Teachers are everywhere these days. They can be found teaching languages at home, teaching Yoga on the beach, teaching kids who are sick or disabled. There are so many types of teachers these days, so it is important to have cool gadgets that are interactive to help them teach better. Here is a list of ten tools that you will really like if you are a teacher!
Below is a list of some of the best free tools teachers and students can use to create awesome slideshow and presentations.
1- Knovio
Knovio gives life to static slides and with a simple click you will be able to turn them into rich video and audio presentations that you can share with your friends and colleagues via email or popular social media websites. Knovio does not require any software installation or download, it is all web based.
2- Ahead
Ahead is a great presentation tool for educators. It works in such a way that it instantly transforms your layouts into a zooming presentation. Check it out its is great.
3- HelloSlide
HelloSlide is a cool web tool that allows its users to create awesome slides together with voice narration.
4- Jux
Jux is one of the best showcase for your stories. You can embed videos and photos from your hard drive or from a URL.
5- Slidestaxx
Slidestaxx is a great presentation tool. It allows its users to create amazing social media slideshows. You can now gather media from different sources and put them together in an engaging slideshow using Slidestaxx to embed it in your blog, website or wiki.
6- Present.me
It allows its users to record and share their presentations using their webcams.
7- PhotoPeach
PhotoPeach is a free online service that allows it users to create media rich slideshows.What i like the most about this tool is the fact that it supports background music .Integrating audio into photo slideshows makes them quite engaging and presentable
8- Slideboom
Slideboom is a slide hosting service where you can store your presentations and share them with the rest of the world.
9- Zentation
Zentation is one of the best video presentation tools . It combines both videos and slides into presentations making out of them engaging pieces of multimedia in education .
10- Slidesix
It enables users to share multimedia presentations using a rich web based application where they “ they can import presentation material and personalize their message by narrating each slide with video or audio.”
11- Zoho Show
It helps you create interactive presentations using simple yet sophisticated tools .It has several features that sets it apart from other presentation applications.
12- Prezentit
It allows its users to create alone or with others , share and show online memorable presentations . It is a very handy tool that we can use with our students .
13- Popplet
Popplet is a unique web2.0 tool . It is one of the best applications for visual ideas . It combines presentations , mindmapping and online bulletins.
14- Prezi
Prezi is a cloud-based presentation software that opens up a new world between whiteboards and slides. The zoomable canvas makes it fun to explore ideas …
- SlideShare: A very popular tool for sharing Powerpoint presentations and more, online, or embed them in your blog or website.
- ZohoShow: Kind of similar to Powerpoint, but free, and online.
- Glogster: This link will take you right to Glogster’s Basic (free) plan for Educators.
- Fotobabble: Create talking photos with Fotobabble! I haven’t tried this yet, but I here’s an example of a Fotobabble talking photo by”Becky4477″ – looks like a simple tool for adding as voice-over to pictures (they have a free iPhone app too).
- Prezi: With Prezi, you create graphical presentations that you can easily zoom in and out of, to “get the big picture”, or “drill into the details”.
- Voki: The idea behind Voki is to use a talking avatar to make your presentation. Click here to read a post about Voki that includes a video demonstration of the creation of a Voki avatar.
- Vuvox: I had a lot of fun creating this music video with the help of Vuvox last year, and selected it as the first app we covered in the workshop. You can add text, pics, and embedded “hot links”, over a bed of music, to make your scrolling presentation. [SADLY, VUVOX IS NO MORE … THEY SHUT DOWN SERVICES IN LATE 2013 – Ed.]
- OneTrueMedia: We took this one for a try this week – definitely easier to use than Vuvox (but I was also a little dissapointed by some of the limitations in the free version).
There a lot of great apps and tools you can use to make powerful and engaging presentations. Take a note of these 7 useful apps for you and your students.
1. ShowMe
Screencasting is a great way for teachers to present materials to their class. It is simple for students to create their own presentations as well. You can record screen and voice as you write, draw, or annotate an image. An amazing feature also captured the action of writers on digital whiteboards, as well as your voice while you write. The app is free and a great choice for Apple users.
2. Canva
Visual design is an important aspect of a great presentation. You can customize your slide designs with Canva. You can make calendars, posters, cards, and more – which can be useful for your presentation. There’s an iPad app which has a presentation slide option where you can also adjust custom dimensions. It has a cool repository of images, shapes, backgrounds, and text options you can choose to customize your presentation.
3. Haiku Deck
Another student-friendly app is the Haiku Deck, which lets you create minimalist presentation slides with a photo background and text. The app has a rich gallery of images to choose from. You can also upload your own photos. If you want to create a presentation which focuses on images, rather than text, Haiku Deck is the perfect tool for you. You can share teaching points or give short writing prompts to your students using this presentation app.
4. Nearpod
A fantastic BYOD (bring your own device) resource for educators is the Nearpod. You can design your own interactive presentation and your students can view it on their iPads. Elements such as quiz polls or drawing a response, students can interact with your presentations.
5. Keynote
Choose from dozens of themes to set the tone of your presentation with Keynote. You can add graphics, layer images, and customize the font of the text in every slide. You can also add animation and transitions, as well as include presenter’s notes. What’s even more amazing is that it’s free for iPad users.
6. Prezi
Prezi is an app that uses a single canvas instead of slides. All information goes on one page instead of separate slides. Pathways are options to connect and arrange your presentation in your desired order. Pre-made presentations are also included among the features of this app, you can easily explore them.
7. SnapGuide
Want to create simple, how-to presentations for your class? SnapGuide is the free app for you. You can create your own multi-step guides that include text, images, and video. You can take pictures or videos straight from your iPad camera or import from your camera roll. You can present instructions, directions, or expectations to your class, and it’s simple enough for students to create their own.
Conclusion
Are you a teacher looking to create some interactive lesson plans? Did you know you don’t have to spend hundreds on software. There are some great free interactive presentation apps out there which you can use instead.