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edshelf Weekly - Last Minute Gift Ideas
For many of us, the holidays are here. And for many of us, this is a time for gift giving. What better gift than an educational kit to spark a child’s curiosity and creativity? Something that can challenge one’s problem solving? Here are some (last-minute) holiday gift ideas to consider.
- littleBits - Build a wide range of electronic projects using a combination of hardware (this product’s signature magnetic “bits” that snap together), software, and content. PAID
- KiwiCo - Purchase a monthly subscription of do-it-yourself, age-appropriate craft kits for your budding tinkerer. PAID
- Roominate - Assemble all kinds of interactive buildings using this kit of circuits, motors, and modular wired building pieces. PAID
- Wonder Workshop - Program Dash, Dot, or their newest robot Cue to perform all kinds of fun tricks and useful tasks, like playing music and pushing toys into a pile. PAID
- Osmo - Augment your iPad, iPhone, or Amazon Fire tablet with an Osmo kit and play numerous interactive, hands-on, educational games. PAID
Want more? Check out these shelves of tools created by members like you.
- STEM/MakerSpace - Curated by the librarian at Hicks Elementary School.
- Tools for Digital Making - Curated by middle school librarian Heather Lister.
Enjoy these great tools for educators and students! Looking for previous issues of the edshelf Weekly? All are available online.
Is there a topic you would like me to cover? Or a tool you would like me to share? Leave a comment and let me know!
Want a fresh copy of the edshelf Weekly newsletter in your inbox too? Sign up with edshelf today!
- Mike Lee, Co-founder of edshelf
edshelf Weekly - Free Stock Photos and Illustrations
As you put together your lesson plans and presentations, sometimes the right photograph or illustration can go a long way. Here are some teacher-recommended resources of free stock photos and illustrations that may help.
- Creative Commons Search - Search through multiple sources, such as Google, Flickr, and SoundCloud, to find content with the Creative Commons license. FREE
- Photos For Class - Find classroom-safe photos with the Creative Commons license and proper attribution. FREE
- Edupics.com - Browse through a large selection of printable school-appropriate coloring pages. FREE
- WorldImages - Explore the California State University IMAGE Project’s database of approximately 100,000 free images. FREE
- Free Historical Stock Photos - Look through this collection of royalty-free historical photos, such as Albert Einstein, Martin Luther King, etc. FREE
Want more? Check out these shelves of tools created by members like you.
- Images for Educators - Curated by district library coordinator Charlotte Ballard.
- Art Content Resources - Curated by the Expanding Technology in the Classroom department of USD475 Geary County Public Schools in Kansas.
Enjoy these great tools for educators and students! Looking for previous issues of the edshelf Weekly? All are available online.
Is there a topic you would like me to cover? Or a tool you would like me to share? Leave a comment and let me know!
Want a fresh copy of the edshelf Weekly newsletter in your inbox too? Sign up with edshelf today!
- Mike Lee, Co-founder of edshelf
edshelf Weekly - Comic Strip Creation Tools
Creating a comic strip can be a fun way to tell an engaging story. Perhaps your class can craft a comic about their favorite book, animal, toy, or holiday.
- Toontastic 3D - Animate 3D cartoon models, record your voice, and select from dozens of soundtracks. FREE
- Comic Life 3 - Create comics on your desktop or mobile device using this powerful, full-featured comic strip creator. PAID
- Animaker - Craft animated comics and videos with this web-based tool and its pre-animated asset library. FREEMIUM
- Paper Camera - Render photos and videos as cartoons, sketches, and other comic book effects using a variety of real-time filters. PAID
- Superhero Comic Book Maker - Put together animated stickers with sound effects and backgrounds, then record your voice to create animated comics. FREE
Want more? Check out these shelves of tools created by members like you.
- Comic Makers - Curated by teacher-librarian Joyce Valenza.
- Digital Storytelling - Curated by AT facilitator Kay Bolen.
Enjoy these great tools for educators and students! Looking for previous issues of the edshelf Weekly? All are available online.
Is there a topic you would like me to cover? Or a tool you would like me to share? Leave a comment and let me know!
Want a fresh copy of the edshelf Weekly newsletter in your inbox too? Sign up with edshelf today!
- Mike Lee, Co-founder of edshelf
edshelf Weekly - Tools for Interactive Whiteboards
Do you have an interactive whiteboard in your classroom? Here are some web-based resources that you can use with your IWB to increase student engagement and attention.
