Teachers First - Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers

Explore vocabulary and word activities related to vacations on this extensive site for vocabulary, roots, and more. Find interactive vocabulary activities the same list of using vacation vocabulary words. There are 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): back to school (55), vocabulary (238)

You might not want to do an entire lesson on St Patrick's Day, but a few short activities in observance of the holiday could be a nice addition. This site offers just that. The best feature is a short video that delves into the history of the holiday and explains why it is still celebrated today, but there are several other options. Test your students' knowledge of St. Patrick's Day trivia with two interactive quizzes. Or use some of the site's other links as the basis for a teacher-created "treasure hunt." Other highlights include recipes, reference information about many famous Irish men and women, parade information, and more.

This site is very well done and offers a lot of information. If you are doing any activities about St. Patrick's Day, don't miss this site. Be aware: there are advertisements.

tag(s): holidays (187), ireland (11), st patricks day (12)

This gallery of World War II-era cartoons by Theodor Geisel, reveal the acerbic wit and political philosophy of the beloved children's author. The site also features audio and video clips from Dr. Seuss on his career and a brief history of political cartooning. Two lesson plans - focusing on the American themes and social messages addressed by Geisel - are available for downloading (and include McRel standards).

tag(s): comics and cartoons (55), dr seuss (12), world war 2 (161)

Create maps -- for multiple reasons -- with ease. As you 'travel' through your geography or history course, create an ongoing map of the places you've visited and embed/post it on your blog or any webpage. Simply type in the title of your map, choose the land masses you wish to include, and then click on the correct boxes for your particular locations. When finished, click the You're Ready box at the bottom of the screen. Now scroll to the top to see what your map will look like. The embed code (geek-speak term for computer gobble-dee-gook that tells your computer how to find and display the map you have made) for your map is ready to copy and paste into your webpage. You can find the embed code to the right of the map. There is also a button to Reset and Start Over.

tag(s): maps (220)

Take a short journey to learn about the Blues' history, including audio presented by the Kennedy Center. Begin by learning about the roots of blues found in songs and spirituals of Black field workers in the 1930s, then travel on a four-part journey through the decades to discover "new" blues heard in the music of modern artists such as Cat Power and Gnarls Barkley. Audio recordings are available to download to your device as an MP3 file.

tag(s): blues (22), chicago (4), jazz (16), louisiana (6), mississippi (5)

Need a PowerPoint? Check this site first to find one on a topic you need from the vast array available. The free PowerPoints and interactive activities are easily downloaded. To find the FREE PowerPoint presentations, click on the FREE Presentations in PowerPoint Format link found directly under the red train. There are literally hundreds of topics (over 1,200 at the time of this review). Topics are listed in alphabetical order. There are so many topics: Plagiarism, Integers, Interjections, IQ Tests, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Graphic Organizers, Graphs, Gold Rush, the Bible, Economics, Amelia Earhart (and many other heroes), Descriptive Writing, Coral Reefs, Civil Rights Movement, Autism, Ancient Civilizations, Presidents, Louisiana Purchase, Money, Music Instruments, How to Write an Outline, Rosa Parks, Resumes, Terrorism, Vietnam War, and many MANY others. Primary teachers will appreciate simple activities on Dolch words and other sight vocabulary! Pages are arranged in topics such as "Plants and Animals," "World History," "Biology, Chemistry, and Physics," and "Problem Solving." There are many professional topics on exceptionalities, as well. Each page includes a vast array of subtopics. Other links on the page include "Greta's Game Station" and "Hannah's Help" which offers information on researching.

tag(s): 20th century (62), adhd (28), back to school (55), electricity (61), flight (34), inventors and inventions (80), literature (222), parts of speech (39), polar (10), politics (118), speech (69), states (124), war of 1812 (15), world war 1 (77), world war 2 (161)

This site from the American Radioworks series uses a series of documentary audio recordings along with text and images to tell the story of the Jim Crow segregation laws in the United States. Featuring remembrances by those who where there, the site offers an engaging perspective on an era that ended more recently than many realize. If you teach American History, or have any lessons around Black History month, there is so much information to learn at this site, that you don't want to miss it!

tag(s): africa (148), african american (115), black history (133), civil rights (209), racism (79), segregation (18)

The department of history at the University of Pennsylvania developed this searchable collection of primary source materials dealing with the Civil War. The collection includes editorial cartoons, images, and manuscripts, all grouped by subject and time period. While some of the material will require interpretation, this would be a useful site for secondary research that requires the use of primary sources. Some of the sources require Adobe Acrobat. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

tag(s): civil war (139), lincoln (66), primary sources (117)

Those interested in the Civil War will enjoy this one. The simple timeline offers a comment about the events of the day drawn from Civil War history. From the menu on the right, find interesting topics like Civil War Facts, Trigger Events of the Civil War, The Reason for Secession, and others, with links to additional information.

tag(s): civil war (139), lincoln (66)

This site, created by The History Place offers a chronological listing of Civil War events (with pictures) and is easy to navigate. This site features topics such as Fort Sumter Attacked, Gettysburg, Shiloh, and several others. The timeline format is easy to understand. The photos are authentic and informative.

tag(s): civil war (139), lincoln (66)

Although this site is "plain vanilla," it offers some nice research information and photos of five "Lincoln" topics: Lincoln Becomes President, the Emancipation Proclamation, the Battle of Gettysburg, the Kansas-Nebraska Act, and the Dred Scott Decision. Nearly all of this site is displayed in a timeline format. There are some basic advertisements at this site, nothing too distracting.

