Teachers First - Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers

This eclectic site has something for everyone about the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. For younger students, be sure to meet the mascots of the site, view the interactives, and more. Students of all ages can use this site to learn about the schedule, view photos and videos, learn about each sport in the winter 2010 Olympics, trace the torch relay, view a spectator guide, meet the athletes, view the interactive map, and more.

tag(s): olympics (46), sports (85)

This new site focuses on the Negro Baseball Leagues from their beginnings in the late 19th century until the time that Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in 1947. Much of the content is the work of James A. Riley, one of the foremost experts in the study of the Negro Leagues. The site includes information on players, teams, video clips, resources and current issues. Only a few items still require Flash. The other information and videos don't, and are well worth your visit. The videos reside on YouTube. If your district or school blocks YouTube, they may not be viewable.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): baseball (31), black history (136), civil rights (219), sports (85)

Finding fun and varied activities to keep students moving isn't always easy. The Teacher Toolbox on this site is the perfect find for quick and easy daily activities. After finding the toolbox, scroll down a bit to find the page with the link to calendars. Here is where you will find monthly calendars (in English and Spanish) and divided by age levels - Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary - with a quick and easy physical activity to accomplish for the day. Calendars are also archived back to 2016 so there are several options for each month.

tag(s): calendars (37), fitness (39)

Are you looking for some "fresh" ideas to put an end to bullying in your classroom but are not sure where or how to start? Well, you are in the right place. This web site brings attention to No Name-Calling Week: an annual week of realistic educational activities designed to end all types of name-calling. No Name-Calling Week was inspired by the young adult novel, The Misfits, and presents an opportunity to address bullying as an increasingly, ongoing issue. Whether you are a teacher, student, administrator, counselor, or parent, there is an abundance of useful ideas, activities, and materials for elementary, middle, and high schools to promote anti-bullying awareness, and they are all free!

tag(s): bullying (48), character education (82), sports (85), tolerance (8)

This dandy idea is a clear and concise weekly program to enhance general physical fitness through push-ups. Reading the site is easy; however, beware of some agitating advertisements sprinkled through-out the pages of this site. This would be great for health teachers, physical education teachers, and even school wide health initiatives or challenges. Included on this website are links for two hundred squats, twenty five sit-ups, and twenty-five pull ups. If push-ups are the place you want to start, or if you would like to offer a choice in fitness challenges, these links are worth checking out as alternatives for the teacher running the class or the students' choice. The important thing is to motivate their health with the technology that they already enjoy.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): human body (91)

What is Watch Know Learn? Short for "You Watch, You Know, You Learn" it provides explanations for students. Finding bits of information to help students can be frustrating as resources are disorganized on the web and may be hard to find." Watch Know Learn" is a free site that organizes small video clips to help with the understanding of a variety of topics in subject areas. Search by age (3-18+). You can click and drag the age filter to the youngest and oldest ages to include. Videos are also organized by sequence of topics taught. The site is an ongoing project with input from educators and organizations interested in education of children. Registration is not required to view the videos. Creating and saving videos to the site, as well as commenting, require registration. You can monitor site recent changes and additions using the "Change Log."

tag(s): computers (109), crafts (76), decimals (85), environment (251), ethics (21), fractions (159), holidays (194), Juneteenth (22), scientific method (48), video (267), vocabulary development (96), writing (323)

This website offers a one-stop destination to all of your Olympic information. There are links across the top to learn about the athletes, sports, countries, and even a media player offering video clips and more. At the time of this review the media player had over 1,000 videos and nearly 10,000 photographs! This is an excellent site for research about the Olympics (both summer and winter). There is also a link to go back and learn about the past 46 Olympic games. Although there are no "student" or "classroom" links, this site truly has something for everyone: maps and geography, science behind the sports, research about events and countries, athete information, and more.

tag(s): olympics (46)

This creative lesson plan challenges students to participate in their own version of the Olympics. Students choose which activities they want to "try their hand at" and are required to keep score. Some of the classroom Olympic "sports" include Speedy Spelling, Tongue-Twister Tournament, The Math Meet, and several others. The lesson plan includes descriptions of all sports and standards. This site was last updated in 2008, but the activities are applicable during any year.

tag(s): measurement (123), olympics (46), sports (85), statistics (120)

As part of their extensive site for vocabulary, roots, and more, MyVocabulary.com has added a themed area for the Olympics. Find interactive vocabulary activities using Olympics-related vocabulary words. You will also find printable crosswords, fill in the blanks and more, all using the same theme words. This and other "themes" available on the site will make vocabulary development fun.

tag(s): olympics (46), sports (85), vocabulary (241)

Here is a tribute to baseball as an essential part of American culture. Learn everything you every wanted to know about each of the Major League ballparks, from seating charts to attendance figures, to the history behind former ballparks, you'll find it here. The site does include some minor advertisements.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): baseball (31), sports (85)

Baseball and history fans will love this Library of Congress site with historical pictures that trace the heritage of our nation's pastime. Each page of pictures provides the historical context for the shot. The site also has a special presentation on Jackie Robinson and his historic breaking of baseball's color line.

tag(s): africa (170), african american (121), baseball (31)

HeartPoint has created this site that takes a creative approach to teaching students (and adults) about the heart, heart functions, and heart problems. Highlights include "Foods You Will Love" and "Health Tips". Be sure to visit the "HeartPoint Gallery" for detailed pictures, descriptions and other information.

tag(s): heart (27), nutrition (140)

Confused about the information and myths about health and nutrition? Use this site to gain valuable information about a wide variety of topics. Find articles in categories such as "Food," "Health Conditions," "Remedies and Therapies," "Health Tips," "Health Products," and "Tools and Lists." View a "Tip of the Day," "Latest Articles," "Interesting Health Facts," and "Latest Health News." Click on the abstract of an article of your choice to read the entire article. Sources and References are included.

tag(s): nutrition (140), obesity (8)

As part of their extensive site for vocabulary, roots, and more, MyVocabulary.com has added a themed area for basketball. Find interactive vocabulary activities using Basketball vocabulary words. You will also find printable crosswords, fill in the blanks and more, all using the same theme words. This and other "themes" available on the site will make vocabulary development fun.

tag(s): vocabulary (241)

American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance promotes and supports creative and healthy lifestyles through high quality programs in health, physical education, recreation, dance and sport, provides members with professional development opportunities that increases knowledge, improves skills, and encourages sound professional practices.

Though this site has been archived, all of the links to lesson plans, etc. are working. Learn the terminology, background, and teaching how-to's for informal or "non-traditional" gymnastcs from this site. You will find numerous activity and lesson ideas, complete descriptions of the skills (including cues, problem areas, tips, spotting, and variations), and even video of some skills to share with your students (Requires Quicktime). Lesson ideas come from educators who submit them, so the list keeps growing.

tag(s): sports (85)

The home page for the annual Iditarod sled dog race offers all manner of information on the race, the dogs, and the mushers. There's also information on the Junior Iditarod, and extensive information for teachers and students. This site is useful even during "non-race" seasons.

tag(s): alaska (22), iditarod (4)