If you are looking for another option for creating presentations, Jux may be the answer. Two reasons that you might like Jux are that it is visually stunning, and that it works on mobile platforms as well as on desktop computers.
Unfortunately, you need to give an e-mail address to sign up for Jux. But classroom teachers have found workarounds for this in the past, such as creating an account the whole class can use under the teacher’s e-mail address.
The Jux home page gives examples of different types of projects you could design. One of the ideas I liked was the “Top 10 List”. This would be a good framework for students to use, such as “The Top 10 Inventions in Communication” or “The Top 10 Exhibits from Our Museum Field Trip.”
Once a Jux presentation is created, there are multiple options for sharing, such as embedding it.
Two things you should think about before using this with your class, though, are: is this blocked from student access, and are there inappropriate images in the gallery? I have not seen anything inappropriate, yet, but I would recommend limiting younger students to creating a Jux presentation, and not digging too deeply into the examples. At the very least, you should hopefully be able to use it on your own, perhaps creating collections of images for your class blog or to generate interest in new topics you want to introduce in the classroom.
Hi there! Thanks for sharing another possible presentation maker. I’m always looking for new options! I just checked out Jux, and headed first to their Terms of Service, which state that the site is only for students 13 and up. The school I work at is really working hard to develop a set of guidelines for usage of various sites by students under 13. Have you had discussions about this issue? Thoughts?
That is a really good question. I have encountered this quite a bit with “Web 2.0” sites that seem like great resources for our students. I weigh each case individually. Sometimes the sites are automatically blocked in our district. Sometimes, I feel that it is worth getting an account in my name, and allowing the kids to use it under my supervision. And sometimes, really useful sites, like Glogster, eventually branch off into educational versions. I would not recommend giving younger students individual accounts on a site that clearly states it is for people above their age range.
I hope that helps!