Teachers First - Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers

This site lets you keep study notes with you anywhere you go! Create flashcards and study even on your mobile phone. Share notes, flashcards, study guides, and quizzes with others for excellent collaboration. Study Blue also provides hints to help students study. Create a folder in "My Backpack." Make flashcards to get started or search flashcards already created by others.

tag(s): flash cards (44)

Use JotForm to quickly build a professional online form. Build contact forms, surveys, and many other forms in a matter of minutes. Customize to meet your needs. Use the large, empty canvas by dragging and dropping elements. Generate and post your form online and receive an email for every survey response.

tag(s): polls and surveys (49)

ABCya.com, created by a web developer turned computer teacher, provides educational games, videos, and activities for elementary students. Nearly every subject is included. Simply click on your grade level (K-5) and find what is available under language arts, math, and other subjects. Specific topics range from basic typing activities to creating word clouds to grammar games (at all levels) and so much more. The interactives are teacher approved and offer colorful and attention grabbing ways for learning. Opportunities for sharing on Facebook, tweeting, and sharing on social bookmarking sites are incorporated. This is a MUST SEE site for elementary teachers looking for some great practice sites for basic skills!

tag(s): alphabet (53), decimals (85), drawing (61), fractions (160), game based learning (205), geometric shapes (134), keyboarding (28), latitude (10), literacy (122), longitude (9), number sense (69), numbers (120), operations (72), preK (270)

Extend your writing workshop beyond your classroom walls with this site! This website includes explanations and practice for writing techniques in upper elementary classrooms. Another section contains areas to post your own story or continue with a story in progress. The content reinforces and expands upon the 6+1 Trait Writing Model used in many elementary writing programs. Users are able to make comments. So, you may want to preview before you share with students.

tag(s): characterization (19), main idea (8), writing (325), writing prompts (61)

Promote environmental citizenship through this site's "green learning" units. The curriculum ranges from examining how electricity works, understanding the balance of ecosystems, to a high school unit on sustainable futures. Enjoy the interactive wind turbine and carbon calculator. The animation for grades 4 - 7 is engaging, and the video presentations for high school students on sustainability is powerful. Green Learning provides educators with an array of hands-on activities, online learning opportunities, printable materials, assessment tools, and valuable resources such as environmental experts to contact. Each environmental concept taught provides opportunities for real world learning, encourages social action, and advocacy. Teacher friendly planning tools can help meet instructional time constraints, students learning styles, and promote cross-curricular connections. The site is free but requires registration. Membership provides access to additional educational materials and a monthly newsletter. This program comes to us from Canada.

tag(s): climate (84), climate change (99), conservation (102), ecosystems (83), electricity (61), energy (133), environment (252), natural resources (37), OER (43), persuasive writing (58), solar energy (34), sustainability (50)

At this site you will find free interactive listening activities, reading exercises, quizzes, and more. Though developed with the ESL/ELL teacher and student in mind, any language arts teacher will find activities here to help differentiate language skills in your classroom. This is an extensive site with several levels in each language arts strand. Every strand and level also has numerous activities to choose from.
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tag(s): grammar (137), listening (93), reading comprehension (149), vocabulary (238)

Join the fun of rhymes and music in the Mother Goose Club. Energize over 78 popular Mother Goose rhymes with song and music. Videos, songs, and/or coloring pages accompany the rhymes. Activities and tips for teachers and parents are included. Additional curriculum items are advertised for a fee. However, the FREE items make this site a must-see!
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tag(s): nursery rhymes (9), phonics (51), preK (270)

This site, created by the Kennedy Center, offers a wealth of interactive lesson plans for grades K-12 dealing with a variety of topics, all with an "arts" spin. Search by subject, keyword, or grade level (K-4, 5-8, or 9-12). Some examples of topics include Native Americans, Civil War, Shakespeare, myths, melodrama, adjectives, monsters, baseball, and countless others! Be sure to check out the category "Our Best Resources Organized by Subject." After that click on the the top menu for Education and get even more resources. There are many interactive lessons: some with video, audio, or slideshows. The lessons provide an estimate of time required and complete, step-by-step instructions. There are printables included with some of the lessons.
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tag(s): african american (115), baseball (32), civil war (139), comics and cartoons (55), dance (31), folktales (34), greece (47), habitats (92), immigration (68), literature (221), mexico (37), musical instruments (52), myths and legends (37), native americans (108), painting (54), surrealism (2)

Create the letters of the alphabet with folded paper. The animated video directions are easy to follow along and successfully create origami. The trip to the local craft store for origami paper is not necessary because Origami Club also provides free printable, decorative paper.

tag(s): alphabet (53)

This blog teaches English to international students by offering a "phrase a day." Common words and phrases are explained in context; several examples of each usage make the meaning clear. Many of the situations described are those experienced by adults or older teens, not children, such as giving a speech or shopping alone. Of course, this site could also be used in a regular classroom to teach speech/language or grammar. Students can look at the site or have a phrase emailed to them every day. Phrases include commonly used groups of words, idioms, and other typical language of both casual and formal English. To find a list of all phrases in the system, students can click on "Learning Tools." In addition to an index, this section offers explanations of basic grammar terms like parts of speech, stress, and other conversation techniques. Students can also make comments and read the comments of others. No email address is required to comment on the blog posts. (Our reviewers found no objectionable comments from the public, but teachers should always preview.)

tag(s): idioms (30), phrases (6), slang (15)