The Power of Power Point

If you haven't ever tried using Power Point in the classroom you really should! Power Point is very easy to use and has a million applications! Don't be afraid to give it a try!
If you aren't sure how to even get started look  Here for a quick Power Point tutorial from Office. If that tutorial does not help you enough I suggest going to Youtube to find additional tutorials. Asking other teachers is also a great way to find out little tricks and tips!

I use Power Point when I introduce a lesson. I can embed videos and add music for a bit of fun. Nothing captures their attention like a video or a sing along song.

Let me warn you though.....don't be BORING! 

Boring is....well......boring!

Make your Power Point something that the kids enjoy and really sparks that fire to learn. If you put up a bazillion charts and graphs and drone on like Ben Stein (Bueller, Bueller...) the kids will be turned off. The same goes with the adults you might teach.

Power Point can be used when you give a quiz. It can be used for writing. You can use it in science to show the water cycle. Currently I am using Power Point to guide the kids through learning to research on the web. It can be a daunting task when they are faced with millions of results for a subject. Below is a series of screen shots I turned into slides to illustrate how using more precise search terms can narrow the number of hits returned as well as a "Time to Think" slide. I love those because it gives the kids time to think and formulate answers before we move on.

 

Below are two links to layouts for Power Point. You can use them as is or use them as springboards to create your own.
School Presentation
Pinterest (if you don't know about Pinterest read my earlier post about it!)

Enjoy!