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The Big History project sets out to create large scale narratives throughout human history. It's useful because it has sample lesson plans and videos teachers can use for free.

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OER Project is a family of free, online social studies curricula. Aligned to state standards and easily adaptable.

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This is from the choices program thats dedicated to the Cold War. It's very useful for its sample lesson plans and videos.

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What was the Cold War? | Videos | The Choices Program

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Cuban Missile Crisis: Considering Its Place in Cold War History

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The website is designed to provide teachers with research and standard base resources that encourage critical thinking and literacy skills. It has a plethora of resources, a blog, it even has resources for ELL students

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http://chssp.ucdavis.edu), and indicate if any changes were made. Educators may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the University or the California or the California History-Social Science Project endorses said teacher, school, or related organization.

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This website has a massive collection of American history resources ranging from 1620 US history to African American history. This website is very useful because it has over 70,000 items to choose from.

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Spring 2024 Registration Is Open

K-12 educators can earn their graduate degree in this affordable, online, accredited program. It's easy to apply and become an enrolled student.

Upcoming Spring Semester Dates

Applications End: Thursday, January 25, 2024

Courses Start: Thursday, February 8, 2024

Course Registration Ends: Wednesday, February 14, 2024

Begin the application process now to join us this spring!

Study with world-renowned scholars, connect with other teachers from across the United States, and reinvigorate your enthusiasm for teaching history! Whatever your budget and interests, the Gilder Lehrman Institute has a professional development opportunity for you next summer.

Online Options: 10 Teacher Seminars

In-person Options: 12 options in 7 locations across 5 states

Historical Holiday Resources

Explore the history of Thanksgiving, from its origins through its evolution into a recognized federal holiday with essays, videos, lesson plans, and more.

Warfare in Early America

Join Professor Timothy Shannon of Gettysburg College to explore the evolution of warfare in North America from the earliest contact between Native Americans and Europeans through the early nineteenth century.

Regular Price: $39.99

Affiliate Price: $29.99

Competition and Lottery Now Open

The Hamilton Education Program Online is a free program that helps students in grades 6-12 see the relevance of the founding era by using primary sources to create a performance piece following the model used by Lin-Manuel Miranda to create the musical Hamilton.

Students in the program will have the chance to submit their performance piece and be selected to see a performance of Hamilton in New York City.

Congratulations, Bruce Henderson

Bruce Henderson has been awarded the Gilder Lehrman Military History Prize for Bridge to the Sun: The Secret Role of the Japanese Americans Who Fought in the Pacific in World War II. An event celebrating the winner and the shortlisted authors will take place on Monday, December 4. Attend in person or via the livestream.

Issue No. 68: "The Role of Spain in the American Revolution" (Fall 2023)

Explore the often-neglected story of Spain's crucial role in the American Revolutionary War with six essays by historians and additional Gilder Lehrman resources.

Learn with the Gilder Lehrman Institute

MA in American History

Our master's degree program gives K-12 educators an affordable way to earn a graduate degree while working full time.

Self-Paced Courses

Explore American history from your own home, in your own time, and at your own pace! Educators can obtain professional development credit.

History U

These self-paced courses in American history are taught by the nation's top historians and are completely free for high school students.

Upcoming Events

NYC-area students and teachers: Join us at Trinity School for a special book talk on Frederick Douglass.

Join us to honor the winner of the 2022 Gilder Lehrman Military History Prize, Bruce Henderson.

Q&A session for prospective students to learn about the Gettysburg College-Gilder Lehrman master's degree program

Upcoming Deadlines

Affiliate Schools, libraries, and other sites can host this exhibition for free in January and February.

Enter your EduHam Online creative piece for a chance to win an all-expenses-paid trip to NYC to see a performance of Hamilton.

Publishers, agents, critics, and authors may submit or nominate books published in 2023.

Book Breaks

Every Sunday at 2:00 pm ET (11:00 am PT) on Zoom

Join us for our weekly interview series in which historians discuss their acclaimed books followed by a Q&A with the at-home audience. A Book Breaks subscription includes access to the weekly live programs and our ever-expanding archive, featuring 150+ episodes.

Book Breaks is completely free for all students, K-12 educators, and college professors. Others can purchase a one-year subscription for $25.

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Upcoming Episodes

Stacy Schiff

The Revolutionary: Samuel Adams

Theresa Runstedtler, American University

Black Ball: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Spencer Haywood, and the Generation that Saved the Soul of the NBA

Mark Whitaker

Saying It Loud: 1966-The Year Black Power Challenged the Civil Rights Movement

Our Historical Documents

In 1991, Richard Gilder and Lewis Lehrman embarked on a mission to create one of the most important repositories of historical American documents in the country. Today, the Gilder Lehrman Collection contains 85,000+ items documenting the political, social, and economic history of the United States.

History Now

The Online Journal of the Gilder Lehrman Institute

History Now features essays by the nation's leading historians and provides the latest in American history scholarship for teachers, students, and general readers.

History Now is completely free for all K-12 students and teachers. Others can purchase a one-year subscription for $25.

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"Their Full Measure"

Veterans Legacy Program: Online Exhibition

Gilder Lehrman is proud to announce the launch of this new online exhibition introducing viewers to nineteen men and women who served during six conflicts in American history.

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Stay up to date with all the work that we do to combat historical illiteracy and invigorate the study of the past.
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See all official press releases for our important events, significant programs, and special initiatives.
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NYC-area students and teachers: Join us at Trinity School for a special book talk on Frederick Douglass.

Join us to honor the winner of the 2022 Gilder Lehrman Military History Prize, Bruce Henderson.

Q&A session for prospective students to learn about the Gettysburg College-Gilder Lehrman master's degree program

Affiliate Schools, libraries, and other sites can host this exhibition for free in January and February.

Enter your EduHam Online creative piece for a chance to win an all-expenses-paid trip to NYC to see a performance of Hamilton.

Publishers, agents, critics, and authors may submit or nominate books published in 2023.

Stacy Schiff

The Revolutionary: Samuel Adams

Theresa Runstedtler, American University

Black Ball: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Spencer Haywood, and the Generation that Saved the Soul of the NBA

Mark Whitaker

Saying It Loud: 1966-The Year Black Power Challenged the Civil Rights Movement

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Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History |

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Junior General has articles, paper soldiers, and scenarios teacher can use in the classroom. Junior Gen. is awesome it provides several games teachers can use all they have to do is print of the material.

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Promoting the use of historical simulations as a tool for teaching history. Free resources anyone can use.

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It has several different works from hundreds of the world's best artist. It could be used in an anthropology classroom-It has ancient art including cave paintings that could really get the students engaged!

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Smart history contains huge amounts of information regarding civilizations and art, it also creates themes/topics in art history for better comprehension. It would be great for any world civ, European, or islamic history class.

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Mesopotamia, the area between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers (in modern day Iraq), is often referred to as the cradle of civilization because it is the first place where complex urban centers grew. The history of Mesopotamia, however, is inextricably tied to the greater region, which is comprised of the modern nations of Egypt, Iran, Syria, Jordan, Israel, Lebanon, the Gulf states and Turkey.

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Crash course offers many different "virtual courses" in history, science, engineering, etc. It could be used in any social studies classroom, but I think its most useful in US history to synthesize information.

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history biology literature learning education science humanities school "world history" ap tests smart fun chemistry psychology apush whap study "crash cours...

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At Crash Course, we believe that high-quality educational videos should be available to everyone for free! Subscribe for weekly videos from our current courses! The Crash Course team has produced more than 45 courses on a wide variety of subjects, including organic chemistry, literature, world history, biology, philosophy, theater, ecology, and many more!

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Edpuzzle is a video editing website that allows teachers to insert questions into videos to keep students engaged. I especially like it for editing and breaking up crash course videos.

