10 TOOLS

10 Great Free Websites for Middle School

Middle school is an opportune time to expand students' horizons, and to plant the seeds for critical thinking skills and content knowledge that'll propel students to success through high school and beyond. On this list, we've narrowed down the huge market of edtech out there for grades 6-8 to 10 great choices free across just about every subject area. You'll find tools for literacy, math, science, social studies, arts, and creation; many cross over and address a few of these subjects. No matter what they cover, however, each pick in this list is a top-rated tool with tons for students to do that'll go the distance in your classroom.

Zearn

Innovative combo of live instruction and adaptive online math lessons

Bottom Line: It's a great balance of online lessons, in-person instruction, and instructional resources, all for free.

Grades: K–8
Price:
Free

Tinkercad

Amazingly simple yet powerful online CAD tool turns kids into makers

Bottom Line: Full-featured site and app make iterative 3D design accessible, social, and relevant.

Grades: 3–12
Price:
Free

Tract

Student creators show what they know on video-based learning platform

Bottom Line: Teachers who want to encourage inquiry, PBL, and student-led lessons will find Tract has all the bases covered.

Grades: 3–12
Price:
Free

Google CS First

Middle school CS curriculum has stellar resources, room for creativity

Bottom Line: A high-quality introductory CS curriculum where students can be creative, collaborate with others, and express themselves, in the classroom or at home.

Grades: 4–8
Price:
Free

Along

Messaging tool helps classrooms forge and foster meaningful dialogue

Bottom Line: This tool opens up avenues for conversation and relationship building between teachers and students.

Grades: 4–12
Price:
Free

NaNoWriMo Young Writers Program

Wildly engaging contest turns students into novelists in 30 days

Bottom Line: A thoughtful adaptation of the famous and fun grown-up novel writing contest, NaNoWriMo Young Writers Program is brimming with advice and encouragement as well as classroom support.

Grades: 4–12
Price:
Free

Desmos

Powerful graphing calculator deepens understanding with visualization

Bottom Line: Desmos combines interactivity, visualization, personalization, and collaboration to deepen students' understanding of geometry and graphing concepts.

Grades: 6–12
Price:
Free

Facing History and Ourselves

A wealth of resources explore racism, prejudice, and anti-Semitism

Bottom Line: These valuable materials empower students to understand and address difficult ethical choices -- past and present.

Grades: 6–12
Price:
Free

Glose for Education

Interactive ebooks and web content make reading a social experience

Bottom Line: Build collective reading experiences to make challenging texts more approachable and get kids excited about books.

Grades: 6–12
Price:
Free

iCivics

Well-designed games, lessons can spice up your civics curriculum

Bottom Line: This game-based curriculum would be an excellent addition to any secondary social studies.

Grades: 6–12
Price:
Free

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