conon the As we start a new school year, we asked a few of our expert PBS LearningMedia users — teachers and PBS LearningMedia team members — to share their go-to, time-saving, and value-add hacks for classroom planning using the digital PreK-12 resources on PBS LearningMedia. Check out what they had to say, and be sure to bookmark for future reference!
10 Time-Saving Hacks From Educators
1. Start With a Quick Tour of PBS LearningMedia
For a detailed and quick overview on the basics of PBS LearningMedia — including searching and filtering, integrating content with Google Classroom, and tech tools for creating and assigning lessons, check out “Get Started Using PBS LearningMedia.” In this tutorial, educator and PBS LearningMedia “Guide on the Side” Mister C takes you on a tour through PBS LearningMedia and shares his favorite features and top tips for getting started on the platform.
2. All-Access Pass: Sign Up for a Free PBS LearningMedia Account
To make use of all features — such as browsing by state curriculum standards, favoriting resources, building lessons, creating sharable folders, and more — you’ll need a PBS LearningMedia account. PBS LearningMedia is always FREE for teachers and students, and signing up is as easy and quick as providing an email address or signing in using your existing Google account.
Once you have a user profile, you’ll need to fill out your profile and select your teaching interests and grade level focus. After doing so, you will begin to receive our email newsletter, which features topical and timely resources, news, and platform updates that are customized to your specific teaching needs. Watch the tutorial to learn more about how to get started creating your account.
3. Make Use of the Fabulous Filters
Learn how to quickly find the right classroom resources using the search and filter tools on PBS LearningMedia! In this video, Mister C walks you through the search and filter functions, which make it easy to sort content by grade, subject, resource type, video length, accessibility supports, and language.
Did you know? Not only can you select a language as a filtering option, but resources offered in other languages have an easy “toggle” button to allow the user to switch back and forth between languages. Watch this quick tutorial to learn how to find alternative language content on PBS LearningMedia.
Whether you’re searching for a specific video, interactive, or collection, our fabulous filters will help you save time and discover high-quality, standards-aligned materials for your students.
4. We All Need Some Support (Materials)
PBS LearningMedia resources are designed to be flexible and offer a range of learning experiences to meet your instructional needs. Resource support materials include teaching tips for suggestions about how to purposefully integrate media into your teaching following a “frame, focus, and follow-up” model. You can engage students in a before-viewing activity or set of questions to activate prior knowledge, encourage active media viewing by using the suggested set of while-viewing comprehension questions, and develop higher-order thinking skills and encourage further exploration of the topic with the suggested after-viewing questions, discussion questions, and activity suggestions. Resources may also include background essays, handouts, vocabulary list, and more, to use as you see fit.
“Teachers can get literally anything from PBS LearningMedia. Teachers can build a whole lesson or unit plan by incorporating all resources available because there are so many options teachers can select from. My biggest advice is for teachers to use the support materials for teachers and support materials for use with students. They are put together by teachers with long years of teaching experience!” - Clemencia Acevedo, classroom educator
5. Use the Related Topics Feature To Discover New Resources
Find even more classroom-ready content with the Explore Related Topics feature, located on the lower right side of each resource page on PBS LearningMedia! In this quick tutorial, Mister C guides you through how to explore connected subjects and themes using the Related Topics tool and the filter features. It’s easier than ever to extend a lesson, deepen student understanding, and discover new resources across content areas.
6. Secret Engagement Solution: Interactive Activities
When asked what she could not live without on PBS LearningMedia, Clemencia was also quick to talk about the interactive resources. Here’s what she shared:
“I could not live without the interactive resources. They are thoughtfully designed and are accompanied with the perfect music to keep students engaged. I love the interactive maps that show territorial, population, political, migration, and religious changes over time.” - Clemencia Acevedo, classroom educator
PBS LearningMedia offers interactive timelines, games, images, 3D models, and more, to actively engage students in the topic at hand. PBS LearningMedia also offers Interactive lessons which are self-paced learning experiences that support students as they progress through a sequence of activity-based slides containing media (e.g., videos, images, simulations), text, and a range of learning and assessment tasks. Students enjoy learning with interactive resources because it sparks their curiosity, puts them in control of their experience, and, importantly, it's fun! A few popular interactives include:
- Leonardo da Vinci's Inventions: Interactive 3D Model Explorations | Leonardo da Vinci (Grades 6-12)
- Key Battles of the Revolutionary War Interactive Map | The American Revolution (Grades 6-12)
- Why Do We Have Seasons? (Grades 3-12)
- Energy in a Roller Coaster Ride (Grades 6-12)
- The Experiences of a Young Girl During the American Revolution: Betsy Ambler | The American Revolution (Grades 3-8)
- Sled Dog Dash Game | Molly of Denali (Grades K-2)
7. Let’s Get Your Students Involved: Assign and Share Content
You’ve found a resource you’d like to use, but how do you get it in front of your students? In this tutorial, Mister C guides you through the various options you have for assigning and sharing PBS LearningMedia classroom content with your students. You’ll learn how to share through Google Classroom and other learning platforms, how to get a student-facing version of resources to share, and how to share assignments that integrate media with instructions using PBS LearningMedia’s Lesson Builder tool.
8. The MacGyver of PBS LearningMedia: The Lesson Builder Tool
Mister C encourages fellow teachers to explore everything that the Lesson Builder tool can do! In addition to the basics — such as adding context and tasks to any media shared with students through a set of slides — you can also use it to differentiate instruction and create lessons for small groups and independent learning. You can even save more time by pulling in media you’ve already favorited and added to a folder (find out more here). Learn more by watching the lesson builder tutorial here.
9. No Need To Leave Your Google Classroom
Did you know that you can easily assign PBS LearningMedia resources through Google Classroom? Here’s how! In this quick tutorial, Mister C walks through how to seamlessly share videos, lesson plans, and interactive content from PBS LearningMedia directly to your Google Classroom. It’s simple to connect the platforms, assign content to students, and support personalized learning with standards-aligned media.
You can view your students’ lesson builder and interactive lesson assignment results in your Google Classroom’s Google Drive. You can view step-by-step instructions on how to access assignments and student results in this tutorial.
Finally, PBS LearningMedia is offered as a Google Classroom add-on in some schools and districts. Check with your administration to find out if add-ons have already been set up for your school or district. You can check the PBS LearningMedia Help pages for more information.
10. Create a Distraction-Free Student Learning Experience With Focus View
Keep your students engaged, streamline your lessons, and reduce distractions with Focus View on PBS LearningMedia! In this tutorial, Mister C guides you through how to activate Focus View, a feature that removes surrounding content and keeps the spotlight on a single video, making it easier for your students to stay engaged. This tool supports a smoother, distraction-free learning experience, whether you’re projecting a video in class or assigning it for independent viewing.
You can choose the "Share link with students" button to the left of the resource viewer and select “copy link” for the focus view option and give that URL to your students, who will see only that shared resource. Another cool feature? Logged-in users have a handy Teacher View | Student View toggle that lets them see what their students will see when they share links.
Final Thoughts
Help is here! Our experts all pointed to the library of tutorial videos, as well as the step-by-step guidance that’s available for all of the most frequently asked about topics. Just click on “Help” in the footer section of the website to open our support HQ. Also, regular virtual professional learning opportunities are highlighted on the homepage, on PBS Teachers social media platforms, and within the free, weekly PreK-12 PBS LearningMedia newsletter.
Last tip? Bookmark this post for easy reference, and consider sharing it with a fellow teacher, who might also find it helpful.
