Teachers First - Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers

Earn, issue, collect, and display digital badges with Open Badges. Set up a Mozilla Backpack to earn your first badge. Once registered, follow to create and issue your badges with documentation features. Share with those seeking to earn the badge; they upload evidence of accomplishment. Once achieved, awarded badges are displayed on an individual's profile and can easily be shared online.

tag(s): assessment (147), behavior (45), classroom management (120), game based learning (205), gamification (83), organizational skills (88)

Sejda is a tool for working with PDF documents without having to register for an account. Use Sejda to split, rotate, merge, convert PDF files to Microsoft Word format, and more. Select the task you desire, upload your PDF document, and follow directions. When complete, download the new document with changes. Documents delete automatically from Sejda's servers after three hours.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): conversions (37), worksheets (69)

Quizlet Live is a classroom quiz game for groups created by the makers of Quizlet, reviewed here. Follow directions to create and share a quiz set and assign to student teams. At least six students are needed to create and play a Quizlet Live game. When students receive the code and log in, they find other team members and begin competing. Accuracy is encouraged over speed, providing a wrong answer will send teams back to start from the beginning of the quiz.

tag(s): collaboration (93), DAT device agnostic tool (147), game based learning (205), quizzes (90), spelling (98), vocabulary (238), word study (59)

Add comments, links, and questions to online videos with MoocNote. Create a free account, then import any YouTube video or playlist by pasting the URL. Other options include adding videos from DropBox or Google Drive. Return to unfinished videos from where you left off. Notes link back to the appropriate spot in the video and collect in one central spot for easy viewing. Options on the site allow you to create groups to share videos and adjust privacy settings.

tag(s): note taking (36), organizational skills (88), video (266)

LivingTree is an online collaborative tool for teachers, parents, and students. Share messages, photos, files, and more in 100+ languages instantly. Create a shared calendar for all members to access and contribute information. Calendars offer the ability for parents and volunteers to easily sign up for events such as conferences and field trips. There are introductory videos, and video guides for teachers, parents, administrators, and organizations. If your district blocks YouTube, the videos may not be viewable.

tag(s): chat (41), classroom management (120), communication (129), DAT device agnostic tool (147), organizational skills (88), polls and surveys (49), Teacher Utilities (198), video (266)

The Open Video Project provides a repository of video clips from many different sources for use by researchers and educators. Choose from various genres or collections to find available videos. Find specific content using search filters to find keyword content, video format, the length of the video, and more. Download videos using the links provided with each video clip.

tag(s): video (266)

Tarr's Toolbox contains many quick and easy suggestions for spicing up lessons. Although created by a history teacher, most ideas can easily adapt to any subject. Click on any text box for a complete description of activities. Some of the descriptions have suggestions for use of the tools found on Classtools, reviewed here. Be sure to subscribe to Tarr's Toolbox blog to receive updates as new ideas are added.

tag(s): classroom management (120), differentiation (84), game based learning (205), professional development (385)

This collection of free streaming videos, mostly under six minutes, supports school curriculum using material from NBC News, one of the largest news archives in the world. Topics include language arts, humanities and social sciences, and parenting information. The majority of videos feature STEM content. Specific sample topics include: Mysteries of the Brain, Writers Speak to Kids, Science of NFL Football, and many others. All videos include transcripts. Some have lesson plans and/or activities which are available in a side tab in the video window when launched. Most have closed captioning, and a few have a Spanish language option. The majority of NBC Learn, the educational arm of NBC News, is fee-based. This review is for the free material.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): brain (56), civil rights (209), news (228), olympics (45), pi (29), sports (82), STEM (297), sustainability (50), video (266)

Build your own digital badges to award and share. Badge List offers the ability to design a badge using their built-in badge designer. You can also upload your own. Share with those seeking to earn the badge; they upload evidence of accomplishment using one of the five supported formats. Once achieved, awarded badges are displayed on an individual's profile and can easily be shared online. Since the free portion of Badge List is public, it is important for teachers to keep student identities anonymous. Use a code for the student name that is only known by the teacher. Also, be sure to obtain parent permission before using this tool with students. At the time of this review, stated by Badge List: "Badge List is currently developing simpler privacy settings to help K12 teachers protect student data. Until these features are released, teachers will need to take extra precautions to make sure that student data is safe."

tag(s): assessment (147), behavior (45), classroom management (120), game based learning (205), gamification (83), organizational skills (88)

Create interactive games, books, and presentations with TinyTap. Choose the Activities link to access resources made by teachers. Sort by category, age, and language. TinyTap allows creators to include drag and drop activities, videos, quizzes, and more - all in one activity. Create groups to assign activities to different students. Most games are free; however, some games by professional authors are not free. Play games and activities on any device; however, creation of games requires you to download the free iPad app. At the time of this review, TinyTap worked well on most browsers (except Safari). The free version is public and comments are permitted. Be sure to preview anything before you share with students.

