Teachers Love SMART Boards

SMARTBoards and Finding Rudolph Notebook Activity

For Kindergarten and 1st Grade (5-6 yr olds) teachers who are still at school these last few days before Christmas, here is a special gift just for you.

It's a Notebook Activity called Finding Rudolph. It's a very simple lesson that has students answer a few vocabulary-related questions from the lyrics to Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. At the end, they can touch on the image of Santa and Rudolph to listen to the song.

Please feel free to share this with any teacher who could use it before the holiday break.

Click Here to download the file.

If you experience problems opening the .notebook file, please use the Firefox or Chrome browser.

Have a very Merry Christmas.

Sharing Is Caring!

 

 

SMARTBoards and the "Search for the North Pole" Notebook Activity

Here's a fun vocabulary review Notebook lesson called "Search For the North Pole" which challenges students to find three elf symbols that will unlock the entrance to the North Pole.

The Christmas-themed lesson contains three vocabulary activities (alphabetical sort, word search, and definition) that students complete to find one of the lost elf symbols. Once they get all three symbols, they place them in the correct order to unlock the entrance to the North Pole.The lesson uses the following words: candle, chimney, decoration, present, ornament, and tinsel.

Click Here to download the lesson.

Please use the Firefox browser or Chrome browser to download the file if you are having difficulties using Internet Explorer or Safari.

This Professionally Developed Notebook lesson is being shared by Teacher Online Training and abcteach.

Sharing Is Caring!

 

SMARTBoards and Holiday Word Search Activities

If you're looking for some fun activities this Holiday Season, you can download, share, and use the following custom Word Search Notebook activities.

Each one has a riddle or a question hidden at the top of the word search puzzle. To find the answer, students use the Highlighter Pen in the Notebook Toolbar to find the words in the list. After all the words are highlighted, the answer is found by taking the first unused letters starting from the top-left of the puzzle. Each puzzle has a solution page and a reveal answer feature.

If you would like step-by-step instructions on how to create your own custom word search puzzle in Smart Notebook, you can take the Notebook Application - Custom Word Search Course on the Teacher Online Training Notebook training system. It's effective, affordable, and fun!

Now is a great time to sign up to Teacher Online Training. It's only $7.48 for the first month and only $14.95 for each additional month. You can cancel at anytime and even get a refund if you're not completely satisfied. All courses are online, self-paced, and can be completed in about an hour. No experience necessary.

Here are the word search files. Please use the Chrome or Firefox Browser to download or open the files since IE and Safari often times have difficulties recognizing the file formats.

Custom Christmas Word Search / Riddle Puzzles

How many reindeer guide Santa's sleigh? (eight)

Polar Express: What advice does the conductor give? (Believe)

*Recommended* What do all these words help us achieve? (peace)

How long should a reindeer's legs be? (Just long enough to reach the ground)

Who sang praises from on high? (the heavenly host of angels)

Who are the "Six White Boomers" (Kangaroos pulling Santa's sleigh)

Who led Santa through the Wintery Snow to deliver packages to young children? (Rudolph)

Qu'est-ce que le Père Noël aime manger? (les buscuits)

What does Santa have that's red as a cherry? (his nose)

Wie heißt der Abend vom 24. Dezember? (Heiligabend)

In what country do people write letters to Father Christmas? (England)

Why is a SMART Board smart? (It's smart because no one is bored)

Something to think about other than gifts during the holidays (Your health)

One last resource is a ESL/ELL Christmas Flash-Card application created in Notebook 10. I also put in a custom word search puzzle on the last few pages. Enjoy!

Sharing Is Caring!

 

SMARTBoards and The Turkey Trot Word Problems

I have been working on a Notebook activity that I could share around the U.S. Thanksgiving Holiday. It's an activity that students can use to help them go through a step-by-step process when solving word problems. It's a fun way for students to practice something that can sometimes be a little frustrating. If you go through all ten word problems and guide them through each step, before you know it, they will be thinking of these steps on all their word problems.

