SMART makes developing curriculum-based digital lessons easier with new version of SMART Board software
Version 9.5 helps teachers create and deliver curriculum-based lessons with SMART Board interactive whiteboards
CALGARY, Alberta --- April 17, 2006 --- SMART Technologies Inc. announces that SMART Board™ software 9.5 for the Microsoft® Windows® operating system and Apple Mac OS X is now available. Integral to every SMART Board interactive whiteboard, SMART Board software 9.5 makes creating, managing and using digital content easier for teachers – ease of use is a key consideration in this, and every, version of the world’s most widely used interactive whiteboard software. New features include more curriculum-based content, a keyword search and multimedia integration.
Developed in consultation with teachers, version 9.5 builds on the core functions and intuitive interface upon which SMART's education customers depend. Notebook™ collaborative learning software is the whiteboarding application within SMART Board software 9.5 and the digital content hub. It features ample whiteboarding space where teachers and students can write notes in digital ink and create, interact with and save digital content from a variety of sources, all from within Notebook software. The Gallery feature allows users to arrange and store their own digital content to complement the more than 6,000 pre-loaded images, backgrounds, audio, Macromedia® Flash® and video files. Over 500 new learning objects have also been added from companies such as Intel® Skoool™, Espresso Education, Froguts and Daydream Education. A Gallery keyword search is used to access stored content quickly.
With version 9.5, teachers and students with SMART Board interactive whiteboards in their schools are also entitled to take-home privileges, enabling them to download Notebook software to their personal computers. Teachers can then create and prepare lesson plans at their convenience, and students can review lessons and do homework at home using either Windows or Mac operating systems. Version 9.5 is a free upgrade for SMART Board interactive whiteboard customers.
“I love Notebook software as it helps me reach out to reluctant learners, and I use it to bring in sound and video to create dynamic and engaging lessons,” says Rachel Yurk, a sixth-grade teacher at Poplar Creek Elementary School, New Berlin, Wisconsin. “This software upgrade makes it easier for me to meet the needs of each and every child by being able to engage him or her with multimedia presentations. I can capture their attention and make the learning process more interactive.”
“I have been using my SMART Board with my Mac computer for almost two years and don’t think I could teach without it,” says Barbara Post, a math teacher at Santiago High School, Garden Grove, California. “The improvements in SMART Board software make it even more classroom friendly because I can now move toolbars, use mathematical symbols, immediately access the Gallery and easily make changes on the fly in front of students.”
“Educators around the world are adopting SMART Board interactive whiteboards because of their positive impact on student engagement and teachers’ preparation time,” says Nancy Knowlton, SMART’s president and co-CEO. “An important part of that impact comes from teachers’ ability to integrate relevant digital learning materials into their planned lessons and spontaneously during class. SMART Board software 9.5 offers the flexibility teachers need when developing materials for student-centered, inquiry-based lessons.”
Availability and pricing
SMART Board software 9.5 for the Windows and Mac OS X operating systems is now available. Existing SMART customers can download version 9.5 for free at www.smarttech.com/support/software. SMART Board software 9.5 will be included at no extra charge with all new orders of SMART Board interactive whiteboards, Sympodium® interactive pen displays and AirLiner™ wireless slates. For additional information or specifications, visit www.smarttech.com.
New features
Gallery search
Quickly and easily find images, videos and sounds by using the keyword search or browsing through the content tree structure.
Online resources
Use the Gallery to access thousands of SMART lesson activities correlated to curriculum standards, a variety of online classroom resources or any online content.
Video and audio support
Integrate video or audio files into Notebook software lesson activities. Like other objects in Notebook software, video files can be resized, written over and stored in the Gallery. Audio files can be attached to objects or can be objects themselves.
Linking
Create easy-to-use, nonlinear lessons by linking objects to pages in a Notebook file, Web pages, an attached document or any document on the hard drive.
Locking
Lock an object in place, lock an object so it can be moved, or lock it so it can be moved and rotated but not edited.
Import and export PowerPoint® files
Leverage existing content by importing PowerPoint files into Notebook software’s more interactive format. Notebook files can also be exported to PowerPoint. (Windows version only)
Flip objects
Flip objects horizontally and vertically to customize all objects.
Enhanced text support
Incorporate subscript, superscript and scientific symbols. Text can also be added to shapes.
Customizable toolbar
Add to or remove icons from the Notebook software toolbar. (Mac version only)
Gallery Collections
Use the Gallery to access thousands of pre-loaded learning objects, including over 500 new images, audio, video, Flash and Notebook software lesson activities.
Freehand screen capture
Capture any shape or part of the screen by tracing over its outline with the freehand function.
Versatile Screen Shade
Conceal and reveal information point by point by dragging the Screen Shade – up or down, left or right – directly over the Notebook page, desktop or any application. Screen Shade can be set on each Notebook page.
Improved Spotlight Tool
Resize the Spotlight on selected pages and objects any way they like.
Improved Video Player
Now play, write over and capture streaming video using SMART Video Player. (Windows version only)
Instant customer support
Network with SMART’s customer support center using built-in Bridgit™ conferencing software. They can share their desktops with customer support specialists with one simple button. (Currently available in North America.)
About SMART
SMART Technologies Inc. is both the industry pioneer and global education market leader in easy-to-use interactive whiteboards and other group collaboration tools. The award-winning SMART Board interactive whiteboard is the most widely installed interactive whiteboard in the world. Many school jurisdictions have standardized on the product, which is used to provide interactive learning opportunities and enhance student achievement in more than 250,000 classrooms spanning every U.S. state, every Local Authority in the UK and more than 75 countries. SMART products also include interactive pen displays, interactive digital signage, wireless slates and software. Using SMART products, groups can access and share the information they need to meet, teach, train and present. SMART’s education customers include New York City Board of Education (U.S.), Oxford University (UK), Barnier Public School (Australia), University of Ottawa (Canada), United World College (Singapore), Stephen-Hawking-Schule Neckargemuend (Germany), Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind (U.S.) and Harvard University (U.S.).
SMART is a private company founded in 1987. Employing more than 800 people, SMART is headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, with assembly facilities in Ottawa, and offices in Bonn, Tokyo, New York City and Washington DC. SMART has been issued and maintains a broad portfolio of patents with numerous other U.S., Canadian and foreign patents pending. In 1992, SMART formed a strategic alliance with Intel® Corporation that resulted in joint product development and marketing efforts, and Intel’s equity ownership in the company. SMART products are sold through dealers across North America and distributors worldwide.
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For more information, contact:
Shari-Lynn Sare
Public Relations Specialist
SMART Technologies Inc.
1207 – 11th Avenue SW, Suite 300
Calgary, AB T3C 0M5
CANADA
Phone +1.403.802.2556 Fax +1.403.228.2500
Shari-LynnSare@smarttech.com
www.smarttech.com
2006 SMART Technologies Inc. Please note that SMART is written in all capital letters.