You can use any device with internet access to search for teaching materials that can enhance your lessons. Many of these resources can be saved for offline use or shared directly with students via a link, giving them easy access. In the following section, we’ll discuss some valuable sites that provide practical, cost-free resources to make your teaching more engaging and effective.
YouTube
YouTube offers an extensive collection of videos on virtually any topic imaginable, including trade skills such as fixing a car engine or repairing a toilet system. These resources are invaluable for helping students discover and understand new concepts, particularly those who thrive on visual learning. You can even save videos ahead of time to watch later without needing the internet, making them a good option for classrooms with limited connectivity.
Teaching Scenario: In a cooking class in Tonga, you want to show your students how to make a traditional dish called umu. You open YouTube on your device and say, “Let’s watch a video on how to prepare umu the right way.” You find a video by a local chef, play it for the class, and stop at key moments to talk: “See how the chef puts the food in the ground oven. What steps did they take to keep it safe?” Afterward, you save the video on your device to show again later without the internet. You ask your students, “What did you learn from the video about making umu? How did watching help you understand better? What other cooking ideas could we find on YouTube, like making desserts?” This shows how YouTube can bring real-world skills to your cooking lessons.
TedTalk
TedTalk is a free platform where you can watch expert presentations on a wide range of topics, such as starting a small business or promoting environmental sustainability, by visiting www.ted.com. These talks can inspire students and introduce new ideas related to their trade, encouraging them to think more broadly. In classrooms with limited internet access, TED Talk videos can also be saved for offline viewing.
Teaching Scenario: In a small business class in Vanuatu, you want to inspire your students to think about their future. You open TedTalk on your device at https://www.ted.com/ and say, “Let’s watch a talk about how to start a small business.” You find a talk called “How to Build a Business That Helps Your Community,” play it for the class, and stop to discuss: “What did the speaker say about helping others through business, what ideas can we use in our village?” You save the talk on your device to show again later. You ask, “How did this talk make you think about your business ideas? What did you learn about helping your community? What other talks could we find on TedTalk, like ones about farming?” This shows how TedTalk can inspire your students in small business lessons.
National Geographic Education
National Geographic Education offers free access to videos that are like TV shows, showing real-world ideas about nature, culture, and science, which can help with many trades. These videos can teach your students about things like fishing in a way that helps the environment or building houses that don’t harm nature, which is great for learning new ideas. You can save videos to show later without the internet if you have a way to keep them on your laptop, helping in Pacific classrooms with limited access. Students can revisit as often as needed to reinforce their understanding or explore topics more deeply.
Teaching Scenario: In a fisheries class in Kiribati, you want to teach your students about fishing in a way that helps the ocean. You open National Geographic Education on your laptop and say, “Let’s watch a video about sustainable fishing.” You find a video on how fishing can protect ocean animals, play it for the class, and stop to discuss: “What did the video show about keeping fish safe? How can we use this in our fishing cooperative?” You save the video on your device/ laptop to show again later without the internet. You ask, “What did you learn about fishing from the video? How did watching help you think about the ocean? What other ideas, like caring for coral reefs, could we find on National Geographic Education?” This shows how National Geographic Education can bring real-world ideas to your fisheries lessons.
TeachEngineering
TeachEngineering provides free access to teaching materials, like lesson plans, worksheets, and activities, for trade subjects like building or fixing things. You can look for materials on topics like construction or engineering, and save them to use later without the internet. This is helpful in Pacific classrooms because you can find materials that match your local needs, like lessons on building with local materials. TeachEngineering helps you find new ideas to make your teaching more interesting.
Teaching Scenario: In a construction class in Tonga, you want to teach your students how to build a strong foundation for a small house. You open TeachEngineering on your laptop and say, “Let’s find a lesson on building foundations.” You search and find an activity about making a strong base with concrete. You save the activity on your device and print copies for your students. In class, you say, “Use this activity to plan a foundation. What materials will you need, and why?” After they finish, you ask, “How did this activity help you learn about building? Why is a strong foundation important? What other construction ideas, like making a roof, could we find on TeachEngineering?” This shows how TeachEngineering can give you useful materials for construction lessons.
