Digital Whiteboards
Digital whiteboards are core tools for online SI. Digital whiteboards allow students to draw diagrams, demonstrate problems, and keep notes. They can also help students collaborate, keep track of their progress, and demonstrate their own understanding of the topic or assignment. Below are a few different digital whiteboards available to you.
Zoom Whiteboard
Zoom already has a whiteboard feature that comes standard with Zoom Pro accounts. The whiteboard is available to you when you begin your Zoom session under the "Share Screen" menu on the bottom; the "Whiteboard" is one of the options you can pick.
Zoom lets you and your students annotate and add text, draw, add certain stamps stamps, and more. (NOTE that you must adjust the settings to allow participants to annotate in the Meeting Controls bar on the bottom of your screen.) The downside to Zoom's whiteboard is that it will not automatically save your whiteboard. Instead, you have to manually save the whiteboard as an image file and distribute it to your students after your meeting.
Google Jamboard
Jamboard is a digital whiteboard app included in your Google account. Like the Zoom Whiteboard, Jamboard allows multiple users to draw and annotate on the same board. Further, Jamboard allows users to pull in images from Google search as well as content from their Google Drive. Jamboards are also automatically saved to the owner's cloud.
Students are able to work on Jamboard without having to share your screen on Zoom. SI Leaders have used Jamboards effectively for activities utilizing breakout rooms, by creating individual boards for each student group during SI, and then sharing all boards to the entire class at the end of the session. Jamboard also allows for multiple "boards" within the same Jamboard to give users more space.
Microsoft Whiteboard
Microsoft Whiteboard is another free, online whiteboard app for Microsoft Users. Much like Jamboard, multiple users can collaborate on the same space and can annotate with the draw tool and text. Whiteboard can also pull content from Bing. Users can share a copy of their whiteboard easily through email or their OneDrive account.
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/microsoft-whiteboard/digital-whiteboard-app
Collaborative Digital Spaces
While digital whiteboards will most likely be your go-to resource for having students work collaborative in the same digital space, there are other platforms that encourage other forms of student-to-student interaction. The resources below have been used by SI Leaders at other campuses to help their students collaborate and discuss.
Padlet
Padlet works as a digital cork board. Users create their own template and give students access. From there, students can post their thoughts (via words, images, videos, links, docs, etc.) to an essential question posted on the class Padlet. After students post responses, they can interact with their peers' comments by liking, starring, upvoting, and replying. Padlets can be shared after you are done with session. This can be a way to facilitate non-verbal student-to-student interaction.
Miro
Miro is a collaboration tool that appears to be a mix of a digital whiteboard and an online bulletin board (like Padlet.) Users can write/draw on the whiteboard while adding in sticky notes and interact with other users' input. All Miro boards are are endless, and users can add "frames" to the board, which essentially organizes the board into multiple pages.
Google Drive
Google's collection of apps and programs is a great tool for online collaboration outside of a whiteboard. Files created in Google Drive are easy to share and are always saved to your online Google account. Apps include:
- Docs: Create Word documents. Great for generating collaborative study guides, creating simple worksheets, etc.
- Sheets: Create spreadsheets. Great for managing quantitative data.
- Slides: Create slideshows. Easy to use and share.
- Jamboard: Digital, collaborative whiteboard that automatically saves to your Google account.
Online Games and Activities
Many SI Leaders utilize different online games and activities to facilitate learning and check for students' understanding. The resources listed below can be utilized to foster competition, checking-for-understanding, and asynchronous study tools.
Kahoot!
Kahoot! is a popular online-based quiz app among SI Leaders. Users create their own multiple-choice, true/false, or short-open ended answer quizzes. These quizzes can be hosted in a competitive live format or act as review outside of session.
Quizlet
Quizlet is free website that provides online learning tools for students and teachers, including flashcards and various study and game modes. Users create "study sets" (digital flashcards) with their own terms and definitions. Like Kahoot, SI Leaders can incorporate competition into their SI Sessions by hosting a live game based on these study sets. Quizlets can also be offered as an additional study tool after session.