While the Turkey Trot activity is fun to play around the U.S. Thanksgiving Holiday season, it can be used at any time throughout the year and in any country.

Here's a brief demonstration of how the activity works:

Click Here to go directly to the video on YouTube.

Click Here to download The Turkey Trot Notebook file

Teachers can still sign up to Teacher Online Training for only $7.48. You can cancel at any time and we'll refund your money if you're not completely satisfied. Teacher Online Training is the best online, self-paced Notebook training available. It's also the most affordable.

Please feel free to share the Turkey Trot activity with your fellow teachers.

Sharing Is Caring!

 

SMARTBoards and Sharing Is Caring - Chemistry

Here's is one of the best examples of a teacher sharing SMART Board resources. It's a Wiki called IWBchemistry that was created by Dr. Elizabeth Christophy.

This amazing wiki is focused on sharing High School Science resources with other teachers and students. Dr. Christophy has even put together a page for her AP Chemistry students containing review files created by her students. In my opinion, there is no better way to increase learning than to involve your students in the creation of learning material.

If you let students be responsible for their own learning, you'll see miracles happen.

When I went to the site this morning, I was pleasantly surprised to see Dr. Christophy mention Teacher Online Training as a way to learn some simple but effective techniques for creating your own custom Notebook lessons. Thanks Elizabeth and nice use of the Magic Cat's Eye technique!

If you find Dr. Christophy's resources helpful, please comment to this post to let her know that you appreciate all her hard work. Dr. Christophy is such a great example of a teacher who believes...

Sharing Is Caring!

 

 

SMARTBoards and Musical Sharing Is Caring!

I believe that teachers should take the lead to transform education. As educators, we need to start changing the traditional learning communities and begin to build sharing communities where students and teachers work together.

If we start thinking about what would be most beneficial to the student as our first priority, we can transform how students learn and how teachers teach.

The motto for Teachers Love SMART Boards is Sharing Is Caring. This is not just a cute catch phrase; this is the key for building a library of ever-changing and ever-increasing information that students and teachers can utilize and add to.

 This week, I will be sharing one or more teacher-created web resource for  each of the following subject areas: Music, Mathematics, Language, Science, and Art.

Today's resource is called Mustech.  It's a Wiki created using PBworks that provides various Music resources for teachers and students. It has an incredible collection of Interactive resources as well as teacher-created Smart Notebook lessons. I also love the mission statement for the wiki:

This wiki was begun because of a conversation on the Teachers.net music teachers discussion board. Some of us decided we'd like a place to share our Smartboard lessons, and perhaps some other resources we use in our classrooms.

The idea behind this wiki is simply to collaborate and share the things that make our classrooms better. It is not about us, it is about the kids and how to teach them music as effectively as possible!

Please take the time to look at how these sites are organized and don't be afraid to contact the creators of these resources to thank them for adding to the education knowledge-base.

Thank you Alex Ramos and everyone else involved for living the motto...

 

Sharing Is Caring!

Notebook Lesson - The Phantom Menace Review Game

A free gift to my readers...

I wanted to share a fun Smart Notebook review game to thank you for what you do in the classroom and for dedicating your life to the most important and rewarding profession in the world. I'm honored to share resources and support all teachers who love SMART Boards.

The game is a U.S. Western States and Capitals review game for two teams: The Grusome Ghosts and the Giddy Ghouls. Questions and Point Values are selected at random and the game is played until all the questions have been selected or one of the teams reaches a predetermined point total.

You can download the game here

Here's a short video showing how the game is played.

Click Here to go directly to the video.

Please use the Firefox or Chrome browser to download the file. Internet Explorer and Safari often times get confused and automatically rename the file to .zip. If that happens, you can save the file and then rename it back to .notebook.