tag(s): assessment (147), DAT device agnostic tool (147), game based learning (205), quiz (67), quizzes (90), Teacher Utilities (198)

Spice up any countdown with this versatile, yet easy to use, countdown timer from Classtools. Options include running multiple timers, adding music or video, and saving a web link to your timer. Choose the Get Started button to begin and follow prompts to choose included music or select your own from any YouTube video. Click the save icon to receive a personalized URL for sharing.

tag(s): classroom management (120), counting (60), time (91)

Literary Devices offers definitions and examples of many different devices used in written work. Although this site is rather "plain vanilla," it offers colorful sprinkles of information and definitions. Browse through to explore the different terms, use the search box to find a specific device, or choose from popular literary devices listed on the left side of the homepage. After you choose a term, this site offers a complete definition along with many examples of its use in literature.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): dictionaries (47), literary devices (13)

Collaborate with up to 100 participants from anywhere and at any time with Zoom's free online video conferencing options. Features include screen sharing, scheduled or instant meeting times, and private or group chat. Up to 40 minutes of group meeting time, and unlimited 1:1 meeting time is included with the free meeting plans. Sign up using your email or social network account to begin hosting a meeting. The step by step instructions make it easy to quickly begin video conferencing at your convenience.

tag(s): chat (41), communication (129), DAT device agnostic tool (147), parent conferences (21), video (266)

The Mindset Kit is a large compilation of resources for parents and teachers for teaching and developing growth mindsets. Based on the book, Mindset, by Carol Dweek, these lessons and activities provide tools for developing positive mindsets, in turn, leading to increased academic performance. Choose the section for teachers to find seven lessons for educator teams, or take advantage of ten lessons for parents to learn about growth mindset and how to instill this in students. Other portions contain ideas for specific content areas and mentors.

tag(s): brain (56), learning styles (18), professional development (385), social and emotional learning (102)

Microsoft's OneNote, a downloadable app, keeps all notes, emails, drawings, photographs, and more organized into folders on a page in different sections of a "notebook." Drag copies of files or documents from your computer into OneNote. Share and collaborate with others. Access your OneNote account by signing in to any computer or device.

tag(s): DAT device agnostic tool (147), Microsoft (80), organizational skills (88), Storage (6)

Create standards-based lessons and rubrics in minutes with ThemeSpark. Incorporate your ready-made materials or use global resources available on the site. The lesson builder includes the ability to add a hook, information to learn, practice, and application activity. When finished, download the lesson in an easy to use format. Be sure to watch the QuickStart Lesson Builder video and read through the FAQ section on the site for full information about creating lessons and using ThemeSpark. If your district blocks YouTube, then they may not be viewable.

tag(s): assessment (147), professional development (385), rubrics (37), Teacher Utilities (198)

Blog About is a blog title generator and a nifty tool to generate writing ideas with specific content. Click the refresh button to view different writing topics or add your own to the provided blank. Then choose the "Next" button to narrow your topic to specific points. Use the refresh button (heart) to view different ideas for focusing on the subject. Be sure to check out the "writer's block?" link on the right side of the page to access a page to doodle your thoughts and download when finished. Don't be thrown off by the "business" prompts; keep clicking and you'll get to prompts about challenges, opinions, improvement, and plenty more.

tag(s): blogs (65), creative writing (124), persuasive writing (58), writing (325), writing prompts (61)

PenPal Schools connects learners from around the world with three to six-week courses in cross-cultural learning and understanding. After sign up, PenPal Schools matches classes based on class size and age range. Choose courses from four categories based on global issues or American issues. Each week, students log in to complete an assignment that typically involves viewing a video and reading a news article before answering a set of questions. Assignments are aligned with the Common Core Standards. PenPal Schools will work on any device with a modern web browser and an Internet connection.

tag(s): cross cultural understanding (173)

Create a personalized sign using the many templates offered on the Sign Generator. Options include personalized cakes, cartoon characters, movie marquees, and much more. Click the thumbnail of the design you want, add your text into the provided lines, and click the link to finish. Your personalized sign appears on a popup image ready to save onto your computer.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): graphic design (49), images (263), photography (130), posters (43)

The Big Ideas Series, offered by ClassDojo, provides ten video topics encouraging students to explore different ways to healthy social emotional development and learning. The videos discuss concepts such as Empathy, Perseverance, Positive Thinking, Gratitude, Mindfulness, and more. Each topic has a series of short videos and includes a discussion guide to download for classroom use and a page with take-home questions for parent use.

tag(s): brain (56), emotions (49), empathy (34), learning styles (18), social and emotional learning (102), social skills (22)