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Monday, December 7, 2009

DIY SmartBoard: A Smart Idea!

No Promethean board in your classroom? No money? No problem!

Lisa Olsson, a resourceful AP Biology teacher at the Bay Ridge Prep School in Brooklyn NYC, suggests an inexpensive alternative to the very costly Promethean boards that Jerry Weast has illegally forced upon us. Here's what she has to say (posted with her permission):

"I came across this lecture [Feb. 2008] on the TED site and I thought some of you might be interested.


Johnny Lee has come up with a way to use a Wii-mote (the controller for Nintendo Wii) to make any projector into a smartboard. My school doesn't have the money for SmartBoards so I built this one. It cost me $42.60 to buy all the parts to built the LED marker and about 35 minutes of set-up and it works perfectly!"

Of course, the 16th largest district in the nation could make bulk purchases in a way that is surely not available to one school going at it alone. I bet you we can beat Lisa's price!

Central Office, are you listening?
In the classrooms, kids are waiting!
A beautiful sight, with so many smiles,
Learning in a classroom.... Wonderful!

Gone away are the fat years
Here to stay are the lean years
The budget is tight
Gotta face that plight...
Learning in a classroom... Wonderful!

In the classroom we can build a SmartBoard
Then pretend it's a Promethean!
Some say: But will it work?
Kids say, Sure, man!
And we can do the job...
...Can the school board?"

3 comments:

  1. In MCPS, taxpayers are paying close to $5,000 per classroom for the Promethean Board set up.

    This is an excellent example of the same technology can be obtained in different ways and for less. Another excellent reason why COMPETITIVE BIDS and discussing purchases at the BOARD OF EDUCATION TABLE are so important.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Be sure to check out Johnny Lee's webpage for more info on his projects. The software needed to make your own whiteboard is available at:

    http://johnnylee.net/projects/wii

    ReplyDelete
  3. Here is the software as a refined product. The trial version is free, full cost for the registered version is $29.99.

    http://www.smoothboard.net/

    The Smoothboard software supports up to two WII remotes. By using two remotes, blind spots are eliminated, even when the speaker stands by the screen.

    The lightpens are widely available from sources such as:

    http://www.wiiteachers.com/

    The bluetooth USB adapter, which is needed for laptops that do not have integrated bluetooth, is also available from the above source. A complete setup guide is also on the above site.

    The WII remote is available from numerous sources for $20 to $40. For example, at Walmart:
    http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=8070470

    Note that this product is actually superior to a Promethean Board in some ways:

    (1) It is highly portable
    (2) there is no fragile screen to damage

    ReplyDelete

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