FORT SMITH — For several classes at Immaculate Conception School in Fort Smith, learning is getting more fun.
Last fall, Sandy Waynick’s fifth grade classroom received an interactive whiteboard, called a Smart Board, allowing students to learn science by taking a “Walk on the Wild Side,” social studies by “Tracking Down Lewis and Clark” and math by seeing “How Does My Shadow Grow?”
Interactive whiteboards are large, touch-sensitive screens that are connected to a computer and projector. They are the high-tech alternative to chalkboards and dry erase boards in classrooms and meeting rooms.
Smart Boards, a product of Smart Technologies, is not linked to any particular curriculum materials, but its manufacturer has developed numerous software programs, which are available free to schools using the boards. Programs are available for every academic subject from kindergarten through 12th grade. Web pages also can be viewed on the whiteboards.
“Last year, Arvest Bank and the Walton Family Foundation gave us an opportunity to write a grant for a worthy project. After we submitted our application to install whiteboard technology in our school, we received $7,500 from the Walton Family Foundation,” Dian Ketter, Immaculate Conception’s technology coordinator, said.
“When parents of Christine Maestri’s third graders saw the whiteboard in action,” Ketter said, “they were so excited about the technology that they purchased one for her classroom. Now, thanks to the generosity of parents and grandparents, we have seven more Smart Boards on order.”
Teachers can also show movies and do lunch counts on the boards. Malis Dahlem, the Spanish teacher, has developed Power Point presentations to help the children learn vocabulary.
“It’s easier to introduce vocabulary to children using PowerPoint because they associate the words with the pictures,” Dahlem said. “Using the Internet, we can hear Spanish in different accents, listen to the music of Mexico and learn about Hispanic culture. Several of my classes are working on producing their own Spanish videos to be played on Smart Boards at school.”
All of the school’s students have had an opportunity to visit Waynick’s and Maestri’s classrooms to experience Smart Board lessons. The technology is accessible even to the youngest elementary students. Children are able to use their fingers to control or write on the touchscreens, without any special pens or tools.
First grade teacher Ann Cannon, after using the Smart Boards with her students, said, “They were ecstatic. They could not get out of their seats fast enough to go and participate in the activity. We did a math grouping activity, ’Count the Camels,’ in which they put their hands on camels and moved them into groups.
Waynick’s fifth graders gave high praise to the Smart Boards.
“It’s really interesting, pretty much like a giant computer,” Patrick Teagle said.
Classmate Brieana Waller added, “It’s great to be learning with future technology.”
Waynick and Ketter attended a workshop in Conway before writing the grant proposal that made Immaculate Conception the first Catholic school in the Fort Smith area to use Smart Boards. But, just as the students have embraced hands-on education, the faculty has found that, through using the whiteboards and networking with one another, they find new ways every day to incorporate technology into their lessons.
“Our goal is to get one Smart Board in each classroom,” Cannon said.
With 15 classrooms, the school is more than halfway to its goal.
