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Gratisography - Ryan McGuire
Grades
K to 12
1 Favorites
0 Comments
These high quality, high-resolution photos can be used for free. No worries, it is not a stock photo site. Find a small number of new photos added weekly. Use any ...more
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These high quality, high-resolution photos can be used for free. No worries, it is not a stock photo site. Find a small number of new photos added weekly. Use any photo for either personal or commercial projects. Find a variety of landscapes, animals, people, and situations in the black and white or colored photographs. Though these are free, the work should be attributed to the artist. At the time of this review our editors found nothing inappropriate in the photos. However, we always recommend to PREVIEW!
tag(s): images (275), photography (162)
In the Classroom
Use photos from this site in your PowerPoint slides, web page, blog, etc., and be sure to attribute them. The different concepts of copyright are challenging for young students (below about grade 4). You may want to "collect" some photos for their use and save them locally for them to choose from until they are ready to understand the most difficult copyright issues. Select an image to project onto an interactive whiteboard or projector. Give time for students to develop a story around the picture. Use photos that students can use to demonstrate content in various classes. For example, in science, an image of a cat might be used to explain a classification and other animals related to it or the characteristics of life demonstrated in the image. In an art class, discuss the features of the photograph that are compelling, the use of light, the photo's composition, etc.You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
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PastBook - PastBook P.V.
Grades
K to 12
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PastBook is a wonderful site for creating online photo albums or scrapbooks. The tool was originally intended to create memorial books. Now you can create memory books and even choose...more
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PastBook is a wonderful site for creating online photo albums or scrapbooks. The tool was originally intended to create memorial books. Now you can create memory books and even choose a year to display. Choose "Start Now," to begin. Add a title, description, and pictures by uploading from your computer or social network accounts. Provide the text to describe images and a date if desired. When ready, choose "Create Your Book" to complete the book process. View finished books online or download for free in PDF format. Invite others to collaborate on your book through social networking links. Privacy settings allow only those with the URL to view your book. This tool is available on the web and iPhone. It will soon be available for any device. Sign-in using your email or FaceBook account. You can invite people via email or SMS.
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tag(s): digital storytelling (153), images (275), photography (162), portfolios (32)
In the Classroom
Use a class PastBook account to keep track of the day-to-day happenings in your classroom (especially for younger grades). Consider creating albums of specific events such as field trips, service projects, hands-on activities, field experiences such as watershed studies, and more. Have students create portfolios for art and photography classes. Create a magazine of photos that portray different history and social topics. Set the scenes for novels or stories. Explain a specific science concept (using Creative Commons images AND proper credit). Anywhere photos can be used to showcase achievement or explain a concept, this service would be an excellent resource. Learning support, speech, ESL/ELL, autistic support, or world language teachers can collect images into "magazines" for students to practice/develop speech and vocabulary.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Retronaut via Mashable - Timescape
Grades
7 to 12
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Retronaut is an archive of historical photos, though not your typical photos. These images are sometimes quirky, and generally unexpected. Many have explanations about the period. View...more
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Retronaut is an archive of historical photos, though not your typical photos. These images are sometimes quirky, and generally unexpected. Many have explanations about the period. View images of 1970's rock stars with their parents (Elton John, Frank Zappa, Eric Clapton to name a few). See Selma's Children, What Parisian Fancy Ladies wore in 1906, history's first women aviators, and much more. Explore the site by Most Popular, Featured, or The Latest. Click on an image to view a "capsule" with other related images. Some of the images have links under them for attribution, and you can see and read even more about that topic. Under latest, this reviewer found topics that were just added five days before, so you may want to check back if you do not find what you're looking for. Warning: At the time of this review there were two topics that may be inappropriate for the classroom. Use the URL of the topic you wish to share in a new window or tab of your web browser.