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Make any video your lesson. Pick a video, add your magical touch and track your students' understanding.

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Khan Academy is extremely well known for creating digital learning experiences everyone can use. It would be great to use the "beginnings" plan in a anthropology class.

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Beginnings - 600 BCE | World history | Arts and humanities | Khan Academy

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Learn for free about math, art, computer programming, economics, physics, chemistry, biology, medicine, finance, history, and more. Khan Academy is a nonprofit with the mission of providing a free, world-class education for anyone, anywhere.

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Nat Geo can be used in any social studies content. It would be especially useful to show photos from the website when discussing a certain region to add context.

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Explore National Geographic. A world leader in geography, cartography and exploration.

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Oyez has almost every major Supreme Court case in its archives. Its really great because it includes facts about a case and the ruling-could be used when teaching civics.

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Anderson-Kill is a law firm who provides guides for teachers on how to teach criminal law. This particular example would be very useful in a High School Civics class.

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The movie, Titanic, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, has created great interest in the story of the Titanic. This site gives teachers a way to use the interest generated by the movie to illustrate how the American judicial system works.

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Contains lots of information and videos concerning several topics in US history. Could be great when teaching Civil Rights movement.

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Project Gutenberg has over has over 50 thousand ebooks in their catalog. These books range anywhere from gothic novels to philosophy. You can search by book, top 100, author, or offline catalogs.

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Project Gutenberg is a library of over 70,000 free eBooks

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Project Gutenberg is a library of free eBooks.

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Timeline perfect for teaching about Civil Rights movement and racial injustices surrounding it.

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A History of Racial Injustice - Equal Justice Initiative

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On July 12, 2008, six white teenagers beat Mexican immigrant Luis Ramirez to death in Shenandoah, Pennsylvania, while taunting him with racial slurs and threats including: "Spic," "fucking Mexican," and "This is Shenandoah. This is America. Go back to Mexico."

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This website has lesson plans for teaching US post WWII. My favorite thing is this game!

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Students will learn about the Theory of Karl Marx. Students will analyze and distinguish the differences between Communism, Capitalism, and Socialism.

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NEA is always great at supporting teachers with a ton of resources. I like most of their world history lesson plans.

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The high school history materials in World History Sources examine civilizations in relation to each other rather than in isolation; the economic, social, and cultural consequences of contact; and the effects of technology, migration, disease, trade, and religion.

Finding World History organizes primary resources under region and time period. A section on Cultural Contact is included under Region, which includes the Papers of Sir Joseph Banks, a botanist who accompanied Captain James Cook on Endeavor during Cook's first voyage of exploration to the South Pacific. The section on Time Periods includes nine subsections spanning 6000 years. An introductory essay, New Tools, New Possibilities, provides guidance in using primary sources, specifically addressing authority, quality of translation, and degree of cross-cultural context.

Unpacking Evidence is a series of eight guides covering primary documents: images, objects, maps, music, newspapers, official documents, personal accounts, and travel narratives. Guides include introductory essays; questions geared to particular types of evidence, interactive quizzes, a sample analysis of a source, and annotated bibliographies of print and web resources.

Analyzing Documents In a series of short videos, historians explain how they analyze and use primary documents, the questions they ask, and where they can find more information. Transcripts of videos are included.

Teaching Sources provides case studies for documents and links to nine more case studies and additional resources in Women in World History.

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The high school history materials in World History Sources examine civilizations in relation to each other rather than in isolation; the economic, social, and cultural consequences of contact; and the effects of technology, migration, disease, trade, and religion. Finding World History organizes primary resources under region and time period.

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Website includes basic information on how to read like a historian and other practical knowledge. It's best aspect is the lesson plans to pull ideas from.

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History Lessons | Stanford History Education Group

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This curriculum teaches students how to investigate historical questions by employing reading strategies such as sourcing, contextualizing, corroborating, and close reading. Instead of memorizing historical facts, students evaluate the trustworthiness of multiple perspectives on historical issues and learn to make historical claims backed by documentary evidence.

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"A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini. The book is set in Afghanistan over the last thirty years-from the soviet invasion to the reign of the Taliban. The story covers characters from two different generations and shows how different their lives were based on when they were born.
"Guns, Germs, and Steel" by Jared Diamond. I chose this because of its massive thematic history it attempts to explore. The book focuses on the major factors that affected human development over time and the way the modern world came to be -great concepts for any world history class.
"All Quiet on The Western Front" by Erich Maria Ramarque. The book follows a character named Paul who enlists in the German army and is placed on the Western front. It contains extensive knowledge of what the trenches were like during WW1. It also touches on a lot of the major battles that took place.

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So many great videos to get students engaged. Content is not always the most accurate so id' have to be careful with what I show, but still a good resource nonetheless.

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Famous Speeches & Audio | HISTORY Channel

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Witness famous speeches and hear timeless words spoken by historical figures. Listen to recordings of speeches online on history.com

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offers students and teachers the opportunity to “take a blast through the past” with a number of interactive games and online activities. I would use this in a middle school when teaching about prehistoric humans.

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WELCOME TO KIDS PAST! KidsPast.com is the fun way to explore our history. We are who we are today, because of those who have gone before us. Brought to you by the KidsKnowIt Network, The Totally Free Learning Network, KidsPast.com is packed with articles from early man, to recent historical events.

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"Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglas, an American Slave" by Frederick Douglas extremely inspiring and difficult book-would make a great primary source analysis
"Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era" by James McPherson Pulitzer Prize winner, standard one-volume history of the Civil War.

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C-SPAN in the classroom has bell ringers, lessons plans, and activities. The classroom deliberation on great for holding in class current event debates.

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Classroom activities that incorporate clips from Frontline PBS news stories. Includes lesson plans and web-exclusive resources.

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Featured Lesson

Obama's Deal

Identify key steps in the legislative process where interested parties can have influence on the shape of a bill.

Featured Activity

College, Inc.

Analyze procedures used by policy makers to negotiate rules and deliberate about complex issues.

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By Subject - Government/Public Policy | Teacher Center | FRONTLINE | PBS

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Includes documents, images, and lesson plans to use in the classroom. Very useful "working with primary documents" section

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Civics for All of US Civics for All of US is the new education initiative from the National Archives that promotes civic literacy and engagement. DocsTeach Teach with documents using our online tool. Explore primary sources. Discover fun and engaging teaching activities. Create your own online or print activities for your students!

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Evans School of Public Policy and Governance 

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Evans School of Public Policy and Governance 

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From the University of Washington, has repository of online materials purposeful for teaching public admin/policy.

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The Electronic Hallway | The Electronic Hallway

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Electronic Hallway is an online repository of quality teaching cases and other curriculum materials for faculty who teach public administration, public policy, and related subjects. Many Hallway cases include teaching notes, and other resources created by experienced teachers.

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Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance

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Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance

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IDEA group promotes democracy around the world. Includes contemporary issues and facts, and has statistics on global voter turnout

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What we do

International IDEA is an intergovernmental organization (IGO) with a mandate to support sustainable democracy worldwide.

Where we work

We work with local communities, democracy practitioners and partner organizations all over the world. We have a global reach with offices in 18 countries and our headquarters located in Stockholm, Sweden.

Active projects and programs

About International IDEA

International IDEA was established as an international intergovernmental organization by 14 founding Members at a conference held in Stockholm on 27 February 1995. Since then, we have influenced the landscape of democracy and electoral processes across the world.

More about us

Working with us

Our funding and other types of contributions come from our Member States and other financial partners. Become our partner and learn more about how we can jointly undertake actions in Value for Partnership.

Whistleblower network

We believe in the power of truth and transparency. This platform provides a safe space for individuals to speak out against wrongdoing. Your information will be handled with utmost confidentiality, ensuring your safety and security.

