Teachers First - Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers

Block out all distractions and just start writing with ZenPen. Remove the instructions found on the page (just highlight and click delete). Begin writing without any visual elements in the way. No registration is required! Highlight text and select options to add italics, bold text, or URLs. Use links on the left side of the page to change text and background colors to black and white, toggle to full screen, add a word count, or save work.

tag(s): editing (93), process writing (37), proofreading (21), writing (325)

Milestones offers a collection of videos demonstrating grade-level expectations for Kindergarten through middle school. Choose a grade to start. Select a video from the different categories offered, including reading, math, and writing. These short videos run about a minute in length and provide an excellent look at the successful accomplishment of grade-level goals. If your district blocks YouTube, then they may not be viewable.

tag(s): parent conferences (21), parents (57), professional development (385), video (266)

Finally, worksheets will be cool! Create interactive worksheets, or use one that is already developed and make it your own with wizer.me. After signing up with email get started with Add Task. Follow the prompts for creation; these include selecting text style and color, and choosing a background, adding student tasks (Text, Video, Link, Image), and more. Select question style: Open Question, Multiple Choice, Matching, and more. Then there are the more unusual type responses like Filling in a Table, Image Tagging, Embedding, and others, with promises of more to come. Share with students by posting the URL given, using a pin code on their worksheet board, or use your Google Classroom account. At the time of this review, wizer.me support was through email and real-time online chat. Wizer.me works on any device with a browser and Internet connection but works best on Chrome and Safari.

tag(s): gamification (83), multimedia (53), worksheets (69)

Engage your students as they practice and learn appropriate grammar with this X (formerly Twitter) hashtag project. Follow the four posted steps to model, send, and correct "messy" sentences with your students. Be sure to do a X (formerly Twitter) search for #grammar911 for any inappropriate comments before sharing with your students. Although this lesson was created to accompany Daily 5 activities, it can easily be used with any grammar curriculum or lesson.

tag(s): grammar (137), grammar review (31), twitter (13)

Find free plays, drama games, and help for teaching a drama class at Drama Notebook. Click on the Free Stuff in the menu at the top and find hundreds of short plays and over forty classic games for kids and teens. Search through the play categories such as Fairy, Folk, Tall Tales, Scripts Based on Children's Books, Holidays, Free Plays for Ages 12 and Up, and several more. Each play states how many parts and the approximate time for the duration of the play. Plays open in a new link in PDF. View any and all of these with no registration.
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tag(s): acting (19), plays (32), readers theater (12)

Track learning in real-time with Quizalize. Student answers are color-coded on the teacher dashboard for ease in identifying who needs more help. Create scrambled word, multiple choice questions, and ChapGPT quizzes, and each question can have a custom timer. View reports for each student's progress and learning gaps. Create a quiz or select one from Quizalize's growing library. Quizzes can be "gamified" by showing the teacher dashboard as a leaderboard to see progress against other contestents. Quizalize works on any device with a browser and Internet connection. Sign up with an email and password. Create a quiz, assign it to classes, get a code, give it to students, and let the fun begin! The free account provides 3 classes and 5 activities.

tag(s): differentiation (84), game based learning (205), gamification (83), polls and surveys (49), quizzes (90)

Seesaw is a digital portfolio that is totally free for all devices and on the web. Students can showcase their work, videos, text, drawings, and images, and get feedback from teachers and parents. Create a class blog in your Seesaw for students to write blog posts. Teachers create an account with email and then start creating as many classes as needed. There is no limit on the number of students a class can have. Once students have parental permission, give students a "join" code for their class, and they sign up from there, choosing to access their account through a Seesaw generated QR code or their email. Teachers can enable or disable student likes, comments, and editing. Blog posts and comments must have teacher approval before becoming public. Students will be able to reflect on their work with a voice recording or text, and can share artifacts from their portfolio by clicking the red button at the bottom of the screen and then either print or get the item QR code. Once you have an account, click Help & Teacher Resources to find Getting Started Tips, Tutorial Videos, FAQs, and Activity Ideas grouped by grade level. If your district blocks YouTube, the tutorials may not be viewable. Please be aware that Seesaw falls under the FERPA laws for "directory information" and "educational records." Any school getting funds from the Department of Education (public schools) is required to disclose to parents and get written consent to use Seesaw with their child.

tag(s): blogs (65), communication (129), DAT device agnostic tool (147), digital storytelling (154), Learning Management Systems (20), portfolios (23), Teacher Utilities (198)

Develop rubrics to assess what you expect students to learn with Quick Rubric. Registration is free and allows for saving the rubric. Click Create a Rubric and add a title, brief description, and the maximum and minimum scores. Describe your indicators, add descriptors, and even include standards. At any time during the formation of the rubric add columns and rows. Save and share via URL or printing. The ability to copy and modify a rubric from your account is a great time-saver.
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tag(s): assessment (147), rubrics (37)

Focus on the key elements of writing a story with Story Map. Fill out and print graphic organizers for characters, setting, conflict, and resolution. Each organizer has prompts for what to write. Returning to an organizer to edit is possible. Print your Story Map, since it is not saved.

tag(s): digital storytelling (154), graphic organizers (48), writing (325)

