VOLUME 6 ISSUE 9
IN THIS ISSUE… Taking Research to the Next Level…..……..…1-2 National Technology Day……...…………..……. 3 Celebrate Martin Luther King Day: Day of Service..…….……..…3 Indoor Recess ……..… 4 Digital Citizenship..….5 SAMR Lesson ………....6
Page |1
TIS & THAT
Taking Research to the Next Level: Tools for Creating Presentations and Animations
Remember doing a research project? Students used encyclopedias, library books and websites to look up facts about a topic. They recorded facts on notecards in order to write an essay about their topic. Perhaps they would create a poster with facts and pictures photocopied or printed from the internet. Sound old-school? It is. Although there can still be a place for this type of research, we are living in the twenty-first century and it is time to integrate technology into our projects! Students as young as kindergarten can use technology to present information they have learned. Kindergarten students need guidance and support but, by second and third grade, should begin to gather their own information for research. By using presentation and animation technology, students will be more engaged in their research and excited about sharing information with others. Most of us have used PowerPoint for presentations, but there are many more presentation programs available. A quick Google search for “presentation software for kids” will give you some websites that have lists with detailed descriptions. I found “20 Terrific Presentation Tech Tools for Kids; Recommended by Educators” at www.lauracandler.com. Some of the tools this article recommends include Blabberize, Educreations, Glogster, Google Drive Presentations, Prezi, Sliderocket, and Storybird.