EdTech can and should be a balanced approach. Paperless is not a pedagogy and not everything we do should involve tech. For the parts of the lesson that do involve technology, how to we seamlessly integrate them with the non tech elements? Lesson planning is challenging and particularly challenging for planning for students who aren’t in class. One solution for all of this is FigJam by Figma. Organize a blended lesson with FigJam.
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Organize a Blended Lesson with FigJam
To get started with how to organize a blended lesson with FigJam I recommend you check out my OTIS presentation.
Start Your Lesson Planning in a FigJam
FigJam is free for educators! After signing up for a free account at figma.com/education start each of your lesson design sessions at figma.com and create a new FigJam. (You can also use figjam.new). Tip: Create a PROJECT (this is a folder) for your lesson plans.
A FigJam is an infinite canvas digital whiteboard.
Create Sections for the Lesson
At the bottom of the FigJam canvas is a toolbar to allow you to write with a digital pen and add sticky notes.
However, before you add text boxes and digital ink create sections to outline each element of your lesson. Press Shift S or use the Sections icon in the toolbar.
Think of each section as a page. In terms of lesson design, consider each section a different element of the lesson. Plan out the entire pace of your lesson from warm-up to exit ticket on the FigJam canvas.
Tip: Create one section, select the section, and use Control D to duplicate the section multiple times. Double click on each section title to rename to each element of the lesson.
Sections Can Be Dragged
As you design each portion of your lesson with text boxes, sticky notes, embedded digital materials, digital ink, etc…you may decide to move one part of the lesson to a different time in the lesson sequence. Simply click on the edge of the section and drag the sections around. Everything in the section is automatically selected to move with the section.
Add Sections to a Section
Within each section you may want to add sub sections. Simply use the Section icon in the toolbar to add a section within the bounds of an existing section. You can change the background color of the section to highlight the sub section. You can also use the winky eye on the sections floating toolbar to hide the sub section.
Notice in my animation that I have some practice problems displayed in the section and a subsection with the answers hidden until I am ready to reveal them during the lesson.
Use the Whiteboard
FigJam is a digital whiteboard, take advantage of this! Create blank sections that you intend to use a a whiteboard to write on with the digital marker. Unlike writing on a physical whiteboard, these notes are effortlessly captured within the lesson, within the context of the flow of the lesson. Press M to switch to marker and start writing on the canvas.
Tip: I create additional sections UNDER each section specifically for utilizing the whiteboard feature. This allows me to flexibly go from my pre created text and images I am displaying to writing additional notes.
Embed Digital Resources to Organize a Blended Lesson with FigJam
A challenge I have when delivering a lesson that includes digital resources but is not the entire lesson is how to smoothly transition between the tools, both digital and non digital. Adding links to a Google Classroom assignment is confusing. I can not reorder the links nor can I set the link title. “Click on the 3rd link” is not a great way to distribute resources to students. Even for myself, where I need resources that I am accessing during a lesson but the students are not, it can interrupt the flow as I navigate to each resource.
Everything in One Place with FigJam
If I am using FigJam to lesson plan then I can simply add the links to the digital resources onto one of the sections. It is the next section in the lesson flow so it not only makes sense but is right there to use when I planned to use it.
Control V Paste
For many tools like Google Slides, EdPuzzle, and Book Creator I can take the link to the activity and simply into a section. A card is inserted and I can run the Google Slides from right within FigJam. Some resources simply link in FigJam and thus open in a new tab, but that is great too. After using the digital resource in another tab simply close the tab to return to the lesson flow in FigJam.
Share Your Lesson
FigJam has so many features that will enhance your lesson, such as the built in timer, but for this tutorial I will stop at the suggestion to make your lessons in FigJam. The last element of using a FigJam to organize the flow of your entire lesson is to share the file. Since FigJam organizes all your links, notes, digital, and non digital elements to the lesson in a sequential set of sections, the link to the file will make sense even to students who were absent.
Finalizing and Sharing the Lesson
- Click on upper left to name the lesson if you have not already.
- Double check that the file is not in Drafts (which is where it is if you used figjam.new instead of making it in the project folder at figma.com)
- MAKE A COPY so you can reuse your lesson plan next year!
- Click on the SHARE button in the upper right. Copy the link to view and paste in your LMS or use the share to Google Classroom option.
Collaborate in FigJam
This post was not about collaboration, but FigJam is a great collaboration tool! Once you’re in the habit of designing each of your lessons in a FigJam, consider designing for student collaboration. Give each student a space to participate, add sticky notes, add comments, and more! Give students edit access to your FigJam file when you’re ready!!
