Nearpod Website

Nearpod is an application and website designed to help teachers and presenters make their lessons interactive. Nearpod can transform boring lectures into hands on experiences where students can directly engage with the content.

Using Nearpod

Students

1. You can access a Nearpod lesson by opening the Nearpod application or going to their website: **https://nearpod.com/student/**
2. To join the Nearpod session, your instructor will have a lesson code for you to input. Click where it says “Enter Code”, type in the code, and then click “Join”.
3. Lessons in Nearpod can be “live” or “student-paced”.
   • For live lessons, Once the lesson has started, you can follow along on your device. You will be able to click, draw, type, and interact with the lesson as the teacher goes through each slide.
   • For student-paced lessons, you can interact and progress through the material at your own speed.
4. On your device, the lesson will have slides, videos, and various activities for you to complete. Example of some of the interactive elements include:
   • Multiple-choice answers
   • Open ended response questions
   • Drawing
   • Voting on polls
   • Exploring 3D images and virtual field trips
   • Games that reinforce lesson material

Teachers

1. Create a free Account by navigating to **https://nearpod.com/**
2. Once you sign up, you will be taken to the “Nearpod Dashboard”. This is where all of your lessons and tools will be stored.
3. You can browse pre-made lessons to get familiar with the platform or create your own.
4. When creating a lesson, you can import slides from PowerPoint/Google Slides or start with a blank template.
5. Use the “+ Add Slide” button to build your presentation. You will see several options to insert fun activities and interactive elements to your lesson. Some ideas include:
   • Polls to get opinions
   • Quizzes to test knowledge
   • Draw It slides for creativity
   • Open-ended questions to get students thinking
   • Collaborative boards to create a shared vision
6. Once your lesson is ready, you can click the “Teach” button and select “Live Participation” or “Student-Paced”
   • Live participation – The teacher controls the pace of the lesson and everyone follows along in real time
   • Student-Paced – Students go through the lesson at their own speed
7. Share the unique lesson code with your audience. There is no sign in required on their end, they can just enter the code to join your lesson.
8. After the lesson, navigate to the “Reports” section in the dashboard. Click on the lesson to view individual student progress, responses to quizzes/open-ended questions, and participation rates.

For additional help with Nearpod, check out these resources:

• Nearpod Help Center