Teachers Love SMART Boards

SMART Boards and the Tips-and-Tricks Phenomenon

A really awesome phenomenon about the Internet is the viral nature of sharing information. In other words, good information spreads quickly throughout niche areas.

A case in point...yesterday, I ran across a relatively new blog called elearnr (cool name!) that had a post called Ten Ways to Use Your Interactive Whiteboard More Effectively. It is a very well written post by Doug Belshaw that expands on a Google Docs presentation called Thirty-Seven Interesting Ways to Use Your Interactive Whiteboard (see below).

This incredibly useful presentation was an idea conceived by Tom Barrett and it contains tips and tricks for using your Smartboard interactive whiteboard. The really cool thing about this presentation is that it was put together by educators from all around the world, including "yours truly."

Why I am talking about this being viral? It just so happens that this morning I woke up to find a message posted by Carol from Smart Technologies on the Smart Exchange that mentioned this exact post. I am also spreading the information through this blog and hopfully other bloggers will link to it from their site as well. Wow! Good information travels fast!

While I've already written a post about Tom's Google Docs presentation, I'll present here again. I would also like to share Tara Crewe's wiki that contains various Smartboard tips as well as remind my readers that I have a SMART Board Tips and Tricks category here on my blog.

Sharing is Caring!

(There's a lot of Caring going on these days!)

SMART Boards - Most Viewed Top 10 List

Occasionally, I review statistical data for this blog to see things like how many people visit (over 400 per day), how long they stay (average 3 min 47 seconds), where people are from (all over the world), and how they found my blog (most find it using Google). One of the reports actually shows me the most popular blog posts as measured by how many people have viewed the post.

Since my blog has now been active for over a year and contains over 210 posts, I thought it might be valuable (and fun) to list the ...

TOP 10 Most Viewed Teachers Love SMART Board BLOG POSTS of all time:

#10 - SMART Boards and 1st Grade Mathematics

#9 - SMART Boards and Special Education

#8 - SMART Boards and Grammar Ninja

#7 - SMART Boards and Notebook V. 10

#6 - SMART Boards and Student Engagement

#5 - SMARTBoards and Wordle

#4 - SMART Boards and YouTube

#3 - SMART Boards and More Flash Games

#2 - SMART Boards and Algebra

And the #1 most viewed post....

#1 - SMARTBoards and Teaching With SMARTBoard Video Podcast

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SMART Boards and Notebook V. 10

Here are a few great resources for learning how to use Notebook (version 10).

The first resource is a Notebook file created by José Picardo that walks you through some great techniques for using Notebook. This Notebook file will walk you through the techniques Magic Box, Reveal Answers, and Fill in the Gaps.  It has descriptions of each technique and pages where you can practice. Trust me, you'll love these three techniques for adding powerful interaction to your lessons. Be sure to check out the Box of Tricks blog for more great SMART Board tips and tricks.

I also want to share the latest video podcast from Teaching With SMARTBoard. My friends Dave and Scott have created another great video showing you how to do some cool things with Notebook. Their latest podcast Novice User - Part 1 of 2 will demonstrate some really great Notebook techniques including how to do a quick erase, how to use undo and redo, how to use the presentation pen, and how to change backgrounds.

Sharing is Caring!

SMART Boards and Teachers Love SMART Boards

Did you know that the Teachers Love SMART Boards Blog now has over 200 posts! With this much information, you're sure to find something fun to use in the classroom with your SMARTBoard interactive whiteboard.

The problem is, finding what you need can be a little tricky unless you know the secrets of blog organization. Since my goal is to provide teachers with resources for their SMART Board, I thought I would demonstrate some easy techniques for finding that perfect resource.

Here's a short video that will give you a few tips and tricks on making your way around my blog:

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SMARTBoards and Jogging the Web

I just completed a fun training assignment where I stumbled across a web-based application called Jog the Web that allows you to create guides to a series of web sites. Okay, I'll admit that sounds a little boring but it's really very cool and it's especially cool if you have a SMART Board in your classroom.

 The best way to describe how it works is to show you examples of what it can do. If you click on the picture below, you'll open up my very first "track." What is a track? A track is a unique tour of a series of websites. My track is called "Digital Learning Resources - Four Fun Websites" and it will take you on a fun tour of four websites that you'll love.

Here are a few other tracks that teachers may find useful:

• Educational Podcasts and Vodcasts
• Google Earth in Education
• Passport to Web 2.0

Make sure you leave a comment if you find a particularly good track.

