A Curated Collection of Resources for Teachers Looking to Improve Their Web 2.0 Integration Skills

There are lots of valid resources available to you as teachers. Some of them are people, some of them are groups, some of them are documents, and some you probably already use.

This is a collection of resources that I've compiled to help you get more familiar with integrating Web 2.0 tools into your lesson plans.

Reddit: There are dozens of valuable subreddits that are worth joining as a teacher. Each to access a subreddit, simply visit www.reddit.com/r/insertsubreddithere. So, if my subreddit is called r/VanessaDennen, you would go to www.reddit.com/r/VanessaDennen. 

Another nice thing about Reddit is that it is an anonymous forum, so your students won't be able to track you down. It's a totally safe space.

Now, an overview:

r/Teachers: Here, teachers (and sometimes students) will ask questions, request lesson plan resources, and brainstorm.

r/TeachingResources: Teachers come here to share lesson plan resources and other information/advice about teaching,

r/CSEducation: Like r/Teachers, but for Computer Science specifically.

r/ELATeachers: Like r/Teachers, but for English/Language Arts specifically

r/HistoryTeachers: Same deal, but for History.

r/ScienceTeachers: In case you're teaching science.

r/SpecialEd: In case you're a Special Education teacher.

r/Education: This subreddit is filled with news articles about the public education system and how legislature may effect it. 

Spotify:

This is a platform that you may use in your everyday life, but did you know that Spotify has tons of free audio books and poetry readings on it? This might be a good way to engage students in poetry or give them an alternative way to complete reading assessments!

Google Classroom:

Google Classroom is a Canvas-like alternative that is free to use. You can post assignments, rubrics, and grade assignments. Also, everything is secure through the use of a course code. It's fairly easy to navigate and can be a great system to use in a pinch.

Canvas Commons:

The Canvas Commons is a collection of resources, discussions, and blog posts by educators. Some of them share content, news, and others ask questions. It is a great place to virtually immerse yourself in the educators' world.

Crayola for Educators: 

A collection of curriculum-based activities and lesson plans for the little ones.

Common Sense Media:

A collection of parent-focused reviews to help you discern which shows, movies, or books might be appropriate for your class' age group.

Google Earth:

You can use it to tour different parts of the world. Furthermore, Google Earth Studio lets you (or your students) create video content from the same data set of satellite images that Google Earth.

TeacherTube:

It is YouTube, but limited to educational videos. Not all of them are great, but most of them are pretty good quality.

Voicethread: 

An easy to use platform that makes presentations very simple to complete, and it includes the ability for other users to interact with the presentation by leaving comments.

Great tools that you have to pay for:

Glogster: A multimedia poster platform. Great for presentations.

A VPN: In case you're working with sensitive information on your home computer, a VPN can help protect your data. 

That's all from me! Good luck in your teaching endeavors.

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