Elementary teachers, I am going to share 10 free websites that you should immediately bookmark!
Honestly, as elementary teachers, we spend a lot of our own money. We do this so our students will have what they need. Also, we spend our own money to save our sanity. Sometimes, life is easier when we purchase a resource, teaching tool, or classroom item.
Free Websites
This time you are going to have a collection of FREE websites that you will use a lot! Some of these sites aren’t technically free, but as a teacher, you get free access. We know that technology can really make learning fun. Websites add to lessons by building background, giving additional information, and enhancing instruction. Having a list of go-to sites can also help with early finishers, centers, and time fillers.
You can click any image and go visit the website. I only have an affiliation with the last site I am sharing. I do not have any affiliations with the other sites, I just really like them a lot!
Storyline Online
One of the best free websites, no doubt, is Storyline Online. Storyline Online features wonderful children’s picture books read by celebrities. As my students say, these books can be found in the library!
You may not know this, but an activity guide comes with each book. There is actually an activity guide for teachers and for parents too. The teachers’ activity guide has Common Core Standards listed as well as suggestions for before, during, and after reading. You can also find cross-curricular suggestions. The parents’ guide features a book synopsis, along with some book-related activities that parents can do with their children.
Storyline Online makes it easy when you need a quick mental break for your kids. When I taught first grade, we would sometimes eat our snacks and watch a quick story. This website also makes it easy to create a full-on lesson that you can use during your literacy time.
Each month they feature books that somehow relate to the month. For example, books that feature female characters during March, which is women’s history month. They also add new books pretty regularly as well. I can’t recommend this site enough!
National Geographic for Kids
National Geographic for Kids helps make Science and Social Studies come to life in your elementary classroom. This site has beautiful photographs and lots of helpful information. This site is considered trustworthy and one that is safe for our students.
As I said before, National Geographic for Kids has beautiful photographs. The many pictures of animals will especially interest your students. Some of the articles may be too difficult for our youngest students to read, but the information and photographs are definitely worth sharing. This free website is one you should visit as you are creating lesson plans and want to build background knowledge or supplement information you already have.
This site also features games, videos, and puzzles. Your students will truly enjoy National Geographic for Kids and you will feel safe sharing it.
GoNoodle
Rainy day and you have to do indoor recess? No Problem! Seriously – your kids might beg to do GoNoodle instead of going outside. This site has hundreds of videos that will get your students moving.
This site doesn’t just feature exercise videos. There are breathing activities, cross-curricular activities, dances, and so much more.
I am a huge fan of GoNoodle. I used this free website when I taught first grade and when I was the media coordinator in the library. In the library, GoNoodle was our end-of-class reward! If students quickly and quietly cleaned up their centers, they earned a GoNoodle video.
In the classroom, this site provided much-needed brain breaks, as well as the occasional indoor recess.
One year, I had a particularly difficult class – you can imagine what I am talking about. Each hour, we did a GoNoodle video. I had to get them up and moving. Amazingly, their behavior improved tremendously. There were other reasons their behavior improved (consistent routines, consistent behavior management, formation of relationships, etc), but I really believe that providing regular movement helped too.
If you haven’t tried GoNoodle, go visit. You won’t be sorry.
Ducksters
Ducksters is another safe and free website for our young students. This site is full of trustworthy information that can help with early research. There are numerous topics!
You can use the categories found at the top of the site: History, Biography, Geography, Science, and Games. There is also a “Fun” category. Each of these categories is also featured in “boxes” on the main page. In the box, you can find the category and so many hyperlinks leading to short articles.
Like National Geographic for Kids, this site may be too difficult for young readers. However, it definitely can extend a lesson and really does provide excellent supplementary information. I think the best part is that this is a safe research site that provides information you can trust.
Starfall
Starfall is a website that does require a paid subscription. However, there is a pretty sizable amount of content that is available for free. This is a fun website that provides enjoyable educational games.
Starfall is one of those sites I always offered as an option to my students, in both the classroom and the library. Students could choose to go to this site during centers.
