Teachers First - Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers

MakeUseOf offers a large collection of tip sheets for popular programs such as Gmail, Mac programs, and Windows. Find over 40 help guides. Some of the topics include Safari for Mac Keyboard Shortcuts, Shortcuts For Special Characters on Windows, Evernote Search Tips & Tricks, Skype Shortcuts for Mac OSX, YouTube Tips, and several others. View by clicking the thumbnail or use the download link to print in PDF format.
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tag(s): computers (109), search strategies (22)

Howcast is an aggregator of the "best" how-to videos across the Internet. These short, easy to follow videos cover a wide range of topics, including pop-culture. They are created by HowCast "experts." One very handy feature is the text transcript included with each video (scroll down to see it). Browse through the categories or type a search term into the search box to view available videos. Categories include Fitness, Home, Food, Health, Arts, Tech, and more. Click "Share" on each video page to share via social networking sites or copy the embed code to share the video on a website or blog. The HowCast videos are not simply YouTube searches, so they have different offerings from what you might find there. Not all content at this site is appropriate for the classroom. Please be sure to preview before you share with your students. This is not one that you want students to explore on their own.
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tag(s): business (52), careers (156), computers (109), financial literacy (94), Microsoft (80), money (113), politics (118), sports (82), video (266)

Create animated GIF images FREE and EASY using GIFMaker. Animated GIFs are images that change from one image to another automatically. There is no registration required. Select and upload the images that you want to use (in PNG, GIF, or JPG format). Choose your animation speed and image size. You can even choose an image from your smartphone. Animations can be run backwards to create another different animation. Download the finished creation to your desktop.

tag(s): animation (64), images (263), photography (131)

Use this tool to correctly use and give proper credit for images from Flickr Creative Commons on any web age or wiki. Search for images using Flickr Creative Commons reviewed here or from the handy link provided on ImageCodr. Enter the URL for the picture page from Flickr, and ImageCodr will generate a block of HTML code for you to include on your web page or other online project. This code will make both the image AND the appropriate credit display. A brief licensing summary shows as a caption when you use the embed code. Note that this tool does not work for including images and credits in offline projects such as PowerPoint slides. It will work in any online tool that allows embed codes!

tag(s): creative commons (28), images (263), infographics (56), photography (131)

Do you need funds for a classroom project or equipment? PledgeCents is a quick and easy solution to classroom and school fundraising. Begin with a fundraising idea and a goal. Create your class page with a project description, pictures, videos, and other relevant information. Share your page through social media links to Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), and more. More simply, share the link on your class web page. Donors click to "invest" in your cause and are guided through a simple process to donate either by name or anonymously. After the project deadline, collect funds easily and safely for use with your project.

tag(s): grants (15), service projects (17)

This tool is cool little tidbits of knowledge. The subtitle is "Boldly Exploring Life's Little Mysteries." Zidbits include facts such as "What is the hardest language to learn?" "Do trees die from old age?" or "What is the most lethal poison?" Find facts for history, science, health, entertainment, and news on this site as well as fun facts. This site doesn't provide just a quick tidbit, but also gives background information and additional details.
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tag(s): infographics (56), questioning (36), speaking (26)

This tool is an amazing geometry playground. Select points on your screen and connect them. On tablets, draw roughly with your finger (such as a circle), and the tool will generate a real circle. Use the Help page to identify the gestures that can be used on a tablet. The interface uses icons that are easy to find and follow. This web tool is designed to work on mobile browsers on any device.

tag(s): DAT device agnostic tool (147), functions (52), geometric shapes (134), perspective (14)

Slideful is a free online slide show maker. Upload up to 10 images from your computer to begin. After images upload choose the "next" button. Select the width and height of your slide show from several options or create your own custom size. Add text, edit backgrounds, or add blank slides to further customize presentations. Continue creating your slide show with options for frames, transitions, speed settings, and slide show player options. Create an account to save your slide show and edit later. Share using links provided for HTML code, download to your desktop, or get the direct link to share your slide show. View an example here, created in less than 10 minutes.

tag(s): images (263), slides (43)

Free Learning Tools is an excellent resource for practice tests, flashcards and a question of the day for upper level mathematics. View topics in alphabetical order from Accuplacer Arithmetic Tests through VTNE Tests. Some topics contain several tests such as the SAT Math Tests which contain 46 tests Some topics only include one test. In addition to the test, view the test's difficulty level and average time spent to complete. Each topic also includes flashcards for quick review. Flashcards contain a problem, multiple choice answers, the solution, and an explanation for the correct answer.
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tag(s): advanced placement (26), flash cards (44), test prep (69)

Open Yale Courses offers free (non-credit) introductory courses taught by teachers and scholars at Yale University. Open access allows participants to view videos, download transcripts, and receive all related course materials at any time. Choose from courses in topics ranging from English, History, African-American Studies, Languages, and many more. They offer countless topics: Art History, Psychology, various languages and literatures (Spanish, Portuguese, and Italian), Chemistry, American History, and many more.

tag(s): african american (116), american revolution (82), art history (102), atmosphere (22), business (52), civil war (139), ecology (103), ecosystems (83), engineering (129), evolution (89), financial literacy (94), france (41), greece (47), greeks (46), novels (34), poetry (193), psychology (65), religions (95), romans (52), sociology (23), space (223)

