Step One: PowerPoint Notes and Vocabulary

PowerPoint has become an invaluable tool in my classroom. I use it to introduce new vocabulary and to give notes. I've even used it to "talk" for me on the days I've lost my voice!

I began using PowerPoint in my theater arts classes in order to enhance the note-taking experience. Since theater is a visual field, I wanted to incorporate visual elements into the notes, in order to give students a firmer grasp of the ideas we talk about.


















Giving notes like this helps me; since I've planned my own notes beforehand, I'm less likely to forget important bits of information.

Receiving notes like this helps my students; they are sure to write down the most important points I want them to know, but the information is still flexible enough that we can open a dialogue when necessary.

I use PowerPoint in my study skills classes to introduce new vocabulary units.

Previously, the students would copy the words and complete the activities associated with the units, then take the test. All of this was done on an individual basis.

There were several problems with this approach:

1. The students would not bother to learn how to pronounce the words, so they were not able to recognize them when they heard them.
2. The students were often unable to use the words correctly. If they didn't fully understand definitions, they would improvise, often with disastrous results.
3. The students did not retain the information after they completed the tests. Their goal was to take the tests, not to learn new words.

I decided to teach vocabulary as a whole class activity. For each word, I would present the part of speech, the definition, a picture, and several sample sentences using the word. After the first few weeks, I also began including other forms of the words, since students would often use a word almost correctly, not knowing how to change the words' tenses as needed.



















Presenting vocabulary with PowerPoint gave me the opportunity to check students' comprehension before they began working with the words individually; it also provided students with an opportunity to ask questions about the words, to check their own comprehension, and to see examples of the words' correct usage. The pictures give students a visual reference when they are trying to remember definitions later.

Since I started introducing vocabulary with this method, my students' test grades have risen. In addition, I've noticed that they have fewer usage errors when writing their sentences or stories. Most importantly, I can review words months after we completed the unit, and students still remember definitions.

I use PowerPoint almost every day in my classroom. It is one of the easiest ways to incorporate technology into the classroom.