Ideas and Resources for Substitutes from TeachersFirst

This collection of ideas and reviewed resources is selected to help both substitute teachers and regular teachers leaving instructions for a substitute. The list includes useful time-fillers for when plans are not a perfect fit as well as teacher-friendly suggestions to make subbing a positive learning experience for all. Be sure to check "In the classroom" suggestions for practical tips and ways to use these offerings.

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Gauth AI STEM Homework Helper - Gauth Math

Grades
6 to 12
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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 ...more
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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.

In the Classroom

Include Gauth with your other math and science support resources for students. Demonstrate how to ask questions and analyze the responses as a learning tool. Be sure to discuss the ethical use of AI tools with students as a learning tool and not a substitute for completing assignments. Encourage students to provide proper attribution when using Gauth. Share Gauth as a flipped learning tool for students to use as they begin to understand new concepts, then ask students to apply that knowledge to problems without using AI resources. Have students demonstrate how to solve problems by creating a video explanation with Free Screen Recorder Online, reviewed here.

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Magic ToDo - Goblin Tools

Grades
K to 12
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Magic ToDo uses artificial intelligence (AI) to break down tasks into a list of step-by-step directions to complete the job. Enter your prompt or activity into the chat box to ...more
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Magic ToDo uses artificial intelligence (AI) to break down tasks into a list of step-by-step directions to complete the job. Enter your prompt or activity into the chat box to begin, then use the pepper icons to select the specificity of directions. One pepper provides an essential list; five peppers offer the most detailed steps. Press enter after adding your prompt and choosing the level of directions to provide to view your results. Open the list by clicking the blue wand next to your prompt; hovering over the blue wand will show "break down the item." After viewing the list, use drag and drop features to change the order of steps in the list if desired, or choose the blue wand next to any item on the list to create additional steps. Other options in a dropbox next to each step of the directions include determining the approximate time to complete that step, editing the information, or deleting the step. Click the checkbox in each step as it is completed for a visual look at the progress in completing the task.

In the Classroom

Use Magic ToDo as a professional tool for creating to-do lists to complete upcoming tasks, such as preparation for parent-teacher conferences, writing long-term lesson plans, preparing for substitutes, and more. Share Magic To-Do with students to create a guide for planning on completing long-term projects. Show students how to use the estimated time feature to help them understand the time required to complete all project steps. To help students stay on track, ask them to create a to-do list for their upcoming project, take a screenshot of their list, and share it with you. Then, ask for weekly screenshots that show each student's progress in completing the project and ask them to use the checkboxes to mark completed items. If students fall behind, have short conferences to determine what is holding them back and provide support as needed. This tool is also helpful for students with special needs or attention disorders to use as a guide for completing required tasks.
 

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Vmaker - Animaker

Grades
K to 12
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Vmaker is an all-in-one screen recorder, video recorder, webcam recorder, and video editor. Use Vmaker to create, edit and schedule recordings without time limits or watermarks. Create...more
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Vmaker is an all-in-one screen recorder, video recorder, webcam recorder, and video editor. Use Vmaker to create, edit and schedule recordings without time limits or watermarks. Create a free account to record unlimited videos for free. Download Vmaker to your computer or install it as a browser extension following the directions upon signup. Once the extension or download is complete, access the included features to choose settings and begin recording. When finished, your video is available to edit or share. When ready to share, download the video to your device, copy the link for your video, or share by email.

In the Classroom

Use this handy screen recording tool in a variety of ways in your classroom. Record tutorials for students to demonstrate how to access and use online sites; create recordings for substitutes to explain how to find and use the software on your computer, or make a how-to demo to find information on your class website to share with students and parents. Help students understand how to use the different features of documents, such as creating a tutorial showing students how to format cells in Excel, adding comments to a Google document, or finding and inserting images in slides. Share this tool with students to use when analyzing websites as part of your ongoing digital safety lessons. Ask them to include a video as part of a larger multimedia presentation. After exporting their video, ask students to include it within a presentation created using Sway, reviewed here, or Adobe Creative Cloud Express for Education, reviewed here.

