The Awards Maker can be utilized for more than the Awards Ceremonies. Here are some ideas on how to utilize it year round! Use it to fundraise, create incentives, highlight specific programs, or educate.

The VariQuest Suite of products is perfect for developing a student based enterprise. This gives students real world work experience and responsibility for running the business. It can even help them fulfill academic, work based learning standards with exposure to marketing, operations, production, finance and sales disciplines. The Poster Maker, Awards Maker and Cutout Maker’s output can easily be sold no only to teachers but to other students and members of the community. Here are some ideas!

Back to School Night: Sell posters, banners and cutouts to teachers and administrators to decorate the hallways and classrooms with curriculum based materials.

Science Fair: Students can order cutouts to help decorate their science fair boards. Teachers can order plaques for the winners of the fair.

Sporting Events: Create posters and banners for pep rally events and advertise the upcoming games. Students can also sell posters depicting a picture of the sporting team with the team’s schedule. Local businesses can purchase stickers to post on water bottles with coupons to their businesses. Cutouts can be sold as ways to get the crowd excited!

School Dances: Sell posters of student photos taken at the dance. Sell cutouts to decorate the dances with. Student committees can purchase posters to advertise the events with.

Community Events: Members of the community can order posters to promote events, nametag stickers, and bumper stickers for events

Class Spirit and Club Events: Grade levels can purchase car decals and bumper stickers with their graduation year. Clubs can sell bumper stickers to members or as fundraisers.

Do you have a fundraiser idea using Varitronics products? Let us know and we can feature your idea on our blog or quarterly newsletter! Email Victoria Cobb at victoria.cobb@avispl.com with your ideas.

Click here for more fundraiser ideas

Now you can mount any interactive whiteboard in front of your existing chalk or dry erase board! Simply slide it over when not in use! Diversitrack is the first sliding track mount system of its kind for interactive whiteboards, supporting the industry’s top brands such as SMART™ Technologies. Diversitrack can help your classroom retain your dry erase and chalk board space while enabling you to use your SMART Board where you want it, when you want it.

The Diversitrack employs a very secure and durable dual-track system, which includes rails that attach above and below your existing chalk or dry erase board. The Diversitrack mounts over a standard height dry erase board or chalk board, up to 58.25 inches tall. The Diversitrack is professionally manufactured out of a strong grade of aluminum, using a high-tech laser. Using an innovative clip system, the Diversitrack can accommodate the SMART SB580, SB560, SB640, SB660 and the SB680 in addition to whiteboards made by other major manufacturers. The Diversitrack is also equipped with a system to securely hold your interactive whiteboard in its calibrated position while it is in use.

The Diversitrack is already in use in hundreds of classrooms. Ask your AVI-SPL Sales Representative about how the Diversitrack can help you use your interactive whiteboard more effectively, without having to give up an inch of your dry erase and chalk board space!

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The technophiles, especially Apple groupies, have been eagerly waiting for (and speculating about) the official announcement about Apple’s new tablet computer. Today, Steve Jobs, along with a slew of Apple executives and developers, unveiled the iPad. With a starting price of $499, this sleek tablet could make a big impact on the AV industry.

A few uses:

• In conference rooms instead of significantly-more-expensive touch panel displays (with the right software- perhaps with the newly released Crestron XPanel for Mac?)
• In classrooms replacing textbooks, scientific calculators, pocket translators, calendars and desktop computers with one device
• For presenters, iWork – Keynote allows users to present natively by connecting to a projector

What other uses can you think of?

For more information about the iPad, click here.

The Awards Maker can be utilized for more than the Awards Ceremonies. Here are some ideas on how to utilize it year round! Use it to fundraise, create incentives, highlight specific programs, or educate.

Fundraising

Create stickers to sell during Valentine’s Day rather than sell carnations. There are several great templates in the Design Center software you could use to sell these unique valentines.

Sell stickers to support different clubs in your school. Whether it is the chess club, drama club or even a sport, you can create small stickers that students can stick to mugs or notebooks. You could also use the bumper sticker templates for a bigger sticker with a larger profit.

For spirit week, sell graduation year stickers and use this as a way to see who has the most spirit – the more stickers sold equals a winner! High Schools students will enjoy the creations you make on the clear sticker because they can stick these onto the windshields of their cars.

If sporting events cause trouble with parking, why not make a few bucks off of it? Sell VIP parking passes that you can create using the Awards Maker. Let these folks park in the spots closest to the stadium.

