The Whiteboard Blog

Dragon Breeder – Genetic Crossing with Dragons!

Danny — Fri, 25 May 2012 10:36:18 +0000

Dragon Breeder is a new game from Spongelab where players progress by using the principles of Mendelian Genetics. Players can breed target dragons, or determine the genotypes of the dragons in their den.

It’s an interesting game, and will be of interest to KS4 and Ks4 science/biology teachers. It’s definitely a different take on looking at genetic crossing and dragons are far more fun than fruit flies or pea plants!

It’s probably a little slow to play on the IWB in front of the class, but pupils could work in pairs/small groups to play the game on laptops or tablets.

The game is built in HTML 5, and is currently in BETA for the web version. It should work on iPads etc, but there is an iOS and Android versions in development.

To play Dragon Breeder, go here : http://www.spongelab.com/game_pages/DB.cfm

Dragon Breeder – Genetic Crossing with Dragons! The Whiteboard Blog - Supporting the use of technology in the classroom

Smart Notebook Gallery 2.0 : Beta now available

Danny — Wed, 23 May 2012 07:52:05 +0000

If you’ve downloaded the newest version of Smart Notebook (v 11) then you might have noticed a link in the regular gallery to the Smart Notebook Gallery 2.0. This wasn’t available at launch. But now it is! And you can download it here.

SMART Notebook Gallery 2.0 beta features a new user interface and seamlessly integrates with SMART Exchange to provide access to thousands of gallery items. This beta allows you to search, browse and manage content from a new Gallery tab in SMART Notebook 11 software. The tab for the previous version of the Gallery is also available.

Clicking on the new tab gives a slightly different view to the old gallery, with large filders rather than the expanding list. There’s a folder for Smart Exchange content, as well as the existing content. The My Content area gets its own tab.

The search box is bigger and more explicit – as is the ability to filter by type of resource – image, flash resource, sound, movies, widgits etc.

It looks pretty good, and hopefully will be a little more user-friendly than the old gallery. Having the ability to connect directly to the Smart Exchange resources is a great idea. It currently listed 15,000 items in the Smart Exchange which many Smart users don’t even know about!

You can download the Notebook Gallery 2.0 here.

Let me know what you think!

No related posts.

Smart Notebook Gallery 2.0 : Beta now available The Whiteboard Blog - Supporting the use of technology in the classroom

Video Lectures from Backpack TV

Danny — Tue, 22 May 2012 07:50:25 +0000

Backpack TV is a new website very much in the mould of Khan Academy and O2 Learn, amongst others. Like these sites it contains videos produced by teachers of lectures about particular topic areas. You can search by topic, subject etc. Videos range from 5 to 20 minutes in length. Videos are self-hosted rather than pulled in via YouTube, which some schools will find useful. Videos seem pitched at the KS4/KS5 range.

The site is clean, and free of advertising, although there’s mention on the home page of a “Backpack premium” in the future that’s ad-free, so I’m assuming this basic version of the site will end up with adverts in some way. Not a problem, as long as they’re not intrusive.

The site is currently in Beta, and as such only a few subjects are on stream right now – Maths, Science, US History, and English. I would assume more subjects will follow before it’s launched properly.

Like all these kind of sites, the videos are a mixed bag. They may not always be exactly what you want and there’s not a lot of supporting information apart from a descriptive paragraph for each video. There’s no text transcript, captioning/subtitles for accessibility, keyword tagging and no supporting materials such as worksheets. Maybe these will come later.

There’s nothing groundbreaking here, but if you are looking for resources to help your students revise particular topics you might want to add this to your list of sites to point them towards.

Take a look at : http://www.backpack.tv/

Video Lectures from Backpack TV The Whiteboard Blog - Supporting the use of technology in the classroom

Interactive Transit of Venus Model

Danny — Wed, 16 May 2012 11:10:07 +0000

The folks over at the Sun Aeon website have put together a cool simulation of the 2012 Transit of Venus. which takes place on 5-6 June. It’s a neat way to demonstrate what’s taking place when Venus passes in front of the Sun in ths very rare astronomical event.

Take a look at : http://www.sunaeon.com/venustransit/

You can even get an embed code to host the model on your own school website or learning platform.

