TeachersFirst - Featured Sites: Week of Aug 24, 2025

Here are this week's features. Clicking the tags in the description area of each listing will present a list of other resources with this topic. | Click here to return to the Featured Sites Archive
OK2Ask: Digital Storytelling 101: Crafting Compelling Stories from Concept to Storyboard - TeachersFirst
Grades
K to 12Unleash the power of digital storytelling in your classroom! In this hands-on workshop, you'll discover how this powerful instructional strategy amplifies student voice, deepens learning, and develops essential digital literacy skills. We'll focus on the crucial first stages of the storytelling process: ideation, research, scripting, and storyboarding. Through practical demonstrations of cutting-edge tools and collaborative activities, you'll gain the confidence to implement digital storytelling strategies that engage diverse learners, meet curriculum standards, and foster authentic learning experiences. Whether you teach science, language arts, social studies, or another subject, you'll leave with actionable strategies to help your students become masterful digital storytellers. As a result of this session, teachers will: 1. Design engaging digital storytelling projects that align with curriculum goals and support diverse learners. 2. Apply effective strategies for guiding students through ideation, research, scripting, and storyboarding. 3. Evaluate and select appropriate digital tools for the early phases of the storytelling process. This session is appropriate for teachers at all technology levels.
tag(s): digital storytelling (151), OK2Askarchive (71), professional development (271), stories and storytelling (65)
In the Classroom
The archive of this teacher-friendly, hands-on webinar will empower and inspire you to use learning technology in the classroom and for professional productivity. As appropriate, specific classroom examples and ideas have been shared. View the session with a few of your teaching colleagues to find and share new ideas. Once registered, find additional reference materials, tutorials, and how-to information to help you review or extend your knowledge from the session in the handout posted on the session landing page. Resources may include additional ideas and examples on integrating the tools and strategies shared in classroom instruction. Learn more about OK2Ask and upcoming sessions here.You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
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Podcast- Adobe - Adobe
Grades
3 to 12tag(s): digital storytelling (151), multimedia (55), podcasts (137)
In the Classroom
For younger students, Adobe Podcast can be used for storytelling, oral reports, or fluency checks. Middle school students can conduct interviews, record debates, or use it for research-based assignments. Book reviews, investigative pieces, or class discussions can be recorded for older students.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Canva Storyboard Templates - Canva
Grades
1 to 12tag(s): digital storytelling (151), graphic design (50), graphic organizers (51), stories and storytelling (65)
In the Classroom
Storyboards don't have to just be for storytelling. Have students pick a historical event or era they have studied or are interested in exploring further and use the templates to create a graphic novel-style storyboard that narrates the event. Have students select a social issue they are passionate about, such as bullying, mental health awareness, or digital citizenship, and have them choose a template to create a comic book. These can be printed and hung around the school. For younger students, customize a template and print it for offline use. It can be used for any sequencing concept, like life cycles or moon phases. Discuss the idea of daily routines with the class, talking about different activities they do from morning to night.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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PDF to Flipbook Converter - Heyzine
Grades
K to 12tag(s): conversions (38), digital storytelling (151)
In the Classroom
Make a flipbook of a presentation as an engaging alternative to a web page or PowerPoint. Share classroom information such as rules and expectations in an easy to read format. Use for a great way to bring digital storytelling upfront in your classroom. Make photosynthesis a story instead of bits of equations and information. Portray a period in time in history or create books of different political or societal opinions. Create a flipbook with the viewpoints and personalities of characters in a story. Practice a different language by creating a themed flipbook. Lower grades can combine writing into a class flipbook to be shared online or read aloud. Any written assignment can easily be re-visioned as a flipbook! Make your literary magazine a flipbook or build new poetry collections during poetry month. Share all your flipbooks on individual laptops, or the interactive whiteboard or projector. Create simple flipbooks of Dolch words for beginning readers.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Elementari - Nicole Kang and David Li
Grades
3 to 12tag(s): coding (91), creative writing (126), digital storytelling (151), writing (311)
In the Classroom
