Susan Posted January 1, 2009 Posted January 1, 2009 I need to master this this term and use more effectively. Any tips please?
Guest Posted January 2, 2009 Posted January 2, 2009 i'm in the same position as you susan - i use it more now than i used to but still not effectively
Lorna Posted January 2, 2009 Posted January 2, 2009 Any specifics you want to master? I find just playing with it helps... having the software on the computer at home so I can use it when I want to also helps. I amnily use it for games, songs, phonics etc... not for modelling writing.....never looks as nice when using pen and paper.. just my opinion. L
Susan Posted January 2, 2009 Author Posted January 2, 2009 hi Lorna Im just very conscious that its a piece of equipment I wanted to have and now I have one as Ive moved year groups I dont use it very well. We play games on it and have done some ICT work with it but I dont use it as a replacement for my tiny whiteboard easel which would be better! Ive found some good stuff on topmarks.
Guest tinkerbell Posted January 2, 2009 Posted January 2, 2009 5 years ago when i taught yr2/yr1 class i used it all the time ,i would have the weekly objectives up and keep returning to them ,these would be then saved for future, texts eg poems were brilliant and large 100 squares etc.....maps,science investigations ,... in my reception class i don't use it as often as i should because i am concerned about the light in the room.....i wouldn't want to use the board with the whole class as i did with older children ...well now and then perhaps....this means my lights are off and blinds drawn so the rest of the class would be working independently in the dark!!!! my collegue has just had a brilliant projector installed in her class which is 3ft from the board and the lights can be left on in class.(thousands of pounds) sorry to be negative about this...i have also read that the smartboard hasn't had the amazing impact they thought it would have on children s learning.(TES a couple of years ago?)I do know my reception class loves watching DVD's eg phonics,auntie mabel on the big board......i have tried to do class register/self registration but agsin i need to close the blinds and its a bit silly to be in the dark!! i do have an absolutely gorgeouse arched window in an old victorian school...you can't have everything! Tinkerbellx
Guest Posted January 5, 2009 Posted January 5, 2009 Hi Susan, You might find this site useful. http://www.schoolzone.co.uk/resources/IWB/index.asp It has teaching tips and resources.
Guest Posted February 28, 2009 Posted February 28, 2009 I love my Smartboard. Install the new software version 10 and the lesson Activity Toolkit, you can make some great resources. I use the software to plan lessons; you can embed videos, I scan in books and read the story as the pages are projected, I just wish I had a document reader.
Cait Posted February 28, 2009 Posted February 28, 2009 I don't have one, and have never used one so can't really offer much advice. Are they really worth it or not?
Verona Posted February 28, 2009 Posted February 28, 2009 I would like a smartboard. I own a pre-school that's in a church hall. Is it possible to have a smartboard that is packed away everyday? Sue J
Susan Posted February 28, 2009 Author Posted February 28, 2009 HI Speckled frog and welcome. Thanks for your advice! Smartboards used to be mobile but they were very easily knocked out of line if the children bumped into them. They are expensive and Im not sure how practical it would be in preschool really.
HappyMaz Posted February 28, 2009 Posted February 28, 2009 Smartboards used to be mobile but they were very easily knocked out of line if the children bumped into them.They are expensive and Im not sure how practical it would be in preschool really. One of our local pre-schools has one - their landlord installed it for them! Not sure how much use they make of it though - don't think they'd had any training to use it, the last time I heard! Welcome to the Forum, SpeckledFrog! Maz
hali Posted February 28, 2009 Posted February 28, 2009 hello and welcome speckledfrog - i would love one
Sue R Posted March 1, 2009 Posted March 1, 2009 Welcome, Speckledfrog! We've just had one installed - with some great advice from this site, we have been learning alongside the children and it's a big hit! As it's so new, we're still just experimenting, but I can see it's going to be a brilliant resource Sue
Lorna Posted March 1, 2009 Posted March 1, 2009 I would say that if you have to pack away at the end of each session- then A whiteboard would not be ideal.... they did do mobile ones but the issue with packing away means it might get knocked and damaged. My head knocked a flip chart into one of our wall mounted ones and it wrote it off and it had to be replaced. How about investing in a larger monitor- possibly touchscreen- don't know about the cost of that though.
