I just read about the Interactive Whiteboard Challenge in The Edublogger. What a great idea! The purpose of the project is to:

To improve the use of interactive whiteboards in the classroom and to stimulate more discussion about how they can best be used.

The project, organized by Jess McCullock, includes 7 challenges to improve your Interactive Whiteboard (aka Smartboard) skills. Each challenge involves you using a Smartboard tool (cloning, transparency, recording, containers) to create something for your students to use. Once you’ve completed a challenge, you will compose a blog post reflecting on the experience. If you don’t have a blog, no worries. Contact jessATtechnoloteDOTcom for an alternative.

To get started, access the Whiteboard Challenge wiki to sign up and view the challenges. Even if you don’t want to participate, you can benefit from viewing the challenges, which demonstrate how to use various whiteboard tools. You will also find a Lesson Files page on the wiki for the sharing of files (notebook files, word, gallery, etc) by the participants. If you complete all the tasks, your name will be included in drawing for 1 Flip Video camera. The challenge has started and runs for 14 weeks.

The Willard Challenge

Willard Staff: If you participate and complete at least 3 of the 7 challenges, I will put your name in a local drawing for a new Flip Mino video camera to be used in your classroom. There will be 1 camera awarded per every 3 participants. So if we have 3 participants, 1 name is drawn and 1 camera awarded. If we have 4+ participants, 2 names will be drawn and 2 cameras awarded, etc. The deadline for completing your 3 challenges is December 8th.

If you need any assistance with the challenges or sharing your reflections, need to borrow a microphone or webcam,  just let me know. I’m more than happy to help.

If having easy access to a Smartboard is keeping you from participating, please note that there will be another Willard Challenge next month that might better suit you. (Thanks for the inspiration, Jess!)

Students (ages 5-18) in the United States have been invited to design a Google logo.

The Doodle 4 Google theme is “What if…?” Students are encouraged to come up with their own ideas.

• What if…I could live underwater, or in outer space, or in Colonial America?
• What if…I could see into the future?
• What if…I could build any kind of invention I wanted?

1. 40 finalists will be invited to a workshop with Google’s official doodler, Dennis Hwang, at the Googleplex in Mountain View, California.
2. The U.S. public will vote for their favorites.
3. The winning design will replace the regular Google homepage on May 22, 2008. This champion doodler will receive a $10,000 college scholarship and his or her school will receive a $25,000 technology grant.

• School registration closes on March 28th.
• Entries must be received by April 12th, 2008.
• Visit Doodle 4 Google to register. Here you will find all the details of the competition, plus detailed lesson plans.

tag: Google Doodle 4 Google contest art log What if? prizes