How to Make Your Own Interactive White Board

If you want to know how to make your own interactive whiteboard…then keep reading. I am going to provide below all of the resources and materials that you will need to create this board. I will say from the beginning…this is not difficult, but have patience. I did not have any problems on my personal computer and network. I did have some problems with the school network but they were resolved fairly easily. This is definitely a cost efficient option in comparison to the SMART boards that are in classrooms today.

This product was created by Johnny Chung Lee.

I heard about making an interactive whiteboard from a friend. I decided to look it up and try it out. I didn’t have anything to lose but a little money. It worked for me, and it could work for you. It will take patience in setting up. If you need any help, just let me know. I would be glad to come by your school and help you set everything up.

To get started:

• Go to the following website: http://johnnylee.net/projects/wii/ Scroll down to the second section titled “Low-Cost Multi-point Interactive Whiteboards Using the Wiimote.” In this section you will see a description of how to make it. I am more interested in the video here. He has posted a video explaining how to make the whiteboard as well as a demonstration.
• Download and watch this short one minute clip of my student using the interactive whiteboard in my classroom. http://www.zshare.net/video/63385762b370b7ce/
  

Before pursuing this option…if you are in a school system—verify that you have the support of your IT Department. You may experience network problems due to firewalls, etc. You might need their help. I went about this by getting the support of my superintendent, who then told the IT department they had to work with me. If you use a personal computer from home you should not have problems.

If you want to pursue this…then here is what you need!

• Wii remote (available for around $26.00 on Amazon)
• Bluetooth Adapter (there are many different kinds. This one worked successfully for me.
• TRENDnet Ultra Range Bluetooth USB Adapter) This costs about $21.00 new (**Check your computer first as some computers now come with this built in**)
• IR LED Pen (if you want, you can make your own. I do NOT recommend this.) They can be purchased from http://www.wiiteachers.com/ for a low price. There are three different styles, choose what you want. The whiteboard can support up to four pens at one time.
• Software: Choose what you want to use. My recommendation is for Smoothboard. I found this to be easier and work better.
  Wiiboard Software This is the original software that was created by Johnny Lee Chung. This software is free. It can be found at http://johnnylee.net/projects/wii/
  Smoothboard Software This software can be downloaded from http://www.smoothboard.net/ The software is free—however when operating it does shut down after about 20 minutes. It then encourages you to purchase a license. The license is currently $29.99
• Projector—All you need is normal projector. You do not need anything expensive, just something that will project the image.

Okay…you have everything you need. How to put this together? If I were to write this out, it would never end. Therefore, I am providing all the resources below, and then you can contact me with questions. My email is laurenfowlkes@gmail.com

The basic steps are:

• Install the Bluetooth software.
• Install either Smoothboard or Wiiboard software.
• Set up the projector, and wii remote. I place the wii remote directly above my projector.
• Make sure projector is on.
• Insert the Bluetooth USB device and activate or activate internal device.
• Start the Smoothboard or Wiiboard software.
• Press 1 and 2 simultaneously on the wii remote.
• If all is well…it should start!
  

Videos explaining in more detail are below.

http://johnnylee.net/projects/wii/ Johnny Lee explains how to create set-up the program as well.

http://www.alltogetherwecan.com/2009/01/31/wiimote-whiteboard-in-education-a-tutorial/ (This is one demonstration—he tells how to do this. If you are technology savvy, you can probably get by with this. This is only for built in Bluetooth.)

http://electriceducator.blogspot.com/2009/03/wiiboard-questions.html Ideas for mounting remote, and other questions answered.

If you are having trouble connecting everything after using any of the sites above visit one of the forums below for advice, or email me.

Also to find out more information do a Google search for Wii Interactive White Boards and you will find more information that you ever imagined.

Having Problems?