If you want to learn how to created similar games and applications in Notebook, you can   sign up to Teacher Online Training for only $7.48. The subscription is re-curring and you can cancel at anytime. We're so sure you'll love our self-paced courses that we will refund your entire payment if you're not completely satisfied with the courses. No questions asked!

The courses are online and teachers work at their own pace to create authentic lessons. Most course can be completed in only 1 to 2 hours and you can stop and start as often as you like.

Here is some additional course information if you're still not sure.

It really is the most affordable, effective, and fun way to learn how to use the Notebook software. And we have over 400 testimonials to prove it!

Sharing Is Caring!

SMARTBoards and the Halloween Jokes Notebook File

Since the Halloween Jokes Notebook file is the most popular download from my Halloween Resource Page, I thought I would update it to make it work a little better and make it easier to move to the next joke.

Click here to download the new Notebook file.

Remember, if you're having problems opening the file you may want to switch to a different browser like Firefox or Chrome. Internet Explorer and Safari may cause you to experience problems.

Have a ghoolishly fun weekend!

Sharing Is Caring!

 

SMARTBoard Halloween Resources

 

Halloween Clip Art

I have compiled an extensive collection of Halloween-related clip art so you don't have to spend time looking all over the Internet.

Games

Hangman - Fun graphics, more advanced word list. (3 stars)

Halloween Hangman - Good, simple hangman game for Halloween (3 stars)

Halloween Pairs Game - Zoomable and very easy to use (4 stars)

Halloween Word Search - Good interactive word search. Might be a little small to use (3 stars)

Stacking Pumpkins Game - Might be a fun way to reward your students (3 stars)

Halloween Math Games for K-6 - Great games courtesy of the Oswego City School District

The Hallowman House - A hangman-type game for Hallowe'en (middle / high)

PBS Kids Halloween Collection - Lots of games and activities from PBS Kids.

Spelloween - Practice your spelling by identifying correctly and incorrectly spelled words. You may want to bypass the part that asks you to type the word correctly since this is difficult to do on the SMART Board (middle / high).

Frankenbrain - Find the brain if you dare! (primary / middle)

Halloween, Halloween, What do You See? - Primary reading activity based on the famous book series (primary)

Jigsaw Puzzles

Animated Bat Jigsaw Puzzle - Fun puzzle. Works great on the SMART Board (4 stars)

Bat Jigsaw Puzzle - Another bat jigsaw puzzle created from Jigzone (3 stars)

Halloween Jigsaw Puzzle - More good puzzles created from Jigzone (3 stars)

Winnie the Pooh Jigsaw Puzzle - More good puzzles from Jigzone (3 stars)

Informational Activities

Halloween Safety Game - Fun game to play to educate your students about trick-or-treating (4 stars)

Interactive Halloween History Quiz - Nice game from the BBC (middle)

History Channel's History of Halloween - Some nice resources including videos and slideshows. (all grades)

5 Minute English - ESL History of Halloween includes vocabulary with an online Halloween quiz.

Create Your Own Activities

A Horror Movie - Create your story by picking words. You'll have to type in the words. (3 stars)

Creepy Coloring - Have fun coloring in a pumpkin (primary).

Carve a Pumpkin - The best online interactive pumpkin carving site. You'll love this! (primary)

Monster Band - Create your own band! This is a flash file that can also be inserted into Notebook.

Notebook Resources

Halloween Jokes - A Notebook file containing 10 different Halloween jokes. Lots of fun for the kids.

Wizard Spell Ordering Numbers - Have the Wizard conjure up five numbers and then use a counter-spell and place the numbers into the correct order. (Shared by Peggy DuBose)

Halloween Word Search Riddle - Who started the tradition of Halloween? (Celts)

Halloween Word Search Riddle - Where do baby ghosts go during the day? (Dayscare)

Halloween Ghost Countdown - Keep track of correct answers using this fun Notebook countdown that announces a winner after five correct answers (4 stars)

Halloween Random Number - Generate a random number and student say whether it is less than, equal to, or greater than the late great Lucius Creven who died at the age of a hundred seven.

