Teachers First - Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers

This site is perfect to practice math skills using real-time information and statistics from the American and National Leagues. A vast amount of data is available including prices of recent transactions, team and player statistics, streaks, and more. Considerable data is included for All-Star games, postseason stats, and frivolities such as birthdays and birthplaces. Information is also included for minor league teams. Be sure to check out the tutorial videos that help users with the site. Videos include information on box scores and their features, player and team gamelogs, and a 17 minute video reviewing features and layout of the baseball-reference site.

tag(s): charts and graphs (171), data (151), probability (99), statistics (121)

This site allows you to input calculus problems and receive the solution. Also included are many sample problems. Choose sample problems on the right of the screen from different categories such as functions and graphs, integrals, techniques of integration, and much more. After creating a problem, select solve to find an answer. One major downfall of the site is that upon giving the answer, you must PAY to see the steps to finding that answer. However, the site is still worthwhile for students to check problems and self-test.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): charts and graphs (171), differentiation (84), exponents (35), functions (52), sequences (12)

These pages are part of an on-going project at Agnes Scott College in Atlanta, Georgia, to illustrate the numerous achievements of women in the field of mathematics. The site includes biographical essays or comments on the women mathematicians profiled, as well as additional resources about women in mathematics. Each time the home page is reloaded, a randomly selected photo is displayed. Click on the image to go to the profile of that woman. The site is also searchable by alphabetical order, chronological order, names by location of birth, the first PhD's in Mathematics of Women before 1930, and prizes, honors and awards for women mathematicians.

tag(s): biographies (94)

What did one math book say to the other? Don't bother me I've got my own problems! Are you looking for more bad jokes like this for your math class or perhaps a staff presentation? This site is for you! Choose from over 40 math jokes listed on this site, or send in your own. Who says math teachers can't be funny?

tag(s): riddles (15)

Zoho Show is an online presentation and document creator tool. This program is somewhat simpler than PowerPoint, but runs on a similar format. Use this tool as you would PowerPoint with your students. It is very advantageous if you have assigned a project and students do not have access to PowerPoint at home. This can be accessed anywhere with no cost to the student, the parent, or you. Sharing and collaborating is also simple. Upload, edit, and save your documents easily.

tag(s): multimedia (53), slides (43)

How Things Fly offers a self guided, interactive resource to understand how space and air flight happen. This site delivers information clearly and effectively about lift, drag, thrust, and weight. It is very easy to navigate and there is a ton of information to gained! This answers a lot of questions that students tend to ask when talking about space and some physics.

tag(s): aircraft (16), aviation (40), flight (34), space (222)

Find tutorials and problems with solutions on the informative math site. Find help with calculus, trigonometry, algebra, and more. Use the tutorials to find ways to solve a variety of math problems.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): problem solving (233)

This site offers several galleries of mathematical art sorted by different contributors. Included are Algorithmic Artwork, Fractal Art, Origami, and more. After choosing a gallery, all contributions are listed along with a thumbnail view and short description. Click on the thumbnail for a larger image including information from the artist. Galleries can also be viewed in slideshow format by double clicking the first image and following the arrows above the image or choosing the slideshow icon above the image. Files can even be sent as e-cards.

tag(s): artists (84), origami (14), symmetry (26)

How are rainbows formed? Why do they only occur when the sun is behind the observer? If the sun is low on the horizon, at what angle in the sky should we expect to see a rainbow? This lab helps to answer these and other questions by examining a mathematical model of light passing through a water droplet. Follow each step of the lab - how light travels, reflection, refraction, exploration, and analysis - to solve the questions. Each segment offers some information about the topic and questions to explore or experiments. The focus of each of the activities is the Mathematical equations and principals involved in creating rainbows.

tag(s): angles (52), colors (63), light (56), problem solving (233)

The goal of this site is to provide the finest quality paper-based teaching materials to teachers and parents around the world. Myriads of options are available to create worksheets in Math, English, Geography, Puzzles, and Miscellaneous. Just choose a subject, then a topic, and choose from options offered to create your own worksheet that can be printed in pdf form. This allows the worksheet to be shown clearly on interactive whiteboards eliminating the need to print each creation. Although it was created for teachers, a more useful purpose may be for students to create their own worksheets to share with other students or for self-practice.

tag(s): printables (36), puzzles (149), worksheets (69)

