10 Tech Tools for Your Classroom

By Sarah Bright

It’s a simple goal: to save time while being more efficient, whether you’re teaching in a classroom or online. What’s not efficient is sifting through hundreds of apps and programs to find the best ones, so we did the work for you. These 11 tech tools will improve efficiency, student engagement and much more.

More: Inspiring Q&A With Technology Teacher Vicki Davis

1. Google Drive

You can quickly and easily create and share spreadsheets, documents, and files with your students using Google Drive, a suite of  free tech tool for everyone who has a Gmail account. Another great tool is Google Forms, which you can use to can create surveys and then share them directly with your students. These forms are customizable, the answers are automatically tracked and you can use them for everything from teacher assessment to pre-lesson quizzes.

2. Wordle

Wordle is a tool for generating “word clouds” from text that you provide. The clouds give greater prominence to words that appear more frequently in the source text. As a teacher, this tool can provide insight on the use of creative vocabulary words in student papers—students who use the most new words win a prize. Tweak your clouds with different fonts, layouts, and color schemes.

3. Microsoft Partners in Learning

Microsoft has built a variety of resources for educators, all of which help you find new approaches to teaching and learning. For example, students and teachers can make and share flashcards and then study them online.

4. Remind

Remind is a simple, safe, and secure way for teachers to send mass text messages to students and parents without encroaching on privacy. Use the tool to send reminders and notifications to students about tests, homework, events and due dates.

5. Whooo’s Reading

This online reading log inspires students to pick up a book both in and out of the classroom. Students can report their reading and then answer Common Core aligned questions to reinforce reading comprehension. It’s easier than ever before to monitor what your students are reading and how they’re progressing.

6. Twitter

Twitter is a tech tool you may not immediately see as valuable to your classroom. However, it serves as an easy way to share updates and reminders to your students and parents. It’s also important to note that using this platform will likely come naturally to your students, who may already be using Twitter. See how Twitter transformed one teacher’s classroom in ways she never saw coming.

More: Follow Learn2Earn on Twitter

7. Facebook

The majority of students and parents are already using Facebook, making it an excellent tech tool for teachers. Use it to create private Facebook groups or a class page; both make it easy to share valuable information with your students. This may encourage comments and questions outside of the classroom as well.

More: Follow Learn2Earn on Facebook

 8. MindMeister

MindMeister is a mind-mapping tool that can help students develop and organize project ideas. This tool encourages collaborative brainstorming, while allowing students to work together, plan projects and create presentations.

 9. Pinterest

Pinterest has become the go-to place for teachers to find inspiration. Use it as a tool to collect new lesson plans, projects, ideas and materials.

More: Follow Learn2Earn on Pinterest

 10. ClassDojo

Improve specific student behaviors and engagement by awarding and recording real-time feedback with ClassDojo. Easily print or email behavior reports to engage parents and staff and save time by recording behaviors and accomplishments in class with one click.

Bonus!

YouTube

As a teacher, you can use YouTube in a variety of ways. Watch videos and tutorials on educational channels or upload your own as a class project or to share a lesson with sick students. Once uploaded, you can make your videos private or public, or share them with a select number of people.

Prezi

If you’re tired of boring slideshows, this tool is for you. Prezi is the modern version of standard, slide-by-slide presentations. It uses a moving canvas that zooms from one point to another to engage and keep the attention of your audience. The interface is user friendly and the program has all the features you’d normally with Microsoft Power Point.

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