Get your Marketing classes involved on the fundraising and ask them to contact local businesses. Sell water bottles, notebooks, or pencils with special labels during sporting events or during lunch periods. The sticker may even include a coupon, so student can take the water bottle or sticker to the business for a special discount.

Create Incentives

Highlight student achievements in the Accelerated Reader program by giving them a bookmark for each new level they reach in the program. Simply print one of the ribbon stickers and stick to manila card stock to create a sturdy, useful award to keep them reading!

p>Motivate students to hand in assignments in a timely manner by creating simple, quick stickers that say something like “way to go”. These stickers can be personalized with their name to make them special.

When a student consistently makes improvements in their grades, why wait to give them an award at the awards ceremony? Create a plaque or bumper sticker to show them you see their efforts and are proud of what they’ve accomplished.

Use the Awards Maker to create stickers that show a student their improvements. Maybe you’re working on learning a complicated concept. Give them an award for after mastering each portion of the concept. By the end of the unit, they will have all collected a complete set of these incentives.

Highlight Specific Programs

If you are working on character education year round, pass out stickers to students who embody the concept you are teaching. For example, you notice one of your students is willing to share supplies with another classmate. Showcase that student’s positive behavior with a small sticker with her name and what she embodies.

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Start a “Random Acts of Kindness” program at your school and reward students with a sticker when you see them exhibit kindness to classmates. This small incentive will help them to understand how their behavior has made a positive impact within the school.

If your school has a Head Start program, create bumper stickers to help the program grow. The more exposure the program has in the community, the better your chances are of enrolling additional students.

Create plaques or window stickers for teachers who are working towards or earned their National Certification. This allows parents and visitors to see how many teachers you have that are dedicated to their own growth as educators.

Educate

The bumper sticker templates can help teachers create word walls in their classrooms. All the colored sticker media has a temporary adhesive making them easy to peel off of the wall after use. Because the stickers are not made of paper, they shouldn’t apply to the percentage of wall space covered by paper rule the Fire Department enforces.

You can also create stickers the students can utilize while they are learning new concepts like math formulas or grammar rules. The more they see the rules and concepts, the more likely they are to remember them. If it’s posted on their notebook, they’ll see and use them every day!

Create puzzles by creating stickers with vocabulary words and definitions on separate stickers. Press the stickers to a card stock to make them sturdy and use them like flash cards. Have the students match the words to their definitions for a group project that is fun and educational.

As you can see, there are several great applications that you can utilize your Awards Maker for in addition to the twice yearly Awards ceremony. With the quick print times, you can get in and out of the workroom with great incentives that will wow your students with little effort on your part!

To view Varitronics® full-line of visual learning products, click here.

SMART Ideas software brings the power of visual learning to your classroom. Students can better analyze and understand complex ideas by building multilevel interactive maps in this fun, colorful software. These exciting presentations take students through concepts one level at a time for greater clarity, with the maps easily converting into multipage Web sites for everyone to share.

With the software’s easy navigation features, you can easily view maps in various formats to help students learn from multiple perspectives. The convenience of the global view feature allows you to show all the map levels at once, while the presentation view option removes toolbars for a large, clear display.

You can also swiftly switch between the diagram view and the text outline view to demonstrate the connection between visual and written ideas. SMART Ideas also allows you to enhance maps with curriculum-specific and interactive clip art to aid learning and make lessons interesting, effortlessly adding multimedia content and links. Click here for product brochure »

Receive a complimentary SMART Ideas software license from SMART Technologies by registering your SMART Board Interactive Whiteboard on SMART’s Web site. Just include your email address with your product registration, and a SMART Ideas software license will be emailed to you.

As one of the latest products in their innovative line of educational tools, SMART Technologies recently released SMART Response CE, an interactive response software that allows flexible, automated assessment in 1:1, computer-enabled classrooms. Instead of handheld remotes, students can use their computers and SMART Notebook SE (Student Edition) software to answer questions. Teachers can easily add various types of assessments to lesson content designed for individual, small-group or whole-class environments.

