Real Educator Advice and Experiences

School leaders have the difficult job of stretching limited budgets, choosing products and tools with the highest impact and value. But as more and more educational products hit the market each year, it’s hard for principals and administrators to really know what will benefit their teachers and students most. That’s why we created the 2026 School Buying Guide, full of real Teacher Picks for K-12 products across the curriculum!

We’ve asked real teachers across the country to test out a selection of products in their classrooms and give us their honest opinions. You’ll find information like:

• How each product works and supports teachers and students
• Recommended grade levels or subjects
• Alignment with educational standards and goals
• Teacher thoughts on ease of use and classroom engagement
• Student feedback and real-world impact
• And more!

2026 School Buying Guide From We Are Teachers

Our Teacher Picks cover products across a wide range of ages, subjects, and resources. Take a look at our top educator favorites across these categories:

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2026 Buying Guide for Science Classrooms

Green Bronx Machine

HANDS-ON ACTIVITY

Grow a tower garden right in your classroom to feed students and families.

Who It’s For: Any teacher who wants to bring fresh homegrown produce into their classroom and curriculum

Real Teacher Rave: “My favorite part about using Green Bronx in my classroom is how versatile and immersive it is … I could never go back to a classroom without the plants, the trickling water, the fresh smells, and our celebration salad feasts. The plants, water, lights, smells, and harvest feasts are now part of what my classroom is—and what it stands for.”

—Amy Poland, 5th grade teacher

Ward’s Science Engage Kit: Under Pressure

DIY SCIENCE KIT

Build a DIY barometer—all materials included.

Who It’s For: Earth science, environmental science, or physical science classrooms in grades 8 to 10

Real Teacher Rave: “As a science teacher, I love to incorporate as many hands-on activities as possible into my classes. That being said, this often involves gathering or purchasing materials and creating the student-facing materials (procedures, data sheets, discussion questions, etc.). Having all of these components delivered as a kit allows me to spend more time preparing my students with the content that they need to better understand the topic.”

—Sarah Donovan, middle school science teacher

Rethinking Food Waste Curriculum

CURRICULUM PROGRAM

Spark meaningful conversations about food waste and its environmental impacts.

Who It’s For: 7th grade and up (ages 12+) classrooms or clubs with an environmental focus

Real Teacher Rave: “All the materials as well as the video from the Educated Choices Program library are very intuitive. … The whole free learning package, from the video to the guided notes and everything in between, provides educators with almost a whole week’s lessons for their students.”

—Christine Arsenis, 7th grade science teacher

Ward’s Science OpenSciEd Kits

DIY SCIENCE KIT

Created specifically for OpenSciEd curriculum, the kit has everything science teachers need.

Who It’s For: Teachers who use the OpenSciEd curriculum

Real Teacher Rave: “If you are a teacher who uses OpenSciEd, this kit is a great addition to your lessons since it has the materials you need to cover multiple lessons. … With science kits in the past, I’ve been frustrated when my kit didn’t have everything that I needed, especially unique items. But that wasn’t the case here. For example, one lesson in this kit needed a hacksaw and they provided it!”

—Naomi Meredith, STEM educator

Plant-Forward and Powerful

NUTRITION LESSON PLANS

Bring important conversations about nutrition, wellness, and plant-based eating into the classroom.

Who It’s For: Grades 7+

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Real Teacher Rave: “Lesson planning is time-consuming: developing attention-getters, identifying appropriate text, designing activities, creating opportunities for group work, making closing activities, etc. It requires time, so a platform like Plant-Forward and Powerful [from the Educated Choices Program] simplifies that entire process.”

—Patrick Danz, high school educator and coach

DIY SCIENCE KIT

Perfect for teaching complex biotech topics through active, inquiry-based learning.

Who It’s For: High school biology, physics, or anatomy and physiology

Real Teacher Rave: “Overall, this lab was extremely easy to implement in my classroom. There were/are so many places this activity can fit within NGSS and our local curriculum requirements. Instructions for setting up the lab for students were clear and made the process a breeze. And the student instructions were easy for them to follow.”

—Allison Dalton, high school science teacher

Ward’s Science Engage: Cell Cycles Kit

DIY SCIENCE KIT

This NGSS-aligned kit helps teachers transform their biology lessons.

Who It’s For: High school biology classes

Real Teacher Rave: “I like that this can be used for 9th grade labs where the material is relatively simple. Then it can also be used for a more complex advanced biology class. … I also love the versatility of the model. I can use it to demonstrate processes for plant and animal cells. Plus, I can use the model with the specific assignments that come with the material, but I can also use it with my and my students’ imaginations.”

—Selim Jemil, high school biology teacher

School Technology Buying Guide for 2026

Digital Citizenship Initiative

CURRICULUM RESOURCES

Students go from skeptical to engaged with this interactive approach to digital responsibility.

