Teachers First - Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers

Make beautiful online "multimedia" newsletters (flyers) to display on your smartphone, tablet or computer using Smore. You can arrange your content easily with Smores' drag and drop editing. Add ready-made graphics, images from files on your computer, or images from the web. Quickly embed text, videos, and tweets, too. Choose from several attractive themes. Share your creations via email, URL, Facebook, X (formerlyTwitter), or print it to hand out or hang on a bulletin board. Check to see who has read your newsletter and who hasn't. The free account plan offers three total newsletter credits, 500 contact credits, and 200 email credits.

tag(s): design (79), infographics (56), multimedia (53), posters (43)

Have you ever wanted to see your own face on a dollar bill? Use this online image editor to personalized bills with your own picture. Just upload your picture (or any image) using the photo link at the bottom of the page. Images can be moved around within the picture frame, and there is an option to adjust the image size by zooming in or out. Save the edited image by right-clicking the image and selecting "save" to download the output image to your computer. Then print the dollar bill with your image. The site offers currency from many different countries from Antarctica to Yugoslavia, and you can create posters, decks of cards, and more.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): currency (14), financial literacy (93), money (113)

Fill in the blanks of online forms to create instant poems of many types. Even though the site looks "plain vanilla," the results are great fun! Click a poem form from the ten options. The options include more traditional cinquains, haiku, and more. Once you complete the form, click to create the instant poem and display the results on the page. Keep a copy by printing or -- even better-- by copy/pasting into a document or other online tool for sharing. Make any day better with poetry! The page is very simple, but the results are inspiring.

tag(s): creative writing (124), figurative language (17), poetry (193), writing (325)

YouTube Teachers and the related YouTube EDU form an education-oriented area of YouTube that categorizes videos into subjects for easy retrieval. YouTube is a vast online video library. You upload, view, share, and comment on content found on the site. Videos found on the full YouTube range from commercial to educational content. YouTube often has questionable content so is blocked in many schools. Some schools block YouTube simply because streaming video "hogs" network resources. If inappropriate content is your administration's main concern, YouTube offers a way your tech department can configure a limited access channel. See the explanation video and related information to share with the tech department here.

YouTube is very valuable to educators looking for great educational content. There are videos for early elementary concepts like safety up through college-level courses. YouTube has the ability to stream content into channels based upon your viewing preferences, and videos are easily marked as "favorites" to find in your history. It offers suggested channels based on your watching history including trending and popular videos. Parents can filter out objectionable content and comments using Safety Mode -- which is often disabled.

Create a YouTube channel to collect videos for easy access by students. Upload teacher-created videos for your class to your channel. Do you know a great video not featured on YouTube EDU? Suggest it for the EDU collection.

tag(s): video (266)

Try Duck Duck Go, an open source search engine that protects your privacy by not tracking your search habits. Without tracking, you get true search results not tied to your personality or search habits. Duck Duck Go shows search results in a unique way. The site is very clean and uncluttered. Results of your search term can provide a definition or other general information, labels on links that are an official site, and more. On the right side, find additional search ideas. Clicking on terms will add that term to your original search term and generate new results. Go to the settings page to change privacy settings. Change result settings, color settings, look and feel of the search results page, and interface settings also. Search for calculations, dates and events, and more. Be sure to click on Goodies under the search box to find an easy way to enter search terms. Instead of copying and pasting these search strings, change the information you need to alter in the box and press Go! An unbelievably easy way to search!

tag(s): search engines (48), search strategies (22)

Springo is a portal designed for preschool and elementary students to surf for age appropriate websites and information. Click if you are under 8 or over 8, and a list of links appears. Choose if you are a boy or girl to find activities geared more towards gender stereotypes (car activities for boys, princess games for girls, etc.). Note that the actual content is NOT part of Springo. All links on this site are approved by Springo staff; however. Picture icons help you find information like homework help, sports websites, online research resources, art activities, educational interactives, and (of course) games. Sample topics in the Under 8 section include: Educational Games, Coloring Pages, Learning, Characters, Sports, Hobbies, Games for Girls, and many more. If you are over 8, some of the sample activities include: Reference, Science, Math, Learning, Making Friends (warning: some of these sites involve social networking), Hobbies, and more!
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): bookmarks (43), preK (271)

Teach students how to manage money using the resources and tools available at Money Management International. Be sure to investigate the resource section where you'll find calculators, articles, quizzes, infographics, videos, and lesson plans. The lesson plan section contains over 50 lesson plans and activities for classroom use. Many appealing stories for children and adolescents are the focus for the financial explanations and advice. The lessons are quite thorough including objectives, assessments, extensions, and printables for activities. Another useful resource on the site is Youth and Money found under the Financial Education link. There is a great section for teens to explore when considering buying a first car, as well as videos from kids offering money advice to adults. This site is worth spending some time exploring for the many resources offered.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): financial literacy (93), money (113)

Poster My Wall is a simple online tool to create posters and videos. Make and download simple posters for free and without registration. Note that free downloads are not high-quality print resolution, so they may appear "fuzzy" if printed in large formats. The simple tools look and feel like a computer program. Choose or upload photos, backgrounds, Flickr photos, and clip-art. You can move and re-size using the floating symbols and add multimedia. Register to be able to email products to friends. (Registration requires email, but there is no waiting for a confirmation.) Obtain the poster or video URL by emailing to yourself. (In the email, click "view larger" to get the link). Check out the reviewer. Enjoy the free teacher accounts where students don't need to register.

