Common Sense Education Resources
October 2024
Resources for Teachers
Articles
- 5 Easy Ways to Integrate Digital Citizenship Every Day: If you’re short on time, try these tips to teach these critical life skills.
- Learning From Conflict: Discussing Controversial Issues in the Classroom: Help students have constructive discussions that represent differing perspectives.
- Help Students Fact-Check the Web Like the Pros: Build news and media literacy skills to separate fact from fiction.
Reviews
- Gemini: This versatile AI assistant frees teachers to focus on more complex tasks.
- Screencastify: This screen-recording tool facilitates outside-the-box instruction.
Curated List of Tools
- Media Literacy Games, Tools, and Lessons: These are great tools and resources to unpack media messages.
Lessons
- Take a Stand on Cellphone Bans: When it comes to in-school device use, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution for every classroom. Help students explore the nuance and perspectives on this trending topic.
Professional Development
- Digital Citizenship for K–12: Thinking Outside the Box: Watch this recorded webinar to join two educators in the field who share some practical tips for teaching digital citizenship.
September 2024
Resources for Teachers
Articles
- 5 Talking Points About Tech for Your Back-to-School Night: Answer parents’ questions about tech before they ask.
- Free Learning Resources for Hispanic Heritage Month: Use these videos, articles, and activities to bring the achievements of Hispanic and Latino people into your classroom.
- How to Prevent AI Use for Plagiarism: Stop cheating before it starts with these tips.
Reviews
- OctoStudio: Mostly intuitive, interactive coding app sparks imagination.
- Story Xperiential: Imaginative storytelling experience puts students in the center.
Curated List of Tools
- Lessons and Tools for Teaching About AI: Help your students understand the impacts and uses of AI.
Lessons
- Pause for People: Help younger students learn how to transition away from tech.
Professional Development
- Training Course: AI Foundations for Educators: This is a foundational course designed to introduce you to artificial intelligence and the ethical considerations you should keep in mind when integrating this technology into your teaching.
August 2024
Resources for Teachers
Articles
- Free Back-to-School Templates for Teachers and Families: Help students and their families lay the foundation for a positive, successful school year.
- 21 Fun Activities to Start the School Year: Create community, foster well-being, and set expectations as you go back to school!
- Key Questions to Inform Your Cellphone Policy: Use this infographic as you shape your school’s approach to cellphones at school.
Reviews
- SpacesEDU: Take a look at this great platform for student work and messaging that celebrates student growth.
- Padlet: Create and collaborate via interactive, multimedia bulletin boards.
Curated List of Tools
- Best Tools for Back-to-School: Indispensable apps and sites that tech up your teaching.
Lessons
- Device Onboarding Lessons for Grades K–5: Help students get ready to use tech for learning in the classroom.
Professional Development
- Digital Days, Positive Ways: Back-to-School Checklist for Digital Well-Being: Explore a back-to-school checklist to foster digital well-being during the first month of school and beyond.
June 2024
Resources for Teachers
Articles
- Supporting LGBTQ+ Students in the Classroom and Online: Help all students build digital citizenship skills for more inclusive, positive, and safer schools.
- Should Your School Have a Cellphone Ban?: Use these tips to determine what will work best for your school community.
- An Authentic Approach to Discussions About Digital Well-Being: Use this activity as an in-road to deeper conversations about digital life.
Reviews
- Writable: Stellar program scaffolds the writing process with targeted feedback.
- PhET Interactive Simulations: Massive collection of excellent (and free!) science and math sims.
Curated List of Tools
- Best Summer Learning Games: This list has titles that are just as engrossing as other at-home games, but they come with the added bonus of being teacher-approved.
Lesson
- AI Chatbots and Friendship: In this lesson, students will grapple with this question, reflecting upon what makes human friendships special and unique.
Professional Development
- Navigating the AI Policy Landscape in Schools: View this insightful edWebinar on clear, adaptable generative AI policies that foster responsible, ethical, and safe use in your schools.
May 2024
Resources for Teachers
Articles
- 27 Fun Ways to Celebrate the End of the School Year: Give your students closure and highlight their accomplishments with these creative ideas.
- 11 Great Books to Boost Digital Citizenship: Read, discuss, and pair with lessons to address important topics about digital life.
- Showing a Movie in Class? Help Your Students Develop Active Viewing Skills: Have students write their own movie review with this fun lesson plan and worksheet.
Reviews
- Canva for Education: Create, collaborate, and share with this versatile design tool.
- Figma: Cool collaborative whiteboard has pro features and school-ready templates.
Curated List of Tools
- Games That Build Social and Emotional Skills: Use these games to help students expand their worldviews, understand the needs of others, identify and reflect on their own feelings, and gain a more rounded view of themselves.