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Involve.me - Involve.me

Grades
5 to 12
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Involve.me is a platform for creating and sharing personalized, digital interactive content. Quickly build quizzes, surveys, and online forms with the included templates. Create and...more
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Involve.me is a platform for creating and sharing personalized, digital interactive content. Quickly build quizzes, surveys, and online forms with the included templates. Create and activate your account to begin using Involve.me. Add images, files, links, and other features to your project. When finished, publish and share by using the project URL provided.

In the Classroom

Use Involve.me templates and designs in a variety of ways in any classroom. Create short, interactive quizzes for students and receive feedback immediately through an email or within your Involve.me account. For example, modify the Literature Pop Quiz template for any novel or substitute questions about your latest science experiment to assess student understanding. Use the How Well Do You Know History? template to ask questions about important events during your social studies unit. Have students incorporate the survey templates to use as an interactive portion of classroom presentations. Include the inflation calculator during an economics lesson to help students understand the effects of inflation. As students create multimedia projects using resources such as Sway, reviewed here, or Adobe Creative Cloud Express for Education, reviewed here, ask them to include a link to a quiz or survey created using Involve.me.

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RecordCast Screen Recorder - PearlMountain Ltd

Grades
K to 12
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RecordCast Screen Record is a free, easy to use screen recorder that doesn't require registration or downloads. RecordCast is more than a screen recorder; it also includes editing tools...more
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RecordCast Screen Record is a free, easy to use screen recorder that doesn't require registration or downloads. RecordCast is more than a screen recorder; it also includes editing tools to add text, music, and transitions after downloading your recording. Use RecordCast's options to record your entire screen or just a tab or application. When finished, save to download to your device. Although registration isn't required, it allows you to save recordings and export completed videos in different formats for easier sharing.

In the Classroom

Use this handy screen recording tool in a variety of ways in your classroom. Record tutorials for students to demonstrate how to access and use online sites, create recordings for substitutes to explain how to find and use the software on your computer, or make a how-to demo on where to find information on your class website to share with students and parents. Help students understand how to use the different features of documents, such as creating a tutorial showing students how to format cells in Excel, add comments to a Google document, or find and insert images in slides. Share this site with students to use when analyzing websites as part of your ongoing digital safety lessons. Ask them to include a video as part of a larger multimedia presentation. After exporting their video, ask students to include it within a presentation created using Sway, reviewed here, or Adobe Creative Cloud Express for Education, reviewed here.

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Kwanzaa - Sandbox and Co.

Grades
K to 8
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Enjoy the many ideas and activities for learning about and celebrating Kwanzaa at this site. Learn the terms used about this holiday through an interactive quiz, make a pasta necklace...more
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Enjoy the many ideas and activities for learning about and celebrating Kwanzaa at this site. Learn the terms used about this holiday through an interactive quiz, make a pasta necklace or chain, and see 10 decorations to put you in the mood for Kwanzaa.

In the Classroom

Introduce your students to Kwanzaa by taking the quiz to see how much they know about Kwanzaa. Then in pairs or small groups, have students research the terms. As students research, substitute paper and pen journals by asking younger students to create a blog using a tool like Penzu, reviewed here, to share what they are learning with fellow students. A great blogging tool for older students is Telegra.ph, reviewed here. With Telegra.ph have students click on an icon to upload related images, add YouTube or Vimeo, or Twitter links. Engage older students, by having them create a poster about Kwanzaa using a tool like DesignCap, reviewed here, and then upload the poster to their blog about the terms and what they've learned about this December holiday.

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Thematic - Thematic, Inc.

