Update: Google Jamboard is retiring in 2024, so we have provided all the Jamboard templates in this post as FigJams.
Confession time: I have fallen for someone. Ok, something. And that something is Google Jamboard. Jamboard is an amazing teacher tool— one that I, personally, had been underutilizing until just a few months ago. If you are a teacher, I ensure you will find great instructional uses for Jamboard. I have provided several Jamboard templates and examples to get you started.
Why Jamboard as an Instructional Tool?
Google Jamboard has a very simple interface that makes it a great introductory EdTech tool. Think of it as a digital whiteboard. From the student perspective, there are under ten features that students will need to interact with in Jamboard. Teachers only have a few more features that can be used to create dynamic digital learning tasks.
If you know me, you already know that I love Google Slides. However, Jamboard provides a few different ways for students to interact. The pen tool is fantastic for intuitive digital annotation and drawing tasks. The sticky notes feature is great for brainstorming and collaborating.
The whiteboard nature of Jams provides several ways for students of any age to interact: dragging, drawing, annotating, adding text, and adding images. This is great for amplifying student voice and choice, as well as providing options for varying student needs. For example, younger students who may not write can draw, circle, and sort. Images can be provided for non-readers. Older students can label using text or the pen tool.
Just like in Google Slides, Jams can be individual or collaborative. Collaborative Jams are a great way to have students vote and share. If you are eager to dip your toes into digital collaborative activities, Jamboard’s simplicity is perfect for both students and teachers who are new to collaborating in a digital space.
And of course, Jamboard is built into Google Workspace for Education, making it safe, secure, and seamless.
30+ Jam Examples and Templates
Follow these steps to make a copy of any of these templates:
Open the Jamboard via the link below
Ensure you are logged into a Google account
Select the “ice cream cone” (three dots) icon in the top right corner
Select “Make a copy”
Name the copy
Select “Make a copy”
Each template has multiple frames (frames are to Jams as slides are to Google Slides). After selecting the frames icon at the top of the Jam, you can delete any frames you don’t want. Then customize away!
Draggin' Dots
Draggin’ Dots is designed to be a collaborative activity. It is a great introduction to digital collaboration, as students are not adding anything to the Jamboard; they are simply moving their “dot” to their choice. Knowing how to drag and drop using a mouse is the only skill needed! I love to do this activity for fun shares or shares that I want to be anonymous.
Classifying and Matching
The freeform layout of Jamboard makes it ideal for classifying and matching tasks. In the provided examples, students could use the pen tool to draw lines to the correct matches, or sticky notes could be used to label the correct categories. Text, images, and even GIFs can be used to create matching and classification activities.
Drag and Drop
Similar to the classifying and matching examples, students can drag and drop text, images, and/or GIFs into the appropriate categories.
Sorting
If learners need to sort items into two categories, use these sorting templates. As with the classifying and matching examples, text, images, and even GIFs can be sorted.
Voting
Another great collaborative use of Jamboard is voting. The sticky notes feature is perfect for this. Have students add their name to a sticky note and add that sticky note to their vote.
Annotation Station
Think of all the times you have students annotate or label to show their understanding. The pen feature of Jamboard is amazing for this!
If you set the image that students are annotating as the background of the frame, you will ensure that students can't accidentally delete or move the image. This only requires one extra click to accomplish:
Select “Set background”
Select “Image”
Select “Google Images”
Search for the image you want to add to the frame
Select the desired image
Select “Set As Frame Background”
Learn More
If you have any questions about how to use Google Jamboard as a teacher, refer to these Google resources:
If you feel lost or stuck with using Jamboard as a learning tool, please feel free to reach out to me. I would love to help. That's why I'm here!