Teachers First - Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers

This is a curious math site that offers a number of challenging problems for various grade levels. Many of these focus on higher order thinking skills. The overall organization leaves a bit to be desired, but the inquisitive can make interesting discoveries here.

tag(s): puzzles (149)

Subtitled "it's FUN to be smart," this site offers a collection of games, puzzles and activities designed to challenge active minds. There are also original articles, a 2-minute quiz, and a post card feature.

tag(s): logic (161), quiz (67)

Set is a challenging logic game that is often used in building reasoning skills in students. The premise is simple enough for elementary students to understand, but the applications can be a real challenge even for older students. This online version offers a daily sample to challenge students.

tag(s): logic (161)

A creative collection of puzzles and brainteasers to challenge gifted students. This large collection is maintained by Hoagies and sometimes has a few dead links, but the collection is still worth visiting for the MANY good sites they share.

tag(s): gifted (66)

Here's one that will tie your brain in knots. Some of these logic puzzles will challenge even advanced high school students, but both solutions and discussion are readily available for those who struggle. There are many different puzzle types, and new content seems to appear regularly. Note, however, that the ad banner space occasionally displays content that some might not deem appropriate for school use.

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

Here's an ongoing interactive puzzle that can really grow on you. A free registration lets users move through the puzzle one week at a time, discovering new clues with each visit and working with numbers and words to unlock the puzzle's secrets. This would be a great one for an ongoing activity that builds logic and higher order reasoning skills.

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

This one's mostly for fun, but the on-screen version of the popular magnetic word game lets students manipulate words on the screen to make phrases, sentences, or poetry. Can't find the word you want? Just create a new tile for it.

tag(s): poetry (193), vocabulary (238)

This site promotes chess, school chess clubs, and chess competitions. It offers free templates and other materials which can simplify running a chess club. There are instructional sections as well with a new curriculum aligned with Common Core State Standards (CCSS), but the focus is on getting students involved with the game.

tag(s): chess (2)

This Mensa challenge includes problems and questions designed to challenge thinkers at all levels. Taken online, the challenge takes approximately 15 minutes to complete. However, the site can be used as a whole, or teachers can use one or two questions at a time to challenge students.

tag(s): puzzles (149)

Although rather dated, this site boasts a collection of visually impressive math and logic brain-busters to challenge your class puzzle masters. The forums do not appear to be active, but the puzzles are still worth exploring.

tag(s): puzzles (149)

This collection of surprisingly devlish illusions, mind-games, and other tricks will stump curious students. Most of these puzzles require little or no equipment, making them great for quick, indoor activities. If you have students who need an extra challenge, send them here.

tag(s): puzzles (149)

This is the website for the annual Odyssey of the Mind competition, an interscholastic competion in which teams compete in an attempt to solve one of five categories of problems.

tag(s): gifted (66)

Internet4classrooms is a free web portal designed to assist anyone who wants to find high quality, free Internet resources to use in classroom instruction, developing project ideas, reinforcing specific subject matter areas both in the class and at home. Information is organized by grade level, or subject area. Web 2.0 tutorials include links for information on: apps for iPod, iTouch, blogs, audio/pod casting, collaboration, graphic organizers, file converters, html editors, open source, organization tools, PLN tools, presentation tools, social bookmarking, survey makers, web browsers, video/photo, Wiki, and Word Cloud Generators. Links for Assessment Assistance give extra ways to assess in a fun technological twist. A daily dose section offers quotes, brain teasers, question of the day, and intersecting trivia. Join an RSS feed to get the latest updated information. Up to date, active links are reviewed continually. At the time of this review the Interactive Test Resource for 7th grade assessment had several broken links.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): graphic organizers (48), polls and surveys (49), professional development (385), social networking (61)

This site provides practice with patterns, relations, and functions through the tale of the the Tortoise and the Hare. The amount of the tortoise's head-start can be changed, then take the racers through the various stages to find out who wins! Students will enjoy predicting the winner while watching the race unfold. The instructor's section provides detailed information on standards addressed, classroom questions, and links to similar resources. There is also a link to downloadable exploration questions that can be used in conjunction with the site.

tag(s): estimation (33), functions (52), measurement (122), patterns (61)