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Create Engaging Presentations with Free iPad Apps
February 12, 2013 | Monica Burns
If you are tired of PowerPoint and Keynote, it's easy to change up your normal routine. As much as I love these presentation tools, it's important to keep my audience engaged, and often a quick deviation from the usual is the perfect trick.
There are so many fantastic free iPad apps that are great for the classroom. Whether you have access to a single iPad that you use to create presentations for your students, or your students are creating their own presentations in a 1:1 classroom, you'll want to add these to your must-have list!
Haiku Deck
Haiku Deck is perfect for the classroom and extremely student-friendly. This app allows you to create slides with a photo background and a small amount of text (think haiku). It provides a gallery of images to choose from, and uses words on your slide to help you find the ideal background. However, you also have the option to upload your own photos.
I've used Haiku Deck to share teaching points, give short writing prompts and just switch it up from my usual presentation style by focusing on images as opposed to text. It doesn't take long to make one, and students can use it to create their own presentations, too.
Prezi
Another free presentation tool I love is Prezi. Prezi uses a single canvas instead of swipeable slides. All of the information for your presentation goes on one page. You create pathways around your canvas so that your text, pictures and video clips appear in the order you decide. The Prezi iPad app allows users to access presentations that they've created on the Prezi website, or you can create your own using the app alone.
It's is a great way to change your usual routine, and it's not hard to learn. There are lots of pre-made presentations to use as inspiration or to modify for your classroom. My favorite part of Prezi is the way it "wows" a crowd.
Screencasting: Educreations, ScreenChomp and Doceri
There are a few free iPad apps that I love using for screencasting. It's a great way for teachers to present material to their class, and it's simple enough for students to create their own presentations. These apps allow users to record their screen and voice as they write, draw or annotate an image. It captures the action that's taking place as users write on the digital whiteboard as well as the sound of the user speaking while he or she writes.
I use Educreations in the same way that I'd use a SMART Board simulator. Educreations allows you to use your iPad screen as a blank canvas to write on while recording your entire session. I might take a picture of a word problem on a student handout, open it in this app and circle keywords or underline important information for the class. I can record what is happening as I write on the screen, and these short videos can be played back for the whole class.
ScreenChomp is perfect for students and teachers. It has a very user-friendly interface and also allows users to record their writing and voice as they work on the screen. Videos can be saved in the app, uploaded to social media or emailed. I like to have students create tutorials using ScreenChomp and present their work to the class.
In Doceri, not only can users write on the screen, there are also some features that set it apart from other screencasting apps. Doceri has lots of choices for colors, shapes and lines, but the best part has to be the option to save your video directly to your iPad's camera roll. This makes it easy to save and share your Doceri screencasts with others, and it's perfect for creating presentations that will be used when there is limited wireless access.
SnapGuide
If you're looking to create simple how-to presentations for your class -- or want them to create their own step-by-step guides -- you must try SnapGuide. This free app allows users to create their own multi-step guides that include text, images and video. Snap pictures or take video straight from your iPad camera or import from your camera roll. Add text to each slide and publish. This is a fantastic tool to present instructions, directions or expectations to your class, and it's simple enough for students to create their own.
Have you used these apps before? Are there other presentation tools you love? What's your favorite way to present to your audience of students and/or staff members?
Comments (10)
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New Photo Storytelling app
Since this post was made, we have released our 30hands photo storytelling app that is free on iPads, iPhones and iPods. It allows students and teachers to create stories or presentations based on photos, images or slides and add audio narration and drawing annotation to them. It's a different paradigm that allows for some unique types of creativity.
Try it out here: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/30hands/id605013231?mt=8
Thanks!
Another great presentation
Another great presentation App is bContext! It allows you to easily create and record classroom presentations:
http://www.bContext.com
You could post links to your
You could post links to your ScreenChomp creations (upload them straight to YouTube) that show off these different grammar strategies.
I am very interested in working with ScreenChomp. My students are working on grammar - complements and verbals. They are struggling and I am looking for a way to differentiate instruction and involve a greater variety of activities and strategies. My school uses BlackBoard as our primary resource. Am I able to use this in combination with that? I would like my students to at least see me going over homework examples (yes, part of the "drill and kill") on worksheets before they apply it to their own writing. Any ideas? Thank you!
I am very interested in working with ScreenChomp. My students are working on grammar - complements and verbals. They are struggling and I am looking for a way to differentiate instruction and involve a greater variety of activities and strategies. My school uses BlackBoard as our primary resource. Am I able to use this in combination with that? I would like my students to at least see me going over homework examples (yes, part of the "drill and kill") on worksheets before they apply it to their own writing. Any ideas? Thank you!
ShowMe is fantastic too, and
ShowMe is fantastic too, and definitely falls into this category - thanks for sharing!
It sounds like Educreations is similar to ShowMe. ShowMe is a free whiteboard app that allows you to record the "lesson" and insert photos. Plus, you're able to upload the videos to their site and watch/download those to your computer.
Thank you for the article!
It sounds like Educreations is similar to ShowMe. ShowMe is a free whiteboard app that allows you to record the "lesson" and insert photos. Plus, you're able to upload the videos to their site and watch/download those to your computer.
I am very interested in
I am very interested in working with ScreenChomp. My students are working on grammar - complements and verbals. They are struggling and I am looking for a way to differentiate instruction and involve a greater variety of activities and strategies. My school uses BlackBoard as our primary resource. Am I able to use this in combination with that? I would like my students to at least see me going over homework examples (yes, part of the "drill and kill") on worksheets before they apply it to their own writing. Any ideas? Thank you!
You're right Lesile, it's so
You're right Lesile, it's so nice to not have to rely on a flash drive!
I love using Prezi as well. Each time I use it for a presentation it engages the crowd and presents the information in a fun and user-friendly. Some of the best presentations I have done have used the map template and really connects the the idea of geography and the lesson. Great tool and recommend using it, especially since it is stored online and can be access anywhere with and internet connection, not more forgetting a jump drive!
I love using Prezi as well. Each time I use it for a presentation it engages the crowd and presents the information in a fun and user-friendly. Some of the best presentations I have done have used the map template and really connects the the idea of geography and the lesson. Great tool and recommend using it, especially since it is stored online and can be access anywhere with and internet connection, not more forgetting a jump drive!
Prezi
I love using Prezi as well. Each time I use it for a presentation it engages the crowd and presents the information in a fun and user-friendly. Some of the best presentations I have done have used the map template and really connects the the idea of geography and the lesson. Great tool and recommend using it, especially since it is stored online and can be access anywhere with and internet connection, not more forgetting a jump drive!
I love these apps monica
I must say that these apps are the best for the awesome gadget like iPad. If someone is interested in buying handy iPad covers then he or she can click http://www.wrappz.com anytime.
Monica, thank you so much for
Monica, thank you so much for covering Haiku Deck! Great, creative ideas here. We think you will love our upcoming new version which allows students to post their decks directly to the web without email. And readers, we'd really value your feedback on our free iPad app! Come visit us at www.haikudeck.com
Cheers, Catherine from Team Haiku Deck