Teachers First - Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers

Crash Course Computer Science covers a broad range of topics, from the basics of computing, like binary and Boolean logic, to advanced concepts such as machine learning, cybersecurity, and computer vision. The videos explore historical milestones, influential figures like Alan Turing, and key developments in software and hardware. As these videos are hosted on YouTube, if your school does not allow YouTube, this site would not work well for you. There is an option on the site to download the videos to view off of YouTube.
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tag(s): coding (85), computers (109), internet safety (114), robotics (24)

The Crash Course has over 45 videos on topics ranging from Anatomy to Zoology, Artificial Intelligence to Outbreak Science. There are the more common topics one might want to learn about, like Ecology, Films, Geography, and much more. All videos are free to watch. Each video also includes a short description (some with lesson stem ideas). Crash Course videos are hosted on YouTube. If your district/school blocks YouTube, they may not be viewable. The good news for teachers whose schools block YouTube is that you can download the video if you fill out a form. Go to the Download tab from the top menu, select Students & Teachers, scroll down the page, and follow the directions.

tag(s): artificial intelligence (177), black history (133), branches of government (65), business (52), climate (84), computers (109), copyright (44), ecology (103), energy (133), engineering (129), human body (93), literature (221), media literacy (109), myths and legends (37), plants (146), politics (118), space (222), statistics (121), video (266), zoology (18)

Bring your students up to date on the latest technology with these 20 educational videos from Crash Course. The videos cover what Artificial Intelligence is, how it works, how to use it for learning, and more. The videos reside on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, they may not be viewable at your school.

tag(s): artificial intelligence (177), computers (109), video (266)

Are you ready to learn the art of prompting? This Google Arts and Culture experiment allows everyone to learn how to create effective prompts by practicing recreating images that increase the difficulty level. As each level begins, Say What You See provides a tip for what information to include. Use up to 120 characters to write a prompt to try recreating the provided image. Move up to different difficulty levels by starting with at least a 50% match in recreating the pictures in each level; the percentage to pass increases with each level.

tag(s): artificial intelligence (177), descriptive writing (42), images (263)

Girlstart's simple mission statement is "to empower girls through STEM." To deliver this mission, Girlstart offers many opportunities to bring STEM activities to girls through programs and camps, conferences, community education outreach, and hands-on activities and guides for educators to use in their classrooms. The downloadable hands-on activities include a colorful work page and a list of inexpensive and easy-to-find materials needed to complete each project. Additional resources include weekly activities, STEM Halloween ideas, and a calendar with thirty-one DeSTEMber ideas to promote the idea that STEM is everywhere.

tag(s): engineering (129), gravity (43), halloween (32), space (222), STEM (297)

Create games and animations with Wick Editor's open-source tools, available as beta downloads or browser editors. Visit the example page for tutorials, examples, and program references. Use filters on this page to find examples by difficulty level or type of animation project. The tutorial videos reside on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, then they may not be viewable.

tag(s): animation (65), gamification (83), STEM (297)

This blog post uses information from a survey of active AI users to provide insight into the current uses of AI in today's classrooms. The infographics share details on how students use AI, how often students use AI for schoolwork, and other AI-related questions. This post also includes a short analysis of the results of each survey question. A glimpse into the future applications of AI reveals its expanding role in interactive games, adaptive learning platforms, tutoring, and grading to support educators.

tag(s): artificial intelligence (177), parents (57), professional development (385)

Explore the many apps that integrate with Google to save time and increase productivity. Use the included filters to find apps by topic, age range, categories, and languages. Many resources are Google Classroom add-ons, allowing teachers and students to use the tool within Google Classroom. Not all tools are free; however, most offer a free component.

tag(s): Teacher Utilities (198)

Generate quizzes, lessons, and gamified assignments using Gibbly and the power of AI. After creating an account, visit Gibbly's library to browse and search for lessons and quizzes. Open any item to view and edit questions, print a PDF, or share the link by social media or email. Assign activities for solo play or host a live, synchronous activity. Create quizzes and lessons using the create button; options include manual and AI quiz generators and AI-generated lessons. Build lessons by adding the topic and grade level for the lesson; Gibbly then generates a lesson plan and several options for slides, including background information, discussion questions, and Did You Know information. Free accounts include 10,000 tokens monthly, unlimited hosting of review games, the creation of unlimited quizzes and lessons, unlimited classes, unlimited access to disover content, and Google exports and Google SSO.

tag(s): artificial intelligence (177), gamification (83), preK (271), quizzes (90), Teacher Utilities (198)

Gauth uses AI to provide homework help in math and science topics, including chemistry, physics, calculus, and more. Under the menu topic - Subjects, you will also find help with Literature, Writing, Social Science, and others. To begin, upload a question or an image. Gauth then provides a step-by-step response with a detailed explanation of the answer. Find additional explanations by selecting Copilot, which is built into Gauth's platform, or by choosing from suggestions for related questions. You don't need to register, but doing so will allow access to your search history.

tag(s): artificial intelligence (177), equations (119), literature (221), statistics (121), STEM (297), tutorials (52), writing (325)

This Hour of Code tutorial guides you through creating a virtual telescope in a computer browser to search for astronomical objects in a virtual world. Follow the instructions in the twenty-step tutorial to culminate in the completion of the game engine, which includes loaded images of stars to explore. Each activity also includes an optional challenge component to enhance learning.

tag(s): coding (85), space (222), stars (71), telescopes (11), tutorials (52)

National Geographic Education shares many classroom resources for all grade levels, including videos, interactives, maps, and more. Use the keyword search to find content related to specific content, filter by grade, type of learning materials, and subject, or browse the site to view some of the latest resources. Although registration isn't required, creating an account allows members to bookmark and save favorite resources.

