magazine - SMART Technologies

February 2012
magazine
Making Global Connections
without Leaving the Classroom
Accountability.
Words educators
are constantly
thinking about.
By Danesa Jepson
Changing the
landscape of
education
Title I
Connecting Title I
schools to a future
of opportunity!

FROM THE EDITOR
Title I
If you teach in a district where a large number of students
participate in free or reduced-cost lunch programs, chances
are you face different challenges when it comes to reaching
your students in ways that will increase their success.
In the United States today, high-poverty, low-performing schools
and districts number in the thousands – and in some areas,
those numbers increase each year. Thankfully, also increasing
is the number of schools and districts defying long-held
expectations about student achievement, demonstrating that
disadvantaged students can achieve at the highest levels.
As an educator – whether you’re a teacher, librarian, school
administrator or technology coordinator – you have the
power to inspire economically disadvantaged students and
enable them to meet or exceed high academic standards.
This issue, we focus on Title I. In the feature article on page
14, read about the experiences of three innovative educators
in Title I schools who have bridged their classrooms to the
rest of the world by using SMART education solutions. On
page 21, find out how to become a SMART Exemplary
Educator and how you can win a SMART Board ® 885ix
interactive whiteboard for your school. And in the SMART
Showcase School profile on page 22, learn how a rural
elementary school in a high-poverty area has been able to
provide its students with a global education right within its
Tennessee-based classrooms.
I hope this Title I issue helps you gather ideas, tools and
resources to help you make a difference – to help your
students achieve and your school succeed.
Editorial
Shari-Lynn Sare, Managing Editor
Chrissie Chambers, Editor
CONTRIBUTORS
Kim Hamill
Shari-Lynn Sare
Danesa Jepson
ART
Vanessa Liang, Designer
Photography on page 26 by Jon Pernul
As always, you can e-mail any
questions or feedback about
EDCompass magazine or the blog to
EDCompassfeedback@smarttech.com.
Subscribe
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Shari-Lynn Sare, MANAGING EDITOR
© 2012 SMART Technologies. All rights reserved. EDCompass, SMART Board,
SMART Exchange, SMART Notebook, LightRaise, SMART Response, SMART
Document Camera, SMART Slate, SMART Table, smarttech, the SMART logo, all
product logos and all SMART taglines are trademarks or registered trademarks of
SMART Technologies in the U.S. and/or other countries. All third-party product
and company names are for identification purposes only and may be trademarks of
their respective owners.
2 | February 2012

contents
04 Notes From
the Field
With Danesa Jepson
Accountability. Scores.
Words Educators Are
Constantly Thinking About.
06 Classroom
Solutions
New Products
Announced!
08 Classroom
Content
On the SMART
Exchange Website
12 Classroom
Content
Sneak Peek – SMART
Notebook 11 Software
Shape Image Fill and
Customizable Creative Pen
20 NEWS
What’s Happening This Month
Find out about SMART’s latest
opportunities and happenings
14 feature Article
Changing the
Landscape of Education
24 Product spotlight
An Added Dimension
to Learning
22 SMART Showcase
School Profile
Making Global Connections
without Leaving the
Classroom
26 Ask AMY
3D Tools for SMART
Notebook Software
February 2012 | 3

NOTES FROM THE FIELD
Accountability.
scores.
Danesa Jepson
Seventh-Grade Language
Arts Teacher and SMART
Exemplary Educator
Oakdale, California
Students
not only
learn more
using
SMART
products,
but they
want to
learn more.
Words Educators Are
Constantly Thinking About.
I teach at a traditional junior high school in California. We have
850 students, many of whom would qualify as “target” students.
Educators focus on these students, striving for continual progress and
improved test scores. But my focus is my Title I students.
For me, these students are more than just a score. They’re students in
desperate need of connection, of learning in ways they enjoy. SMART
products do just that – they give teachers a way to deliver lessons that are
motivating and engaging, while increasing those all-important grades.
Having a SMART Board interactive whiteboard in my classroom didn’t
automatically make learning more appealing for my students. That
moment didn’t come until I created a lesson for a unit on affixes. It
was an erase-to-reveal activity to help my Title I students easily focus
on the concept. And yes, they better understood the concept, but
more importantly, they wanted to keep learning. Students volunteered
to go up to the interactive whiteboard. I had more hands in the air to
answer questions. Students were excited to have immediate feedback
while they were learning. They begged for more lessons that used
the SMART Board interactive whiteboard so they could interact and
play with it. This particular lesson and every one since has given my
students the chance to enjoy learning, interact with subject matter and
feel positive about their learning.
When students are engaged, having fun and focused on learning, the end
results are better grades and test scores, which makes everyone smile.
4 | February 2012