Check out these Forums for advice.
http://www.boonjin.com/smoothboard/index.php?title=Main_Page

http://www.wiimoteproject.com/

Other Resources for using the WiiBoard
http://www.k-3teacherresources.com/wii-remote-for-interactive-whiteboard.html

http://falconphysics.blogspot.com/2009/02/wiimote-interactive-whiteboard.html

http://www.whiteboardblog.co.uk/2009/07/20-interactive-whiteboard-resources-for-teachers/

Resources for Mac Users
http://atmac.org/diy-interactive-whiteboard-with-a-wii-remote-wiimote-whiteboard/

Literacy, Technology and My Classroom AFTER this class

This class has been remarkable. While I have reaped the benefits of the class in terms of length, etc. I almost wish I had a full semester class to explore further.

However, the things I have learned in the past seven days are remarkable and I have plans for many of them in my classroom and several in classrooms of colleagues.

In my classroom I am planning to use the following:
Skype: to communicate/videoconference with other deaf individuals
Moviemaker: To record books for my students to listen to independently away from me
Voice Thread: For me students to create audio for various activities
Jing: Many uses...most likely as a tutorial for my students on completing certain online tasks.
Animoto: for them to create videos
Captioning: Not right now...but later on as they get older for auditory exercises
Social bookmarking: to make my life between home and school easier
Webquests: To create themed units for the academics I do teach
Threaded Discussions: Still exploring, but several possible uses, questions of week, book reflections
Blogging: To keep my parents informed of various things.

While I could go on I will stop there. The capabilities of technology are endless especially within a classroom. This is going to be an exciting year and I am grateful I had the chance to take this class for I have learned so much.

RSS Feeds

On a quick note....I have noticed the button on my browser for some time now...and just recently learned what it was for in this class. Now that I know that I can simply subscribe to various things and receive updates in one place as they come in....I am thrilled. This will save me lots of time as I venture through a group of blogs, forums, web-sites daily trying to keep up with people and news. Now that I know what this magic button does, I can sleep later in the morning because I will spend less time checking up on everybody. I am all for things that save me time or sleep!

Digital Texts

The variety of digital texts are amazing and unlimited. They can be created from a variety of tools. I could use things from both school and home and have the students create the text. When we complete activities I can photograph or video and then the students could record the story. If I then captioned the story they could also read along as they listened. I think this would be more interesting to them at times and help them have more interest in reading because it would be something personal that they are vested in compared to a book that they may have no interest personal interest in.

After watching the book that was put into movie maker today in class I am thinking about putting some of my books into movie maker for my students. If I did this they would be able to listen/read the books while I work with another student. This activity would allow them to complete a tasks independently while also allowing me time to focus on one student's needs apart from others.

Digital texts are the future and I see them having more of a place in my classroom. I think my kids would much rather see a text on the computer with sound effects, etc as composed to holding a book they may not be able to read independently.

While digital text would allow me to provide support for their reading especially if I record myself reading the book. However the possibility also exists for me to create the book, and have the students do the recording.

Kindle

I have wanted a Kindle since I heard about them in Dr. Moorman's class in the Spring. I was reading the Top 10 reasons to have/not have a Kindle by John Biggs. The reasoning for having a Kindle were things I expected to hear such as: great for travel, great for various locations (ex. beach, pages don't get wet like a book), and because it is the future (yay!) The reasons for not having a Kindle were somewhat surprising. It almost seems that the negatives outweigh the positives in some aspects. The negatives were bottom heavy, not research friendly, Internet connection does not work globally, runs off battery, no organization programs and it is flimsy. After reading about all of the negatives for the device I wasn't sure what the rave is over the Kindle.

However, I continued on with my further exploration of the Kindle in classrooms. I read parts of the Edukindle blog. This was an interesting blog that discussed a variety of issues from accessibility for blind students because a text reader is not built in(kindle 1) to use in a classroom. If a Kindle is flimsy as Biggs mentioned in his article I would be wary about putting them in the hands of young students in particular because of cost factors if damaged. However I do think it would be a great option for college students. If universities would adopt Kindle's and require that all students purchase one, they could then get all of their textbooks through the Kindle. That would certainly save shelf space after they are finished with the textbooks.

