Haiku Deck is Available on the Web

What are an educator’s options for creating a presentation?

The first tools that come to my mind are PowerPoint, Keynote, Prezi, and Haiku Deck. PowerPoint is available for Windows and Macs, although the versions are not exactly the same. Work-arounds are available to use PowerPoint on iPads (to varying degrees). Keynote is available for Macs and iPads. Keynote is not available for Windows, but workarounds allow some degree of compatibility. Prezi is available for Macs, Windows, and iPads. Haiku Deck is available for iPads and the web.


Are these our only presentation options?

A recent article on Edudemic mentions Haiku Deck, Projeqt, and Google Presentations. The Crazy Egg blog published 19 Free Presentation Tools to Wow Your Audience. Their list includes several tools with which I am familiar (SlideShare, Google Presentations, Prezi, Zoho Show, and Jux) in addition to others. These two articles list some of the tools most used in education for PowerPoint-type presentations. Presentation software from other vendors is available, too. Of course, we can also use videos, podcasts, and other types of presentations.


How do we create outstanding presentations?

Creating a presentation and creating an outstanding presentation are two different things. How do we make sure our presentations are effective? That they accomplish the goals we have in mind?

I remember hearing in my first undergraduate education course that education causes a change. I did not agree at that point in my life, but I do now. The first time I tried Twitter I saw no advantage to using it. I had not learned anything in that first effort. The second time was not much better. But, the third time... I learned... and I have since changed and am still changing how I work with my PLN. I was certainly a slow learner, but I did eventually learn. How do I know? I changed. :)

So, what do I consider an outstanding presentation? One that causes members of the audience (or class) to change. In other words, they learn. One of the best handouts I have seen on giving outstanding presentations is The Creative Pathfinder: #24 How to Give an Outstanding Presentation. The recommendations are not new, but they are shared effectively: minimal text, large photos, few key points, no bullets, and a call to action. I think this handout and the resources listed in it are excellent.


Which presentation tool lends itself to this approach for designing effective presentations?

Haiku Deck seems to be created for the approach described in The Creative Pathfinder. I was delighted when Richard Byrne shared recently in his Free Technology for Teachers blog that Haiku Deck is now available on the web. (Up to this point it was only available for iPads.) I immediately signed up for it and began playing. You can see my first (slightly revised) Haiku Deck presentation at the beginning of this blog.

Richard Byrne has also provided a tutorial for the software. I had planned to provide a tutorial on this post this week, but instead I’ll just suggest that you check out his on Free Technology for Teachers!

So, what’s my call to action? Try Haiku Deck’s web version. I think you’ll like it.