How do you use your whiteboard? Posted by Ruthie: I love my whiteboard!I use it almost every day with my students and they are always eager for a turn. Here are some of my favorite ideas.Feel free to try them and let me know if you have some favorites! Interactive websites:There are so many great interactive websites out there.For some ideas see the Cool Webpages link.My favorite of all is Starfall. I use the whiteboard most often for phonics activities and call on students one at a time to go up to the board. Calendar:Believe it or not, Starfall has a Calendar program.Once the students are comfortable with our normal calendar routines, I start doing the calendar on the whiteboard. I don’t do it every day because I like to keep it as a very special activity. While we do the calendar on the whiteboard, we sing all of the usual songs and have a great time. Kidwriting:Early on in the year I use the blank whiteboard to model kidwriting.I draw a simple picture and we practice stretching the words together. As students get more comfortable with this, I use it as a station. Students can work in groups of two or three to do their own kidwriting. At the end of the session I print the screen for them so that they can take it home with them. Students may need reminders to hurry up or they spend too much time drawing and don’t get to the writing part. Guided Reading:Starfall has great interactive books that are in many different levels.I select appropriate books for my groups and work with them to read the story much like we would in a guided reading group. Email:When I do the Flat Stanley project I display each email that we get on the whiteboard. It is a great way to show the pictures!We also incorporate this into our communication unit and work as a class to respond to each email. Google Earth:This is a great resource for seeing exactly where our Flat Stanleys travel. It ties in very well to our curriculum on maps and globes. You can download the software for free, but you will have to call the IT people to set it up. Kidspiration:I have used kidspiration for activities such as patterns, sorting shapes and objects, and even sorting money. It takes time to adapt the template, but once you have it done you can use it whole group or as a station. PowerPoint:You can whip up a simple power point to accompany just about any lesson. The kids love it and stay engaged in the material. Read Alouds and Movies:There are a lot of great read alouds and educational video clips online. I save these as rewards for my kids when they have earned ahoneymoney party or something special like that.
How do you use your whiteboard?
Posted by Ruthie:
I love my whiteboard! I use it almost every day with my students and they are always eager for a turn. Here are some of my favorite ideas. Feel free to try them and let me know if you have some favorites!
Interactive websites: There are so many great interactive websites out there. For some ideas see the Cool Webpages link. My favorite of all is Starfall. I use the whiteboard most often for phonics activities and call on students one at a time to go up to the board.
Calendar: Believe it or not, Starfall has a Calendar program. Once the students are comfortable with our normal calendar routines, I start doing the calendar on the whiteboard. I don’t do it every day because I like to keep it as a very special activity. While we do the calendar on the whiteboard, we sing all of the usual songs and have a great time.
Kidwriting: Early on in the year I use the blank whiteboard to model kidwriting. I draw a simple picture and we practice stretching the words together. As students get more comfortable with this, I use it as a station. Students can work in groups of two or three to do their own kidwriting. At the end of the session I print the screen for them so that they can take it home with them. Students may need reminders to hurry up or they spend too much time drawing and don’t get to the writing part.
Guided Reading: Starfall has great interactive books that are in many different levels. I select appropriate books for my groups and work with them to read the story much like we would in a guided reading group.
Email: When I do the Flat Stanley project I display each email that we get on the whiteboard. It is a great way to show the pictures! We also incorporate this into our communication unit and work as a class to respond to each email.
Google Earth: This is a great resource for seeing exactly where our Flat Stanleys travel. It ties in very well to our curriculum on maps and globes. You can download the software for free, but you will have to call the IT people to set it up.
Kidspiration: I have used kidspiration for activities such as patterns, sorting shapes and objects, and even sorting money. It takes time to adapt the template, but once you have it done you can use it whole group or as a station.
PowerPoint: You can whip up a simple power point to accompany just about any lesson. The kids love it and stay engaged in the material.
Read Alouds and Movies: There are a lot of great read alouds and educational video clips online. I save these as rewards for my kids when they have earned a honeymoney party or something special like that.