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Our objective is to promote and advance sustainable democracy and to improve and consolidate electoral processes world-wide.

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Online resources including research studies. Has an entire section dedicated to k-12 education and features teacher resources.

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The Hidden Common Ground Initiative™ challenges the increasingly dominant narrative of a hopelessly divided America by identifying and elevating the areas where American's agree on politically polarized issues, and by fostering productive dialogue on those areas where we truly disagree.

Hidden Common Ground 2020 is the latest, and most exciting iteration of our HCG initiative. Throughout the presidential election season it will involve public opinion research on major issues, innovative journalism and commentary, broad-based public engagement, "Strange Bedfellows" storytelling, and community-based dialogues and events. It is supported by a diverse group of foundations, including the Carnegie Corporation of New York, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the Charles Koch Foundation, and the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, as well as through the generosity of individual donors. In addition, the Kettering Foundation is a research partner of the initiative.

Divisiveness and Collaboration in America is the first research publication of our Hidden Common Ground 2020 partnership.

THE LATEST FROM HIDDEN COMMON GROUND:

This report explores the views and values of the American public on immigration, including how much change people think the immigration system needs, their goals and priorities for changing it, and their views on various proposals for doing so. Overall, this research finds areas of cross-partisan agreement on several aspects of immigration that could point the way towards workable policy solutions. Also striking is the prevalence of misperceptions about immigration, which tend to correspond with more restrictive views on immigration policy among respondents. It is our hope that this report, along with the other Hidden Common Ground activities that accompany it, can help to focus, frame, and stimulate an informed and productive conversation about improving our nation's immigration system.
Read the report.

Most Americans (58%) say racial bias against Black or African Americans committed by police and law enforcement is a serious problem in their community, including 75% of Democrats and 51% of Independents as well as 40% of Republicans. There is significant common ground across the political spectrum and across racial/ethnic groups on several measures to reduce police use of excessive force against Black Americans, including increasing transparency and data collection, de-escalation and anti-bias training, recruiting more Black officers, and community policing. Americans are split on how to change police departments' budgets and whether to reduce departments' responsibilities in the community.
Read the snapshot.
Regardless of political affiliation, Americans see the pandemic as more of a threat to their physical health than to their mental health and financial well-being. More Americans report that they have donated money, supplies or time to community members in need (37% in May and 28% in March). Americans are cautiously optimistic about the effects of the virus on their communities, and most (62%) think the government's priority should be preventing the virus from spreading and keeping people from getting sick or dying - a drop of ten percentage points from March when 72% prioritized preventing the virus from spreading.
Read the snapshot.
According to a new Public Agenda/USA Today/Ipsos Hidden Common Ground Survey, Americans are aligned on the large threat that COVID-19 poses to the United States, the stock market and the global economy, as well as the steps the government should take to help businesses and people affected. Though Americans see the virus as less of a threat to them or to their community, they are using this time to rally around local businesses, neighbors, and their friends and family.
Read the snapshot.

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The Hidden Common Ground Initiative™ challenges the increasingly dominant narrative of a hopelessly divided America by identifying and elevating the areas where American's agree on politically polarized issues, and by fostering productive dialogue on those areas where we truly disagree. Hidden Common Ground 2020 is the latest, and most exciting iteration of our HCG initiative.

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The hub for all things political science, newsletters, recommended resources and much more.  Very worthwhile feature is constitution day resources.

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Site includes age appropriate games and activities to help students learn how the US Government works. Great for a government class.

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Powered by Google Earth-GLT is a way to incorporate interdisciplinary lessons in the geography classroom. Lit trips follow famous literary characters and their journeys across the earth.

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"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness." - Mark Twain

To access a live preview of a typical Google Lit Trip on your computer, click the image above

What are Google Lit Trips?

Google Lit Trips are award winning virtual Literary field Trips where students become virtual traveling companions traveling right alongside characters in stories commonly taught in grades K-12. As students move through the story, Google Lit Trips supplement the learning experience as story locations are mapped on Google Earth, "just in time" resources "3-Dimensionalize" geographical, historical, and cultural influences the characters' experience, with relevant media, thought-provoking discussion starters, and links to supplementary information about "real world" references in that portion of the story. We like to refer to them as "Virtual Reader Ride-alongs."

Google Lit Trips is an internationally-acclaimed educational technology project, recognized by prestigious organizations such as: The Tech Museum of Innovation Laureate Awards; The Goldman Sachs Foundation Prizes for Excellence in International Education; Public Radio International; American Library Association; School Library Journal; International Society for Technology and Education; National Council of Teachers of English; Teacher Librarian, the Journal for School Library Professionals and many others. Google Lit Trips have cited Google Lit Trips in more than 130 scholarly publications.

Recent Google Lit Trips Updates

The Crucible is a study in the mass hysteria which led to the 1692 Salem witchcraft trials, concentrating on the fate of some of the key figures caught up in the persecution. It powerfully depicts people and principles under pressure and the issues and motivations involved.

It powerfully depicts people and principles under pressure and the issues and motivations involved. At the same time, it is also a parable for the events of the McCarthy era in the USA of the 1950s when anyone suspected of left-wing views was arraigned for 'Un-American Activities.'

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Google Lit Trips, educational nonprofit, award winning, educational technology, place based storytelling, reading about reading

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lets students explore the biomes of the world-click on a spot tells you climate and animals make up and more. Really great for engaging students in the geography classroom.

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BiomeViewer lets you explore and discover Earth's ecosystems with a tap of your finger! Drop a pin to see historic climate data, wildlife, stunning pictures, and more for any terrestrial location on the planet. Discover how patterns of human settlement and agriculture have changed the planet since 1700.

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Good site for students to test their kowledge with trust worthy and easily accessible map quizzes.

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The ultimate map quiz site! Seterra will challenge you with quizzes about countries, capitals, flags, oceans, lakes and more! Introduced in 1997 and available in more than 40 different languages, Seterra has helped millions of people study geography and learn about their world.

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Story map is free-way to create your own digital maps. Perfect for teachers who want to create a timeline on a map or display a migration.

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Well-rounded selection of helpful research and classroom materials. Can be used to create interdisciplinary lessons.

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Site has lesson plans useful for teaching students about the impact of water scarcity around the world.

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We're excited to introduce our comprehensive Water Crisis Lesson Plans for teachers in elementary through high school.

This teacher's guide can be used as a whole or easily as individual lesson plans across a variety of core subjects.

You'll find interactive activities, worksheets, research ideas and resource lists for you and your students. Together you'll discover the water crisis and, most importantly, some of the solutions to solve it for people in need.

Whether you're teaching on international issues, social studies, earth sciences or writing, we think you'll find this guide a useful tool in helping your students explore the most foundational issue facing the developing world today.

In the Teacher's Guide

We have organized the Teacher's Guide into four easy to use sections. You can preview each lesson below and then download the guide.

The Problem

Students will explore issues including water scarcity, the effects of dirty and unsafe water, and the lack of proper sanitation and hygiene in a community. Using our website as a research tool, they'll be led to a deeper understanding of these issues. We've put the information you need right at your fingertips.

"Water Water Anywhere" illustrates the principal of water abundance versus water scarcity, both physical and economic, by having students move through three stations in which they must fill a water bottle using different rules at each station.

"Dirty Water... So What?" uses a jigsaw approach to have students teach each other about four potential effects of dirty water: poor health, increased hunger, perpetual poverty, and lack of access to education.

"Hand Washing Hang Ups" explores the challenges of teaching hand washing and introduces students to the innovative, low cost solution of the tippy-tap before having them get creative in their own solution making.

The Solution

Students will learn about the different methods available to bring clean, safe water to a developing community. They will wrestle with the challenges of competing ideas and technical solutions. Then they'll work as a team to discover the best way forward in a particular setting.

