Teachers First - Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers

Ocenaudio is easy to use software for editing audio. Download the software to any major operating system such as Windows, Mac, or Linux. Use prompts to navigate the software using a large variety of audio files. Trim, copy, and paste audio or choose from an assortment of effects. When finished, save the file in the format of your choice. Be sure to see the features link on the site for complete information on the capabilities of the software.

tag(s): editing (93), sound (72)

Learn how the human eye works using this interactive visual. Roll your cursor over the various parts of the eye diagram to see what its function is and how it links to the other parts of the eye. Click the green tab on the left to "Discover How We See." Share this tool by embedding, or by using various social networks.

tag(s): eyes (5), vision (44)

Keith Hughes' playlist includes 39 videos geared toward seasoned and new teachers containing practical advice and tips in an entertaining way. Titles include 5 Ways For Teachers to Chillax Students on Test Day, Teaching Advice for Dummies, What is a Flipped Classroom?, The Art of the Lecture, and many more. Most videos run ten minutes or less making them easy to watch and share. If your district blocks YouTube, then they may not be viewable.
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tag(s): back to school (55), mentoring (6), professional development (385), test prep (69)

Help Hubble Scientists classify hundreds of thousands of images at Galaxy Zoo. Choose Classify to identify characteristics of galaxies, including shape, smoothness, and irregularities. Click on the Examples link for helpful illustrations when categorizing images. Create a Zooniverse account to enter the Navigator, offering additional tools for gathering and comparing data about galaxies.

tag(s): classification (22), space (222), stars (71), telescopes (11)

Re-Mission 2 offers interactives that teach about cancer-fighting treatments. These were designed to encourage young cancer patients to stick with life-saving treatments. The interactives offer all players a chance to learn more about this deadly disease. Choose Nano-Bot's Revenge as you target treatments on a growing tumor or become a stem cell defender fighting off deadly bacteria. Beat five levels in each activity to unlock Special Ops with new visuals and scenarios for fighting cancer.

tag(s): difficult conversations (57), diseases (67), medicine (57), mental health (48)

This article from Buzzsprout offers a great deal of information about mobile learning and how to incorporate it into classrooms. Discover the importance of mobile learning along with some of the hurdles faced when incorporating it in any learning situation. Read about the advantages of using podcasts in a flipped classroom or as a solution for self-paced learning. Be sure to check out the infographic included with this article that has statistics about the increased presence of mobile learning.

tag(s): podcasts (108), professional development (385), radio (20)

Enter the world of Ultimate Camp Resources and find a myriad of songs, games, and more to use at home, at camp, or in a classroom. Download and print all skits, songs, games or just the one you're interested in. Some of the songs even have videos!

tag(s): back to school (55), crafts (64), family (51), makerspace (40), seasonal (16), songs (46), sports (82), summer (28)

GetEdFunding curates and collects an up to date database of grant and award opportunities for school systems. Create a free account using your email to search and view available grants. Once you have an account, save items of interest and stay up to date on upcoming deadlines. In addition to the site's very large database, be sure to check out the Resources link for articles, videos, a glossary, and access to the online community forum. If your district blocks YouTube, the videos may not be viewable.
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tag(s): grants (15)

Buzzsprout offers free, easy to use, podcast hosting. Sign up to receive two hours of hosting per month. Uploads remain available for 90 days. Buzzsprout's dashboard walks you through creating and sharing podcasts and provides information on the time remaining in your current cycle. Copy and paste one line of code to include your podcast directly on any website. Attractive features include scheduling episodes for a specific date and time, adding links, lists, chapter markers, and a "Support the show" link to your podcasts. New on Buzzsprout is How to Start a Podcast: Complete Step-by-Step Guide (in only 10 steps!).
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tag(s): communication (129), digital storytelling (154), podcasts (108)

GIMP is a free software download to use when working with images and photos. Features include paint tools, photo retouching, animation, and much more. GIMP provides an extensive tutorial library broken into categories for beginning through expert users.

tag(s): editing (93), images (263), photography (130)