This Prezi is a K-3 lesson plan for the Daily 5 using several different apps for the iPad. The majority of the apps are free. Find apps for Read to Self, Partner Read, and Listen to Reading. There are Word Work apps, and Work on Writing apps, as well as a slide on possible challenges and solutions for using these tools in the classroom.

tag(s): listening (93), literacy (122), reading comprehension (149), reading strategies (96), sight words (23), vocabulary development (94), word study (59), writing (325)

Do you need new ideas to spice up your Daily 5 instruction? Try browsing through this Pinterest board for ideas from all over the web. Choose the links provided to find many free ideas for strategy charts, scheduling, posters, and tips for use throughout the school year.

tag(s): bookmarks (43), literacy (122), reading comprehension (149), reading strategies (96), word study (59), writing (325)

Technology and the Daily 5 is a must-see site if you are thinking about adding technology into to your Daily 5 routines. Although the title states K-2 classroom, the Daily 5 routines (and tools) are great to use for any elementary grade. For each of the components of the Daily 5 find categories such as Web Tools, Mobile Devices, and a video. Some components have interactive whiteboard suggestions, and there are links to other resources such as a PDF for task cards. If your district blocks YouTube, the videos may not be viewable.

tag(s): literacy (122), literary devices (13), reading comprehension (149), reading strategies (96), video (266), vocabulary development (94), word study (59), writing (325)

If you are a primary or elementary teacher looking to include technology into your Daily 5 routine, look no further. At this primary teacher's blog investigate the tabs across the top for Videos, Word Work, iPad Creating, SMART Notebook, QR Codes, Listening to Reading, Skype/FaceTime, and Web. Under Videos find a link to a Play List of YouTube videos for literacy, and a video showing how to set up iPods for the Listen to Reading component. Under each of the other tabs find sources and "how to's" for all sorts of technology to incorporate into your literacy lessons. This blog also has a section about incorporating Chrome Books (under the New tab) and iPads into the primary curriculum. If your district blocks YouTube, the videos may not be viewable.

tag(s): listening (93), literacy (122), reading comprehension (149), reading strategies (96), video (266), vocabulary development (94), word study (59), writing (325)

View four short videos of a teacher and her first-grade students as they practice the Daily 5 routines. These videos give a great beginning overview of how this structured literacy time functions in the classroom. Each video is six minutes or less. Also find a Pacing Guide for the first 23 days of a Daily 5 routine. If your district blocks YouTube, the videos may not be viewable.

tag(s): literacy (122), reading comprehension (149), reading strategies (96), video (266), vocabulary development (94), word study (59)

Create an interactive categorization activity with The Vortex. Give the activity a title and begin adding categories. Add items in up to four different categories. When finished, drag and drop items as quickly as possible into the correct bin. Use the provided links to share the activity, embed into a blog or web page, or print it. Use password protection if desired to limit access. Click the question mark on the bottom right toolbar, and scroll down that page to find many templates for inspiration or use.
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tag(s): game based learning (205), quiz (67), quizzes (90)

Design professional looking front pages for a newspaper with this tool. Simply fill in the pertinent information (headline, date, place, and more) and an image. Share via URL, Twitter, or download to your computer. Be sure to view the several samples available, and click on the little question mark at the end of the title to see ideas for use of this tool. No registration is necessary.

tag(s): digital storytelling (154), images (263), newspapers (93)

Conduct virtual conferences with up to 1,000 people at one time with Free Conference Call. Instantly share your screen during online calls for participant viewing or use the active speaker mode. Other features allow for recording and sharing meetings when finished. After creating an account, follow instructions for inviting participants and setting up the conference call. This tool works on any device with a modern web browser and Internet access, or download the free iOS or Android app.

tag(s): blended learning (37), chat (41), communication (129), DAT device agnostic tool (147), parent conferences (21), parents (57), remote learning (54)

The 180 Days Challenge is based on the PBS series 180 Days: Hartsville documentary. Take the challenge as a teacher, administrator, or parent to answer problem-based scenarios related to education. After completion, view results that provide insight into your education style and how it relates to the current educational climate. In addition to the challenge questions, this site includes several video excerpts from the series featuring events such as conferences and a discussion of generational poverty. If your district blocks YouTube, they may not be viewable.

tag(s): classroom management (120), professional development (385)

Learn the basic steps for creating a grading rubric with this informative site. Find out why you need rubrics and the six basic steps for designing a rubric for any project. Most of the steps also include links to examples and templates for different situations such as discussions, presentations, and other types of projects.

tag(s): assessment (147), professional development (385), rubrics (37)

TextProject's YouTube Channel has many videos to provide support in reading instruction for beginning and struggling readers. Choose from playlists with subjects including Beginning Reading, Texts That Teach, Literacy Leaders Answer CCSS Questions, Vocabulary Matters, Teaching English Learners Vocabulary, and much more. Click Playlist on the menu to see them all. Be sure to subscribe to this YouTube Channel to receive notification of new additions. If your district blocks YouTube, then they may not be viewable.

tag(s): commoncore (73), literacy (122), professional development (385), reading comprehension (149), reading strategies (96), video (266)