Voice Box
have your say....
Your
Vote
What
are your
biggest
challenges
implementing
technology
into a
Title I
classroom?
Vote now
When it comes to providing instruction for
English language learners, you said the biggest
challenge is
26%
Finding the
prep time
required
to create
lessons
Up Next
Reducing anxiety for students with ELA needs
by engaging and including them in classes
16%
Meeting state or provincial standards for
achievement in English language proficiency
14%
Finding funding to purchase tools that
will help English language learners
6%
All of the above
20%
Other
18%
Read the next issue of
EDCompass magazine,
where we spotlight science,
technology, engineering
and math (STEM) resources,
programs and schools.
February 2012 | 5

Classroom Solutions
SMART’s product
developers
and product
managers have
been working
countless hours
on some new
and exciting
hardware
and software
products for your
classroom. Here’s
a glimpse.
SMART Board
800 series
interactive
whiteboard
and four-touch
interactivity
Introduced in last month’s
NEW PRODUCTS
ANNOUNCED!
Feature Advertorial
product spotlight, four-touch interactivity is now offered on all shipping
SMART Board 800 series interactive whiteboards and SMART Board
8070i interactive displays. The 800 series currently enables two people to
write, draw and interact with content and supports common multitouch
gestures for Microsoft ® Windows ® 7 and Mac Snow Leopard operating
systems. Four-touch functionality will increase opportunities for
collaboration by giving your students more hands-on time. If you already
have an 800 series interactive whiteboard, a no-charge upgrade will
enable simultaneous freestyle interaction and object awareness for up
to four users. The new functionality also enables two students to engage
in multitouch gestures at the same time. Visit the SMART Exchange
website to find SMART Notebook lessons compatible with four-touch
functionality.
3D Tools for SMART Notebook
software
A new plug-in for SMART Notebook software, 3D Tools enables
you to import, view and manipulate 3D content in SMART
Notebook, without the need for additional hardware. You
can manipulate 3D models and objects and label them from a
variety of angles and perspectives, enabling increased student
understanding of physical objects across a range of subjects. Read this month’s product
spotlight to learn how 3D Tools for SMART Notebook software can immerse your
students in a pedagogical world of exploration.
6 | February 2012

Classroom Solutions
SMART Notebook 11
software
The release of the most exciting
version of our award-winning
SMART Notebook software is
just around the corner – and
wow, is it big! This month and
next, in our sneak peek section,
we’re revealing one new feature
of SMART Notebook 11. And
then in April, we’ll give you
an in-depth look at SMART
Notebook 11 software in the
product spotlight. For now, we
can tell you that with SMART
Notebook 11, you will be able
to integrate online resources
into SMART Notebook files by
embedding a web browser. You’ll
also have access to dictionary
and translator widgets that
enable you to handwrite a
query, receive the answer and
then move that answer to your
SMART Notebook software
page. And an avatar widget will
let you bring dynamic, talking
avatars into SMART Notebook 11
and save them to the Gallery.
LightRaise 40wi
interactive projector
The LightRaise interactive projector is a penenabled
ultra-short-throw projector that can turn
almost any surface into an interactive learning
space. It can produce screen sizes up to 100"
(254 cm) in a widescreen format, making it a
flexible solution for any classroom. The interactive
projector comes with SMART Notebook
collaborative learning software, a rechargeable
interactive pen, a convenient pen holder, USB and
VGA cables and an easy-to-install wall mount.
You and your students can use the interactive pen
to write over applications and digital content,
making lessons more engaging.
The projector offers an affordable option for
making your classroom interactive. And, it
integrates seamlessly with other SMART products,
including the SMART Response interactive
response system, the SMART Document Camera
and the SMART Slate wireless slate. The
LightRaise projector is also protected by the
SMART Projector Care program, which includes a
three-year warranty and fast and reliable support.
February 2012 | 7

CLASSROOM CONTENT
on the
SMART
SMART Notebook lessons
With more than 15,000 ready-made or customizable SMART Notebook lessons on the SMART Exchange website,
you can be sure your curriculum stays fresh and exciting. You’ll find a growing database of lesson content for all
grades and subjects – many of which are standards correlated – created by classroom teachers or by SMART’s team of
curriculum resource developers.
You can also search for Common Core State Standards-correlated lessons for English language arts and math by
clicking the Standards-Correlated Lessons button in the top navigation bar.
Here are three lessons you can try with your students.
Hatchet – A Companion to Gary
Paulsen’s Book
Students in grades 4–8 who are
reading Hatchet by Gary Paulsen
can dive further into the story with
thinking maps and information
about some of the animals
introduced throughout the book.
Cornstarch Quicksand
Experiment
Fifth-grade science students can
learn about solids, liquids and
gases. At the end of the lesson,
students can do an experiment
using cornstarch and water to
mimic the properties of quicksand.
Color Theory
Art and design students in
grades 6–8 can explore colors,
the theory behind them and
ways that colors are significant
in our everyday lives.
8 | February 2012