OER Commons
OER Commons is a repository that hosts Open Educational Resources (OER), which are freely accessible and openly licensed teaching and learning materials. It offers a wide range of teaching resources such as lesson plans, worksheets, and videos across many subjects, including trade skills. You can search for materials on topics like farming or hospitality and save them for offline use. The resources are practical, easy to adapt to local contexts, and can enrich your teaching. When using OER, it is important to give proper credit to the original creators. Module 3 will guide you on how to attribute these resources correctly.
Teaching Scenario: In a farming class in the Solomon Islands, you want to teach your students about growing root crops like taro. You open OER Commons on your device and say, “Let’s find a lesson on growing crops.” You search and find a worksheet on planting taro, save it on your laptop, and print copies for your students. In class, you say, “Use this worksheet to plan how you would grow taro. What steps will you follow?” After they finish, you ask, “How did this worksheet help you learn about growing taro? What steps did you find most helpful? What other farming ideas, like raising chickens, could we find on OER Commons?” This shows how OER Commons can give you useful materials for farming lessons.
Try It Yourself: It’s time to further explore OER Commons. Visit OER Commons Lesson Plans, Worksheets, and Activities page and search for a lesson or resource related to your trade. For example, if you teach agriculture, try searching for “Hydroponics” to find ready-made teaching materials: Hydroponics resource.
Select one resource that could support your classroom teaching. Take a few moments to browse through its content and consider how you might adapt it to your context.
Self Reflection: What resource(s) did you find. How could it be used in your lessons? Would you adapt it for your local context? Post your findings here. We look forward to seeing how you integrate OER into your teaching.
In module 3, you will also be introduced to SkillsCommons, a dedicated repository focused entirely on OER for trade and workforce development, offering resources specifically designed for technical and vocational education.
If you are planning to exit the course after completing Module 0, you are welcome to preview the SkillsCommons section now. Otherwise, you will explore it when you progress to that part of the course.
You can use any device with internet access to search for teaching materials that can enhance your lessons. Many of these resources can be saved for offline use or shared directly with students via a link, giving them easy access. In the following section, we’ll discuss some valuable sites that provide practical, cost-free resources to make your teaching more engaging and effective.
YouTube
YouTube offers an extensive collection of videos on virtually any topic imaginable, including trade skills such as fixing a car engine or repairing a toilet system. These resources are invaluable for helping students discover and understand new concepts, particularly those who thrive on visual learning. You can even save videos ahead of time to watch later without needing the internet, making them a good option for classrooms with limited connectivity.
Teaching Scenario: In a cooking class in Tonga, you want to show your students how to make a traditional dish called umu. You open YouTube on your device and say, “Let’s watch a video on how to prepare umu the right way.” You find a video by a local chef, play it for the class, and stop at key moments to talk: “See how the chef puts the food in the ground oven. What steps did they take to keep it safe?” Afterward, you save the video on your device to show again later without the internet. You ask your students, “What did you learn from the video about making umu? How did watching help you understand better? What other cooking ideas could we find on YouTube, like making desserts?” This shows how YouTube can bring real-world skills to your cooking lessons.
TedTalk
TedTalk is a free platform where you can watch expert presentations on a wide range of topics, such as starting a small business or promoting environmental sustainability, by visiting www.ted.com. These talks can inspire students and introduce new ideas related to their trade, encouraging them to think more broadly. In classrooms with limited internet access, TED Talk videos can also be saved for offline viewing.
Teaching Scenario: In a small business class in Vanuatu, you want to inspire your students to think about their future. You open TedTalk on your device at https://www.ted.com/ and say, “Let’s watch a talk about how to start a small business.” You find a talk called “How to Build a Business That Helps Your Community,” play it for the class, and stop to discuss: “What did the speaker say about helping others through business, what ideas can we use in our village?” You save the talk on your device to show again later. You ask, “How did this talk make you think about your business ideas? What did you learn about helping your community? What other talks could we find on TedTalk, like ones about farming?” This shows how TedTalk can inspire your students in small business lessons.
