SMARTboard Lesson

SMART Exchange
For my lesson, I used a resource called SMART Exchange.  This free site allows registered users to share lessons for their SMARTboards.  I found a template for a lesson that looked interactive and fun for students: SMARTboard Kooshball.  This template allows teachers to add their own questions to a series of pages.  Students "select" their question by throwing a soft ball (like a kooshball) at buttons on the screen. I thought this template had vast possibilities.  Teachers could use it for review, math equations, vocabulary, literature or science questions... the possibilities seemed endless!

Not quite what I expected...
So I prepared my lesson and went into school to film. And then what sometimes happens with technology happened: the lesson didn't work!  The balls didn't trigger the board to switch screens.  Kooshballs, beanie babies, soft sport balls - nothing worked!  Sure the buttons functioned when you clicked on them with the pen, but not with the balls.  Needless to say, this really takes the fun out of the lesson for the students.

I was caught in a tough spot for my project: after contacting a friend with a SMARTboard, and setting a time to meet him and use his classroom, this was my one opportunity to film!  So I went ahead and filmed the lesson as if the template had actually worked.  But here is my official disclaimer: SMARTboard kooshball didn't really work at all.  In the end, it is a good lesson for us all to remember - actually try out new technology outside of class before you get up in front of your eager students.