"Village Voices" is a small-group, role-play simulation activity in which students must use their own skills of deduction, along with The Water Project website to determine which type of water technology is best for four distinct villages.

"Water Projects Word Search" harness the information found in the Types of Projects section of The Water Project website as students use clues to determine what vocabulary words they must find in the puzzle.

Additional Resources

"Just the Facts: The Water Crisis by the Numbers" is a list of some of the most commonly used, compelling and interesting facts about the world water crisis. Citations are included.

"Keep on Digging" is an annotated bibliography highlighting many of the top sources and agencies from across the water and sanitation sector. It is an excellent resource for additional research.

Get Involved

We have found that when teachers introduce these problems and solutions, students are often quite self-motivated to get directly involved in real-world activities to help. The tools provided will spur their creativity and provide tools to take action.

Download Free Lesson Plans

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Water Crisis - Lesson Plans and Teachers Guide for High School through Elementary Grades

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We're excited to introduce our comprehensive Water Crisis Lesson Plans for teachers in elementary through high school. This teacher's guide can be used as a whole or easily as individual lesson plans across a variety of core subjects. You'll find interactive activities, worksheets, research ideas and resource lists for you and your students.

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Based out of the UK and encourages students to learn more about geography. Engages students in  practicing map skills, playing geography-related games, and using (GIS).

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Variety of games, and homework help for children about mapping and geography.

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Out of Australia comes the GeoSpace site designed and supported by the Australian Geography Teachers Association. Plenty of useful lessons that can be adapted.

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Welcome to GeogSpace, an initiative of the Australian Geography Teachers Association (AGTA) supported by the resources of Education Services Australia (ESA).

There has never been a more exciting time to study geography, with it being a subject vital to the education of every young Australian in the 21st century. GeogSpace has been designed to provide materials to support primary and secondary teachers in implementing the Australian Curriculum: Geography. It has been developed by AGTA's team of practising geography teachers, dedicated to ensuring all schools across Australia have access to a unique resource that reflects best practice using current technology and pedagogies.

GeogSpace offers quality primary and secondary geography resource materials for all teachers of geography, including those that are very experienced and those just commencing their involvement. The materials will support teachers to develop their knowledge, skills and pedagogical capacity to teach geography of the highest quality.

Navigating the site

GeogSpace comprises two major resource sections, Core units and Support units.

Core units comprise illustrations of practice for stages of schooling described in the Australian Curriculum: Geography. The illustrations are provided for:

The illustrations are designed to provide classroom-ready ideas and resources that reflect the dynamism of this exciting learning area. Each illustration is linked to the Australian Curriculum: Geography and provides opportunities for students to actively engage in learning, whether it be through undertaking class research, practical activities, field investigations or through taking local action.

Core units have three sections for each of the stages of schooling:

Key understandings

Inquiry and skills

Exemplars

Support units provide illustrations of practice designed to support teachers' professional learning and provide guidance, information and resources in eight areas of geographical education:

A dynamic, evolving resource

It is anticipated GeogSpace will continue to grow and become even more interactive and comprehensive as it reflects the dynamism of geographical education in the 21st century.

AGTA welcomes feedback about the GeogSpace site and resources, and wishes all users every success in their teaching of geography in Australian classrooms.

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Welcome to GeogSpace, an initiative of the Australian Geography Teachers Association (AGTA) supported by the resources of Education Services Australia (ESA). There has never been a more exciting time to study geography, with it being a subject vital to the education of every young Australian in the 21st century.

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Reliable world atlas that allows street and drone views, useful for students to search mountains, landmarks, capitals, and more.

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The Google Maps API and Earth plug-in allows you to navigate and explore geographic data on a 3D globe using a web browser.

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National Council for the Social Studies 

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National Council for the Social Studies 

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Includes anything a student or teacher might need concerning the content social studies.

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NCSS Live Learning Center 6.0 - Home Page

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National Foundation for Teaching Economics

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National Foundation for Teaching Economics

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The FTE is known for its emphasis on active learning and engaging activities in economics classrooms. They have teacher resources available and programs teachers can adapt.

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Teachers - Foundation For Teaching Economics

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The Foundation for Teaching Economics (FTE) was founded in 1975 to promote excellence in economic education by helping teachers of economics become more effective educators. FTE focuses its efforts on the high school and middle school grade levels and provides professional development programs and teaching resources, which target primarily, but not exclusively, the social studies ...

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The economics is a more practical website that can be used for news and current events happening in the economics world. Could use articles in ECON classroom.

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Websites | Economist - World News, Politics, Economics, Business & Finance

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The Economist offers authoritative insight and opinion on international news, politics, business, finance, science, technology and the connections between them.

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Site features multiple video clips from hit TV series "The Office" that demonstrate economic principles.

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The Economics of The Office - Video Clips

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Dwight corners the market on Princess Unicorn dolls! This is a good opportunity to discuss the relationship between expected future prices and changes in demand. Dwight knew that the demand for these dolls would increase as Christmas drew closer.

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Creates economic centered simulations to engage High School Students

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Learn or teach Macroeconomics with the Econland simulation game and learning platform.

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Includes experiments, teaching resources, and research. Includes guidance and instruction on how to integrate these into the classroom.

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EconPort is an economics digital library specializing in content that emphasizes the use of experiments in teaching and research. Content includes teaching modules, a handbook of economic and game theoretic principles and concepts, a glossary of economics terms, and an extensive collection of educational material, as well as software for running experiments.

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Compiled more than 170 games teachers can use in the classroom without using technology.

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Games Economists Play: Jurgen Brauer and Greg Delemeester

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This web site is a resource for instructors of economics who would like to use non-computerized economic experiments (games) in their classrooms. The bulk of the website consists of an extensively annotated and hyperlinked compilation of more than 170 classroom games, most of which can be played within one class period.

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"Economics in one lesson" by Henry Hazlitt. The book is broken into two parts; the first focuses on the art of economics and how policy effects all groups of people over a longer period. The second part consists of 24 chapters each with its own demonstration of the lesson. Perfect Quick overview for teachers.
"Freakonomics" By Stephen Levitt The book is a collection of articles written by the author, Steven Levitt. He is famous for his non “traditional” viewpoints on economics. One of the uses of economic theory involves exposing the cheating taking place in sumo wrestling. All of the topics are extremely interesting and help the reader forget they’re learning about economics.
"Capitol in The Twenty First Century" by Thomas Piketty. The book focuses on wealth and income inequality primarily in Europe and the United States since the 18th Century. Its central idea is centered on how unequal distribution of wealth causes social and economic instability. Good for more in-depth look at ECON.

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Creates units that use UBD. Also does well for interdisciplinary lessons.

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Project Archaeology | Discover the past ~ Shape the future

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Project Archaeology uses archaeological inquiry to foster understanding of past and present cultures; social studies and science education; and citizenship education to help preserve our archaeological legacy.

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Has materials regarding biological and linguistic anthropology. Solid resources available to anyone

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education initiatives and resources information

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Anthropology Resources for Educators - Participate & Advocate

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Anthropology is an interdisciplinary science that correlates closely with content standards for various subjects such as history (i.e, study of past peoples, American Indians), geography (i.e., environment and society, places and regions), social studies (i.e., culture, continuity, and change), and science (i.e., science as inquiry, evolution of human life).

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Out of the UK, resource content focuses on cultural and social anthropology. Features lesson plans and article.

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The Discover Anthropology website is operated by the Royal Anthropological Institute's Education Outreach Programme. The website aims to encourage a wider appreciation and understanding of anthropology by functioning as a hub for communication, gathering information, and accessing events, activities and resources for people interested in learning more about the subject.

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TED Talks are always great to use in the classroom. This particular theme focuses on fueling the human existence and features Dr. Wesch, an award winning professor.