TeqSmart Halloween Word Bucket (Notebook Gallary item) - Create fun and interactive sorting activities, word lists, Foreign language activities, math fact reviews, and more with a Halloween theme.

Halloween Sound Files

All the sound files below are in mp3 format and can be imported in Smart Notebook

Ghoul Laugh

Evil Laugh

Monster Mash (song)

Monster Snarling

Monster Cry

Next Time (fun & scary negative feedback)

Real Heart Beat

Screaming Female

Thunderbolt

Tortured Person Screaming

Werewolf Howl

Witch Cackle

Woman Scream

Sharing Is Caring!

SMARTBoard Notebook Lessons - Idioms

Here's an interactive and fun Notebook Lesson about "idioms." You can use this as a starter activity for introducing idioms in the classroom.

This lesson has three sections. The first section uses a common idiom in a sentence and the students have to choose the correct meaning. The second section gives an informational statement and then challenges students to pick the correct idiom. The last page challenges students to write their own idiom using information about Daylight Savings Time.

Here's an online activity called Eye on Idioms from the ReadWriteThink.org. It's a fantastic resource that lets the students choose the correct idiom and then asks them to reflect on the actual meaning of the phrase and then has them use it in a new sentence.

 

 

Sharing Is Caring!

 

Notebook Activity - Role Model

 

This is a fun little Notebook activity called "Role Model" that guides the student through a series of short calculations. When the students get their final answer, they use that number to determine their perfect role model.

The fun part is that no matter what number the student starts with, the result will always be the same number - nine. Since you know what the answer will be, you can place "your" name at position 9 to show that "you" are their perfect role model.

Instructions: Before using in the classroom, you will need to edit the text object on the last page and enter your name in the 9th position. To do this, you will need to move the image out of the way and then double-click on the text object that is underneath. After you finish editing the text object, place the image back over the list of names. You may also want to lock your objects when you're done and re-save the file.

You can also change the other names and add additional pictures to the main image to reflect the current trends or personal preferences as long as you don't remove Jennifer Lopez. :o)

Download File

---

If you have difficulties opening the file, please switch to another browser like Firefox or Chrome. Internet Explorer and Safari have difficulties recognizing .notebook files. If you have to use one of these browsers, then save the file to your computer first and make sure the file extension is .notebook and not .zip - if it's not, you'll need to rename the file and change the extension back to .notebook.

 

Sharing Is Caring!

Notebook Lessons - Writing and Spelling

These two amazing Notebook lessons for the SMART Board were created by two amazing teachers, Becky Arnett and Sherri Fricker. These two lessons are very special to me because each one utilized techniques found in the courses from Teacher Online Training. As a matter of fact, Becky's "Writing Prompts" lesson was the grand prize winner of the SMART Exchange Contest Challenge.

Becky and Sherri went way beyond the techniques found in the online courses and each one created a lesson that made my jaw drop.

Becky's lesson is called Random Writing Prompts:

Use the random selectors to choose writing prompts for kids writing assignments. Reluctant writers love to use this tool to come up with a writing idea. Topics include citizenship, favorite things, remember a time when... and many others.

Click here to download

 

Sherri's lesson is called Spelling Bee:

Students can practice their spelling words by "typing" them on this keyboard. The keyboard is sensitive and doesn't like the wrong keys to be pressed.

Click here to download

 

Thank you Becky and Sherri! Your creative abilities are simply awesome!

 

Sharing Is Caring!

 

SMARTBoards and Free Notebook Training

If you're like a lot of teachers who have a SMARTBoard in your classroom, you may think that it's difficult to learn how to create your own lessons using the Smart Notebook software.

You may have even gone to a workshop and said, "Hey! I can do that." Then a month goes by and you don't even remember how to get started.

There's a better way!

