Lauren Tarshis: "I Survived" resources

WEBSITE ↬ Lauren Tarshis: "I Survived" resources

AUDIENCE ↬ teachers

CONTENT ↬ ELA & History

GRADE LEVELS ↬ grades 3+

I am not on social media as much as I have been, but one day I was scrolling through Twitter/X and I stopped and stared. The much beloved "I Survived" author, Lauren Tarshis shared a post stating she has classroom resources to support her books on her website. AND ... she provides it all free! Did you know this? I did not! I had to jump on and see it for myself.

This isn't too good to be true. It's true. Amazing! Thank you, Lauren! Thank you for supporting teachers! Not only are your books amazing, so are you!!!

HOW CAN TEACHERS USE THIS RESOURCE?

I can see teachers using this whenever they use an "I Survived" book in their classroom, or if they have small groups, or even individual students reading these books. From related books and videos to book club activities and resources, you can find them all on the "I Survived" resources pages. 

... and several of the books are in Spanish! They, too, have a resource page. Awesome!

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Print speaker notes WITH your Google Slides

WEBSITE ↬ Google Support page

AUDIENCE ↬ teachers & admins

CONTENT ↬ any & all

GRADE LEVELS ↬ all grades

I recently was asked for help and while I'd never had a need for this, the person did. So I did a search and was pleasantly surprised how easy it is! Have you ever wanted/needed to print out the speaker notes along with your Google Slides? Yes! It can be done, and it's really not too terribly difficult.

I've linked the support page above, but I'm going to just include the steps below because it's easy.

HOW DO I PRINT SPEAKER NOTES with MY GOOGLE SLIDES?

1. Open your Google Slides.

2. Click on the File menu & go towards the bottom.

3. Click on "Print settings and preview".

4. Find the dropdown menu in the toolbar and select "1 slide with notes". 

    --- depending on how large your slide deck is, it might take awhile to load ---

5. Click on the printer icon in the toolbar. 

    --- it might take a minute or two to load ---

At this point, I'd strongly recommend using the option in your print menu to print 2 or more pages on a sheet. You probably don't need a giant version of your slide and you can save some paper while still getting your slides & speaker notes.  

To return to your typical slide deck, click the "Close Preview" in the upper right corner.

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WeVideo: Standards-aligned video projects

WEBSITE ↬ WeVideo: Standards-aligned video projects

AUDIENCE ↬ teachers

CONTENT ↬ all

GRADE LEVELS ↬ middle school & high school

Video editing. Two words that may not feel attainable in school - BUT I can attest that it is possible with the right tool. WeVideo is that tool. Not only do I love and use WeVideo, but I've used it with many groups of students ... some as young as 3rd grade. 

HOW CAN TEACHERS USE THIS RESOURCE?

I can see teachers using WeVideo and these possible projects in their classroom. Students will enjoy the ability to create in new ways. Teachers can take any of these projects and use them as options for WeVideo creations. The projects range from SEL, to writing, to digital citizenship, and more. 

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YouTube transcript

WEBSITE ↬ YouTube Transcript

AUDIENCE ↬ teachers

CONTENT ↬ all

GRADE LEVELS ↬ all grades

Have you thought much about closed captioning? I do ... and then I don't. I love using it. I turn it on YouTube videos all the time (& I increase the speed of the video, too!) so I can follow it better. I also use it on my tv. It's an AWESOME tool to have on when watching a video in the classroom, too.

I've made plenty of videos, but I've not given much thought to the transcript. This website - wow! - will give you a transcript!!! I tried it with a video I created and yes!!! It works! I do need to clean up the punctuation a bit, but the bulk of the work is done. 

Thanks, Tony Vincent, for sharing this out on Twitter.

HOW CAN TEACHERS USE THIS RESOURCE?

I can see teachers using this to generate transcripts for students - especially ELL students. And, if you are a teacher who makes their own videos for student support, use this website to create your transcripts to include with the video. (I think it took about 5 seconds for it to give me the transcript.)

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13 Free Halloween Activities for Home or School

WEBSITE ↬ 13 Free Halloween Activities for Home or School

AUDIENCE ↬ teachers

CONTENT ↬ Holiday - Halloween

GRADE LEVELS ↬ various grades - dependent on student skill and the activity

I have long enjoyed a good digital breakout. This entire SITE is dedicated to them. And this particular section shares Halloween themed ones. Just in time for the holiday, check out the fun and be sure to try one or two with your students. 

HOW CAN TEACHERS USE THIS RESOURCE?

I can see teachers using this as brain breaks around the Halloween holiday, or possibly as part of a party. Some of these activities are digital and some are meant to be printed. Also, if you are brave, you could share this site with your students and allow them to choose which activity(ies) they want to complete. Regardless ... have fun!

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Mathigon - Multiplication by Heart

WEBSITE ↬ math for love   &  Mathigon - Multiplication by Heart

AUDIENCE ↬ students

CONTENT ↬ math

GRADE LEVELS ↬ 3-5

I've got a "two-fer" today! I shared Mathigon earlier this year and thanks to their social media account, I discovered the Multiplication by Heart game. Super cool! No log in needed and it only gives you 15 questions until it tells you to take a break for the day. I would have been willing to continue, so I like that it stopped me. I didn't get tired of it.

Then I noticed at the bottom of the page a line that says "Created in partnership with (scribbled heart) math for love" ... which led me to the "math for love" website. Wow! It's also a card game!!! Woot! Woot! If you chose to purchase, you could practice multiplication offline. Love it!

HOW CAN TEACHERS USE THIS RESOURCE?

I can see teachers using the online version as part of a station in math class for short, targeted practice. Tracking scores over time might be an added component to talk about data. 

The card game can be used much the same way - part of a station in math. I love this also as a potential for indoor recess or a "fast finisher" option.

⭐ BONUS! ⭐

I'd also recommend checking out the resources BOTH sites offer for teachers - Mathigon AND math for love. 

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Unite for Literacy

WEBSITE ↬ Unite for Literacy

AUDIENCE ↬ teachers & students of ESL/ELL

CONTENT ↬ ESL/ELL

GRADE LEVELS ↬ mostly primary and lower elementary, although it can be a resource for older students if you feel it's appropriate

My previous district was experiencing an influx of non-English speakers. We've had very limited experience with this, so any resource we could find we were grateful for. Our students spoke a variety of languages ... not just Spanish.

The website I'm sharing today would be one of those awesome resources! Simple books students can choose from and listen/read in both English and about 20 other languages.

NO accounts are needed, just provide the link to this site and students can read and enjoy!

HOW CAN TEACHERS USE THIS RESOURCE?

I can see teachers using this with younger students who do not speak English as their primary language, or are learning to speak English. In a primary or lower elementary class, this site can definitely become a great way for ESL/ELL students to independently choose books and hear both the English and native language version.

While the books are simple, this has the potential for helping older students with recognition and independent practice & learning. Older ESL/ELL students might like having the independence to use the books as reference for learning pronunciation or specific vocabulary on a topic. 

For students learning a second language, this might also be a great resource helping them to learn a language other than English!

I can't even begin to guess how many books are available! 

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