Using Nearpod in the Classroom Grace Neubig

Teachers and administrators can create free accounts to access this platform. Within this, educators are able to create, share, and use lesson plans, activities, educational videos, and games within the website. Students can access specific materials and lessons by entering a generated code.

Creating an Interactive Lesson

The homepage for this resource provides many different options for teachers. With a free account, one can create content from scratch or search for one in the Nearpod Library.

By selecting the create icon, a teacher can create a lesson, video, activity, or upload a slideshow from Google Slides.

Teachers can upload content from within the platform that was created by others. Further, teachers can add interactive activities like questions to any video. Teachers also have the option to create slides or other components that allow students to engage with the lesson, such as polls, quizzes, open-ended questions, and more.

To add a video, for example, a teacher can search for a specific topic and browse through the results. Once one is found, it can be added to the lesson plan.

Teachers can create content on their own, either through creating a quiz, as seen above, or by creating polls, drawing activities, or matching games.

For a final assessment and a highly engaging and exciting activity, create a "Time to Climb." This is a game where students are quizzed on what they have learned and compete against each other to get the most answers correct. Teachers create multiple choice questions for students to answer on their own devices.

Example of "Time to Climb" - An exciting feature of Nearpod lessons!

Students work there way through a series of questions on their own devices, and the teacher tracks their progress.

At the end, a podium will appear displaying the top 3 scoring students. This feature is extremely similar to Kahoot and keeps students energetically engaged and excited to participate.

Once all of the content has been added to a lesson plan, the teacher can preview the slideshow in student or teacher mode, and then save it. It's ready to share!

Browsing Other Lessons and Content

Teachers also have the option of browsing through already created lesson plans, videos, games and activities. By clicking on "Nearpod Library" on the homepage sidebar, the page pictured above will appear. Here, teachers can search for specific content, filtering materials based on subject, grade level, and content type.

When a teacher is ready to share the slideshow with the class, there are two options on how to distribute it:

Live participation: the teacher controls how quickly the class works through the lesson while still enabling students to participate in the interactive segments from their own devices.
Student-Paced: instruction is more personalized and individualized as students work through the lesson at their own paces from their own devices.

Once a teacher selects a presentation mode, a code will be generated for students to type into at join.nearpod.com. Students will then be able to walk through instruction and participate in interactive components from their own devices. The lesson can also be shared and accessed through outside platforms by copying the link, email, Google Classroom, Remind, and Microsoft Teams.

As students join the lesson, their names will appear on this screen. Teachers have multiple options once they are in present mode: they can see their slides at the bottom of the screen, make the names of their students visible or invisible to the rest of the class, and add to their slideshow when needed. The three icons in the middle of this screen are options to add brain break activities, insert interactive activities like questions and quizzes, and to open a white board screen that enables the teacher to write on the board.

On the sidebar of the teacher's home screen, there is a tab titled "Reports." The progress of each student within each lesson and activity will appear here for easy access.

Nearpod is an extremely versatile and engaging platform for teachers and students. Teachers can keep their lessons exciting for students who are eager to learn and participate.

Lesson Ideas:

2nd grade lesson plan to describe characters
3rd grade lesson plan on Veteran's Day
5th grade lesson plan on multi-digit multiplication

ISTE Standards - Educators

2.1.b - Pursue professional interests by creating and actively participating in local and global learning networks.
2.3.a - Create experiences for learners to make positive, socially responsible contributions and exhibit empathetic behavior online that build relationships and community.
2.4.c - Use collaborative tools to expand students' authentic, real-world learning experiences by engaging virtually with experts, teams and students, locally and globally.
2.5.a - Use technology to create, adapt and personalize learning experiences that foster independent learning and accommodate learner differences and needs
2.5.b - Design authentic learning activities that align with content area standards and use digital tools and resources to maximize active, deep learning.
2.6.b - Manage the use of technology and student learning strategies in digital platforms, virtual environments, hands-on makerspaces, or in the field.

ISTE Standards - Students

1.2.b - Students engage in positive, safe, legal and ethical behavior when using technology, including social interactions online or when using networked devices.
1.3.c - Students curate information from digital resources using a variety of tools and methods to create collections of artifacts that demonstrate meaningful connections or conclusions.
1.6.b - Students create original works or responsibly repurpose or remix digital resources into new creations.
1.7 Global Collaborator - Students use digital tools to broaden their perspectives and enrich their learning by collaborating with others and working effectively in teams locally and globally.

CCSS Standards

S.L. 1 - Prepare for and participate effectively in a range of conversations and collaborations with diverse partners, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively
S.L. 2 - Integrate and evaluate information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.
S.L. 5 - Make strategic use of digital media and visual displays of data to express information and enhance understanding of presentations.

Pros

There is a free version.
Students have the option to work through lessons at their own pace.
There is content for any grade level and all subjects available.
Easy access from anywhere - great tool for online learning.
Keeps students actively engaged.
Provides teachers with instant assessment reports on student responses.
Variety of ways for students to participate.
Teachers can share lesson plans with other educators.

Cons

Limited access with free version - teachers using the free version have limited storage, so they can't create or use as much content.
Students might type inappropriate names when joining a lesson.
Creating slideshows within the program is time consuming.
It is device-dependent: students must have access to computers or tablets in order to participate.

Alternatives to Nearpod:

Kahoot!
Lumio
Socrative
Google Slides

References

“CT Core Standards.” CT.gov, portal.ct.gov/SDE/CT-Core-Standards.

Appreciate

Credits:

Created with images by Winyou - "The blue wall." • mesamong - "Yellow Concrete Wall Texture Background." • mesamong - Igor - "Dark green background with a fleecy base." • Mara Zemgaliete - "color paper background" • sodawhiskey - "Business workspace with computer laptop blank screen is putting on a desk surrounded by various equipment."