tag(s): collages (17), posters (43), video (266)

Try your fingers at a puzzle similar to the classic word jumbles found in newspapers. Choose a puzzle date; then the timer starts to test how quickly you can find a solution. Unscramble the sets of words by dragging the letters into their correct spot in the word. Then unscramble the circled letters to find the answer to the problem in the puzzle. The cartoon with the puzzle question can be printed in pdf format and colored. Click on the hint button for additional help in solving puzzles.

tag(s): puzzles (149), spelling (98), vocabulary (238), word study (59)

Word Hippo is a word study tool for synonyms, antonyms, and more. Look for rhyming words, opposites, translations to a variety of languages, plurals, definitions and uses for the word, etc. The site also makes suggestions for other words in case you might have made a typo or do not know the spelling. As with any other reference, students should be cautioned to be sure these are accurate definitions needed for the context in which they are studying the words. You will want to spell out consequences and/or supervise to be sure students are not searching for inappropriate words, but the most egregious words of bad taste do not appear to be available for search at this site.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): antonyms (12), dictionaries (47), spelling (98), synonyms (15), vocabulary (238), vocabulary development (94), word study (59)

Improve brain functioning with this challenge. A series of 21 different "brain games" gets your brain thinking. Activities focus on different areas of brain training. Compete against yourself to improve. While most of this site is free, full access requires membership.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): logic (161), multiple intelligences (7), puzzles (149)

This site provides many rubrics for assessing portfolios, cooperative projects, oral presentations, and much more. Quick links lead to different categories such as web 2.0 and content areas of math, art, and science. Each rubric is in a table form with criteria listed vertically and rating categories are horizontal, all contain well-defined expectations and explanations of each category of scoring. Be sure to check out the section with rubrics for primary grades including a kindergarten writing rubric and rubrics for teamwork. Print any of the rubrics using the PDF link located near the top of the page.

tag(s): assessment (147), rubrics (37)

Teach, learn and collaborate easily with this multi-user whiteboard. Everything that is drawn or written on the whiteboard is visible to all participants in real-time. IDroo supports an unlimited number of meeting participants, the only limitations are computer power and internet connection speed. There is a professional math typing tool built-in making it easy to teach or work through math problems collaboratively. IDroo is integrated with Skype to enhance the online collaboration experience. Currently it only works on Windows systems and requires a software download.

tag(s): iwb (31), virtual field trips (128)

Create crossword puzzles quickly and easily with this fast and free site. Crosswords can easily be customized with settings within the program. Advanced users can fine-tune the settings to the way they like them, everything from the positioning of the first few words to how important it is to have a compact puzzle. To get started, download the software and install on your computer (be sure to follow school rules regarding download and installation of software if using school computers). Next, input your list of words and clues, then create your puzzle. Once created, you can print puzzles, save it as a web page, or choose from different types of interactive pages that your visitors can play right in their web browser, without installing new software.

tag(s): crosswords (19), puzzles (149)

Discover a nice collection of sources for public domain and copyright free images from around the web. This http://www.teachersfirst.com/Livebinders site features a wonderful array of images and photos on a variety of topics.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): images (263), photography (130)

Find science news featuring the latest research, discoveries, and questions facing science today. Find interesting questions to inspire all of your students to wonder why and continue guessing. Examples of articles include: Second "Mozart effect" Premature Babies May Grow Faster, Huge Hidden Saturn Ring Found, and New Anti-Cancer Strategy Makes Tumors Age. Latest breaking news and science in images add a greater depth to the site.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): animal homes (57), animals (295), diseases (67), genetics (80), news (229), planets (113)

Enter the world of Syvum, a site of logic, math, reasoning, words, and general knowledge puzzles. Join others in playing the many games offered. Every challenge offers background information to help you understand the puzzle. With a free membership you can even create your own quizzes and puzzles.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): creativity (86), critical thinking (127), logic (161), problem solving (233)

Interested in using QR codes in an engaging way? Try this Treasure Hunt Generator that uses QR codes. It's simple. Enter your questions and answers. Then click Create the QR Challenge. These are generated as text files which can be printed and posted wherever you want. Students use a QR reader (such as on iTouches, iPads, or phones) to scan and open the question and directions. Students then continue on by finding and answering the questions.

Note: QR code readers exist for every type of phone and are easily found on the Internet. For computers, add-ons exist for Firefox and Chrome as well as a desktop application from Adobe.

tag(s): game based learning (205), gamification (83), qr codes (18)

Find useful, interactive whiteboard resources, downloads, and lesson ideas (aimed at the elementary levels). These resources are divided into categories such as Flashcards, Scorers, Interactive Stuff, Time Killers and the Lab. Each of the resources can be downloaded or accessed directly from the site by clicking the image next to the title. They will run on computers or any brand of interactive whiteboard or projector. Flashcard sets include handwriting practice, number practice, the Verbinator, mysteries, flags of the world, and more. Scorers are different forms of scoreboards use keeping track of game play. The Lab section is a very nice interactive demonstrating proper formation of letters in block, basic, or cursive script. Click on the color link on this page to break each of the letters into colored sections to help visualize the proper letter formation. Be sure to check out the interactive clock and dice located under Interactive Stuff. This site appears to be updated often, so be sure to check back. The downloads are JAVA applets that can run offline. Unfortunately, the activities do not work on iOs devices like iPads.

tag(s): alphabet (53), flags (18), flash cards (44), handwriting (15), iwb (31), numbers (120), verbs (26)