TeachersFirst's Brain Breaks for Students
Regular brain breaks are a simple but powerful way to boost student focus, engagement, and retention in the classroom. These short periods of physical activity or mental rest re-energize young minds when they start feeling tired or restless. Brain breaks improve how students think by increasing blood flow and brain connections. They also provide a much-needed reset when students feel overwhelmed or have checked out of the lesson. This collection highlights brain-break ideas, exercises, and activities that easily fit into lessons. Discover ways to get students moving, laughing, reflecting, and re-centering their attention. Using these resources will create a more active and focused learning environment in your classroom.
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Wordsmith - Wordsmith
Grades
5 to 12tag(s): game based learning (181), spelling (98)
In the Classroom
Introduce this game on your whiteboard or with a projector. Ask if there is a volunteer who wants to play it in front of the class, giving your wordies a chance to shine! Use the game as a brain break, or put it on computer stations for students to rotate through or use on rainy day recess.You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
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Drench - FlashByNight.com
Grades
K to 12tag(s): brain (56), classroom management (123), game based learning (181), logic (163), problem solving (226), social and emotional learning (96)
In the Classroom
Add Drench to your resources to share with students for quick brain-break activities that encourage problem-solving through gameplay. Ask students to share their strategies for selecting colors as they work toward completing the game board. Curate and organize brain break activities into a single resource to share with students using Symbaloo, reviewed here or 3X3 Links, reviewed here. Find more ideas for brain break activities on TeachersFirst Special Topics Page: Brain Breaks for Students, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Scribble Diffusion - Replicate
Grades
K to 12tag(s): artificial intelligence (143), drawing (60), images (260)
In the Classroom
Anytime students use images, discuss the proper use of copyright. Currently, copyright laws do not apply to AI-generated images; include this in your discussion and consider why this might be true. Create images to use as starters for creative writing projects, to include in multimedia projects, or for students to use as avatars for blogs. Use images created with Scribble Diffusion in digital storytelling projects, such as those created with Canva Edu, reviewed here or with Canva Comic Strip Templates, reviewed here. In art class, use one doodle to create images in different art styles and ask students to compare the different features of each style. Ask students to choose one art style to use in creating drawings by choosing from different options of media and supplies.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Animate from Audio - Adobe Express
Grades
K to 12tag(s): animation (64), artificial intelligence (143), images (260)
In the Classroom
Take advantage of this engaging site for you and your students to use in many ways. Engage students in upcoming lessons by creating animated previews of forthcoming material. For example, create a short video with hints about geographic features to be studied by including one of them as your background. Ask students to share learning by creating short videos presented as a character chosen from the provided options. Extend learning by asking students to include their animations as part of a larger presentation created using tools found on Adobe Creative Cloud Express for Education, reviewed here, such as videos, pamphlets, and webpages. Use TinyWow, reviewed here to convert your Adobe MP4 video to a GIF, MOV, or MP3 file as needed.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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20 Fun and Easy Brain Break Ideas for Kids - Fit and Fun Playscapes
Grades
K to 6tag(s): brain (56), classroom management (123), social and emotional learning (96)
In the Classroom
Incorporate brain break suggestions from this article into your classroom routines and share ideas with parents to provide brain breaks for their student at home. Use an online timer like the one at Classtools, reviewed here to help you and your students return to classroom lessons within the allotted time. Include brain breaks within lessons using Curipod, reviewed here. Use the Brain Break Generator tool to find and share activities for your grade level.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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17 Brain Breaks Tailored for High Schoolers - Paige Tutt
Grades
7 to 12tag(s): brain (56), classroom management (123), professional development (407), social and emotional learning (96)
In the Classroom
Share this article with parents to help them understand the need and benefits of taking brain breaks while studying or doing homework. Take advantage of the advice and activities in this article to provide brain breaks and increase student focus in your classroom. Set a timer to remind you and your students to take scheduled breaks using the widget provided on Classroomscreen, reviewed here. Use the timer to schedule brain break activities so that you return to lessons promptly. Quickly create groups for activities using the group maker tool found on Classroomscreen to ensure that students have opportunities to interact with different class members.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Suno AI Song Creator - Suno
Grades
K to 12tag(s): artificial intelligence (143), lyrics (15), preK (263), songs (44)
In the Classroom