- National Library of Virtual Manipulatives - Access wide range of virtual manipulatives that will work with almost all interactive whiteboards. FREEMIUM
- SMART Exchange - Download SMART “notebooks” and get IWB-compatible lesson plans aligned with Common Core State Standards. FREE
- PBS LearningMedia - Search through tens of thousands of classroom-ready videos, games, audio clips, photos, and lesson plans for your IWB. FREE
- Funbrain - Find several educational interactive games spanning a range of subjects and grades that are compatible with IWBs. FREE
- TeacherTube - Watch classroom-safe instructional videos and pause at key points to engage your students in a discussion on the subject matter. FREE
Want more? Check out these shelves of tools created by members like you.
- Whiteboards - Curated by assistant principal Kristin Crowley.
- Whiteboard Tools - Curated by technology coach Gabrielle Copen.
Enjoy these great tools for educators and students! Looking for previous issues of the edshelf Weekly? All are available online.
Is there a topic you would like me to cover? Or a tool you would like me to share? Leave a comment and let me know!
Want a fresh copy of the edshelf Weekly newsletter in your inbox too? Sign up with edshelf today!
- Mike Lee, Co-founder of edshelf
edshelf Weekly - Classroom Tools
Technology can be a great help to your daily instruction. Here is a set of student-tested, teacher-recommended classroom tools to supplement your preparation, lesson plans, and activities.
- RefSeek - Search for academic information in web pages and online books, encyclopedias, journals, and newspapers. FREE
- JogNog - Select a pre-made, standards-aligned student assessment from this library of thousands. PAID
- BookWidgets - Create and embed an interactive game or exercise into your iBooks Author project or website. PAID
- HandBrake - Convert a video from any format to any other format with this open source desktop software. FREE
- Super Teacher Tools - Find a variety of digital classroom tools, like a Jeopardy game, seating chart maker, random name picker, countdown timer, etc. FREE
Want more? Check out these shelves of tools created by members like you.
- Classroom Tech Tools - Curated by French immersion teacher Diane Cartier.
- Student Learning and Gaming Platforms - Curated by world history teacher Kimberly Dawn Albury.
Enjoy these great tools for educators and students! Looking for previous issues of the edshelf Weekly? All are available online.
Is there a topic you would like me to cover? Or a tool you would like me to share? Leave a comment and let me know!
Want a fresh copy of the edshelf Weekly newsletter in your inbox too? Sign up with edshelf today!
- Mike Lee, Co-founder of edshelf
edshelf Weekly - Safe Online Environments for Kids
Whenever you give kids access to the Internet, it’s highly recommended that you provide them with the tools necessary to explore in a safe manner. This can range from teaching them good digital citizenship skills to seeking safe online environments. Here are some options from vendors that strive to create safe, kid-friendly, online communities.
- Kudos - Teach kids about online respect in a safe environment using this social photo-sharing app. FREE
- Classting - Bring students, parents, and teachers together into a single, safe, collaborative classroom wall for sharing docs, photos, and videos. FREE
- Celly - Send private, secure SMS text messages to parents, students, or other teachers using this communication tool. FREE
- GeckoLife - Communicate with a group of people privately and safely, with chat, photos, or videos. FREE
- Moshi Monsters - Play in a kid-friendly virtual world, which involves adopting a virtual monster, solving puzzle games, and make friends with other monster owners. FREEMIUM
Want more? Check out these shelves of tools created by members like you.
- Building Online Community – Sharing Ourselves Safely Online - Curated by head digital learning teacher Leslie McCurrach.
- Digital Citizenship - Curated by elementary school teacher Jennifer Tyson.
Enjoy these great tools for educators and students! Looking for previous issues of the edshelf Weekly? All are available online.
Is there a topic you would like me to cover? Or a tool you would like me to share? Leave a comment and let me know!
Want a fresh copy of the edshelf Weekly newsletter in your inbox too? Sign up with edshelf today!
- Mike Lee, Co-founder of edshelf
edshelf Weekly - Social Gaming Tools for Students
Sometimes a game can be a fun medium for delivering instruction. Sometimes a group activity can be an engaging method for understanding content. Put them together and you have social gaming, a field of gaming that requires social interactions and group collaboration. Here are some teacher-recommended educational tools for playing social games with your students.
- MinecraftEdu - Play a customized version of Minecraft tailored specifically for teachers and students. PAID
- Votograph - Take a photo with your team that best represents a challenge phrase given by your teacher. FREE
- Kahoot! - Engage in classroom quizzes using this game-based classroom response system. FREE
- Klikaklu - Run around using your phone’s GPS, camera, and advanced image matching technology to play treasure hunts. FREEMIUM
- SMART lab: Learning Activities - Compete or collaborate with classmates in this suite of games. Requires the SMART Notebook Learning Suite. FREE
Want more? Check out these shelves of tools created by members like you.