CLASSROOM CONTENT
Exchange
WEBSITE
SMART Response question sets
SMART Exchange also offers a growing number of SMART Response question sets, most of which are
correlated to state and provincial curriculum standards. The website contains hundreds of activities for all
subjects and grade levels.
Try one of the following SMART Response question sets in your next class.
Changing Matter
Third-grade students can
review the properties of matter
and determine the various
factors that cause it to change
or evolve.
Math Vocabulary
Fifth- and sixth-grade students can
test their knowledge of commonly
used math terms, such as sum,
product, quotient and difference.
Is It Objective or Subjective?
Eighth-grade students can read
short passages and then test
their ability to determine if
what they read is objective or
subjective. Students will also
have the opportunity to defend
their answers on paper.
February 2012 | 9

CLASSROOM CONTENT
SMART Table ® activities
Developed specifically for early education classrooms, check out the growing number of activity packs for
the SMART Table interactive learning center on the SMART Exchange website. You can search by
topic, subject or grade level to access hundreds of activities for your SMART Table. You can use SMART Table
activities with small groups to complement whole-class and individual learning experiences. Most activities
correspond to a SMART Notebook lesson and SMART Response question set.
Following are a few SMART Table activities you can try in your next class.
Holidays
With this sorting activity by
Pronk, students can learn
about different holidays and
what each entails.
Multiplication
Students will find a variety
of activities to practice their
multiplication skills as they explore
pictorial representations of
multiplication and the relationship
between multiplication and
repeated addition.
Vowels
Students can practice short and
long vowel sounds with two
different activities.
10 | February 2012

CLASSROOM CONTENT
Videos
Adding video can be an effective way of enhancing lessons and giving students a better understanding of
subject matter. Among the wealth of resources available on the SMART Exchange website, you’ll find a variety
of short video segments (2–3 minutes) on topics ranging from learning about World War II and ancient Greek
myths to exploring landscapes and cities to learning about Mahatma Gandhi. Well-known publishers, including
Discovery Education and Statusfirm, created the videos for students in middle to high school grades.
Check out some of the newest videos from Discovery Education on SMART Exchange.
Introduction to Quadratics
Math students are led
through an exploration of
natural phenomena that can
be explained with quadratic
equations and functions.
Roman Monumentalism and
the Course of the Empire
Students can see how the Romans
used their ability to build massive
structures to shock and intimidate
their opponents. Roman builders
were able to adapt to any
circumstance and use whatever
materials were at hand.
The Sun, Solar System,
Planetary Orbits and Gravity
Science students can learn about
gravity and how it keeps things
in orbit from slamming into
each other.
February 2012 | 11

classroom content
Last month, we introduced you to Audio Recording, a new
feature of SMART Notebook 11 software, which will be available
this spring. This month, we’d like to tell you about two other new
features that can be used on their own or together to create fun
activities for your students.
Shape Image Fill
You’ll soon have more options to dress up your
lessons with shape image fill, a new feature that
enables you to quickly and easily fit an image into
any shape without having to resize the image. For
example, you can use a photo of your students,
from a vacation, of your pets – anything at all –
and frame it in the shape.
If you want to be really creative, take it a step
further and make that framed image the stamp
for your customizable creative pen.
Customizable Creative Pen
Once you have your image the way you want it, transfer
it to your customizable creative pen, which is similar
to the Magic Pen but customized with the ink of your
choice. The stamps that appear using your customizable
creative pen could be the image you created with the
shape image fill tool or an object or drawing from a
SMART Notebook software page. Essentially, it can be
anything you want it to be.
If you like, you can turn this into a fun reward system
for your students. Pick one student each week to
choose the shape image fill for that day or week’s
customizable creative pen stamp.
12 | February 2012

Classroom content
SMART Notebook 11 Software
How can I create this in SMART Notebook 11?
It’s easy! Once you download the new software, follow these steps:
1 2 3 4
Shape Image Fill
Select a shape from
the top toolbar and
drag it onto your
page.
Click the Properties
tab on the side
of your SMART
Notebook software
page and select Fill
Image.
Browse your
computer and select
an image to fill the
shape.
Keep the image the
same size or scale
the image to fit into
your shape.
Customizable Creative Pen
Once you have your shape image fill created, select the Creative Pen from the top toolbar
Click the Properties tab on the side of your SMART Notebook software page and select Use a
custom stamp image. The shape image fill that you just created will now appear as a stamp in your
customizable creative pen.
To create something entirely new for your customizable creative pen stamp
Create your image or drawing on a SMART Notebook software page using any pen or color
Click the Properties tab and select Use a custom stamp image. Click Select object and your
curser will change to an eye dropper. Drag the eye dropper to your image or drawing and click
directly into it. It will now appear as a stamp in your customizable creative pen.
Save any stamp that you create to the toolbar by clicking Save Tool Properties found at the bottom
of the Properties tab. The image will automatically appear in your toolbar.
February 2012 | 13