tag(s): emancipation proclamation (13), gettysburg (15), gettysburg address (12), lincoln (66)

Explore this extensive online collection of Lincoln information. This site has nearly everything you could want to learn about Lincoln. Some of the highlights include speeches, lectures, and ideas, "This Week in History" (Lincoln history, that is), and more. Be sure to check out the Education link at the top to find many classroom resources.

tag(s): lincoln (66)

The Library of Congress demonstrates the depth of its archival image and documents collection in this site, which records first-hand accounts of the accomplishments and difficulties of African-American soldiers during the Civil War. Although rather "plain vanilla" this site is definitely one to explore if you or one of your students are interested in the Civil War.

tag(s): africa (148), african american (115), civil war (139), lincoln (66)

This site, designed especially for middle school students, includes a HUGE amount of social studies topics. Although this site is recommended for middle school students, it is also appropriate for high school students studying the subject areas. It is mainly a "text" site, without interactives. However, this is a great resource for explaining complex topics, researching specific topics in social studies, and much more. Some of the general areas of the site include: Mesopotamia, North America, Ancient Africa, Ancient Egypt, Medieval Europe, Islamic Empire, Ancient China, Ancient Rome, and Ancient Greece. Each general area includes countless sub-topics. There is a search box available at the top of the page. There are also links to activities for students, project ideas, and Teacher's Guides. There are two caveats: there are some advertisements, nothing too distracting AND some of the suggested activities include "buying" a book from Amazon. You do NOT need to purchase anything to take advantage of this free resource!

tag(s): europe (84), greece (47), medieval (32), mesopotamia (32)

The Library of Congress offers this daily look at historical events - mostly American. There is typically more than one event listed per day, and the text integrates cultural, literary, and political trends into the daily reporting. The story links have real depth and are well written for easy comprehension. Pictures make the history come alive and support the information given. This makes this daily nugget far more than just a collection of "factoids."

tag(s): history day (39)

This site offers some basic research on MANY "Amazing" Americans. Click to learn more about "Amazing" Leaders & Statesmen, U.S. Presidents, Activists & Reformers, Adventurers & Explorers, Musicians & Composers, Writers & Artists, Industrialists & Entrepreneurs, Scientist & Inventors, or Athletes and Entertainers. Be prepared: when you click on one of the topics you may have a few people pop up OR more names than you can count! This is an excellent site for research, teaching students about American heroes, or using to enhance your social studies, science, or music curriculum. There are pictures and short articles of information. There are a few interactives that require Flash, however most of them don 't and the articles are well worth your time to investigate.

tag(s): composers (14), explorers (64), inventors and inventions (80), presidents (135), scientists (67)

This simple site provides historical information about Anoka, Minnesota. Do you know what makes Anoka so interesting? It has the unique nickname of the "Halloween Capital of the World." Do you want to know why it is the capital? Visit the site and read all about the history, celebrations, and more. Suddenly a community's claim to fame can become a way to introduce your students to the process of tracing local history.

tag(s): halloween (32), minnesota (3)

Use Gapminder Tools (with no login required) to see how countries vary and change over time in economics, health, and environment. Click the MAP tab as a good place to start. Follow all trends and click play to animate the country bubbles through a timeline. Click on a specific bubble (country) to follow through time. Each axis of the graph can be customized for a large number of combinations. Video tutorials and a pdf of directions are available. Share your chart through the use of a link or take a snapshot of your screen using print screen functions. There is also this page of help and ideas specifically for teachers. Be patient. This site has a lot of information to load, so you may have to wait a bit!

tag(s): countries (73), environment (252)

This creative site offers "how to" videos on a WIDE variety of topics. Anyone is able to view the videos, but you must be a member (which is free) to comment on the videos, grade the videos, or submit your own "how to" video. Topics vary; some are appropriate for the classroom - others are definitely NOT appropriate. Some of the general topics that may be useful in the middle school or high school classroom include: alcohol, autos, motorcycles, and planes, business and money, computers and programming, diet and health, education (which features a variety of science experiments and more), film and theater, language (English, Chinese, Hungarian, Russian, Finnish, sign language, Polish, and countless others), music and instruments, travel, and several other topics. Within each of these general topics, there are thousands of specific "how to" videos.

Membership is free and has many perks. You are able to comment and/or grade the video clips or even submit your own video. Registration does require some personal information: a username, password, email address, and date of birth. ALL USERS MUST BE OVER 13-years of age! Check with your administrator about allowing the students to register for this site using fictitious names. You may wish to set up a class registration instead of entering true data into the registration site. Another option is to create a free Gmail account to use for memberships. If you plan to have students register individually, you may want to create your own Gmail account with up to 20 subaccounts for each group of students (by code name or number) within your classes. Here is a blog post that tells how to set up Gmail subaccounts to use for any online membership service. Warning: not all videos are suitable for the classroom. Be sure to preview what you wish to share. If you choose to allow your older students to navigate this site on their own (for research or a class project), be sure to set boundaries on which videos to watch, consequences for going elsewhere, and WATCH CAREFULLY! Some videos explain "how to" do things that are unsafe or inappropriate for school-ages audiences. Wonder How To does include unobtrusive advertisements.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): aircraft (16), business (52), money (113), russian (26), sign language (10)