The Inspiration program allows students to learn and understand new topics in a simple, visual, and interactive way. It is incredibly easy to use, and through it students will fell in control and have fun while improving their organizational thinking, computer and writing skills, and vocabulary. Users may use various tools included in the program such as the world guide, which is a dictionary and thesaurus, word applications, brainstorm feature, hyperlink, and multimedia abilities, ready-to-complete project templates, and even text-to-speech capabilities! Students can create their own graphic organizers using their own or projected pictures, then add their own notes and multimedia to enhance their ideas - then with just the click of the mouse turn their thoughts into an essay outline! This program is especially helpful to language learners or those students with disabilities, as the simplicity, organization, and multimedia features allow all children to connect and
learn.
Would you ever use Inspiration (or the primary-grade version - Kidspiration) in your classroom? What types of projects do you think you might use it with? How might the program help those students that were previously struggling with a particular topic (you pick) achieve? Can you think of an example lesson with which you might use the Inspiration software?
I would definitely use Inspiration in my classroom as a resource for organization. I like the use of colors and graphics and how it can relate to the students and the particular lesson. I would teach how to organize thoughts so that the students will be able to do so on their own without relying on a computer to do so. But once I have gone over this with my students, I would use the program to enhance their understanding of how organization helps their writing. I would use it with many lessons, including essay writing, science topic organization, historical recap, etc. When the students have a visual organizer that helps them organize their thoughts, they can better understand a topic they struggle with. Whether the student is ESL, has an ISP, or just learns differently, they can use pictures and graphics to grasp a concept.
ReplyDeleteThis definitely seems like something that I could use in my own classroom. I think the way that it can meld computers into learning is interesting. Especially with essay preparation, I think that kids sometimes have trouble organizing their thoughts, so this seems like a useful tool to use in order to clear up confusion. I think that I would mainly use this for writing, and this is because it can organize things for the students in a clear and easy manner. I also think that along with improve the skills in writing, they are also learning to type, which I think is an important skill. I think that programs like this can be very helpful in class, and if students have a difficult time with a specific way of learning, this software seems like it offers several ways for students to learn. The visual component is the part that I like best, I think that visuals can reinforce something that the student might not understand the first time the teacher says it.
ReplyDeleteBoth inspiration and Kidspiration can be very useful tools in the classroom. As a PE instructor I would not have a chance to use it, but I can see how it is beneficial in the normal classroom setting. In my experience I have learned that children need variety in the way they are taught. This provides yet another way to reach out to students who might struggle with basic lecture lessons. I am a visual learner. I need to see things performed or written down before i completely understand the purpose. English was a difficult subject and having the visual aids could have made my learning experience better! This is a great tool!
ReplyDeleteI was lucky enough to use this software with a group of kids I was working with last summer and I have to admit that it was such a wonderful program to have. It is so easy to use and implement into the classroom and it allows students to creatively interact with what they are learning. In saying this, I would definitely implement kidspiration into my classroom. I can use the program when working with various topics, for example history or language arts, since it allows students to use various tools, like thinking maps, which can help them to organize ideas and present information effectively.
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ReplyDeleteJust last semester I took the Computer class, and I focused a lot of my projects around kidspiration and inspiration! I used the free-trial and found it to be very hands-on, which would allow the students to understand the material even more. It is also a great program for ELL students, because they can visually see their work. When i used it, I focused a lot on the math one, which was very visual and very helpful, as well as the writing program, which allowed the students to build thinking maps and prepare them for the actual writing process! Great program!
ReplyDeleteKidspiration and inspiration are not programs that I have used before, but I have seen presentations in which people have used them. They are definitely beneficial because they make learning more visually pleasing and exciting for students. They also make it incredibly easy for teachers and students alike to create graphic organizers, such as flow charts and bubble maps. I will definitely be using these programs in my own classroom!
ReplyDeleteI learned about this in a computer class, and we used it to teach a lesson to our class. It was really fun to use actually, because it has so many graphics, and makes it fun to organize your work. I think that every school should have software like this. It is an awesome tool for all students, and can help students who are maybe having a harder time with writing. The graphics just make it more fun.... if not for the student, for the teacher too!
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