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tag(s): 1700s (29), 1800s (47), 1900s (36), 20th century (53), advertising (33), cultures (107), images (275), maps (292), medicine (70), politics (100), transportation (41)
In the Classroom
Share Retronaut via Mashable with students to explore images from a given time or relating to any historic topic to get an interesting perspective not typically seen in textbooks. Create capsules using images to share for any classroom project or allow students to create their own in conjunction with classroom presentations. Use Wellcome Images, reviewed here, with over 100,000 historical images if you do not find what you want on Retronaut. Galleries are not moderated, so check before sharing on your interactive whiteboard or projector. You can always use the URL of the topic you wish to share on a new tab of your web browser.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Pear Deck - Pear Deck
Grades
K to 12
4 Favorites
0 Comments
Plan and build interactive presentations directly from your Google Drive! Share your presentation on a projector or interactive whiteboard. Your participants can contribute to your...more
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Plan and build interactive presentations directly from your Google Drive! Share your presentation on a projector or interactive whiteboard. Your participants can contribute to your presentation using their own device! Simply install Pear Deck and go to your Google Drive. Next, click Create and choose the Pear Deck icon (in your Google Drive). An untitled Pear Deck file can be found in your drive. Click on "Untitled Pear Deck" and rename this file. To create slides, choose "Normal slide" for standard text slides that are not interactive. Add images and text blocks, and a title. Choose a "Draggable slide" to enter a question for input. Add a line or dot for participants to answer the question. Use the "Multiple Choice" slide to enter a question and answer choices. To present, click "Start Presenting." You can use the option to "Open Session Dashboard" and see all of the participants who joined the presentation. You can also choose "Open Projector View." While presenting, use the "Add a Question" tool to enter a last minute question. That can be as simple as a thumbs up or thumbs down choice to check on understanding. Make sure you "End Session" to save the results from the questions. The free account provides basic interactive questions with unlimited interactive sessions, five free presentation imports, and a maximum of 30 session participants. Help can be found by clicking on Menu and then Support. Find more information about Google Drive here.
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tag(s): assessment (105), slides (64)
In the Classroom
Invite students to join. Students will not see your slides UNTIL you start the presentation. Use the presentation tools. Students' view of the presentation follows the changes you make. Be sure to become familiar with these tools before using the tools with students. As students join, their names appear in the dashboard view. Tools include Lock and Unlock Responses from students, Hide and Show Responses, Ask Again, and more. Answer the questions more than once if desired. Pear Deck maintains the results of both attempts.It may be a good idea to open both the Session Dashboard and the Projector View before using with the students. Keep each in separate tabs (or use a different device such as a tablet for one of these). Be sure to turn off student responses and lock responses UNTIL every student has responded (so students will not be swayed by other responses or change answers). With the draggable slide, insert an image that requires quick input such as where a basketball thrown at a hoop will land, where on a timeline image a specific event occurred, or where erosion would be deposited on a river bend picture. This resource is invaluable for presenting questions for quick formative assessment of the content that students are to learn in any subject area!
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Myths: Everything You Need - Scholastic Inc
Grades
K to 12
3 Favorites
0 Comments
Discover what influences myths from ancient cultures have on contemporary cultures. Add pizazz to your unit on mythology. Learn about famous writers. Explore the detailed lessons and...more
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Discover what influences myths from ancient cultures have on contemporary cultures. Add pizazz to your unit on mythology. Learn about famous writers. Explore the detailed lessons and plans. Visit Myths From Around the World, a writing activity that teaches about myths from fifteen regions of the world. Read the myths of ancient Greece. Find directions to write your own myth with Jane Yolen's help. Lessons instruct the learning of the characteristics of a myth through reading, comparisons, and making inferences. Peruse the unit on Heroes and Legends, which includes lesson plans for examining heroes and their common characteristics. Furthermore, there is an Inuit unit that dives into the myths, legends, and stories from the Inuit culture. Learn about the Hero Twins from the Mayan culture. There is much here to explore for all ages!
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tag(s): digital storytelling (153), enrichment (13), myths and legends (25)
In the Classroom
After you choose your level, discover one or many of the lessons to integrate into your English Language Arts or Social Studies curriculum. Choose your objectives, and find the lessons that are appropriate. Some lessons can be shared on the interactive whiteboard or projector. Others are more appropriate alone as individual work. Materials are included so much of the prep work is already done for you. To conclude the myths unit, have students create a play featuring a unique culture and a hero they create. Students will need a detailed script containing; theme, plot, settings, and characters including a hero. Go as far as you want developing props, costumes, and accompanying sounds and music. Have students present using a live presentation, video, or digital storytelling. Choose from the TeachersFirst Digital Storytelling tools, reviewed here. This site is a great reference for an after-school enrichment program on writing, reading, book clubs, or even self esteem.