SMART Response CE is an integral part of the SMART solution and includes SMART Notebook and SMART Notebook SE (Student Edition) software. SMART Response CE can be used alone or as part of SMART Classroom Suite interactive learning software. With support for short answer, numeric response, yes or no, true or false, multiple answer and multiple choice questions, teachers can design assessments that suit the needs of their students and the material being taught. To deliver an assessment, the teacher presses a button within SMART Notebook. The question with all accompanying digital content is then delivered to student computers where students can respond. Once tallied, the results can be tabulated in a variety of ways for versatile reporting options and trend analysis. Click here for product brochure »

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Sophisticated AV technology for classrooms, especially in higher education, is becoming a standard. With so much AV equipment being marketed to schools, it is easy to get confused by the options. ArchiTech recently published a terrific summary of the newest trends and tools for AV in the classroom.

Click here to read the full article on the ArchiTech site. 

For more information about the educational tools available from AVI-SPL, click here.

InFocus announced two new additions to its projector line specifically for the education market. The projectors (IN5534 and IN5504) both have a new split-screen option, which will virtually eliminate the need for multiple projectors in classrooms. Both projectors, specified at WUXGA (1,920 x 1,200) resolution, are network/wireless ready and feature analog and HD video connectivity. The two models are easy to camouflage in nearly any environment thanks to InFocus’ custom case parts available in multiple colors, including white, black, walnut, and ready to paint.

For more information about AVI-SPL’s line of InFocus projectors, click here »

AVI-SPL recently helped Hillsborough County students get their first look at the dynamic features of SMART Technologies latest innovation, the SMART Table. The fourth graders at Lee Elementary Magnet School in Tampa, Fla., are among the first students in the county – and state – to have access to this exciting technology. From math to social studies to art, the SMART Table allows the youngest of learners to take a fun, hands on approach to their activities. Best of all, it helps teachers create new and unique collaborative learning activities with minimal preparation time.

“AVI-SPL’s education market manager, Kristin Kraemer, has been great in helping us get the SMART Table at Lee Elementary and keeping me up-to-date on the latest information,” says Gregory Hart, magnet technology and curriculum specialist for Hillsborough County Public Schools. “The SMART Table is part of our 21st Century Learning Environment project, which involves increasing the amount of interactive technology in the classroom. I find that students learn better when they learn with each other, and that is what the SMART table does best.”

Software content can be customized with the SMART Table Toolkit, which is included with each SMART Table. Teachers can easily customize lesson activity content by accessing the Gallery in SMART Notebook, which contains more than 6,600 learning objects.

To learn more about the impact of the SMART Table at Lee Magnet Elementary School, click here»

Please contact us at (800) 282-6733 or email us at sales@avispl.com to learn how AVI-SPL can help bring the SMART Table, and other SMART Technologies products, to your school!

To subscribe to AVI-SPL’s “Bright Ideas Newsletter”, featuring the latest in education news, discounts and more, email us at brightideas@avispl.com.

To view the SMART Table specs, click here »

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The SMART Table is the first multitouch, multiuser interactive learning center that allows groups of primary school students to work simultaneously on its surface. The SMART Table is designed to meet students’ needs for creativity, fun and learning in the classroom. Students can gather together in small groups to explore digital lessons, play educational games and complete interactive learning activities designed to encourage student discussion and help students develop consensus building skills.

SMART Technologies designed the SMART Table to be highly durable in order to meet the needs of primary school learners. Because the Table’s durable surface is scratch proof and water resistant, children can safely lean, bump and jostle the Table as they work. Teachers can relax and let young students get carried away with their enthusiasm for the Table – and for collaborative learning.

The Table’s interface is simple and intuitive, and inspired by SMART’s expertise in classroom interactive technology. Students can begin exploring activities in seconds and are provided with visual and auditory feedback in order to prompt discussions, build consensus and reward small groups for their collaboration. Students are strongly encouraged to communicate and interact with each other while participating in interactive lesson activities or educational games. The Table is designed to support the collaborative learning approach to education.

Teachers can create new and unique collaborative learning activities with minimal preparation time. The Table’s software content can be customized with the SMART Table Toolkit, which is included with each SMART Table. Teachers can easily customize lesson activity content by accessing the Gallery in SMART Notebook, which contains more than 6,600 learning objects.

Using the SMART Table, multiple learners can simultaneously match answers with questions, share and manipulate pictures and videos, work together to solve math questions and draw simultaneously over a drawing canvas.

The possibilities for fun and teamwork are limitless on the Table – from sliding a picture across the Table’s surface, to following a trail of clues or mapping the human body.

If you would like to see how the SMART Table can help you enhance learning in your classroom or media center, we invite you to contact your AVI-SPL sales representative to schedule a demonstration.

To view the SMART Table specs, click here »

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