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Using Drywipe Boards in the Classroom

Drywipe boards are an essential classroom resource that can be used across the curriculum to monitor progress, assess understanding and engage every child in every lesson.
There are so many benefits when swapping pen and paper for drywipe boards…

Increased Engagement and Easy Assessment

Drywipe boards are great for engaging the entire class in their learning. Without leaving the front of the class you can easily see who may be struggling with a particular topic or question, and you can see an entire class of answers by asking for the boards to be held in the air. Visual assessment has never been easier. 

Better still, children love the novelty of working with a drywipe pen instead of the usual pen and paper.

Wipe Away Mistakes and Increase Confidence 

The ability to easily erase mistake creates a safe learning environment for all children.
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Without the permanence of pen and paper, those who struggle and those who want everything to be perfect are willing to make mistakes and try again. You will see increased confidence and self-belief as a result.

 

Minimise Environmental Impact (while saving budget!) 

It is everyone’s responsibility to provide a better planet for future generations, and minimising the use of paper in the classroom is a great step towards this. Drywipe boards eliminate the need for endless reams of paper and space in exercise books. If a permanent record is needed, a photo or photocopy of the board can be taken and saved digitally.

Plus, with several board designs available, there’s no need to print or photocopy multiple copies of the same document for each class. All you need to do is wipe the board clean!

So, you have your drywipe boards. But how do you use them? Here are our favourite three lesson ideas below:
 How many words? (Phonics) 
1. Write your phoneme on your wall-mounted whiteboard
2. Students write as many words as possible containing that sound onto their individual whiteboards
3. For every sound correctly used, they win a point

    Want to increase the challenge?

    Why not give additional points based on the number of syllables in the word, or extra points for ‘unique words?

    Can they think of any phonemes that sound the same but are spelt differently?

     

     Charades (English) 

    1. One player picks a verb from a hat and acts it out in front of the class
    2. Other players then write down the word they think is being acted out and hold their board up in the air
    3. The first player to hold up the correct answer goes next!

    Want to increase the challenge?

    Why not add in tenses or adverbs? Can the players use the word correctly in a sentence?

     

     Excellent Equivalents (Maths) 

    1. Each student writes a fraction of their choice on their individual drywipe board
    2. The teacher then sets a timer for 2 minutes
    3. The whole class or group then organises themselves, based on their fractions, from smallest to largest

    Want to increase the challenge?

    This is a versatile activity and can be built upon in multiple ways. Why not add decimals and percentages? Are there any equivalents? Can they pair up with another in the class to make a whole?

     

    So there you have it, our favourite lesson ideas for using drywipe boards in the classroom. Don’t forget, they’re great for outdoor learning, too! Check out our range of drywipe boards and accessories here. 

    How will you use your boards? Share your ideas @espoeducation