This resource requires Adobe Flash and PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.
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Canva - Canva.com
Grades
K to 12
1 Favorites
0 Comments
Canva presents a simple way to design almost anything with drag and drop technology. Create custom posters, business cards, presentations, badges, flyers, and more using a custom layout...more
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Canva presents a simple way to design almost anything with drag and drop technology. Create custom posters, business cards, presentations, badges, flyers, and more using a custom layout or a blank page. Begin by choosing the type of design you want to create. Choose pre-made templates or design your own. Upload images from your computer or your Facebook account. Change your background, add text, and personalize as desired. When complete, choose link and publish to save and download your creation as an image or PDF file or copy the link to share via URL. There is an iPad app (free) available for this tool. Note: you must register (with email and password) before you can access this site.
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tag(s): graphic design (35), images (275), posters (39), slides (64)
In the Classroom
Create a slideshow, invitations, or photo collages for any classroom presentation. Share what you created on your website or blog for students to review or for students who were absent. In the younger grades, teachers would be the ones creating the project. However, older students could easily create themselves! Have students create their own Canva presentations. Have students use this online tool as they would any presentation tool or image enhancing site. Use this site for research projects about famous people from the past and present. Have cooperative learning groups create presentations about science or math topics. Have students create presentations to "introduce" themselves to the class during the first week of school. Link or embed the introduction presentations on your class wiki and have others guess who they are about. Use this tool with your 1:1 art class for students to practice design principles and techniques. Share student projects with parents and others via URL. Be sure to demonstrate HOW to use this tool on your interactive whiteboard or projector.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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myWebRoom - Rooms, Inc.
Grades
K to 12
1 Favorites
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Decorate a 3D room and make it your computer home page. Categorize and store all of your favorite sites in objects around the room. Choose a room with a view: ...more
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Decorate a 3D room and make it your computer home page. Categorize and store all of your favorite sites in objects around the room. Choose a room with a view: cities, a beach, snowy mountains, jungles, and many more. Select a contemporary room, a retro room, a Disney room, or just about any theme imaginable. Establish and save the room's look, and then click objects to store favorite sites. There are also website suggestions. Browse everything in one category by clicking on the object in the room. Invite friends to your "my WebRoom" by giving them a key. Make your computer home page convenient and reflect your interests by storing all your online favorites within the objects in your "room."
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tag(s): bookmarks (64)
In the Classroom
Create a "myWebRoom" for class sites used with students. Share the "my WebRoom" on your website for parents and students to use at home. Create myWebRooms, with a theme, for units your students study. To save time, have sites open in separate tabs to copy/paste urls of the resources you are planning to store in the objects around the room. Older students can create myWebRooms for characters in the book they are reading or as a literature circle project for a book they read together. Also, older students can use this tool to create a myWebRoom with a theme when researching topics or working in groups for projects or research. Use this tool to share sites with non-readers or ESL/ELL students.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Witty Comics - WittyComics.com
Grades
K to 12
2 Favorites
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Use this tool to design a comic with dialogue between two characters. Use the pre-drawn backgrounds and characters. Add a title for each scene/page and add dialogue between the two...more
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Use this tool to design a comic with dialogue between two characters. Use the pre-drawn backgrounds and characters. Add a title for each scene/page and add dialogue between the two characters. These are quick and easy three page comics. You can create without an account. However, if you want to SAVE, you must register for a free account (email required).