With Teacher Online Training, you can actually learn how to use the Notebook software in the privacy of your own home. All you do is follow a series of short video tutorials and before you know it, you'll have an authentic lesson that you can use in the classroom. Once you finish creating your lesson, you will have mastered some key skills in Notebook and more importantly, you'll understand how to apply these skills to other Notebook lessons.

All the courses are designed to be completed in less than two hours and you can start and stop as often as you want and take as long as you need - all in the privacy of your own home. Best of all, you're not alone. You'll also receive expert feedback and free technical support. You'll even receive a certificate of completion for each course when you're done.

Interested? Click here to take one of the courses for free and find out how easy it is to create your own interactive lessons using the Smart Notebook software.

No obligation
No money
Just a great offer!

Teacher only please

Sharing Is Caring!

SMARTBoards and a Few of My Notebook Lessons

I've been spending more time lately developing custom Notebook lessons for the classroom. For me, Notebook is the perfect tool for creating new and exciting lessons that can help increase learning. When using Notebook, I don't feel limited in what I can do. Notebook is so easy to use and so powerful that it allows me to be more creative in how I am able to present information and how I can make it possible for students to interact directly with the information.

The following Notebook lessons were made upon request. Please feel free to download and use them in your classroom.

---

Role Model

This is a fun little Notebook lesson I created that goes through a series of  short calculations that will magically determine someone's role model. No matter what number the student starts with, the result will always be the same number. Before using in the classroom, you will need to edit the text object on the last page and enter your name in the 9th position.

Download File

---

Artsy Multiplication

I created this application for my daughter when she was learning the times tables. It was a lot of fun watching her time improve when she was learning her tables. This application presents a multiplication problem on the page and the student has to touch the correct answer. If they are correct, the section covering a famous painting is removed. Students play until the entire painting is revealed.

Download File

---

Johnny Appleseed

This application was created for a teacher who was reviewing the American Folk Tale "Johnny Appleseed." It contains activities that allow the students to interact and discuss the tale including an interactive vocabulary game and a custom word search. It also has a fun video about Johnny Appleseed and a fun "word of mouth" game.

Download File

---

I hope you enjoy the lessons. If you want to learn how to create similar activities, I highly recommend that you subscribe to Teacher Online Training. It really is the most effective, affordable, and fun way to learn how to create Notebook lessons similar to these.

[If you are having difficulties opening the Notebook files using Internet Explorer or Safari, please try using Firefox or Chrome instead.]

Sharing Is Caring!

---

the most effective, affordable, and fun way to learn how to use the SMART Notebook software

---

SMARTBoards and abcteach

Sometimes it's very difficult to adhere to our policy of promoting only free resources on this blog since there are so many outstanding paid subscription-based sites that provide amazing classroom resources for teachers.

One of these amazing sites is called abcteach. This site contains so many outstanding free resources that it's incredibly apparent that their main objective is to support teachers in the classroom.

The thing I like the most is that abcteach is increasing the number of interactive resources specifically designed for teachers who have a SMART Board in the classroom. I just spent the last 30 minutes reviewing a number of their free Smart Notebook lessons and I'm really impressed with what they're doing. Their lessons are engaging and they seem to utilize more of the advanced features of the Notebook software to make them more effective in the classroom.

I could write for hours and still not touch on all the great teacher resources found on abcteach. If you were going to ask my opinion about whether to become a member, all I can say is that it costs less each month to be a member than it does for a single tall Mocha at Starbucks. Wouldn't you give up one cup of coffee to have access to all these amazing resources? I know I would!

If you're already a member, I just noticed that abcteach is having a 25% off renewal promotion that ends this Friday.

Sharing Is Caring!

---

the most effective, affordable, and fun way to learn how to use the SMART Notebook software

---

SMARTBoards and the Balloon Pop

The Balloon Pop flash object contained in the Smart Notebook Gallery is a fun little tool to reveal information. When students touch the balloon on the Smart Board, the balloon makes a popping noise and then reveals whatever is sitting behind the balloon.

