State Standards, ISTE Standards, Grade Level, Ideas and Activities for using the Reading Trek in class, and a list of Helpful Resources. There is also a Google Maps (KMZ) file. Under the About TeachersFirst Reading Treks on the home page find step-by-step instructions for when you're ready to use a Reading Trek. TeachersFirst is just getting started creating Treks for books. Do you have a suggestion? Select Suggest a Trek from the left menu to let us know about it. We'd love to hear from you!
tag(s): independent reading (85), maps (222), reading comprehension (145), reading lists (79), Reading Treks (56)
In the Classroom
These units are perfect for use with a whole-class novel, literature circles, or individual reading! Ask students to keep a journal about what they are reading and learning. Replace traditional paper and pen journals using an easy virtual journaling tool such as Penzu, reviewed here. With Penzu you can add images or your own artwork as illustrations. If you are conducting literature circles a good tool to use for small group assignments and communication is Asana, reviewed here, or Canvas Free LMS, reviewed here. For students or student groups to share their book with their peers, challenge them to enhance their learning and design an interactive multimedia poster using Genially, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Online Tools and Timesavers Editor's Choice Resources - TeachersFirst
Grades
K to 12
4 Favorites
0 Comments
This collection of Editors' Choice FREE, reviewed resources was selected to help teachers and students save time using handy online tools that get the job done and make your classroom...more
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This collection of Editors' Choice FREE, reviewed resources was selected to help teachers and students save time using handy online tools that get the job done and make your classroom run smoothly. Find tools for organizing and communicating, managing your classroom, do-it-yourself creating, sharing links, useful utilities, saving paper, and much more. For a more extensive collection, see our full listing of online tools.
tag(s): classroom management (154)
In the Classroom
Mark this one in your favorites as a sanity saver. You may not remember the name of each handy timesaver, but having the collection close "at hand" will help you find them easily. Use your free TeachersFirst membership to rate them or mark individual favorite tools and share them with your students on your public page.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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TeachersFirst's BYOD Dream Tools: Free Tools that Work on ANY device! - TeachersFirst
Grades
K to 12
8 Favorites
0 Comments
This collection of reviewed tools from TeachersFirst includes apps that are available for FREE on iOS (iPad, iPhone), Android, and web devices. Ideal for BYOD classrooms or 1:1 computer/tablet...more
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This collection of reviewed tools from TeachersFirst includes apps that are available for FREE on iOS (iPad, iPhone), Android, and web devices. Ideal for BYOD classrooms or 1:1 computer/tablet programs, these reviewed tools allow users to create and access projects using the same app, no matter what kind of device they have.
tag(s): classroom management (154), DAT device agnostic tool (134)
In the Classroom
Mark this page in your Favorites to use when choosing or recommending tools for your students (or their parents). Be sure to read the "Edge Features" list at the end of each review to know whether you need to create individual accounts, how products can be shared, and other tips on using these DATs safely and within school policies. This is a must-have list for students collaborating on projects using different types of devices! If you teach gifted students working on advanced projects or have students all working on different projects all at the same time, use this collection of tools as a trusted starting point for students to create their products on any device they may bring to class (or work on from home).Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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OK2Ask - TeachersFirst
Grades
K to 12
1 Favorites
0 Comments
OK2Ask'® is TeachersFirst's series of virtual workshops available in both live (for credit) and on-demand (without credit) formats. These sessions, scheduled at convenient times...more
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OK2Ask'® is TeachersFirst's series of virtual workshops available in both live (for credit) and on-demand (without credit) formats. These sessions, scheduled at convenient times for you to attend from any computer or tablet, will share great ideas you can use in your classroom, are free courtesy of The Source for Learning, and are led by TeachersFirst''® ed tech coaches. These hands-on sessions are useful and teacher-friendly. You can earn Professional Development Certificates for attending the LIVE sessions (and completing the requirements) or learn independently from the archived recordings. Approved by special arrangement for re-licensure credit in Texas, Montana, Pennsylvania, and Illinois. Sessions are correlated to the ISTE standards for Educators.
In the Classroom
Attend OK2Ask'® sessions with your teacher friends or "meet" teachers from far and wide. Mark OK2Ask in your Favorites. Then check back often for new offerings during the school year and summer breaks. During the school year, LIVE OK2Ask sessions are usually offered on Tuesday evenings in a 90-minute format. You can earn Professional Development Certificates for attending the LIVE sessions (and completing the requirements) or learn on your own from the archived recordings.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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TeachersFirst Brain Twisters - TeachersFirst
Grades
3 to 9
46 Favorites
0 Comments
These ten-question quizzes are refreshed each Friday -- one edition for middle school students and one for elementary students. Questions are presented one at a time as multiple-choice....more
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These ten-question quizzes are refreshed each Friday -- one edition for middle school students and one for elementary students. Questions are presented one at a time as multiple-choice. You have only ONE try to select the correct answer, so think carefully! Points are awarded for each correct answer, up to a possible 100. When you finish, you see your score. Questions are intentionally designed to stretch thinking: 5-point questions tend to fall at the knowledge/comprehension/application level of Bloom's taxonomy; 10-pointers are more likely cross-curricular; and 20-pointers require analytical thinking, broader experience, or knowledge of current events -- and may benefit from more than one student's input. Printable versions are available for both editions, along with answers to the previous week's Twisters. A new version is also available for students to take on mobile devices.
