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Microsoft Powerpoint is a presentation tool that can significantly enhance the way you share information with your students. It allows you to quickly and easily create slides of images and brief amounts of text in a multimedia fashion that will catch the attention of your students in ways that a traditional blackboard or worksheet can not. The added sound and animation features as well as easy options to reorganize and modify slides will greatly enhance the effectiveness of your discussions with students in your classroom.

Let's start with an example of a slide showyou may use to provide some background information to students learning about the country of Australia. This slide show allows us to pull lots of images, text, and audio resources together in one place and present them in a way that exactly follows our own teaching agenda. What other advantages are there to using PowerPoint slide shows with students?

As a teacher, it's also important to consider the variety of teaching objectives you can cover by using PowerPoint in your classroom.

1. Provide background information at the beginning of a unit.
2. Provide easy access to content area images for students with low reading level
3. Provide motivating images and sound to accompany lessons to complement a variety of learning styles.
4. Collect various perspectives on a certain issue and then encourage students to develop their own perspectives
5. Encourage students to actively construct their own knowledge by giving them opportunities to create their own slide show and then share their views to others through visual imagry accompanied by an oral presentation.
6. Create interactive, multimedia quizzes for students that give them opportunities to answer, link to the Internet for more information, link to a word processor to explain their answers, or click on a button to hear the text read to them.

In a few moments, we'll learn the specific steps to take in order to create a slide show that includes images and sounds from the Internet as well as active links to certain Internet websites.

These steps will include:

• Creating a new slide show
• Inserting and formatting text on a slide
• Copying an image from the Internet and pasting it onto a slide
• Saving an image from the Internet and importing it onto a slide
• Viewing your slide show
• Copying text from the Internet and pasting it into a text box
• Creating a link from a slide to the Internet
• Creating a link from one slide to another
• Adding animation and sound to your slides
• Using drawing tools
• Adding notes to your slide show

And at the end of our session today, we'll brainstorm about specific ways to expand on your current content area curricular goals and view a list of ideas to get you started.

To create a new slide show:

1. Double click on PowerPoint icon.
2. Select an autolayout from the choices (title only on bottom row, second from right) and click OK.
3. Click in text box to begin entering text.

To create new slides:

1. Select Insert from menu bar and choose New Slide.
2. Select an autolayout from the choices and click OK.

To insert text on a slide:

1. If the slide's layout includes a text box, the outline of the text box will appear when the slide is created. Simply click in the text box and begin typing your text. It will be centered and in a large bold text, like a title (because the text's format has been preset).
2. If there is no empty text box on the screen, you'll need to create a new text box.

To create a new text box:

1. Click on the white "A" text box icon in the middle of the drawing toolbar at the bottom of the screen and then click again on your slide where you want to your text to begin. (You can also select Insert from the top menu and choose Text box and then click on your slide).
2. Begin typing and the text box will grow as you type. Don't worry about the size of the box growing larger than your slide; when you are done typing, drag the corner markers to adjust the size of your text box and the text will just fit appropriately.

To format text inside a text box:

1. Highlight the text you want to format by clicking and dragging your mouse over the text.
2. Click on the appropriate icons from the formatting toolbar to make your text (from left to right)...a different font, size, make your text bold, italicized, underlined, or shadowed.
3. Click on the next set of icons to align your text on the left, in the center or on the right.
4. Click on the next set of icons to add bullets, increase or decrease the spacing between paragraphs, to make your text gradually bigger or smaller.
5. Click on the right green arrown to indent your line of text and the left green arrow to remove an indent from a line of text.

To copy an image from the Internet and paste it onto a slide:

1. You first need to open your web browser (probably Internet Explorer or Netscape) while you still have PowerPoint open. Minimize PowerPoint by clicking on the upper left line button...this shrinks Powerpoint for a few minutes while you open another application. Click on the icon for your web browser and navigate to the website with the image that you'd like to copy. You should be able to view the image on your screen.
2. Place your mouse over the image and click the right mouse button and let go quickly. A small grey box will appear with several options. You want to copy the image, so select Copy from this box (NOT copy image location) and click with your left button. (If you have a mouse with one button, hold the button down while over the image until the grey box appears and then select copy). Your screen will return to normal and it will seem like nothing happened. However, a copy of the image was made and was placed on an imaginary clipboard. The computer is waiting for you to paste the image somewhere.
3. In order to paste the image on your slide, you need to get Powerpoint back on your screen. Select the PowerPoint button from the start menu bar at the bottom of your screen and PowerPoint will open again, returning you to where you left off.
4. To paste the image, simple select Edit from the top menu bar and choose Paste. (You can also paste the image by clicking the Paste icon on the shortcut toolbar or by using your keyboard by holding down the Control key and pressing V). Any one of these three options will allow your image to appear in a few seconds.
5. Select the image in the middle and drag to move it to a new location. Select the image and drag the outside rectangles to adjust the size of the image. Dragging from the lower right corner will adjust the height and width in proportion and avoid distortion. Remember, however, that stretching your image too big will usually distort it a bit also.
6. If you wish to copy another image, simply click on your web browser's button on the bottom start menu and locate another website to begin the process again.