Record a PC desktop with or without sound using free software from SRecorder. This software works only with Windows Operating Systems. After downloading and installing the software, use the desktop shortcut to begin the recording. Choose to view the entire desktop or select a specific area using the crop box provided. Click the red button to record, then use the icons on the screen to save to your computer or share to social networking sites.

tag(s): video (266)

Find hands-on learning of computer science concepts (often without technology) with this collection of free learning activities including interactives and puzzles. All materials are through Creative Commons licenses for easy copying, sharing, and personal adaptation. Download all activities for free in a book download or explore individual activities by topic, and then download in PDF format available in several languages. Other options include videos to view individually or by topic on activity pages. Topics covered include Binary numbers, Images Representation, Text Compression, Information Theory, Searching and Sorting Algorithms, Routing and Deadlocks, and Cryptography, among others. Also, check out the section for teachers under the Community tab. This section includes many additional resources and learning programs. The videos are in English, French, Swedish, Korean, and Chinese. If your district blocks YouTube, the videos may not be viewable.

tag(s): computational thinking (40), computers (109), cryptography (5), data (151)

Block out all distractions and just start writing with ZenPen. Remove the instructions found on the page (just highlight and click delete). Begin writing without any visual elements in the way. No registration is required! Highlight text and select options to add italics, bold text, or URLs. Use links on the left side of the page to change text and background colors to black and white, toggle to full screen, add a word count, or save work.

tag(s): editing (93), process writing (37), proofreading (21), writing (325)

Technovation Families: Curiosity Machine connects scientists and engineers with young people to help design and create projects together. Create an account to begin using features on the site. Discover challenges to build on your own, including categories such as aerospace, robotics, engineering, and more.See the menu on the left to see them all. Find inspiration by watching videos of scientists and engineers sharing their inventions. Share your finished projects as inspiration for other aspiring engineers and scientists.

tag(s): aeronautics (11), computers (109), design (79), engineering (129), gifted (66), inventors and inventions (80), makerspace (40), oceans (149), problem solving (233), robotics (24), STEM (297)

Finally, worksheets will be cool! Create interactive worksheets, or use one that is already developed and make it your own with wizer.me. After signing up with email get started with Add Task. Follow the prompts for creation; these include selecting text style and color, and choosing a background, adding student tasks (Text, Video, Link, Image), and more. Select question style: Open Question, Multiple Choice, Matching, and more. Then there are the more unusual type responses like Filling in a Table, Image Tagging, Embedding, and others, with promises of more to come. Share with students by posting the URL given, using a pin code on their worksheet board, or use your Google Classroom account. At the time of this review, wizer.me support was through email and real-time online chat. Wizer.me works on any device with a browser and Internet connection but works best on Chrome and Safari.

tag(s): gamification (83), multimedia (53), worksheets (69)

Explore different types of electric cars including hybrids, plug-ins, and extended range electric cars with an interactive model showing how they work. Read the latest ideas for the next generation of hybrids that can be plugged in to extend their electric range, and improve fuel economy. The interactive models show power from batteries, batteries and gasoline, and extended range electric. Discover the relationships between distance, speed, and type of car in the interactive graph.
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tag(s): electricity (61), sustainability (50), transportation (30)

Find an interactive rubric for evaluating the quality of Internet sources students use in academic writing and projects. Fill out a short registration form to have immediate free access to the rubric as a PDF. The criteria for the rubric includes Authoritative, Educational Value, Intent, Originality, and Quality. Below the rubric see an example of three popular sites evaluated with SEER and the scores given for each criterion. Download the rubric to your computer. Once filled in save it to your computer and print.

tag(s): evaluating sources (29), media literacy (109), rubrics (37)

This interactive offers the opportunity to view what the United Nations has done to help people of all ages from around the world. Choose a persona by entering gender, age, and country to view a list of ways the United Nations has had a positive influence on their situation. Categories include items such as Human Rights, Child Mortality, and Cultural Heritage. The site was created in the UK, so some of the pronunciations and spellings may differ from those in American English.
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tag(s): cross cultural understanding (173), cultures (180), united nations (6)

Download Boomerang to organize your Gmail! Schedule when to send messages, remind yourself to follow up if you do not get a reply email, and mark emails that you need to read at a later time. The basic plan is free and includes most features.
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tag(s): organizational skills (88)