TeachersFirst - What's Popular

This page shares the 25 resources most frequently marked as Favorites by TeachersFirst Members in the past 60 days. See what tops the list of TeachersFirst's database of well over 15,000+ educator-reviewed web resources. Find out what other teachers are excited about. Not a TeachersFirst member yet? See the time saving benefits of free TeachersFirst membership.
Brain Teasers and Puzzles - Brain Easer
Grades
2 to 12tag(s): critical thinking (102), geometric shapes (131), patterns (62), Problem Based Learning (11), problem solving (214)
In the Classroom
Bookmark and save this brain teaser site to use throughout the school year. Share a problem of the week with your students to complete as homework or during a work center. Provide teasers of different levels of difficulty to differentiate and challenge your students. Enhance student learning by asking them to explain their success in solving challenges and sharing their process to find the correct solution. Use Flip, reviewed here, to share your weekly teasers, then have students create and share a video response. Ask students to use the tools on Flip such as the whiteboard, stickers, and text to explain their responses in detail. Extend learning further by creating a class book using Imagine Forest, reviewed here. Use Imagine Forest to make and share a digital book of brain teasers. Use the interactive elements to add links to audio suggestions for tackling problems or link to video solutions on the final pages of your book.You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
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Gettysburg by the Numbers - TeachersFirst
Grades
5 to 10tag(s): civil war (128), gettysburg (16)
In the Classroom
Gettysburg exemplifies many aspects of the Civil War experience and of U.S. life during the 1860s. Use this resource as a whole class introduction to the Civil War or specifically to the Battle of Gettysburg. Extensive teacher materials include downloadable and customizable handouts for students to "get the basics" about the battle or extend their understanding through small group or individual projects on battle-related topics that interest them. Coordinate with your math teacher to reinforce concepts of proportion, percent, ratio, and graphing with real data about Gettysburg. Differentiate for your students by helping them select from more concrete or more open-ended "questions" included with each detail about the battle. You can make this a one-day "quick tour" or a week long journey. Find project ideas included in these questions. There is even a customizable project rubric in the teacher materials. Be sure to share this link on your class web page for curious students (and families) to explore on their own outside of class!Comments
Excellent resource for researchArthur, TX, Grades: 0 - 12
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Padlet - Padlet
Grades
2 to 12tag(s): bulletin boards (13), DAT device agnostic tool (135), images (254), timelines (44)
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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Math Whiteboard - Math Whiteboard
Grades
6 to 12tag(s): calculators (38), charts and graphs (162), collaboration (87), iwb (31)
In the Classroom
Use the Math Whiteboard to easily share and demonstrate math instruction both in-person and during remote lessons. Add additional pages to any whiteboard to assign students or groups of students to demonstrate their work. Create a collaborative whiteboard for use when providing additional instruction or support with groups of students. Share this site with students to use when collaborating in class or when working on homework. Ask students to take a screenshot of work created using the Math Whiteboard to include work being assessed. Use the real-time features of collaborating using this whiteboard to provide support and feedback at any time.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Excel Easy - E-Learning
Grades
K to 12This site includes advertising.
tag(s): computers (96), data (136), Microsoft (75), spreadsheets (23)
In the Classroom
Bookmark this site for your use and for student use on classroom computers. Make it easy to find sites with tutorials by creating a Padlet, reviewed here, to share with students. Use columns to sort tutorials and other helpful sites by topic within your Padlet. If you don't find a tutorial that you need, extend student learning by asking them to create their own using Free Screen Recorder Online, reviewed here, or by creating an explainer video using FlexClip, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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myShakespeare - Richard Clark and Greg Watson
Grades
8 to 12tag(s): england (51), literature (221), plays (28), shakespeare (91)
In the Classroom
This site is a must-have for teachers of Shakespeare! Engage students by sharing the video performances to help students understand key events during any of the plays. Share and point out the glossed (bold) words to help students understand difficult language. Find the tool for glossed words in the top menu to turn it on and off. Have students answer the comprehension questions as a formative assessment for their self-reflection and to guide your lesson planning. This site is perfect for use in remote classrooms or as a flipped learning activity. Assign portions of the text to students to read before class discussions. Using myShakespeare in this way offers many tools for students to view the material in different formats as they complete the reading. Use Flip, reviewed here, to enhance student learning throughout your Shakespeare unit by asking clarifying questions and have students post video responses. Extend learning further by asking students to create short video explainers of different scenes of the play using Binumi, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Animated Drawing - Meta AI Research
Grades
K to 12tag(s): animation (60), drawing (61), editing (88), images (254), preK (246)
In the Classroom
This animated drawing tool engages students in learning using their creative expressions and artwork. Incorporating animated images on most sites is easier when using a GIF file instead of the provided MP4; use a file conversion tool such as EzGIF, reviewed here. Include animated drawings in student blogs created with Edublogs, reviewed here, or in multimedia presentations produced in Sway, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Twitter Chat: Maximizing Learning with Microsoft Edu - TeachersFirst
Grades
K to 12tag(s): Microsoft (75), twitterchatarchive (151)
In the Classroom
Find resources and information about maximizing learning with Microsoft Edu. Share this chat with your colleagues looking for strategies and resources on Microsoft Edu.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Maths Through Stories - University of Reading's Institute of Education (UK)
Grades
K to 12tag(s): book lists (133), stories and storytelling (36)
In the Classroom
