Westing Game Prezi Presentation

This Prezi (embedded in my class website) lays out the numerous characters from the book The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin. As we move through the book, we will add pictures of the characters (or celebrities who students feel should play the characters) and the text that says "Connection?" will be replaced with text that describes the characters' connection to Sam Westing.

• What did you learn about Prezi? 
•  During the time I spent working on this presentation, I learned most of the ins and outs of the program. I learned how to manipulate text in all sorts of ways (color, font, arrangement, size) as well as how to best form a "path" through my presentation. ON a more abstract level, I learned more about what is important in visually organizing and displaying information for students; with this program, you can't just through text around - everything has to contribute to your purpose.
  
• What instructional problems could you use this technology for?
• This technology is obviously great for presenting material that would be difficult to present in a linear fashion. Also, it would clear up wall space in my classroom and cut down on paper usage. For example: when reading a book with a complex plot, a vast amount of characters, or that covers a large setting, our class or individual class members would be able to post all of this information visually online, which means I wouldn't have to make tons of copies or find a bulletin board on which I could sort out this information for my students.
  
• What are 2-3 activities you could use this technology for in your own teaching? List the instructional standards if you can identify them.
• This would be a great review activity. By going backwards or forwards through my specific presentation, you could either recall the connection based on the character, or you could recall the character based on the connection. Instead of having students flip through Power Point slides about a topic, they could instead navigate through the Prezi, which would remind them of information but also of relationships.
• I love the Prezi because it is like a class Wiki or blog but instead of just text, students can organize their ideas graphically and online, so everyone can access it all the time. All of the State Core objectives for every grade level require that students learn how to effectively conduct research, and then compare/contrast, persuade, or inform using their research. If students were working as groups or on their own, the students can create a Prezi and, either by themselves or with group members, edit the Prezi in order to show research. Each group would be required to allow me (the teacher) to "edit" the Prezi, but in essence this would just allow me to see the Prezi during all stages of formation. The individual who has used Prezi as a brainstorming device or a graphic organizer for a research project would email me the link to his presentation, thus giving me a glimpse into his writing process, and allowing me to give him feedback on his ideas before he begins writing.

A final thought: I don't necessarily love Prezi because of the pathway thing. I really love it because it is a way to present and organize information graphically, in a way that is not possible with a blog or Wiki. Also, the fact that this program is online and can be edited by anyone who is invited to do so makes it a great way for students and myself to share ideas, review information, and collectively contribute to a class work.