To save an image from the Internet and import it onto a slide

To save the image:

1. You first need to open your web browser (probably Internet Explorer or Netscape) while you still have PowerPoint open. Minimize PowerPoint by clicking on the upper left line button...this shrinks Powerpoint for a few minutes while you open another application. Click on the icon for your web browser and navigate to the website with the image that you'd like to copy. You should be able to view the image on your screen.
2. Place your mouse over the image and click the right mouse button and let go quickly. A small grey box will appear with several options. You want to save the image on your computer, so select Save Picture As: from this box and click with your left button. (If you have a mouse with one button, hold the button down while over the image until the grey box appears and then select Save Picture As...).
3. Now you need a place to save your picture where you can find it again. The easiest thing to do is make your way to the desktop and create a new folder by clicking on the yellow folder button with the star. Title your new folder "Internet Images" and then click on the Open button to open that folder.
4. Now your dialog box should say Save In...Internet Images. Type in a name for the image (or file) or keep the one that is included already and click Save. The image will be saved inside the Internet Images folder.

To import the saved image onto your slide:

1. First, select Insert from the top menu bar and choose Insert: then Picture: then From File. (Don't be fooled: The clip art option is to obtain an image from PowerPoint's collection of image; you want to obtain the image you just saved in your Internet Images folder.)
2. You will be prompted with a dialog box that says Look in: Make your way to your desktop and click twice on the folder icon next to the folder name "Internet Images" to open that folder. You should see your image filename listed inside the box and perhaps a preview of the image next to it. Click on the image file name and then click the Insert button. Your image will appear on your PowerPoint slide, ready to be dragged to a new location (by clicking and dragging in the middle) or resized (by clicking and dragging the small rectangles outside the image).
3. If for some reason your image does not show up in the file list, select the little down arrow next to the Files of type: command at the bottom of the box, and click on all pictures and it should show up now.

To view all your slides at once:

1. You can view all the slides in your slide show at once by clicking on the third button in on the bottom row of slide show buttons (it has four little squares on it).
2. You can change the order of your slides by clicking on the slide you'd like to move and dragging it to a new location. As you drag your mouse, you'll notice a vertical line that represents your slide; place it in front of the slide where you'd like to insert your slide. Let go and the slide will move to that location and the other slides will be renumbered. To get back to just one slide, double click on the slide of your choice.

To view a slide show:

1. You can view your slide show by clicking on the last button on the bottom row of slide show buttons (it looks like a small movie screen). If you want your slide show to start at the beginning, make sure you are viewing the first slide in your show before you press this button. Otherwise, your show will start at whichever slide you were just viewing.
2. To end your slide show, move your mouse over to the bottom left corner of your screen. You'll notice a box that appears with an arrow in it. Click your mouse on this box and a grey menu box will appear. Select End Show and you'll return to edit mode.

To copy text from the Internet and paste it onto a slide:

1. Copying text from the Internet is much like copying and pasting an image. Make sure you are viewing the website with the text you want to copy. Click and drag your mouse to highlight the text you want (from right bottom up to the beginning) just like you would highlight text in a word processor.
2. After the text is highlighted, select Edit and then Copy from the top menu bar. (or you can click on Copy icon in formatting toolbar, or use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+C.) Like with the image, the text has been copied onto an invisible clipboard and is waiting for you to paste it somewhere.
3. Select the icon for PowerPoint (from the grey start bar at the bottom) to return to PowerPoint.
4. To paste the text, you first need a text box to paste it into. If you have one, click on it now. If you do not have one, create one using the Text box (small white square with A on it) from bottom drawing toolbar and then click on your screen where you want the text to start.
5. To actually paste the text into the box, select Edit from the top menu bar and choose Paste. (You can also paste the text by clicking the Paste icon on the shortcut toolbar or by using your keyboard by holding down the Control key and pressing V). Any one of these three options will allow your text to appear in the box in a few seconds.
6. Your box is probably not the correct size now. You'll need to drag the corners to resize the box to the appropriate size and then drag it from the middle to place the box where you'd like it to go on your slide.

To create a link from a slide to the Internet:

1. Highlight the text or select the image that you'd like to be able to click on to access an Internet site.
2. Now click on the blue globe icon with a chain link on it in the middle of the shortcut bar. Click your cursor in the box that says Link to file or URL: and type the correct internet address, with the http:// then click OK.
3. You'll notice that the text turned light purple and if you place your mouse over the text or the image you just linked, a white gloved hand appears, indicating that you can now link to the Internet site. Click your mouse and your browser should open up to the website you wanted to link to. The website will appear on your screen in a few moments.

