Notes, Images, and IWBs
One thing that I enjoy about the interactive whiteboard is helping students to take notes.
On a regular basis, I encourage my ninth graders to draw pictures instead of writing titles for their notes. So instead of writing a title for the chapter that we’re working on in class, I often draw an icon for the scene. “How to draw the underworld” was my hook for “Land of the Dead.” We moved on to other activities and while moving around the room, I noticed that almost every student took time to draw the underworld but few took time to write “Land of the Dead.”
I also find it easier to color code information using the IWB than I did using markers. Teachers that have taken the time to identify skills and concepts required in their units can color code them during discussion to constantly help students to consider what it is that they’re learning.
These may not be fundamental changes to how I teach, but they are how I’ve begun to explore the use of IWBs in my classroom.