Lesson
- Essential News & Media Literacy Skills for Students: Prepare your students to think critically about election news and prevent the spread of misinformation.
Professional Development
- Fun Ways to Keep Kids Learning This Summer: Whether you’re a parent, grandparent, or caregiver, this webinar offers invaluable tools to make the most of the summer break and keep your kids learning all summer long.
April 2024
Resources for Teachers
Articles
- Easy Ways to Connect SEL to Common Digital Dilemmas: Integrating SEL might be easier than you think!
- Free Learning Resources to Celebrate Asian American Heritage: Explore the history and achievements of Asian Americans with activities, videos, and more for AANHPI month (and beyond).
- Free Learning Resources to Celebrate Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage: Explore the history and achievements of Asian Americans with activities, videos, and more for AANHPI month (and beyond).
Reviews
- PerplexityAI: Robust gen AI-powered research tool aggregates info, provides sources.
Quizalize: Customizable quiz tool harnesses data to steer learning.
Curated List of Tools
- Media Literacy Games, Tools, and Lessons: Tools and resources to unpack media messages.
Lesson
- Cybersecurity Lessons for Grades K–8: Help students learn foundational skills for protecting themselves online.
Professional Development
- Training Course: Modeling Digital Habits: This course provides the routines to use when addressing digital issues, and how to incorporate healthy digital habits into your everyday life.
March 2024
Resources for Teachers
Articles
- Free Activities for Earth Day and Learning About the Environment: Lesson ideas and resources for teaching about the natural world and the impacts of climate change.
- ChatGPT and Beyond: How to Handle AI in Schools: Here’s what educators can do as artificial intelligence evolves.
- 5 Must-Have Google Search Tips for Students: Is Google OK for formal research? Sure … if you know how to use it.
Reviews
- Diffit: Promising tool uses AI-generated content to make resources in many formats.
- PlagiarismCheck.org: Subscription-based writing tool aims to keep pace with AI in schools.
Curated List of Tools
- Great Social and Emotional Learning Curricula and Programs: Go deep with these character-building SEL programs.
Lesson
- Digital Well-Being Lessons for Grades 6–8: Research-based lessons to support students’ social-emotional learning and digital well-being.
Professional Development
- AI Prompt Engineering for Responsible Digital Citizens: Common Sense Education’s Tali Horowitz, Director of East Coast Education, and Sue Thotz, Director of Education Outreach, discuss how a foundation of digital citizenship can be applied to prompt engineering.
February 2024
Resources for Teachers
Articles
- Free Learning Resources for Black History Month (and Beyond): Help learners celebrate Black history with these videos, lessons, podcasts, and more.
- Offline Digital Citizenship: Soft Skills to Support Strong Online Habits: Help students build the off-screen skills they need for their online lives.
- Teachers’ Essential Guide to Formative Assessment: How to use formative assessment to plan instruction and help students drive their own learning.
Reviews
- 826 Digital: Popular after-school program shares its resources to inspire writing.
- KaiBot: Engaging STEAM learning with physical and digital coding experience.
Curated List of Tools
- Top Tools That Build Mindfulness in the Classroom: Help students increase mindfulness with these hand-picked apps and websites.
Lesson
- Quick Digital Citizenship Lessons for Grades K–12: Use these short, video-based lessons to create a positive culture around technology use.
Professional Development
- AI Unleashed: Vetting the Tools: Common Sense‘s Steve Garton, senior manager of the Privacy Program, and Bianca DeJesus, editor of learning content, share what you need to look for when vetting AI tools for classroom use.
January 2024
Resources for Teachers
Articles
- AI Movies, Books, and Podcasts to Discuss in the Classroom: Use media to start important conversations about artificial intelligence.
- 25 Great Learning Podcasts for the Classroom: Add diverse voices and fresh content to your lessons with free, high-quality podcasts.
- How to Use Technology to Support ELLs in Your Classroom: Quality edtech for ELLs isn’t easy to find, but great options do exist.
Reviews
- Khan Academy: Though you’re familiar with Khan Academy, check out our updated review for information on its new AI feature, Khanmigo.
- Quillbot: This AI platform and extension supports the entire writing process.
Curated List of Tools
- Classroom Tools That Use AI: Introduce AI tools into your classrooms thoughtfully.
Lesson
- AI Literacy Lesson Collection: Quick, grab-and-go lessons to help your students think critically about AI and its impact.
Professional Development
- Bringing AI Literacy Lessons to Life: Join Common Sense Outreach and Ambassadors as they demonstrate a collection of quick lessons (20 minutes or less!) that provide an introduction to AI, orient AI to our students, and help address its social and ethical impacts.