To create a link from one slide to another slide:

1. If you have at least two slides, you can link one to the other so that when you click on something on one slide, it will automatically bring up the linked slide.
2. To do this, make sure the slide you want to link from is on your screen. Highlight the text or select the image you want to link from. Now right click on the highlighted text or the image and a small grey menu box will appear.
3. Select Action Settings. You may be prompted to save your file at this point. Name the file (choose a name you will remember) or if you've already saved it once, just click on Save and Yes...you do want to replace the old file. Check to see that is saved in the correct folder, then click OK.
3. The Action Settings window will appear. Click the dot next to HyperLink To: and then click the little black down arrow on the far end of the line to get another list. choose Slide. The slides that you already made will appear. Highlight the one that you want to link the text or image to (it will appear for preview in the box to the right) and click OK.
4. To test your link, view your slide in slide show mode and click on the text or image. It should link you to your new slide.
5. Do this for all the buttons and slides that you want to link.

To add animation and sound to your slide:

1. To make your images or text boxes appear animated when you click your mouse or to include sound when they appear, right click on the image or text box and select Custom Animation from the choices.
2. The Custom Animation dialog box will appear. Click on the Effects tab in the middle of the dialog box (if not there already), and notice the two boxes beneath the words "Entry animation and sound".
3. To select the animation, click on the little down arrow at the end of the box that says No Effect and choose an animation from the list.
4. To select the sound, click on the little down arrow at the end of the box that says No Sound and choose a sound from the list.
5. To preview your special effects, click the preview button in the top right of the dialog box. You should see the animation and hear the sound. You can change the effects to something else by repeating steps 3 and 4 or click OK to select.
6. To test your animation and sound, view your slide in slide show mode. Click once to have the animated image appear and the sound made.
7. * If you have more than one thing to add animation and sound to, select that object from the list of objects on that slide first, before you begin adding the special effects.

To use drawing tools:

1. PowerPoint's drawing toolbar gives you the option to add customized drawings to your slide. If you do not see the drawing toolbar at the bottom of your screen (it begins with the word Draw), select View: then Toolbars from your top menu bar and drag over and select the word Drawing (to put a check in front of it). It will now appear at the bottom of your screen.

Arrow and line tools:
1. To make an arrow, select the arrow icon from the drawing toolbar, click on your screen and drag the arrow the length and direction you desire. To make the arrow thicker, select the arrown, choose the line style icon (it has three little lines) and select the width from the choices. To change the color of the arrow, double click on the arrow, choose the little black arrow near the word color and click on your color choice. To resize the arrow, drag the end points and to move the arrow, click in the middle and drag the entire arrow. To delete the arrown, click on it and then press the delete key on your keyboard.
2. You can select the other shapes to create them on your slide and use the same options to customize their size, color and location.

Labeling with box tools:
1. To place a box around something (a text label, for example), first select the rectangle icon and click and drag your mouse to draw the box over your text. The box will cover your text, but we'll fix that now.
2. Select the box and choose Draw from the toolbar. Highlight the word Order and then choose "Send to Back" to send the box layer beyind the words instead of on top of them.
3. To change the color of the inside of the box, click on the little arrow beside the paint can fill color icon, and select a new color. To change the color of the border of the box, click on the little arrow beside the line color icon, and select a new color. To change the color of the text inside the box, click on the little arrow beside the text color box and select a new color.

To add notes to your slide show:

1. When presenting a slide show to a class, you may need some notes to prompt your discussion. PowerPoint has a notes feature which does just this.
2. To add notes to a particular slide, view the slide you want. Select the notes icon (fourth one over; little square with two lines below) from the slide show buttons on the bottom left of your screen. Your slide will shrink and a text box will appear below it.
3. Click on the text box and begin typing your notes. To view the text at a normal size, zoom in by clicking on the little arrow near the 38% label at the right of your top shortcut toolbar. Select how much you'd like to zoom in and then you can begin typing.
4. To view your notes while you are displaying the slide show, print them out first. Select File and Print. To select only one slide to print, click the button in front of Slides and type in the slide number. To print all slides with and without notes, click the button in front of the word All. Then, Click the little down arrow near the words that say "Print what?" Select notes pages and the slide will print out with your notes at the bottom.
 
 

Now you've practiced just about all of the procedures involved in importing images and text from the Internet to create your own educational slide shows. With a little practice, you'll be creating wonderful slide shows related to many of the topics you cover in your curriculum. If you're a brave soul, try encouraging your students to create their own slide shows about particular topics and then give them the opportunity to present their own creations for you and their peers. Good Luck!
 
 

This document was created by Julie Coiro, March 2000

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