tag(s): comics and cartoons (71)
In the Classroom
Create dialogues that introduce new content topics in your classroom. Students can use this "witty" tool to introduce topics from research or to practice a speech to be given in class. Use comics to create a dialogue discussing misconceptions in the content and a discussion of the actual facts to dispel the misunderstandings. For more ideas about using comics in the classroom see Comics Workshop for Teachers. To view more comic creator tools and ideas view this collection.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Hungry for English - Learn English Series
Grades
1 to 12
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Hungry to Learn English currently features over 35 YouTube videos. Topics range from basic greetings, colors, and numbers to families, countries, the verb "to be," and more. These videos...more
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Hungry to Learn English currently features over 35 YouTube videos. Topics range from basic greetings, colors, and numbers to families, countries, the verb "to be," and more. These videos allow you to see, hear, and practice all the lessons in live format. You can also participate in making more videos by sending in your own pictures. Is YouTube blocked at your school? You could always view the videos at home and bring them to class "on a stick" to share. Use a tool such as KeepVid reviewed here to download the videos from YouTube.
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tag(s): grammar (214), pronunciation (44), verbs (41), video (276)
In the Classroom
Use one of these videos each time you introduce a new ESL/ELL lesson. Share the video on your projector or interactive whiteboard. Share this link on your class website or wiki for new English language learners to use together with their families. Challenge your ESL/ELL students to create their own videos to teach others English. What better way to learn, than teach? Share the videos on a site such as TeacherTube reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Tableau Public - Tableau Software
Grades
9 to 12
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Tableau is a free tool that brings data to life. Create and share interactive charts and graphs, stunning maps, live dashboards, and engaging applications in minutes. Publish anywhere...more
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Tableau is a free tool that brings data to life. Create and share interactive charts and graphs, stunning maps, live dashboards, and engaging applications in minutes. Publish anywhere on the web. Download Tableau's software for Windows or Macs and follow directions for installation. View the training videos to learn how to build maps, charts, and share data. Other training videos share how to publish your information using direct links or embed in websites or blogs. Some of the videos are hosted on YouTube. However, our editors didn't find any video that required Flash. If your district blocks YouTube, then they may not be viewable. You could always view the videos at home and bring them to class "on a stick" to share. Use a tool such as KeepVid reviewed here to download the videos from YouTube.
In the Classroom
View the training videos together as a class before asking students to use Tableau. Have a few students become "experts" on this software and help others as needed. Create Tableaus for any projects requiring the gathering of data such as research into individual countries, comparison of statistics across states, or compiling poll results. Be sure to check out Tableau's Gallery for many ideas on using the software.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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GIF YouTube - GIFYouTube
Grades
K to 12
1 Favorites
0 Comments
Did you ever wonder how they make the animated GIF's? You know, the images that look like a video playing the same small and looping video segment? Create your own ...more
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Did you ever wonder how they make the animated GIF's? You know, the images that look like a video playing the same small and looping video segment? Create your own animated GIF images easily from a YouTube video. Simply enter the URL of the YouTube video you wish to use and then click "Create GIF." Move to the part of the video you wish to highlight using the same controls you would use in YouTube. Change the GIF length up to 15 seconds. Enter a title and then click "Create GIF." Once created, copy the URL of the GIF to share with others. Ratings from other users are simply an up or down arrow. A gallery of animated GIFs are found on the main page. Be sure to view these before sending students to this site.
In the Classroom
Create an animated GIF to get student's attention! A cat reading a book is one way to begin reading time! Show any science concept such as development of an organism, cell division, a chemical reaction, formation of stars, a bullet in slow motion, or anything a student should look at several times to see every aspect of the event. Do you want to reveal portions of a video outlining the travels of historic expeditions, addition of the states to the US, or any other historical event captured in video? Use a looping animated GIF! Every subject could use one of these GIFs to generate an interest in a class activity or new content.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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EDPuzzle - EDPuzzle
Grades
7 to 12
1 Favorites
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This tool is a great way to take sections of videos and add your own voice or add questions within the video. YouTube videos are viewable in EDPuzzle even if ...more
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This tool is a great way to take sections of videos and add your own voice or add questions within the video. YouTube videos are viewable in EDPuzzle even if your school filters block them! Search for educational videos from sites such as Khan Academy and Learn Zillion. Use the sliders to choose the section of the video. Insert your own voice or comment on the video. Create a series of questions to go along with your chosen video and insert them into the correct part of the video. There is no need for students to watch the whole video to access the questions at the end. Follow the on screen directions for chopping the video for the section you need, adding your own voice, and choosing where to add text based questions. Create a class and then add students into the class either in the dashboard or after creating the video. Use student codes to access the video. There is a 13 page guide available by clicking on FAQ and the last item which is "How can I help?" Next click on "Workshop." There is also a short demo video hosted on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, simply find the video you want to use and embed it in EDPuzzle. It is viewable when used through EDPuzzle! Of course, you could always view the video at home and bring it to class "on a stick" to share. Use a tool such as KeepVid reviewed here to download videos from YouTube if you wish.
