Teachers First - Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers

Monkey Pen offers free downloadable books and coloring pages for children ages four to twelve. Scroll through to find book titles and visit the link to view books online or download them as a PDF document. Each book is up to twenty pages or more long and includes a short story and colorful images. Visit the free resources links to find downloadable coloring books on farm animals and musical instruments. Sort the coloring pages by topics, then download the PDF documents for personal use.
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tag(s): ebooks (47), preK (291), printables (36)

ADL Education provides professional learning resources, educational programs, and strategies for building and sustaining equitable and inclusive environments. Program topics include Anti-Bias, Antisemitism, Holocaust Education, and Bullying and Cyberbullying Education. Browse all content or use the filters to find online learning, classroom, and family resources. The classroom resources include a booklist, lessons for K-12 classrooms, monthly featured books, and more. Most lesson plans correlate to Common Core and SEL Standards.

tag(s): bias (28), bullying (48), civil rights (219), cross cultural understanding (178), cyberbullying (44), difficult conversations (57), disabilities (32), holocaust (43), racism (83), religions (113), social and emotional learning (110), women (154)

This site shares anti-racism and anti-prejudice education resources for Australian schools that provide support for schools in any country. Visit the different areas to learn how to understand racism and bias in various institutions and religions. Find anti-racism and anti-prejudice lessons for all grade levels, including quizzes, classes, and activities that provide foundational skills to counter racism and prejudice.

tag(s): bias (28), difficult conversations (57), racism (83), social and emotional learning (110)

EdJustice is an outreach by the NEA to advance social justice issues in public education. Tools for Justice resources include Freedom to Learn, Immigration Justice, and Racial Justice and more. Tools for Justice provides communication tips, guides for conducting respectful conversations, and resources to learn more about each topic. Take Action shares links to support social justice causes. Art for Action offers downloadable posters and digital art to share with communities and for personal activism.

tag(s): difficult conversations (57), empathy (37), immigration (84), racism (83), social and emotional learning (110)

Teaching for Change offers educators resources for building social justice through classroom activities by sharing professional development, social justice lessons, resources, and learning communities. Visit the Educator Resources to find resources linked to areas of focus that include anti-bias education, civil rights teaching, social justice books, and much more. The book section includes booklists and picture book reviews by theme.

tag(s): bias (28), central america (26), civil rights (219), cross cultural understanding (178), difficult conversations (57)

Visit Humane Education to find over two hundred free lesson plans, worksheets, and more for students aged 3-18. The lessons teach skills that help students learn compassion towards people, animals, and our planet. Register using your email to gain access to the lesson plans that align with Common Core Standards and Social Emotional Learning Standards and connect to ISTE Standards and Next Generation Science Standards.

tag(s): book lists (168), climate change (101), nutrition (140), preK (291), social and emotional learning (110)

This podcast is a weekly storytelling program that answers "what if" questions submitted by kids. Questions include, "What if it snowed even in summer?" and "What if cats could be astronauts?" Episodes are approximately twenty minutes long and feature lessons to learn, such as facing your fears and pursuing your dreams. Visit the resources section to find valuable educator materials that accompany the podcast. Resources include stories sorted by lesson, a what-if question generator, kid-friendly transcripts, and an episode-listening worksheet. Transcripts for all episodes are available to read online or download as a PDF. Listen to the podcast online or with Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

tag(s): listening (92), podcasts (118), questioning (36), social and emotional learning (110)

Noodle Loaf is an interactive podcast incorporating music education with art, rhythm, and social awareness. Each episode is approximately fifteen minutes or less and is available to listen to on the website or save on a Spotify playlist.
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tag(s): listening (92), podcasts (118), preK (291), rhythm (22), social and emotional learning (110)

Choose2Matter invites people to discover that what they do matters and to take action on their dreams and passions. Visit the Resource section then, click Exercises to find four learning modules ranging from one hour to a full-day session. Each course description includes objectives, a timed agenda, and accompanying materials, including videos.
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tag(s): back to school (55), character education (81), differentiation (86), mentoring (6), professional development (393), social and emotional learning (110)

Learn about becoming a changemaker by watching this video presentation by Shiloh Devadas, a 5th-grade student in Texas. During the presentation, Shiloh focuses on our changing world, famous changemakers, and her story as a changemaker by painting and sharing inspirational words on rocks distributed within her community. The videos are hosted on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, then they may not be viewable.

tag(s): womenchangemaker (39)

Upschool provides many free learning opportunities aligned with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The core of Upschool's content includes a selection of 10-week and short courses with topics such as The Solar System and Beyond and The Importance of Mountains. Additional learning opportunities include Social Scenarios, Comprehension Corner, SDG Challenges, and Teacher Training. Upschool also has a library of over one hundred books submitted by authors with a special message to share. Read the books online or download them as a PDF for free. Many of the books also include teaching resources such as task cards.

tag(s): animals (293), antarctica (30), careers (183), climate (86), earth (182), explorers (64), food chains (19), gifted (66), glaciers (17), journalism (74), mountains (10), oceans (149), Online Learning (36), photography (131), planets (113), plants (148), rainforests (18), social and emotional learning (110), solar system (108), sustainability (51), weather (160), writing (323)