Interactive Transit of Venus Model The Whiteboard Blog - Supporting the use of technology in the classroom

Integrating Promethean ActivExpression With BrainPOP

Danny — Fri, 11 May 2012 06:08:31 +0000

If you are a BrainPop user, did you know that you can use the quizzes on their excellent website with your Promethean ActivExpression or ActiVote handsets?

If you didn’t know that, and want to find out how, then here’s a guide by teacher Steve Figurelli on how to do this.

For additional information – click on either the BrainPop or BrainPop UK links below then click on the Quiz Integration tab. You’ll also find links to download the Flash Bridge software which does the integration between the Promtethean software and the BrainPop site.

You can also get more help, and watch a short video, via the BrainPopUK blog here.

If you are a BrainPop user you can also download a BrainPop resource pack which offers a set of cross-curricular resources for that you can use to create your own flipcharts and enhance your web-based lessons. It includes images of Tim & Moby, other fun visuals, graphic organisers and more. You’d need to be a Promethean Planet member to download, but it’s free to join.

If you haven’t seen BrainPop before, it’s an online subscription resource for ages 7–14 that delivers some excellent content for Science, Humanities, Maths, English, PSHE & Citizenship, Arts and Design & Technology. If you want to get a taste for what BrainPop is, take a look at their free movies, or download the free Movie of the Day app for your iPod/iPad. (UK Link / US Link)

And for Promethean ActivInspire Training and ActivExpression Training, please get in touch.

Integrating Promethean ActivExpression With BrainPOP The Whiteboard Blog - Supporting the use of technology in the classroom

Smart Notebook App for Ipad Announced

Danny — Fri, 04 May 2012 15:09:18 +0000

Rumours of this app were leaked last week, then it all went quiet, so its good to see that there’s now an official announcement on the EdCompass blog. From this summer, teachers and students will be able to use SMART Notebook software on an iPad using the SMART Notebook app.

Using the SMART Notebook app, it will be possible to use many of the tools typically used on the SMART Board. It will be possible to open SMART Notebook file on their iPad, from an e-mail or site such as Dropbox, and write, erase, add text, move objects and insert images.

The app will be AirPlay enabled and so will supports AirPlay for Apple TV to share iPad screens.

More info is on the EdCompass Blog and also check this area of the Smart Website over the next few months.

I’m looking forward to finding out more!

Smart Notebook App for Ipad Announced The Whiteboard Blog - Supporting the use of technology in the classroom

Using an iPad as an alternative to an interactive whiteboard

Danny — Fri, 04 May 2012 14:38:43 +0000

With more and more schools (and teachers) getting iPads, I’m increasingly being asked how a teacher can hook up their iPad to their interactive whiteboard.

There are several ways to use your iPad. The first is as a way to control your computer, and the other two involve connecting your computer directly to the projector, removing the IWB from the equation.

None of these methods let you connect your iPad to your IWB. That’s not possible right now.

1. Control your PC with Splashtop Remote

I’ve written about Splashtop Remote in the past. By using it, you can’t control the IWB directly – but you can control the computer thats connected to the IWB. The app requires you to also download and install some client software on the PC that you want to control. Both device also need to be connected to the same network for this to work. You can set up a password to prevent anyone just connecting to your PC.

The way the Splashtop app works is that when you connect to the PC, the PC’s screen is mirrored on your iPad’s screen. Simply touch and click on the icons as if you now had a touchscreen PC. This can be a problem with software that wasn’t designed for fat figners and so has small icons. You might want to pre-open something like Smart Notebook before you take control on the iPad.

Control of the computer isn’t perfect. And I do find the system can run a little slow sometimes, which can be frustrating. But if you do have an iPad it does open up a new way of using your computer/IWB setup.

The Splashtop app is only £1.49 on the UK app store, and the client software is free, so it’s not an expensive gamble. Check it out

2. Using a VGA Cable

A simple way to display the contents of your iPad screen to a class is to buy a VGA adaptor and connect the iPad directly to a projector in exactly the same way you’d connect a laptop. This works pretty well, although you are tethered by the cable and sometimes the connector can work loose. Not every app will work in landscape mode, so you do get some flickering as the mode shifts.

