Teachers First - Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers

Be inspired to love American History! Development citizenship and awareness by using this ten-part curriculum of short stories, speeches, and songs. The curriculum consists of three categories. The Meaning of America explores the American character and identity through the "close reading" of classical short stories such as "To Build a Fire" and "Man Without a Country." The American Calendar examines the purpose of the American holiday, proposing the celebrations help to unite us and attach us to our country. Songs for Free Men and Women scrutinizes national songs for meaning and how they emotionally attach us to our nation. All of this curriculum is inquiry based. It also offers suggested discussion questions, study guides, author biographies, and video discussions to model how higher-level-thinking conversations about each text should sound. What So Proudly We Hail uses primary texts, has rigor, is inquiry based, and has many essay topics and writing prompts aligned to the Common Core Standards for English Language Arts and Literacy in History/Social Studies. A few of the blog entries include helpful information about the Common Core standards.
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tag(s): democracy (24), guided reading (33), holidays (187), literacy (122), literature (221)

Timer-Tab is an easy to use online alarm clock, timer, and/or stopwatch. Click on any of the functions, set your time, and get started. The alarm clock and countdown move in increments of hours, minutes, and seconds. The countdown and stopwatch also have a pause feature. One especially handy feature is that the time displays on the browser time so you can see it as you navigate other web sites.

tag(s): classroom management (120), counting (60), time (91)

Use this colorful map to locate and read newspapers from around the world. Click on map pins to locate newspapers or search using filters such as languages. Use the key to locate newspapers in each language. Yellow pins indicate English language newspapers, Spanish pink, etc. Don't worry if newspapers are not in a language you need. Choose the links provided to translate into one of many options. When ready, click on a pin to go to the newspaper's home website.

tag(s): arabic (13), cross cultural understanding (173), french (75), german (49), japanese (47), media literacy (109), newspapers (93), portuguese (22), russian (26), spanish (109)

Strikingly allows you to make beautiful, one-page websites quickly without any coding experience. View sites on any device. Quickly connect to social media, track analytics, and add contact forms easily. Create an account using email and a password to begin. Choose a category from business, personal, or portfolio to choose a template and begin editing. Click each section to edit. Upload images from your computer or many other options such as Dropbox, Instagram, and Picasa. When finished, choose the Publish button to personalize your url. Share via Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), or by emailing the url. Free plans allow for one page per user. However, you can earn points to access additional content by "Liking" Strikingly on Facebook or other options. There is a 5 MB limit to the monthly bandwidth (traffic) for free sites.
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tag(s): communication (129), portfolios (23), social networking (61)

JumpRope offers an online, standards-based gradebook and lesson building program. You can also include information such as attendance, character, and standards-based performance with just a few easy entries. Manually enter your students' names in JumpRope or upload a spreadsheet of names to begin. Use the tabs on the dashboard to move around to different areas of the site. Write anecdotes on student behavior, assign a category and value, and more. Collaborative features between teachers appear to require a school or district level membership, and there is no information stating it is free. Based on backwards design principles, this planning tool considers learning goals before assessments or learning experiences. Assessments are aligned to one or more chosen standards. Upload as many supporting documents or resources you desire to use throughout the year and beyond.

tag(s): classroom management (120)

Problem-Attic is a resource for finding and compiling the best questions from NY Regents, State Assessments, Academic Competitions, and more for classroom or individual use. Select, arrange, and format questions as desired. Select questions by browsing topics or exams. Add items as desired to your document with the link provided. Drag and drop selections into any order such as easy to hard, all multiple choice items together, etc. Choose a template for how questions should look. Choose other options such as allowing room for students to show work and printing an answer key. Preview your document until it is complete then print in PDF format. Create lesson plans, too.

tag(s): assessment (147), Teacher Utilities (198), test prep (69)

ESL Discussions is a resource of over 600 discussion questions. They could be used in ESL/ELL lessons, speaking practice, debate clubs, and as needed for any speaking activities. Categorized alphabetically, topics include everyday themes such as donuts as well as more controversial topics such as marijuana. Teachers working with K-12 students will want to select the questions rather than sending students to the site since there are also some very sensitive topics. Choose a topic to view two sets of questions to spark conversations: one for student A and another for student B. Choose the link to print questions in either Word or PDF. Although this site has a lot of advertisements, there are some very interesting topics to discuss/share.
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tag(s): debate (42), speaking (26)