I went to Amazon and did a comparison of features between the Kindle 1, Kindle 2, and Kindle DX. Just the changes from the Kindle 1 to Kindle 2 were remarkable. The Kindle DX appears to be a larger version of the Kindle 2.

One interesting comparison that I found was between a Kindle and a traditional book. While the Kindle is phenomenal in accessibility, space saving, etc...it is still not a book, and not quite as user friendly. The example that I read said that when you are looking for information or a certain passage in a book you can find it based on the physical aspects of the book such as "it is 1/2 way through, on the middle of the page, etc." With a Kindle you can't do this, so you are bound to remembering page numbers. However, when reading on a Kindle you can highlight and comment on the texts which is beneficial.

Anyways....I would still love to have a Kindle...mainly for space issues. My husband and I are both avid readers and have two tall bookcases full of novels and I am simply running out of walls. With that said I am working on dropping hints about my Christmas present!

Skype

Wow...I really wish I had known about this tool earlier. I am not as impressed with the phone aspect of the program but more of the videoconferencing capabilities. For years Deaf and Hard of Hearing individuals have been paying money for video conferencing set-ups and what a waste of money now since Skype has come along.

This program would allow me to videoconference anybody that had the program. For example, the Director for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Programs that works at DPI. She is deaf and cannot communicate over the phone. It often takes her weeks to respond to emails if she responds at all. Now with Skype I could ease communication by calling her and we could sign through the videoconferencing aspects. Not to mention all of this is FREE.

I can't wait to let some people I know in the Deaf community know about this product and its abilities. This has a lot of potential for my classroom as well. I can now connect my students to other deaf students across the state, country, even world. Talk about global awareness, this is definitely a tool to support global awareness. There is no better way to learn about other cultures if you can't live upon them than to talk to them.

Various Software Programs

Today was probably the most beneficial day for me thus far in this class. Everything we have discussed to this point has been things that I have known and used personally but not necessarily in my classroom. Today, all of the tools with the exception of Animoto were new and exciting for me.

I am exceptionally thrilled and excited about the uses of Jing in my class. With this program I can create a variety of videos instructing my kids on how to do things without me being with them 24/7. This will be beneficial in allowing me time to focus on one child's needs while another works independently with the assistance of Jing. This program was just phenomenal. After creating my captioned video I went back and recorded it with Jing so that I will always have the captioned video, regardless of whether it is pulled off the Internet.

When comparing Animoto and Slide, I personally prefer Animoto. I felt that it had more to offer and was user friendly. I am probably just biased as I had used Animoto previously. They both have potential in the classroom. The students could use these to create projects. They could create an "All About Me" project at the beginning of the year that tells the class about them. They could also use Animoto to create a variety of videos related to other projects in class.

Voice Thread was neat. I was able to take a few pictures that I had floating around of my kids and an activity we did on the Humpty Dumpty nursery rhyme two years ago. By using the pictures and voice input I was able to create a neat little video that my kids would enjoy watching of themselves, while also getting exposure to the nursery rhyme. Some other uses would be for the students to create a video with voice input on a project or something they have studied to share with the class. For a child that is shy, this would be a great way for them to work in peace at home and then share without the nervous aspect in front of class.

The video captioning tools were interesting. I thought it would be more difficult to caption a video than it was. I was pleasantly surprised. This will definitely be a beneficial tool for my kids as they get older. I see this tool as more of an auditory exercise in my class. It was great practice for me in using my cochlear implants. Practice is something we never quit doing. People with cochlear implants are always practicing to improve what they hear. This would be a great way for my students to practice entering what they hear, and then perfecting it to the best of their ability.

All of these tools were excellent, and I am really excited about using these in my classroom in the future.

