Software Description

Software Title

Kidspiration

Age / grade level

K-Gr.5 (ages 4-10)

Publisher /
Distributor / Cost /
Platforms and OS

Inspiation Software, Inc.

$81.10
Mac & Windows, and iPad App (Kidspiration Maps)

Intended purpose / outcomes

(Be clear about this if necessary visit the companys website to see what
they claim the purpose and value of the software is; AVOID PLAGIARISM. Be
sure to refer to function / tasks that it enables.)
The Kidspiration software is intended to help students think, brainstorm
ideas, and write more efficiently. It allows students work more independently
and learn new concepts. It gives students to explore new ideas and build
connections in their work.
General Description and main features / sections
Kidspiration is designed for students ages 4-10. The software offers activities
for different subjects such as writing, math, science and history. In the writing
section you have the option to write on lines, just like lined paper in a
notebook or you can create a web for brainstorming or writing out
information in a more interesting way. You are able to add graphics to your
work to help students understand. The software offers tons of great pictures
but you can also upload your own photos if youd prefer. There is also an
option to create your own graphic, which allows the students to change the
size and colour of the image. There is a text to speech function available.
Everything your curser hovers over if spoken out loud. You can also look up a
word that you do not understand. When you look up the word it gives you the
spelling and proper pronunciation, the definition, synonyms, and also a
picture so students can make the connection between the word and the
photo. There is a feature that allows students to make different types of
diagrams and gives them an opportunity to practice sorting and comparing
things. In the math section, they have various activities available to practice
graphing (bar graphs, pie graphs, etc.) Lastly, there is a drop down tab on the
top menu bar that offers teachers and educators some ideas for lesson plans
that involve using Kidspiration.

General
5 = excellent, 4 = good, 3 = OK, 2 = weak, 1 = unacceptable
Installation instructions (answer each
question)

5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1

Are they clear &/or the install is easy/ automatic

Explanatory Comments: The installation process was very easy to follow.

You just had to click download and save the file and the installation happened
automatically. Once it was downloaded to the desktop you click to open and
it tells you about the 30 day free trial and gives you an option to purchase
the software as well. You click continue and the main window for Kidspiration
opens you have the option to pick a subject or choose to upload a file to
open. It is quite straightforward and easy to use.
Ease of initial use (answer each question)

5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1

Easy to understand what to do; intuitive?

Explanatory Comments: The software takes a little getting used to as there

are many features to discover and try out. There are some how to videos
available to teach you how to use the software and demonstrate the main
features.

Is there a tutorial on the CD? A tutorial online?

Explanatory Comments: There are tutorials available online on the

Inspiration website. They show you how to use Picture View, Writing View and
Math View. It also has a Kidspiration tour going over all the functions the
software has.

Easy to navigate / exit / user friendly

Explanatory Comments: The software is quite easy to navigate. There are

a lot of functions offered, so it does take some practice just learning where
everything is, and how everything works. However, it does not take long to
learn everything. Once you have spent a but of time playing around with the
software it is very easy to use and very user friendly. You are able to save
your work, or print before exiting. Exiting is easy as well. You can either click
File then Quit or click on the Kidspiration logo in the top left corner to go
back to the start menu and Quit the software from there.

Are there sample files or activities?

Explanatory Comments: There are many activities available in subjects

such as Literacy, Math, Science and History. When you select a subject, there
are many activities to choose from. When you select an activity, for example
in the math section, it gives you a sample of what the activity is then you can
create a new one and complete it yourself.
Design (answer each question)

5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1

Sound & Interface quality?

UI ~ user interface?
Attractive, appealing?

Explanatory Comments: The software is very colourful and inviting, as it is

targeted toward younger students. The features buttons are easy to see and

use. The software has text to speech options where everything you hover
over is spoken out loud so you know what every button is. You are able to
change the voice for text to speech. When the software is on a Mac
computer, there are 24 options available for voice. The voice Alex is very
clear and the most realistic. When the software is on a PC, there are only 3
voice options and they mainly sound very robotic.

Software Features (this is THE MAIN / MOST IMPORTANT part

of the assignment)
Explain and discuss each component of the software, each drop down
menu; add more rows to this template as needed.
Feature: Name it and Explain it (in
your own words; be very careful to not
copy and paste from websites or
manuals)

Journey & Outcomes: What are your

observations, reflections when you tried to
use the feature; what do you now know
that you did not know before; how can you
see this being used in educational settings.

Text to Speech Allows all

words to be spoken out load
when the curser hovers over it.
Reads definitions of words out
loud and give proper
pronunciation of words.

This feature is very helpful. When you

are not sure what a certain button is,
hover over it and it will tell you. It is
especially helpful in the word find
feature. It allows the student to hear
proper pronunciation and the definition
of the words. This would give students
some independence when writing
because they are able to look up words
and learn what they mean on their
own. One downside is the text to
speech hovering does not work with
the Math activities in the software.

Picture View Picture view

allows students to make word
webs and brain storming webs.
They are able to add as many
bubbles as theyd like.
Graphics and words can be
used in picture view.

Picture view is great for students how

need to jot down their thoughts when
brain storming ideas. They can build a
web using words and images to help
them understand.

Writing View Writing view

gives the students boxes with
lines to write on. It is similar to
lined paper. It can be used for
writing sentences and journal
writing.

Writing view is great for students who

need practice writing sentences. It
mimics lined paper in a notebook. This
is a great feature for students to do
journal writing or answers questions
for an assignment in class.

Math Math activities are

available to help students
practice graphing, decimals, or
fractions.

The math sections allow students to

practice a vast amount of different
math lessons, from graphing, to
decimals and fractions, to name a few.