Who It’s For: Grades 6-12

Real Teacher Rave: “What stood out was how naturally my students engaged with it. They weren’t just listening to me, they were analyzing posts, debating risks, and even competing to come up with the safest but still engaging versions of a social post. For me as the teacher, the biggest win was that it didn’t feel like I was pulling teeth to get them to participate.”

—Kim Lepre, middle school teacher

The Henry Ford inHub

EDUCATOR RESOURCE

This platform prepares students to be world-changing innovators, inventors, and entrepreneurs.

Who It’s For: Grades K-12

Real Teacher Rave: “Using this inHub platform helps break down barriers because the lessons are easy to use and implement. … I especially valued the clear instructions and ready-to-use materials, which allowed me to integrate these concepts into my teaching with minimal prep time or extra training.”

—Amanda Dover, 4th grade teacher

Ari the Ozobot Robot

CODING ROBOT

Ari helps students connect with STEM concepts in a playful and meaningful way.

Who It’s For: Grades pre-K to 12

Real Teacher Rave: “I have not used an Ozobot before so this was very exciting for me and my students. My students were visibly impressed, with their mouths open, oohing and ahhing! They giggled when Ari would slow down and a snail would move across the screen, and they laughed when he spun in a circle like a tornado. I think it is extremely engaging for students.”

—Hilary Statum, teacher, literacy consultant, and reading interventionist

Khanmigo

AI TEACHING ASSISTANT

Designed to support educators with lesson planning, student engagement, and differentiated instruction.

Who It’s For: Teachers, grades K-12

Real Teacher Rave: “Khanmigo is like the teaching assistant you don’t have the budget for. Khan Academy’s free tool helps teachers plan every aspect of a lesson. From hooks and connections to the real world, to step-by-step agendas, and even exit tickets, Khanmigo saves teachers time so they can actually TEACH.”

—Emily Wilde, secondary math teacher

2026 School Buying Guide for Math

Snakebird (PlayMath.org)

ONLINE MATH GAME

This free math game requires real problem-solving, strategy, and collaboration.

Who It’s For: Grades 3-5 math students

Real Teacher Rave: “The game sparks lively classroom discussions, encourages a growth mindset, and makes math fun. My students were genuinely engaged, often saying things like ‘I finally got it!’ and helping each other through the more difficult levels. For me, Snakebird isn’t just another math game, it’s a powerful tool for building confidence, collaboration, and mathematical thinking in my classroom.”

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—April Archer, 4th grade teacher

Prodigy

MATH PLATFORM

A free, engaging, and curriculum-aligned math platform that adapts to each student’s learning needs.

Who It’s For: Grades 1-8

Real Teacher Rave: “The first day I introduced Prodigy in my classroom, it took students about a minute to decide they loved it. I heard exclamations like ‘I like this one!’ and ‘Can we play this again tomorrow?!’ That afternoon, after students went home, I received multiple parent messages asking how their child could access the math game with ‘the orange P’ icon to play at home.”

—Kellie Barragan, 1st grade teacher

Slice Fractions (PlayMath.org)

ONLINE MATH GAME

Help students visualize how fractions work by partitioning shapes, comparing sizes, and understanding parts of a whole.

Who It’s For: Grades 2-6

Real Teacher Rave: “One thing I loved about our time playing games on PlayMath.org is that my class began investigating and talking about what other math topics PlayMath.org could gamify. They shared ideas about how to gamify decimal learning. This is exciting stuff! … My class enjoyed the game so much they asked when we could play again.”

—Kristen Acosta, math educator

2026 Buying Guide for Social Studies Classrooms

History Smashers by Kate Messner

BOOK SERIES

A fun, engaging, and factual series that smashes the myths we have ALL been taught.

Who It’s For: Upper elementary through middle school

Real Teacher Rave: “My students were immediately engaged. I asked them what they liked about the books, and they said they loved that it’s not just text on page after page. … Students liked how diverse everyone was throughout each book and felt they could see themselves represented. … They never realized that nonfiction could be so interesting.”

—Amy Brownlee, middle school teacher and librarian

TCI History Alive

SOCIAL STUDIES CURRICULUM

Make social studies engaging through interactive lessons and inquiry-based projects.

Who It’s For: Grades K-12

Real Teacher Rave: “TCI is very versatile. The reading voice in this program was easy to understand. I am also a sucker for games. Students love review games and competitions. The whole program sets out to turn students into history detectives and solve the mystery.”

—Valarie Rapp, middle school teacher

The Week Junior

NEWS MAGAZINE

A flexible teaching tool that brings real-world topics into the classroom in a way that’s engaging, age-appropriate, and easy to use.