This bright and cheerful blog offers original interactive whiteboard resources created by a certified SMARTboard trainer. The site is updated often, get notices of updates by email or by following on X (formerly Twitter) or Facebook. To find archived files, search the site using the search box at the top of the page, search archived files by month, or find links to notebook files on the right-hand side of the home page. Especially helpful are the author's notes when posting new files as she offers tips on how to use it in the classroom. An example is the singing horses file (check it out, very funny!) that she uses to help students get used to using an interactive whiteboard while learning cause and effect. Be sure to check out the Facebook page template which includes a template for student use. Since this teacher uses SMART brand IWB, you may need to use SMART Notebook Express reviewed hereto open some files on another brand of whiteboard.

tag(s): iwb (31), literacy (121), numbers (120), resources (83)

Connect art and math using this site. The Bridges Organization was created in 1998 as an organization dedicated to promoting how Mathematics and the Arts work together. Each year they hold an annual conference in cities from North America to Europe. Members include mathematicians, artists, sculptors, dancers, computer scientists, and many more. The website contains background information on the organization, links to past conferences, and current conference information. Perhaps of most interest to classroom teachers are the links to the galleries. Contained within these are hundreds of works of art that have been featured at the conferences (try the link to the 2010 Bridges Conference for example). Click on any of the links and find pictures of their work along with a short explanation of how math is used in the piece.

tag(s): art history (102), artists (84), geometric shapes (134), tessellations (3)

Royalty Free Sound Effects Library for Download by Soungle.com is a go-to resource to keep in your bookmarked favorites for easy, free downloads of sounds, and the best part is it is searchable! The sound effects are short, and there is no membership required. Cautionary advice would be to direct students to type in a search term and avoid clicking on word links which will actually lead away from the webpage.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): sound (72), sounds (43)

A great resource for teaching math, especially when trying to teach with digital media, the National Repository of Online Courses offers free content teaching resources for Algebra One and Developmental Math. Provide your name, email, and title to be allowed into the Moodle courses that are already designed. Read tips for safely managing email registrations here.

tag(s): homework (29)

This simple site offers hundreds of brain teaser problems along with answers. Categories include friends, math, logic, optical illusions, puzzles, and more. Some topics are NOT suitable for the classroom (such as dating.) Each brain teaser is fairly short and includes a link to click on the answer.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): logic (161), optical illusions (10), problem solving (233), puzzles (149)

At Paper Rater you can check your grammar, detect plagiarism, and find writing suggestions all at one place. Use this site for sixth grade writing and above. With the free version you are able to check for plagiarism, grammar, vocabulary, word choice and style (transitions). No login is required. PaperRater offers a premium version for a fee.

tag(s): book reports (28), editing (93), essays (21), grammar (137), plagiarism (34), proofreading (21), writing (324)

Build a wind turbine and learn about wind power with your class. KidWind provides free lessons, videos, activities, and resources to support teachers and students as they learn about wind energy. The wind turbine plans vary in difficulty. Construct basic models from common materials such as Tinker Toys or create a more sophisticated one with a wind generator built from car alternators. This is a good resource for students interested in investigating for a science fair project about renewable energy. In the free curriculum area there are also lesson plans/activities (mainly pdfs) on energy efficiency, creating a hot air balloon, solar power, and more. Be aware: some of this site is for a fee.

tag(s): air (101), electricity (61), energy (133), engineering (129), ratios (47), solar energy (34)

This applet provides practice calculating the perimeter of random shapes. Create random shapes or the site will make them for you, another option allows for creating a shape based on a pre-determined area. An explanation of perimeter is provided on the learners portion of the site. The instructors part of the site provides links to standards, a printable with exploration questions, classroom discussion information, and links to similar resources.

tag(s): area (53), perimeter (20)

This site provides practice with vocabulary associated with angles. Common Core State Standards are addressed for fourth and seventh grades and geometry. The site is also appropriate for younger grades to use when learning and processing information about angles. The learner section has detailed explanations about different types of angles that can be used as a review when working with angles. The instructor area has correlations to standards, classroom information, links to similar resources, and a downloadable exploration questions sheet. The activity allows options of one or two transverals and scoring can be used or turned off.

tag(s): angles (52), geometric shapes (134)

This site provides practice in converting from base 10 to other values up to base 16. Three clocks are displayed and options are provided for choosing the value used on the clocks. Upon entering the choice, the hands on the clock turn to show the appropriate representation in the chosen base. The learner section provides information on base number systems and how they have been used in the past. The instructor section provides links to standards, place value in the curriculum, possible issues that may arise in the classroom and links to additional resources including an activity sheet.

tag(s): base ten (5), number sense (69)