- Educational Games - Curated by South Vermillion Middle School.
- Polling/Student Response/Formative Assessment - Curated by the Plano Independent School District.
Enjoy these great tools for educators and students! Looking for previous issues of the edshelf Weekly? All are available online.
Is there a topic you would like me to cover? Or a tool you would like me to share? Leave a comment and let me know!
Want a fresh copy of the edshelf Weekly newsletter in your inbox too? Sign up with edshelf today!
- Mike Lee, Co-founder of edshelf
edshelf Weekly - Tools for Teaching Students to Become Global Citizens
Teach your students to be global citizens with these engaging tools. From geography games to virtual tours to connecting directly with classrooms and students around the world, these student-tested, teacher-recommended tools will help your students increase their empathy for and understanding of other cultures.
- GeoGuessr - Play a geography game where you guess the location based on a randomly chosen Google Street View map. FREE
- One Globe Kids - Watch students from around the world share with you their hometowns, languages, and cultures. FREEMIUM
- PenPal Schools - Meet penpals while completing collaborative online courses about world cultures and foreign languages. FREEMIUM
- Skype in the Classroom - Watch live video conferences with guest speakers and classrooms from around the world, or engage in virtual field trips and video lessons. FREE
- Roundme - Create panoramic interactive virtual tours of your hometown to share with other classrooms and students around the world. FREE
Want more? Check out these shelves of tools created by members like you.
- Global Issues - Curated by gifted interventionist Anthony Provenzale.
- Social Studies World History - Curated by technology and history teacher Wayne Graydon.
Enjoy these great tools for educators and students! Looking for previous issues of the edshelf Weekly? All are available online.
Is there a topic you would like me to cover? Or a tool you would like me to share? Leave a comment and let me know!
Want a fresh copy of the edshelf Weekly newsletter in your inbox too? Sign up with edshelf today!
Mike Lee, Co-founder of edshelf
edshelf Weekly - Learn How to Make Games With these Tools
If you like making games just as much as playing them, then you will love this list. Here are some fun game creation tools recommended by teachers and students, as well as professional game creators.
- LearnToMod - Teach programming through Minecraft “modding” with this easy-to-use drag-and-drop interface. PAID
- Unity - Build professional-quality games using this popular industry development engine. FREEMIUM
- The Infinite Arcade by Tinybop - Create a wide range of games (e.g. platformer, adventure, pinball, text puzzle, maze, etc) in this iOS app. PAID
- Factile - Put together a simple and free web-based Jeopardy game, perfect for a classroom or PD workshop. PAID
- Crossword Labs - Type in a list of words and clues, then click a button to automatically generate crossword puzzles. FREEMIUM
Want more? Check out these shelves of tools created by educators on edshelf.
- Computer Science & Game Design - Curated by district librarian Shonda Brisco.
- Coding & Gaming - Curated by teacher librarian Kathy Malatesta.
Enjoy these great tools for educators and students! Looking for previous issues of the edshelf Weekly? All are available online.
Is there a topic you would like me to cover? Or a tool you would like me to share? Leave a comment and let me know!
Want a fresh copy of the edshelf Weekly newsletter in your inbox too? Sign up with edshelf today!
- Mike Lee, Co-founder of edshelf
edshelf Weekly - Interesting Teacher-Recommended STEAM Tools
STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) is great, but STEAM takes it a step further by adding A (Art). Here are some interesting teacher-recommended tools for anyone interested in exploring any of the fields in STEAM.
- LabsLand - Access a real laboratory located somewhere else in the world using your web browser. Control a remote robot in real-time or view pre-recorded experiments as if it were happening in real time. PAID
- STEMscopes - Get a variety of formative and summative assessments built around 5E, IDEA, and UPs models. FREEMIUM
- ChemSpider - Search through this chemical structure database containing over 63 million structures, properties, and associated information. FREE
- Joy.js - Create programmatic artwork, music, or mathematical graphs using this visual programming interface. FREE
- Inkboard - Draw on pictures or a blank canvas using life-like drawing tools, such as pens, markers, highlighters, pencils, crayons, and erasers. FREE
Want more? Check out these shelves of tools created by members like you.
- Creative Communication Tools for Learning - Curated by edtech coach Tracey Ricco.
- Communication Tools - Curated by curriculum coordinator Angela McKee.
Enjoy these great tools for educators and students! Looking for previous issues of the edshelf Weekly? All are available online.
Is there a topic you would like me to cover? Or a tool you would like me to share? Leave a comment and let me know!
Want a fresh copy of the edshelf Weekly newsletter in your inbox too? Sign up with edshelf today!
- Mike Lee, Co-founder of edshelf