wfmw -- White boards



I'm not sure how I survived before we had white boards.


A buck a piece at the time, I think they run about $2.50 now at Millers, less in bulk.


And, how many ways can I think of to use these:

- Copywork -- I write it once for all to see, and they copy on their separate pages (best with older kids, but shorter passages)

- Practice work -- math facts especially! They seem way more fun on a white board than notebook paper.

- Speed drill competitions -- spelling, review/quizzes, basic facts, etc.

- Rearranging the daily schedule -- when we get a little off track (phone calls, illness, broken dryers, drop-in guests, etc.), I use the white board to post our adjusted schedule for the remainder of the day. It keeps us all focused an motivated. Keeps me from constantly replaying what I need to still accomplish and the kids from asking "what now?"

- Items for kids to add to their assignment sheets -- Each week the kids keep track of any outside activities on their assignment sheet and we store it for a permanent record. Rather than my having to write it three separate times, I write it once on the board and they copy it for themselves.

- Spelling help -- This also saves me from interrupting a reading lesson every thirty seconds to spell a word orally, again, and again, letter by letter.

- To do lists -- even chores become more fun when you can erase them. A clean board is reward enough for tasks completed.


And, of course, it saves paper. I used to use them to keep little ones busy as well, but found it ended up causing more harm than good (dry erase markers do not come off other surfaces nearly as easily as they come off the white boards).


Of course, now and then someone accidentally takes a permanent marker to the dry erase board, and Kris gave a great idea for taking care of that, too.


Not enough uses for you? Check the comments as the list continues . . .

What other uses do you have for the can't-live-without white board?



Look for more WFMW.

Comments

Kirsty said…
Great ideas! Thanks I will be using several of them. I posted my whiteboard tip as a WFMW a while ago..http://momedy.blogspot.com/2009/03/wfmw-whiteboarddicekidspainless-spring.html

Gotsta love a whiteboard :)
Anonymous said…
I'm a homeschool mom and would literally be dead without my whiteboard. Okay, maybe that's an overstatement, but not by much.
Moore Minutes said…
I love this post because it reminds me SO much of growing up. I was home schooled and my mom used a white board for MANY things...I have a lot of memories of it. Thanks for sharing. :)
Sharon said…
We have just a couple of white boards (and colored ones I've picked up here and there...). I use a pretty teal colored one for our daily Bible verse or spiritual quote....all our family and guests look forward to seeing what it says when they enter our kitchen! The other board is currently being used to help our oldest learn his letter and number recognition....as a future homeschooler, I'll keep your list close by. Thanks!
Buffie said…
I love these ideas. The only whiteboard I have right now is in the kitchen. I use it to post the weekly menu.
6intow said…
Chore lister, life saver (!), memory maker, Bible verse display, menu posting. So many more great ideas!

Thanks everyone for stopping by, can't wait to hear more ideas for the humble white board.

~Erin
Becky said…
We use our big one in the laundry room as a message board - who called, things to add to the shopping list, an upcoming activity, even love notes, etc.

It's also been used as an artist's canvas. (If it's a particularly intriguing creation, I'll take a picture of it before erasing.)

And we've used our mini ones for the game/activities that have already been mentioned. They're great!
care-in said…
I used small white boards in my classroom and they definitely made math facts and spelling more fun!
Jenny said…
I like whiteboards too, but the marker stains do not come out of clothing. My daughter is using a chalk board easel right now.
momtofivekids said…
I have a giant one that I used for weekly menus, chore lists, things the kids had to memorize like bible verses, prepositions, helping verbs,ect. I haven't used it since we moved things around. I like the idea of small size white boards-great ideas!

PS check out my blog-I gave you an award!

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