Favorite Things Giveaway #2 - PowerPoint Clicker!

Wow!  Long time no blog!  I have been super busy with my new group of kiddos.  I am happy to report that they are a great bunch and we are off to a super start.  It has been a month since my last Favorite Things Giveaway, so I had to return to the blog and get busy!  Each month this year, I will be posting one of my favorite things and giving it away!  This month, I am so excited to giveaway one of my favorite little gadgets - my PowerPoint clicker!  I think this is probably my most used piece of technology, but I am surprised by how many teachers have never heard of them!  Here is the breakdown:

What is it?  
This little gadget lets you click through powerpoint presentations from anywhere in your classroom.  It comes with a little part that looks like a jumpdrive and plugs into your computer.  The actual clicker looks like a small remote control.  It has just a few buttons.  Mine has a laser pointer on the end.  I picked mine up at Target and I think it was around $25.

Why do we need it?
You can be ANYWHERE in your room and still control the board!  Here are some ways that I use the clicker in my room:

• I use these when I read scanned books to my class.  I am able to sit on the floor with them and flip through the pages of the book.  To read more about scanning books, click here!  

• We play games with it!  This is especially fun with my Alpha-Stretch games!  I have my kids stand in a circle and give one kid the clicker.  I turn on an Alpha-Stretch with the setting "Click to Advance".  The student holding the clicker must think of a word that begins with the letter on the board.  The whole class does the movement that goes with the letter.  After the student with the clicker says a word, he presses the button to advance to the next letter and gives the clicker to the student next to him.  Once we have gone through the alphabet, we do it again and try to beat our time.  I love this game before holiday parties!  It keeps them engaged and gives them a chance to move around.  To learn more about Alpha-Stretch games, check out this video: 

• We also use the clicker during morning songs.  My star student gets to hold the clicker and advance through the songs for us.  This helps morning songs run without me.  To read more about morning songs, click here!  

Other tips for using a PowerPoint Clicker:

• Sometimes, my clicker wanders off.  I hot glued a magnet to the back of it and keep it on my board next to my computer.  This ensures that we can find the clicker when we need it! 
• Kids can get confused by the buttons.  I used a little bit of red and green nail polish to mark the forward and back buttons.  Green means "GO" to the next slide.  Red means "STOP" and go back!  Why nail polish?  It stays put way longer than regular paint and is opaque enough to cover the writing on the buttons.  

And now...The moment we have all been waiting for...THE GIVEAWAY!!!!

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