Here's a video tutorial that shows how to add the Balloon Pop object from the Gallery, edit the text that's displayed on the balloon, and place other objects on the page to work with the Balloon Pop objects.

If you are unable to view the video, try viewing it here.

You may need to update your Smart Notebook software and the Lesson Activity Toolkit to make sure the Balloon Pop object is up to date.

Here's the file I used in the video. It's best to use the Firefox browser or the Chrome browser when opening Notebook files. If you are using Internet Explorer or Safari, you may need to save your file first and make sure the file extension is .notebook. If it isn't, you'll need to rename the file with the correct extension before opening.

Sharing Is Caring!

---

the most effective, affordable, and fun way to learn how to use the SMART Notebook software

---

SMARTBoard and a Fun Little Notebook File

Yesterday, I created a simple little Notebook file that reveals a name (or any word) when the student touches the picture of a bubble. I thought the final result looked great on my SMARTBoard so I thought it would be a good file to share.

  --->

When the student (or teacher) touches the bubble, the bubble floats off the page, the name underneath the bubble is revealed, and a bubbling noise is made.

It's very easy to change the name by clicking on the bubble so it flies off the page and then editing the text object. When you leave the page and come back, the animation will reset itself and the text object will be hidden again.

You may need to update your Notebook to 10.6 so the Fly Out animation works correctly. If the animation does not work, you can change it to a Fade Out animation. I also used a fun animation image of moving bubbles that I got from Sherry Kirkland. Thanks Sherry!

Here's the Notebook file.

To open this file, you should use either the Firefox browser or the Chrome browser. If you're using Safari or Internet Explorer, you may need to save the file first and then make sure the file extension has not been changed. If it has, you will need to rename the file so it has a .notebook extension.

Sharing Is Caring!

---

the most effective, affordable, and fun way to learn how to use the SMART Notebook software

---

SMARTBoard and Grabba Beast

I really like the idea of having Notebook images for each student that teachers can use in their Notebook lessons when they want to highlight or organize student information. For example, if a teacher wants to do a quick survey, they could have a Notebook lesson that contains an image for each student and all they need to do is drag their image into a table to represent their selection.

While this is a good idea, you may not want to use real images of the students inside your lessons. A good solution is to have students create their own image using an application like Grabba Beast.

Grabba Beast allows students to select various human beast body parts to create a fun character. Since there are so many different ways to create a beast, each student will have a unique character that can be used inside Notebook to represent that student.

Grabba Beast is so much fun to use on your SMART Board and the application lets you save your image using different sizes. I would recommend saving the images using one of the smaller images sizes. I like the "psp" option which will save your file at 480x272.

It's also a lot of fun to have the application create a name for your character. My character on this blog post is named "Frankie Edge De La Playa." I laughed out loud when I saw this. You can also use a similar site called BuildYourWildSelf to create your student icons. Here's a blog post I wrote a while back that highlights this great resource.

Thank you Amber for sharing this great resource on your SMART Board Goodies blog.

Sharing Is Caring!

---

the most effective, affordable, and fun way to learn how to use the SMART Notebook software

---

SMARTBoards and the Animation Library

Here's a welcome site for teachers called the Animation Library that contains hundreds of animated image that can be used inside your Notebook lessons. These images are free to use and they are very easy to download. While the site is surrounded by ads, it's actually very easy to navigate and find the images you need. Just make sure you're downloading the actual image and not a thumbnail image. The site has plenty of information to help you download successfully.

I love using "gif" animated images when developing Notebook lessons. These images are usually very small and they can help teachers draw attention to information on the SMART Board. I've seen some very simple applications come to life as a result of a few well-placed animated images.

I've also seen some very good Notebook lessons become hindered by the use of too many animated images. It's very important to make sure the animated image relates to and enhances the information that you're displaying. For example, I love this animated image of the planet Earth, but it doesn't relate to the topic at hand.

