Whiteboards...the new cool thing

Whiteboards in the classroom are very useful and I feel as though they make teaching lessons and activities more fun in the classroom. I feel that they make teaching more interesting. For myself, I am a visual learner, so having a lesson taught through graphics along with text enhances my learning. I feel as though for children of all ages, especially those at the elementary level will learn better because of the visuals. Along with instruction, whiteboards are interactive, giving the students the opportunity to “play” with the technology while learning and/or reviewing. Since review is a major factor in learning, previously used activities from the lessons can be brought up and used or they can be slightly altered so that the concept is still there but the exact details may be different.
I found that the technology was easy to learn how to use. Since I am accustomed to power point I found it quite similar. The tools were tricky to use in the beginning such as switching back to the pointer after adding a text box, but on the whole I found it easy to use. Actually presenting on the whiteboard I also found easy because I have used them in other classes and other lessons that I have created.
Some of the pro’s of having a whiteboard in the classroom would be having the opportunity to have hands-on-activities that the children can do other than the regular manipulatives. Whiteboards also allow teachers to create lessons that connect to the internet and have on-line games that the students can play to review what was learned. Some of the con’s of having a whiteboard would be that the students may not be able to reach it easily, especially in the younger elementary levels. This problem can be solved by step stools or lowering the board, but in general, it could still possibly cause falls. Another con could be vandalism to the whiteboard. Markers should not really be used on them and anything other than a expo marker could cause damage. Upper grades my do it just because they can and younger kids may not mean to do it because they may not understand. One final pro to having one is having the technology to have learning more interactive and therefore, more fun to the students. I feel as though when students have fun learning, they remember it better!
From past lessons in the tree branches of government in social studies, I could incorporate Smartboard into the content by having virtual tours exploring the White House, or the Capitol Building. There are also many neat websites that have interactive activities for the students that I could incorporate as one center while rotating centers for a day. I also could create games and exercises such as review for quizzes, and make my bulletin board virtual for a day.