2228 reading results | sort by:
return to subject listingThe Manuals
Grades
K to 12In the Classroom
Perhaps you have technology in your classroom that needs a manual--this site is for you. Need functional or authentic text? Many state tests assess functional text. From this site, you can easily find 'real' reading passages. All you need are to develop the questions. Share the manuals on your interactive whiteboard or projector to practice with functional text OR to teach about informational writing!You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
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Newspaper Clipping Generator - fodey.com
Grades
2 to 12There are also links at the top of the page to create: a newspaper, ninja text, wizard text, talking flowers, talking tomatoes, talking owls, a wanted poster, talking cats, talking squirrels, and a clapper board. Be aware: this site does include some minor advertisements.
This site includes advertising.
tag(s): back to school (63), digital storytelling (141), firstday (22), news (229), posters (45)
In the Classroom
Basic ability to enter text into fields, download and find the finished file. For file to be shared, understanding how to upload the file onto another site or blog. The "clippings" you make do NOT remain on the site for access later by URL.As files are downloaded to the desktop, you may want to create a Favorites folder, or other "collection" of students projects in one place for easy work at grading time. Another idea: use a class wiki with all projects.
Create a fictional account of a happening or description to identify the errors or determine the item being described. Create an account of a class celebration or a fantastic project that should be shared. Students can use this site to create a fantastic account of a vacation or experience. Have students develop a newsworthy article on an event from the novel they are reading. Use this site as a "first week" activity for students to write articles introducing themselves to the class. Have them use pseudonyms in their "articles" and share them on your class wiki or web page. A week later, have a matching contest where classmates must identify the mystery students! You could do a similar "famous Americans" or "important scientists" activity where students learn and share.
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Cobocards - Cobocards
Grades
K to 12tag(s): flash cards (43), grammar review (31), word study (58)
In the Classroom
Sharing with friends for collaboration does require the sending of an email invitation.Explore the guided tour to learn an overview or find answers to specific use questions. Save your "sets" and decide whether you want them to be completely public, just for you personally, or shared with a "group." Create your own groups for each class or subject. Publish your cards for others to use. Published sets can be altered to create a new and personalized set.
Teachers in lower grades will want to create cards their students can use and perhaps have more techno-savvy help with the process. Content and English teachers may choose to set up their own network of users. Learning support teachers could suggest that their students create their own flashcard sets to assist learning of the concepts. Use the interactive whiteboard or projector for quick flashcard or electronic testing using your sets as a whole class or in small groups in the classroom. Collaborate with other teachers to create useful sets for all to use. Rotate responsibility each marking period among student groups in your class to create a set for each chapter/unit/week for the rest of the class to use as review. Give a special award (or bonus points) for the most creative, complete set that marking period.
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Mathematical Fiction - Alex Kasman
Grades
K to 12tag(s): logic (164), probability (96), statistics (114)
In the Classroom
Use this site to find extra reading choices for reluctant readers who are interested in technology and math. Use it also to show students that math processes are inherent in a lot of life's experiences. Search the site for your current math topics. Share this link on your class website for students (and parents) to use at home. Share it with your school librarian for a featured reading shelf. Challenge your more verbal/linguistic gifted students to write similar stories that feature a math concept and create an online book using a tool such as Bookemon, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Neil Gaiman's Mouse Circus - HarperCollins
Grades
4 to 10tag(s): literature (217), posters (45)
In the Classroom
If you are doing an author study, this site is loaded with information about this award-winning author. Compare the movie version of Coraline with the book using Venn Diagrams. Why not try online Venn Diagrams, using a site such as "Interactive Two Circle Venn Diagrams," reviewed here. Compare and contrast this Newbery book with other recent Newbery books. Print posters of his books for an eerie Gaiman bulletin board at Halloween. Use an online poster creator, such as Padlet, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Spezify (beta) - Spezify
Grades
K to 12In the Classroom
