EdCompass - Professional Development May 2009

8/14/2019 EdCompass - Professional Development May 2009

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May 2009 | PG 1

IN THIS ISSUE NaNcyS NoTES

a NoTE from THE EdITor

Immersion

Teachers never stop learning. When

integrating technology into your classroom,

proessional development is an essential

ingredient one that enables you totake advantage o everything that new

innovations can oer your students. To

ensure SMART products are helping you

achieve your curricular and pedagogical

goals, this issue o the newsletter outlines

some o SMARTs training opportunities,

along with real examples o how proessional

development is helping teachers improve

student learning outcomes. You can also

read about the updates weve made to the

SMART Table, the irst multitouch, multiuser

interactive learning center that allows groups

o primary students to work and learntogether.

As always, i you have any comments about

the newsletter or any o the inormation

eatured in this issue, wed love to hear

rom you. Please e-mail your eedback to

[email protected].

Nancys Notes .......................................... 1

Classroom Content ...............................23

News ....................................................24

Feature Article ......................................... 3

Proessional Development ........................ 4

SMART Showcase School Proile .............. 4

Product Spotlight ..................................56

The word immersion, in the context o

education, oten brings to mind learning

a new language. Language immersion

programs have been around or a long

time and have been very successul.

But immersion can have other

meanings. On a basic level, having

students immersed in their studies

means they are deeply involved in a

subject or investigation. They have

plunged in and are engaged.

When I think o immersion, I also

picture the rich imagery o an elementary

classroom. In many, almost every square inch is covered with colorul posters that immerse

students in their learning, showing numbers, the alphabet, animals and more.

Technology oers the opportunity to go even urther and create an environment inwhich learners are surrounded by dynamic, interactive images. Many o todays students

are visual learners, so the power o a picture can dramatically outweigh language.

In technology-enabled classrooms, rich imagery can help history and geography come

alive. Students can go to places virtually that they would never otherwise experience,

whether back in time or around the world. For math and science students, video and

animation can bring complex ideas to lie. The ability to look at concepts rom dierent

perspectives can really beneit students.

Posters on a wall oer visual interest, but interactive whiteboards with projectors and

computers make the range o images you can oer your students virtually unlimited.

The interactive eatures o technology products help create an immersive experience that

goes much deeper.

In this issue, youll learn about proessional development events and resources we oer

to help you enrich your technology-enabled classroom. Creating this type o immersive

learning environment is just another strategy to capture the imagination o your students

and ignite their will to learn.

Nancy Knowlton is the CEO of SMART Technologies.

eutin.stteh.

May 2009

Welcome to the May issue of

EDCompass newsletter!

Nes n esues euts usin SmarT puts
mailto:[email protected]://smarttech.com/executivehttp://smarttech.com/executivemailto:[email protected]


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May 2009 | PG 2

Could you use extra training on SMART Notebook sotware, the AirLiner wireless slate

or SMART Response (ormerly the Senteo interactive response system)? Later this all,

were launching new large-scale proessional development events in various cities across

the United States. As participants receive training, they will have the opportunity to try

SMART Notebook sotware and either the AirLiner wireless slate or SMART Response.

Educators can learn how these products integrate with each other and discover new

ways to eectively engage their students.

Like our regular training events, these ull-day sessions, led by SMART Certiied Trainers,

will guide you through the basics o your SMART product and teach you tips and tricks

that will wow your students and help you boost results. But instead o only being able

to oer training to 2030 educators at a time, these large-scale events will enable us to

help 1001,000 educators master their SMART products.

The ollowing events will be oered in the year to come:

Date Training event Number of participants

October 2009 SMART Response 100150

December 2009 AirLiner wireless slate and

SMART Notebook

100150

February 2010 AirLiner wireless slate and

SMART Notebook

5001,000

Registration or each event includes a SMART product to take home with you. Read

upcoming issues o the newsletter or more inormation. You can also visit SMARTs

Training Center or details on these and other training options rom SMART.

