Teachers First - Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers

Exercise your gray matter by solving one of the 12,000 'braingles' at this site. It purports to be the largest collection of puzzles, riddles, mind games, etc, on the Internet. Once you explore the site, you trust their word. The site is mobile phone and wii-friendly. Don't miss the section with SAT vocab (in Mentalrobics). There are articles on study skills and strategies such as clearing your mind before studying, "chunking" when reading, or various strategies to memorize material. Engage students into math and reading exercises through the endless riddles and puzzles at this site. They won't even be aware they are 'reading' or 'solving math.'

tag(s): brain (56), puzzles (149), riddles (15), vocabulary (238)

If you are teaching a new math concept or want to review an already-introduced math skill, you must visit this website. The site provides free PowerPoint presentations on numerous math topics. There are presentations for grades K-5 and 6-12. There are over 100 math topics available. Use these free resources to help simplify the complexities of mathematics in your classroom. You may need PowerPoint software on your computer to view these files, depending upon how the site creators saved them. Roll your mouse over the words slowly to see which shows can be played directly from the site and which you must download to your computer to run from there. This site has heavy advertising at the top of the landing page. Scroll down to find the presentations.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): addition (129), air (101), division (98), logic (161), multiplication (122), subtraction (110), vision (44)

This website provides substitutes with practical advice on surviving in a classroom. Most of the tips, websites and lesson ideas are more suitable for elementary or middle school, but many of the tips are practical in any classroom, any grade and any subject matter. New teachers and those headed into student teaching would be wise to read it, as well.

tag(s): substitutes (25)

This math website provides daily "math starters" in a variety of mathematic topics. There is one activity per day (366 for each year). This website provides a variety of math challenges that are creative, engaging, and easy to incorporate into your classroom routine.

tag(s): addition (129), decimals (85), division (98), fractions (160), money (113), multiplication (122), subtraction (110), vision (44)

Use this website to "clear out the cobwebs" in your students' minds. The site offers several interactive logic activities. Many require no reading. A few examples include Tetris, Rubik's Cube, Sliders, Towers and more.

tag(s): gifted (66), logic (161), problem solving (233), puzzles (149), substitutes (25)

Build higher level thinking skills, especially flexibility in how students visualize and interpret a brief story. This challenging and interactive website has Lateral puzzles, both "active" and "solved." Registration is required if you guess an answer to one of the "active" puzzles. Registration is not necessary for reading the puzzles and clues. This site gives a lateral puzzle, and then the readers can ask questions to the original poster. Some of the "solved" puzzles could be used with younger students. However, the site is geared towards middle school and high school aged students.

Not sure what a Lateral Puzzle is? Read the FAQ section!

tag(s): gifted (66), puzzles (149), thinking skills (17)

Find a problem of the week for elementary, middle and high school (algebra) as well as archived past problems on this simple site. You can submit your correct answer and get your name listed as a winner for that week. New problems appear on Mondays.

This interactive, online difference game uses shapes, colors, and animal images for a "one of these things is not like the others" game.

tag(s): animals (294), colors (63), vision (44)

Discover the pioneer world of Laura Ingalls Wilder with this blog. Under "Live Like Laura" from the top menu find Activities, Crafts, Recipes, and Pioneer Living. Find blog posts and a few videos about the Cat's Cradle game, Gardening Activities, information about the Grasshopper Plague, Word Searches, Trivia Searches, and too much more to list here. This informative site is a must see for anyone who loves Laura Ingalls Wilder or teaches the books with all puzzles, activities, and images of people in clothing of the time and places in Laura's life.

tag(s): authors (107), crafts (64)

This very simple site, created by an anonymous puzzle-lover, is a treasury for logic problems and lateral thinking puzzles to use in your classroom or beyond. Click on the puzzle type you want. Use them as brain warm-ups in a math or science class before venturing into problem-solving or inquiry process or simply to engage the brains before starting any activity. There are different levels of logic and different types of lateral thinking puzzles, each with a hint before revealing the complete answer. These puzzles would also be useful for gifted enrichment.

tag(s): gifted (66), logic (161), puzzles (149)

With such poor results as a nation on geography testing, we all should try these geography games to build student knowledge of U.S. and world geography. Students can click on the region of the world and practice at different levels of difficulty. Even adults can find a challenge. Offered in a "dial up version" for those accessing the sites from a slower connection.

tag(s): capitals (16), continents (33), countries (73), maps (220)

Find easy-to-make winter crafts and games - perfect for early elementary students. Includes printable patterns and step-by-step instructions.

This collection of puzzles, riddles, brainteasers, and interactive tests challenges students to think outside of the box and improve their analytical skills while having fun. Puzzles are graded by level of difficulty and the amount of math needed to arrive at a solution.

tag(s): puzzles (149), riddles (15)

Make this virtual jigsaw puzzle site available for those inevitable moments of "downtime" in the classroom. Choose a topic from the gallery (preferably one that relates to your curriculum), select a level of difficulty (number of pieces), and start the challege. These puzzles are not only a lot of fun, but good exercises for developing spatial skills. The pop-ups are annoying but can be blocked by Windows XP. Allow time for the site to load. Check the Frequently Asked Questions link (at the bottom of the page)for troubleshooting if you are having difficulty making the puzzles work.

tag(s): puzzles (149)

This interactive is more than just an interactive game about fractions - it's a true brainteaser. Students must apply logic and spatial reasoning to find the 13 ways to divide an 8-piece square in half. This game also integrates lessons on rotation and flipping of shapes to challenge players to see all of the ways to create a half without repeating rotated or flipped squares.

tag(s): fractions (160), problem solving (233)

This is a tradition tangram activity with a technological twist. Read the introductory instructions carefully then turn your students loose to recreate a displayed image using seven geometric shapes. This is an excellent activity for improving visual-spatial skills.

tag(s): geometric shapes (134), logic (161), problem solving (233), tangrams (8)

Design custom-made mazes for your students with this easy-to-use resource. Choose the desired shape, grid size, and complexity, and then let the site create the maze for you. Mazes can be printed out or even displayed on your class Web site, provided credit is given to Discovery School.

tag(s): puzzles (149)