TeachersFirst - Featured Sites: Week of Sep 24, 2023
Here are this week's features. Clicking the tags in the description area of each listing will present a list of other resources with this topic. | Click here to go to the Featured Sites Archive
Share TeachersFirst's weekly Featured Sites automatically on your teacher blog, wiki, edtech resource page, or educator web page. Use our Featured Sites embeddable widget offered here.
Latinx Authors and History - CommonLit
Grades
3 to 12
tag(s): differentiation (74), hispanic (28), literature (217), poetry (182), reading comprehension (134), Teacher Utilities (133)
In the Classroom
Learn more about the many valuable features and options provided by CommonLit, reviewed here. Assign and include these informational texts as part of a Hispanic Heritage Month unit, non-fiction lessons, or as part of a poetry unit. Differentiate activities based on student interest and reading abilities using the materials included in this text set. Enhance student learning by challenging students to create a concept map using mindmaps, reviewed here, that shares information and key concepts learned from these activities. Extend student learning by asking them to create an interactive map to learn more about the featured Latinx individuals and movements using StoryMaps, reviewed here. Include images, videos, documents, and more to tell the stories of the featured individuals with StoryMaps.You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
Cesar Chavez: Labor Leader and Civil Rights Activist Video - PBS Learning Media
Grades
3 to 8tag(s): agriculture (48), hispanic (28), migration (45)
In the Classroom
Create a free PBS Learning Media account to add this video and resources to a learning activity. Then, easily add questions related to the video on a slide presentation that includes the video and other resources from PBS or your device. Assign Learning Media lessons to a class you create, to Google Classroom, or get a quick assign code to share with students to access the lessons without signing in. Creating and assigning a task with several learning activities works well with flipped and blended learning activities. Extend learning by asking students to research and learn about other Hispanic leaders. Ask them to share their knowledge by creating interactive images using Genially, reviewed here, explainer videos using moovly, reviewed here, or podcast episodes hosted on Buzzsprout, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
Teaching Central America: Teaching Ideas for Elementary - Teaching for Change
Grades
K to 6tag(s): book lists (151), central america (15), ecosystems (71), hispanic (28), migration (45)
In the Classroom
Bookmark and save Teaching Central America as a resource for finding multicultural books and lessons to include in your classroom for Hispanic Heritage Month and throughout the year. Organize your saved bookmarks using Padlet, reviewed here. For example, create a column that includes your saved ideas for teaching about Central America, another for the Caribbean, and one for South America. Use Google My Maps, reviewed here, either as a class or with groups of students, to create interactive maps of places students learn about in Central America. Add links to your website or a column to the Padlet for class-created activities, informational articles, and videos that extend learning beyond the resources shared on this site. Some of the teaching materials include correlation to standards.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
The Kennedy Center Dance Collection - The Kennedy Center
Grades
K to 12tag(s): chinese new year (5), cross cultural understanding (149), cultures (125), dance (26), hispanic (28), jazz (17), native americans (86), poetry (182), stories and storytelling (37)
In the Classroom
Take advantage of the many free resources on this site to add dance to music lessons and cultural units and enrich topics featuring people and places worldwide. Each resource includes tags, and the lessons include suggested grade levels, use these links to find additional resources for classroom use. As you include information from this site, use an online whiteboard tool such as Google Jamboard, reviewed here, to engage students in learning. For example, add a link to a video from the site about a featured artist and ask students to share their learning or post questions to explore further. Ask students to share their understanding using one of the many tools found Adobe Creative Cloud Express for Education, reviewed here. For example, ask students to create a website of a featured dance style, while other students create a video sharing dance and cultural information about their chosen group of people or country.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
Reading Treks: The Distance Between Us - TeachersFirst
Grades
5 to 9tag(s): hispanic (28), identity (26), immigrants (31), mexico (29)
In the Classroom
Take advantage of the many suggested classroom uses for this resource found on the Instructional Guide (PDF). After reading this book and completing the activities found in the Reading Trek, ask students to document their identity using a tool like Odyssey, reviewed here. Use Odyssey to create a map-based story that includes images, text, videos, and photos. Find more ideas for teaching identity at this Discover My Identity Lesson Plan, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
Reading Treks: Esperanza Rising - TeachersFirst
Grades
3 to 6tag(s): 1920s (8), 1930s (18), great depression (27), hispanic (28), immigrants (31), racism (74)
In the Classroom
Take advantage of the many suggested classroom uses for this resource found on the Instructional Guide (PDF). This book and the suggested activities work well as part of lessons on racism and living conditions in the 1920s and 1930s on Mexican farms. Consider using the historical information and primary sources from the book to have students create timelines of the important events during the story. Find a variety of free online timeline creation tools located here. Use Google My Maps, reviewed here to create and share custom maps. As students conduct research related to life on Mexican farms during the 1920s and 1930s, use Fiskkit, reviewed here as a collaborative discussion tool. Use Fiskkit to share the link of any online article with students, then the site's tools provide the opportunity to highlight and add comments to areas within the article by users.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
Safe@School - Lesson Plans and Toolkits - USC Rossier
Grades
K to 12tag(s): african american (107), hispanic (28), racism (74)
In the Classroom
Use these resources throughout the school year, and especially during difficult conversations, including those about racism, come up in class. Review these resources to prepare yourself for spontaneous discussions about race and differences. You may want to start the school year with a community building activity from this list, from Teampedia, reviewed here. Or skim through the list of resources to find one that will fit your lesson and students.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
All About the Holidays - PBS Learning Media
Grades
K to 12tag(s): 100thday (9), back to school (62), chinese new year (5), christmas (38), cinco de mayo (10), easter (9), elections (78), fathers day (8), fire prevention (16), flag day (5), halloween (31), hanukkah (12), hispanic (28), holidays (149), july 4th (13), Juneteenth (18), kwanzaa (13), labor day (6), martin luther king (41), mothers day (9), new years (5), pi (25), presidents (117), rosh hashanah (8), st patricks day (11), thanksgiving (23), valentines day (11), veterans (19), womens suffrage (37), yom kippur (9)
In the Classroom
Bookmark this site to use as a resource for teaching material during holidays throughout the year. For each holiday use a bookmarking site such as Wakelet, reviewed here, to organize and share lesson materials, videos, and game sites for your students. Instead of worksheets or written reports, enhance student learning by asking them to create infographics sharing information about any holiday. Canva Infographic Maker, reviewed here, is a very easy to use tool that includes pre-made templates. Don't keep student learning to yourself, share their knowledge through holiday podcasts for your entire school and community to hear. Spotify for Podcastors (was Anchor), reviewed here, features many kid-friendly tools to get you started with creating and sharing podcasts.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
Kid World Citizen - Becky Morales
Grades
K to 6This site includes advertising.