tag(s): DAT device agnostic tool (171), digital storytelling (153), questioning (33), video (276)
In the Classroom
Create short review videos or use your own narration with chosen videos to create flipped lessons for your students. Consider the power of students using EdPuzzle to annotate videos in order to explain the material in their own words. You or your students can use the tool to create and narrate "how to" videos. Annotate by highlighting the important aspects of videos through the creation of voice comments. Students can also use the question building option to create questions to play with each video. Be sure students create a script to read from before editing their chosen video.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Shotclip (Beta) - Shotclip.com
Grades
K to 12
1 Favorites
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Create and edit professional looking videos in a three-step process using Shotclip. Use the storytelling guide to choose a template. Template options include My Summer, Halloween Fun,...more
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Create and edit professional looking videos in a three-step process using Shotclip. Use the storytelling guide to choose a template. Template options include My Summer, Halloween Fun, blank templates, and more. Templates provide guidance for scenes or shots to include in your story. Templates also offer suggested length and music for each portion. Upload images, video, audio, add effects, and edit video as desired. When complete, publish and share to receive an email with a link to your video or publish directly to your YouTube account.
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tag(s): digital storytelling (153), images (275), movies (72), video (276)
In the Classroom
Demonstrate this site on your interactive whiteboard or projector. In lower grades, make videos together as a class. Have students create short book reviews for classmates, explain a math concept or procedure, provide a short overview of a class field trip, or demonstrate a quick science experiment. Create a video montage of images taken in the classroom. Use to show a process, explain an experiment, discuss data collected, create club or class movies about happenings throughout the year, and much more. Use this tool as a creative and easy alternative to boring slideshow presentations. Introduce the major points of a topic through images and added text. Use this site to make commercials, science fair previews, and animated shorts in any content area. Have students make "advertisements" for an organism or a literary character. Make a travel commercial for a country being studied or for cultural sites in a world language class. Be sure to share the presentations on your projector or interactive whiteboard.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Linguistadores - Bob Rafferty
Grades
6 to 12
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Linguistadores offers language learning through articles, music, and videos. Select your language and reading content level for genuine news based on level and interest. Double click...more
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Linguistadores offers language learning through articles, music, and videos. Select your language and reading content level for genuine news based on level and interest. Double click on any word to translate into a language of your choice. Listen to songs in your target language while viewing the lyrics on the screen. Save unknown words to your account with a click then practice with flash card style games. Free accounts offer up to 10 articles and 20 saved words per day.
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tag(s): guided reading (45), independent reading (129), reading comprehension (119), vocabulary development (124)
In the Classroom
Use Linguistadores with ESL/ELL or special education students as an interesting way to deliver appropriate leveled informational texts. Have students create individual accounts and use as a computer lab or classroom center activity to build vocabulary and reading skills. Use this site to differentiate for students of all levels. Share this site with your teaching colleagues to help differentiate for learning support (or gifted or ESL/ELL) students. Select informational texts to use for close reading (a la Common Core) together as a class on a projector or interactive whiteboard.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Wonkblog: Kurt Vonnegut graphed the world's most popular stories (blog post) - Ana Swanson/Washington Post
Grades
5 to 12
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Read about and see "graphs" of famous stories as sketched by author Kurt Vonnegut (1922-2007). This blog post includes an embedded YouTube video of Vonnegut explaining his "graphs"...more
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Read about and see "graphs" of famous stories as sketched by author Kurt Vonnegut (1922-2007). This blog post includes an embedded YouTube video of Vonnegut explaining his "graphs" of classic story "shapes" as well as examples for each. The video is old and grainy, but quite entertaining. Shapes/graphs include "Man in a Hole," "Boy Meets Girl," and even the classic creation story. You need not have read the exact examples he provides to understand -- and start wondering about the "shape" of stories you know. Even younger readers could understand these concepts if you explain them in simplest terms. The graphs, or story shapes, are shown as infographics redrawn by Maya Eilam. You can view the full infographic of the graphs/story shapes as a single image herehere. Some videos are hosted on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, then they may not be viewable. You could always view the videos at home and bring them to class "on a stick" to share. Use a tool such as KeepVid reviewed here to download the videos from YouTube.