You may want to start by clicking Help on the upper right menu. There you will find directions for Creating and Coding, Interactive Lessons, Classroom Dashboard, and others. Create stories together as a class as you move through a unit or topic. Enhance student learning by adding ideas your students suggest. Use in a flipped or blended classroom to deliver course information. Assign several student groups a different topic and extend their learning by having each group create their own version as they learn more about the topic. Challenge gifted students to modify the "standard" class text with the additional material they discover by going deeper and learning about related topics. In lower grades, create teacher-made digital stories for students to use as a learning tool.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Notebook.ai - Indent Labs, LLC
Grades
8 to 12tag(s): characterization (19), creative writing (126), descriptive writing (42), digital storytelling (151), stories and storytelling (65)
In the Classroom
Although created for fantasy storytelling, Notebook.ai contains many features for teaching story writing. Ask students to create an account and choose an option such as the character builder. This section includes many ideas for building features for your character including describing his history, looks, and social profile. The same idea is built into the other areas to help develop descriptions of locations and surroundings in a story. Consider displaying this site on your interactive whiteboard during story writing lessons to introduce these ideas of character and scene building into student writing activities. Have students begin rough drafts using Google documents, then share with peers for peer editing activities. Ask students to highlight well-written portions of their story, and add questions and suggestions for improvement. Upon completion, enhance classroom technology use and learning by having students share their stories in weekly podcasts shared onto your class website. Podcast Adobe, reviewed here, is an easy to use tool for creating and sharing podcasts.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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ABCYA Paint - ABCya!
Grades
K to 4tag(s): digital storytelling (151), drawing (60), painting (55), preK (289)
In the Classroom
Share how to use this site on an interactive whiteboard or with a projector then allow students to explore on their own. Have students create drawings to demonstrate math problems, share science experiments, or draw scenes from a story. Include students' drawings in a digital portfolio like Seesaw, reviewed here. Seesaw offers tools for uploading images and creating an audio recording to share their reflections on their work.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Imagine Forest - Imagine Forest
Grades
K to 6tag(s): creative writing (126), digital storytelling (151), writing (311), writing prompts (59)
In the Classroom
Imagine Forest is a must-have resource for elementary teachers of writing. Even your most reluctant writers will enjoy the ideas included on the site. Share how to use the site on your interactive whiteboard or with a projector then allow students to explore on their own. Challenge students to set daily goals using activities found in challenges. Publish and share student work to create your own classroom library of student-created books. Ask students to create books for any content area studied during class, be sure to upload and include images taken during activities for students to use in their books. Create a classroom chart for students to share accomplishments like badges and points earned while using the site.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Book Creator - Red Jumper Limited
Grades
K to 12This site includes advertising.
tag(s): collaboration (79), DAT device agnostic tool (124), digital storytelling (151), ebooks (46), literacy (120), preK (289), reading comprehension (143), writing (311)
In the Classroom
Create books together, as a class, as you move through a unit or topic. Enhance student learning by adding images and ideas your students suggest. Use in a flipped classroom to deliver course information. Assign several student groups a different topic and redefine their learning by having each group create their own multimedia versions as they learn more about the topic. Students can combine their books later as a class book. Make a digital bookshelf of all the versions for all to use. Challenge gifted students to modify the "standard" class text with the additional material they discover, by going deeper and learning about related topics. In lower grades, create teacher-made e-books for your young readers, perhaps adding audio - your own voice reading the text. Find much more information and ideas for using Book Creator in any classroom by exploring the Book Creator Toolkit for Schools and Districts available here.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Knight Lab - Northwest University
Grades
K to 12tag(s): digital storytelling (151), images (258), maps (220), timelines (58)
In the Classroom
This site is a must-have for anyone who teaches writing or assigns writing projects. Bookmark this site for use throughout the year with any writing project. Focus on one tool a month to learn more about the features available. Assign a tool to different groups of students and let them become the experts. Enhance students' learning and modify classroom technology use by asking the groups to create a "How to" video for their tool and to share with their peers. For this, try using Free Online Screen Recorder, reviewed here, or RecordCast Screen Recorder, reviewed here. Work with peers to assign projects across subject levels using tools from this site to compare and contrast images, create interactive timelines, build story maps, and much more.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Genially - Genially
Grades
K to 12This site includes advertising.