JohnSB Posted March 11, 2009 Posted March 11, 2009 I am hoping (and expect) LCD touch screens will be coming further down in price soon and my experience is that they are much more appropriate and useful in the preschool. I have seen a few really innovative and valuable applications but at the end of the day, Interactive Whiteboards (Smartboards) were developed for whole class teaching and in many cases they seem to be encouraging a shift away from play in the early years. I have little doubt that if DATEC (www.datec.org.uk)was still actively evaluating ICT applications with centres then most IWB applications would be identified as developmentally innapropriate (can you tell I really don't like them...). Note the following excerpt from: Morgan, A. (forthcoming) Interactive whiteboard, interactivity, play, foundation phase, Pedagogy, European Early Childhood Education Research Journal The policies and practices which appear to have influenced the ways of working promoted within the Foundation Phase document (Qualifications, Curriculum and Assessment Authority for Wales, 2004) appear broadly to resonate with socio-cultural theories of learning. These theories (Vygotsky, 1978; Rogoff, 1998) highlight the influence of the contexts in which children are learning and the key role of peers and adults as mediators of learning. This approach views teachers and children as co-constructors of knowledge. Clearly activities, which are closely aligned with socio-cultural theories of learning would be those where children are: i. working collaboratively; using the IWB as a tool for a particular purpose for which it is appropriate ii. on a task controlled by them rather than one which controls them through programmed learning iii. engaged in an activity that demands some ‘higher-order’ thinking where answers are not predetermined or more than one possible answer exists iv. supported and guided in their collaboration by an educator as a more knowledgeable other are closely aligned with these ideals As only four out of sixty observed sessions with the IWB comprised of activities with the IWB which could be identified meeting the criteria above, this study also suggests that IWB are routinely being used, at present, in the classrooms where observations were undertaken, to support a more instructionist form of pedagogy than would be supported by the socio-cultural principles of the new Foundation Phase. Teacher interviews identified that all thirty teachers described their teaching as ‘interactive’. The findings indicate however that the primary approach being adopted by teachers of young children when using the IWB is one where the teacher aims to impart one specific point of view and takes the children through a question and answer routine with the aim of consolidating that point of view. It is worthwhile considering this in terms of both technological and pedagogical interactivity (Gillen et al., 2007; Smith et al., 2005). Whilst the IWB may facilitate greater technological interactivity by allowing access to multi-modal information, a faster and more engaging presentation it does not presently seem to be being generally used to facilitate greater pedagogical interactivity (Alexander, 2004; Burns and Myhill, 2004) .
Guest Posted May 23, 2009 Posted May 23, 2009 I have one in my class i teach rec year1 &2 and it is invaluable. I make games, do all my planning on it so the chldren can see objectives and sucess criteria. i also use it as part of my continuous provision so the children get to use it all the time. If planned in correctly it can be used in an independant activity for a group. Just having a play with the software will increase confidence. I have lots of games and activities some good some not. My children love to use it in whole class sessions to create photo stories which i put on in the mornings so the parents have a visual of what there children having been doing in school. If anyone needs help or advise i may be able to help i have been in many schools as an ICT lead teacher and i love helping collegues to be confident in the use of ICT and IWB there is so much that can be acieved and the children respond well to IWB especially boys and children with SEN.
Susan Posted May 23, 2009 Author Posted May 23, 2009 Hi Lynn and welcome. I still need help with this if you have any ideas! I have smartnote book but really dont know what to do with that!
Guest Posted May 24, 2009 Posted May 24, 2009 Hi Susan - I use mine all the time - here are some of things I do - I hope you find them helpful - if they are not clear please let me know and I will try again. Great websites to use - LCF phonics ICT games phonicsplay.co.uk crickweb ngfl - wales website as well as all the other popular ones like cbeebies etc. When I am planning I google search using the word 'interactive' for example we recently told the story of Noah - I entered into google 'interactive noah story' and a lovely game and the story came up - i also enter the word 'powerpoint' into the search engine; again like with Noah I entered the words 'noah powerpoint' and I got loads up that the children could then access throughout the day on the board. In the 'gallery' on the smart board tools there are lots of backgrounds from fairy stories, simply put the characters on the background and the children can move them around and re-tell the story. There are backgrounds for goldilocks, the christams story, 3 bears etc. Using the 'pen' tool on the tool bar, customise the line that it draws in dashes and colour it yellow, .draw a letter shape and then the ch can draw over it practiding their letter formation I also cut and paste a lot; I found a mendhi hand for the children to decorate and a template of a fish for rainbow fish. We also have some great software - mainly 2 simple stuff which the kids love to use on the interactive whiteboard. Hope this helps a little - if I think of anything else I will let you know Nicky
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