Lesson creation & Delivery
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Nearpod is a great tool for delivering content to students using Chromebooks, iPads or smart phones. The teacher can create his/her own content or use one of the many lessons available on the Nearpod website. Many are free, but there are some with a cost. The best feature of this tool is that the teacher controls the pace of the lesson. As the teacher moves through the slides in the lesson, the screens on each student’s device automatically advances. A variety of content can be delivered including documents, pictures, websites, videos and more.
Nearpod also provides the option to get student feedback throughout the lesson to see if students are on task. You can ask multiple choice questions or ask students to draw or write something. The teacher will see what each student is submitting, so all students have a voice in the process. Overall, it is a great tool for delivering a lesson as well as giving formative assessments as needed. |
ShowMe - Users can watch any lesson posted on the site for free, or create one’s own video(s) using the iPad app. Teachers may post videos that students can access at any time and watch as many times as they want. Using the iPad app, teachers can type or write on the screen using their finger or a stylus, and then record their voice to correspond with each slide. Teachers can also post material like video clips, charts, graphs, or photos from the Internet, their Google Drive, or photo album, such as other video clips, photos, etc.
Some examples of videos that a teacher might create are: a demonstration of how to complete a math problem or modeling the answers to a review sheet, a lesson on one or multiple parts of speech, a tutorial on the water cycle, and an overview of an upcoming chapter on imperialism or causes of a particular war. Students can use the videos at home as part of a flipped classroom lesson to introduce them to a topic, or to help them study for a quiz or test. They can also create their own videos as part of an individual or group project. There is no limit to what can be done with ShowMe. |
EduCreations is an interactive whiteboard and screencasting tool that’s simple and user friendly. Teachers can create short instructional videos and share them with students or have students create their own videos as part of a unit of study.
When you log into EduCreations, you get a blank screen on which you will create a lesson. You can import a file you’ve created or a photo you took and use that as a base to add your remarks or instructions in written form. The drawing tool works like a pen on a white board. You can also write in text. The lesson can have as many pages as you wish. After creating a presentation, you can record a voiceover explaining the lesson and drawing and adding to the lesson as you talk. What comes out is the lesson with your voice as if you were presenting the presentation in class. Don’t like what you hear, and want to add something? No problem! Just hit the edit button and delete what you don’t like or add what you forgot. Students can access the lesson on their iPad or the Web using an access code created by the teacher. Lessons can be stored as drafts (limited to one in the free version) or, when finished, completed lessons (limited to 50MB in the free version) and/or uploaded to Cloud or Google Drive. The teacher keeps track of who’s doing what, who has seen the lesson, and who needs questions answered. Lessons can be created on the Web or on the iPad. Lessons work in all browsers, and are compatible with interactive whiteboards and USB drawing tablets. The app comes with prerecorded lessons in Math, ELA, Science, Social Studies, World Languages, Creative Arts, and Health/PE. Most of the lessons are short, 1-2 minutes, and personalized with the voice of the creator. This app can be used to create lessons on subjects that teachers must repeat frequently, like rules of the classroom at the beginning of the year, grading criteria, or emergency procedures. It can also be used to pass on living lessons to homebound students, or students who miss class for an extended period of time. Teachers can also create lessons for a Flipped Classroom and have students access it through Google Drive. |