Use this song generator to engage students in any subject. For example, ask Suno to create lyrics and music to coincide with upcoming holidays and classroom events. Try asking Suno to make an upbeat song about your field trip to the zoo or a jazz song that includes information about New Orleans, and play the song for students as a schema activator for your lesson. Create songs with specific vocabulary terms for students to use as a learning aid or produce songs that assist multilingual learners in learning English. App smash Suno with MagicSchool's Song Generator, reviewed here by asking MagicSchool to create a song using any topic and details, then copy the lyrics into Suno to turn the lyrics into any genre desired. Ask students to use Suno to make a song that accompanies a research project or multimedia presentation, then include the song with other presentation elements built into a simple website created with edublogs, reviewed here or another free website builder like Strikingly, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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invideo AI - invideo AI
Grades
K to 12tag(s): artificial intelligence (143), tutorials (54), video (261)
In the Classroom
Create videos for many classroom purposes by writing prompts clearly stating your needs. For example, include the topic, age or grade of students, type of voice (male or female) if desired, and specific vocabulary or information to include. Use invideo AI to differentiate content for your students' varying needs by creating videos on similar topics but with different levels of vocabulary and information. Embed your videos into multimedia tools such as Sway, reviewed here and NearPod, reviewed here to include additional elements of any lesson. Share a link to your video with students to view as a schema activator before a lesson or as a flipped learning activity before introducing new content.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Designer - Microsoft Designer
Grades
K to 12tag(s): artificial intelligence (143), images (260), Microsoft (80)
In the Classroom
AI-generated images are an excellent tool for use with many classroom purposes. The image creator supports over 100 languages, so it is accessible for use by almost all students. Teach students how to write descriptive sentences by creating AI-generated images; students quickly learn how to add specific details to create a desired output. Use Designer to engage students in creative writing projects by generating images based on anything their imaginations share. Include AI-generated images in your classroom newsletter, website, or worksheets as an easy resource for adding pictures without spending much time searching for the right photograph. Share this site with students to include images in multimedia projects, such as those created using Sway, reviewed here or Google Sites, reviewed here. When using any AI resource, be sure to provide guidance on using AI tools ethically, creatively, and responsiblyAdd your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Adobe Firefly - Adobe
Grades
K to 12tag(s): artificial intelligence (143), creativity (90), editing (91), graphic design (49), images (260)
In the Classroom
Use Firefly to create images for many different classroom uses to engage students and extend learning. Use the text effects feature to create text to teach letters or words. An example would be making the word "apple" and filling it with apples to teach beginning letter sounds to students using imagery. Use the text-to-image feature to create images for students to use with creative writing projects or to visualize a scene in a story. Edit images using the Generative Fill option to remove unwanted items or add new items. Edit an image to demonstrate different art styles when teaching students about artists. Download your edited images for students to use when making ebooks with Book Creator, reviewed here or to use when publishing writing using a simple website creator such as Telegra.ph, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Clipdrop - Jasper
Grades
K to 12tag(s): artificial intelligence (143), images (260)
In the Classroom
Anytime students use images, discuss the proper use of copyright. Currently, copyright laws do not apply to AI-generated images; include this in your discussion and consider why this might be true. Create images to use as starters for creative writing projects, to include in multimedia projects, or for students to use as avatars for blogs. Use images created with Clipdrop in digital storytelling projects, such as those created with Canva Edu, reviewed here or with Canva Comic Strip Templates, reviewed here. In art class, use one doodle to create images in different art styles and ask students to compare the different features of each style. Ask students to choose one art style to use in creating drawings by choosing from different options of media and supplies.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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ZEP - ZEP Co., Ltd
Grades
9 to 12tag(s): digital escapes (5), game based learning (181), quizzes (90)
In the Classroom
Zep is a fun interactive space with many possibilities for classroom use! Choose from several games for content review or brain breaks. Quiz Show is a survival game where players survive by correctly answering quiz questions from the room host (the teacher). Escape Room is a game where you solve puzzles, discover clues, and complete tasks to escape from the game's setting in a limited time. The OX Quiz is a game where you correctly answer questions as they appear to survive. Choose the correct side and last to the end! Teachers can enhance their digital classrooms by adding announcements and links, collaboration spaces, and personalizing their space. Another great way to utilize the digital space is to make locations that may be physically inaccessible available digitally.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Logic Games - Crazy Games
Grades
4 to 12This site includes advertising.
