Amazon Top 10 Back to School Must Haves

I know it feels like school JUST got out for summer, but we know how Amazon, Target, Walmart, etc. LOVE to start the Back to School season in July.

So thought I would share my tried and true favorite items: 

• Better Than Paper Bulletin Board Roll
• I have tried many different things on my bulletin boards. I have used the paper the school provides, I have used sheets or fabric, and this has been my favorite so far! It is thicker that paper or fabric (so no wrinkles!) and the best part is that you can easily wipe it down with a damp rag which is perfect for that summer dust that we all know loves to collect in our rooms.

• AFMAT Electric Pencil Sharpener
• This is the first pencil sharpener that has actually survived an entire year! It also has an automatic stop so students know when the pencil is done sharpening.

• Nano Double-Sided Tape
• Do you have concrete walls that you can't ever get things to stay up? If so, then this is the tape for you! It only takes a small amount to hold things up so the roll has lasted me 2 years already. It is VERY sticky, so make sure that your posters or items are laminated before using this.

• Assorted Colors Electrical Tape
• I use this for color-coding EVERYTHING! Students journals, table colors, and most importantly our technology cart/chargers so students know which charger goes with their device and avoids pulling them out super far.

• Scotch Thermal Laminating Sheets
• If you plan on laminating anything smaller than a piece of paper then a personal laminator is a must. No matter what brand laminator you get, these sheets are the absolute best. The items don't fall out when you transfer them to the laminator and the thickness is perfect for making things last.

• Elmer's Glue Sticks
• You can never have enough glue sticks no matter what grade you teach and Amazon always has the BEST price for this 30-pack. I always keep this on my classroom wishlist in case parents ever want to get something off my list throughout the year.

• Mr. Sketch Markers
• Anchor charts just look better with good markers. I will be honest I tried a different brand this past year and immediately regretted it. Just get them!

• Acrylic Sign Holders
• These sign holders have so many different uses. I start off the year using them for Open House/Back to School Night to showcase different information I want to share with parents. Then throughout the year we use them for station learning by putting the directions in the sign holder so they don't go missing or get messed up as students rotate through the room.

• Paper Mate Flair Pens
• Just like with the markers, this is another item that I restock every year. There is just something about grading papers or taking notes in colorful pens that write oh so well! Since I get a new set every year or so, I save the older ones that still work and let students use them to self-check their papers or to use for notes or fun things in the classroom.

• Water Bottle Stickers
• Students LOVE these stickers to put on their water bottles, laptops, folders, etc. There are so many different varieties out there so you can try and find some that match your students' interests. PLEASE make sure you look through all of the stickers before your kids do! There always seems to be at least 1-2 that are NOT kid-friendly.

There are SO many other items that it was hard to pick just 10, but I focused on items that are my must-haves for every school year. I will probably make more posts that focus on specifics like organization, student incentives, or my soft start boxes.

What are your must haves that aren't on this list??

Top 10 Educational Tech Tools

I used to be on top of the latest and greatest educational technology applications/tools, but now there are SO many that some days it is hard to even keep up. Then you have the ones that have been around for awhile that are constantly adding new features to keep up with the latest trends, needs, etc.

My top 10 tools has changed a lot over the past 3 years because of the pandemic and ever-changing needs of education. We went from using edtech as a supplemental tool pre-2020, to having to use edtech 100% during virtual learning, to now going back to making sure that the tools we are using are meaningful to the learning and not just a replacement or even a distraction.

That last part is extremely important. When we were forced to go completely online with our teaching and learning, it required teachers to make all of their activities digital. While this made some activities/lessons better, there are many things that students can do outside of their device that is more engaging and meaningful. It is all about finding the PURPOSE of the activity. Is the digital tool just simply replacing a worksheet or is it providing students with a deeper understanding of a topic by allowing them to explore something that is not possible without technology?

As we transition to post-pandemic (and I use that term lightly) education, we have to find a balance of using edtech tools. Always ask yourself, how will my students benefit from completing this task digitally? Sometimes it is as simple as immediate feedback from a teacher or peer!

I thought I would share my top 10 favorite tools. Side note - these are not really ranked from 1-10 because honestly, depending on the purpose/goal of the tool being used determines which one is my favorite.

1. Book Creator

This tool has SO many different uses other than having students publish their writing. They even have a book on their main page with the many ways it can be used in your classroom!

2. Pear Deck

It is always a toss up between Pear Deck and Nearpod, but for me I always seem to go back to this tool for the ease of use. I love that I can take slides that I have already created and simply add on an engagement activity for students to use. I love that I can give feedback after a session is done that students can access easily. Unfortunately, my current county has this blocked so I am definitely having some withdrawals from using it this year.

3. Canva

I will be honest, I did not really start using this tool until this school year and it has been a game changer. I have used it to create posters and charts for my classroom, I have used it personally to create invitations, as well as, created my email signature. The thing that I have enjoyed the most though is allowing my students to use the tool to create digital content for school as well. The ease of use for students makes it a top choice in digital creation.

4. Edpuzzle

This is another tool that I have not been able to use this year, but I have enjoyed using it in years past. I like that I can take any video and add questions to get a quick and easy check-in/assessment for my students to inform my teaching.

5. Quizizz

This is another big debate of whether Quizizz or Kahoot is better. I personally have always enjoyed Quizizz more because the answer choices are on the student's screen. I still use both of them depending on the purpose (kids love Kahoot!).

6. Whiteboard.fi

I used this tool more during virtual learning, but I still use it every now and again for one main reason. I love that I can create something on my whiteboard, for example a number line, and then push it to my students. I still use the traditional whiteboard and marker in the classroom, but watching students try to draw a perfectly straight line or draw rectangles for an area model that can barely fit one number inside each box, drives me crazy!

7. YouTube

Obviously every teacher loves YouTube for the insane amount of videos that are readily at our fingertips, but I have started using it "better" over the past couple of years. There are so many features that we all should take advantage of to make our lives easier. I have started using the playlist feature to organize and share videos with students. Also embedding videos into the different Google applications is a game changer as well.

8. Flip (formerly Flipgrid)

I often give this tool as an option for students to choose when producing work in the classroom. Some students absolutely love the idea of recording themselves on video and being able to add different features to it, while some don't.

9. Prodigy

Students LOVE playing this game to practice math skills in this game-based learning tool. It is FREE to use with an education account and now even has a language arts side to it as well. 

10. Edulastic

This is a great tool for online assessments. There are many different question types that you can use including a passage with questions that show up side-by-side, math questions that include equations, and tech-enhanced items like hotspots, drawing, etc. You can also attach standards to each question so that you get immediate data as students are taking the assessment.

Now a bonus tool because I have always been in schools that are Google-based, but I absolutely love all of the Google Drive based applications. I am biased because I have never had the opportunity to learn the Microsoft apps, but Google Drive deserves its own list. :)

Now let me know... what are you favorite educational technology tools? What is something that I should try in my classroom? I am always up for experimenting with new things!