SMART training event at NECCI youd like to receive training on the above products sooner, and you plan to attend the

National Educational Computing Conerence (NECC) this year, register or the level 1 training

event were holding there. On June 29, in Washington, DC, were oering ull-day training

on SMART Notebook sotware and the AirLiner wireless slate, with bonus instruction on

SMART Response. Registration includes a SMART Notebook learner workbook and an

AirLiner wireless slate with carrying case. Space is limited, so register today.

claSSroom coNTENT

Find a comprehensive database o

proessionally developed K12 lesson activities

on our education website. The lessons are

correlated to local curriculum standards and

created by classroom teachers or SMARTs

team o curriculum resource developers.

Try one o the ollowing SMART Notebook

lesson activities during your next science,

math, English or social studies class.

Human Lie Cycle

Science students in grades 35 can

explore the stages o human lie and draw

comparisons with dierent animals.

Cubic Centimeters and Meters

Math students in grades 46 can learn how

to measure volume using cubic centimeters

and meters.

Subject Complements

English students in grade six can learn how

to identiy linking verbs and write sentencescontaining predicate nouns and predicate

adjectives.

The Silk Road

Social studies students in grade seven can

explore the Silk Roads historical signiicance

in shaping its surroundings.

SMART NotebookLesson Activities

NEwS

SMART Launches Training Events orEven More Educators
http://smarttech.com/trainingcenter/http://smarttech.com/necctrainingeventhttp://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Notebook+Activities/http://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Notebook+Activities/Browse+Notebook/United+States/Elementary/K-3/Science/Human+Life+Cycle.htmhttp://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Notebook+Activities/Browse+Notebook/United+States/Elementary/4-6/Math/Cubic+Centimeters+and+Meters.htmhttp://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Notebook+Activities/Browse+Notebook/United+States/Elementary/4-6/Language+Arts/Subject+Complements+SMARTCreated.htmhttp://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Notebook+Activities/Browse+Notebook/United+States/Secondary/7-9/Social+Studies/The+Silk+Road+SMARTCreated.htmhttp://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Notebook+Activities/Browse+Notebook/United+States/Secondary/7-9/Social+Studies/The+Silk+Road+SMARTCreated.htmhttp://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Notebook+Activities/Browse+Notebook/United+States/Elementary/4-6/Language+Arts/Subject+Complements+SMARTCreated.htmhttp://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Notebook+Activities/Browse+Notebook/United+States/Elementary/4-6/Math/Cubic+Centimeters+and+Meters.htmhttp://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Notebook+Activities/Browse+Notebook/United+States/Elementary/K-3/Science/Human+Life+Cycle.htmhttp://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Notebook+Activities/http://smarttech.com/necctrainingeventhttp://smarttech.com/trainingcenter/


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May 2009 | PG 3

claSSroom coNTENT

Find a database o SMART Response

question sets on our education website.

Each set includes 10 questions that are

correlated to state and provincial curriculum

standards and are compatible with a

matching SMART-created lesson activity

on the same topic.

Try one o the ollowing SMART Response

question sets in your next language arts,

science, math or social studies class.

Homophones

K3 language arts students can practice

identiying homophones.

Seasons, Days and Months

Science students in grades 46 can test

their knowledge o the dierent seasons,

days and months.

Operations with Monomials

and PolynomialsMath students in grades 79 can test their

ability to use operations on polynomials.

Glaciers

Social studies students in grades 1012

can test their knowledge o how glaciers

are ormed.

SMART ResponseQuestion Sets

NEwS

fEaTUrE arTIclE

Beyond our many training options, we oer a variety o programs to help you build and

share your knowledge. For example, the SMART Exemplary Educator program recognizes

educators who use SMART products in innovative and eective ways. SMART Exemplary

Educators are committed to sharing their experience with ellow educators around the

world. We also have a network o SMART Showcase Schools and Districts. They act

as host sites or other schools or districts interested in learning how SMART education

solutions can improve teaching and learning.

Read the November issue o EDCompass newsletter to learn how you can get involved in

these and other SMART programs.

Proessional Development Programs

Content Creation SeminarsAre you a teacher in Lewisville, Texas? I so, you could be selected to attend a three-day seminar

hosted by SMART, May 2224, 2009. Youll learn how to create highly engaging and interactive

lesson activities that align with Texass curriculum standards. Learn more and apply now.

