1500 websites, apps, and web 2.0 tools just for teachers

Yes. It is a bit of overkill. Seriously. Who would ever need 1500 websites, apps, and web 2.0 tools? Or have time, for that matter.

But our SOE guy said numbers in blog titles increase site traffic so today . . . you get 1500 websites, apps, and web 2.0 tools. 1500. My site traffic will be through the roof today.

If nothing else, the lists below are testimony to the fact that there is always something out there, that we can always be learning more about how we can do our jobs better. But take this post in chunks. Bite off a little bit at a time. Come back to it next week. Share it with friends. Find a helpful tool once a week for . . . well, 1500 weeks. Enjoy!

1000 Education Apps Organized by Subject and Price
We’ll start with the biggie. You’ll find just a taste here with a link to a huge Google Doc. Huge.

The 100 Best Web 2.0 Classroom Tools Chosen by You
Narrowed down from 900 teacher submissions, these are the best tools used by actual teachers.

The 200 Best Special Ed Apps
Eric Sailers has been working on this list since before the iPad came out. I’m talking the iPad 1. So you know it’s got some stuff.

The 100 Top Tools of 2011
What is a “learning tool”? Any tool you use to create or deliver learning content/solutions for others or that you use for your own personal learning.

Top 100 Sites of 2011
Tech & Learning’s version of the best sites.

Psst . . . it’s not really 1500.

You’re gonna find a lot of overlap between the different lists. But trust me, you’ll still need to set aside some time here. And don’t be afraid to share your own favorites in the comments.

Tip of the Week – 10 Web Tools Every History Teacher Should Try

I spent the day with 25 technology integration people – you know these folks. The smart people who are always finding cools things for me to try out. And so I asked them to share their favorite online tool that every history teacher should try.

The list got pretty long. I picked 10 of my favorites and posted them below. You probably won’t find a use for all of them but I’m pretty sure that at least a couple of the tools listed below will find its way onto your favorites list!

Aviary is a free suite of powerful online creation tools that lets you edit photos, audio and video clips, creates music and more. And it’s free.

Evernote is a very cool organizer of notes, pictures, screen shots, videos, voice messages, etc. The cool thing is that it works across platforms – so you can create on note on your computer, go to your smart phone and edit it, open the note on your iPod and makes more changes and access the final version on your iPad. Plus . . . it’s free.

Typewith.me lets you to collaborate with others in real-time on a document.  Each author can type in a different color. Share the doc with others with a unique url. Free? Yes.

Ge.tt is a very cool little tool that lets you upload just about any file type of any size and share it with anyone you want within seconds. And guess what? It’s free.

ViewPure.com lets you show a YouTube video to your class with nothing showing on the screen except the video. No ads, no links, no nothing.  Just enter the video link. Wait for it . . . free.

BetterLesson is an awesome site that connects teachers together with other teachers to share and exchange lesson plans. Think Facebook meets unit planning. Too cool! And oh so free.

Edmodo is also Facebook-like. Create a quick and easy moderated social network for each and every one of your classes. It does more than we have time to discuss. But I do have time to tell you that . . . it’s free.

TubeChop So you want to show just a two minute clip of an eight minute video?  Drop the YouTube video url into TubeChop and pick your two minutes.  You’ll get a link and an embed code for the cropped version of the video. Gratis. Libre. Frei. Libero. Free.

Stixy is a bit like WallWisher. It’s an online version of a bulletin board that lets you upload your work, add comments, share files and more. Invite your students and start collaborating. No cash? No problem. It’s free.

Whenisgood is there when you get tired of the back and forth that happens when you try to schedule a meeting. Select the times that are good for you, send your grid to your invitees, they choose when they’re free. Problem solved. Can you ever get tired of free? I can’t.

Quikmaps lets you and your students draw directly onto a Google Map. The site offers tons of distinct icons you can drag and drop onto road or satellite maps along with scribbling, line tracing, text labels and other tools. No charge.

Fur.ly gives you a simple way to share lots of links with your students. Combine all of your sites into one short url. This takes them to a cool interface that display all of the sites in one place. And, yes. It’s free.

Don’t go crazy and try to use all of these. Pick one or two that look interesting, play a bit with them and discuss with others. I’m sure you’ll find great ways to use them in class!

Have fun!