Promethean Boards

I recently got the opportunity to work with a Promethean Board in a classroom that I was doing a field experience in.  These boards are one of the coolest technologies that I have ever used, or seen used.  If you are unfamiliar with a Promethean Board, it is an interactive whiteboard.  It is just like a touchscreen computer that doubles as a whiteboard.  This technology is great because as a teacher, instead of messing with a projector to try and show my students what I want them to see from behind my desk, I can use a Promethean board.  I can use the computer on the Promethean board to show my class exactly what I want them to see, and I can do it from the front of the class! Another thing about these boards is that students love using them.  They are a fun and interactive way to teach without the mess of a chalkboard or whiteboard.  This is one of the coolest technologies I have seen used in the classroom, and it is also one of the most effective. I highly suggest using Promethean boards in your classroom!

To learn more about the Promethean board, visit the following link:
http://www.prometheanworld.com/

The picture used in this blog was used with permission from flickr.com creative commons by PrometheanUS.

TI-Nspire

As a math teacher, I am very interested in the newest calculator technologies that I can use in my classroom.  Graphing calculators have been a staple in higher-level math since before I was in high school, but I recently started using the newest graphing calculator from Texas Instruments called the Nspire.  TI's newest calculator is much more advanced than previos calculators they have put out.  The Nspire, with CAS software is almost like a computer.  It has the capabilites of saving and coming back to saved work so that you can switch from problem to problem without losing work and having to start over.  It even has an assessment tool to help gauge student learning!  This new calculator is a very cool piece of technology.  To learn more about the Nspire, visit Texas Instruments' Website.

Picture used with permission from zbowling on flickr creative commons.

YouTube in the Classroom

In most schools, YouTube is a website that is blocked on computers, so that students can't access the site.  However, this is a very extreme action that is being taken by schools.  YouTube is a great website, and it can be a great help to students and teachers in the classroom.  First of all, schools don't have to completely block the whole site.  Firewall settings can be changes to allow access to certain channels on YouTube.  This could be a very useful thing for teachers and students.  A channel could be set up for a school, or even for each teacher, or class.  Acceptable videos can be added to these channels that can be used in the classroom.  There are too many educational and informational videos that are being blocked on YouTube.  A great example of these informational videos are the "...In Plain English" videos.  They explain, in easy terms, things like what Wikis are, how to use a blog, and how to use Google Docs.  These are all acceptable videos that students and teachers should have access to.






If you would like to see more "In Plain English" videos, follow the link to the YouTube channel with all the "In Plain English" videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/leelefever