tag(s): game based learning (181), logic (163), problem solving (226), puzzles (142)
In the Classroom
Bookmark and save this game site as a resource for logic and puzzle games to share with your students. Consider adding a puzzle of the week to your computer center activities or as an engaging at-home learning activity. Puzzles are an excellent way to strengthen math conversations in any classroom. After spending time with logic puzzles, ask students to share their thought and learning processes as they play each game. Ask students to create a screen recording demonstrating how to play the game and discussing the process. Use your device's screen recording features or an online tool such as Free Online Screen Recorder, reviewed here, to create and share recordings. Use a simple curation tool such as 3X3 Links, reviewed here, to share students' recordings and/or discussions in one easy-to-find location.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Sports Games - Crazy Games
Grades
K to 12This site includes advertising.
tag(s): game based learning (181), sports (81)
In the Classroom
Before starting a new sports unit in your physical education class, share a corresponding game with students to play at home. Playing games allows students to engage with the latest sport and receive a short introduction to some rules. Also, consider adding games from this site to classroom computers as an indoor recess activity when outdoor activities aren't available.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Brain Teasers and Puzzles - Brain Easer
Grades
2 to 12tag(s): critical thinking (117), geometric shapes (135), patterns (62), Problem Based Learning (12), problem solving (226)
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 Padlet, reviewed here, to share your weekly teasers, then have students create and share a video response. This is a link to Padlet's Help section for posting video or an image. 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.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Blob Opera - Google Arts and Culture
Grades
K to 12tag(s): music theory (45)
In the Classroom
Share Blob Opera with students as an engaging way to experiment with the found included opera categories - tenor, bass, mezzo-soprano, and soprano. Ask students to record and share their experiments on your classroom webpage. Use Blob Opera as a brain break activity or stress-reliever for students (and teachers!).Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Along - Gradient Learning
Grades
6 to 12tag(s): classroom management (123), communication (138), social and emotional learning (96), Teacher Utilities (159)
In the Classroom
Along makes it easy for you to implement this tool into your classroom with their many free resources. Resources include guides to introducing Along to students and fellow educators. Share the privacy information guide with parents as you begin using this tool. Begin by using the customizable calendar as a method for planning to introduce and use Along. Consider using the information found on the site to create and share a presentation about this product using Google Slides, reviewed here, or by creating a short video using Adobe Creative Cloud Express Video Maker reviewed here. Be sure to show students how to prepare for their responses. If you find some students are reluctant to use one of the modes, for instance, the video, work with that student to help them feel comfortable. Uses for this tool are only limited by your imagination, and it's perfect for staying updated on the social-emotional learning (SEL) of your students. Check-in with students during long projects or reports to see where they are in the process and if they have any frustrations, check-in after a science lab to see who has questions, ask students at the end of a project or lab what they would do differently next time. Check-in with Language arts book groups to see how students are doing with the novel, their group, the project at the end, etc.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Undraw - Katerina Limpitsouni
Grades
K to 12In the Classroom
Be sure to bookmark this resource for images for a variety of classroom uses. Include images from this site in your class newsletter or website. Select interesting images to use for creative writing prompts. Change the color in an image and ask students to compare the two images and reflect upon how the use of color changes an item's mood or tone. Bookmark this site on classroom computers for students to use with their creative projects. For example, use images in videos created with Animoto, reviewed here, to make travel commercials, explain science experiments, or explain literary genres.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Kids in Motion Math Collection - PBS Learning Media
Grades
K to 8tag(s): addition (127), counting (59), fitness (40), multiplication (121), subtraction (108)
In the Classroom
Take advantage of the free activities shared in this math collection to practice and reinforce math facts through physical activity. Consider sharing lessons with your school's physical education teacher as a way to incorporate math instruction as a cross-curricular approach. Incorporate lessons from the site into your current math activities. Use a tool such as Curipod, reviewed here, to deliver blended math lessons that include ideas from this site along with videos, quizzes, and additional materials. Differentiate tasks easily within Curipod by creating activities for different levels of learners. After completing lessons from the collection, ask students to create their own math learning games. Share instructions for student-created games using Clipchamp, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Expii Solve - Expii, Inc.
Grades
8 to 12tag(s): cultures (140), holidays (178), logic (163), problem solving (226)
In the Classroom
Be sure to save these puzzles for use throughout the school year. Use these problems as a substitute for your typical homework assignments. Include questions as part of math or science centers. Replace pencil and paper journals or notebooks by having students blog about their learning and understanding using Tumblr, reviewed here. Ask groups of students to work on topics together then share their results with the class. To enhance student learning and understanding, consider instituting a recurring podcast for students to share problems and discuss problem-solving strategies. Use a site such as podOmatic, reviewed here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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