In the Classroom
Brain Twisters work well as a whole-class activity projected on a screen or interactive whiteboard, with students pooling their knowledge to work through questions as a team. Thinking aloud together -- eliminating wrong answers, testing possibilities, debating what they know -- builds both content knowledge and test-taking strategies. Alternatively, use them in small groups with assigned roles: a moderator to guide discussion, a keyboarder to submit answers, and researchers to look up what the group doesn't know. This makes Brain Twisters a natural fit for teaching information literacy and research skills in a high-motivation context.Offer Twisters as an enrichment challenge or extra-credit option for students to complete at home -- consider giving credit simply for completing the quiz rather than for the score, since family members may want to help. The printable version and last week's answers make it easy to use Brain Twisters even without live internet access. Be sure to mark this as a favorite and share it on your class webpage.
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CurriConnects - TeachersFirst
Grades
K to 12
3 Favorites
0 Comments
Use CurriConnects to find books related to curriculum topics or subject areas. Build students' literacy skills, reinforce the role of curriculum concepts in other contexts, and help...more
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Use CurriConnects to find books related to curriculum topics or subject areas. Build students' literacy skills, reinforce the role of curriculum concepts in other contexts, and help students develop the important reading strategy of connecting what they read to prior knowledge. Share CurriConnects as links on your class web page or share them with school and local libraries, where students can select books to accompany what they are studying. Topics include Citizen Science, Civil War, Maps, Earth Science, STEM, Music and Musicians, and many more. Check back often, as new lists are frequently added. Each book list includes descriptions and interest levels, and many also include Lexiles, making the lists easy to use for differentiation.
tag(s): book lists (167), independent reading (85), reading lists (79)
In the Classroom
Share CurriConnects as links on your class web page or share them with school and local libraries, where students can select books to accompany what they are studying. Explore the many ideas TeachersFirst offers for using CurriConnects in your classroom. Be sure to share these lists with multilingual/ESL teachers for reading selections to build student vocabulary and understanding of the curriculum.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Getting to Know You Ideas from TeachersFirst - TeachersFirst
Grades
K to 12
28 Favorites
1 Comments
TeachersFirst offers tried and true getting-to-know-you lesson plans, some with a creative twist. Get off on the right foot to establish your classroom as a learning community. ...more
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TeachersFirst offers tried and true getting-to-know-you lesson plans, some with a creative twist. Get off on the right foot to establish your classroom as a learning community.
tag(s): firstday (27)
In the Classroom
Try these activities from TeachersFirst to help you and your students get to know each other early in the school year or for a "fresh start" for a new semester or move-in students.Comments
I love the ideas and activities for helping students get to know each other early on in the new school year. In the Headstart program we focus on parent involvement and I like to do activities that involve the parents and help them to get to know each other as well. The classroom and education experience is so much more successful when everyone is working together: children , families, and teachers.Teresa, FL, Grades: 0 - 1
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Bulletin Board Hang Ups - TeachersFirst
Grades
2 to 12
17 Favorites
0 Comments
TeachersFirst provides this collection of printable quotations, ready for your classroom or bulletin board. Inspire, engage, or challenge your students to think with quotes from famous...more
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TeachersFirst provides this collection of printable quotations, ready for your classroom or bulletin board. Inspire, engage, or challenge your students to think with quotes from famous leaders, sports figures, thinkers, and writers.
tag(s): bulletin boards (12), quotations (18)
In the Classroom
They look great printed on brightly colored paper! As an opening day activity, challenge small groups of students to interpret the quote hanging closest to them and predict how it may be important in your course this year. For younger students, ask them to write a paraphrase or to illustrate the quote. Be sure to change the quotes periodically and give a prize to the first student who notices. Or give a pop-quiz during the last week of school, asking students to recall as many of the year's quotes as they can (working in small groups will probably help). If you have classroom blogs, ask students to choose and reflect on a specific quote and its relevance to your class throughout the past year.
This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.
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The 50 States - TeachersFirst
Grades
4 to 8
18 Favorites
1 Comments
TeachersFirst's states project for students combines the usual "almanac" facts with narratives on native people, early history, economy, and landforms and geography. The result is a...more
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TeachersFirst's states project for students combines the usual "almanac" facts with narratives on native people, early history, economy, and landforms and geography. The result is a one-stop site for upper elementary and middle school students studying their own states, or someone else's.
tag(s): california (18), new york (23), states (126), texas (8)
In the Classroom
Use this site on a projector or interactive whiteboard to discuss and informally assess prior knowledge as you start your study of the 50 states. One easy use would be for testing students on knowledge of the capitals. Open the site on the interactive whiteboard or projector, and you can test students not only by state recognition on the map but with what the capitals are. State location and capitol information are not clearly stated until clicked on, so this would be a fairly easy formative assessment or review of the information.Comments
Great resource!Ladisha, VA, Grades: 9 - 12
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