This American Presidents website contains lesson plans for teaching about each of the US presidents from Barack Obama (with a note that Donald Trump is coming soon) all the way through George Washington. The site uses the informational text about each president to teach, reinforce, and review English language concepts. This resource is directly geared toward ENL/ELL students. However, all users will benefit from materials provided. Choose any president to view a short biography. There are also language lessons such as fill in the blank and writing activities. Choose from links at the top of the page to print the lesson in PDF format, hear the article read in mp3 format, and view additional activities such as flash cards and word jumbles. There is some advertising, but this site is worth a look as a resource for activities and lessons about US presidents.
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tag(s): jefferson (19), kennedy (20), lincoln (66), presidents (135), reading comprehension (149), washington (28)

ESL Reader provides instant reading help for English language learners. Use it to improve reading time and reading skills. Simply copy/paste or type text into the box and click. Each word becomes a link to a dictionary, thesaurus, or other reference including Wikipedia. Numerous dictionaries and references are available. Select the dictionary or other reference work and click. The site also translates the selected text into a variety of languages, but use caution with online translators! They often scramble meaning and syntax.
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tag(s): dictionaries (47), guided reading (33), thesaurus (22), vocabulary development (94)

Stick Figure Hamlet brings comic visuals and imagery to this classic work of Shakespeare. Each act and scene is represented. Simply start at the beginning to view all cartoons or choose any act or scene desired. This site is sure to motivate and interest even the most reluctant reader!

tag(s): comics and cartoons (55), hamlet (8), literature (221), shakespeare (99)

Forge connections between the arts and other subjects through resources at Education Closet. Choose the lessons link to find many lessons for grades K-12. Each lesson preview contains a short description, information about classroom and fine arts content. Many also correlate to Common Core standards. You can search for lessons by grade levels (K-3, 4-8, or 9-12). Choose a lesson for a more complete description. Click to download the complete lesson in PDF format. Each lesson contains a list of materials, complete directions, assessments, and suggestions for extending the lesson.
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tag(s): american revolution (82), bullying (48), charts and graphs (171), civil war (139), dance (31), descriptive writing (42), energy (133), immigration (68), main idea (8), narrative (16), patterns (61), photography (130), poetry (193), ratios (47)

This collection of over 150 lessons provides biographies and profiles of well known personalities for ENL/ELL (and other) students. The famous people range from 50 Cent to Walt Disney. Scroll through the list of names. The main page shows each person's profession (or claim to fame), nationality, birthdate and date of death (when appropriate). Choose a name to go to the lesson. Lessons include a short biography (7-8th grade level reading) and activities to accompany it. Examples of activities include synonym match, cloze activities, spelling, and discussion questions.
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tag(s): biographies (94), fluency (26), parts of speech (39), reading comprehension (149), spelling (98), summarizing (23), word choice (14)

A Close Look at Close Reading has a printable toolkit describing the Purpose of Close Reading - Suggested Strategies, Key Terms, and Visual Tools or Materials. Included are suggestions for organizers and examples for selecting and using questioning in text. One helpful section discusses how to choose appropriate text for close reading and explains that text with simple story lines and vocabulary aren't best suited for this strategy.

tag(s): commoncore (73), guided reading (33), reading comprehension (149), reading strategies (96)