Social Bookmarking

Social bookmarking has been hiding from me and I wish I had known it. This is an awesome tool that allows me to bookmark sites quickly and efficiently without the hassle of school networks. There have been many times that I have found a site at home that I wanted to use at school. I had one of three ways to get it on my school computer. 1) write it down and hope I didn't mess up the URL. 2) Email the link to myself. 3) Search for the link again when I got to school.

With social bookmarking all of those steps are eliminated. I simply press a button, and the site is magically saved to my files online. Then when I get to school I can log onto the site and voila there is the website I wanted. I wish I had heard about this earlier. This has definitely made things easier for me.

One of the most beneficial uses I will get out of social bookmarking is being able to share with other teachers of the deaf. Very few of us exist and when we find a website we love we go through the trouble of emailing the link to all the teachers we know. With social bookmarking I can provide the URL and they can check periodically to see if I have anything new in my site.

This is also going to be a great tool for me when trying to find information on math, science, or social studies. These are not subjects that I teach other than a small unit here or there. With social bookmarking I can find out what sites others recommend without having to spend as much time searching myself.

Lots of possibilities.

Webquests--My Thoughts

Web-quests are an interesting way of incorporating class lessons and technology. I think web-quests would be a great thing to use for themed projects. In my class I don't focus a lot of academics, but when I do I think using web-quests would be a great way to do it.

I am debating creating web-quests for the few academic lessons that I will teach throughout the year. I will be teaching a lot of science this year to my kids and I think web-quests will be a great way to incorporate science and technology to make learning fun for my kids.

My students take a little longer than average students to learn things related to various factors. Therefore I think by using a web-quests for academic units I could help myself by planning one really good lesson that covers a larger time span and provides a multitude of activities and experiences all of which might not be done online.

I am also considering creating some web-quests related to the literature that one of my students will be learning in reading. He does not receive enough background and support in class alone. Through web-quests and a variety of other activities I could provide him with background knowledge about the person before he studies them in class. This would make his experience more successful, however this also requires proper notice from the classroom teacher to enable me to create the lessons properly.

Threaded Discussions

Threaded discussions are great for using when conversing about particular topics. The most beneficial feature of a threaded discussion is the visuals that are provided. When looking at the discussions you can tell who is responding where based on the lines that connect the replies to the post that is being responded to.

I had a hard time thinking of a way to use threaded discussions in my classroom. Then one of my peers mentioned through the threaded discussion were were having about putting up questions of the day for students to answer.

In my classroom I could post a few questions for the week and have the students respond at their pace. I would have to assist one student in entering his responses, but that would not take a long period of time.

If I use this tool in my classroom, I would post questions such as...
1) What did you do this weekend?
2) What is one thing you learned about last week?
3) What is something you want to learn about this week?
4) What is something you have heard about, that you want to learn more?

I would ask a variety of questions about different things to guide possible units for vocabulary instruction in my classroom, as well as other things. My students lack in world knowledge so this would be a way to find out what they might be interested in to explore further.

I also considered using this with one of my higher students. We usually read a book together throughout the week focusing on comprehension. I thought about possibly putting up some things to think about or questions at the beginning of a unit and have him answer as he is ready. I could then respond to him via the discussion. I think this would also help with his spelling/grammar if I could find a threaded discussion that had an automatic spell check program. He is able to recognize the correct word, but not always write it.

It has some potential that I am interested in exploring within my class. I don't know what works till I try.

Tweet Tweet--Using Twitter in the classroom

I will say that I was surprised to read on the syllabus that we were going to use Twitter. I have avoided this program like the plague since it came out. I did not understand all the hype about it and I am still not sure I do.

So I took the journey...not my choice and explored Twitter. My verdict...it's not too bad. Twitter is more time efficient for updates than Facebook. This is mainly because on Facebook you have to scroll all the way down through people's updates and all the comments to them, etc. Not to mention, some of the updates posted on Facebook can be rather lengthy.