Grades
K to 12
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Find free music for YouTube video backgrounds with Thematic. Thematic offers a large variety of content shared by original artists for free use on YouTube, Instagram, and other platforms....more
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Find free music for YouTube video backgrounds with Thematic. Thematic offers a large variety of content shared by original artists for free use on YouTube, Instagram, and other platforms. Browse the site to find or filter by genre, mood, tempo, and more. Save and organize selected music for your projects or download to your computer as an mp3 file. Copy the included information to credit the file's author within your presentation. Use your Google account to register as a content creator and connect your YouTube and other social media accounts.

In the Classroom

As you introduce this site to students, it is the perfect opportunity to remind students of the importance of providing proper credit when sharing media online. Share a link to Thematic on your class website for students to use when creating video presentations (with proper credit, of course). Ask students to create a slideshow using Renderforest, reviewed here, or other presentation software as a substitute for a written book report or research paper. For example, as students learn about states of matter ask them to find images on a sharing site like UnSplash, reviewed here, demonstrating the different properties and transformation of matter. Have students add text information to their slides and upload their slide presentation to YouTube as a video including background music found on Thematic. Be sure to have students include a slide with credits for all images and music included in their video. On a professional level, use this site to find background music when sharing images from your classroom with parents.

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The Adventures of Kara, Winston and the SMART Crew - Childnet International

Grades
2 to 6
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Here you will find 5 e-safety SMART cartoons for ages 7 to 11. These videos are all about being SMART online. Click on Teachers & professionals and slide to resources ...more
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Here you will find 5 e-safety SMART cartoons for ages 7 to 11. These videos are all about being SMART online. Click on Teachers & professionals and slide to resources to search by age or topic for other activities. The suggested recommendation from the creators is to implement activities throughout several weeks; however, it is possible to complete as a one-time activity.

In the Classroom

Any teacher will benefit from the free materials and activities on this site to teach online safety to students either directly through these materials, or as additional resources to your current online safety materials. As a substitute for links on paper or in a word processing tool, use a bookmarking tool like Symbaloo, reviewed here, to share online resources with students on classroom computers and your class website. Enhance student understanding by challenging students to create digital books teaching online safety using Book Creator, reviewed here. Book Creator includes tools for adding videos, images, and more into books.

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Expii Solve - Expii, Inc.

Grades
8 to 12
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Solve interactive math and science puzzles based on current events with Expii Solve. Choose from over 70 sets of questions with topics including the Super Bowl, Star Wars, fashion,...more
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Solve interactive math and science puzzles based on current events with Expii Solve. Choose from over 70 sets of questions with topics including the Super Bowl, Star Wars, fashion, holidays, and more. Each topic includes a set of five problems with each question increasing in difficulty. If you need help, use links to tutorials at the bottom of each question. Registration isn't required; however, registering allows you to track progress in completing puzzles.

In the Classroom

Be sure to save these puzzles for use throughout the school year. Use these problems as a substitute for your typical homework assignments. Include questions as part of math or science centers. Replace pencil and paper journals or notebooks by having students blog about their learning and understanding using Tumblr, reviewed here. Ask groups of students to work on topics together then share their results with the class. To enhance student learning and understanding, consider instituting a recurring podcast for students to share problems and discuss problem-solving strategies. Use a site such as podOmatic, reviewed here.

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Is That a Big Number? - Andrew Elliott

Grades
6 to 12
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As you might guess from the title, this site is all about numbers. Their goals are to promote numeracy, develop number sense, and have fun along the way. Use the ...more
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As you might guess from the title, this site is all about numbers. Their goals are to promote numeracy, develop number sense, and have fun along the way. Use the search bar to ask about any number; the results provide context and relationships to your query. Results might include comparisons to items that are bigger or smaller and equivalent items. Choose other links to learn number facts about countries, ratios, or take a number quiz.

In the Classroom

Bookmark this site to use for reference throughout the year. Use it as a 5-10 minute fill-in when you have a little bit of extra time. Get your interactive whiteboard or projector ready and challenge students to provide numbers to use as a comparison or take the numbers quiz together to learn more about numbers. As a substitute to paper and pencil, have students create explainer videos using Typito, reviewed here, to demonstrate the power and size of large numbers. To extend student learning and understanding, challenge students to create a web page using Carrd, reviewed here, to share information learned after researching numbers and statistics found on this site and others.