tag(s): artificial intelligence (217), charts and graphs (167), communication (113), digital storytelling (151), gamification (75), images (258), infographics (60), interactive stories (21), multimedia (55), posters (42)
In the Classroom
Click Create to find a category from which you want your students to work; present several using a projector or on an interactive whiteboard. Show the interactivity to students. Then, create one together as a class to try out the tools (don't forget to name it). Keep it simple or add all the bells and whistles. Preview as you work or return later to complete and publish. Of course, you will want to model and teach appropriate documentation of any sources of images and media you use and to use copyrighted works legally.There are limitless ideas for using Genially in the classroom! Here are just a few: Ask students to create their own Genially as a new way to assess understanding of a concept or unit of study: you could even provide links to images and raw materials they may use (especially if you have students who need extra scaffolding), and they can work with them to sequence, caption, and write about the pieces. After a first project where you possibly suggest "building blocks," the sky is the limit on what they can do. Even the very young can make suggestions as you "create" a whole-class interactive together using a projector or an interactive whiteboard. Consider making a new project for each unit you teach so students can "recap" by visiting the presentation long after the unit ends. Save student projects from year to year as examples, possibly even awarding prizes for "best" examples. Have upper elementary or middle school students create an interactive project to help "little buddies" two or three grades lower to understand a concept.
Comments
This is a wonderful interactive poster replacement for Glogster.Shirley, CA, Grades: 6 - 12
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WriteReader - WriteReader
Grades
K to 5tag(s): digital storytelling (151), literacy (120), multilingual (71), reading strategies (87), science of reading (35), writing (311)
In the Classroom
WriteReader is so simple that very young students can use it successfully after a whiteboard or projector demonstration. While creating their books, students will be able to add images, multiple pages and delete pages, include voice-over, use color on the pages, view one page at a time or the entire book, and toggle between letters' names/sounds or no audio. Use this tool to design simple projects using student drawings to tell the story. Have students draw and annotate stories about their summer at the beginning of the year and share them with classmates. Students of any age love to draw, so why not have them draw their impression of what the message to the reader was after hearing a story and then explain it in writing? Nonreaders and ENL/ESL students especially will benefit from hearing the letter sounds as they begin writing in their new language.Edge Features:
Includes an education-only area for teachers and students
Parent permission advised before posting student work created using this tool
Includes social features, such as "friends," comments, ratings by others
Requires registration/log-in (WITH email)
Multiple users can collaborate on the same project
Includes teacher tools for registering and/or monitoring students
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Adobe Creative Cloud Express - Adobe
Grades
K to 12tag(s): blogs (71), communication (113), creative writing (126), design (78), digital storytelling (151), microblogging (15), posters (42)
In the Classroom
Possible uses are only limited by your imagination! Create your own flyer, poster, business card, etc. for parents and students where they can learn a little you and what is happening in your classroom. Enhance or extend student learning (depending on the project requirement) by having students create a visual to accompany books read in class, tell about social studies events, or display images for different science terms. Flip your classroom using Adobe Express presentations. Adobe Express is perfect to use for presentations, digital storytelling, or a gift (think Mother's Day) in any subject!Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Sway - Microsoft
Grades
3 to 12tag(s): communication (113), digital storytelling (151), Microsoft (54), multimedia (55), slides (41), visualizations (10)
In the Classroom
Use Sway as an alternative to Prezi or PowerPoint presentations. Sway is perfect for use in your BYOD or 1:1 classroom. Use during your presentations to increase student engagement and interaction. Check understanding of your ENL/ESL students by having them respond or pose questions throughout the presentation. Enhance student learning and understanding by sharing with students for them to use during their own presentations, inviting other students to comment and answer questions. During Open House night with parents, demonstrate how Sway provides interaction. Use Sway during professional development presentations to invite discussions from colleagues.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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