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TED.com, home of TED Talks, is a global initiative about ideas worth spreading via TEDx, the TED Prize, TED Books, TED Conferences, TED-Ed and more.

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"The Third Chimpanzee: The Evolution and Future of the Human Animal" by Jarred Diamond. Covers the origin of the human species and could be very valuable to students.
"Home Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow" by Yuval Noah Harari. Describes how the abilities humans have acquired throughout their evolution has helped them in their dominance of the world.
"The Art of Being Human" By Dr. Michael Wesch. shares many of his own adventures of being an anthropologist and what the science of human beings can tell us about the art of being human.

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Before During After reading strategies. They are used to keep students on track and engaged while reading, before reading, and after reading.

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The strategies below are used to guide students to actively participate before, during and after reading. The intent is that they will continue to use these strategies when they encounter more challenging texts. These strategies are part of the Guided Reading philosophy and are an essential part of any literacy program.

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Sketch notes are an awesome way for students to take notes over a primary source. Students are asked to draw their notes instead of writing them.

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Sketch notes-or graphic notes, or whatever term you like-are one of the single most important developments in note-taking history. Hold on, give me a second to explain.

Exactly why they matter has something to do with the way our brains work, and the explosion of technology, and a little bit of viral success.

The point of notes, it seems, is to capture important ideas for future reference. While it's nothing new to take notes that combine images with words and phrases, sketch notes are actually an evolution of this idea. As an English teacher, I taught only a handful note-taking styles, primarily combination notes, and Cornell notes, concept-map notes, and a kind of mash of the three. As a matter of differentiation, I'd offer some students examples of outline-style notes and other styles, but that was it.

Then Ken Robinson's Changing Educational Paradigms exploded across the internet, and the sound of the little marker squeaking across the whiteboard became synonymous with digital storytelling. Iconic even.

Why? Because sketch notes like these don't just capture ideas, they tell a story. And that matters because human beings young and old love a good story. The video game industry, billion-dollar marketing campaigns, Hollywood, even sports teams and musical artists all live and die by their ability to relay a story we can connect with-and that matters in the academic world as well.

The water cycle has a story to tell that is exceptionally hard to document in an outline form-and impossible to do so engagingly or enthusiastically. Same with Faulkner's use of Symbolism, the causes and effects of war, the need for education to evolve, or the merits of Freakonomics. Sketch notes, done well, can tell a story. Which means they can be curated and, more importantly, shared.

And in the era of mobile learning and social media, this means everything. It may not seem natural for a student to share their sketch notes on YouTube or Instagram, but why not? If it's important and elegant and worth sharing, they'll share it.

As you can see below, they're not simple words and pictures together-well, done badly they are. But done well, they tell a story while recording and documenting important information in a highly-visible, elegant, and shareable way.

Helping students understand how to take proper sketch notes isn't as simple as sharing these images and say 'do this' (though that's a start). Like all learning, it's a matter of modeling, scaffolding, and patience. Hopefully, these 10 examples-including the classic ' How to Read a Book' and Seth God's ' Stop Stealing Dreams'--will help.

10 Brilliant Examples Of Sketch Notes: Notetaking For The 21st Century

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10 Brilliant Examples Of Sketch Notes: Notetaking For The 21st Century

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Sketch notes aren't just a trend, but rather a new visual style of capturing and documenting ideas for the 21st century student.

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Assessment strategy that works well in a history class. Students describe/summarize a historical event by answering somebody, wanted, but, so.

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Much like a poetry slam, students voluntarily go to the front of class and read an original poem.

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Teaching Tools | Resources for Teachers from Scholastic

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Students on inside circle are debating/discussing, students on outside of circle are taking notes over discussion.

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5 Steps to a Successful Socratic Seminar - Minds in Bloom

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Use these five steps to run a successful Socratic seminar in your classroom! This is a method that requires trial and error, but it’s worth the outcome!

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Students primarily work in group settings with a large emphasis on student centered learning.

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Cite this guide: Brame, C.J. & Biel, R. (2015). Setting up and facilitating group work:
Using cooperative learning groups effectively. Vanderbilt University Center for Teaching. Retrieved [todaysdate] from http://cft.vanderbilt.edu/guides-sub-pages/setting-up-and-facilitating-group-work-using-cooperative-learning-groups-effectively/.

Many instructors from disciplines across the university use group work to enhance their students' learning. Whether the goal is to increase student understanding of content, to build particular transferable skills, or some combination of the two, instructors often turn to small group work to capitalize on the benefits of peer-to-peer instruction. This type of group work is formally termed cooperative learning, and is defined as the instructional use of small groups to promote students working together to maximize their own and each other's learning (Johnson, et al., 2008).

Cooperative learning is characterized by positive interdependence, where students perceive that better performance by individuals produces better performance by the entire group (Johnson, et al., 2014). It can be formal or informal, but often involves specific instructor intervention to maximize student interaction and learning. It is infinitely adaptable, working in small and large classes and across disciplines, and can be one of the most effective teaching approaches available to college instructors.

What can it look like?

Informal cooperative learning groups
In informal cooperative learning, small, temporary, ad-hoc groups of two to four students work together for brief periods in a class, typically up to one class period, to answer questions or respond to prompts posed by the instructor.

Additional examples of ways to structure informal group work
Think-pair-share
The instructor asks a discussion question. Students are instructed to think or write about an answer to the question before turning to a peer to discuss their responses. Groups then share their responses with the class.
Peer Instruction
This modification of the think-pair-share involves personal responses devices (e.g. clickers). The question posted is typically a conceptually based multiple-choice question. Students think about their answer and vote on a response before turning to a neighbor to discuss. Students can change their answers after discussion, and "sharing" is accomplished by the instructor revealing the graph of student response and using this as a stimulus for large class discussion. This approach is particularly well-adapted for large classes.
Jigsaw
In this approach, groups of students work in a team of four to become experts on one segment of new material, while other "expert teams" in the class work on other segments of new material. The class then rearranges, forming new groups that have one member from each expert team. The members of the new team then take turns teaching each other the material on which they are experts.
Formal cooperative learning groups
In formal cooperative learning students work together for one or more class periods to complete a joint task or assignment (Johnson et al., 2014). There are several features that can help these groups work well:

The instructor defines the learning objectives for the activity and assigns students to groups.

The groups are typically heterogeneous, with particular attention to the skills that are needed for success in the task.

Within the groups, students may be assigned specific roles, with the instructor communicating the criteria for success and the types of social skills that will be needed.

Importantly, the instructor continues to play an active role during the groups' work, monitoring the work and evaluating group and individual performance.

Instructors also encourage groups to reflect on their interactions to identify potential improvements for future group work.

This video shows an example of formal cooperative learning groups in David Matthes' class at the University of Minnesota:

There are many more specific types of group work that fall under the general descriptions given here, including team-based learning, problem-based learning, and process-oriented guided inquiry learning.

What's the theoretical underpinning?

The use of cooperative learning groups in instruction is based on the principle of constructivism, with particular attention to the contribution that social interaction can make. In essence, constructivism rests on the idea that individuals learn through building their own knowledge, connecting new ideas and experiences to existing knowledge and experiences to form new or enhanced understanding (Bransford, et al., 1999). The consideration of the role that groups can play in this process is based in social interdependence theory, which grew out of Kurt Koffka's and Kurt Lewin's identification of groups as dynamic entities that could exhibit varied interdependence among members, with group members motivated to achieve common goals. Morton Deutsch conceptualized varied types of interdependence, with positive correlation among group members' goal achievements promoting cooperation.

