FREE WEB Resources For
Teacher Lessons And Student Projects
Free WEB Resources For Teacher Lessons and Student Projects, Carol LaRow
<!-- Google tag (gtag.js) --> <script async src="https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtag/js?id=G-LSTCJTX98S"></script> <script> window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; function gtag(){dataLayer.push(arguments);} gtag('js', new Date()); gtag('config', 'G-LSTCJTX98S'); </script>
Overview:
The resources provided below are to assist teachers and students in finding project assets.
The resources on this page are FREE to use
Additional resources will be added as they become available from websites and domains.
Public Domain & Free:
Images:
Metropolitan Museum Of Art (400,000 free online images for non-commercial use)
Library Of Congress - Items From the LOC's Collections - Free To Use and Reuse Sets Of Books, Newspapers, Manuscripts, Prints, Photos, Maps, Musical Scores, Films, Sound Recordings, and more.
Library Of Congress - Thousands Of Photos, Posters, and Images That Are Free to Use And Reuse
Creative Commons - Non-Profit That Hosts Work People Agree To Share With Others, "Copyright Free"; great resource for accessing and using a variety of work. The site even creates the attributions for you. Read about Creative Commons attributions here.
Creative Commons - samples of 2 billion works available. Click a sample photo to see how the image opens a Creative Commons page, complete with attributions you can copy and use for that image.
Pixabay - 2.8 million royalty free images, videos, audio, and other media; under Creative Commons
Flickr/ Creative Commons - browse through millions of media where others have chosen to share their work under Creative Commons license. Attributions are listed for you too.
Flickr Free Use Photos - Advanced Search - search by content types, license types, date taken, and date uploaded. Content includes photos, screenshots, illustration art, photography, and videos.
FlickrCC Blue Mountains - photos of the Blue Mountains in Australia, showcasing the beauty of the mountains including forests, waterfalls, mountains.
Flickr Library Of Congress - The Commons - features over 41,000 photos from the LOC's prints and photographs collections; released under Creative Commons license
Freepik - free graphics, icons, and illustrations; some under Creative Commons, but not all; be sure to check license terms
Free Photos And Images (All photos on the site are in the public domain)
Google Images - search for images on the WEB and add to slide presentations; must check for copyright licenses. Google Image Search does not just render copyright free images. Use the "Usage Rights" drop down in the "Tools Menu" to search by license and copyright information.
Google Images Advanced Search - filter image searches by words, phrases, file type, image size, color, type, region, usage rights, and more. Find images you are free to use or ones that have copyright restrictions. (Scroll to the bottom of the page and choose, "Usage Rights."
Gratisography - free high resolution photos; released under Creative Commons Zero. The site says, "Peace of mind license without copyright restrictions."
Pexels - free stock photos, royalty free images and videos; free to use; attribution not required; photos and videos can be modified
Pics4Learning (copyright free library for teachers & students); has curated image library that, "is safe and free for education. Teachers and students can use the copyright-friendly photos and illustrations for classroom projects, web sites, videos, portfolios, or any other projects in an educational setting."
Free-Images.com - free public domain photos, art, and vector images
PicFindr - Search Public Domain & Free Stock Photos
Designs For Democracy - 200 Years Of Drawings From The National Archives; an exhibition of nearly 124 design drawings selected from the vast holdings of the National Archives and Records Administration.
Digital Public Library of America - over 48,000,000 images, texts, videos, and sounds from across the United States. "DPLA is a U.S. project aimed at providing public access to digital holdings in order to create a large scale public, digital library."
National Park Service - find a national park by state; each national park has a collection of photos and a gallery of photos for visitors to use.
Free Pixels (images for personal and commercial uses)
FreeFoto.com (largest collection of free photos on the WEB)
Flickr Storm (use pull down menu for Flickr and Creative Commons - easier)
Wikimedia Commons - Collection of 46 million usable media files to use for FREE
Photos In the Public Domain:
Wikimedia Commons - over 50 million images, videos, illustrations, graphics. Search by keyword or other criteria
The Public Domain Review - features images, essays, articles, and reviews of items in the public domain.
Unsplash - free, high-resolution photos that can be used for any purpose. Photos on this site are released under "Creative Commons Zero" (CC0) license, which means you can use them without having to cite or ask permission to use.
New Old Stock - vintage photos that are in the public domain. Photos on this site are released under "Creative Commons Zero" (CC0) license, which means you can use them without having to cite or ask permission to use.
Pexels - free, high resolution photos that can be use for any purpose. hotos on this site are released under "Creative Commons Zero" (CC0) license, which means you can use them without having to cite or ask permission to use.
Good Free Photos - free public domain stock photos; has large collection of high quality photos; free to use for any purpose. All photos are released under the public domain license.
Music:
Royalty Free Music and Sound, Springfield Township High School
Free Music Archive - large collection of free music released under a variety of licenses, including royalty free
YouTube Audio Library - high quality royalty free music and sound effects; free to download and use when creating YouTube videos; released under Creative Commons license; can use for any purpose as long as you credit the artist
Jamdndo - large collection of free music released under Creative Commons license. use the music for any purpose as long as credit is given to the artist
Sound Cloud - large collection of music released under different licenses; includes music that can be used for podcasts, videos, websites, etc.