When using animated "gif" images, I would recommend that you save the image to your computer first and then insert the image from the Insert Menu in Notebook. You can also drag-and-drop images directly into Notebook but I've had issues with the image not appearing as intended.

Once the Image is in Notebook, you can also add it to your My Content folder in the Gallery.

A quick shoutout to Obe at the SMARTBoard Revolution for sharing this great resource.

Sharing Is Caring!

---

the most effective, affordable, and fun way to learn how to use the SMART Notebook software

---

SMARTBoards and the SMART Insider Newsletter

The SMART Insider newsletter contains useful information and resources for teachers who use the Smart Notebook software. 

Each edition of the newsletter contains Notebook Tips and Tricks, Notebook Video Tutorials, and a Notebook Lesson that teachers can download and use inside the classroom. The newsletter also has a Featured Website section that highlights a website that contains interactive resources that work great on a SMART Board interactive whiteboard.

This month's edition is full of great stuff including a tip on how to clear  away objects on a Notebook page and a Notebook lesson on idioms. You'll also want to take a look at this edition's featured web resource. It's a winner!

You can have the latest edition of the SMART Insider sent directly to your email when it's released. Just fill out the form below and it'll be sent to your email immediately.

---

---

Sharing is Caring!

SMARTBoards and Playing with Fire

After playing around with Flame for a considerably long time, it seems only fitting that I share this very creative and entertaining online painting application that works great on a SMART Board.

Flame is now part of my growing collection of innovative online painting programs that allow the user to create amazing custom imagery quickly and easily. Once you've created your masterpiece, you can save the image as a jpg file and use it inside your Notebook lessons.

I've already created a few backgrounds and I've also created a very cool image that will highlight my videos that I insert into Notebook. However, the first image I saved using Flame is still my favorite. I use it to highlight a word inside Notebook. Here's a screenshot of the image I created in Flame and a quick look at how I used it in Notebook to highlight a student's name.

Thanks to @asundahl on Twitter for sharing this wonderful resource.

Sharing Is Caring!

---

the most effective, affordable, and fun way to learn how to use the SMART Notebook software

---

SMARTBoards and Learning How to Create Notebook Lessons

Whenever my 3 year old son Wesley is around other people, he loves to show off his talent for telling time. He actually knows how to tell time to the minute and he is rarely, if ever, wrong.

I don't consider Wesley to be more intelligent than other children his age. He was just very, very motivated in learning how to tell time.

Motivation is such an important factor in learning. This is as much true for educators as it is for students. As adult educators, our motivation for learning can be vastly different as it is for students and utilizing adult learning principals is extremely important when developing Professional Development resources.

During my graduate studies, I did an action research project on why so many teachers were not taking advantage of the myriad of training resources available to them in the area of educational technology. 

One of the key conclusions of my research was that the Professional Development resources available to educators were not incorporating adult learning principals. As a result, educators were not motivated enough to utilize the available resources.

My research led me to design a Professional Development system called Teacher Online Training that incorporates adult learning principals to help teachers learn how to use the SMART Notebook software. 

Teacher Online Training recognizes that educators want to have control over what they're learning; they want to be able to use their life experiences during the learning process; and they need to apply what they're learning directly to their situation. 

In addition to utilizing adult learning principals, Teacher Online Training also recognizes that teachers need to be able to learn at their own time and at their own pace. This was another key conclusion of my Action Research Project. With Teacher Online Training, teachers can access the training resources 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and they can take as long as they need to complete the short courses.

I encourage all teachers to take advantage of Teacher Online Training by signing up for an educator subscription or by encouraging their school administrators to sign up for a school subscription.

If you're a teacher who has a SMART Board in your classroom, Teacher Online Training provides the most effective, affordable, and fun way to learn how to use the Notebook software.  

Sharing Is Caring!