tag(s): back to school (62), chinese new year (5), christmas (38), cross cultural understanding (149), earth day (63), hanukkah (12), hispanic (28), holidays (149), italy (15), Juneteenth (18), mexico (29), native americans (86), ramadan (9), thanksgiving (23)
In the Classroom
Bookmark this site for use throughout the year when teaching about countries, holidays, and for cross-cultural literature resources. Choose a country to explore each month using resources found on the site. Learn about your students' backgrounds to find countries and regions to explore using activities on the site. Use an online tool such as Interactive Two Circle Venn Diagram, reviewed here, to compare and contrast your culture with that of a different country.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
Classroom Materials - Primary Source Sets - Library of Congress
Grades
4 to 12tag(s): 20th century (50), authors (100), black history (112), civil war (130), constitution (85), hispanic (28), history day (39), immigration (63), jefferson (18), lincoln (57), new deal (5), primary sources (105), Research (79), segregation (16), thanksgiving (23), veterans (19), washington (24), westward expansion (37), womens suffrage (37), wright brothers (15)
In the Classroom
When introducing a new unit, show students photos from the era (on the left menu) and have them describe what they see and what period they think it is. Find plenty of questions and activities (including a blank analysis organizer for students) in the Teacher's Guides. Also look at Library of Congress: for Teachers, reviewed here. Encourage your students to use this tool for projects. Challenge students to find a photo (legally permitted for reproduction), and then narrate the photo as if it is a news report. Have students create a multimedia presentation using Google Slides, reviewed here. Google Slides allows you to narrate a picture (choose Insert from the top menu, then audio) modifying student learning. Include this site on your class webpage for students and parents to access as a reference.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
Zinn Education Project - Zinn Education Project
Grades
6 to 12tag(s): african american (107), bias (21), black history (112), civil rights (187), hispanic (28), racism (74), women (116)
In the Classroom
If you are looking for additional teaching materials that focus on issues of social justice, racism, or which provide information from a progressive point of view, you can search by time period or theme (i.e., African American, Mexico, Hispanic, Latinx, LGBT, War and Anti-War, Civil Rights, Racism, and many more). The teaching materials are in PDF format you can download once you log in. Language arts teachers will find the articles here great for nonfiction reading and terrific as discussion starters!Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
Daria -World Music for Children - World Music by Daria
Grades
K to 5This site includes advertising.
tag(s): hispanic (28), martin luther king (41), musical instruments (47), native americans (86), songs (42), sound (74)
In the Classroom
Turn up your speakers and try the limbo. Make simple instruments as part of your cultural heritage celebrations. Enhance learning by recording your class (or with older children - small groups) singing one of the simple songs using a simple tool such as Acast, reviewed here, or your computer's own recording software; then share the link to the recording on your class web page for younger students to sing along at home. During units on sound in elementary science class, make some of the instruments to explore how sound is created and transmitted. PE teachers can teach lessons using the song/dance options, such as the limbo. World language classes and world cultures classes may even find some of the ethnic instruments from other parts of the world interesting, despite the more juvenile appearance of this site.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
Salsa - Georgia Public Broadcasting
Grades
K to 12tag(s): ELL/ESL (33), hispanic (28), preK (247), resources (84), spanish (102)
In the Classroom
Use these episodes to supplement regular Spanish language classes or as enrichment for elementary classes wishing to learn a language. Encourage your Spanish-speaking class members to assist with pronunciation, episode summaries, songs, etc. Provide this link on your class website for students to use both in and out of the classroom; the activities and stories help with Spanish language comprehension. After introducing your students to this program you may want to set up stations with different stories from this list for students to rotate through. Share the stories on your interactive whiteboard or projector as a model for world language students, then extend student learning by challenging students to create their own stories. Use a tool like FlexClip, reviewed here, to record them and share them. FlexClip is designed to allow you to create short animated or explainer videos to share on YouTube and other social media sites. Then, share on a site such as TeacherTube, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
Cinco de Mayo Words - Myvocabulary.com
Grades
4 to 10tag(s): cinco de mayo (10)
In the Classroom
Use this site to reinforce and support vocabulary as you study Cinco de Mayo. Share the word puzzles on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Have students create their own word activities from the same vocabulary list, such as matching or ranking challenges for their peers to try on the interactive whiteboard.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
Use the form at the top of the page to log in, or click here to join TeachersFirst (it's free!).
Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
Close comment form