Who It’s For: Grades 4-8

Real Teacher Rave: “We get diverse stories and voices in an incredibly engaging way with The Week Junior. … Middle school students are interested in it all because they are, after all, figuring out who they are and what they believe in. … The stories are presented in an unbiased way, which means students get to formulate their own opinions and ideas about timely topics. This opens up the opportunity for teachers to model respectful discourse.”

—Steffy McCourt, middle school English teacher

2026 Buying Guide for ELA/ELL Classrooms

Decoder Kids

PHONICS PROGRAM

This program makes teaching phonics simpler, smarter, and more effective.

Who It’s For: Grades pre-K to 2

Real Teacher Rave: “The kits are aligned to the Science of Reading, and that is something teachers are really looking for. Besides that, the lesson plans make it easy to implement and the pacing is perfect. Another thing is the connection between phonemic awareness and phonics, which is included in every lesson. The kits include comprehension, fluency, vocabulary, and even tips for multilingual learners.”

—Hilary Statum, teacher, literacy consultant, and reading interventionist

ThriftBooks 4 Teachers

FREE AND DISCOUNT BOOK PROGRAM

The easy-to-use program helps educators build classroom libraries with affordable, high-quality used books.

Who It’s For: Grades pre-K to 12

Real Teacher Rave: “I’m always on the lookout for books to add to my classroom library, and this is the place to look. Books can get expensive when purchased brand-new, so ThriftBooks is going to save me some money when shopping. I also like their guarantee of satisfaction so I don’t have to be concerned about a used book not being up to par.”

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—Adam Peterson, kindergarten teacher

Lingolift

ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNERS RESOURCES

Bite-size video lessons that help newcomer and emergent English learners build language skills and gain confidence speaking in class.

Who It’s For: English language learners in grades 2-12

Real Teacher Rave: “The progression from watching the video to filling in the vocabulary words to speaking individual sentences was a great concept. I think it keeps it short and simple enough to keep students’ attention while still getting harder and harder for them to accomplish based on their level of experience.”

—Kelsey Cardenas, 8th grade ELAR teacher

Social-Emotional Learning School Buying Guide for 2026

Ask, Listen, Learn

UNDERAGE DRINKING PREVENTION PROGRAM

These underage drinking and substance-use prevention resources spark amazing classroom discussions.

Who It’s For: Grades 4-8

Real Teacher Rave: “Ask, Listen, Learn focuses on neuroscience and talks about parts of the brain and their functions. It gives students science-backed reasons why alcohol and marijuana use are not effective ways to relieve stress and gives them tools to learn how to deal with stress in a healthy way, preserving their mental health. There are also parent components to send home so the students can continue these conversations with their families.”

—Amy Brownlee, middle school teacher and librarian

Keep Georgia Safe

ROAD SAFETY PROGRAM

Free educational resources and games from Georgia DOT are the perfect mix of education and entertainment.

Who It’s For: Grades K-12

Real Teacher Rave: “Overall for the materials, students were so engaged because they were so directly applicable in their lives. As they join the community of drivers, my students liked spending time thinking about things like the science behind why safe driving habits are so important and steps they can take in their own lives. I loved listening to the thoughtful conversations that came up while they were working together.”

—Emily Wilde, middle and high school teacher

VAI Educator’s Studio

SEL EDUCATOR RESOURCES

Build the skills that help your students succeed with these ready-to-go short lessons.

Who It’s For: Grades K-8

Real Teacher Rave: “I loved having all these amazing resources right at my fingertips. As a busy teacher and self-proclaimed type B person, I loved that the resources were readily available, easy to implement, and I didn’t need much prep time. I would absolutely tell teachers it is well worth the money to pay for this membership to give you great resources for building important skills.”

—Cara Vega, 4th grade teacher

More Educator Favorites for 2026

Music K-8

MUSIC MAGAZINE

Music K-8 stands out as a helpful, time-saving resource for music teachers everywhere.

Who It’s For: Grades K-8 music teachers

Real Teacher Rave: “This resource is great for providing a one-stop shop for all the materials music educators need to successfully teach songs. When teaching multiple grades, it is often difficult to prepare all the materials needed for each level, and Music K-8 makes all the preparation so much easier!”

—Katherine Myszewski, elementary music teacher

BBC Learning Hub

EDUCATOR RESOURCES

A free, story-driven educational platform created by BBC Studios to support teachers, students, and families.

Who It’s For: Grades pre-K to 12

Real Teacher Rave: “I am shocked this is a free resource for teachers! There is a great mix of nonfiction and fiction resources that are modern and relevant for teachers to use in their classrooms. I enjoyed the option of being able to print resources but also share them digitally. Teachers typically need both options throughout the school year, and easily having access to both was great.”

—Naomi Meredith, STEM educator

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