SMART is hosting a series o these content creation seminars over the next seven months

youll ind out more about upcoming seminars in later issues o the newsletter. Theseminars will be coming to the ollowing places:

Fresno, Caliornia June 1618, 2009

London, England June 2627, 2009

Mobile, Alabama July 1416, 2009

Fairield-Suisun, Caliornia July 2729, 2009

Southern Caliornia August 1921, 2009

Miami-Dade, Florida September 2009

Denver, Colorado October 2009

Memphis, Tennessee November 2009

When Brittany Glass and Amanda Germ graduate in 2011 rom Florida Southern College

as high school math and elementary teachers respectively, they will do so ully prepared

to teach in a technology-enabled classroom. In a classroom with SMART products,

more speciically. Thats because they took the course, Instructional Technology, with Dr.

Jennier King. Read the ull article.

Connections that Count
http://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Senteo/http://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Senteo/http://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Senteo/http://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Senteo/USA/Elementary/K-3/Language+Arts/Homophones+Question+set.htmhttp://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Senteo/USA/Elementary/4-6/Science/Seasons+Days+and+Months+Question+set.htmhttp://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Senteo/USA/Secondary/7-9/Math/Operations+With+Monomials+and+Polynomials+Question+set.htmhttp://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Senteo/USA/Secondary/7-9/Math/Operations+With+Monomials+and+Polynomials+Question+set.htmhttp://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Senteo/USA/Secondary/10-12/Social+studies/Glaciers+Question+Set.htmhttp://www.education.smarttech.com/common/education/pdf/edcompassnovember2008.pdfhttp://smarttech.com/ccs/lewisville/index.asphttp://downloads.smarttech.com/media/edcompass/may2009/EDCompassFeatureArticleMay2009.pdfhttp://downloads.smarttech.com/media/edcompass/may2009/EDCompassFeatureArticleMay2009.pdfhttp://smarttech.com/ccs/lewisville/index.asphttp://www.education.smarttech.com/common/education/pdf/edcompassnovember2008.pdfhttp://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Senteo/USA/Secondary/10-12/Social+studies/Glaciers+Question+Set.htmhttp://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Senteo/USA/Secondary/7-9/Math/Operations+With+Monomials+and+Polynomials+Question+set.htmhttp://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Senteo/USA/Secondary/7-9/Math/Operations+With+Monomials+and+Polynomials+Question+set.htmhttp://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Senteo/USA/Elementary/4-6/Science/Seasons+Days+and+Months+Question+set.htmhttp://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Senteo/USA/Elementary/K-3/Language+Arts/Homophones+Question+set.htmhttp://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Senteo/http://www.education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/Lesson+activities/Senteo/


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May 2009 | PG 4

Calling all administrators! I you missed

SMARTs administrator webinars last month,

there are still two others that you can attend:

Using Stimulus Funding to Improve Student

Achievement Wednesday, May 20,

at 3:00 p.m. EDT

Closing the Skills Gap: Preparing Teachers

or Technology-Enabled Classrooms

Tuesday, June 2, at 3:00 p.m. EDT

Learn more and register.

A webinar for teachersTeachers can also take advantage o

great online learning opportunities. On

Wednesday, May 27, at 1:30 p.m. EDT,

attend our webinar titled Engaging Diverse

Learners in Group Instruction Utilizing

Interactive Whiteboards. You can ind out

how interactive whiteboards are helping

teachers engage and teach diverse learners

at a special education school in New

Hampshire. Register now.

In addition to the other proessional development opportunities weve eatured in this

newsletter, SMART oers ree training sessions that you can complete at your own pace,

anytime youd like.

Have you been using our Learning Management System? Its your gateway to more

than 40 ree, online training sessions every week, covering more than 20 topics in 5languages. This online system gives you convenient access to all o SMARTs training

resources. Follow along as you watch one o our award-winning Two-Minute Tutorials, or

take advantage o our printable Quick Reerence Guides and Hands-on Practices or Mac

and Windows operating systems.

Visit our Training Center to see which sessions were oering this week. And i youre

not already using the Learning Management System, sign up today to keep track o all

your SMART training.

Private group training availableI you and your colleagues would rather arrange or a private online training experience,

just let us know. Free group training can be given in both English and Spanish, and

some sessions are also available in French. I you would like to schedule a private group

session, e-mail [email protected].

