Teachers First - Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers

Do you need new ideas to spice up your Daily 5 instruction? Try browsing through this Pinterest board for ideas from all over the web. Choose the links provided to find many free ideas for strategy charts, scheduling, posters, and tips for use throughout the school year.

tag(s): bookmarks (43), literacy (121), reading comprehension (149), reading strategies (96), word study (59), writing (324)

Do you need ideas for integrating technology within each component of your Daily 5 instruction? Are you new to the Daily 5? This site offers two resources for each portion of the program, providing you with a quick look at different online tools to use.

tag(s): literacy (121), reading comprehension (149), reading strategies (96), word study (59)

Technology and the Daily 5 is a must-see site if you are thinking about adding technology into to your Daily 5 routines. Although the title states K-2 classroom, the Daily 5 routines (and tools) are great to use for any elementary grade. For each of the components of the Daily 5 find categories such as Web Tools, Mobile Devices, and a video. Some components have interactive whiteboard suggestions, and there are links to other resources such as a PDF for task cards. If your district blocks YouTube, the videos may not be viewable.

tag(s): literacy (121), literary devices (13), reading comprehension (149), reading strategies (96), video (266), vocabulary development (93), word study (59), writing (324)

If you are a primary or elementary teacher looking to include technology into your Daily 5 routine, look no further. At this primary teacher's blog investigate the tabs across the top for Videos, Word Work, iPad Creating, SMART Notebook, QR Codes, Listening to Reading, Skype/FaceTime, and Web. Under Videos find a link to a Play List of YouTube videos for literacy, and a video showing how to set up iPods for the Listen to Reading component. Under each of the other tabs find sources and "how to's" for all sorts of technology to incorporate into your literacy lessons. This blog also has a section about incorporating Chrome Books (under the New tab) and iPads into the primary curriculum. If your district blocks YouTube, the videos may not be viewable.

tag(s): listening (93), literacy (121), reading comprehension (149), reading strategies (96), video (266), vocabulary development (93), word study (59), writing (324)

View four short videos of a teacher and her first-grade students as they practice the Daily 5 routines. These videos give a great beginning overview of how this structured literacy time functions in the classroom. Each video is six minutes or less. Also find a Pacing Guide for the first 23 days of a Daily 5 routine. If your district blocks YouTube, the videos may not be viewable.

tag(s): literacy (121), reading comprehension (149), reading strategies (96), video (266), vocabulary development (93), word study (59)

Create an interactive categorization activity with The Vortex. Give the activity a title and begin adding categories. Add items in up to four different categories. When finished, drag and drop items as quickly as possible into the correct bin. Use the provided links to share the activity, embed into a blog or web page, or print it. Use password protection if desired to limit access. Click the question mark on the bottom right toolbar, and scroll down that page to find many templates for inspiration or use.
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tag(s): game based learning (205), quiz (67), quizzes (90)

Design professional looking front pages for a newspaper with this tool. Simply fill in the pertinent information (headline, date, place, and more) and an image. Share via URL, Twitter, or download to your computer. Be sure to view the several samples available, and click on the little question mark at the end of the title to see ideas for use of this tool. No registration is necessary.

tag(s): digital storytelling (154), images (263), newspapers (93)

Conduct virtual conferences with up to 1,000 people at one time with Free Conference Call. Instantly share your screen during online calls for participant viewing or use the active speaker mode. Other features allow for recording and sharing meetings when finished. After creating an account, follow instructions for inviting participants and setting up the conference call. This tool works on any device with a modern web browser and Internet access, or download the free iOS or Android app.

tag(s): blended learning (37), chat (41), communication (129), DAT device agnostic tool (147), parent conferences (21), parents (57), remote learning (54)

The 180 Days Challenge is based on the PBS series 180 Days: Hartsville documentary. Take the challenge as a teacher, administrator, or parent to answer problem-based scenarios related to education. After completion, view results that provide insight into your education style and how it relates to the current educational climate. In addition to the challenge questions, this site includes several video excerpts from the series featuring events such as conferences and a discussion of generational poverty. If your district blocks YouTube, they may not be viewable.

tag(s): classroom management (120), professional development (385)

Looking to identify a wild bird? Visit the Merlin site to download the Merlin ID app for any phone or device. When using a mobile device, the Merlin app asks a series of five questions starting with when and where, followed by choosing a basic body type and other questions. View the generated list of possibilities to find your bird and identify it! Merlin is capable of recognizing 400 of the most commonly encountered birds in the US and Canada. When you choose the bird, data is recorded with Merlin. Read more about your identified bird and listen to its bird song. The Merlin bird identifier is designed for beginning and intermediate bird watchers. Note: When using Merlin on the web upload a photo of the bird, and then follow the prompts to place "pointers" on the bird image. The web version cannot be used to identify a bird and is different from The Merlin ID app.