Lev Vygotsky extended this work by examining the relationship between cognitive processes and social activities, developing the sociocultural theory of development. The sociocultural theory of development suggests that learning takes place when students solve problems beyond their current developmental level with the support of their instructor or their peers. Thus both the idea of a zone of proximal development, supported by positive group interdependence, is the basis of cooperative learning (Davidson and Major, 2014; Johnson, et al., 2014).

Cooperative learning follows this idea as groups work together to learn or solve a problem, with each individual responsible for understanding all aspects. The small groups are essential to this process because students are able to both be heard and to hear their peers, while in a traditional classroom setting students may spend more time listening to what the instructor says.

Cooperative learning uses both goal interdependence and resource interdependence to ensure interaction and communication among group members. Changing the role of the instructor from lecturing to facilitating the groups helps foster this social environment for students to learn through interaction.

Is there evidence that it works?

David Johnson, Roger Johnson, and Karl Smith performed a meta-analysis of 168 studies comparing cooperative learning to competitive learning and individualistic learning in college students (Johnson et al., 2006). They found that cooperative learning produced greater academic achievement than both competitive learning and individualistic learning across the studies, exhibiting a mean weighted effect size of 0.54 when comparing cooperation and competition and 0.51 when comparing cooperation and individualistic learning. In essence, these results indicate that cooperative learning increases student academic performance by approximately one-half of a standard deviation when compared to non-cooperative learning models, an effect that is considered moderate. Importantly, the academic achievement measures were defined in each study, and ranged from lower-level cognitive tasks (e.g., knowledge acquisition and retention) to higher level cognitive activity (e.g., creative problem solving), and from verbal tasks to mathematical tasks to procedural tasks. The meta-analysis also showed substantial effects on other metrics, including self-esteem and positive attitudes about learning. George Kuh and colleagues also conclude that cooperative group learning promotes student engagement and academic performance (Kuh et al., 2007).

Springer, Stanne, and Donovan (1999) confirmed these results in their meta-analysis of 39 studies in university STEM classrooms. They found that students who participated in various types of small-group learning, ranging from extended formal interactions to brief informal interactions, had greater academic achievement, exhibited more favorable attitudes towards learning, and had increased persistence through STEM courses than students who did not participate in STEM small-group learning.

The box below summarizes three individual studies examining the effects of cooperative learning groups.

What are approaches that can help make group work effective?
Preparation Articulate your goals for the group work, including both the academic objectives you want the students to achieve and the social skills you want them to develop. Determine the group conformation that will help meet your goals.
In informal group learning, groups often form ad hoc from near neighbors in a class.

In formal group learning, it is helpful for the instructor to form groups that are heterogeneous with regard to particular skills or abilities relevant to group tasks. For example, groups may be heterogeneous with regard to academic skill in the discipline or with regard to other skills related to the group task (e.g., design capabilities, programming skills, writing skills, organizational skills) (Johnson et al, 2006).

Groups from 2-6 are generally recommended, with groups that consist of three members exhibiting the best performance in some problem-solving tasks (Johnson et al., 2006; Heller and Hollabaugh, 1992).

To avoid common problems in group work, such as dominance by a single student or conflict avoidance, it can be useful to assign roles to group members (e.g., manager, skeptic, educator, conciliator) and to rotate them on a regular basis (Heller and Hollabaugh, 1992). Assigning these roles is not necessary in well-functioning groups, but can be useful for students who are unfamiliar with or unskilled at group work.
Choose an assessment method that will promote positive group interdependence as well as individual accountability.
In team-based learning, two approaches promote positive interdependence and individual accountability. First, students take an individual readiness assessment test, and then immediately take the same test again as a group. Their grade is a composite of the two scores. Second, students complete a group project together, and receive a group score on the project. They also, however, distribute points among their group partners, allowing student assessment of members' contributions to contribute to the final score.

Heller and Hollabaugh (1992) describe an approach in which they incorporated group problem-solving into a class. Students regularly solved problems in small groups, turning in a single solution. In addition, tests were structured such that 25% of the points derived from a group problem, where only those individuals who attended the group problem-solving sessions could participate in the group test problem. This approach can help prevent the "free rider" problem that can plague group work.

The University of New South Wales describes a variety of ways to assess group work, ranging from shared group grades, to grades that are averages of individual grades, to strictly individual grades, to a combination of these. They also suggest ways to assess not only the product of the group work but also the process. Again, having a portion of a grade that derives from individual contribution helps combat the free rider problem.
Helping groups get started Explain the group's task, including your goals for their academic achievement and social interaction. Explain how the task involves both positive interdependence and individual accountability, and how you will be assessing each.
Assign group roles or give groups prompts to help them articulate effective ways for interaction. The University of New South Wales provides a valuable set of tools to help groups establish good practices when first meeting. The site also provides some exercises for building group dynamics; these may be particularly valuable for groups that will be working on larger projects.

Regularly observe group interactions and progress, either by circulating during group work, collecting in-process documents, or both. When you observe problems, intervene to help students move forward on the task and work together effectively. The University of New South Wales provides handouts that instructors can use to promote effective group interactions, such as a handout to help students listen reflectively or give constructive feedback, or to help groups identify particular problems that they may be encountering.

Assessing and reflecting

In addition to providing feedback on group and individual performance (link to preparation section above), it is also useful to provide a structure for groups to reflect on what worked well in their group and what could be improved. Graham Gibbs (1994) suggests using the checklists shown below.

The University of New South Wales provides other reflective activities that may help students identify effective group practices and avoid ineffective practices in future cooperative learning experiences.

References

Bransford, J.D., Brown, A.L., and Cocking, R.R. (Eds.) (1999). How people learn: Brain, mind, experience, and school. Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press.

Bruffee, K. A. (1993). Collaborative learning: Higher education, interdependence, and the authority of knowledge. Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press.

Cabrera, A. F., Crissman, J. L., Bernal, E. M., Nora, A., Terenzini, P. T., & Pascarella, E. T. (2002). Collaborative learning: Its impact on college students' development and diversity. Journal of College Student Development, 43(1), 20-34.

Davidson, N., & Major, C. H. (2014). Boundary crossing: Cooperative learning, collaborative learning, and problem-based learning. Journal on Excellence in College Teaching, 25 (3&4), 7-55.

Dees, R. L. (1991). The role of cooperative leaning in increasing problem-solving ability in a college remedial course. Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, 22(5), 409-21.

Gokhale, A. A. (1995). Collaborative Learning enhances critical thinking. Journal of Technology Education, 7(1).

Heller, P., and Hollabaugh, M. (1992) Teaching problem solving through cooperative grouping. Part 2: Designing problems and structuring groups. American Journal of Physics 60, 637-644.

Johnson, D.W., Johnson, R.T., and Smith, K.A. (2006). Active learning: Cooperation in the university classroom (3 rd edition). Edina, MN: Interaction.

Johnson, D.W., Johnson, R.T., and Holubec, E.J. (2008). Cooperation in the classroom (8 th edition). Edina, MN: Interaction.

Johnson, D.W., Johnson, R.T., and Smith, K.A. (2014). Cooperative learning: Improving university instruction by basing practice on validated theory. Journl on Excellence in College Teaching 25, 85-118.

Jones, D. J., & Brickner, D. (1996). Implementation of cooperative learning in a large-enrollment basic mechanics course. American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference Proceedings.

Kuh, G.D., Kinzie, J., Buckley, J., Bridges, B., and Hayek, J.C. (2007). Piecing together the student success puzzle: Research, propositions, and recommendations (ASHE Higher Education Report, No. 32). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Love, A. G., Dietrich, A., Fitzgerald, J., & Gordon, D. (2014). Integrating collaborative learning inside and outside the classroom. Journal on Excellence in College Teaching, 25(3&4), 177-196.

Smith, M. E., Hinckley, C. C., & Volk, G. L. (1991). Cooperative learning in the undergraduate laboratory. Journal of Chemical Education 68(5), 413-415.

