SMARTBoard: Using Layers in your SMART Notebook presentations

This ICT tip could be best applied to the following subjects:

Quick overview: How to work with “layers” on the SMARTBoard. Intermediate technique.

How can it be used in the classroom? When dragging images or words on the SMARTBoard, you may notice that they do not behave the way you would expect them to. For example, the object you’re dragging may appear “underneath” or “on top” of another object. This may cause your object to either be hidden or cover another important element of your presentation. How do you control the “layering” of objects? Watch my video tutorial to find out..

Video Tutorial: To see an on-line video overview of how to work with layers in your SMART Notebook presentations, click the large play button below.

Special note: In the video, I explain that you can “tap and hold” any object to make a context menu pop-up on the SMARTBoard to control your layering. However, if you are using a computer to prepare your SMART Notebook lessons, the same thing can be accomplished with a click of the “right mouse button” of your mouse.

ICT Tip: World Clock “odometers” of world statistics (births, deaths, consumption, etc..)

This ICT tip could be applied to the following subjects:

Quick overview: The World Clock website (http://tinyurl.com/5bqgdx) provides “odometers” of world statistics. This site is similar to the Worldometers website that I highlighted in an earlier ICT Blog posting, however, the World Clock site allows students to change between daily, monthly, or yearly world statistics. It also offers a different set of statistics.

What does it do? The World Clock website allows your students to see “real time” world statistics updated every second. This includes statistics such as births, deaths, consumption, etc.

How can it be used in the classroom? This site can be used to stimulate a real life discussion in regards to statistics in a math class or a math Learning Situation. It can also be used as a source of inspiration in a language class to bring up a discussion on environmental awareness or carbon footprints.

ICT Tip: A search engine that helps you find FSL activities to use in your classroom

This ICT tip could be best applied to the following subjects:

Quick overview: An FSL “search engine” that is specifically designed to help you find on-line FSL activities to use in your classroom. A search engine is a website that maintains an index of many other websites, like Yahoo or Google.

How can it be used in the classroom? The FSL ALL! search engine (www.tinyurl.com/fslall) helps you search for various FSL websites and activities. FSL activities are sorted into different categories such as “prononciation, jeux, tests, parler francais, lecture, etc..”. You can also manually search by keywords (mot-clés) if you prefer.

Important note: If you planning to use this ICT resource to find and share FSL websites with your students, always test and familiarize yourself with each website BEFORE you give it to your students! On the surface, some websites may appear to be what you’re looking for but may not be what you expected when you actually try it out yourself!

ICT Tip: Public domain English short stories, novels, poetry, and historical texts.. read out loud with a REAL human voice!

This ICT tip could be best applied to the following subjects:

Quick overview: The Loudlit.org site (http://www.loudlit.org) contains hundreds of easily accessible English short stories, novels, poetry, and historical texts .. read out loud with a real human voice!

What does it do? The LoudLit.org site is committed to delivering public domain literature paired with high quality audio performances. Putting the text and audio together, students can learn spelling, punctuation and paragraph structure by listening and reading masterpieces of the written word. Read and listen via your web browser or download onto your mp3 player. Regardless of how you enjoy the audiobooks, they are free!

How can it be used in the classroom: There are two ways of using the site. The first way your students can read along with the spoken text at the same time. In order to do this, you or your students would locate a short story and click on thebuttons found on the LoudLit site. It’s important to note that if used in a classroom or lab with many computers, each student should be given (or use their own) headphones! The other way for the students to use this site would be for them to click on thebuttons to download the audiobooks in chapters (audio only) to listen to on their iPods and MP3 players as a podcast. (Source: Lise Demers, Place Cartier Adult Education Centre, Lester B. Pearson School Board)

Note: Sections of the “What does it do” is parahphrased from the About section of the LoudLit site.