feature article
“Technology, with the guidance of teachers and
librarians, can be a significant tool in expanding
the world of any child who is isolated by poverty.”
– Dr. Richard Long, Executive Director for Government Relations, National Title I Association
Changing the Landscape
of Education
14 | February 2012

feature article
By Kim Hamill
Enriched education
It’s becoming more challenging
than ever to ensure every child
experiences success in learning.
Shrinking budgets, large class
sizes and language barriers mean
that teachers and education
leaders must reach across these
gaps to ensure students’ needs
are met.
Add the impact of poverty to
that equation, and it becomes
apparent that educators in Title
I schools have even greater
obstacles to achieving their goals.
But teachers like Joy Weiss say
that while it’s easy to focus on
the difficulties, it’s the progress
that matters.
“While the challenges can
become overwhelming, I think the
important things to remember are
the successes that are happening
every day. Yes, I work hard
and my students work harder
than most in order to become
comparable to their peers. What
they can do each year shows their
own dedication to learning and
being successful,” she says.
“These children work very hard
each year and deserve the best,
regardless of their income. They
are just as capable and just as
smart,” says Weiss, a SMART
Exemplary Educator who
teaches third and fourth grade
at Balsz Elementary in Phoenix,
Arizona.
February 2012 | 15

feature article
Balsz is a Title I school where
more than 90 percent of the
students participate in free or
reduced-priced meal programs.
The school serves a large
population of families with low
socioeconomic status, including
a refugee population. Weiss says
that because of communication
challenges in her classroom, she
often has to teach language
basics before she can introduce
grade-level content.
In 2010, she was recognized as
the Arizona Teacher of the Year,
an experience that Weiss says gave
her a more global perspective on
improving the effectiveness of
education for her students.
“Student achievement is a
teacher’s number-one priority,
next to instilling a love of selfdirected
learning to students. I’m
not referring to test scores and
accountability to state agencies,
but student achievement in terms
of learning, exploring, enriching
our understanding of the world
16 | February 2012
around us and becoming productive
members of society that work
together and create democratic
communities of people that can
move our society forward.”
One of the ways that Weiss
feels she is helping her students
gain a deeper understanding of
the world is through classroom
technology, including the SMART
Board interactive whiteboard,
SMART Document Camera,
SMART Slate wireless slate and
SMART Response interactive
response system.
Using these technology products
has enabled her to present
lesson content in more visual
and interactive ways, which
helps remove learning barriers in
her classroom.
She remembers when she taught
first grade and was introducing the
concept of alphabetizing. Using
her interactive whiteboard and
SMART Notebook collaborative
learning software, she created a
lesson showing a road that moved
from A to Z. The road metaphor
enabled her students to imagine
that alphabetizing was like driving
a car, and each letter had a stop.
Her students were able to move
their spelling words along the road,
placing each word in its correct
stop on the interactive whiteboard.
“After that, when they needed to
alphabetize on paper, it was done
with relative ease. I could hear
them talk about the ‘road’ that
was in their head,” she says.
Dr. Richard Long, Executive Director
for Government Relations at
the National Title I Association,
says that technology, when used
effectively, can help teachers
provide differentiated instructional
support to many students.
“The National Title I Association
views technology as a key tool to
help teachers and administrators to
enhance the educational experience
for more children,” he says.
Equal opportunities
For Jennifer Harper, a fourth-grade
teacher at Cavendish Town
Elementary School in Proctorsville,
Vermont, technology is the key to
equitability in education.

“Technology brings in the equality
to all my learners. My learners,
who have a tough time sitting
or standing still, can go to the
SMART Board and complete an
activity that meets their needs
and the curriculum requirements.
I take out the fear of getting
something wrong in front of
others by having students use
their SMART Response remotes to
enter answers,” Harper says.
With 46 percent of its students
qualifying for free and reducedcost
lunch programs, Cavendish
Elementary is a Title I school.
However, three years ago,
it became part of the Title I
Schoolwide Program, so that all
students could benefit from the
additional resources, rather than
just those students involved in the
Title I program.
Harper, who is the 2006 Vermont
Teacher of the Year and a SMART
Exemplary Educator, says that
SMART products play a big role in
helping her reach all the students
in her classroom. In addition to
the SMART Board interactive
whiteboard and the SMART
Response system, Harper also uses
a SMART Document Camera and
a SMART Slate wireless slate in
her classroom.
She has found these products
are particularly helpful for
engaging students with different
learning styles. The interactive
whiteboard and SMART Notebook
software enhance learning for
her kinesthetic learners, and
the SMART Document Camera
engages her visual and auditory
learners by enabling a large focal
point that spurs discussions. With
the SMART Response system,
everyone has the opportunity to
answer questions without the fear
of being wrong in front of others.
But one of the biggest benefits
that Harper has seen is how
the SMART Board interactive
whiteboard has opened up the
world to her students.
“During discussions, we can
travel on Google Earth to ‘see’
locations and bring the real world
to each one of them. Many of our
feature article
families will never travel out of
New England. Now our students
can Skype, chat and e-mail
around the world with others.
Every year I have students who
talk about traveling beyond New
England and outside the United
States. I know that the SMART
Board is opening doors for them.”
Dr. Long says that bringing the
world into the classroom is one of
the biggest advantages of using
technology in Title I schools.
“An old adage is that a book
can take one to places that they
have never been and expose
them to new ideas. Technology
can do that with text, sound
and visuals, all in an integrated
format,” he says. “Technology,
with the guidance of teachers and
librarians, can be a significant tool
in expanding the world of any
child who is isolated by poverty.”
Bright futures
Another way that technology
expands opportunities in Title I
February 2012 | 17