Springer, L., Stanne, M. E., & Donovan, S. S. (1999). Effects of small-group learning on undergraduates in science, mathematics, engineering, and technology: A meta-analysis. Review of Educational Research, 96(1), 21-51.

Uribe, D., Klein, J. D., & Sullivan, H. (2003). The effect of computer-mediated collaborative learning on solving ill-defined problems. Educational Technology Research and Development, 51(1), 5-19.

Vygotsky, L. S. (1962). Thought and Language. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

This teaching guide is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

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Group work: Using cooperative learning groups effectively

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by Cynthia J. Brame and Rachel Biel Print Version Cite this guide: Brame, C.J. & Biel, R. (2015). Setting up and facilitating group work: Using cooperative learning groups effectively. Vanderbilt University Center for Teaching. Retrieved [todaysdate] from http://cft.vanderbilt.edu/guides-sub-pages/setting-up-and-facilitating-group-work-using-cooperative-learning-groups-effectively/. Many instructors from disciplines across the university use group work to enhance their students' learning.

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Students analyze and think critically about a primary source in order to make inferences

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Used to visually display relationships between facts, concepts, or ideas.

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Document/Data-Based Questioning is a series of short answer or essay questions.

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The DBQ Project strives to help teachers help students read smart, think straight, and write clearly with educational products and teacher development.

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These allow students to relax and let their minds reset.

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Every teacher knows that "glazed look" students give you after they've had to overwork their brains thinking about a difficult subject - or just sitting in their desks for too long. Over the years, I've developed many of these brain breaks because I know and understand that students need to "recharge" - especially when we are working on difficult material.

This is just a great list to get you started. I'm sure you'll come up with more of your own creative ideas - and I would love to hear them! Please comment! Not all of these are "curricular" brain breaks, and for good reason. I make it a point to do at least ONE non-curricular 2-5 minute brain break a day. I find that my students are actually MORE engaged in the process of learning when I do these. For elementary teachers, maybe 2-3 of these are good for your kiddos.
I hope this huge list helps you to "change it up" during class and breathe fresh life into your classroom!

50 Brain Breaks to Engage Students in the Classroom

HIVE FIVES - listed below are 5 different high five brain breaks. These are short, simple, and to the point, but my students absolutely love them. They give students time to stand, get the blood pumping back to their brains, and they get to physically move around, which my high schoolers definitely need. Every time I tell them to stand up, they know that a high five is probably shortly around the corner.

1. Regular high fives - Tell the students they have 30 seconds to high five every person in the room, but they MUST walk. It's funny watching them try and walk quickly to high five 30 students in 30 seconds.
2. Double high fives - Have students stand. Then tell them to put one hand in the air, then another. Then have them turn and double high five all the students around them.
3. Windmill high fives - Tell students to spread out in the room so they have plenty of room. Then have them stretch both arms out to the sides, once hand facing forward, the other facing backward. Then have them partner up with someone, turning in circles. As they turn, they should be able to high five their partner. This is one of my students' favorites.
4. High five hugs - When the students high five, they place their thumb around the hand of the other student and tap it a couple times. It's as if their hands are giving hugs.
5. Student authored high fives - Often I have the students come up with their own versions of high fives. They invent them and show them to me. Then I use them in class at a later time. Students have come up with volleyball high fives, jellyfish high fives, turkey high fives...so many.

GRATITUDE - Listed below are several gratitude brain breaks. It is statistically proven that if we daily practice gratitude, we are 10% happier. It helps students to stop and take a few minutes to be grateful, and it gives us a short break in the middle of class.

6. I'm thankful for YOU! HANDOUT - take a few minutes and use the attached handout to allow students to write a short letter to someone they are thankful for.
7. Thankfulness Sharing - Go around the room and have each student share something specific they are thankful for (more than just friends or family - they need to say specific names or items).
8. Thankfulness Post-its - Have students take a post-it note and write down what they are thankful for. Then designate a place in the room where students stick those post-it notes for you to read out loud when you need another brain break!

9. 1,000 Gifts - Ann Voskamp has a blog called http://www.aholyexperience.com. At that blog she has lists of daily gratitude prompts for every month. Every day you could put one of those prompts on the board and have students write them in a journal. Then, when you need a brain break, you can have them share their gifts from the journal.

10. Gratitude Graffiti Wall - Put a large piece of paper on your wall, in the hallway, or on the door. During a brain break, have students write their gratitude on the wall. If your students sit at tables, you can put the paper on their tables and have them write them, later hanging the gratitude posters on the wall.

11. UNBIRTHDAY PROJECT (HANDOUTS) - As a teacher of 16 years, I have always had difficulty remembering and celebrating student birthdays. So, a few years ago I started celebrating students' unbirthdays. It is a great brain break once a week - and if I forget, you can be certain the students will remember. In the attached packet are all the handouts you'll need to make this happen and understand what Unbirthdays are. But you can certainly make this your own.

ENCOURAGEMENT - A great way to develop safety in the environment of your classroom is to have students encourage one another and other teachers. Taking five minutes out of your class time to encourage one another is more valuable than you'll ever know. When students feel encouraged and safe, they are more likely to take risks in their education.

12. Drive by encouragement - While students are finishing up an assignment quietly, I walk by their desks and put a long 1-2 foot strip of masking tape on their desks. When it is time, we take 5 minutes to do a fun activity. The students write compliments on the masking tape for their fellow students. I make them start with their own table or row (so everyone makes sure to get one). Then after all the compliments are written, they "drive by" and stick the pieces of masking tape on each student. Students end up with 10-20 encouragements. Most of my students keep the tape on their binders or folders and are very encouraged by these notes.

13. Drive by Post-its - Once or twice a semester, I like to take 5 minutes to encourage another colleague, a janitor, a secretary, an administrator, or the lunch ladies. I have students write an encouraging note on a post-it note. Then we take a short five minutes to do a silent drive by. We walk quickly to that person's door and stick all the post-it notes on it. It's very important that the students know it is silent.  We don't disturb anyone, but especially for secretaries or colleagues, this is a great encouragement for them.

14. Have a fan-tasch-tic day (HANDOUT) - Small slips of paper used to write encouragement notes to classmates or locker buddies.

15. SIX WORD MEMOIRS (HANDOUT) - Instructions are on the handout. This is a great activity that can be extended or short. You could merely have the students write down a six-word memoir for their day and put it on a post-it or share it with the class. OR - you could do the more extended assignment, but only take 5 minute brain breaks here and there to work on it. If you use technology in the classroom, you can also use Twitter - as there is a Six Word Memoir Twitter page where people can post according to the # prompts given.

GETTING TO KNOW YOUR STUDENTS - I love to use brain breaks to get to know my students and help them get to know one another. Here are some ways to do that:

16. Handshakes - During a brain break, have students go shake the hands of three students and introduce themselves. You'd be surprised how many students still don't know one another's names by a few weeks into the semester, especially in high school.

17. Favorites - Have students stand up and go talk to three different students about a "favorite," making sure they also know the name of that person. When they all finish, have several students share what they learned out loud with the rest of the class.

18. Cave Time - Have students sit under their desks or table with another student and discuss something from your lesson or a "favorite." Just the simple act of sitting at another level helps them break up the mundane.

19. What Matters to You? -(HANDOUT) Have students fill out the What Matters to You handout and then, when you need brain breaks, have students get it out and share one thing with the class, their neighbors, or their tables.

20. Show Not Tell - (HANDOUT) Have students fill out the show not tell handout. Then, when you need a brain break, have them partner up and do a charade to help the other student figure out when they were happy or shy or sad.

21. Skittles Interview - (HANDOUT) Have students pick out (according to the instructions on the handout) skittles. Then have them interview one or more students based on the colors they've chosen. This can happen all at once or a question at a time, depending on how much of a brain break you need.

