Classroom Power Tools

This is an ever changing list of my favorite tech tools for the classroom.  I love using technology in my classroom and believe that when used correctly, it is a gamechanger for everyone involved. Please feel free to check out some of following websites and/or apps to find out how they can be used in your classroom.

Communication
Remind - www.remind.com - Great tool for communicating with parents, students, or staff members. This is a MUST HAVE for educators!

Socrative - www.socrative.com - Perfect for real time responses...replaces clickers and paper quizzes.

Edmodo - www.edmodo.com - Great online platform for any classroom

Skype - www.skype.com - Great way to connect your students with other classes, experts, teachers all over the world.  Mystery Skypes are awesome!

Plickers - www.plickers.com - Paper Clickers! Very cool way to give a quick informal assessment. Check them out...you will be glad that you did!

TodaysMeet - www.todaysmeet.com - A great tool to use as a backchannel in the classroom. Fun way for students to comment, collaborate, and share in real tim


Collaboration
Moxtra - www.moxtra.com - A wonderful mobile collaboration app...perfect for group projects, class discussions, or sharing information.

Twitter - www.twitter.com - Twitter can play so many roles in education.

Popplet - www.popplet.com - Very user friendly and functional mind mapping tool

Padlet - www.padlet.com - Great way for students to respond in real time using a sticky note format

Creativity
Wordle - www.wordle.net - Another fun way to create word clouds, better for older students

ABCya! Word Clouds - www.abcya.com/word_clouds.htm - Great way for primary students to create and design word clouds

DIY - www.diy.org - A great place for students to learn how to become makers, creators, and innovators

Critical Thinking
Literacy Shed - www.literacyshed.com - Wonderful website for creative writing prompts...always preview first to determine appropriateness for your grade level/classroom.

DogoNews - www.dogonews.com - Current event stories for students to read and discuss.

Wonderopolis - www.wonderopolis.org - Wonders are shared each day along with a video and quiz.

TedEd - www.ed.ted.com - If you like TED talks, you will love this website.Wonderful for flipped classrooms.

OSMO - www.playosmo.com - Great tool to encourage collaboration and critical thinking.  iPad apps that work along with manipulatives to create a meaningful learning experience for students and adults.

Augmented Reality
Aurasma - www.aurasma.com - Very easy to use and great for classroom augmented reality experiences.

Daqri 4D Studio for Education - Augmented reality tool...possibilities are endless with Daqri!

Reading/Writing

Newsela - www.newsela.com - Current events that can be given to students based on Lexile levels

Storybird - www.storybird.com - A place for students to read, create, and write visual stories.

Write About This

Tell About This

Coding
Scratch - scratch.mit.edu - This is a website that introduces programming to students

Reflection
KidBlog - www.kidblog.org - Great website for students that are learning to blog.

Classroom Management
Class Dojo -www.classdojo.com - Student behavior management system...great for primary grades

Go Noodle - www.gonoodle.com - Indoor recess?  No problem...check out Go Noodle!

Genius Hour
Trello - www.trello.com - Trello is a great way for students to organize project progress...wonderful for Genius Hour

Weebly - www.weebly.com - Great place for students to create websites.  Teachers can create student accounts.

KidBlog - www.kidblog.org - This is a wonderful tool for students to use to reflect on their progress, learning experiences, and results as they work on Genius Hour projects.

Classroom Power Apps

Toontastic - Great for storytelling and creativity
Kodable - Coding for kids
Hopscotch - Coding for kids
Book Creator ($) - Students can write digital books and share them
DoInk Green Screen - Perfect app for creating with a green screen
Aurasma - Augmented reality app
I-Nigma QR Code Reader - Great for scanning QR codes
Chatterpix - Make anything come to life by adding a mouth and dialogue.
Remind - A must have for communication with parents and students
Khan Academy - Videos lessons for students
Nearpod - A must have for iPad classrooms
Explain Everything ($) - A wonderful whiteboard app
Write About This ($) - Picture prompts for students to write about
Tell About This ($)- Picture prompts for students to tell about
EdPuzzle - Add questions, dialogue, and other features to video
Stick Around ($) - Create puzzles to share with your students


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Are there apps or power tools that you think I should add to my ever growing list?  Feel free to email me at mcnairandi@gmail.com to offer suggestions or share your classroom power tools.