I'm excited to announce a new podcast called Get SMART with SMART Boards. SMART Board expert Harvey Almarode and I join forces to help teachers use the SMART Board more effectively in the classroom.
In the first episode, Harvey discusses how he uses the website JigSawDoku to have children
play SuDoKu and I share an amazing website called Flash Animations
for Physics.
In addition, Harvey and I both share a Notebook application that teachers can use immediately inside the classroom. Harvey shares his Bird on a Wire Notebook
application and I my application on the Gettysburg
Address.
Finally, you'll hear about two great tips for using Notebook more effectively. Harvey explains how to
color in a freehand drawing in Notebook and I describe how to customize the
Notebook toolbar. Each tip has an accompanying video.
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Are you a SMART Board user?
It's time to kick off your shoes and call your friends to let them know about the 3rd edition of the SMART Insider Newsletter which contains Tips & Tricks, Web Resources, Video Tutorials, Notebook Lesson Files, and Training Discounts.
You can view past newsletters by clicking on the links below:
SMART Insider Volume 1
SMART Insider Volume 2
You can even request the SMART Insider be sent directly to your email.
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I hope you'll be as amazed as I was with the submissions for this week's challenge - Random Number. The challenge was to create a custom random number generator that you could use inside the classroom using your SMART Board interactive whiteboard.
I created this challenge as a way to encourage teachers to modify Gallery objects to fit the needs of the lesson. What I received in response to this challenge far exceeded my expectations.
The Gold Medal winner this week is Jennifer Gibson and the Silver Medal winner is Hanse Madsen. Congratulations!!! Keep reading for how you can see both Jennifer and Hanse's random number generator submissions!
Because I received so many amazing solutions to this challenge, I decided to create an entire Gallery Collection of the random number generators and share it with my readers.
Here's the solutions video that also highlights some of the submissions for this challenge:
You can download the Random Number Gallery here. When you open the file, it should import the Gallery into your My Content folder. You can also go to your My Content folder in the Gallery and right-click on the folder and then select "Add to My Content."
If you like any of the custom generators, please leave a comment in the comment area for this post and let that person know. The page title of each random number generator contains the name of the person who submitted that entry.
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This is the solution for Challenge #9: Precise Object Spacing. This was definitely a fun challenge and I received some outstanding submissions for completing it.
Ann White is this week's extreme challenge winner and she definitely deserves the title "Faster than the Master" (or at least, as fast as the master) for completing the challenge in approximately 19 seconds.
I had two techniques that I used to complete this challenge. The first one was very similar to Ann's technique. It used a spacer object and the alignment guides to evenly space objects on a page. Ann improved on my idea in the sense that she used a rectangle instead of a line as her spacer object. Another submission cloned one of the smiley faces, resized it and used it as the spacer object. Ingenious!
Here's Ann's submission video.
My second technique used an spacer object that I created and placed inside the Gallery. The object consisted of 6 evenly sized rectangles that were grouped together. My technique was to drag the object to the work area, expand it according to how much space I wanted in between my objects, ungroup it back into six rectangles and then use the alignment guides to set my objects on the page. Using this technique, I was also able to evenly space my objects in approximately 19 seconds.
Here's a video of using a spacer object consisting of rectangles
I think the best and easiest technique is the one Ann uses.
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I've just released a new course on my SMART Board Learning Management System called Notebook Techniques: Revealing Information Using Animation - Series 1.
This short-course will
guide the participant through the process of using object animation as a way of providing instant feedback during a
lesson.
In
addition to learning how to apply the animation property to objects,
participants will practice/learn how to place an image inside a color
rectangle, group objects together, add and modify text object
properties, and change the ordering of objects on a page.
This is a self-paced course and requires version 10 of the Smart Notebook software.
Participants receive 60 minutes of Professional Development Credit for completing this course and meeting course requirements.
Come Learn. Come Play. Come Share!
The Smart Notebook Challenge #2 is now in the books. It was a fun little challenge that utilized one of the properties of tables to create the effect of magically displaying "secret information" on your SMARTBoard.
The Gold Medal Winner for this challenge was Becky Poe and the Silver Medal goes to Valerie Byrnes. In addition, the first 10 entries will receive a prize. To see the results for challenge #2, check out the updated Hall of Fame page containing a listing of all the people who have completed the challenges successfully.
I was very impressed by the creativity teachers used in utilizing the "secret information" technique and how they applied the technique to the classroom. As an incentive for future creativity in applying the challenges to a classroom situation, I will be creating an award called "Best Classroom Application." This week's winner goes to Ann White who used the secret information technique to create a morning schedule application for her students. It's really cool!
Here's the video solution for this week's challenge:
Click on the picture to download Ann's "Award Winning" Notebook file called "Morning Schedule."
Congratulations to this week's winners!
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I hope you had as much fun as I did with the 1st Smart Notebook challenge. The response to the challenge was great and I'll try to post a new challenge each week.
The first challenge used the Shrink and Grow animation to reveal a hidden answer to a question. Already, teachers are telling me that the kids seem to really love using this effect to reveal answers on the SMARTBoard.
Our Gold medal winner for the first challenge was Lori Reed. She submitted her challenge not more than an hour after it was posted. Will Kirkwood from across the pond was still sleeping when Lori sent in her Notebook file but he was still able to get a correct solution in just a short time later.
Congratulations to Lori and Will and to all the people who were brave enough to undertake the challenge. Here's the Teachers Love SMART Boards Hall of Fame page.
Below is a video tutorial showing one way to complete the challenge. In addition, our Gold Medal winner Lori shares with us a Notebook file on the Solor System that uses the Shrink and Grow technique. Great example of sharing Lori!
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