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For the Teachers - For the Teachers

Grades
K to 12
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For the Teachers contains an incredible number of lesson ideas, differentiation tips, instructional strategies, and much more for all teachers. Search for specific content using the...more
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For the Teachers contains an incredible number of lesson ideas, differentiation tips, instructional strategies, and much more for all teachers. Search for specific content using the keyword search or scroll down the home page to find some of the site's most popular content. There is a great deal of useful content on the site to explore, of note is the Reading Skills for Big Kids and Differentiation links. The Reading Skills for Big Kids includes skill-based lesson plans for use with the many included leveled articles. The Differentiation portion of the site provides specific ideas and tools to differentiate content, assessment, and lesson activities and materials.
This site includes advertising.

In the Classroom

Be sure to bookmark this site to save as a favorite to find lesson ideas and activities throughout the school year. When planning for a substitute, look through the site to find useful ideas for lessons and planning organizers. There is so much material here to use, consider exploring the site with peers using techniques similar to a book study. Divide the site into sections to discuss at different times of your study. Organize your favorite materials from this site and your other resources using Padlet, reviewed here. Share your Padlet with peers to collaborate and create a useful time for organizing and sharing your favorite teaching materials. Supplement information included on report cards by using a site like Seesaw, reviewed here, to create portfolios for your students to demonstrate progress in reading, math, and other content areas. Include student-created projects based on activities found on For the Teachers.
 This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.

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Semantris - Google

Grades
4 to 12
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Semantris is an engaging pair of word association games offered as a Google experiment in predicting the use of words by players. Arcade is a quick-thinking game; write a word ...more
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Semantris is an engaging pair of word association games offered as a Google experiment in predicting the use of words by players. Arcade is a quick-thinking game; write a word associated with the shared selection to drop words to the bottom of a list as quickly as possible. Block is a slower paced game; try to provide a short phrase to describe one of the words in the blocks to drop the blocks and prevent them from reaching the top of the page.

In the Classroom

Share Semantris with students on classroom computers or devices for use as a quick word association and vocabulary building activity. Challenge students to become more proficient in "beating" Google by earning as many points as possible. For younger students, this site is an excellent way to build vocabulary skills. Have older students take this site a step further and research how machine learning works through this Google activity. Enhance learning by asking them to substitute a traditional report or presentation by making a video explanation tool like Typito, reviewed here, to describe the concept of machine learning. After spending some time practicing this game, take it a step further and extend student learning by having students create their own vocabulary learning game using a tool such as Scratch, reviewed here.

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Ruff Ruffman - Humble Media Genius - PBS Kids

Grades
1 to 6
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Ruff Ruffman is a comical canine who sets out to teach kids (ages 6-11) about being a responsible digital citizen. Short animated video clips answer questions about posting photos,...more
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Ruff Ruffman is a comical canine who sets out to teach kids (ages 6-11) about being a responsible digital citizen. Short animated video clips answer questions about posting photos, texting, and searching, reminding kids to ask an adult for help with the more difficult undertakings like finding a kid-friendly search engine. This program also has discussion questions for parents and teachers and interactive quizzes. Creating an account isn't required to use any material on the site. To create an account, you will need a username and a random password will be assigned, which can you can change later.

In the Classroom

Introduce Ruff Ruffman with a projector or interactive whiteboard, showing students all of the different questions Ruff will answer. Then either view the video shorts and quizzes as a class, or allow students to view the video shorts and take the interactive quizzes at a computer center. As a substitute for paper and pencil, have students use a video response tool like Flock, reviewed here to reflect on their learning and share tips for their peers. To extend student learning, require students to view their peer's reflections and make thoughtful comments. Share the link to your Flock topic on your class website and newsletter.

