Inspiration Reflection

The inspiration tool that was introduced in class was really neat. I can definitely see practical applications in the classroom for teachers and for students. Its a fun and creative way to present information, introduce new topics, show what you know about events, stories, objects, etc. and it gives users the power to create mind maps and charts exactly as they wish. It would be a great resource for research projects as students could easily present their findings by creating an Inspiration work. It would also be a good resource for students to map out various themes from stories. I think that Inspiration would make the above projects fun and interesting for students because they are in control of their end product. Even granting kids the slightest creative or decision-making power can make a difference for some students. It took me a few minutes to gain an understanding of the tool (where things are and how it works) so I think that a class wide modeling/tutorial of the tool would be in order. Once I got started and really began to 'play' with Inspiration, it became much easier. If I can do it after one hours practice, our twenty-first century learners should have no problem utilizing this tool for classroom projects, presentations, or personal mind mapping use.