Nearpod is an online tech tool that is (mostly) free for all to access. The only items that cost anything are different presentations. However, there are presentations that are available to those who have a free account. Through Nearpod, teachers can create presentations that are accessible to students through an online code. Students do not need a Nearpod account to be able to access the presentation. Teachers have the ability to control what slide they are on and how quickly they go through a live lesson. They can also see which students are on the tab of the presentation or on another tab. This is helpful for managing students' behavior and keeping them on task (see component 2D on management of student behavior). Instead of doing a live lesson in class, teachers have the option of sharing the presentation with students and allow them to do it on their own time. Another aspect of Nearpod that is helpful to teachers is the activity tool that teachers can place into a presentation. In this activity tool there are seven choices of activities for students to participate in throughout the presentation; open-ended questions, quizzes, polls, memory tests, fill in the blank tests, draw it, and a collaboration board. Draw it gives students a chance to draw out an equation or a picture and only the teacher will see their answers. The collaboration board is a chance for students to post comments or takeaways from a lesson and collaborate with peers. The teacher will have access to the answers provided by students through the activities. For all the activities, teachers can share out on all screens an answer that they thought was exceptional without sharing the name of the student. Within the content tool of presentation building, there are ten types of content that can be added; video, slide, audio, simulation, 3D items, virtual field trips, Microsoft Sway, slideshow, PDF viewer, and live Twitter stream.The last piece that can be added in is a website URL that will take students to that website when the presentation reaches that slide.
The library on the Nearpod website has tons of presentations available for teachers to download and edit to fit exactly what they are looking for. It is a great tool for teachers to access resources as well as share out resources that have worked well for them. Nearpod engages students through the multiple activities and different forms of content that can be added. When using my presentation in a class, I would provide students with the online code for them all to join and go through the presentation. I would not share my "teacher view" of it on the large screen for the whole class to see, but I would click through it so it moves the students along.
Using Nearpod in the classroom ties to the ISTE Standard for Students; Digital Citizen. It allows students to see how they can use technology to further their learning and shows them the importance of interacting through the internet. This tool also supports the ISTE Standard for Educators; Facilitator. Teachers are able to facilitate the presentation through this tech tool. It is accessible to everyone and decently user-friendly. I will definitely incorporate this tool in my future classroom. It's a great way to present information to students without using a basic slideshow projected only on the big screen up front. It allows students to interact with the presentation and is a simple way to use formative assessment throughout the lesson. Teachers can see where the students are throughout the lesson by using the activity tool and looking at what the students answer. I enjoyed making this presentation and I was able to do it from scratch with very little issues. My topic was layers of the atmosphere and I could not find a presentation that was already done, so I had the opportunity to use my own creativity for it.
Nearpod would be useful in implementing component 3D; using assessment in instruction. The activities that can be added help teachers assess where the students are at any point in the lesson. It also ties to component 3B: using questioning and discussion techniques because of the collaboration board that can be added. The open-ended questions are also a way to incorporate 3B. Finally, Nearpod also ties to component 3C: engaging students in learning. The interactive aspect of this tool is a great way to engage students in the lesson. It requires students to stay on topic but also engages them through different content types, like a virtual field trip or a simulation.
For my Nearpod presentation on the layers of the atmosphere, I wanted students to be able to identify the different layers. I also wanted students to be able to identify which layer weather occurs in, where planes fly, and where the temperatures are the hottest/coldest. My virtual co-op is currently teaching her 6th grade science class about the layers of the atmosphere, which is the class I created this Nearpod presentation for. This presentation ties to standard 3.3.6.A5: Describe the composition and layers of the atmosphere.
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