Inspiration is a software that uses visual learning to help students develop ideas
and organize thinking. Using diagrams and outlines, Inspiration allows both teachers and
students the freedom to brainstorm, plan and link thought to graphic representation.
This tutorial is designed to give the beginner a "small taste" of Inspiration and
it's potential for use in the classroom. Prior to starting, it is recommended that
you download a 30-day trial copy of this program from Inspiration Software, Inc.
When you open Inspiration, your first window will look like the following screen:
Notice that the menu at the top is very similar to that of a typical Windows menu in that
it has File, Edit, View, Format, Utility, Window and Help. Additions to the main
menu are Symbol, Link and Effect. Underneath the main menu are icons used in
creating diagrams and outlines.
Highlighted in the center of your screen is "Main Idea". We'll start our main idea
by typing in Computer and clicking outside the circle.
The graphics and text can be manipulated through a variety of ways:
To enlarge the circle:
Let's enlarge our main idea and change the font to Arial, size to 24 points and underline.
Notice that the graphic will automatically enlarge to fit wording and size of
font you have chosen. Additionally, if you want to remove a graphic, highlight
the "offending" symbol (remember the red squares),
right click the mouse and highlight Cut.
To draw a link from the Computer to the Monitor:
Adding more links to your diagram is done in the same manner. Everytime you click
Link, and indicate the beginning and ending symbol, a line arrow will appear. Let's
link our Keyboard, Mouse and Printer to the Computer. Label your links as Input
or Output depending on the symbol. Additionally, as you are thinking of computer input,
remember the arrow should point towards the computer from the
input device. Does your screen look like the one below?
If you make a mistake with a link, highlight and press the
Delete key. Recall that the sequence in which you highlight the
symbols, after clicking on the Link icon, will determine which
direction the arrow points. You can change the
appearance of your link by highlighting and
right clicking the mouse. You can also use the Menu.
More and More
You have just been given a small sample of what Inspiration can do.
One of the more powerful icons on your menu is RapidFire.
With this tool, a user can enter ideas quickly without worrying about
the order. Make sure to experiment with this before leaving
the software.
Circle graphics can be boring. There are a number of other
symbols to choose from. If the symbol palette does not
initially appear on your screen, click on View and
Symbol Palette. Use the arrows at the top to explore
the large variety of graphics that are on Inspiration.
At times, it may be easier to view your ideas
in an outline format. Clicking the Outline icon
will show your ideas in text. Click on Diagram
to return to your original chart.
Inspiration also provides a tutorial on their website that
can give you additional information. To obtain a copy of this,
click below.
Inspiration Lesson Plans
Currently, there are books are the market that will give you a number
of ideas and lesson plans for using Inspiration in the classroom. The
World Wide Web also has a number of sites that can give you a start in
using Inspiration. A few of these websites are listed below:
Lesson Plan Ideas using the Internet as a Tool
Welcome to Inspiration!!
Main Idea
To change the font size and type:
Your screen should look similar to the following:
Adding Concepts
To add more concepts to your diagram, click on the Create Icon. Everytime you click
Create, another circle graphic is added to the screen. Add four more circles with
the labels of Monitor, Keyboard, Mouse and
Printer. Position the graphics around
your main idea. Your screen should contain the following graphics:
Linking
Connected symbols add power to your diagram. A student is able
to quickly see a link to the concept and its relationship.
There is a text box that appears over the line. This allows the user
to type in a description of the link. Highlight the box and
type in Output. Hopefully, your screen now looks like the following:
University of Nevada, Reno