K20 Games offers over a dozen games encouraging critical thinking skills through game-based learning. Games place students in the role of decision-makers in real-world situations. Examples of games include Aware, which puts the student as an emergency manager in a region plagued with emergency disasters, and Paper Trail. This game asks students to consider how to behave in a morally corrupt business community. To access the games as an educator, select the Request Games link and complete the required information to receive an invitation code. Receipt of the code typically takes 24-48 hours. After receiving the code, follow the directions in your email response to create an account. Create a class, then select games to assign to your students. Each selected game includes teaching materials and a sample lesson plan. Share the provided invitation key with students to access and play games.

tag(s): bias (28), business (54), careers (183), data (150), evolution (88), financial literacy (95), functions (52), game based learning (208), media literacy (113), organizational skills (88), psychology (65), statistics (120), weather (160)

Learn how to identify antisemitism, understand what it is, and its societal and community impact with this explainer provided by Facing History. Discover the answers to many questions, including "Is antisemitism racism?" and "Why does antisemitism persist?" through factual information interspersed with personal stories. In addition, this article includes a series of three reflection questions for student discussion. Readers don't need to register for a free account to access this article; however, registered members can save it to their favorites and download the document as a PDF.

tag(s): bias (28), difficult conversations (57), holocaust (43), racism (83), social and emotional learning (110)

The Achievery is a free digital learning platform created by AT&T in collaboration with Warner Brothers that pairs video clips with lessons to engage students in learning across seven subject areas. Create an account to access activities such as a poetry scavenger hunt with Amanda Gorman or learn reading and writing skills from Wonder Woman video clips. Begin at the "All Units" link to find content by grade level, standards, subject, and additional filters. Most lessons are part of a larger learning unit; however, they are ready to use as individual teaching activities. Each lesson includes correlations to teaching and CASEL standards (Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning), highlights relevant vocabulary, activity directions, and links to the featured video, and is available in PDF format. The Achievery lessons and activities are available in English and Spanish. This site would be a good one to leave for your substitute to use; it's high interest, no sign-in, and has lesson plans & video clips.

tag(s): blended learning (36), coding (87), digital citizenship (93), engineering (137), environment (251), equations (118), geometric shapes (132), graphic design (50), internet safety (116), literature (221), map skills (64), measurement (123), media literacy (113), narrative (16), numbers (120), operations (72), order of operations (29), problem solving (233), remote learning (54), Research (88), social and emotional learning (110), spanish (110), STEM (312), substitutes (25), writing (323)

This site brings together many of the excellent resources on the web about Judy Huemann and the disability movement. Find podcasts with disabled changemakers and their supporters. Resources offer a variety of information, lessons, videos, books and book guides, disability resources for asserting your rights, and much more. Central to the disability rights movement is Section 504 of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which stipulates that individuals with disabilities "should not be denied the benefit of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance." Find a downloadable "Curriculum Guide for Patient No More: People with Disabilities Securing Civil Rights," found under 504 Sit in History. Judy Huemann led protests, including a 26-day sit-in at Health Education and Welfare's San Francisco headquarters, calling the federal government to issue regulations implementing Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act.
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tag(s): bias (28), character education (81), disabilities (32), women (154)

In this unit, students will discover the actual human behind the famous name Maya Angelou. The unit has three parts: Tough Beginnings - Maya as a child and teenager, Talent to Spare - Maya as a young adult and her early career, and More than Words - Inspiration. Many students may not know that she was the first African American streetcar conductor in San Francisco and a singer and songwriter. Part three, More Than Words: Inspiration, has a timeline from 1971-2008 and colorful images of her later in life. In the last two parts of the unit find four discussion questions called Think Piece. At the bottom of the landing page are three different word activities. You will need to have a free Kids Discover membership to access this unit.

tag(s): african american (121), authors (108), biographies (94), black history (136), poetry (195), women (154)

Find everything you need to learn about Patsy Mink, a powerful Asian-American woman. Elected to Congress in 1964, she collaborated to craft Title IX, a law that prohibits discrimination in education and federally funded activities due to gender. There are activities and discussion questions for grades 1-6 based on an essay for students, an article, and a short video.

tag(s): bias (28), character education (81), racism (83), women (154)

Learning for Justice offers this complete lesson where learners reflect on identity as they examine Angelou's touching poem "Still I Rise" and extract its implications for their lives. Maya Angelou's story of triumphing over difficulty and prejudice is used to teach students the importance of self-belief and the power of their words to create positive change. Find essential questions, enduring understandings, a list of materials needed, vocabulary, suggested procedures, and an extension activity.

tag(s): bias (28), character education (81), identity (37), poetry (195), racism (83)

The Game Design Studio Toolkit is an 82-page downloadable booklet created for teens as a tool for considering societal issues as part of the game design. Access the booklet by sharing your name and email, then download the book as a PDF document. Chapters include a focus on students as changemakers and creating content that provides emotional safety, respect, and a welcoming environment.

tag(s): coding (87), gamification (86), social and emotional learning (110), STEM (312)