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. [Read more…]