So with that in mind I do like Twitter from the aspect of speed with reading updates. I can scroll through and see what I want to about certain people without having as much excess stuff to read. However I don't particularly care for the set-up of Twitter. With Facebook everything is together, the update is followed by the comments. In Twitter it can be difficult at times to follow the updates because they are not linked together, especially if it is a response to another person.

Could I use Twitter in my classroom. Honestly, I don't see a way at the moment. I am still pondering this thought. I only have two students that I am with regularly and I don't think either of them would get benefit out of using Twitter to update things.

If anyone has ideas...I would love to hear them.

Blogging about blogging

The article (Zwalinski) I read today in class talked about four different uses of blogs within a classroom. They were used to share news with parents, mirror blogs (reflecting on one's thinking), showcase blogs (used to display student work), and literature response blogs (used to respond to literature in class). All of these were interesting uses of blogs in a classroom that had never crossed my mind. When trying to transfer what I read to my classroom I had difficulty thinking of uses.

While this was a challenge for me, I did think of two ways that I could use blogs in my class. I could use a blog as a method of keeping in touch with my students' parents. I already write in their school-to-home journals daily, and I talk to the parents on the phone at least twice a week. However blogging could provide a more time efficient manner of communication for both myself and the parents. Through a classroom blog I could let them know when field trips are coming up, or what permission slips need to be returned as well as a short note about how the day went in general.

I visualize getting more use out of a blog in my room through letting the parents know ahead of time about the units we will be studying in class. Most of my units are themed and focus on particular vocabulary. If I structured the blog well I could provide the parents with vocabulary to start using at home without providing any identifying information that would breach confidentiality based on IEPs.

For example:
The vocabulary I teach is tiered based upon difficulty and frequency of use in language. If the parents know what tier their child is on, I could then list the words for each tier without anyone knowing where the kids are other than the parents. I would not have to identify a specific child.

I am curious about this possiblity of using a blog to let parents know what vocabulary to start using because this would save me about an hour and a half a week that I spend writing the information in their personal journals. I am going to explore this further, and hopefully start getting a blog set up.

What is Literacy?

I view literacy as a tool for communication. I feel that communication and therefore literacy has four parts: reading, writing, speaking, listening. In my experience as a teacher I have found that you need all four aspects to be considered literate by the world. However, the question I am often asking is “Is one part more important than the other?”

What if there is a Deaf child that cannot hear or speak (they use ASL to communicate at school and home). But imagine if that child also cannot read or write. What are the implications of not being able to complete any of the four tasks I have listed as a part of literacy? The implications are major...to the extent of being isolated in your own world and therefore not literate.
What does this all mean....if there are four parts of literacy: reading, writing, listening, and speaking then which is the most important? Is it more important to be able to read than to speak? To listen rather than write? This is the question I ask because on a daily basis I work with a child that essentially cannot read or write and he is 12 years old. Yet he cannot speak fluent sentences either. Most of his sentences are three words long, and they are not usually grammatically correct. He can listen, but he doesn't always understand and you have to talk to him in five word utterances. So, is this child literate? No, not in my opinion. But what skill do I target? Do I try to teach him to talk correctly so that he can be understood and have his wants/needs met? Do I teach him to read so he can fill out medical forms, or a job application? Do I teach him to write so he can pay his bills? Most people would say that you should teach all of the skills...and I agree and do teach them. But is there one skill that has dominance over the others? You tell me...

What is Technology?

Technology is an amazing thing that appears to have no end. Technology is constantly improving, almost on a daily basis. Technology is many things. When I think about technology I think of computers, cell phones, televisions, and many of the things that we encounter in our daily lives. I also think about cochlear implants and hearing aids, which is a form of technology that a small portion of our society has experience with. I also think about sites such as Facebook, Myspace, Animoto, Twitter, etc.

All of the things I have mentioned above are various forms of technology that occur in different formats. But what is technology? Is it a computer, a software program, or some foreign object that we have no sense of? There is not an easy answer to this question as responses will vary for everyone. For an individual living in a third world country a telephone is considered the best thing ever, while to those with access to vast amounts of technology it is considered to be nothing.

