Just this last week, I have been bitten by the Boom Learning bug! I have known that Boom Learning existed for quite awhile, but I just haven't had time to work on figuring it out. I didn't understand how to make the "decks" or how I would deliver the decks to my students.
I am so happy that I have taken the time to get this figured out. I have to tell you, I'm a little addicted!
So, here are some things you may have wondered about Boom Learning.
1) What are Boom Cards?
Boom Cards are digital task cards. You can buy "decks" of them on the Boom site itself, Teachers Pay Teachers, or you can make your own. Here's an example of what one of the cards in my Solving Two Step Equations deck looks like. (The blue portion is what the students would type in.)
2) How can I use Boom Cards with my students?
In order to use Boom Cards, you will need a computer or tablet and a Boom account. Some Boom accounts are FREE! or you can pay for one to have even more options. (We'll get to that in a second.) If you want to just assign cards (called decks in Boom language) to your students and have them practice a skill, you can use the "Fast Pin" option. Generating a Fast Pin from a deck allows your students to go to the Boom website, enter the pin, and BOOM they are playing. (Haha, pun intended). If you want to keep track of how students are doing, you will need a paid account (which is VERY affordable in my opinion) With the paid account, you can generate reports to get DATA (Yay!) and also create an entire classroom of student logins.
3) What kinds of "decks" are available on Boom?
I have been searching through Boom to find decks to use with my own children, and every topic imaginable is available! Some decks ask students to type in the answer, some are multiple choice, and some are even drag and drop. Some decks are free, and some you must purchase to use. In order to purchase decks on Boom, you buy "points" (each point costs about 1 cent). You redeem your points for decks. In general, the more complicated the task card, the more expensive. But, 10 cents per card seems about the norm.
4) My favorite things about BOOM...
- Kids seem to love these cards! What is better than not having to fight with kids while getting them to practice important skills?
- Kids get instant feedback...they don't practice something incorrectly!
- I get instant feedback...who's having trouble, who's ready to move on?
- Soooo easy to assign
- The cards are cute and colorful!
Have you tried BOOM yet? If you are looking for math practice for your students, check out my BOOM store...
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