The 360Cities panoramas are a new way to showcase places, businesses, and events from around the world. Looking for a new virtual field trip? 360Cities will have your students spinning in circles with excitement. The pictures are out of this world! View 360 degree panoramic pictures from Mars or under the sea. Travel to snowy mountain tops and many more of the Internet's largest collection of uploaded panoramic images. 360Cities panoramic aerial shots are also available as well as navigable views of cities, natural landscapes, and more. The most popular panoramic pictures are listed for your convenience. This website has panoramic views of all Seven Wonders of the World, which include the Colosseum in Rome, The Great Wall of China, Petra in Jordan, The Taj Mahal in India, Machu Picchu in Peru, Christ Redeemer in Rio, and Chichen Itza in Mexico. Are you looking for a site to showcase your own panoramic shots or do you want to learn how to take panoramic shots? 360Cities "how to" section offers tools to create and upload your own panoramic pictures. View the existing pictures for free or use an email address to create a free account to upload your own panoramic pictures. Paid upgrades are available. 360Cities also has an app for iOS devices. View the 360Cities blog linked on the site for more information.
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tag(s): images (263), landforms (39), landmarks (22), virtual field trips (128)

Save time when creating presentations and choosing fonts by using Wordmark.it to preview what your exact words will look like. Simply type/paste in any words, and Wordmark.it scans the fonts on your computers, displaying the words in each and every font style you have. Adjust font size as desired to see changes or change to positive or negative space. This site helps find the perfect font for any use in no time at all! You no longer have to guess whether the capitals will look funny or the specific letters/words might be hard to read. Art teachers can use this to demonstrate design aspects of different fonts. Sign up using email and a password to save words if desired, but this isn't necessary for general use.

QuizBean is an online quiz generator that does not require registration. Create "this or that" (sorting) quizzes that involve two options easily and quickly. Begin with a title then add quiz answer options. These will be the same two answers for every question. Write the question in the next screen. Add as many additional questions as desired. When completed, save and share via your unique QuizBean URL or send via email, Facebook, or X (formerly Twitter). Responses receive a correct or incorrect notification. A running total of responses displays on the right side of the screen. Although this site is recommended for all grades, with elementary students the teacher should create the QuizBean for students (with their input). The home page features titles of quizzes created by current users (general public). Check the site before sharing it with students. Displayed on the front page are the most recent quizzes For example, at the time of this review, there were quizzes about beer preference.

tag(s): quiz (67), quizzes (90), test prep (69)

Discover American History lessons correlated to Common Core reading and social studies literacy standards, especially those that require close reading and evidence. The goal of these lessons is to use primary resources, background information, and the analytical strategies suggested to meet the Common Core standards. In addition to these outstanding American History lessons, also find free online seminars and secondary sources. The secondary sources, under TeacherServe, include essays on topics in American literature and history.

tag(s): abolition (7), american revolution (82), civil war (139), colonial america (95), colonization (21), democracy (24), native americans (109), primary sources (117), religions (95), slavery (79), women (151)

Interested in making a professional quality animation? Blender is an open-source, downloadable 3D rendering program that is free! Blender offers an array of essential tools for animation in the following categories: Interface, Modeling, Rigging, Rendering, Animation, UV Unwrapping, Shading, Physics and Particles, Imaging and Compositing, and Real Time 3D/Game Creation. Since this tool is open source, many scripts for extra tools can be downloaded from the user forums. Even though this tool is time consuming to learn, many detailed tutorials are available on the Blender website. There is also help in the community forum. Download is available for Windows, Mac, or Linux. Be sure to check out the animations in the gallery for great ideas of what this tool can do. Although this site could be used by some younger students, an adult would need to supervise and assist.
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tag(s): animation (65)

The Infographic of the Day from FastCompany can give practice in learning about data and interpreting Infographics. Not sure what an Infographic is? Infographics provide visual data and information about a topic/related topics. Be sure to take time to preview the Infographics on this site as some may not be suitable for young people. It would be best to link directly to a specific Infographic to share.
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tag(s): data (151), infographics (56)

MindMup is an easy to use mind mapping tool. Click to create a new map. Double click the starter bubble to add your title. Use the tool box (top menu) to add or edit ideas. Use the mouse to drag and drop nodes. The mouse can also be used to scroll the map (drag the central node, or anywhere outside the map). As soon as you change a map, the Save button appears in the toolbar. Click it and your new map gets a unique URL. Every time you save, the map gets a new URL. Just copy and share the URL with colleagues and friends. Anyone can edit the map, but won't change your original copy. The best part of this simple/easy site: no registration required!

tag(s): concept mapping (15), graphic organizers (48), mind map (27), organizational skills (88)