ProfESSIoNal dEVEloPmENT NEwS

Webinar Series orAdministrators

Free Training Resources

Proessional Development a Top Priorityin New Mexico School District

In all 2001, Rio Rancho Public Schools (RRPS) in New Mexico purchased its irst twoSMART Board interactive whiteboards. SMART was chosen because o three critical

actors: ease o use, curriculum support and the number o experienced SMART users

in the district. Administrators at RRPS knew rom the start that the key to a successul

district-wide implementation o SMART products would be adequate and consistent

proessional development or educators at all experience levels. The district has since

purchased 401 additional SMART Board interactive whiteboards, irmly establishing that

education technology training is not just important it is essential. Read the ull article.

SmarT SHowcaSE ScHool ProfIlE

Attend SMARTs

Virtual Trade ShowOn May 28, SMART is hosting its irst

virtual trade show, Educational Technology

Strategies or Success. At this ree online

event, sessions will be oered on a wide

variety o topics, including SMART hardware

and sotware product training or teachers,

and maintenance and troubleshooting

workshops or technology coordinators.

Our keynote webinar will be delivered by

Mary Ann Wol, executive director o the

State Educational Technology DirectorsAssociation. Shell discuss the impact the

ederal stimulus package is having on

districts and schools, and how you can

make the most o it.

You can take part in this trade show rom

10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. EDT. Register now.
http://smarttech.com/emails/webinar/SMARTWebinarEC.html?WT.mc_id=SMARTWebinarEChttp://www.schoolsmovingup.net/cs/smu/view/e/3659http://smarttech.com/trainingcenter/online/index.asphttp://smarttech.com/trainingcenter/LMS.aspmailto:[email protected]://www.rrps.net/http://downloads.smarttech.com/media/edcompass/may2009/EDCompassShowcaseSchoolMay2009.pdfhttp://www.smarttech.com/virtualeventhttp://www.smarttech.com/virtualeventhttp://downloads.smarttech.com/media/edcompass/may2009/EDCompassShowcaseSchoolMay2009.pdfhttp://www.rrps.net/mailto:[email protected]://smarttech.com/trainingcenter/LMS.asphttp://smarttech.com/trainingcenter/online/index.asphttp://www.schoolsmovingup.net/cs/smu/view/e/3659http://smarttech.com/emails/webinar/SMARTWebinarEC.html?WT.mc_id=SMARTWebinarEC


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May 2009 | PG 5

We continue to develop new applications

or the SMART Table that eature interactive

content you can use to enhance small-group

learning in your classroom. See whats

currently available or your students:

Addition Plus Solve teacher-deined math

problems using stacks o coins and blocks

Hot Spaces Sort items by dragging

them into groups

Multiple Choice Answer questions by

dragging answers to a central image

Hot Spots Identiy parts o a diagram by

dragging labels to the correct spot

Paint Select colors and eects and then

use ingers to paint

Media Drag or resize photos and videos

Addition Solve automatically generated

math problems

Puzzle Collaboratively solve a tangram

or jigsaw puzzle

ProdUcT SPoTlIgHT

SMART Table - Touch. Learn. Together.

Lets do that again!Thats what teachers using the SMART Table have been hearing again and again in their

classrooms. Since its beta release in all 2008, and its commercial release in February

2009, the response to SMARTs multitouch, multiuser interactive learning center or early

education has been extraordinary. Educators are especially thrilled with the ways the

SMART Table encourages students to collaborate.

Used on its own or with the SMART Board interactive whiteboard, the SMART Table

can become a lexible and integral part o any technology-enabled classroom. It easily

accommodates individual and small-group learning and instruction. Students can

touch the tables surace to manipulate objects, using gestures like pinching, grabbing,

sliding and tapping, and can also use the table to browse digital content. The size and

orientation o the surace enables groups o students to easily reach the whole screen.

Turn it on and let them goSMARTs lexible content options allow teachers to use ready-made activities, customize

these activities to it their curriculum, or even create their own. In act, were continually

adding new content designed to enhance learning. You can check it out at

www.smarttech.com/tableactivities.

Were introducing two new applications to complement the six currently available. Addition

Plus enables students to work together to solve math problems deined by the teacher,while the Hot Spaces application lets students sort items by dragging them to groups.