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Stay Safe Online - Stay Safe Online - NCSA

Grades
6 to 12
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Stay Safe Online offers resources to help keep yourself, others, and your computer safe online. Visit the Resources page to find infographics, videos, logos and graphics and more. Click...more
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Stay Safe Online offers resources to help keep yourself, others, and your computer safe online. Visit the Resources page to find infographics, videos, logos and graphics and more. Click Stop.Think.Connect in the upper left corner of the menu to take you to page with tips and advice and even more resources. The tips and advice include Safety Tips for Mobile Devices (in many languages), doing a Digitial Spring Cleaning (with a checklist), What LGBTQ Communities Should Know About Online Safety, and many other practical tips about taxes, shopping online, Cyber Trip Adviser, etc. Before doing a task online, double check with Stay Safe Online and fight off the dark side of the web by using good cyber habits!

In the Classroom

Introduce this site or the accompanying pages of Stop.Think.Connect to show students how to navigate the resources. Then, allow pairs or small groups to choose from the tips and advice for further study and exploration. As a substitute for handwritten notes, have students document their learning and understanding by taking notes online with Webnode, reviewed here.. Show your students how to create a multimedia digital story for students' siblings, parents, and peers, by embedding media; this will modify their work into a true digital story. Try using one of these tools (click on the tool name to access the review): PicLits, Adobe Creative Cloud Express for Education, and Clipchamp.

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Substitutes - Ideas and Resources - TeachersFirst

Grades
K to 12
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Peruse this collection of ideas and reviewed resources selected to help both substitute teachers and regular teachers leaving instructions for a substitute. The list includes useful...more
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Peruse this collection of ideas and reviewed resources selected to help both substitute teachers and regular teachers leaving instructions for a substitute. The list includes useful time-fillers for when plans are not a perfect fit as well as teacher-friendly suggestions to make subbing a positive learning experience for all.

In the Classroom

Whether you are a substitute looking for some "filler" ideas or a classroom teacher looking for new sites, check out this list of resources. Share this list on your class website for families to use at home. This list includes resources for young readers and secondary students.

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Whooo's Reading - Whooo's Reading

Grades
K to 8
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Whooo's Reading is an alternative to traditional reading programs by offering short response options to book quizzes instead of multiple choice answers. After reading, students answer...more
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Whooo's Reading is an alternative to traditional reading programs by offering short response options to book quizzes instead of multiple choice answers. After reading, students answer three quick higher-level questions, that are automatically scored, and earn coins for correct responses to spend on personalized "owlvatars." Teachers receive scores in real-time and have the option to provide feedback through conversations with students within the program. In addition to quizzes, Whooo's Reading also offers standards aligned journal activities for use in between quizzes and book recommendations upon completing quizzes.

In the Classroom

Although recommended for students in grades K-8, teachers of younger students should review questions and consider writing ability levels before including them in the program due to the written responses required. Consider using Whooo's Reading as an alternative to Accelerated Reader due to the use of short response answers instead of multiple choice questions. After reading books, substitute paper and pen journals by asking younger students to create a blog using a tool like Penzu, reviewed here, to share a book review with fellow students. Engage older students, or literature circle groups, by having them create a poster for the book using a tool like DesignCap, reviewed here, and then upload the poster to their blog about the book. A great blogging tool for older students is Telegra.ph, reviewed here. With Telegra.ph have students click on an icon to upload related images, add a YouTube or Vimeo, or Twitter links. This blog creator requires no registration. For all age students, enhance learning by creating a class book review site using Flip, reviewed here, where students create short video book reviews and can comment on each others reviews.

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Free Online Screen Recorder - AceThinker

Grades
K to 12
2 Favorites 1  Comments
  
Capture your entire screen, or just a part of it with this easy to use screen recorder that includes audio. Download and install the launcher required for your operating system ...more
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Capture your entire screen, or just a part of it with this easy to use screen recorder that includes audio. Download and install the launcher required for your operating system then follow prompts to set up your recording. Save in several popular video formats or directly upload your recording to YouTube, Dropbox, or Google Drive.