I would like to thank Danny Nicholson who recommended the first two websites on my track. You can find these sites and whole lot more on his blog called The Whiteboard Blog. By the way, Danny's latest post gives a marvelous demonstration of how to use Themes in SMART Notebook v. 10.

Sharing is Caring!

SMARTBoards and Teaching With SMARTBoard Video Podcast

I definitely don't post enough about my favorite video podcast called Teaching With SMARTBoard.

If you're looking to increase your knowledge of Smartboards and learn great ways of using SmartBoards and Notebook in the classroom, this is the best resource available. Dave and Scott always have great tips for enhancing your lessons and using Notebook in ways that you've probably never thought of before.

Here's their latest video podcast called Process Circuits and Our Favorite Podcast and Blog. I can't wait to hear their choice for favorite blog!

Sharing is Caring!

SMART Boards and The Magic Pen Game

I get requests all the time for more interactive activities that are not only fun but actually make the kids think. In my search for new and exciting web applications for the classroom, I always start at Danny Nicholson's The Whiteboard Blog. In my book, this is the best blog for teachers who use an interactive whiteboard in the classroom.

Danny has found an outstanding website for Science class called The Magic Pen Game. This game is amazing. I simply cannot stop playing it. The objective is to draw objects on the screen to try to move a red ball around so it hits various red flags that are located on the screen. You draw objects like ramps and balls and hinges where you determine where to place the fulcrum. All objects behave as if they exist in our physical world.

If you're a Science teacher and your students have access to a computer or an interactive whiteboard, quit reading my blog and head over to The Magic Pen.

In the example above, the object is for the red ball to hit the red flag. I drew two ramps and two circles. The green circle is falling and should hit the orange circle so it rolls onto the ramp and then it should hit the red ball which should roll down the orange ramp and hit the red flag. There are a lot of other ways to get the red ball to hit the red flag by drawing objects on the screen.

Enjoy!

Sharing is Caring!

SMART Boards and Student Engagement

Here's a great example of student engagement using the SMART Board interactive whiteboard. Watch as a fourth grade student from New Hampshire demonstrates how to add fractions using the SMART Board, the Smart Recorder and a flash-based fraction object in Notebook.

Please read the blog post Adding Fractions - Flash - Student Explanation to read more about the importance of the SMART Board.  No other comments necessary!

                                

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Subscribing to SMART Board Resources

Recently, I posted a short article called "Sharing is Caring" on the new Digital Learning Environments website. In this article I discuss why teachers should share what they know and I provide some great examples of how other teachers are sharing resources.

The easiest way to keep up-to-date with what other teachers are sharing is to subscribe to their resources so you're notified whenever they make updates. Here are a few of the places I visited this week that I believe are worthy of a subscription:

1. The Whiteboard Blog by Danny Nicholson: This blog contains "Hints, tips, news and discussion about the use of Interactive Whiteboards and other technologies in the classroom." Click Here to Subscribe

2. ICT and Learning blog by Ross Hampton: His latest post talks about a good online photo editor. Click Here to Subscribe

3. ICT in my Classroom blog by Tom Barrett: Always a great blog to add to your Google Reader. Click Here to Subscribe

4. The EDCompass newsletter from Smart Technologies: This month's issue is very informative. Definitely subscribe to this great online magazine.Click Here to Subscribe

5. The SMARTBoard podcast from Ben Hazzard and Joan Badger: I haven't mentioned this podcast lately but Ben and Joan have been in top form and their weekly podcast is a must for any SMART Board user. Click Here to Subscribe

6. Teaching with SMARTBoard from Scott Miller and Dave Sladkey: Their new video podcasts are great. Please check it out! Click Here to Subscribe

 

By the way, don't forget to subscribe to the Teachers Love SMART Boards blog. If you need help subscribing to my resource or any of these resources, please don't hesitate to send me a quick message.

Sharing is Caring.

 

How the SMART Board has Changed My Teaching

I ran across a wonderful blog post entitled, How the SMART Board has Changed My Teaching from author James Tubbs on his blog misterteacher.com. This post highlights his initial experiences in using the SMART Board interactive whiteboard in the classroom. I think James captures the excitement of having a new SMART Board in the classroom and he keenly identifies some of the new challenges that come along with having such a fun and effective tool.

Also, if you want to hear about the first night I spent with my iPhone and why that has anything to do with a SMART Board, read my blog post entitled, The Wow Factor and the SMART Board Interactive Whiteboard: "Do You Got Wow?" on the Digital Learning Environments website.

Have a great weekend!

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