---

the most effective, affordable, and fun way to learn how to use the SMART Notebook software

---

SMARTBoards and an Amazing Notebook Application

I've been anxiously awaiting Notebook 10.6 so I can develop new Professional Development courses for Teacher Online Training. The applications I've developed don't require the new version of Notebook but it helps to develop training materials using the most current software versions.

Teacher Online Training is releasing a new course on Wednesday called Notebook Application - The Sentence Builder. This course not only teaches/reinforces skills in using the Smart Notebook software, it also shows you an amazing and simple technique that magically changes items on the Notebook page based on the student's response.

If you can't see the video, you can go directly to the video by clicking here.

The courses on Teacher Online Training are so easy to complete and they really are a lot of fun. Teachers have completed well over 1200 courses on Teacher Online Training and they have recommended the courses over 99.7% of the time. That's a lot better than 4 out of 5 dentists!

For a limited time, teachers can sign up for Teacher Online Training, risk-free, for only $7.48 (we also have an incredible school subscription special). See for yourself why Teacher Online Training has received over 240 actual testimonials - just like the one below - from teachers just like you.

"This is another amazing application that can be used in a myriad of ways.  The video segments are just the right length and easy to follow.  Developing the hands-on activity as you view the video works well for me.  Each new thing that I learn breathes new life into my SB created lesson"

Oh, I almost forgot, all subscribers to Teacher Online Training will receive access to one of the most amazing Notebook applications I've ever created called the yTouch Elephant. I developed this application using techniques found in the Create a Puzzle, Random Student Picker, Using Flash Video, and the Sentence Builder courses. All of these courses are available when you subscribe.

Sharing Is Caring!

SMARTBoards and Some Christmas Notebook Files

I've had a few requests for placing all the Christmas word search puzzles and other Notebook files in one place. Here's are the links to the Notebook files found on the Christmas resource page. I've added a few others including some teacher-created files. Please share these with your fellow teachers.

Custom Christmas Word Search / Riddle Puzzles

* New * How do you say Merry Christmas in Irish? (Nollaig Shona Duit) Created by Rick Mulholland.

How many reindeer guide Santa's sleigh? (eight)

Polar Express: What advice does the conductor give? (Believe)

*Recommended* What do all these words help us achieve? (peace)

How long should a reindeer's legs be? (Just long enough to reach the ground)

Who sang praises from on high? (the heavenly host of angels)

Who are the "Six White Boomers" (Kangaroos pulling Santa's sleigh)

Who led Santa through the Wintery Snow to deliver packages to young children? (Rudolph)

Qu'est-ce que le Père Noël aime manger? (les buscuits)

What does Santa have that's red as a cherry? (his nose)

Wie heißt der Abend vom 24. Dezember? (Heiligabend)

In what country do people write letters to Father Christmas? (England)

Why is a SMART Board smart? (It's smart because no one is bored)

Something to think about other than gifts during the holidays (Your health)

Other Notebook Files:

ESL/ELL/Early Reading Christmas Flashcards

Christmas Theme Random Number Generators (Created by Carol Findlay, Jennifer Gibson, and Susanne Mattison)

Sharing Is Caring!!

SMARTBoards and the Christmas Holiday Resource Page

Did you know that the all time most popular interactive resource on Teacher Online Training is Snow Line? Students use their finger on the SMART Board to draw a path so Santa can collect all the presents and make it to the finish line. This activity is so much fun and it never gets boring.

You can find this activity and lots more Christmas holiday fun on the Teachers Love SMART Boards Christmas Holiday Resource page.

In addition to all the great interactive activities that work great on a SMART Board, you'll also find lots of custom word search puzzles created by yours truly. They are all created in Notebook so feel free to download and use inside your classroom. I also created a fun ESL/ELL Christmas Flashcard activity in Notebook that's sure to please.

I'll be adding more activities to the resource page throughout the week so make sure you check back often.

Sharing Is Caring!