Teachers First - Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers

The Gillette Castle Friends website's photo and video gallery offers an engaging glimpse into the unique architecture and history of Gillette Castle, built by the actor William Gillette. Teachers can use this resource to visually introduce students to historic architecture, highlighting features like medieval-style design, quirky details, and scenic surroundings. It serves as an engaging tool for discussions on historical preservation, architectural styles, or regional history. The photos and videos allow students to explore the castle's intricate craftsmanship and design, making history more tangible and accessible. The videos are hosted on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, then they may not be viewable.
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tag(s): architecture (84), connecticut (4), medieval (33), virtual field trips (131)

Tour the White House in 360 Degrees is a free virtual tour that allows you access to the White House's public rooms on the Ground and State Floors. During the tour, you can examine the rooms and the objects inside. Finally, you get information about the rooms and objects by clicking on the circles and using a ruler to take measurements.

tag(s): virtual field trips (131), white house (16)

Little Inventors is a free website that offers STEM activities for students. Little Inventors allows children to develop and showcase their creativity and problem-solving skills and build their confidence, curiosity, and resilience to become caring citizens of our planet. Challenges include Climate Champion, Ocean Challenge, World of Pollution, Pioneers Inventor log, and Food Waste. Inside the challenges, you will receive challenge cards, visuals, planning pages, curriculum fit, and PowerPoint explaining Little Inventors; note that challenges have deadlines.

tag(s): inventors and inventions (81), STEM (310)

Pedagog.ai supports educators using AI by providing free resources such as a prompt library, lesson plans, and AI tools for teaching and learning. After creating an account, use Pedagog.ai's dashboard as a starting point to find and access information. The prompt library includes suggested prompts for all curricular subjects, professional development, student prompts, and teaching strategies. The lesson plans include categories of AI Literacy and Integrating AI to share topics such as Generating Hybrid Animals with AI or AI and Historical Perspective. Visit the Using AI section to gather ideas on using AI to gamify your classroom and how to use AI with student projects.

tag(s): artificial intelligence (187), computers (109), creative writing (126), critical thinking (137), digital literacy (16), editing (93), images (263), media literacy (113), persuasive writing (58), politics (118), population (51), readers theater (12), shakespeare (99), vocabulary (242), vocabulary development (95)

The Virtual Field Trip on Manufacturing the Future of Aviation is a free video series that shows three Boeing manufacturing facilities (Renton, WA, Portland, OR, and Salt Lake City, Utah) up close. The videos show how mechatronics, robotics, and ergonomics are shaping the future of aviation manufacturing. Additionally, various skilled STEM professionals share how they use cutting-edge tech to solve real-world challenges.

tag(s): aviation (41), flight (34), STEM (310), virtual field trips (131)

The Young Inventors' Program (YIP) from the University of New Hampshire's Leitzel Center offers an engaging resource for educators to encourage creativity, problem-solving, and STEM skills in students. The program supports teachers in implementing invention education, providing a curriculum that guides students through the invention process from idea generation to prototyping. YIP offers lesson plans, instructional videos, and access to regional invention conventions where students can showcase their creations. The site emphasizes hands-on learning and innovation, making it a valuable tool for teachers aiming to foster inventiveness in their classrooms. If your district blocks YouTube, then the videos may not be viewable.

tag(s): inventors and inventions (81), STEM (310)

Multisim is an interactive online platform designed for circuit simulation and electronic design. It provides teachers a practical tool for teaching electrical engineering and electronics concepts through hands-on simulations. The website allows students to design, simulate, and test circuits in a virtual environment, making it ideal for classroom use in STEM education. Multisim offers several free features, including a free software trial, educational resources like tutorials and guides, pre-built circuit simulation examples, and access to recorded webinars and instructional videos. Additionally, the platform includes pre-built templates, components, and analysis tools to help students understand circuit behavior, enabling teachers to create engaging lab activities, project-based learning, and real-world problem-solving tasks. If your district blocks YouTube, then the videos may not be viewable.
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tag(s): circuits (19), electricity (60), engineering (137), simulations (23), STEM (310)

The website Bucket List Travels offers a curated list of the world's greatest historic buildings, providing detailed information on each site's cultural and historical significance. Teachers can use this resource to introduce students to global history, architecture, and cultural heritage. Suggested classroom activities include virtual tours, student presentations on favorite historic buildings, or research projects comparing architectural styles across different civilizations.
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tag(s): architecture (84)

