1 of 4

Find the perfect photos quickly and easily.

There are plenty of resources online to help you find photos for your classroom. But which resources are the best? I'm here to show you three of the highest-quality resources out there for finding photos for lesson plans, writing prompts, student projects, and more.

For each resource, I've included one of SimpleK12's quick video tutorials outlining the basics of how to use each photo site in just 3 minutes.

Click through to each page to learn about each new tool. Once you're at the end, remember to tell me which one is your favorite on a comment on this article. :)

2 of 4

Discover the LIFE Photo Archives

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Watch above as SimpleK12's Teacher Learning Community Trainer Monica Burns shares how to find high-quality photographs using Google's LIFE photo archive.

Search millions of photographs from the LIFE photo archive, stretching from the 1750s to today. Most were never published and are now available for the first time through the joint work of LIFE and Google. - LIFE photo archive

Monica explains how to use this robust photo archive to find photos for the classroom. You can search by an individual name, date, place, or event name to narrow your results. Overall, this is the perfect resource for discovering photographs to use in your lessons, either to relate to other primary source documents, or connect literature to real-world events.

Go on to the next page to discover how you can harness the power of one of the most popular photo sharing sites for your classroom.

3 of 4

Discover top-notch photos using Flickr.

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I Accept

Watch above as SimpleK12's Teacher Learning Community Trainer Monica Burns shares how to discover top-notch photos using Flickr.

Flickr - almost certainly the best online photo management and sharing application in the world. - About Flickr

Monica explains how to navigate and use The Commons area of Flickr, a special area of the website that features photographs licensed for public use. Learn how to filter through the gallery of photos to find images that meet your specific licensing needs. For example, discover images that you can use as-is, images you may modify, or images you may use for commercial purposes.

Next, let's take a look at a site specifically designed to help teachers and students find photos.

4 of 4  

A photo resource designed with educators in mind.

For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded.
I Accept

Watch above as SimpleK12's Teacher Learning Community Trainer Monica Burns shares how to search for photos using Photos for Class.

Teachers have told us they need a place to access safe images that are available to be used in the classroom and for educational purposes. Plus, they want accurate image citations. We’ve heard you and created “Photos For Class” to meet your needs for images!
  • Age Appropriate Images - All images are appropriate for the school setting, thanks to Flicker SafeSearch and our proprietary filters
  • Automatic Citation - Downloaded images automatically cite the author and the image license terms
  • Creative Commons - All photos shown are, to the best of our (and Flickr's) knowledge, licensed by Creative Commons for public use
-Photos for Class

Monica explains how to navigate the Photos for Class site, and shows how simple it is to find and download high-quality photos for student projects. One of the best features of the site is all of the citation information shared, this makes it a perfect opportunity to introduce students to digital citizenship and proper attribution habits.

So there you have it, 3 great resources for finding photos for your classroom. Which is your favorite? Let me know in a comment on this article.

3 Ways to Find Photos for Your Classroom

Published On: November 10th, 2016·By ·
 1 of 4

Find the perfect photos quickly and easily.

There are plenty of resources online to help you find photos for your classroom. But which resources are the best? I'm here to show you three of the highest-quality resources out there for finding photos for lesson plans, writing prompts, student projects, and more.

For each resource, I've included one of SimpleK12's quick video tutorials outlining the basics of how to use each photo site in just 3 minutes.

Click through to each page to learn about each new tool. Once you're at the end, remember to tell me which one is your favorite on a comment on this article. :)

2 of 4

Discover the LIFE Photo Archives

For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded.
I Accept

Watch above as SimpleK12's Teacher Learning Community Trainer Monica Burns shares how to find high-quality photographs using Google's LIFE photo archive.

Search millions of photographs from the LIFE photo archive, stretching from the 1750s to today. Most were never published and are now available for the first time through the joint work of LIFE and Google. - LIFE photo archive

Monica explains how to use this robust photo archive to find photos for the classroom. You can search by an individual name, date, place, or event name to narrow your results. Overall, this is the perfect resource for discovering photographs to use in your lessons, either to relate to other primary source documents, or connect literature to real-world events.

Go on to the next page to discover how you can harness the power of one of the most popular photo sharing sites for your classroom.

3 of 4

Discover top-notch photos using Flickr.

For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded.
I Accept

Watch above as SimpleK12's Teacher Learning Community Trainer Monica Burns shares how to discover top-notch photos using Flickr.

Flickr - almost certainly the best online photo management and sharing application in the world. - About Flickr

Monica explains how to navigate and use The Commons area of Flickr, a special area of the website that features photographs licensed for public use. Learn how to filter through the gallery of photos to find images that meet your specific licensing needs. For example, discover images that you can use as-is, images you may modify, or images you may use for commercial purposes.

Next, let's take a look at a site specifically designed to help teachers and students find photos.

4 of 4  

A photo resource designed with educators in mind.

For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded.
I Accept

Watch above as SimpleK12's Teacher Learning Community Trainer Monica Burns shares how to search for photos using Photos for Class.

Teachers have told us they need a place to access safe images that are available to be used in the classroom and for educational purposes. Plus, they want accurate image citations. We’ve heard you and created “Photos For Class” to meet your needs for images!
  • Age Appropriate Images - All images are appropriate for the school setting, thanks to Flicker SafeSearch and our proprietary filters
  • Automatic Citation - Downloaded images automatically cite the author and the image license terms
  • Creative Commons - All photos shown are, to the best of our (and Flickr's) knowledge, licensed by Creative Commons for public use
-Photos for Class

Monica explains how to navigate the Photos for Class site, and shows how simple it is to find and download high-quality photos for student projects. One of the best features of the site is all of the citation information shared, this makes it a perfect opportunity to introduce students to digital citizenship and proper attribution habits.

So there you have it, 3 great resources for finding photos for your classroom. Which is your favorite? Let me know in a comment on this article.

Now that you and your students have plenty of photos for your classroom, here are a few ways you can put them to good use. Take a look at these related on-demand training sessions from SimpleK12's Teacher Learning Community.

Copyright-Friendly Tips and Tech Tools. It's important that we use and attribute only those items that are copyright friendly or that we have permission to use. Join Lyn Hilt as she provides an introduction to copyright basics and essential must-knows for teachers, including an explanation of fair use and Creative Commons. She explores online tools that help teachers and students find copyright-friendly media and content and cite sources appropriately.

Creating Interactive Photos in Your Classroom. A picture tells a thousand words, especially when you or your students make it interactive. Join Brenda Hauff as she explains how to use Canva, a free, cloud-based desktop publishing tool that makes you look like a pro. She then shows how to take what you have just created and make it interactive with Thinglink. Using the free features of Thinglink, Brenda demonstrates how you can easily make a graphic come alive with interactive photos or text. There's no need to be a tech nerd – you can do it all without using HTML code. In addition, Brenda shares example project ideas and suggestions for using interactive photos in your classroom.

3 Ways to Find Photos for Your Classroom Click to Tweet

Which photo sites are you most excited to try with your students? Share your thoughts in a comment on this article.

About the Author
Kimber Thompson is a Lead Moderator for SimpleK12 webinars and a Contributing Editor for SimpleK12.com. She writes frequently about education topics, and is passionate about tools and techniques that inspire young learners. You may reach her with ideas and comments at editor@simplek12.com.

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