Use Spezify on an interactive whiteboard or projector as you introduce a new topic in science or social studies or when the class asks "What is ____?" . With very young students or non-readers, use Spezify to help them find information they can understand and to inspire them to try to read some of the short text excerpts alongside the images. Activate students' prior knowledge as they recognize the images and remark, "I didn't know Edison was the one who invented that!" Visually show the "big picture" on any topic. As you teach research skills, try a comparison of Spezify results with Google results for both functionality of the search engine and reputability of the results. NOTE: Preview any search terms you plan to display in class if the terms could possibly bring up inappropriate images. You may need to adjust your terms. Of course your students know what they are supposed to do if something inappropriate comes up when using a search themselves, right? If you have not discussed this, now is the time!Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Reading Suggestions - TeachersFirst
Grades
K to 12In the Classroom
Save this site in your classroom computers' favorites, so students can easily access the site to find new books to read! Share this link on your class website. This is an excellent resource to provide for summer reading.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Planet Forward - The George Washington University
Grades
7 to 12tag(s): earth (185), earth day (60), environment (240), oil (24), oil spill (14), water (102)
In the Classroom
Where do you start? There is so much information on this site that is continually updated and interesting! Create student groups in major environmental categories such as Sustainability, Energy, Transportation, and others to mine the site for information. Create blog posts about issues, and create students' own surveys to identify local misconceptions to compare to those discussed on the site. Encourage students to apply their findings and information locally by writing for a local or school newspaper or to be interviewed about student work. Students can create videos, wiki pages, or other multimedia products to produce content, dispel or challenge myths, and create understanding of issues. Conventional products such as display boards, posters, and other announcements can also be created. Have students create online posters using a tool such as Genially, reviewed here. Make every day Earth Day by tying class topics into ecology issues.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Padlet - Padlet
Grades
2 to 12tag(s): bulletin boards (14), DAT device agnostic tool (143), images (262), timelines (50)
In the Classroom
Use a Padlet to collaborate in collecting ideas, brainstorming, and more. Use this tool easily in your Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) classroom since all students will be able to access it for free, no matter what device they have. Padlet does not show which work is attributable to which student, so you may want to require that students initial their contributions in order to get credit. If allowing all students to post to the wall or make comments, you may want to discuss internet safety and etiquette and establish specific class rules and consequences. Making the setting private again will prohibit content from later being replaced by classmate "vandalism."Use a Padlet to collect webquest links and information to share with students. By leaving the wall open to comments, solicit input, discussions, or viewpoints from students. They can even contribute other sources they find. Color code resources to indicate different reading levels or "high challenge" sources for your more able students. Assign a student project where students choose their theme and design a wall around it. For example, have students create a wall about an environmental issue. They can include pictures, audio or video, links, and other information to display. Use as a new format for book reports. Do your students have favorites such as music or sports? Create a wall around these favorites or hobbies. Use a wall for grammar or vocabulary words. Create walls for debates or viewpoints. Post assignments, reminders, or study skills on a wall. Do you use student scribes or reporters? Use the Padlet site to create a wall with the goings-on in class. Embed your walls in a blog, wiki or website. See a similar tool (and more ideas to use either tool) in the TeachersFirst review of Lino here. Decide which one you prefer! Unfortunately, the Padlet embedded viewer is very small but can be scrolled in both directions.
Use Padlet as a class space during snow days and school breaks. Share the link to a teacher-created, public wall where students can share notes about what they did during the snow day or respond to a thought-provoking question.
Encourage creativity and organization by having your gifted students (or anyone doing independent projects) create Padlets to collect ideas, images, quotes, and more in an "idea bin." Require them to share a brainstorming Padlet to show you the ideas they considered before they launch into a project. Have them brainstorm (and later sort/color code) the possibilities for a creative problem solving or "Maker Faire" project. In writing or art classes, use Padlet as a virtual writer's journal or design notebook to collect ideas, images, and even video clips.