Factile
Factile is an online platform for building engaging, jeopardy-style quiz games for a class of students. Many SI Leaders use this platform to conduct live review games. Factile also lets users create multiple choice or classic memory games. These games can also be shared as study tools for student later
Skribbl.io
Skribbl.io is a free Pictionary-style multiplayer drawing and guessing game. Each game contains multiple rounds in which every round, one user draws a chosen word and other players guess the word. Players earn additional points for guessing the word correctly before their competitors. This works well for very visual-based topics.
Quizizz
Quizizz is another platform that allows users to create quizzes that can then be turned into live games and study tools. This platform is seen as more student-driven, as questions will appears on the student's screen.
Socrative
Socrative is an online in-class assessment tool that works with many web-browsers and other machines. This platform also collects students' responses in actual-time. Socrative offers you the ability to create and present quizzes, ask quick questions, have students compete with each other, and create an exit-ticket as a last minute check-for-understanding.
Gimkit
Gimkit is another quiz-based online game that can be played live or asynchronous. Each "kit" will expose students to the questions multiple times to ensure mastery. Gimkit differs from other quiz platforms by award in-game cash by answering questions correctly, as well as taking away cash for each incorrect answer. The in-game cash can be used to purchase various powerups and upgrades.
Bingo Maker
Bingo Maker is an online platform that allows you to create and host a free virtual Bingo game everyday for up to 25 players. Users can generate their own cards with numbers or custom words or phrases, and virtual bing cards are distributed to players. It even allows you to play your own music while you play!
Flippity
If you are comfortable using Google Spreadsheet, Flippity is an online platform that turns information from your Spreadsheet into different games and activities that promote active learning, including flashcards, quizzes, scavenger hunts, matching, and more.
Bubbl.us
Bubbl.us is a platform focused specifically on generating mind maps. This is a great way to visually brainstorm and organize user's thoughts and contributions.
Worksheet Generators
SI Leaders in the past also liked to generate various types of worksheets as a mechanism for collaboration and checking for understanding. The resources suggested below are the most common ones shared to the SI Coordinators.
Crossword Labs
Crossword Labs is a free, quick, and easy-to-use platform for building online crossword puzzles. Each crossword generates a unique URL that you can send to students, and each student can complete the puzzle online, save as a PDF, or print for studying. If done online, the website also marks whether answers are right or wrong, and you can also hide the answer key to make it more challenging for your students.
Various Worksheet Creators
Kami App
Although not a worksheet generator, Kami App is a tool that allows users to annotate and mark up a digital document (e.g. PDFs, MS Word/G Docs, etc.) within your browser. If you generate a worksheet or your professor provides lecture slides or readings online, this can be a great tool for collaborative annotation and discussion. SI Leaders have noted that it is easy to share documents on this platform.
Interactive Slides and Collecting Audience Feedback
Mentimeter
Mentimeter is an online platform that allows users to create interactive slides and presentations. These slides invite participants to respond to polls, answer questions, and submit other responses anonymously via their computer or smart phone. The platform then provides live feedback as to how the audiences responded. Questions include sliding scales, word clouds, and quizes.
Poll Everywhere
Poll Everywhere is another tool to help engage your audience during presentations. Users can create different activities that incorporate polls, open-ended and multiple choice questions, word clouds, and other question types. Your audience responds to these prompts anonymously via their smartphone as well. Poll Everywhere can be facilitated from your internet browser, PowerPoint, or Google Slides.
Pear Deck
Pear Deck is another platform for creating interactive slides that prompt students' feedback. Pear Deck allows users to respond to multiple-choice and text entry quiz questions. Pear Deck integrates with PowerPoint, Slides, and others.
Flipgrid
Flipgrid is an easy-to-use video-based audience participation tool. The SI Leader creates a video prompt, and then students record themselves responding to the prompt and each other in 1-2 minute video responses. The videos are then assembled into one cohesive grid students can review later.
Credits:
Created with an image by freddie marriage - "Laptop on desk book stacks"