Jamboard is a tool that really busted on the scene during the pandemic. It was a useful tool to get us through that crazy time. Guess what? It is still a useful tool to use in the classroom.
- Jamboard is collaborative
- Jamboard is FREE
- Jambord allows for various types of media to be used
- Jamboard is low-prep for teachers to use
Making words into phrases
Jamboard can be used for students to take phrases and combine them into sentences. The teacher loads the Jambaord with various words and students move the words around to create phrases and sentences. Coach the students on how to add or remove the words (gifs for ASL teachers). This option adds UDL to the assignment giving students the tools they need to work at their proficiency level.
Listing vocabulary by themes
Another way to use Jamboard is to have students list words by themes. In the picture example below, students were given topics during a personality traits unit. Students were placed into small groups and tasked with listing desirable and undesirable traits.
See already-made personality traits here.
This option does not allow students to process language in context, but it does allow them to use retrieval in order to list the traits. Other options for this would be to use classifier handshapes to describe clothing or animals. Or students can list words they recognize in a video, list words that describe a character, or list words that talk about themselves (like favorite sports or foods).
View and list
One way to get lots of repetition of a resource is to have loads of different activities that don’t make watching the same video over and over feel boring or redundant. One way to do this is to have students view together in small groups and identify terms they do know. Students can make a gif of the word and add it to the Jamboard. This is helpful for the teacher to see what students already understand and as a review resource for students later. I like to use this with more complicated, authentic texts like the Dialy Moth or music videos.
Answering questions
There are a few ways you can use questions and Jamboards. One idea you can use is to get to know students at the start of the school year. You place gifs of the question on the Jamboard (novices may need this in English) and students answer. The students will post their gif responses to the questions on the board.
Another option is to ask comprehension questions about a video or text on the Jamboard (using a gif in the target language) and students post their responses using the target language. This is another great way to get in repetition without viewing the video over and over and making it feel like a dull task. Using fresh ideas will spice up the multiple viewings.
Try Jamboard today
Using the Jambaord in various ways keeps the task feeling new. Jamboard is also a low-prep tool for teachers to use. Most of the work is on the students to complete and demonstrate what they know and understand.
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