Edge Features:
Parent permission advised before posting student work created using this tool
Includes Interaction w general public/ public galleries with unmoderated content
Includes social features, such as "friends," comments, ratings by others
Requires registration/log-in (WITH email)
Products can be embedded
Products can be shared by URL
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Educators' Top 100 Children's Books - NEA
Grades
K to 12tag(s): book lists (161), reading lists (80)
In the Classroom
Share this list with parents via handout or a link from your teacher web page or use it to help make selections for you classroom library. If you provide independent reading incentives, be sure to make this list available to your students as they make book choices. Perhaps you would like to let them "review" books from the list on a class reading wiki or include student mini-reviews on your teacher web page. Or print the list out in a large font and cut strips for books appropriate for your class in general. Allow any student who reads and reviews one of the books to sign the strip and hang it, along with a review, on an "Our Reading Accomplishments" bulletin board.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Father Figure - Lesson to Honor - Education World
Grades
K to 12tag(s): fathers day (7)
In the Classroom
Take advantage of these FREE lesson plans to honor the dads in your students' life.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Banned Books Week - American Library Association
Grades
3 to 12tag(s): book lists (161), reading lists (80)
In the Classroom
Compare the banned book list with your curriculum. Find out how many of your students' favorite books (like To Kill a Mockingbird) have been on the list.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Too Good to Miss - Top 100 List of Novels - Madison Public Library
Grades
1 to 12tag(s): reading lists (80)
In the Classroom
Choose age appropriate books for your students to read. Older students can choose their own books to read (with parental approval). Have students share their own Top Books using a tool like Padlet, reviewed here, or a video tool like Flip, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Shmoop Poetry Study Guides - Shmoop University Inc.
Grades
6 to 12In addition to the literary content, some poems also have a photo slideshow that accompanies the poem and their authors. The slideshows would be great for readers who may need some assistance in comprehension or may just need something to sell the content and heighten their interest. While actually signing up (which is free) gives you the ability to "clip" files and keep them in a folder, you can access the majority of the information without signing up. Registration does require an email address. If you plan to have students register individually, you may want to create your own Gmail account with up to 20 subaccounts for each group of students (by code name or number) within your classes. Here is a blog post that tells how to set up GMail subaccounts to use for any online membership service.
This site includes advertising.
tag(s): poetry (189)
In the Classroom
There are many possibilities at this website. Use it for reference, share the highlights on your interactive whiteboard or projector, or talk about the constructive use of a site like this without plagiarizing. One activity after reviewing a poem through Shmoop's process might be to have students use a poem not included on Shmoop and make their own entry for it, following the Shmoop template as an example. Try augmenting classroom technology use by using a simple slideshow tool like Slides, reviewed here, or use Slidestory, reviewed here, and use voice narration and images. Why not make your own wiki to include some of the same features for other poems? Not comfortable with wikis? Check out the TeachersFirst Wiki Walk-Through. Note: one popular poem on Shmoop is Poe's "The Raven." Be sure to have students explore TeachersFirst's interactive Raven as yet another rich way to experience the poem along with Shmoop.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Read Kiddo Read - James Patterson
Grades
K to 12tag(s): book lists (161)
In the Classroom
Sign up for Patterson's newsletter (free) to keep updated on news from the youth literature world and get free chapters. This is definitely a site to save on your classroom favorites and also list on your class website. Provide this link for families to use to find summer reading resources.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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The Teachers' Corner - The Teachers' Corner
Grades
K to 12tag(s): fractions (159), nutrition (134), parts of speech (40), phonics (50), speech (66), themes (11), writing (315)
In the Classroom
Although this site has a TON to explore, one of the best places on this site is the daily writing prompt section (find seasonal prompts at the Seasonal Items link). You can share them on your interactive whiteboard or projector with a picture and fact about the day and a question requiring a written answer. This is a great discussion starter or activating strategy with any grade level and it can already be posted when the kids enter the room or used as a prompt for blogging. Whatever subject area you teach, if you are looking for some new strategies to reach your students, check out this site.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Search - Children's Book Council - Children's Book Council
Grades
1 to 12In the Classroom
Be sure to include this site on your teacher web page for students and parents to access to learn more about recommended reading lists. Use the site as a starting point for crafting summer reading lists or to design a reading challenge for your class. *Link*Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Vocaroo - Vocaroo
Grades
K to 12tag(s): communication (136), speech (66)
In the Classroom
You need to be able to navigate controls on the website and sound levels on your computer. Copy/pasting embed codes is also a necessary skill for insertion in a website. Email the sound clip very easily.Future saving of Vocaroos is unsure depending upon server space. Before using with students, you may wish to obtain permission from administration and/or parents. Be sure to check your school's acceptable use policy. Students should be made aware of acceptable use and consequences of misuse of the service.