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tag(s): authors (121), creative writing (170), infographics (45), narrative (23), stories and storytelling (31)
In the Classroom
Explore the patterns of story and narratives in our culture and beyond using this visual approach to story mapping. In a high school language arts class, watch the video of Vonnegut explaining story shapes (about 4 minutes) and challenge student partners or groups to think of other examples of that story map, even from movies or television shows. Then turn the class loose to make their own graphic representation of a literary piece you have read recently - or of a movie that is popular right now. If you have an interactive whiteboard, have students direct a student "emcee" to do the drawing as the class gives instructions. With younger students, you may need to talk as a class to be sure students are able to grasp the abstract patterns shown in the graphs, and the video may be too adult level for them to understand without a slower discussion. Once your class (of any level) seems to grasp the idea, post story shapes on your class wiki or web page (with proper credit) so students can add their own examples of tales they have read or watched that fit the pattern. If you give them extra credit for noticing such stories in their own lives, they will internalize the idea of narrative patterns. You could also make a story shape bulletin board where students can add index cards with names of books/tales they read under each pattern. If you are promoting narrative writing, use these story patterns as a way to help students get ideas for where a storyline can go so it has a beginning, middle, and end.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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CodeCombat - CodeCombat
Grades
3 to 12
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Harness the power of problem solving with CodeCombat. CodeCombat provides a unique challenge to learn code while playing an engaging game. Escape enemies or navigate a dungeon by typing...more
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Harness the power of problem solving with CodeCombat. CodeCombat provides a unique challenge to learn code while playing an engaging game. Escape enemies or navigate a dungeon by typing basic JavaScript commands. Each level of play provides a new challenge for programmers to experiment the best way to accomplish the goals of the game. Write JavaScript code to direct the character's actions, and then run the code to see what happens. Correct the code if needed to complete the level. Programmers earn accessories, XP, and achievement badges after conquering a level. A series of five stars indicates the difficulty for each level. CodeCombat never feels like a gamified coding course because it makes learning fun. The emphasis is on the game instead of the code. CodeCombat is free to play, but an email is required to create an account to save information and for the multiplayer option. A premium upgrade is available for a fee. This review is for the FREE portion only.
tag(s): coding (51), creativity (118), critical thinking (111), problem solving (274)
In the Classroom
Learning to code is an opportunity to teach students to think and problem solve. Coding is a critical digital literacy skill for the future. Create an after school coding club for students to access the site. Challenge students to write stories to accompany each level of code they complete in CodeCombat. Encourage students to create as they become more advanced in CodeCombat. Provide an environment for students to collaborate to solve the levels.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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We Are Visual Animals - Charlie Clark
Grades
9 to 12
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Witness the work of today's digital designers and read about them on this remarkable site. This blog features "visual creatives" selected and interviewed by blog creator Charlie Clark....more
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Witness the work of today's digital designers and read about them on this remarkable site. This blog features "visual creatives" selected and interviewed by blog creator Charlie Clark. See their works interspersed with questions that delve into the why behind them. Questions such as "Describe your creative process - how do you come up with an idea for a new piece?" elicit thoughtful responses that help all of us "visual animals" understand what we are seeing. New posts appear about every two weeks. The interface of the site is simple but elegant, with small icons to advance to the next post or "see" the works (an eye icon).