Use this resource to find ideas for introducing and teaching the elements of math stories with your students. Bookmark and share interesting math stories with your students using Symbaloo, reviewed here. Take advantage of the many tools found at ReadWriteThink, reviewed here, to teach students the features and process for writing math stories. Search for math stories at ReadWriteThink to find lessons. After students create math stories have them create interactive presentations using Genially, reviewed here. Use Genially to create presentations, interactive images, or games and escape rooms.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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The Heart: An Online Exploration - Franklin Institute
Grades
4 to 12tag(s): body systems (43), heart (25), human body (90)
In the Classroom
Add this site to your bookmarks to share with students as you learn about the human heart and the circulatory system. Use Padlet, reviewed here, to organize and share your bookmarked sites with students. For example, use categories in Padlet to organize shared information by different body systems, or if working specifically on the heart, create categories for informational sites, review activities, videos, and articles. Enhance learning and ask students to use the timeline feature of Padlet to create a step-by-step visual look at the process of the circulatory system as it moves through the body. Extend learning by asking students to create a human heart model, then use CoSpaces Edu, reviewed here, to build a 3D heart model. CoSpaces Edu offers tools for students to upload photos to create an immersive tour. Share the site's directions with students to explore and learn together, then ask the groups to teach other students how to create with CoSpaces.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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OK2Ask: Engage & Inspire: Choice Boards for Differentiation Pt. 1 - TeachersFirst
Grades
2 to 12Help students focus...more
Help students focus on building knowledge, understanding, and essential skills by empowering them to choose how they will meet their learning goals. Learning menus or choice boards allow your students to complete equally active, interesting, and engaging assignments that demonstrate their comprehension of the presented material. This session will teach you to use choice boards to help students demonstrate mastery of content. As a result of this session, teachers will: 1. Understand how choice boards support student voice and choice; 2. Learn about the use of choice boards for both instructional and assessment purposes; and 3. Plan for the use of choice boards as part of instruction. This session is appropriate for teachers at all technology levels.
tag(s): professional development (319)
In the Classroom
The archive of this teacher-friendly, hands-on webinar will empower and inspire you to use learning technology in the classroom and for professional productivity. As appropriate, specific classroom examples and ideas have been shared. View the session with a few of your teaching colleagues to find and share new ideas. Find additional information and links to tools at the session resource page. Learn more about OK2Ask and upcoming sessions here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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OK2Ask: Engage & Inspire: Choice Boards for Differentiation Pt. 2 - TeachersFirst
Grades
2 to 12Take your choice...more
Take your choice boards to the next level! Regular choice boards allow your students to complete equally active, interesting, and engaging assignments that demonstrate their comprehension of the presented material--but not all students learn at the same pace or have the same background knowledge coming into a lesson. In this session, you'll learn to differentiate your choice boards by process, product, or content to support students as necessary. As a result of this session, teachers will: 1. Learn the basics of Tomlinson's differentiation model; 2. Learn to differentiate choice boards for both instructional and assessment purposes; and 3. Use a template to create a differentiated choice board. This session is appropriate for teachers at all technology levels.
tag(s): differentiation (69), professional development (319)
In the Classroom
The archive of this teacher-friendly, hands-on webinar will empower and inspire you to use learning technology in the classroom and for professional productivity. As appropriate, specific classroom examples and ideas have been shared. View the session with a few of your teaching colleagues to find and share new ideas. Find additional information and links to tools at the session resource page. Learn more about OK2Ask and upcoming sessions here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Shakespeare - Myvocabulary.com
Grades
6 to 12tag(s): literature (221), shakespeare (91), vocabulary (233)
In the Classroom
Have students work in cooperative learning groups, divide up the vocabulary words, and have each group responsible to find the definitions for their assigned vocabulary words. Enhance learning by having the groups share their words and definitions in an online book, using a tool such as Bookemon, reviewed here. Have the groups share the online books on your interactive whiteboard or projector and embed them in a class wiki. And of course, don't miss the interactive word puzzles! This is a great addition to a unit on Shakespeare or even character education.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Bookopolis - Kari Ness Riedel
Grades
1 to 7tag(s): book lists (133), book reports (29), classroom management (131), guided reading (32), independent reading (80), reading comprehension (128), remote learning (61), social networking (75), Teacher Utilities (132)
In the Classroom
Create your account with one of several social media programs, or your email, teacher name, username, and some basic information. Create your dashboard by adding a class and class name. You can create multiple classes. From the teacher dashboard on right menu choose Teacher Resources to view the several teacher video tutorials to get started. Click the class name to add students; student accounts can be created manually or by importing an XLS or CSV file. Students will automatically be "friends" with other students in the same class, but can also invite students from different classes. Share this site with students (and parents at back to school night) using your interactive whiteboard or projector. Students also have video tutorials; show students the video tutorial "How to Add Books" to get them started. In your blended or remote learning classroom enhance students' learning for this tool using the tutorial (s) along with MoocNote, reviewed here, to add comments and information. Students can create bookshelves for books they are reading, that they have read, and that they want to read. Students can earn points and badges for the books they read. This tool will get students excited about reading since they can connect with friends to share book reviews and swap book recommendations. Students also practice persuasive writing, comprehension, and typing skills by completing reviews, reports, and reading logs online. This tool is great to keep track of student home reading or if you are teaching remotely! Besure to list this site in a parent newsletter or on your website as one to use to avoid the "summer reading slide."Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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