At Slides with Friends, we're all about trying to make your life as a teacher a little bit easier. We want to provide as many tools, tips, and as much support as possible. That's why we share on topics like Review Games, Student Wellness Activities, and Tools for Measuring Student Engagement.
While we usually focus on how you can use Slides with Friends specifically, we want to bring you something a little different this time. We've compiled 12 of our favorite interactive PowerPoint activities you can use with your students. All of the activities are designed to engage your students in ways they'll love. Even better, these activities let you use a tool you're probably already familiar with.
And read to the end for an exciting new announcement!
Annotated images let you teach history (or literature! or geography!) using detailed annotated images from your latest lesson. We're big fans of using visuals in the classroom. And with good reason! A study released by the Journal of Education and Practice found visual information is mapped better in students' minds across multiple types of thinking skills. By introducing more visuals to a lesson plan, and using tools like PowerPoint, lessons are more likely to be remembered.
You can introduce annotated images on PowerPoint by picking out relevant images and adding captions or labels to them and presenting them as you teach. You can add descriptions, draw arrows, or points of interest on the image.
Check out this fun example from Ditch That Textbook.
Even better, provide a few unique images of the lesson you just presented and have the students create their own annotations. Then, as a class, have each student present their image in PowerPoint.
More visual learning! Using photos as storytelling prompts can be a great way to spark your student's creativity! PowerPoint is an ideal platform to display the photos, as it provides you the flexibility and versatility to show one photo at a time in case you want the students to focus exclusively on that image.
Simply ask them to write a story based on the photo in 1-3 sentences, and compare answers afterward. Encouraging different interpretations of a single image also helps foster critical thinking skills and encourages students to use their own perspectives when expressing their ideas.
Interactive maps are a fantastic way for students to learn about their world without leaving the classroom! And one of the easiest ways to show off these maps is through PowerPoint. Plus, PowerPoint makes adding hyperlinks to specific places (like pins), so you can click through areas of interest without having to open up a separate browser page.
If you're looking for a simple tutorial on how to create a lesson-based interactive map, check out this one from eLearning Industry. For more exploratory maps, check out the tutorial below (which includes the free template!).
We love a good game here at Slides with Friends, so it shouldn't be a surprise to see so many options on this list. However, before doing research for this article, we had no idea Battleship could be played on PowerPoint!
In the template below, you can add words and to reveal the space beneath the words, students have to:
- Conjugate the Verb
- Use the Word in a Sentence
- Define the Word
Or one of any fun combinations.
We love this idea for language classes especially, but can also be used for vocabulary in any subject.
You can check out the whole presentation here.
Crossword Puzzle
Crossword puzzles are a timeless and popular way of testing knowledge and keeping minds alert. They can be used in the classroom to reinforce concepts and skills related to any subject, making them a great teaching tool. Crosswords can help students learn new vocabulary words, polish their grammar, understand history or science topics better, or firm up mathematics concepts.
And an easy way to do a crossword in the classroom is by using PowerPoint. You simply need to create a blank and a filled puzzle on PowerPoint and then fill it out with your class.
Check out this step-by-step guide on the best way to quickly create a crossword puzzle in PowerPoint.
Tests and quizzes are absolutely no fun, so if you can find an easy way to quiz your students in a fun way, that's a win-win! One of our favorite ways to do this is by creating a quiz show on PowerPoint.
By using those hyperlinks we mentioned above, you can easily create your own questions, assign point values, and include sound effects (or music!) to make your students feel like they're actually in a game show!
This 6 Steps to Create a Multiple Choice Quiz is a great way to start designing your next PowerPoint quiz. If you're looking for multiple ways to create a quiz show for your students, check out the detailed tutorial below.
We've talked quite a bit about visuals here, not just because PowerPoint is a great tool for visuals, but because visuals are so extremely helpful in the classroom.
One way to incorporate visual activities into your classes with PowerPoint is by creating video galleries. This is especially useful if you have limited access to videos and need to play them in a certain order.
You can create a video gallery presentation by manually inserting the clips into slides or creating a series of hyperlinks to take the class through certain processes. You can also add captions, notes, and questions for further discussion.
A fun activity to incorporate in your classroom through the power of PowerPoint is a review scavenger hunt.
Scavenger hunts can be an engaging way to go over the material and test knowledge at the beginning or end of a unit. PowerPoint is a great tool to use when designing a scavenger hunt if you are working with students online. With the tool, you can hide clues in images, ask questions that are linked to hyperlinks, and even add video clips as hints.
Scavenger hunts also offer quite a bit of versatility in the classroom. You can have students work individually or in groups, depending on your goals for the lesson.
You can reference our Virtual Scavenger Hunt guide, which includes several hunt lists, for ideas on what to bring to your students.
PowerPoint slides can also be used to create engaging interactive experiences. PowerPoint's slide-linking feature allows you to jump between slides with the click of a button, providing users with their own “Choose Your Own Adventure”-style gaming experience. As a result, you can create an interactive story with a different ending each and every time.
While this activity will take quite a bit of upfront work, once you have it done, you can use it for countless classes.
We highly recommend this tutorial by The Training Lady on how to plan out your next PowerPoint adventure!
Picture Reveal is a great PowerPoint activity that encourages students to think critically. In this activity, you can present an obscured picture and provides clues as to what it could be. Students must then utilize their knowledge and logic skills to work out what the picture is by eliminating incorrect answers based on the clues provided until they eventually get the correct answer.
Picture reveals are a great way to review material from previous lessons or current topics. They can also act as an introduction to a new lesson. Plus, we can't stress this enough, visuals!
Word search games are a great way to review vocabulary and help students learn new words. Using PowerPoint, you can create custom word searches by entering the target vocabulary words in a grid. Then draw lines connecting each letter to form words! You can even add visuals that correspond with the theme of your word search for an extra challenge.
Word search games are perfect for when you have some leftover time during class or if you want to review material from earlier units. A PowerPoint word search is also great for helping students recognize spelling patterns in unfamiliar words and promoting active learning as they look for the hidden words in the puzzle.
One of the best ways to get your students engaged in the classroom is to have them lead the show. And PowerPoint is such an awesome tool for students to present their own material.
With a little guidance, you can have older students create mini-presentations about topics they've studied in class or even on their own. Not only will this allow you to assess what they've retained from studying, but it also allows your students to practice public speaking skills and become more comfortable with online presentations - essential in today's digital world!
With PowerPoint, you can easily turn any student project into an engaging presentation everyone will enjoy.
PowerPoint has been a vital tool in the teacher toolbox for decades. There are so many fantastic ways to use PowerPoint to engage and interact with your classroom.
Slides with Friends is excited to announce a new feature for our slide decks - A PowerPoint upload!
Now you can create your slides in an already-known program, or use slide shows you've already made, and with a click of a button upload them to Slides with Friends!
Slides with Friends brings classroom PowerPoint activities to the next level by enabling real-time collaborative engagement from all of your students. By combining your PowerPoint presentations with Slides with Friends live word clouds, polling, trivia, and quizzes, as well as photo sharing, you really can fully involve your students in every lesson.