tag(s): artists (76), photography (162)
In the Classroom
Share this blog with your visual arts students or students creating an online literary magazine. Use it as an example of the kind of artists statements and interviews that can make the difference between a stilted exhibit and a meaningful immersion. Encourage your high school art students to use some of the ideas and interview questions from this blog in their own visual portfolio sites to use for themselves and for college applications. Use one of the web page tools from the Edge to create personal portfolio sites. Art or photography teachers can use the works on this site to teach design principles. Share images on an interactive whiteboard or projector for students to annotate the images and talk about what makes them "work." Use images from the featured artists as visual writing prompts in English class. Use some of the artist's statements as examples to inspire more personal college essays.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Breaking News - NBC News Digital Network
Grades
4 to 12
3 Favorites
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This current events site can take you places! Type in the topic you want to read about and view a list of headlines to stories about the topic. Choose one ...more
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This current events site can take you places! Type in the topic you want to read about and view a list of headlines to stories about the topic. Choose one of the headlines to read the story that comes from a variety of news sources. Click on the globe icon on the upper right of the news page to view the world map. This shows the location of where the stories originate. Clicking on the dots on the map also take you to the stories. This tool is available on web browsers, iOS, and Android devices.
This site includes advertising.
This site includes advertising.
tag(s): DAT device agnostic tool (171), globe (14), maps (292), news (265), newspapers (97)
In the Classroom
Use this site as a resource for current events projects. Assign students various weeks through out the semester in which they are to be the class news reporter. The reports should keep their peers up to date and informed. Have students research what is going on via this news site, and give a small presentation at the beginning of class every day during their week. Students can do an oral presentation or create a short video summarizing the same information. View several news articles from different areas and discuss bias and point of view from other cities and countries. Choose dots on the map randomly from the various sections to see what is trending in different regions. Have students create news briefs and share them using a tool such as SchoolTube reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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XKCD - XKCD
Grades
8 to 12
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Get ready to have a good laugh at Ready for a good laugh? Come on over to XKCD, a webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language. Three times a week ...more
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Get ready to have a good laugh at Ready for a good laugh? Come on over to XKCD, a webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language. Three times a week find comics with stick figures featuring mathematical, scientific, and cultural humor. Dig through the archives to find the perfect one for you! Creative Commons License allows reprinting of the comics. Each comic has an individual URL that can be shared to direct students to that specific comic. Be sure to PREVIEW before you share any comics with your class. Our editors found a few that may be questionable depending on the maturity of your students.
This site includes advertising.
This site includes advertising.
tag(s): comics and cartoons (71), humor (15)
In the Classroom
Add humor to your science, math, language, and current events classes to lighten the mood! Spice up professional presentations with humor, and keep your audience involved. Share the direct URL to any comic that relates to your curriculum or specific topics. Encourage students to create comics with your current content. Have students use one of the tools and ideas included in this collection. Keep your class website humorous with a few comics from XKCD.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Google Science Fair - Google
Grades
7 to 12
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Get your creative juices flowing! It is time for the Google Science Fair, a yearly competition for ages 13 to 18 years old. Find a Competition Overview with a description ...more
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Get your creative juices flowing! It is time for the Google Science Fair, a yearly competition for ages 13 to 18 years old. Find a Competition Overview with a description of the prizes, past winners, key dates, and judges. Students must have a Google Student Account. The Teacher and Parent's section has ideas for involving young participants and how to support them. There are also lesson plans (by grade levels), posters (in PDF format), and more. Get inspired by watching the Google Science Fair Channel on YouTube! Encourage the young inventors you know, and they might win one of the many fabulous prizes. The yearly submission deadline is around mid-May. Regional winners are announced in July. If your district blocks YouTube, the videos may not be viewable. You could always view the videos at home and bring them to class "on a stick" to share. Use a tool such as KeepVid, reviewed here, to download the videos from YouTube.
tag(s): computers (92), engineering (127), science fairs (26), scientific method (67), social networking (112)
In the Classroom
Why not take the next step in science fairs? Let Google walk you through this competition! Introduce the project to students using your interactive whiteboard or projector. A particularly useful start for students is the Idea Springboard. Here young innovators can get help generating ideas for a science fair project across all scientific fields! Be sure to post a link to the Google Science Fair on your class webpage for students to share with their parents at home.
This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.
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