Books:
Google Books - Google has large collection of books in the pubic domain; search by title, author, or keyword. You can also keep an online iist of books, with descriptions. Teachers can share their lists with students.
Project Gutenberg - free digitized epub and Kindle eBooks; download or read online; includes the World's greatest literature; focus is on older works for which U.S. copyright restrictions have expired; public domain
Internet Archive - a non-profit library of millions of free books, movies, software, music, websites, cultural artifacts, and more. Has a large collection of books in the public domain that can be downloaded for free.
LibriVox - volunteer project that creates audiobooks of public domain books; listen online or download
Local Libraries - check your own local library for public domain books
Online Libraries:
WorldCat - online catalog of library collections around the World; can also use to find books in your local library
The Online Books Page - website that indexes books that are available online; included books, news, etc.
Many Books - has ebooks that can be downloaded including ePub, PDF, and Kindle; also offers discounted bestsellers
Bartleby - collection of classic literature; has over 10,000 items
International Children's Digital Library - free online library of children's books in 59 languages from various countries; designed specifically for use by children ages 3 - 13; read online or download to devices; also has activities and games; has teachers' guides with lesson plans and activities for the classroom
Miscellaneous:
Art, Culture, and Historical Collections From Around the World:
Google Arts and Culture - content from over 200,000 leading museums and archives that have partnered with Google; art, culture, and history from around the World; can explore its exhibits online too
Metropolitan Museum of Art - view the museum's collections online; take virtual tours of its galleries
The Louvre - view its online collections and take virtual tours of its galleries
The British Museum - located in London; houses artifacts from around the World; take virtual tours of its galleries
The Smithsonian Institution - located in Washington, DC; group of museums and research centers; take virtual tours of their galleries
The Smithsonian Institution - Explore America - take a tour across the U.S. through its digital collections that document the American experience. Select a state and take a "road trip"; see how the people of the U.S. have a "shared history"; see its ethnic, cultural, religious, and regional diversity
Primary Source Documents:
American Revolution, Teacher Resources, Teach U.S. History.org
ConSource - largest online collection of primary sources on the U.S. Constitution
Hudson River Valley Heritage - online materials, newspapers, and stories administered by the Southeastern NY Library Resources Council
Citing Sources:
Use these sites and resources to assist you as you cite photos, images, videos, etc. of others. Some cites state that you may use the work of the contributor as long as you attribute the work in the manner specified by the author. You should read the conditions on each site and on each piece of work you wish to use.
Some Sites for creating citations:
Easy Bib - a free bibliography and citation creator
WikiHow - How to Attribute a Creative Commons Licensed Work
Son Of Citation Machine, older version, properly credit sources and WEB media
Son Of Citation Machine - newer version, properly credit sources and WEB media
Creative Commons - sample search page; click on images to see attribution requirements
Creative Commons - attribution page sample
Creative Commons - sample attribution based on contributor's requirements
Creative Commons Attributions:
Search for image in "Google Image Search"
Use the toolbar to limit your search to "Usage Rights"
Be sure to choose ones you are free to use
Example below is an image of frog on Google Image Search found on Wikimedia Commons
In the search results, click on an image from Wikimedia Commons
You will see a larger image of the image you've chosen
Clicking on the image takes you to the Wikimedia Commons webpage
Note: In top, right of page, you will see 5 icons
Choose: "Use this file"
You will see an image similar to the one on the right, depending on the image you have chosen.
Note where it is labeled, "Attribution"
You will see the owner of the image, the title of the image, and the Creative Commons attribution the owner wishes to have.
The sample below has the following attribution requirements listed for the user on the Creative Commons webpage for the selected image:
By Brian Gratwicke (Red-eyed Tree Frog (Agalychnis callidryas)) [CC BY 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
One correct way to write the attribution is: Photo by Gratwicke / CC BY 2.0
In the example above, the terms are:
Photo - a link to the image which has been posted on a Creative Commons webpage
by Gratwickie - the name of the owner of the image
CC By 2.0 - links back to the license on Creative Commons, which tells you the information about how you may use the image
How To Tell If Images Are In The Public Domain:
Sites will tell you if images are in the public domain
Images from the U.S. government are in the public domain
If the image's copyright date has expired, you are free to use it
Some images have been taken specifically to be placed in the public domain; websites will indicate this
Any image published before 1924 is in the public domain
You can also search the U.S. Copyright Office Database
If you are not sure that an image is in the public domain, don't use it.
Go to any of the sites on the WEB that offer images you are free to use - Creative Commons, Flickr, Pixabay, Kaboompics, Pexels, Unsplash . . .
Do a Google image Search and use the tools to search for images you are fee to use; click, "Find Source."
Google Docs - Free Image Add-Ons:
Use the following sites for add-ons to Google Docs, which will enhance what both you and your students can do.
Google Slides - Free Image Add-Ons:
Unsplash - insert free stock photos in any Slides presentation
Pexels - free stock photos
Google Images - search for images on the WEB and add to slide presentations; must check for copyright licenses
Insert Icons For Slides - 1,800+ icons from Font Awesome and Google Material Design
Carol LaRow Educational Technology
Google Certified Trainer