Visiting Mount Rushmore National Memorial is typically out of reach for most classrooms; however, a virtual visit is accessible to all. This site includes links to exhibitions, videos, a panorama tour, a 3D explorer, and more. Visit the lesson plans section to find lessons for grades K-12 that include several content areas, including math, science, and visual arts. Use the provided links to download individual lessons in a zip file. Lessons include correlations to national teaching standards.

tag(s): jefferson (19), landmarks (21), lincoln (67), photography (131), roosevelt (15), virtual field trips (131), washington (28)

Crash Course Engineering is a free digital tool that contains forty-four engineering videos. This series explains what engineering is, the different fields of engineering, and how engineers see problems in the world and try to fix them. The topics covered in the videos include biodevices, aerospace engineering, environmental engineering, and heat transfer. The videos range in length from ten to twelve minutes. This site uses YouTube and has commercials before some of the videos.
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tag(s): aeronautics (12), energy (133), engineering (137), environment (251)

Discover how computer science powers everything from recording music in the studio to streaming songs through apps like Amazon Music. Learn about careers like music producers, engineers, and app developers--all through an interactive, game-like experience on Kahoot! Get ready to explore the tech behind the tunes and see how you can combine creativity and coding for a future in music!

tag(s): careers (182), engineering (137), producers (6), STEM (310)

Curious about the history of intellectual property? EquipHq's Timeline Activity takes you on an engaging journey through key milestones in the development of patents and trademarks. With a visually interactive timeline, this resource highlights important legal cases, patents, and the evolution of intellectual property law. It's a fun and educational way for students, educators, and professionals to explore the impact of innovation over time.

tag(s): inventors and inventions (81), timelines (57)

The AIMS Center for Math and Science Education promotes engaging, hands-on learning experiences for students and educators, focusing on math and science. Their mission emphasizes playful, human-centered, and culturally responsive approaches to education, to create equitable opportunities for all learners. Through professional development programs, resources, and innovative projects like their PLAYshops, AIMS helps educators deepen their understanding and improve classroom instruction in meaningful ways. Their commitment to creativity and exploration fosters an environment where teachers and students can thrive. Some of the resource links for the activities are YouTube videos. They aren't necessary to teach the activities, but they are helpful.
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tag(s): collaboration (94), makerspace (40), professional development (393), STEM (310)

Crash Course Games is a free digital tool that includes twenty-nine game videos. This series explores ancient games, board games, card games, arcade games, virtual reality, roleplaying, and sports. Additionally, it explores the purpose of games, game facts, and history. Videos range between eight to twelve minutes. This site uses YouTube and has commercials before some videos.
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tag(s): augmented reality (9), sports (85)

Crash Course Intellectual Property is a free digital tool that contains ten videos about Navigating Digital Information. This series of videos teaches how to look at digital information quality and how our scrolling for information shapes us as people in feeding information on what we think, value, trust, and do. This series will help you learn how to navigate and browse with confidence. Videos range in length from ten to fourteen minutes, and topics include evaluating evidence, Wikipedia, social media, and fact-checking. This site uses YouTube and has commercials before each video.
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tag(s): digital citizenship (93), digital literacy (16), internet safety (116)

Crash Course Intellectual Property is a free digital tool that contains seven intellectual property videos. The videos teach about intellectual property, ownership, the rights of the creators, copyright, trademarks, patents, and more. They range in length from ten to twelve minutes. This site uses YouTube and has commercials before some of the videos. Additionally, there is a disclaimer for the validity and content of the videos.
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tag(s): copyright (43), creative commons (28)

Brought to you by the United States Patent and Trademark Office, this site features interactive, standards-aligned activities that introduce students to intellectual property (IP). Explore the many activities, go on a patent quest, or find inspiration by watching inventor stories. Most activities include teacher and parent resource guides that include guided questions to enhance the use of features on the site.

tag(s): engineering (137), inventors and inventions (81), STEM (310)

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 (87), computers (109), internet safety (116), robotics (26)

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 (187), black history (135), branches of government (64), business (54), climate (85), computers (109), copyright (43), ecology (105), energy (133), engineering (137), human body (91), literature (221), media literacy (113), myths and legends (42), plants (148), politics (118), space (220), statistics (121), video (267), 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 (187), computers (109), video (267)