feature article
schools is by helping teachers
make science and math lessons
more engaging. Harper, who
won the Presidential Award
for Excellence in Mathematics
and Science Teaching in 2003,
says that giving young students
experiences in these subjects can
help encourage them to pursue
these areas later in life.
“As future members of our
society, students have to see how
math and science are a part of so
many of our day-to-day jobs, as
well as how they can be leaders
in these areas,” Harper says.
Creating leaders in science,
technology, engineering and
math is also one of Pamela
Howell’s main goals. As Principal
of Roosevelt-Perry Elementary
School in Louisville, Kentucky,
Howell believes in preparing
students for 21st-century careers
and opportunities.
“What we’re trying to do is
continue to break the poverty
cycle by educating and giving kids
an even chance. If they don’t have
this at home, they’re going to
experience it here and it’s going
to hopefully get them interested
in those types of jobs where they
can continue their educational
experiences through college or a
career,” Howell says.
Roosevelt-Perry is an inner-city
school, with 96 percent of its
students receiving free and
reduced-priced lunches. It’s also
a school with access to state-ofthe-art
technology because it has
Jefferson County Public School’s
only designated elementary
technology magnet program.
This means that Roosevelt-
Perry has enhanced the regular
core curriculum program with
components of technology,
robotics and engineering to
reinforce math and science skills.
The school has a technology
wing, dubbed the Technology
Playground, where Roosevelt-
Perry students get hands-on with
lessons in STEM areas, whether it’s
building robots, videoconferencing
with NASA or exploring shapes
on the SMART Table interactive
learning center.
The Technology Playground gives
teachers and students access to
computers, MP3 players, SMART
Board interactive whiteboards,
SMART Slate wireless slates and
other educational technology.
Howell says when students get
hands-on with lessons, it ensures
that even if they are not confident
in their abilities in these subjects,
they can still experience success.
“The SMART Board is just a
great learning and teaching tool
that evens the playing field for
those students that may not
be able to read or be great at
math. Students can actually see
examples and work through
things at a touch of a fingertip,”
Howell says.
Dr. Long says that in high-poverty
areas, many students have the
perception that they can’t excel
in these subjects, but having Title
I schools provide STEM programs
can have a big impact on
students’ futures.
18 | February 2012

feature article
“For some students, focusing on
STEM helps them to break the
cycle of poverty, but the reality is
that there are few programs that
make use of STEM areas linking the
academics to the work world over
the course of an academic career.
This is especially true in the highpoverty
schools where we find that
even more students believe that
they do not have that ‘math gene’
to succeed,” Long says.
“STEM could be a very useful
and wide ranging tool in our
schools to break the cycle of
poverty, but much more needs to
be done to take this idea from a
few good programs to an area of
systemic change.”
Howell believes that exposing
students to STEM subjects
at a young age will inspire a
new generation of engineers,
mathematicians and scientists
in Louisville. That’s why the
school has an affiliation with
the University of Louisville’s
engineering program.
Roosevelt-Perry held a career
day where students from both
programs can see the work
each is doing in robotics and
engineering.
According to Howell, when the
elementary students saw what the
university students were working
on, they said, “Oh my goodness,
those are the basic robotic skills
that we just learned!”
In addition to the Technology
Playground, every Roosevelt-Perry
classroom has a SMART Board
interactive whiteboard, a SMART
Document Camera, a SMART
Response interactive response
system, SMART Slate wireless
slates and a SMART Audio
classroom amplification system.
The school also has a professional
development room where all
district teachers are trained to use
the SMART products and other
educational technology.
“Our attendance has improved
and our kids are just more
engaged. Student expectations,
higher order thinking, and the
quality of work that’s being
produced here is totally different
than it was seven years ago,”
Howell says, referring to the
transformation the school has
undergone since becoming a
technology magnet school.
While the challenges of working
in a Title I school are big, the
successes can be bigger when
educators use innovative strategies
to teach. Weiss sums it up nicely:
“If we are not providing students
quality instruction with proper use
techniques with technology, these
students will not have the same
chance of contributing to society
in a meaningful way. Education
and technology are not luxuries to
be gained, but the right of every
person to become productive,
educated, lifelong learners.”
Education
and
technology
are not
luxuries to be
gained,
but the right
of every
person to
become
productive,
educated,
lifelong
learners.
Joy Weiss
Teacher
Balsz Elementary
Phoenix, Arizona
February 2012 | 19

