Back-to-School Tech & Tools for Teachers
Teachers are superheroes – this is universally understood. You’re actively educating younger generations and watching them grow up. But even some superheroes need a little help every now and then.
As the new school year dawns upon us, it’s essential for educators like you to equip themselves with the right tools to navigate the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. That’s why we’ve laid out seven technologies and tools that you can use this year to encourage student engagement, foster creativity, and get organized. Let’s delve into the world of tools that will elevate your teaching experience this school year.
Kahoot, a game-based learning platform, is a powerful tool that you can use to captivate student attention and foster active participation. Through interactive quizzes and surveys, you can easily transform assessments into exciting challenges, promoting healthy competition and enhancing student motivation.
The gamification element of Kahoot encourages students to actively learn and retain information in a fun and engaging manner. Moreover, real-time feedback allows you to gauge student understanding instantly, enabling timely interventions to address knowledge gaps and reinforce learning.
Bring learning to life through captivating videos and interactive activities with BrainPOP! Covering a wide array of subjects, BrainPOP empowers you to present complex concepts in a visually engaging and accessible format.
By incorporating animated characters and dynamic visuals, BrainPOP appeals to diverse learning styles, making learning enjoyable and effective. This tool not only reinforces classroom instruction but also encourages independent exploration, stimulating students’ curiosity and fostering a love for learning.
Google Jamboard revolutionizes group brainstorming and project work. Its intuitive interface facilitates real-time collaboration among students, regardless of their physical location. With Jamboard, you can encourage peer-to-peer interaction, teamwork, and creative problem-solving.
Looking for a way to make your classroom or lesson plans more creative? Canva, a user-friendly graphic design platform, equips you with the means to craft visually stunning learning materials. From eye-catching posters to infographics and presentations, Canva offers a variety of templates, images, and fonts for you to use. Not to mention, Canva has made its premium features 100% free for eligible teachers and their students!
Let’s be honest – even the best of us make writing mistakes. If you want a little more peace of mind when it comes to your written communication, check out Grammarly! Grammarly utilizes advanced grammar-checking algorithms, combined with contextual style suggestions, to elevate the quality of your writing. Grammarly not only corrects errors but also enhances language fluency and clarity, empowering you to express your ideas with precision.
You can even encourage your students to use this grammar checker for their own writing assignments. As an AI-powered language tool, Grammarly aids in cultivating strong writing skills and boosting overall language proficiency.
You may be a little cautious with this tool, but ChatGPT truly expands the boundaries of writing creativity. By utilizing deep learning algorithms, ChatGPT engages in natural language conversations, providing insightful responses and generating coherent texts. You can leverage ChatGPT to stimulate critical thinking and inspire students to explore diverse writing styles.
When it comes to teaching, use ChatGPT and other A.I. for inspiration! Looking for lesson plan ideas? Want more engaging classroom activities? A.I. is a great tool and there are plenty of free A.I. resources to help you get the hang of teaching in an A.I.-integrated classroom. Matt Miller, author of Ditch That Textbook: Free Your Teaching and Revolutionize Your Classroom and the Ditch That Textbook Lesson Plan Book, has a ton of free resources about A.I. for educators. Whether you want 15 AI tools for the Classroom or want to know How to Teach Tomorrow knowing AI Exists, check out all of Matt’s free resources here!
Effective classroom organization is a cornerstone of successful teaching, and planners and gradebooks offer you a streamlined solution. Your planner enables you to manage schedules, plan your lessons, and write down reminders efficiently.
Gradebooks allow you to easily record and track student progress, gaining valuable insights into individual performance. These tools optimize time management and resource allocation, allowing you to focus on nurturing student growth and academic success.
As technology continues to reshape the educational landscape, teachers have a variety of innovative tools at their disposal to elevate the teaching experience. Whether you use these tools to encourage student engagement or to help you take your teaching to the next level, there are endless possibilities when it comes to teaching this school year.
