The school year is officially in full swing. I got called to work today.
I got to do something today that I have never done before. I gave a Power Point presentation.
The class was criminalistics (or forensic science or whatever they're calling it now). The juniors and seniors are required to take an extra year of science, and this is a popular choice. It's the CSI craze.
The lesson plan instructed me to find the Power Point file on the classroom computer. I was told that everything was already hooked up, and sure enough, it was. I'm well-versed in using the projectors, so it took me little time to get it all going (and good thing as I didn't have all that much time to get it set up).
However, presenting someone else's Power Point cold is a bit of a challenge. I read the slides. The students copied down the information. I spent my time guessing what would come up next when I pressed the forward button. Would I get another bullet point? Would I get a picture? Would the next slide come up? (I had to be careful with that one as some of them copied notes slower than others.)
The first time through (I had three periods of this class), the bell rang just as the last slide came up. (Oops, my clock was 2 minutes slow.) The second time through, things went a bit more smoothly. I knew what was coming.
The last time through was for 6th period. I could tell that I was losing them as the end approached. But of course this was 6th period. 6th period is always a bit squirrelly.
This was so much nicer than giving them some random review worksheet. They were kept busy all period. They learned something new (as did I). So, I didn't have all the behavior issues that could have come up. I wish more teachers would leave such things for us subs.
Thursday, September 9, 2010
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Giving a powerpoint presentation you didn't create is a challenge. Great that you did it!
ReplyDeleteI wish they gave subs training on powerpoint, Smart Boards, and any other technology we'll be expected to use.
It was fun to do. So much better than a boring worksheet.
ReplyDeleteI've gotten plenty of on the job training in the technology. Interestingly enough, the first time I was expected to use a projector, the teacher left detailed instructions, so it was kind of like a training. However, those teachers that have Smart Boards don't let us subs anywhere near them.