Teachers First - Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers

Explore this video showcase of innovative and effective teaching practices from America's schools. The video library offers a wide range of subjects for grades K-12. Videos also include information on alignment with Common Core State Standards and ancillary material for teachers to use in their own classrooms. Browse by grade level band, subject, or popular topics. Use the search box to find ideas for a specific topic, such as "earth" or "electricity." There are too many topics to list. Pretty much anything you are looking for academically, behaviorally, or professionally can be found here! See video length for each choice along with the title, subject and grade band. After choosing a video, view objectives, questions to consider, and information about the teacher in the video. Download or receive codes to embed videos using the links available with each video. Register on the site (free) to access the site's lesson planner features. Save, schedule, and receive reminders about great ideas after registering or follow teachers to receive notification of new uploads.

tag(s): assessment (147), behavior (43), classroom management (128), commoncore (75), differentiation (84), firstday (22), inquiry (24), newbies (14), professional development (393), rhythm (20), substitutes (27), video (257)

Learn about American Sign Language. Join Dr. Bill Vicars at the American Sign Language University. Find resources and free classes (videos) in American Sign Language. The FREE resources included are a dictionary, numbers, jokes, numbers, wallpaper, fingerspelling art for signs or posters, and lessons. Email is available for questions. Find information for presentations in American Sign Language. There are also workbook pages, practice cards, and quizzes to help guide your learning.
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tag(s): sign language (10)

Find math advice, tips, ideas, games, and e-books to help bring math alive. Activities focus on two age groups, 3 - 5 and 5 - 7. The free e-books have math themes. The site's origin is British, so the "maths" curriculum or terms may be slightly different from the U.S. But numbers are still numbers! The standards are from the U.K. Don't miss the "jargon busters" under the Expert Help menu for parents to understand the math terms teachers may use. Although the site has links to items for sale, there is enough free material to be worthwhile. On some of the interactives you must click the "mark it" check mark to see if your answer is correct or not.
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tag(s): addition (128), counting (60), multiplication (122), numbers (119), preK (254), subtraction (109), time (92)

iBioSeminars features lectures and videos about biology, ecology, health (and more) that begin with broad introductions and progress to specific research. Search by top picks or category. You can also try entering a biology term in the search box. Click on Teaching Tools to find related materials for use with the lectures. Many lectures are as long as an hour. Don't miss the "short clips" menu for videos more applicable in high school settings. Subtitles in English, Spanish, and French are also available. You can subscribe to the lectures using iTunesU. The videos reside on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, the videos may not be viewable.

tag(s): cells (80), ecology (100), energy (130), evolution (85), medicine (55)

Confused about climate change and the evaluation of the data? View this free site from the EPA that compiles current greenhouse gas emissions data into an interactive map. This site visualizes the biggest emitters. Included are polluters of more than 25,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide a year. Unfortunately, not shown in the data are the smaller polluters. When using the site, keep in mind that polluters like transportation, residential, or agricultural sources are missing. This tool is useful for looking at how industry and power contribute to climate change, and which type of fuel source (coal provides 50%) provides power generation. Click on the US map and then specific blue circles (the numbers inside represent the total number of facilities) to zoom in and find the list of facilities in the left navigation panel. Clicking on each facility brings up the data of emissions. Search by specific gas emission (carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, or methane). Change the overall view by list, map, or graph to customize how best students view the data.

tag(s): carbon dioxide (10), climate change (87), fossil fuels (9)

Love science? Find ideas, extraordinary information, and experiments on this entertaining site. Listen to the weekly science podcasts and archives that cover a vast array of topics including those that may seem unbelievable. This realistic and scientific site looks at topics like aliens and telepathy as well as ballistics and volcanoes. Find in-depth information explained with scientific clarity, even complex topics, explained in terms that everyone can understand and from multiple perspectives.

tag(s): experiments (52), genetics (76), oceans (146), podcasts (73), volcanoes (55)