Students love digital whiteboards, also known as touchscreens, because they are the best way to make lessons engaging and fun. A digital whiteboard makes it easier for students to interact with their classmates by drawing together on the board or working on different tasks simultaneously. Plus, digital whiteboards come with so many helpful features like browsers, screensharing, and apps! This article will take you through the 12 reasons your school should have interactive digital whiteboards in your classroom.
Reason 1: Large screen makes the content clear and easier to read.
With digital whiteboards, the screen is larger than traditional boards which means that students can see everything very clearly. This makes it much easier to read and understand what’s on the board. The antiglare on the screen blocks the sunlight during the warmer months, ensuring that all the students in the room can clearly see the screen. Suppose you are a Microsoft school, then you can take full advantage of Immersive Reader built into most Microsoft applications. Using this tool, front of class, ensures that students with sight issues can also learn through hearing the text played on the digital whiteboard. Digital whiteboards are a vital tool for delivering accessibility in the classroom.
Reason 2: The digital whiteboard gives your classroom a modern look & feel.
There’s nothing more exciting than technology. Students have become visibly ecstatic when a CommBox is brought into the classroom. Parents want to make sure that their child has access to the most sophisticated technology in the classroom. The ideal method for a teacher to construct engaging classes is with a digital whiteboard. Every time you show lesson material, pictures, or movies on a digital whiteboard, it feels akin to working on a fresh digital canvas with limitless possibilities. For a teacher, everything you need to enable your students to learn is simply a click away.
Reason 3: Interactive digital whiteboards allow students to work more collaboratively with their classmates and teacher.
Together, the digital whiteboard makes it easy for teachers and students to share information that is related to the lesson. Screensharing enables two-way collaboration. The teacher will be sharing content on the screen during a lesson, at any time the teacher can request that a student shares their work up to the screen. With CommBox Connect, more than one student can share their work at a time. Showcasing student work is an effective teaching method. It helps students who are struggling to see how other students have addressed the activity.
Reason 4: Digital whiteboards can be utilized as an interactive teaching tool, transforming dull to fascinating.
On a digital whiteboard, there are many different kinds of interactive tools that a teacher may use. The built-in tools on a CommBox Classic are the first place to start. The CommBox Classic comes with built in timer, planner, stopwatch, reveal to hide content from the students and lots more. Teachers can use interactive manipulative tools available online to help students to learn visually.
Annotation is very important for learning. It helps students to reflect on their learning and connect with course content. The CommBox Classic Interactive screen allows teachers to annotate over everything on the screen. Teachers can highlight important paragraphs, extrapolate and make connections with previous content. In this way teachers can also use digital ink to write notes, ideas and share learning activities with the students.
Reason 5: digital whiteboards come with loads of apps that make learning fun and engaging for students.
The CommBox Classic digital whiteboard come with a library of apps, so you can use them to promote creativity and engage students. The apps can be found in the CommBox store. CommBox has gathered a list of Android applications or web applications that are both entertaining and educational for children. Find apps like Reading Eggs, ABC Online, and many more. You can visit the CommBox store here to see our range of applications – store.commbox.com.au. We are adding more applications to the store all the time.
Reason 6: Connect with other students, digital whiteboards are powerful tools that you can use for remote support and collaboration with other students and teachers.
A digital whiteboard can be used to connect to others. This means it is an excellent tool for sharing ideas, lesson plans, or screencasts remotely. Connect your digital board through the browser on laptops, tablets or smartphones – any device really. During COVID-19 the digital whiteboard has played a pivotal role in bringing remote students into the classroom. The CommBox Classic is software agnostic, so you can use whatever video conferencing software you prefer. Many schools are using Microsoft Teams and Google Meet. When COVID-19 becomes a thing of the past, we hope that schools will use this technology to meet with our schools to encourage connection and learning with students from other places.
Reason 7: Built-in browser feature makes it easier to find resources online on the digital board itself (and saves time).
The CommBox Classic comes with two built-in browsers, one of which is the Chrome browser. Web browsing is helpful in class because it gives you access to everything on the internet. You can search for images or videos that relate to your current topic. Many teachers use Youtube at the front of the class to show relevant content. Embed Youtube videos on Onenote or other LMS software for a seamless experience at the front of the classroom.
Reason 8: Even your students can operate the whiteboard because it is so simple to use.
The digital whiteboard comes with an incredibly user-friendly interface. When you first plug in your digital board, it will be ready for use within minutes! All the features are self-explanatory and straightforward – no need for lengthy installation manuals or complicated tutorials. It’s so simple that your students can walk up and use the board. When you think of the digital whiteboard, imagine a giant tablet. You may allow your pupils to use the built-in whiteboard safely, search for information, or create a presentation.
Reason 9: empowers students to feel confident with technology and digital resources.
Empower students with technology and digital resources. The only way you can feel confident with something is to use it. Technology is now embedded into every aspect of our life. Students need to use technology as part of their learning. Feeling confident presenting your work front of the class on a large screen, helps prepare students for life outside of school.
Reason 10: digital whiteboards are portable and easy to set up.
Digital whiteboards can be mounted onto mobile stands. This allows the teacher to set up the screen in the correct position for each activity. This is great for group work as well. For example, you can divide your class in groups and then the screen can be wheeled between groups or students that move around stations, one of which has the screen. In this way, the digital whiteboard can be integrated into most classroom activities. This is particularly relevant for IB programs that do inquiry-based learning.
Reason 11: A digital whiteboard works with all existing learning content.
If you use Canvas, Blackboard, Google Classroom, Nearpod, Education Perfect or any other LMS or Interactive teaching tool, then you can use it with a CommBox Classic. You can show this content on the digital whiteboard using screensharing or via the browser. This makes it easier for students who are used to working within these applications because the same tool they use everyday, is also being shown at the front of the classroom. As teacher this means that all your existing teaching materials can still be used with a digital whiteboard.
Reason 12: Play games during downtime in the classroom.
We know that there are moments when students need a little downtime, or it might be a rainy day and the students are kept inside at lunch break. Try spending the downtime in a fun learning experience but enabling the students to use the digital whiteboard to play an educational game! There are a host of game apps on the digital whiteboard that students can plays. CommBox has create a suite of games for K1-2 and some maths games for upper primary.
If you’d like to learn more about the CommBox Classic digital whiteboard, contact us now for a demonstration.