Each SMART Table activity corresponds with a SMART-created lesson activity and SMART

Response question set, so you can combine small-group work on the table with whole-

class and individual learning experiences. Simply download an activity to your computer,

customize it, and use the SMART Table USB bracelet to transer it to the table. Then turn

it on and let them go.

New Content

SMART Table software

development kitThird-party sotware developers have

expressed much interest in creatingmultitouch applications or the SMART Table

The SMART Table sotware development

kit is available or ree noncommercial use

through the SMART Development Network

and supports development in C++, C#, Visua

Basic and Java languages. More inormation

can be ound at sdn.smarttech.com.
http://www.smarttech.com/tableactivitieshttp://www.sdn.smarttech.com/http://www.sdn.smarttech.com/http://www.smarttech.com/tableactivities


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May 2009 | PG 6

ProdUcT SPoTlIgHT

When Sarah Rhyne, instructional technology acilitator at Davie County Schools, talks to

educators at William R. Davie Elementary School about the SMART Table, she says she only

hears great comments.

Educators at this Mocksville, North Carolina, school appreciate that the tables sotware

applications naturally oster collaboration and consensus building with the students.

When the second-grade students use the SMART Table, they need to talk to each other

and come to an agreement beore changing activities. It becomes a skill-building exercise

in communication and compromise, says Rhyne.

Teachers can also easily encourage collaboration with the user-riendly SMART Table

Toolkit. In a really simple, very easy ormat, Ive seen teachers create collaborative

content speciic to the curriculum going on in their classroom, explains Rhyne. For

example, one second-grade class was studying weather, and the teacher produced

SMART Table activities to complement her instruction. Using the Hot Spots application

as a oundation, she created a tornado and had her students identiy, label and match

the dierent parts.

Teachers at William R. Davie have also taken advantage o updated activity packs and

new applications on SMARTs education website. With access to a continually growing

collection o resources, Rhyne sees no end to the uses or the SMART Table in Davie

County Schools.

Weve ound that our students never get bored with the deault table content, but it

really does make the table new when the teachers create original content or them to

access. Its nice to have a product that reinvents itsel that way, explains Rhyne.

A welcome oshoot o having the SMART Table in the school has been the increased

level o parent involvement. Rhyne says that students and parents realize they are seeing

something special in the classroom. Teachers have invited the parents and siblings o

their students to stop by and experience the SMART Table irsthand. It doesnt end there

Rhyne explains. Every time the students go home and say their teacher has created new

content or the table, the parents want to come back. Its been great or our teachers to

experience this increased parent involvement and interest.

SMART Table inthe Special NeedsClassroom

For the past ew months, the Spaulding

Youth Center (SYC) in Tilton, New Hampshire,

has been using the SMART Table. SYC

provides therapeutic and educational care

or youth with autism, or other neurological

impairments, and emotional and behavioral

disorders. Randy Welch, SYCs chie program

oicer, believes the SMART Table has the

potential to do amazing things or the special

ed population. The table, he asserts, is a

tool that can oster educational interaction

between autistic students, especially those

with low verbal and communication abilities.

I watched as two autistic students who have

very poor communication skills, to the point

o almost being nonverbal, learned rom each

other while on the table. They watched what

the other did. They waited or their turn. There

was an understanding occurring between

them. This kind o happening is phenomenally

signiicant in this population, says Welch.

Collaboration and Consensus Building atWilliam R. Davie

2009 SMART Technologies ULC. All rights reserved. EDCompass, AirLiner, Senteo, SMART Board, smarttech, the SMART logo and all SMART taglines are trademarks or registered trademarks o SMART Technologies ULC in the U.S. and/or other countries. All other third-party product and

company names are or identifcation purposes only and may be trademarks o their respective owners. 11586-09

Watch or the next issue o EDCompass

newsletter, where youll ind out what SMART

is up to at NECC this year. Youll learn about

our newest products, contests and giveaways

i you are planning to attend the conerence,

you wont want to miss this issue.

Up Next
http://education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/SMART+Table+activities/default.htmhttp://education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource/SMART+Table+activities/default.htm

Documents

EdCompass - Professional Development May 2009