22. Check-up Letter - Have the students write a letter to you (you choose the length) as a brain break about once a quarter, letting you know how they are doing in the class, any questions they have, anything you need to know about their out of school life.

23. One Word- Have students give you ONE WORD - for instance, one brain break you could have them give you one word that describes themselves, their families, their outside activities - something that helps you get to know them better.

24. Kindergarten Carpet Time - I use this strategy for book discussions in my classroom, but it's also nice to change locations and sit on the floor. If you teach elementary school, you already do this. But this has been very successful for me even as a high school teacher. The students are just tired of desks and tables. It's nice to change locations. And before we discuss the book we often have a "How's your heart?" discussion as a group. Great way to get to know my students.

25. Post-it Notes - These are my favorite for getting to know kids. When they walk in the door or during class for a brain break, I have them fill out one of these questions and stick it to a place I've designated (mine is a board called Post-It Place):
a. What are you most excited about this weekend?
b. What exciting thing happened last weekend?
c. What are you most proud of lately?
d. What questions do you have about class?

CURRICULAR BRAIN BREAKS - Another kind of brain break is one that relates back to your curriculum. Both administrators and teachers love this one.

26. STOP AND TEXT - (HANDOUT) This handout is a more extended version, but at anytime during your lesson, you can have students STOP & TEXT. You can use the form I created or create one of your own that you pass out and have them write a quick text based on the subject you are currently studying. Then students get up and share their texts with someone else. If you have a classroom that allows cell phones or Twitter, you can actually have the students text. You can also give them a specific hashtag on Twitter for all of them to post their information.

27. Entrance Ticket (HANDOUT) - I have included a sample entrance ticket for you to look at. You can also do a MID CLASS TICKET - have students write down what is happening, any questions they might have, etc. On my ticket I include an Instagram photo, which is fun for high school students to do.

28. TED (HANDOUTS) - I love http://www.ted.com. It is a website full of short and long videos. I have included some handouts I have created for TED - there is a full bundle in my TPT store. There are a lot of very short TED videos that are great to show in class. With the search tool on the website, you are sure to find something that connects to your curriculum. The three ideas below won't necessarily connect with your curriculum, but they are good brain break ideas that stemmed from TED.

29. Love Letters (HANDOUT) - One of the TED videos is Hannah Brencher, who suggests leaving letters for strangers in hidden places. For one brain break in my class, we took a few minutes to write an encouragement letter to a stranger.

30. Before I Die (HANDOUT) - Candy Chang has a great short TED on a cool art installation she did asking people the things they want to do before they die. Students can write on slips of paper, Post-Its, or on a chart you have on the wall. It's neat to see some of their goals.

31. 30 Day Challenge (HANDOUT) - Another TED talk by Matt Cutts challenges people to try something for 30 days. You can use the handout I've created or just have a short brain break where students share something they'd like to try for 30 days.

32. Speed Dating - (HANDOUT) Students love this activity. I have included an example in the packet from my unit The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch (the full bundle is at my TPT store). Speed Dating is just like the actual activity in real life. Students talk to another student for an amount of time I set on the clock. Usually they have a set of questions to follow. This is a great way to "shake up" some questions the students absolutely have to answer but you don't want them sitting and working on them quietly, not engaged. You can call out a question number and then have students "switch" to a new partner to get the answer. Also a great way to differentiate and it gets the students moving around.

33. What's My Sentence (HANDOUT) - Normally, this is an activity I do with my Tuesdays with Morrie unit. However, this is a great curricular brain break. No matter what subject you teach, you can have students derive a SENTENCE that particular person in history, vocab word, or character might say. For instance, what might a cell say about itself? Students can come up with sentences alone or with partners and stand to recite them.

34. Teen or Tween Tribune - This is a great website that allows students to look at current events related to teenagers. There is an online account teachers and students can have which allow for accountability, but students can comment on articles. It's a really great, short brain break.

THEME DAYS - In my classroom, I have daily theme days. I got this idea from a fellow colleague in Oklahoma who was our district Teacher of the Year. This naturally lends itself to allowing brain breaks in the classroom. They can be meaningful or silly, they can also be personal to you and your hobbies. My theme days are posted in the classroom and students ask about them EVERY DAY (and I teach high school!) It's a great, fun way to keep students engaged.

35. Inspire Me Monday - Show short, inspiration clips from YouTube on Mondays. I enjoy Kid President and Soul Pancake videos, but there are thousands you can use.

36. Bubble Monday - Yes, I'm a little crazy, but I blow bubbles in the hallway during class periods on Mondays. The students love running through them. 

37. Mustache Tuesday - (HANDOUT) I allow my students to wear mustaches on Mondays - I just print them on Avery Labels. Most of them just stick them on their binders.

38. Unbirthdays - One of my theme days is unbirthdays. These are my natural brain breaks on Wednesdays and Thursdays.

39. Throwback Thursday - Take a brain break and show pictures of yourself from high school or elementary school. Kids love this.

40. Muppet Friday - I show the Mahna Mahna song every Friday, but I also show short Muppet clips. A great, 1-2 minute brain break.

STATIONS OR PARTICIPATORY BRAIN BREAKS - If we have an station brain break, students can choose what they want to do for 5 minutes. So the next 10 brain breaks are some you can do when you tell students they have 5 minutes to participate in whatever brain break they choose. Keep a list of these on your board or on the wall, so when you tell them it is a "CHOICE" brain break, they can refer to the list.

41. Puzzle - I leave a jigsaw puzzle set up in the corner of my classroom. Students who enjoy puzzles can use their brains to work on this brain break

42. Dream Tree - (HANDOUT) Create a tree on a bulletin board or bring one to life. Allow students to fill out the DREAM TREE handout and then cut off the bottom and hang it on the tree.

43. Leave a Footprint - (HANDOUT) Make a bulletin board of footprints - how students want to change the world. During the 5 minute brain break, students can write on and cut out their foot, adding it to the other footprints.

44. Landmarks and Landmines - (HANDOUT) Have a place where students can create a timeline of their week or month. Have them chronicle the landmarks (positives) and landmines (negatives) of their school week or month. Great way to check in on how they are doing.

45. Get to Know You handouts - (HANDOUTS) Have one station be full of surveys or get to know you handouts the students can fill out. Another way to keep tabs on the interests of your students.

46. Quotes - (HANDOUT) Have a station full of quotes. Students can pick one to write about.

47. Show and Tell (HANDOUT) - There is an example of what I do for Show and Tell in the high school classroom. I have students pick out an assignment they are proud of and take it home to talk about with their parents. During this 5 minute brain break, students can choose an assignment and fill out the Show and Tell handout.

48. Mailboxes - I have a mailbox for each high school student. They keep track of their assignments there and that is how I turn back papers. There may be some helpful students who would like to pass back papers to the mailboxes or to students themselves.

49. No Names - I have a no name box in my classroom. During this 5 minute break, it is a great time to check and make sure none of those assignments in the box belong to you! 

50. Take a Lap - Seriously, sometimes I have bodily kinesthetic students who just need to take a lap and walk around the room. It gets their brains going and gets the ants out. 

Although this list is not exhaustive, it is a good start. If you are interested in the entries that are labeled "handout," feel free to visit my Teachers Pay Teachers store. There, you can find over 30 handouts that can be used with these ideas.

Once again, please comment and add your own ideas to this list. We teachers are always about sharing the wealth! I can always use more brain break ideas for my classroom, too!

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teachupsidedown: 50 Brain Breaks to Engage Students in the Classroom

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Every teacher knows that "glazed look" students give you after they've had to overwork their brains thinking about a difficult subject - or just sitting in their desks for too long. Over the years, I've developed many of these brain breaks because I know and understand that students need to "recharge" - especially when we...