The Visualiser – a teacher’s power tool
Anything that makes teaching just that little bit easier is good in my book. This is why I recommend to any teacher, regardless of if you’re an NQT or career veteran, to acquire a visualiser. Not only will it save you time, it will also ensure that all children are involved in your lesson, not just the ones that are closest to the board!
What is a visualiser?
A visualiser, for example this one from HUE, is essentially a camera on the end of a stick (and that stick can sometimes bend). You can then show that camera on your computer screen or, better still, through the projector of your classroom.
What can I use it for?
There is a long list of ways to use a visualiser, and I’ll go through a few that I’ve used myself whilst teaching.
Showing the perfect layout
There have been plenty of times before I got a visualiser when I have asked children to be very specific in how they layout the page. From telling them to draw a line down the very centre of their books, to then dividing it into thirds, and then adding a box at the top right. You can see how they got confused and, even if I held the book up to them, some would still struggle to follow.
Instead, you can show them exactly what you want using the visualiser. Place the book in front of the camera and set the page out live in front of all of your class – the kids can copy your every move. Yes, this is spoonfeeding, but some need that (and it ends up saving so much time and frustration).
Modelling handwriting
My handwriting isn’t great, but it’s an expectation. I struggle to model handwriting on a whiteboard. My letters don’t seem to ever match what I expect my children to do – this is unfair. So, instead, I can place my handwriting book in front of my camera, and show them exactly what to do.
Anything practical
We have all had a time when we’ve had to gather every single child around us to show them something. The six, maybe eight children at the front who rushed to get the chairs understand what’s going on. THey’ve seen everything and have followed your instructions. The kids behind them are standing and, if it’s for any length of time, their legs are aching and have forgotten the last half of your instructions. The kids behind THEM can either not see at all or never wanted to.
Instead, use your visualiser. Every child will be able to see their steps and the best thing about this is you can pause after each one so everyone can catch up. No more “sit down” and “come back around” to deal with!
Showing children’s work
“Look at what Tim has done, everyone.” You can guarantee that half of your class has not seen at all. However, with a visualiser, everyone can see EXACTLY what you want to point out, whether this to showcase a child’s work or to address a misconception that the whole class are facing. Even better, you can zoom in so no one might recognise what child is being showcased.
Reading
Most of the time, children will have copies of the book themselves, but then again you might have had a nightmare at the photocopier and their extracts just aren’t printed.
Worry not! The visualiser will show every single word of every page you’re reading to the class. Better still, if you’re analysing a piece of text, you can freeze the screen or take a picture. Drag and drop it into your Notebook page and they can write all over it. Instantaneous scanning!
There are plenty of other ways to organise your life using visualises. These blogs are a good starting point, too.
- Secondary Science, but relates to everything I’ve said, as well as positioning tips: https://sciencetltoolkit.wordpress.com/2018/01/16/top-10-ways-to-use-the-hue-hd-visualiser-in-the-science-lab-product-review/
- A detailed post about how Simon Baddeley uses his: https://simonbaddeley64.wordpress.com/2019/12/13/how-i-use-a-visualiser-in-my-classroom/
- This tweet thread from @missgmate is a hive of good ideas: https://twitter.com/missgmate/status/1268978891156267012
Which one should I buy?
It depends. Are you buying it for yourself or is the school funding it? Do you want to use it for HQ scanning or just showing the odd thing on the board? Here’s a VERY quick guide:
HUE HD Pro USB Document Camera – On Amazon at £79. Seem’s good, good reviews. Plug and play (after a short installation that your IT technicians wouldn’t mind doing). Click here!
IPEVO V4K HD Document Camera – A bit steeper at £99, but if you want the full package, this is your thing. I’ve recently purchased these for the Year 6 team to trial them out and the quality is remarkable. Also, you can fit more into the screen. Click here.
HUE HD Portable – RRP £25, but currently unavailable at the time of writing. This is the one I started with and enjoyed using. If you’ll only use it now and then, I’d recommend trying to find this. Click here.