Spark up your classroom and link things like never before

How do your students present information?  Do they use PowerPoint, Keynote, or Google Slides?  Well, maybe the next time you assign a presentation you will give Adobe Spark or Thinglink a try.  

First, let’s look at Adobe Spark as a presentation tool.  While you can narrate using the other presentation tools, Adobe has really simplified the process making it practical for even K-5 students.  You simply click and hold to record and if you want to start again you simply repeat the process.  “As little or no typing is needed, younger children, even preschoolers, find Spark Video easy and accessible.” (“Adobe Spark,” 2017)  When you have finished narrating over all of your slides you can share via link, email, Twitter, Facebook, embedding, or download as an mp4 file to upload to YouTube or another video broadcasting service.  The simplistic style is also continued with modifying slides as there are simple layouts, colors, and themes to pick from.  You can even add music or Creative Commons licensed images to your slides with ease.  With its K-5 friendly platform I can envision using Adobe Spark in all my classrooms grades 2-6.  I can exchange many of my Google Slide lessons with Adobe Spark to create digital stories, technology research reports, and explanations as to how things work.

Next I ask you, “When is the last time you interacted with an image?”  You would probably say the closest you come to this is when you use a map.  Well, Thinglink makes your images interactive with simply inserting the dot icon and then entering of a link.  Links can be images, videos, websites, plain text, or even Google Documents.  Once an interactive image is created it can be shared by embedding, linking, or posting with many social media websites.  The website takes on very little of your personal information when signing up for a free account so it can be used in a K-5 environment with parental consent.  “Our services are available to people of all ages, but children under thirteen should only use the service under the supervision of their parents or guardians.” (“Thinglink Acceptable Use,” 2016) I can envision using Thinglink as a way for students to customize background images that I share with them.  For instance, I could give the students an image with several input and output devices displayed.  Then I could have them customize the content that would demonstrate their use.  This might be videos, images, or websites.  I also like the idea of being able to label technology products by text with Thinglink like Jon Jarc was able to do with an Excel window. (Jarc, 2012) Lastly, you can use Thinglink to be a one stop place for your lesson by adding the content, questions, and activities and sharing this link with the students.

While these tools are great additions to the presentation tools that already exist, presenting skills must be taught as well.  “Remember the expression KISS: ‘Keep It Simple Silly!’” (Russell & Shriner, 2001)  With my own presentation creations for my Wilkes Masters course in Web 2.0 technologies, I had to remember in presenting less is more.  The feature in Adobe Spark helped me keep my narrations to under ten seconds.  Equally, “when you use simple, image-based slides to support your message, your audience can better grasp the information you're communicating.” (“Creating Effective Presentation,” n.d.)  Adobe Spark also helps with this by not allowing additional images to be added to slide so you need to think about each image you will select.  My Thinglink images also were extremely valuable as I developed my interactive image to be the focal point of a project involving sixth graders application of the design process.
Personally, Thinglink and Adobe Spark will tie in nicely with my districts use of Chromebooks. Both Thinglink and Adobe Spark allow signup with a Google Account. Thinglink is very friendly with the Google environment in that you can copy and paste links to documents from your drive. The only difficulty I see with this might be students not being allowed to make their documents public which is required for the link to work. I will have to test this out with students in September. Adobe Spark video creations can be shared in several ways so I will have to test out the best practices for this one.
In conclusion, Adobe Spark and Thinglink are great additions to any classroom. Nevertheless, teachers must remember the importance of developing great presenters as well as presentation tool users.

References

Adobe Spark - A Guide for Educators. (2017, February 20). Retrieved July 23, 2017, from https://adobespark.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/article_attachments/115006758688/Adobe_Spark_Edu_Guide.pdf

Can students use Adobe Spark? (n.d.). Retrieved July 23, 2017, from https://adobespark.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/219243657-Can-students-use-Adobe-Spark-

Creating Effective Presentation Visuals: Connecting People With Your Message. (n.d.). Retrieved July 23, 2017, from https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/creating-presentation-visuals.htm

Discovery Education, . Close up of Sad Girl. [Image]. Retrieved July 23, 2017, from http://www.discoveryeducation.com/
Jarc, J. (2012). Excel Desktop Interactive. Retrieved July 23, 2017, from https://www.thinglink.com/scene/327460450469937153#tlsite

Russell, M. A., & Shriner, W. M. (2001, May 20). Creating Effective PowerPoint Presentations. Retrieved July 23, 2017, from http://www.gst-d2l.com/TLC/TLCProj.html#S3

Thinglink Acceptable Use Policy. (2016, February 26). Retrieved July 23, 2017, from https://www.thinglink.com/terms