The 5 best teaching resources I use and love in my classroom.
Between creating quality lessons, dealing with discipline issues, and chasing CEUs, teaching can seem like a futile race against the clock. There are plenty of areas that require our whole focus, but there are also areas where we can accept help. I’ve compiled a list of the 5 best teaching resources for easing the burden in the classroom.
1. remind
Remind is a free app that allows you to communicate with students and parents through the app. You create a Remind account, using the app, and students and parents sign up via text message to receive your communications. When you have something to say, you use the app to send a text to everyone signed up for your class. What makes Remind so great is you don’t ever see or know the phone numbers, so you aren’t violating any state or district policies.
I use the app to remind students about homework or tests, to remind my FBLA members about upcoming meetings and due dates, and to communicate with parents when I’m taking FBLA members on a trip. Remind would be especially useful to a coach.
2. teachers pay teachers
Teachers Pay Teachers is an open marketplace for teachers to buy and sell teacher-created resources. Regardless of the subject or grade you teach, it’s likely that TpT will have an activity or a unit to fit your needs. My TpT store sells all kinds of business and technology related activities, as well as generic resources like parent letters and attendance trackers. Overall, you can find anything from PowerPoints to posters to projects. TpT is my first stop when I’m stumped about an activity for a unit.
3. class dojo
Class Dojo is another great free app. You begin by creating your classes and entering your students’ names. After your classes are set up, you can use the app to divide your students into groups, choose kids at random, or awards badges for certain behaviors and achievements. Perhaps the neatest part of the app is the way you can use it to interact with parents through photos and videos.
4. mouse pad notepad
I don’t where this thing has been my whole life. The idea is brilliant: a mouse pad that’s also a notepad. When I’m working on my school computer and come across anything that needs to be recorded on paper, I have a notepad, quite literally, at my fingertips. I have this pad, but there are a ton of options out there, each offering a slightly different format. I love that this one allows me plenty of room to create lists for each day as well as for coming weeks.
5. khan academy
I think, by now, most teachers have heard of Khan Academy. What you might not know, though, is that KA now has hundreds of videos that extend beyond the basic math and science concepts they were originally known for. I routinely use this life insurance video in my personal finance class, and I’ve shown several of these videos to my entrepreneurship students. If you’re looking for a way to teach your kids in a different way, Khan Academy videos are a great addition to your tool belt.
What are your favorite teaching resources?
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