NEWS
What’s
Happening
This Month
Want to win a SMART Board 885ix
interactive whiteboard system?
Enter our STEM contest for a chance to win an 885ix,
which will help you engage students in learning and
inspire them to explore the world around them.
Read the terms and conditions and enter for your
chance to win!
Discover new ways to bring math and
science to life in the classroom
Attend SMART’s webinar to hear educators discuss how
they’ve successfully used SMART products to further
engage students in STEM subjects. This complimentary
one-hour session on February 29 will explore holistic and
integrated approaches to the implementation of SMART
products in classrooms and suggest new ways to deliver
visual and interactive math and science lessons that spark
a lasting interest in STEM.
Register now for this webinar taking place Wednesday,
February 29 at 3:00 p.m. (ET).
20 | February 2012

NEWS
Become a SMART Exemplary
Educator (SEE)
Would you like to join the global network
of SMART Exemplary Educators who are
transforming teaching and learning with the
help of SMART? Our popular SEE program brings
together teachers, technology coordinators and
administrators who lead the way in using SMART
products to engage students and improve learning
outcomes.
Through March 31, you’re invited to complete a
SEE program application. In the application, you will
need to highlight your commitment to developing
effective education practices and sharing them with
other educators. You will also need to provide a
reference letter from a school administrator and
a video of yourself presenting part of a SMART
Notebook lesson that you created.
Congratulations!
EDCompass magazine would like to congratulate the
2012 SEEs of the Year:
• Michael McGowan, Supervisor of Technology,
Lincoln Elementary School District, Calumet
City, Illinois
Participate in the world’s first
digital spelling competition!
Enter your class or school – or even yourself – in the
Spellathon, a free, global, English language event.
The spelling competition, featuring Stephen Fry, is
open to children and adults worldwide through the
beginning of March. The bee-themed Spellathon
lets you and your students practice spelling using
interactive games and quizzes.
For even more spelling fun, download our free
Spellathon SMART Notebook file from SMART
Exchange, which gives you resources for the
Spellathon and instructs you how to navigate to the
interactive whiteboard game.
You can also download free Spellathon mobile
apps and find free digital school packs on
Spellathon’s website – there’s a pack for primary
and secondary schools, as well as university level
and individual adults and students. The packs
contain guides, word lists, games, posters and
e-mail templates for informing parents about the
competition. For complete details on the Spellathon,
review the competition’s terms and conditions and
then get spelling!
• Alexandra Dunn, Speech and Language
Pathologist, Upper Canada District School
Board, Ontario, Canada
Learn more about the SEE program pathways and
how you can apply to join this group of skilled and
dedicated educators.
February 2012 | 21

SMART Showcase school PROFILE
Making Global Connections
without Leaving the Classroom
By Kim Hamill
But even though this Title I School is in a low-income
area, students receive a high-quality education. In fact,
Flynn and the rest of the school’s educators work hard
to help students with the social issues they face and
ensure they receive a global education.
They accomplish these goals using products such as
SMART Board interactive whiteboards, SMART
Response interactive response systems, the
SMART Document Camera and SMART Table
interactive learning center. The entire school
district has standardized on SMART products.
“SMART products are letting us present a global
aspect of the world in our classrooms, and that has
been a huge, huge advantage to us here with our kids
being so out of the real-world picture,” Flynn says.
“We’ve got a lot of students who have never and
will never venture outside of this area that they’re
living in. They don’t go to museums, they don’t go on
vacations. They’ve never been out of this little area –
let alone out of the state or out of the country – to be
exposed to what is out there in the world.”
According to Principal David Flynn, this challenge is
one of the main reasons that SMART products are
critical to teaching and learning success at Westside
Elementary School, a SMART Showcase School in
Westmoreland, Tennessee.
Rich in learning experiences
Located in a rural, high-poverty area of the state,
Westside Elementary School serves 325 students from
pre-kindergarten to fifth grade – 300 of whom qualify
for free or reduced-cost lunch programs.
And because Westside students haven’t had
opportunities to explore the world, more background
information is often required about a lesson before
teachers can begin teaching.
“Their world is so closed in when they come to
us – there is no other way to really get them global
experience,” Flynn says. “We have a lot of social factors
we have to deal with here. But on top of that, when
you try to teach a lesson … about where the President
lives and they have no clue where Washington, DC, is,
where Virginia is, where that’s at in the United States.
The global aspect that SMART [products] bring to the
entire class has revolutionized our students. It’s truly
been an altering situation.”
Kindergarten teacher Leslie Goad agrees,
saying that providing her students with a visual,
22 | February 2012