I view technology as a tool for achieving something. In cochlear implants and hearing aids it is a tool to help someone hear. With computers it is a tool to help someone complete a task whether it is type a paper, or create a presentation. Software is a tool to help someone complete a specific task based upon what the software targets. For example, Animoto is software to help people create videos.

So how can we use this tool called technology? This tool can be used in many ways. It can be used as a means to an end in creating a project. It can be used as a tool to increase a child’s interest or knowledge in something. It can be used to communicate with people across the globe in a matter of seconds. It can be used to facilitate learning in a classroom.

In a sense technology is everything we use in this day and age. Almost everything we use as consumers is created through some form of technology, whether it is the machine that builds cars or the machine that sprays pesticide on vegetables. Both are created through some use of technology.

What matters is how we take this new technology that is available such as blogs, wikis, etc and teach our children to use it effectively as a means to an end depending on the final product they are trying to achieve.

Who am I?

My name is Lauren Fowlkes. I am currently the Teacher of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing for Avery County Schools in the mountains of NC. I have three students (all boys) in 2nd and 5th grade. People often think I am talking about my personal children when I talk about my students because we have great relationships that most teacher's don't get to experience. I am starting my third year with these kids...let's just say I will be sad when they graduate high school (I will have been with my oldest kids for 1o years by then). Not only do I have relationships with the kids but also with their families whom I talk to almost daily. I have very close connections to Deaf Education, mainly due to my own experience going through a public school system as a deaf child. It was not easy for me and I understand the struggles that my students face. My students also appreciate that I can relate to them in having to deal with changing batteries, and technology failures related to our hearing devices, etc. They are not afraid to tell me they can't hear, as I do to them when I can't hear them.

I have been married to my husband Kevin for two years now and we currently reside in Marion, NC. We are looking forward to starting a family after I finish my master's program. In my free time...that doesn't really exist at the moment I love to play my tuba. I have a minor in music and studied tuba for several years under some great tubists. This is definitely my favorite past time. I also love to read. I have read 6 books this summer, and I have one more that I want to read before school starts back in three weeks.

I am completing my master's program in Reading at Appalachian State University in Boone, NC. I plan to graduate in May 2010. I decided to pursue a master's in reading because of the experiences that are typical for Deaf students. Traditionally deaf students graduate high school reading at a 4th grade level....why? No one seems to know. I am determined to figure this out and help as many Deaf children as I can achieve beyond this level and be able to read.

After completing my masters degree I plan to continue my education. Right now I am in limbo with what I want to study. I am debating going back and getting my PhD in Deaf Education and continuing to develop my knowledge base there. However lately I have been thinking about going on to UNC Chapel Hill and getting my AuD in Audiology due to my interest in cochlear implants. Since being implanted I have developed an interest in the technology behind implants and how they affect children and the reading process. Sounds are not the same as they are with regular hearing and for a child that has never heard normally...I am curious how this translates into their reading skills. Most of this interest has been developed through my students and noticing the things they do and don't understand in regards to sound.

As technology is a large focus within this class I will address my comfort and experience with technology. When working with technology related to hearing loss such as hearing aids, cochlear implants, soundfield systems, personal FM systems, and TTYs I am more than comfortable. I deal with these aspects of technology on a daily basis so they are second nature to me. Computers are also not a stranger to me. I can usually locate and solve most computer problems thanks to my husband. I am comfortable with various programs that can be used both within a classroom and personally. I am comfortable navigating all of the social networking sites such as Facebook, MySpace, etc. I am comfortable with programs such as Microsoft Office (all parts), creating web pages, blogs, web quests, photostory. One of my favorite programs I have come across recently is Animoto. I used this program at the end of the year with my students and a project they completed on their favorite animals. After they completed the research, and created their pinatas they had to create a video that documented the process. My students loved completing this project and creating the video to take home and share with their families.