National Geographic Education
National Geographic Education offers free access to videos that are like TV shows, showing real-world ideas about nature, culture, and science, which can help with many trades. These videos can teach your students about things like fishing in a way that helps the environment or building houses that don’t harm nature, which is great for learning new ideas. You can save videos to show later without the internet if you have a way to keep them on your laptop, helping in Pacific classrooms with limited access. Students can revisit as often as needed to reinforce their understanding or explore topics more deeply.
Teaching Scenario: In a fisheries class in Kiribati, you want to teach your students about fishing in a way that helps the ocean. You open National Geographic Education on your laptop and say, “Let’s watch a video about sustainable fishing.” You find a video on how fishing can protect ocean animals, play it for the class, and stop to discuss: “What did the video show about keeping fish safe? How can we use this in our fishing cooperative?” You save the video on your device/ laptop to show again later without the internet. You ask, “What did you learn about fishing from the video? How did watching help you think about the ocean? What other ideas, like caring for coral reefs, could we find on National Geographic Education?” This shows how National Geographic Education can bring real-world ideas to your fisheries lessons.
TeachEngineering
TeachEngineering provides free access to teaching materials, like lesson plans, worksheets, and activities, for trade subjects like building or fixing things. You can look for materials on topics like construction or engineering, and save them to use later without the internet. This is helpful in Pacific classrooms because you can find materials that match your local needs, like lessons on building with local materials. TeachEngineering helps you find new ideas to make your teaching more interesting.
Teaching Scenario: In a construction class in Tonga, you want to teach your students how to build a strong foundation for a small house. You open TeachEngineering on your laptop and say, “Let’s find a lesson on building foundations.” You search and find an activity about making a strong base with concrete. You save the activity on your device and print copies for your students. In class, you say, “Use this activity to plan a foundation. What materials will you need, and why?” After they finish, you ask, “How did this activity help you learn about building? Why is a strong foundation important? What other construction ideas, like making a roof, could we find on TeachEngineering?” This shows how TeachEngineering can give you useful materials for construction lessons.
OER Commons
OER Commons is a repository that hosts Open Educational Resources (OER), which are freely accessible and openly licensed teaching and learning materials. It offers a wide range of teaching resources such as lesson plans, worksheets, and videos across many subjects, including trade skills. You can search for materials on topics like farming or hospitality and save them for offline use. The resources are practical, easy to adapt to local contexts, and can enrich your teaching. When using OER, it is important to give proper credit to the original creators. Module 3 will guide you on how to attribute these resources correctly.
Teaching Scenario: In a farming class in the Solomon Islands, you want to teach your students about growing root crops like taro. You open OER Commons on your device and say, “Let’s find a lesson on growing crops.” You search and find a worksheet on planting taro, save it on your laptop, and print copies for your students. In class, you say, “Use this worksheet to plan how you would grow taro. What steps will you follow?” After they finish, you ask, “How did this worksheet help you learn about growing taro? What steps did you find most helpful? What other farming ideas, like raising chickens, could we find on OER Commons?” This shows how OER Commons can give you useful materials for farming lessons.
Try It Yourself: It’s time to further explore OER Commons. Visit OER Commons Lesson Plans, Worksheets, and Activities page and search for a lesson or resource related to your trade. For example, if you teach agriculture, try searching for “Hydroponics” to find ready-made teaching materials: Hydroponics resource.
Select one resource that could support your classroom teaching. Take a few moments to browse through its content and consider how you might adapt it to your context.
Self Reflection: What resource(s) did you find. How could it be used in your lessons? Would you adapt it for your local context? Post your findings here. We look forward to seeing how you integrate OER into your teaching.
In module 3, you will also be introduced to SkillsCommons, a dedicated repository focused entirely on OER for trade and workforce development, offering resources specifically designed for technical and vocational education.
If you are planning to exit the course after completing Module 0, you are welcome to preview the SkillsCommons section now. Otherwise, you will explore it when you progress to that part of the course.
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