I actually liked to pull Starfall up on our Interactive TV too. The fun games could help supplement a lesson. I really enjoyed using the “seasonal” games. They tied in perfectly with our thematic units. For example, students could create a Gingerbread boy or girl as we did our Gingerbread Man book study. Another favorite is the Garden Shop which fits perfectly into a spring study of plants.
There are lots of fun and educational options at Starfall. Definitely another site you will want to bookmark.
PBS Kids
PBS has always been known for providing high-quality programming. PBS Kids similarly provides great options for our young ones.
This free website features beloved characters in videos and games. PBS Kids is another site I always offered to my students as a choice during centers. Students can find fun activities by searching for a particular character. They can also just look through the different offerings. This enjoyable site is educational, which is a win-win for teachers and students!
San Diego Zoo
If you haven’t visited the San Diego Zoo, you need to go now! I mean go “virtually”, of course.
This free website allows students to “see” animals in real time! The zoo has numerous webcams that offer students (and teachers) a chance to view animals in the zoo, without actually going to the zoo!
If you are studying animals or perhaps reading a book about a particular animal, “visiting” the San Diego Zoo can give your students some great insight. This website is great for building background knowledge and for supplementing information during a lesson.
Fair warning, you may get a little mesmerized yourself. Watching the animals is a little addictive!
ABC Mouse
Shhhhh – here’s a secret. If you are a teacher, you can get ABC Mouse for free. Really! I mean it.
This site is typically pretty expensive. However, if you are employed as a teacher and have a school email, you can sign up. Unfortunately, this offer does not extend to Home School teachers.
This site is incredible! Teachers can easily differentiate content for their students. Students will absolutely love visiting ABC Mouse. There is sooooo much to do on this site. I really can’t even begin to describe everything that is possible. A few options include reading lots of books in the library, completing various lessons on a variety of topics and skills, caring for virtual pets, visiting a zoo or farm, creating a personalized avatar, playing games, and really so much more.
Students will be motivated to complete activities as they earn tickets they can then spend at the incredible shopping center.
I promise I have not adequately described ABC Mouse. You really need to visit for yourself. I warn you that it can be a little overwhelming at first. Spend a little time exploring and you will not be disappointed!
Boom Learning
Boom Learning is one of my absolute favorite websites. In fact, I plan to write a blog post just about Boom Learning and Boom Cards soon! In the meantime, let me share a few reasons I love this free website.
This site is one that offers free and paid options. I actually recommend getting the very affordable paid option at some point – it really is worth it. However, this post is about free websites, so I am only going to share the great free options today.
Boom™ Cards, in my opinion, should be a staple in every elementary classroom! When you set up a free account on Boom Learning, you can assign your students Boom Cards with the Fast Pin option. Not sure what I am talking about? Don’t worry – I can share a Quick Start Guide for Teachers.
Basically, you can use Boom Cards and Boom Learning for free! You can set up a free account and then visit the site and download a bunch of free digital task cards.
I have lots of free Boom Cards in my Members Only Free Resource Library. You can join and have immediate access to several Boom Cards decks.
Although not just a free website, Boom Learning has lots of free options for teachers. You and your students will love Boom Cards. Boom Cards are interactive, and self-checking, with no prep and no printing. Plus, they are lots of fun. Students will think they are playing games but you will know that they are reviewing important skills.
Another great feature of this free website is that it is safe! Boom Learning is a closed platform. Students will not be bothered by inappropriate ads or be tempted to “accidentally” venture onto other, unsafe sites.
As I mentioned, this free website does have paid options that I think you will probably want to try. Until you are ready to get a paid subscription, you will absolutely love the free options.
Conclusion
Teaching really can be a very expensive profession to have. You want your students to have everything that will help them. I understand this, which is why I am excited to share these ten free websites. Each free website (and somewhat free website) can really benefit you and your students. These websites are very different but they all are great additions to the classroom. Go visit these free websites today and don’t forget to bookmark them!