ILP "Participation" - Lynda: Prezi Essential Training

          I learned a lot from completing this project.  For one, I learned about Lynda and how helpful it is.  Seeing how many tutorials that the website has to offer is fascinating.  From Lynda, however, I was able to learn about what I will be writing on.  The tutorial video that I watched was for Prezi.  I first heard of the application my senior year of high school but I have never used it.  I have seen a few students and teachers make presentations with it but I never saw a use.  I did not understand it, and I already had PowerPoint so I didn't see a reason to learn it.

          However, just from watching the first few clips in the two hours and forty-five-minute tutorial, I realized that Prezi is an entirely different beast from PowerPoint.  While they are both used as a technological tool for presentations, the way they go about that is very different.

          PowerPoint is made to be very straightforward and to the point.  It is linear.  One clicks from slide to slide until they are finished.  Prezi, however, does not need to be so linear.  While one has the ability to have a set path, there is still the option to deviate from that path.  One can go back and forth, or skip around.  The presenter also has the ability to zoom in on features that do not even have their own set slide.  I can absolutely see this program's use in the classroom.  It will be very helpful for completing lectures that need to include videos or images.  It will also be helpful because I will have the opportunity to skip around if a student needs me to go back and cover something again.  Students will also have the opportunity to utilize this program when they are instructed to give presentations in my classroom.

          Lynda, as I mentioned was a learning experience on its own.  If I am able to implement this system as an educator I will be extremely pleased.  As someone who loves to learn for the sake of learning, Lynda is a dream come true.  It was absolutely fascinating to me to see all of the subjects that I had the opportunity to learn about.  I spent some of my free time learning about coding simply because the subject interested me.  This tool is beyond helpful for students.  It gives you the ability to learn at your own pace and at your choice.  If you want to learn how to use a certain subject then you have the opportunity.  This would be incredibly helpful for students that do not know either basic technological tools, like Microsoft Office, or even more advanced like Python Programing.  The opportunities are near endless and I look forward to implementing it in the future.

          Learning about all of the different features that come with Prezi has been tremendously eye-opening.  I cannot believe all that I was missing out on by simply using the same linear PowerPoint model over and over again for projects.  Below you will find screenshots of my notes, the program that I watched, and the example Prezi that I made with my newly acquired skills.  You can also view my Prezi first hand at http://prezi.com/m_l2uyrp7jt0/?utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=copy.