The activities give an example then

they student is able to do it on their
own. One down side is there is no text
to speech function for the math
activities.

Super Grouper Group

different object together to
compare and organize
information.

This gives students to opportunity to

practice comparing and organizing
information. You are able to make
different bubbles for sorting things or
create a Venn Diagram for comparing.

Word Guide Students can

search words and get the
pronunciation, definition,
synonyms, and an image.

The word guide allows students to

search words they dont understand or
are unfamiliar with. They are given the
correct pronunciation, and definitions
to explain the meaning. They are also
given synonyms for the word to help
them better understand. Lastly, they
are given an image of the word to help
create further connections and
understanding.

Record You can record your

own voice or a teachers voice
to use for text to speech
function.

Students can record themselves, or

their teacher or anyone they are
comfortable with to use for text to
speech. This feature is great because
some students may be more
comfortable with someone and
respond better to a certain person and
their voice.

Voice You can select a voice

from the list to use for text to
speech.

On a Mac, there are 24 different voices

to choose from, Alex being the most
realistic. On a PC there are only 3
voices to choose from. The voice is
great to help students understand
what different things are on the
software.

Find Students can search for

a specific graphic they would
like to use for their work.

The Find features allow to students to

search for a specific image they would
like to use. They can search for
something specific like Blue Flower
or they can be more general and just
search, blue, flowers, or animals.

Pupil Name Student can

type their name and select
where they would like it to be
positioned on the paper. (Left,
Centre, Right)

This feature is great for students who

are doing an activity for school. They
can put their name at the top of page,
or wherever the teacher would like it.
Students are able to print out their
work to hand in with their name on the

page.

Background Colour There

are 64 different colours to
choose from. Students can set
the background to whatever
colour suits them best.

Students can change the background

colour to whatever works best for
them. Some students may be more
sensitive to brightness so they can
change the white background to
something more suitable.

Zoom You can zoom the

page in or out. Three different
zoon options.

Students can change the zoom to suit

them best. The page is set at the
normal view in the middle and the
students can choose to zoom in so it is
bigger or zoom out so it is smaller.

Import a Image Import an

image from your computer to
use in your activities.

Students can upload their own images

to use in the webs or activities. This
can help students sometimes with
recognizing words if an image they are
already familiar with is used.

Font Change the font style,

size or colour.

Students can choose to make the font

bigger or smaller and change the
colour. This is great if the student has
vision issues and also if they change
the background colour they can select
a font colour that works well.

Print Print off activities you

have completed or practice
pages.

Students can print off activities they

have completed to hand in at school,
use as a reference of print off black
activities to use as practice sheets.

Save As - Save work and

activities to your computer.

Students can save what have they

have been working on so they can
continue at a later time. They can also
save it to their computers.

Export Export work as a PDF,

JPEG, HTML

Export your work into different formats

to open up on different devices. One
downside, it would be good if the work
could be exported into Microsoft Word,
Excel or PowerPoint.

Open from Handheld Open

activities from the Kidspiration
Maps iPad App.

Students can open activities they have

been working on from the iPad
Kidspiration Maps App. This great
because it doesnt limit where they
students can have their work.

Lesson Plans Under

Teaching tab, there are lesson
plans available using various
Kidspiration features.

Teachers can use the lesson plans

provided on the software to share
activities with their students using
many of the Kidspiration features. This

is great for teachers who are still

learning how to use all the features
Kidspiration offers.

Evaluative Considerations
Effectiveness (answer each question)

5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1

Does it do / deliver what it promises?

Explanatory Comments: The software is easy to use and has many great
features. One of the best features is the text to speech function, as it would
help many students. The math section does not have the text to speech
feature which a drawback of the software.

Engagement (answer each question)

5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1

Would intended users like to use it?

Explanatory Comments: This software is targeted for students in

Kindergarten to grade 4. The software is very appealing and colourful for
young students. There are many features students would find fun and
interesting. The activities provided, even though they are educational, are
made fun and colourful so students would find them appealing and
interesting.
Preferences / personalization (answer each
question)

5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1

Can individual preferences or performance be saved?

Can individual student performance records(if relevant) be kept?

Explanatory Comments: Students work can be saved and printed. It can

also be exported to different formats. The only downside is it cannot be saved
in Microsoft Office formats and this is the format most people use.

Levels (answer each question)

5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1

Can the difficulty level be changed?

Are there noticeable differences in the difficulty levels?
Does the level change automatically or is it manually adjusted?

Explanatory Comments: There is only one level; it cannot be made more

difficult or less difficult. They have different activities that different ages can

use, but still only one level.

Support & Responsiveness (answer each

question)

5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1

Are tips &/or demos offered after errors? Is the response to error
effective?
Does it work as an independent activity &/or a teacher mediated
activity?

Explanatory Comments: There are no tips or demos offered if the student

makes a mistake. They need to go back and fix their mistakes or ask a
teacher for assistance. They activities are independent and not teacher
mediated. They are used to help build some independence and self-learning.

Summative Comments:
What is your overall impression? Mention pluses and minuses

Overall, I think this software is a great tool for young students. It is very
appealing and interactive. Many students would benefit from all the
features that are offered. The text to speech feature is one of the best
features available for students. A drawback of this software is that the text
to speech feature is not offered in all the subjects. This is a great software
to help students be more independent and work independently.
Would you recommend this to teachers or parents?

I would definitely recommend this to teachers and parents. I think many

students would benefit from using this software. It teaches many great
skills and offers many activities in a variety of different subjects. Many of
the features offered world help students build their knowledge and
become more confident in their abilities and more of an independent
worker.