tag(s): birds (46), DAT device agnostic tool (147), ecosystems (83), habitats (92)

This resource is an excellent online activity to learn Python through coding challenges. Choose a challenge and solve the problem to move onto another challenge. Complete each of the tasks to gain points and move to the next area. Designed for beginners and experts students will have to stick with it to be able to move past the beginning as the backstory is lost moving from one action assignment to another. The story can be the one item that makes this site different from other coding challenges. After most of the challenges, the solutions are shown. Create an account or log in through Google or Facebook.

tag(s): coding (85), critical thinking (128), problem solving (233)

Learn the basic steps for creating a grading rubric with this informative site. Find out why you need rubrics and the six basic steps for designing a rubric for any project. Most of the steps also include links to examples and templates for different situations such as discussions, presentations, and other types of projects.

tag(s): assessment (147), professional development (385), rubrics (37)

Oakland Schools provides an extensive collection of Common Core aligned resources for all grade levels. Read through the information on the main page for how to use the site to browse and search features. Items include unit calendars, curriculum maps, and standards alignment in all subjects and for grades K-12. Be sure to check out the Reference pull-down for many resources to use in teaching and planning using Common Core Standards.

tag(s): commoncore (73), professional development (385)

Learn how to engage students through digital learning, integrate technology into any curriculum, and effectively use digital resources in the classroom with these free, online courses. Multimedia contents include animated eLearning tutorials and interactive learning exercises. Begin any of the self-paced courses anytime and complete them at your own pace.

tag(s): professional development (385)

Enjoy and challenge creativity and problem-solving skills in a world of wonder. Once you sign up for The Wonderment, a social platform for kids, choose a bot or secret identity. Given a choice to follow many different paths, kids determine the subject of interest. The paths are real-world problems from around the globe. View a video, story, or idea. Design a response using text, photos, or a video. Join a chat to allow comments or ask questions to make global connections. After each posting, special points are added to make the bot design more elaborate. A personal Wondermeter rises with each response. Through donations, this non-profit brings technology to children around the world. A call for adults to serve as mentors to respond to each child challenges adults to join in the fun and make the world a better place. Register with email. Children under 13 need parent or teacher approval to participate. Click How it Works from the upper right menu to watch the short videos to explaining paths, projects, communities, and generally how The Wonderment works.

tag(s): communication (129), cross cultural understanding (173), enrichment (13), gifted (66), listening (93), Problem Based Learning (12), problem solving (233), social media (48), social networking (61), social skills (22), speaking (26), sustainability (50)

The Technology Integration Matrix (TIM) offers an evaluation tool to assess the use of technology to enhance learning for K-12 students. This rubric evaluates the level of technology integration along with characteristics of a learning environment. Click on a content subject in any of the evaluation tool boxes to view a video of an example lesson in a classroom demonstrating different levels of technology integration. As a complement to the evaluation tool, view resources found within the rubric sorted by grade level, type of digital tool, and resources by choosing links at the top of the page.

tag(s): rubrics (37)

Convert, edit, and save video files with Freemake Video Converter. The video converter supports over 300 file input formats including video, audio, and image files. Use templates provided to turn photos or images into slideshows with a chosen soundtrack. Other features include the ability to clip and rotate video, upload to YouTube, and convert files to burn and save on Blu-ray or DVD. Be sure to watch the video on the site with directions on how to use this tool. It is a YouTube video so you may need to watch it somewhere other than at school.

tag(s): conversions (37), images (263), movies (54), multimedia (53), slides (43), video (266)

Create beautiful photo collages, cards, and posters easily with Fotojet. Choose from over 320 templates and upload pictures directly from your computer or Facebook. Edit photos for size, exposure, rotate, flip or mirror, add text (and edit), and more. When finished, share using links or download as a JPEG or PNG file.

tag(s): collages (17), graphic design (49), images (263), posters (43)

Find fresh ideas for writing prompts and exercises to explore and use. Use links to find story starters, characters, titles, and more. Use the random generators to create titles, dialogues, town names, and much more. These are a must see for those writing blogs, needing new ideas, or having writer's block. This site was created in the UK. American English speakers may notice some slight spelling differences.
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tag(s): creative writing (124), digital storytelling (154), poetry (193), writers workshop (31), writing (324)

Watchkin provides tools for a safer and cleaner view of YouTube videos. Use Watchkin to remove text, comments, thumbnail images, and most ads from any video on YouTube. Copy and paste the video URL into the Watchkin search box for automatic redirection to the clean version of the video. Install the bookmarklet on your search engine toolbar for easy video clean up while on the YouTube site. If your district blocks YouTube, then the videos may not be viewable.

tag(s): internet safety (114), video (266)