Smart Ways To Use the SMARTboard in Science Lessons

Smartboards can be used in the classroom with your science lessons or for many interactive activities. The tools, pictures and multimedia resources can be incorporated into simple and basic lessons. The educator resources provided with the SMARTboard notebook software have many usable science tools. Online educator resources are also useful for demonstrations, lessons, and experiments that are easily performed. The activities are fun and motivating to use in science.

1. Using the SMARTboard writing tools

Using the colored writing pens, have students list one way to conserve energy daily. This can be kept in a table from the notebook pages. They can draw or insert a clipart of an energy saving lightbulb for every new idea. If doing this daily, the teacher should remember to turn the power off of the smartboard and computer when not using it, everyday.

Daily temperatures could be colored in on a thermometer. Keep a colored bar graph of the amount of recycled juice boxes and bottles found in the recycle bin daily. A student could color in a bar graph using the light pens, or use the fill color for the rectangle shape from the toolbar. Stars or happy faces could be placed on a line graph or tally chart.

Science terms and definitions could be typed onto the whiteboard. The student could use the drawing tools to draw a line matching the definitions. Definitions for science terms could be checked using a link to an online encyclopedia such as wikipedia. A science principle or fact could be listed daily and students could circle true of false on the whiteboard. A table of the students' names could be used to keep track of students' names and their answers. Each student could take turns coming to the whiteboard to record their answer.

2. Using the pictures and backgrounds

A picture of an invention could be inserted on the notebook pages daily. The student could then match to a picture of the scientist who invented it. Science diagrams of a cell or a plant could be put on a background and students could drag the correct labels to it or write in their own labels.

Sorting or categorizing in science can be done easily with the large shapes and movable pictures. Use the shapes on the interactive whiteboard to draw 2 large rectangles for comparing 2 properties together. This can be used in science, math or any area. For example in one rectangle, place the category plants, and in the other animals. Have students move the proper pictures into the categories. Call students up one at a time to sort an item into the correct box or have all of the students line up in front of the board, sort one item, then move to the end of the line.

You can use this idea to teach about many science properties such as: magnetic and non-magnetic properties, solutions and mixtures, physical and chemical changes, rocks and minerals, endangered and non-endangered species, or predators and prey.

One online resource at the National Grid for Learning, in the UK, shows sorting objects into light sources and non-light sources. This is found at:

http://www.ngfl-cymru.org.uk/vtc/light/eng/Introduction/pop.htm

Or try the magnets grouping lesson at: http://www.primaryonline.co.uk/sitetour/pol/magnet.swf