Control Alt Achieve: EdTech Links

Each week I keep an eye out for the latest edtech resources through blogs, social media, podcasts, videos, user groups, and more. I then try to reshare these resources in many ways.

One way I share these is here on the blog in these "EdTech Links of the Week" posts. See below to explore the latest batch of resources, and be sure to share with others who may benefit.

If you want to make sure you don't miss new resources, you can:

🔗 View all EdTech Links of the Week: bit.ly/caa-links

📰 Sign up for my weekly email newsletter: bit.ly/curts-news
📧 Join the "Control Alt Achieve" email discussion group: bit.ly/caa-emailgroup
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And as always, please let me know of any resources that you recommend. I would love to learn from you!

This week I have 4 resources from around the Internet and 4 resources from my blog.

❤️ Googley Valentine Activities

Resource Link

With Valentine's Day coming up, it is that time of year for me to share my collection of Valentine-related Google activities for students to practice writing, math, and creativity:

📊 Hearts and Charts Google Sheets Math Activities
😍 Valentine Emoji Rebus Stories in Google Docs
🧲 Valentine Magnetic Poetry with Google Drawings
💌 Valentine Cards with Google Drawings

You can get copies of all the templates, as well as detailed directions for use at the link above.

▶️ New Recorded Webinar: Google AI for the New Year

Resource Link

Recently I had the privilege to offer a free online session for the Teacher Innovation Network "EdTech Playground" series where I presented on new AI features for Gemini, NotebookLM, and Google Classroom from the last few months, and how they can be used for teaching and learning. This included:

3️⃣ New Gemini 3 model
🍌 Nano Banana 3 Pro for advanced images and infographics
🖼️ Slideshow creation in Gemini
💯 SAT Practice Tests in Gemini
💎 Gem sharing and the EduGems website
🔊 Audio lessons in Classroom
📊 NotebookLM infographics, slidedecks, and data tables
🗯️ NotebookLM for graphic novels

You can watch the recording and access the resources I shared in the session at the link above.

💎 New EduGems

Resource Link

Each week I try to add new Gems to my EduGems website. Since last newsletter, the following Gems have been added to the site:

🪞 3-Step Reflection - Guide students through a "What? So What? Now What?" Reflection on any activity or experience
🎫 Exit Ticket - Generate exit ticket questions to assess student understanding of specific learning outcomes at the end of any lesson
🤔 KWL Interactive - Engage students in a complete, interactive KWL (Know, Want to Know, Learned) activity to deepen their understanding of any topic
🤖 Teach a Robot - Students explain a topic to a curious but confused robot with common misunderstandings to help clarify their thinking and deepen their knowledge

Click on any of the links above to access, use, and copy the Gems.

📰 What's New in Google?

Resource Link

For an easy way to catch up on everything new in Google for Education from the last month, check out the recorded video, detailed agenda, and all the links from the GEG-Ohio January 2026 Meeting. We covered lots of new Google updates and helpful ideas and resources for schools.

🖍️ Brisk Whiteboard Activities

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I was super excited to see that Brisk released a new "Boost" activity recently that lets students complete an interactive whiteboard activity. Here's how it works:

Just like other Boost activities, you can start from scratch or with existing content, such as an article, video, document, slideshow, PDF, or more.
Brisk then creates an interactive whiteboard activity with three prompts for the student to answer or respond to (which of course you can edit).
The student then uses the whiteboard to answer the questions by drawing, diagraming, writing, working out math, and more. As usual they can chat with the AI to get help (but not answers).
All along Brisk tracks their progress for the student and for you.

This is such a great addition to the other Boost activities, because this opens up so many more ways for students to express their understanding. You can see my earlier webinar all about Boost activities to learn more about using Brisk in this way.

📈 Tracker Online

Resource Link

Tracker Online is a free, browser-based tool that turns any video into a physics laboratory by letting students analyze the motion of real-world objects. Here are the basics for how it works:

Video Capture & Setup: Students import a video (like a ball being thrown) and set a scale using a known length, such as a meter stick.
Track: By clicking on the object as it moves, students create a "track" of its path.
Analyze: Tracker automatically generates data tables and graphs for position, velocity, and acceleration, even offering "curve fitting" to find the math equations behind the movement.

This looks like a great option for schools for several reasons:

Chromebook Friendly: Since it’s web-based, it requires no installation and works perfectly on school-issued devices.
DIY Lab Equipment: It turns a student's smartphone into a high-tech sensor, eliminating the need for expensive motion detectors.
Math-Science Bridge: It provides a concrete way for students to see how algebraic functions (like parabolas) describe the real world.
And it's free!

🎹 BandLab for Education

Resource Link

BandLab for Education is a free, cloud-based music creation platform that allows students to collaborate on musical projects in a secure classroom environment. Here is how it works:

Online Studio: Students access a full digital audio workstation with virtual instruments and premium effects directly in their browser.
Collaboration: Multiple students can work together on the same project in real-time, fostering a shared creative process.
Classroom Management: Teachers can set up private classrooms, manage assignments, and use a built-in grading system to track student progress.

Just like the resources above, this also looks like a great option for schools for several reasons:

Chromebook Compatible: As a cloud-based tool, it requires no installation and works perfectly on Chromebooks and other school-issued devices.
Zero Cost: The platform is completely free with unlimited classes, students, and projects.
Student Privacy: It offers a "walled garden" approach with private classrooms and compliance with COPPA standards.
High-End Features: It provides professional-grade tools for students to express their creativity without needing expensive hardware.

💯 GradeTransferer

Resource Link

Manually transferring grades between platforms shouldn’t steal your prep periods, evenings, or weekends. GradeTransferer gives teachers fast, precise control over how grades move.

🚫 Eliminate Manual Entry & Errors - avoid those frustrated parent emails
🛠️ Fix Rostering Headaches - student name discrepancies are easily mapped so data lands in the right spot without support tickets
🧠 Scale, Round, and Convert Grades - automatically adjust grades to address unique proficiency scales and support standards-based grading
🌍 Unrivaled Compatibility — GradeTransferer supports nearly 40 educational platforms
🔐 Student data never leaves your computer — FERPA, COPPA, SOPPA, Ed Law 2-d compliant

Click here to start your free trial (no credit card required)