This does work very well with note taking apps such as Notability = especially if you invest in a cheap stylus to make writing easier.YouTube videos, BBC iPlayer and any movie files on the iPad will play very well.

Here’s a great blogpost by Marc Faulder about using an iPad hooked up to a projector via a VGA cable.

3. Using Apple TV

The other way to connect your iPad to a display is to buy an Apple TV device and connect that to your projector. You can then connect your iPad to the Apple TV over a wireless network. The Apple TV connects to your projector via an HDMI cable. If your projector does not support HDMI then you’ll need a converter.

This gives you the advantage of being able to be anywhere in the classroom, and to share your screen with the class. Many apps support “Air-Play” and you can also turn on “mirroring” which does the same thing as the VGA cable and display your iPad screen.

Also see this guide by Brad Ratcliffe which explains how to set up Apple TV in your classroom.

Other Links

Here’s some great advice on using Apple TV and other methods from James Hollis.

Have you tried any of these? Got any other good links to share? Put them in the comments!

Update : Just as I published this, there has been an official announcement from Smart about their forthcoming Smart Notebook iPad app. Looks interesting. More here.

Using an iPad as an alternative to an interactive whiteboard The Whiteboard Blog - Supporting the use of technology in the classroom

TED-Ed : Lessons worth sharing

Danny — Sat, 28 Apr 2012 08:45:03 +0000

TED-Ed is the latest initiative by the people behind the popular TED talks. TED-Ed’s videos aim to capture and amplify the voices of the world’s greatest educators. They have paired educators with talented animators to produce a library of educational videos.

This platform also allows users to take any useful educational video, not just TED’s, and easily create a customized lesson around the video. Users can distribute the lessons, publicly or privately, and track their impact on the world, a class, or an individual student.

Like the Khan academy and other sites, resources like this may not be suitable for all classes and all students – use wisely. The animation aspect does make them feel more student-friendly than just a recording of someone giving a lecture.

The “flip this video” button allows you to turn a video into a customized lesson that can be assigned to students or shared more widely. You can add context, questions and follow-up suggestions. You’ll need to register with the site to do this.

Videos are hosted on YouTube so you’ll need to check your settings in school before using. Pupils will be able to access these at home quite easily.

For example, here’s a video about atoms:

To take a look at the videos available visit : http://ed.ted.com/lessons

TED-Ed : Lessons worth sharing The Whiteboard Blog - Supporting the use of technology in the classroom

Science lectures from the Royal Institution

Danny — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 07:35:25 +0000

The Ri Channel is an online project by the Royal Institution showcasing the very best science videos from the Ri and around the web. The project continues the Royal Institution’s charitable mission to “connect people to the world of science”.

Alongside highlights from recent Ri events, the Channel features re-digitised footage from the Ri archive and a range of high-quality videos from filmmakers and scientific institutions across the UK and beyond.

You can also find an archive of past RI Christmas Lectures, with lectures by such greats as Sir David Attenborough and Carl Sagan. Excellent stuff.

Some of the videos can be embedded into a blog or VLE using a Vimeo embed code. Many also come with a subtitles and a full-text transcript too, which is very useful.

It’s an excellent resource and Science teachers should be able to find some great videos to use to supplement their lessons. Most videos will be suitable for KS3/4. The site is in beta, so expect some changes along the way, as well as more content being added. Well worth bookmarking.

Take a look at www.richannel.org

Science lectures from the Royal Institution The Whiteboard Blog - Supporting the use of technology in the classroom

Smart Notebook 11 : Activity Builder Tutorial

Danny — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 06:54:17 +0000

Here’s a short video tutorial that demonstrates how easy it is to create a simple drag and drop activity in Smart Notebook 11 using the activity builder add-on.

As well as putting things into groups, you could also use this to add labels to diagrams. Simply create a small containing shape for each label, and have it accept the one correct answer and reject all the others. Very simple.

Let me know what you think of the activity builder in the comments below!

Smart Notebook 11 : Activity Builder Tutorial The Whiteboard Blog - Supporting the use of technology in the classroom