Vocaroo has a wide variety of applications in any type of classroom! For basic technology integration extend and enhance learning with this tool. Record snippets of information as reminders on your class website or instructions for students to follow. This is terrific for learning support students or non-readers! Have students describe aspects of classroom learning experiences to share with others, such as what they learned from a science experiment or found out about life in Colonial America. Record a quick message for an absentee and email the link to him/her explaining how to catch up on missing work. Create tutorial pieces that students can use as study aids (or have them create them for each other). Use this site in world language classes or for ELL students: have students record and listen to their own pronunciation or send short messages to each other to translate. Have students use this site to practice speeches before the presentation to hear their speed, tone, and words. Use this site for research presentations, instructions for a substitute, or many other possibilities. With younger students, read a short story on Vocaroo, and have student follow along using a picture book. Or have the students read their own stories into Vocaroo and email the readings to their parents! For Mothers Day, why not have students record messages for mom or grandma? Another idea: create a class wiki where parents can "find" the entire selection of Vocaroos for Mother's Day (or another holiday). Record Vocaroos of each student talking about the importance of Moms for Mother's Day or how grateful they are for certain things at Thanksgiving. Embed them all in a class wiki to share with parents. Just email the URL for the collection.
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PicLits - PicLits.com
Grades
K to 12Registering for a PicLits account requires the use of an email address. PicLits can be used without an account but you are unable to save or blog about their creation without an account. A class account can be created instead of individual student accounts. However, it does not show which work is attributable to which student. You may want to require that students initial their contributions in order to get credit. All work on the site can be seen without a login. All projects are public. NOTE: Our editors regret that PicLits occasionally allows advertising on their home page to include images that are not classroom-friendly. Teachers should preview to determine whether or not your students can ignore the ads.
This site includes advertising.
tag(s): creative writing (121), digital storytelling (141), images (262), sentences (22)
In the Classroom
Share a PicLit on your interactive whiteboard or with a projector at the start of a grammar or writing lesson to discuss word choice, figures of speech, or vocabulary. Use the visual picture prompt for journal or blog writing, allowing each student to compose a unique poem or haiku. Even science classes can write about concepts illustrated in the many nature photos. Emotional support teachers will love the chance to discuss feelings and how to describe facial expressions in the pictures. Make a collection of PicLits using a tool like 3 x 3 Links, reviewed here, for a curriculum topic. Modify classroom technology use by challenging students to create an online literary magazine using a tool such as BookRix, reviewed here. PicLits can be used for a variety of assignments in any classroom that is integrating technology as an enhancement. ENL students can create PicLits to learn new vocabulary. Have students create PicLits for special occasions and special people (mom, dad, grandparents, school nurse, or others). Use the embed code to place your creations on many other sites, including your class wiki or blogs. Share your PicLit by using a URL or code for an embedded widget.You may want to create a word doc, Favorites folder, or other "collection" of the URLs to all your students' projects in one place for easy work at grading time. Some teachers use a class wiki or blog with links to all projects from there. A simpler alternative would be to use a bookmarking tool such as Raindrop.io, reviewed here. You may allow students to self-register, but be sure to keep a written record of their passwords for when they "forget." It may be worth your time to do advanced registration for your younger students or simply use a whole-class account.
To use PicLits you must be able to navigate tabs on sites, manage logins, and use URLs and embed codes to share results on websites and blogs. Play to learn the tools before or after joining. The FAQs tab also provides a short-and-sweet text explanation of the tools. Find these under the Video Tutorials.
Edge Features:
Parent permission advised before posting student work created using this tool
Includes Interaction w general public/ public galleries with unmoderated content
Includes social features, such as "friends," comments, ratings by others
Requires registration/log in (NO email)
Products can be embedded
Products can be shared by URL
Multiple users can collaborate on the same project
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Bookmaking with Kids - Cathy Miranker and Susie Peyton
Grades
K to 12Teachers who desire professional development and fresh ideas will want to include this site in their repertoire.
tag(s): blogs (65), reading lists (80), reading strategies (98), writing (315)
In the Classroom
Use this site to help ANY grade level create original books. Have students work with a partner to create a book together. With older students, challenge them to create a book as a culminating project for a research assignment. Have younger students create books at the beginning of the year to introduce themselves to the class. The possibilities are endless at this creative site! Modify learning and use some of the ideas to make online books using a tool such as Bookemon, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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