Have you used Padlet in your teaching? If not, you need to read on to find out what this awesome app can do for you and your students.
Most teachers like office supplies. I personally love office supply stores! Sticky notes are one of my favorite tools, both in teaching and in my personal life. Think of Padlet as an online bulletin board where you can place all kinds of sticky notes! Not only that, but other people can see and add to your sticky notes, and you can organize them in different ways.
Especially in these uncertain times of remote teaching, teachers need every tool in their arsenal that they can find. Padlet is a very versatile tool that you can use for all sorts of teaching strategies.
How Does Padlet Work?
Padlet is an app that you can use on any computer, tablet or smartphone. Teachers can sign up for free, though the free account only allows you to make 3 padlets. Honestly, you’ll probably find it so useful once you’ve started using it that you’ll want to upgrade to the paid subscription, which is very affordable. At the time of this writing, teachers can pay $12/month or $99/year.
You as the teacher create the Padlet board. Then all you need to do is to provide students with the link. You can share it on Google Classroom or give them a QR code to scan. Anyone with the link can post on your board. One thing I love is that students don’t need an account to use it, and (ok … 2 things) they can post anonymously.
There are so many aspects of your board that you can control. For example, you can determine where on the board new posts appear, if you want to moderate posts, the background wallpaper and color scheme, and whether or not you allow comments on posts. You can also decide whether or not to grade posts or to let others like or upvote them. Perfect for using in a classroom or distance learning setting!
And it’s not just a straightforward bulletin board that you can use. There are 8 different options for the kind of board that you want. All of them can be very useful in a science class.
One of my favorites is the Canvas board. Perfect for mind mapping! You can also use files or pictures in your posts.
Here is a new board that I recently started as a place to visually store my bookmarks.
10 Ways to Use Padlet in Science Classes
Start an Engage Activity. A great way to start a class, especially a remote class, is by starting a board for a writing prompt. Students can respond to your prompt, and depending on your settings, they can respond to each other as well.
Collaborate on a Group Project. Start a board for each group to contain all of their working ideas, links, pictures, etc. Also great for lab reports.
Have a class discussion. The “Backchannel” type of board allows for a streaming conversation among your students. You could pose a question and have students answer it and respond to each other. Here’s a preview of what that looks like.
Create a Mind Map. The “Canvas” board type allows students to post to different types of mind maps. You can use a tree map, a circle map or a flow map. Use it as a whole class or with small groups of students.
Stream your assignments and reminders. If you’re familiar with Google Classroom and the stream, then the “Stream” version of the boards will also be familiar. You can stream classroom assignments, lesson links, online labs, etc.
Current Events. Use the Wall board to contain articles on current events in your science topic. You could post one and have students comment on it, or the students could be responsible for posting them.
Parent Communication. Create a board using Stream and post any notifications, upcoming test dates, or anything that parents would like to know about. You can set it up to allow yourself to get email notifications whenever anyone posts on it. Just remember, anyone can see the board, so it’s not a place for personal parent communications.
Flipped Classroom or Blended Learning. Set up a board for part of a lesson during stations in class as part of a blended learning lesson or to let students post to it in class as part of a flipped learning lesson. Students would have watched a video or Powerpoint outside of class. Then they could collaborate in groups or as a whole class on answering some questions or posting reactions.
Notetaking. If you’re doing a presentation or demonstration, groups of students could post notes on their own wall.
Researching. What a perfect place to keep all of your resources for a research paper or project! Students could each start their own boards for this. Since you can place links in the posts, students could have all of their research materials in one, easily-accessible place.
So are you already a Padlet pro? Or just finding out about it now? Either way, share ways you’ve used it or an idea that you’d like to try. We’d love to hear about it!
Happy Teaching!