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The Big Fib Podcast encourages kids to separate accurate information from falsehood by listening to an interview with two participants in a game show format. The participants are known experts and liars. Recent podcasts include kid-friendly topics such as whales, bicycles, and laughter. Several educational guides are available for download, including a Listening Guide for prelistening, an Explore Board for use before and while listening, and a Choice Board for after listening activities. An additional document includes correlations between reading and literature standards and speaking and listening standards.
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tag(s): game based learning (205), media literacy (109), podcasts (108)

Tumble is a science podcast for kids; however, it is entertaining and informative for the entire family. Topics include timely events like a solar eclipse and thought-provoking questions like whether dinosaurs burped. Each podcast episode includes a blog with a transcript and supplemental information such as videos, images, and links to additional resources. Most podcast episodes run between twenty and thirty minutes and are available on several podcast-hosting resources, including Apple, Google, and Amazon Music.

tag(s): animals (295), bacteria (22), birds (46), dinosaurs (43), insects (69), listening (93), molecules (44), oceans (149), planets (113), plants (146), podcasts (108), stars (71), sun (71)

Varsity Tutors offers a series of free live classes for summer learning. These sessions begin on May 6 and run through August 14. Classes provide learning opportunities to help students prepare for the SAT and ACT exams, learn about hieroglyphics, visit an aquarium, and more. Select the link to any class to learn more about the content and suggested grade levels, and enroll. Each class is offered at a specific time and date and lasts 45 minutes to an hour.

tag(s): animals (295), coding (85), college (45), deserts (16), egypt (56), essays (21), Online Learning (36), pyramids (21), rivers (16), STEM (297), test prep (69)

Can you and your students identify AI-generated images vs. human-made images? This activity shared by Curipod, reviewed here lets you select from image options to generate a lesson with a series of slides with polls for students to choose the correct image format. Additional slides include the prompts for creating the AI images and a short lesson on verifying AI-created images. Customize the presentation as desired before sharing it with students, or share it with the link or by selecting "Present" on your device to display it in real-time.

tag(s): artificial intelligence (177), digital citizenship (85), images (263), Teacher Utilities (198)

Tomorrow Classroom provides learning tools for students aged 13-18 including web creation, design, and coding. Students create portfolio websites, capstone projects, passion projects, and more using these lessons. Begin by creating a teacher account or logging in to your current Wix account and completing the registration questions. Create a class by importing students from Google Classroom or Microsoft Teams, or invite students by email. Educators can access a Curriculum Guide, Design Journal, and downloadable class kits and lessons for each activity. Four courses are available - Intro to Wix and the Web, Web Creation, Web Design, and Web Development. Lessons provide alignment to ISTE Standards for Students.

tag(s): computers (109), editing (93), graphic design (49), images (263), Online Learning (36), STEM (297), tutorials (52)

Use your AI prompting skills to find how closely you can match an image. Every thirty minutes, a new image appears, and users have up to one hundred characters to match the image as closely as possible, using up to one hundred characters in the prompt. After generating the image, Twin Pics provides a percentage indicating the similarity between the original and the generated image. Scroll down the page to view the current leaderboard of user-generated images.

tag(s): artificial intelligence (177), descriptive writing (42), images (263), writing prompts (61)

Use the three lessons in this article to help your students learn about and respect the need to understand copyright and fair use. Let's Give Credit, for second grade, teaches students why it is essential to give credit and how to give credit the right way through role-playing activities as detectives. A lesson plan for fourth graders guides students through the rights and responsibilities involved with using images. The Four Factors of Fair Use provides middle school students a framework for understanding fair use, copyright, and domain. Create a free account to access the lessons and materials shared. All lessons correlate with national standards, including ISTE, Common Core ELA, and CASEL.

tag(s): copyright (44), digital citizenship (85), STEM (297)

Discover a variety of computational thinking resources for elementary students including lessons, activity sheets, PowerPoints, and downloadable classroom posters. Register for an account using your email to access and save materials found on the site. Browse through activities by grade level or topics. Topics include programming, collaboration, logical thinking, and more. Be sure also to check out the Teacher Resources to find professional development to bring you up to date with the latest computing concepts.

tag(s): coding (85), collaboration (93), computational thinking (40), computers (109), logic (161), patterns (61)