In the Classroom

Any subject area teacher can use this tool to record instructions for using websites. Share how to solve problems, step by step directions for any project, and much more. Leave a video message for a substitute teacher or even your class! Create a video message for parents about current projects, clips from field trips, and more. Put a link to your recording on your class website for students to view at home. Demonstrate how to use this tool for students with a projector or interactive whiteboard, then have them record questions they have when using websites or online programs.

Comments

waoh. I love this. Babalola, IN, Grades: 7 - 12

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A Year of Picture Prompts - New York Times

Grades
5 to 12
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Do you need some ideas for writing projects? The New York Times offers a school year of prompts and images as inspiration for writing across many genres. Scroll through the ...more
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Do you need some ideas for writing projects? The New York Times offers a school year of prompts and images as inspiration for writing across many genres. Scroll through the site to find categories for images based on the form of writing encouraged for students. Also, a lesson idea bank inspires using pictures and writing in the classroom.

In the Classroom

Save this website to your favorites or link from your class web page. These inspirational ideas are perfect for journals, quick writes, or to develop into a full story or essay. There are plenty of unusual ideas to give even your most reluctant writer or artist an inspirational nudge. ENL/ELL students can be motivated easily with picture prompts. Share these prompts with your gifted students for some "out of the box" writing ideas. Keep these creative ideas in your "emergency" lesson plan folder for substitutes, or for your own spontaneous writing needs. Extend student learning and challenge them to share writing aloud in a podcast format using a site such as Buzzsprout, reviewed here.

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Animatron - Dmitry Skavish

Grades
K to 12
2 Favorites 0  Comments
   
Design, organize, animate, and publish creations using Animatron. Use Animatron's backgrounds and characters, or upload your own. Be sure to take advantage of the Tutorials and Tips,...more
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Design, organize, animate, and publish creations using Animatron. Use Animatron's backgrounds and characters, or upload your own. Be sure to take advantage of the Tutorials and Tips, and the Knowledge Base for a full understanding of the many features available. Registration isn't required to create an Animatron project; however, you will need to register to save and share. Free accounts allow users to create up to five public projects with up to 2GB storage (50Gb/month). The Tutorials are in video format and reside on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, the video tutorials may not be viewable.

In the Classroom

Challenge older students to create their own Animatrons. Students can use Animatron to share their ideas or to "prototype" an idea. Students can create videos to show math processes, explanations of complex concepts, review new learning, teach others, explain scientific processes, tell stories, or present research. Flip your classroom using Animatron presentations. Use Animatron to create teacher-authored animations for students in ANY grade. Animatron is an excellent way to present new information or ideas for discussion. It is an easy way to prepare information for the class when a substitute is coming. Share Animatron creations on your website or blog for students to review at home. Use an Animatron video on the first day of school to explain class rules or give an exciting introduction to the year ahead. Use Animatron to create movies or presentations for back-to-school night or conference nights to display on your interactive whiteboard or with a projector. Teacher-librarians can ask students to create Animatron book reviews to share kiosk style in the library/media center.

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CamStudio - Free Screen Streaming Software - CamStudio

Grades
K to 12
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CamStudio is a free software download for Windows-based PC's that allows you to record screen and audio from their PC and create video files (a screencast). Other options allow for...more
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CamStudio is a free software download for Windows-based PC's that allows you to record screen and audio from their PC and create video files (a screencast). Other options allow for adding captions and picture-in-picture to recordings. There is a complete FAQ section, and find a comprehensive 13-minute video tutorial with instructions for downloading all the way through to recording, located here. This video resides on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, the video may not be viewable.
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In the Classroom

Use CamStudio to record instructions for using websites. Share how to perform problems, step by step directions for any project, and much more. Leave a video message for a substitute teacher or even the class! Create a video message to share with parents about current projects, clips from field trips, and more. Share on your class website for students to view at home. Allow students to record a video sharing their favorite websites or tips for solving math problems.

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