SMART Showcase school PROFILE
“I’ve spent a lot of money over the years using Title
I funds and sometimes you wonder, ‘Did I really
get out of it what I spent?’ But I truly believe with
SMART, you get way more than what it costs.”
David Flynn
Principal
Westside Elementary School
Westmoreland, Tennessee
interactive way to connect to information makes
teaching the basics much easier.
“Our kids come to us at all different levels, and where
they are is unbelievable. You have some that have never
held a crayon, you have some that have never been
around other children, you have some that have never
been separated from their parents – so they come to
you having lots and lots and lots of needs,” Goad says.
Success for everyone
Westside Elementary is an inclusion school, so some of
Goad’s students have special needs. She has found that
SMART products enable these students to participate in
activities with her higher-functioning students, creating
a collaborative environment that’s beneficial for all.
“Our inclusion program merged with our technology
program to get student scores up, and we’ve made
some real progress with our special needs kids in that
area. So, at one time, we were about 87 percent
below proficient for our special needs kids, and that
currently is riding around 17 percent,” Flynn says.
“We’ve made that gain in the last five years, so that’s
pretty huge. We received a commendation from the
state of Tennessee for our progress, so we’ve made
some real progress through inclusion merged with our
SMART products.”
Fifth-grade teacher Ashley Shouse says that with SMART
products, no learner is left behind. The products appeal
to every learning style, enabling her to find creative ways
to help her students understand concepts.
She is currently tutoring a student who struggles with
many math and reading concepts. At first, she was
struggling to help him understand the concepts, until
she spoke to the student’s mother and learned the
student was interested in computer programming.
“I thought, ‘How is this kid, you know, who’s into
computer programming failing fifth-grade math and
English?’ So I started finding tons of stuff with my
SMART Board and my iPad, and he’s definitely passing
now. You had to teach it to him in a whole different way
and he gets it,” Shouse says.
Although the challenges of Westside educators are
great – sometimes before Shouse and Goad can
start teaching, they have to help a student who
hasn’t had breakfast or a child who’s been awake
all night – Flynn says that SMART products have
helped these students reach out and connect with
the world at large.
“I’ve spent a lot of money over the years using Title
I funds and sometimes you wonder, ‘Did I really
get out of it what I spent?’ But I truly believe with
SMART, you get way more than what it costs.”
Your school can become a SMART Showcase School and be recognized for
using SMART education solutions to create exceptional learning environments.
If selected, your school will receive exclusive membership benefits and
opportunities. It will have an opportunity to share its success story and serve
as a host site for other educators who want to find out about the benefits of
implementing SMART products. Learn more.
February 2012 | 23

PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT
And you can also zoom in and
enter the 3D scene. Just imagine
the look on your students’ faces
as a 3D image of the Acropolis in
Athens seemingly zooms toward
them, and they can enter the
famed monument and have their
imaginations take over!
An Added Dimension
to Learning
3D Tools for SMART Notebook software
Some things look just fine when
they are flat.
The Mona Lisa, for instance,
would never be considered boring
because it’s two-dimensional. But,
then again, the Mona Lisa is an
exception to the rule!
But the visual content you use in
your classroom – clouds, blood
cells, planets, the Leaning Tower
of Pisa or even a fish – is much
more dynamic when your students
can see its spatial dimensions and
explore it in-depth.
With the new 3D Tools for
SMART Notebook software, you
can immerse students in 3D lessons,
enabling them to investigate lesson
content from multiple angles.
Available in spring 2012, this
plug-in for SMART Notebook 11
collaborative learning software
will enable you to import and
manipulate 3D content seamlessly,
and add an exciting dimension to
teaching and learning.
In-depth explorations
Experiential learning can be an
effective way of helping students
understand a concept or lesson,
but bringing in artifacts or taking
fields trips is not always practical
or affordable. 3D Tools for SMART
Notebook enables students to
better understand physical objects
across a range of subjects and to
make connections between ideas –
without leaving the classroom.
With this plug-in, you can
show a 3D image or animation
on a SMART Board interactive
whiteboard, label it, and rotate and
interact with it using your fingers.
Once inside a scene, you can
navigate through the internal
details of the models. For
example, if navigating the interior
of a home, your students would
see the fine details, such as
furniture and decorations.
An array of content
3D Tools for SMART Notebook
software is licensed-based software
that includes 11 educational 3D
objects in the Gallery for SMART
Notebook, and you can find an
additional 69 3D objects on the
SMART Exchange website.
Also, Google 3D Warehouse
is searchable right from SMART
Notebook software, giving you
instant access to thousands of 3D
objects. You and your students can
also create and import your own
3D objects into SMART Notebook
with Google SketchUp. And
because 3D Tools for SMART
Notebook is nonstereoscopic
technology, students do not need
to wear 3D glasses.
Watch a video about 3D Tools for
SMART Notebook software and
download the 30-day trial to see
how this new plug-in can bring
an added dimension to learning in
your classroom.
24 | February 2012

PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT
writes Dr. Bamford, citing results
from the study.
What you need to know about our
new add-on to SMART Notebook.
What’s unique about 3D Tools?
Many companies are developing
3D content these days, so what
makes 3D Tools for SMART
Notebook software special? Here
are just a few of the extraordinary
things you can do with 3D Tools:
• Access and manipulate 3D
content right within SMART
Notebook software
• Navigate through the
internal details of 3D models
• Disguise a 3D object as a
magic hat and click to reveal it
• Label objects and the labels
will remain affixed, even when
objects are rotated and moved
• Write in digital ink over 3D
objects or layer them with
2D objects
• Rotate objects by moving
them on a single axis or on
multiple axes
Studying 3D in the classroom
The 3D in Education White
Paper, from Texas Instruments ,
explores the idea of using 3D as a
teaching and learning tool. Written
by Dr. Anne Bamford, Director
of the International Research
Agency, the paper focuses on
a European study examining
stereoscopic 3D (3D requiring
glasses) and its impact on student
engagement and understanding.
“The research results suggested that
the 3D animated models were able
to represent information in the most
economical manner to facilitate
learning and comprehension,
thus simplifying complex, abstract
and impossibly large amounts of
information into a coherent form,”
writes Dr. Bamford.
When it comes to academic results,
the study also showed that 3D had
a marked positive effect on learning,
recall and test performance.
“Under experimental conditions,
86% of pupils improved from the
pre-test to the post-test in the 3D
classes, compared to only 52%
who improved in the 2D classes,”
Google and 3D
Google 3D Warehouse and Google
SketchUp are two great – and free
– resources for incorporating 3D
into your classroom. Between these
two resources, you not only can
create 3D objects, such as vehicles,
buildings or animals, but also find,
share, store and collaborate on
3D models.
A few of our favorite 3D
models available in Google 3D
Warehouse are
Notre Dame de Paris
Playground
What a teacher says
Statue of Liberty
SKPRbot
I teach in a low-income school. These students don’t travel
outside their local area. With 3D, they get the whole visual,
not just a flat shape. [For] example, the Roman Colosseum can
be shown as 3D, including where the spectators sat, where the
gladiators dueled. Animals that can’t normally be brought into
the classroom can come alive via 3D. Students can’t get this
kind of experience with flat pictures.
Dorothy Johnston
Sixth-Grade Teacher
Monte Vista Elementary School
Montclair, California
February 2012 | 25

PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT
Ask
Amy
Being the product manager for
3D Tools for SMART Notebook
software means that Amy
Dewis is often surrounded by
3D images and animations. An
avid floor hockey player, Amy
is the perfect person to explain
how 3D Tools can help teachers
meet their classroom goals –
pun intended! Here’s what she
had to say.
Why is 3D Tools for SMART
Notebook software a great
solution for a budgetconscious
school?
3D Tools is a great alternative to
3D projection systems that require
3D glasses for each student. In
addition, for those schools that
can’t afford document cameras for
every room, 3D Tools brings 3D
content to life right on the SMART
Board interactive whiteboard – at
a fraction of the cost.
26 | February 2012

PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT
Why is this better than using
another 3D viewer?
The ability to access and
interact with 3D content
from right within SMART
Notebook lessons is essential
for keeping students’ attention.
No application switching is
required, so teachers can keep
students engaged and the
lesson flowing smoothly.
What are your favorite
aspects of this product?
The fact that it’s so easy to
use – you just drag and drop
from the Gallery in SMART
Notebook. Also, because it
supports multiple file formats,
there are thousands of pieces
of content to choose from. The
possibilities are endless.
Can you tell us what’s
coming next?
3D Tools is currently only
available for Microsoft Windows,
but it will be available this spring
for Mac operating systems.
We are also continually adding
more 3D content to the SMART
Exchange website, so keep
checking back!
February 2012 | 27

Now there’s an easy
way to assess learning
in any classroom
With SMART Response interactive response systems,
teachers can assess learning, enhance instruction and
improve student outcomes. SMART offers five models,
making it easy for you to find the right assessment
tool for every type of learning environment.
Explore your choices today at smarttech.com/response.