Yay Math! is a series of lively math videos filmed in live classrooms. View videos for Algebra 1, 2, and Geometry concepts. Videos run approximately 15 to 30 minutes in length and include an accompanying worksheet. You can preview the first part of the videos. Wait a few seconds to click "Skip this ad." Many videos also include an online quiz. Just enter the access code provided to begin. You will also need to provide a name and email address. These videos are hosted on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, then they may not be viewable.
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tag(s): angles (52), area (53), charts and graphs (171), equations (119), exponents (35), factoring (25), factors (29), functions (52), geometric shapes (134), inequalities (25), polynomials (20), pythagorean theorem (19), quadratics (27), square roots (15)

Discover the science and engineering behind many Hollywood Themes: Zombies, Space, Forensics, and Superheroes. Choose one of the themes to access information, videos, TI-Nspire downloads for interactive activities, and more. Each page also features related Math and Science Activities. The current hosts are Mayim Bialik (The Big Bang Theory) and Dr. Z.
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tag(s): diseases (66), forensics (12), space (223), STEM (298)

Just Math Tutorials offers many math video tutorials covering content in Algebra through Calculus and Trigonometry. Search by specific topic or scroll through categories. Each video is fairly short, most under 10 minutes. Click on tags under videos to easily find videos with related content. Videos are hosted on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, then they may not be viewable.

tag(s): charts and graphs (171), decades (7), division (98), equations (119), exponents (35), factoring (25), factors (29), inequalities (25), multiples (15), multiplication (122), polynomials (20), quadratics (27), ratios (47), venn diagrams (15)

Alice will have your students in wonderland as they use this innovative 3D programming environment targeted to middle and high school students. Be the director of a movie or the creator of a video game. 3D objects appear in an on-screen virtual world imagined by the creator and move around according to the directions you give by dragging and dropping tiles. The drag and drop technique provides a more engaging programming experience for first-time programmers. Alice provides exposure to object-oriented programming. Alice has practical value for students to learn how computers think. The instructions correspond to standard statements in a production oriented programming language, such as Java, C++, and C#. While using Alice, programmers can immediately see how their animation program runs and the behavior of the objects in their animation. Manipulate camera angles and lighting to make further enhancements. Alice is a revolutionary method to teach programming, especially to first-time learners. It allows students to understand programming concepts, a 21st-century skill.

tag(s): animation (64), coding (85), digital storytelling (154), problem solving (233), video (266)

Transform your students' web-based research with Scrible. Highlight and annotate web pages and easily save, share, organize, and collaborate on Internet-based research. Scrible Edu integrates with Google Classroom and offers browser bookmarklets for Firefox, Chrome, Safari, and Edge. With the Scrible bookmarklet installed, when you're on a page just click the bookmarklet to launch a menu of bookmarking tools. Access your work right where you left off from editing. Use the option to format your bibliographies as you bookmark. Compile your article clippings into one package. Students may sign up using their academic email address. (If your school's domain name is not recognized as "academic," sign up for the free account and send a "feedback" email explaining that your email address is that of a student.) Student Scrible accounts have double the storage capacity of the standard free account. Educators sign up for the Basic Edition and then click the feedback link to let Scrible know you're an educator. They will set you up with a special edition which includes the same features. Work smarter, not harder with Scrible. Saving your bookmarks with Scrible allows you to easily go back to review a site, and you'll see immediately why you bookmarked that site.

tag(s): citations (33), curation (32), Research (87), summarizing (23)

Use polltogo to create polls for student response during a meeting or class time. Connect with your audience in many ways. Create a question and select the type of answers, how long the poll will last, password or not, and more options. Receive notifications about your poll via your email. Each poll is free for twenty people to vote. Tweet about polltogo and receive another thirty credits so thirty more people can vote. Choose to receive results (via email) after every vote or at the end of the voting period. Interim and final results can also be viewed online. Another great feature is embedding the results link into a PowerPoint or Keynote slide to project results during a presentation. polltogo is a device-agnostic voting tool and will auto-adapt to display on any mobile or desktop device.

tag(s): assessment (147), Formative Assessment (74), polls and surveys (49)

Enter the world of Common Core with NYlearns. Find a myriad of free resources including activities, learning experience unit, lesson plans, multimedia, teacher resources, web-based practice, constructed response questions, document based questions, and rubrics in elementary, intermediate, and commencement. An overview of Assessment includes basics, and assessment builder in which you may choose grade level and subject. Currently, memberships are available to school districts to have access to e-portfolio, website, e-planner, my curriculum, and assessment builder.

tag(s): commoncore (73)

Use the alphbetized list of countries and territories to visualize development data around the World. Choose various indicators such as Poverty, Gender Inequality, and more. Change parameters of the graph and map. Use the Indicators and Data Explorer pages on this site to begin research about many factors of human development in the World. View the information in various languages.

tag(s): population (51)

Create diagrams, flowcharts, organizational charts, and more using ProcessOn. After a short registration process, create your diagram using templates provided or start from scratch. Creation tools are similar to Microsoft Word setup, allowing easy personalization with colors, shapes, text, images, and more. Easily collaborate using tools such as an online chat. Click the Invite Collaborators link to send an invitation. Save files on the site or download directly to your computer.

tag(s): charts and graphs (171), concept mapping (15), graphic organizers (48), venn diagrams (15)

Find and print many worksheets for upper level math skills. Worksheets are divided by subject and content at this easy to navigate site. Subjects include Pre-Algebra, Algebra I, Algebra 2, Geometry, and Calculus. Choose your course then topic area to find a problem set. Click to print. View answers on a copy of the worksheet included.
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tag(s): area (53), equations (119), exponents (35), factoring (25), factors (29), geometric shapes (134), inequalities (25), polynomials (20), quadratics (27), ratios (47), substitutes (25), transformations (12), volume (33)