Prezi
Name of Tool | Website URL | Cost | Download or Web-based | 1 sentence description of the tool |
Prezi | Standard starts at $7.00 per month. | Web-based | Prezi is a web-based presentation software. |
Description of the Tool
Prezi is a web-based presentation software which allows you to use visual aids. When you use this software, you can portray information in the form of a slide show. There are different reasons you would want to use Prezi. Some of which would be as a student, teacher, trainer, and other possibilities. This software will provide an alternative to PowerPoint.
How to Use This Tool
Once you go to www.prezi.com, you will need to create an account. On the right of the screen, and at the top, there is a link that says get started. You will want to click on that. Once you are on the next screen, it will look like this:
If you want the free version, you will want to select Basic, which is what the red arrow in the illustration above is pointing to. After you click on Basic, you will be given two options: one for Basic (free) or one for Plus ($19.00 per month). After you select basic, you will be taken to a screen where you are asked for some basic information, such as your first and last name, email address and password. Once you fill out this screen, you will click on a link that says, “Create your free basic account”. Once you click that, this will pop up:
Select student and go to the next screen. Now you have different options for what you would like to do. I would suggest watching the tutorial titled, “Getting Started” and learning more about Prezi. Select the one that says New Presentation. From here, you will have many different free templates to choose from. You can either choose a template by different categories, or by color. There are also different templates for beginner up to master. I will pick the first template to keep it simple. Once you have chosen your template, it is time to start having fun and building your presentation.
From this point on, the focus will be on adding content and how to move through Prezi. The next thing you need to do is put your topics into different sections so that you structure your points as effectively as possible. Now it’s time to add some content. What’s great about Prezi is once you add your topics, you can add many different subtopics. This helps the content remain concealed until you are ready to reveal it. You can add pictures, videos, text and much more. You can zoom out and in with the arrows on the screen. When you get all of your content in your presentation, then you can start editing your images, videos, text, and whatever else you might use. Make sure you have the content you want to edit selected, and the following image is on the top of the screen when you are in your presentation.
From here, there are many different things you can do, such as change border color and thickness, change colors of many different things, and add animations. If you click Animations, then a side bar will pop up on the right side of the screen. On the right of this scree is an image of an example of what that looks like:
Underneath the word start, there is a blue plus sign that you will want to select. Make sure you have the content selected that you wish to edit. A menu will pop up and allow you to make options for either fading in and out or zooming in and out. I encourage you to play around here for some time so you can become familiar with the different options.
One of the many benefits about using Prezi is it uses a cloud based storage, so you can access your presentation anywhere there is internet access. Because of this being internet base, you can share presentations easily, and you can event present live online. The possibilities are endless.
How Can This Tool be Used by the Trainer/Teacher?
This is presentation software, so teacher and trainers can use this daily especially when teaching a new idea or presenting any kind of content. Lectures tend to make learners daydream, so with the use of visual aids this software can make learning content more enjoyable. The following list are different ways Prezi can be used by any type of teacher:
Great tool for teaching new content
Present any information you desire
Tool for collaborating and brainstorming with colleagues
Online teaching with the audio option
Online meetings with Skype
How Can This Tool be Used by the Trainer/Teacher to Support Student Learning?
This tool can support learning in many ways. Students tend to get bored in classes that are strictly lecture for one to two hours straight. If there are visual aids in the presentation, then that will help the student become more engaged with what is going on. The following is a list of some ways that Prezi can support student learning.
The use of visual aids to help memory preservation
Interactive group projects
Cloud based software
Students can share their presentations with each other for collaboration and brainstorming
If used for online classroom, then audio can be added
Great alternative from PowerPoint
This software appeals to different learning styles
How Can This Tool be Used by Students?
When a student is assigned a presentation they can use this software to do just that. Prezi provides a nice change from using PowerPoint. The following is a list of ways that students can use Prezi:
Visual aid when assigned a presentation
Save work to the cloud
Share presentation with other students and teachers for feedback
Collaboration for group assignments
Example of Prezi
I have included an example of Prezi if you would like to view it before trying. This is a simple presentation. You can make your presentation short or long, it’s entirely up to you and the material you need to present.
https://prezi.com/f97--l_2rept/switzerland/
Training and Other Resources
There are many different resources on the web for training in how to use Prezi. The following is a short tutorial on how to use Prezi. It’s just over two minutes long.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zFep1jL92g
I have included one more tutorial. This one goes more in depth. It’s five and a half minutes long.
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