
Teachers find value in lesson activities, Lesson Activity Toolkit and question sets
CALGARY, Alberta --- February 18, 2009 --- SMART Technologies announces that its English-language lesson activities, the Lesson Activity Toolkit for SMART Notebook software, and its question sets for the Senteo™ interactive response system were downloaded more than 1,500,000 times in 2008. Teachers who increasingly rely on classroom technology to deliver high-quality, engaging lessons are always looking for content that can help them get the most from their products. The download numbers confirm the value of SMART’s readily accessible, curriculum-correlated digital resources for teachers, which are available at no charge from SMART’s education website.
SMART Notebook lesson activities are created by teachers or curriculum resource developers. They are all curriculum correlated and designed to be flexible enough to meet the needs of a variety of educators. All lesson activities can be easily modified once they are downloaded, enabling both new and experienced teachers to customize activities for the particular needs of their students. For teachers who want to create their own lessons or convert paper-based material into digital content, the Lesson Activity Toolkit helps them do so. It guides teachers through the process of creating their own lessons using SMART Notebook software. The toolkit also helps educators create new material using manipulatives available in the SMART Notebook Gallery or through other content providers. Question sets for the Senteo interactive response system are also curriculum correlated. They reduce the amount of time it takes to create tests and help teachers assess student comprehension during lessons. Students’ answers to the question sets are tallied immediately, so teachers know right away where each student is excelling or struggling. The lesson activities and question sets are available without charge at education.smarttech.com/ste/en-US/Ed+Resource, and new ones, covering all subjects and grade levels, are continually being added. In 2009, thousands of additional resources will be developed and made available to teachers.
“I used to download the lesson activities all the time when I was in the classroom, and I encourage our teachers to do so now,” says Brad Evans, a counselor at Holbrook Elementary in Houston, Texas. “I found that the lesson activities were easily accessible, covered a variety of topics and fit any learning style.”
“High-quality digital education resources for SMART Notebook, the Senteo interactive response system and other SMART products are essential for the millions of teachers and students who use our products every day,” says Nancy Knowlton, SMART’s CEO. “SMART’s content and resources help to ensure greater student engagement, understanding and results.”