Another Way to Use Ppt

http://escrapbooking.com/projects/scrapcomic/index.htm
This is a bit off topic...I found this neat site that shows you how to create a ppt slide to look like a comic strip (with bubbles).Students would have fun creating a sequential story. They could create a storyboard, take pictures of themselves, upload them and add the comic bubbles.
Looks like fun!

More student samples of ppt

http://www.spa3.k12.sc.us/PowerPoint.htm

I think that the more exposure our students have to ppt presentations created by other students gives them some confidence that they can also use ppt and create just about anything! This site offers some more student samples from Air Pollution to Civil Rights.
What is also useful about having our students look at these samples is having them come up with a list of characteristics or do's and dont's of creating a ppt presentation.
Have the students come up with their own list of qualities that make a great ppt!

Using Ppt Handouts

http://www1.umn.edu/ohr/teachlearn/tutorials/powerpoint/handouts.html

I'm not sure if someone else had posted this site or not. There are so many! If I've repeated it, I guess great minds think alike :)This site had some interesting information about using handouts for a ppt presentation to guide students' study and encouraged active participation. I know for me personally, I find it beneficial to receive the ppt handouts during a presentation as I find it easier to follow along and see what's coming up next in the discussion. I'm a visual and kinesthetic learner, so I prefer the ppt presentation and the handout. The article goes on to say that "when used appropriately, PowerPoint handouts can improve student learning by structuring study time, encouraging critical thinking, preparing students for lecture, and providing opportunities for active learning during the course of the session". This would be more applicable for older grades.
They also provide visual samples of what the ppt slide would look like in compared to what the ppt handout would look like.I absolutely agree with the point that students shouldn't be "mere stenographers". With the help of the handout, students are encouraged to take notes on what's important–application, synthesis, evaluation. The site also provides a mini-workshop via video on how to effectively implement a ppt presentation into your class.
Again, it's geared to older grades and post-secondary lectures, but there are countless ways to adapt the information. I also liked the "12 Active Learning Strategies". Many of those strategies we are encouraged to use in our elementary classrooms!

More Useful Powerpoint/Presentation Sites

http://web.princeton.edu/sites/mcgraw/oral_presentation_skills.html
Oral Presentation Skills

http://iteslj.org/Techniques/Fisher-PowerPoint.html
Classroom uses of Powerpoint/ESL Teaching

http://www.kented.org.uk/ngfl/subjects/literacy/powerpoint/halfway.html
Benefits of Ppt for Primary Literacy

http://www.microsoft.com/education/storytelling.mspx
Multimedia storytelling

http://powayusd.sdcoe.k12.ca.us/teachers/dhogan/wkshp/LskellyPPT/pptE050.TMP_files/frame.htm
Humorous slides on technology

http://www.cgu.edu/pages/762.asp
Evaluation Forms for Powerpoint Presentations

http://presentationsoft.about.com/od/firststeps/a/ppt_terms.htm
10 Most Common Powerpoint Terms

Evaluating Multimedia Presentations

I know we're probably not suppose to focus on evaluation for this discussion, but I came across this site that has some great samples and templates for assessment and evaluation of our students' ppt presentations. Some might work for you and your students, some might not. I know, personally, I like coming across sites like these so I can add some of these rubrics to my collection. It seems when you need to find them, you can't! These rubrics might also give you some ideas of how to plan your assignment for your students.There is also an open-ended type evaluation, where students can be more reflective in self-assessing their work.

http://www.cgu.edu/pages/762.asp

Comprehension, Ppt and Humour

http://powayusd.sdcoe.k12.ca.us/teachers/dhogan/wkshp/readingcomprehension.html
Some good ideas on how to use ppt for something other than a visual presentation.There are also some interesting ideas on effective uses of ppt. My favorite was the Kids and Adult Technology slide. It humourously draws attention to how in tune our students are with technology, and how many adults are just not on the ball!
Great slides, very funny, could be interesting to show to parents to have them appreciate the necessity for our children to be technologically literate!
Slide 12 is a good representation of how many teachers feel about technology: they'd rather have a root canal, as the slide suggests, rather than have to learn about the up and coming tech advances. I had a student last year that was chosen for a pilot program on a new initative from the board. He received his own computer and color printer as a result. The problem I had during the year was battling the reluctancy of the EA who worked with the student to actually use the program. It's a shame. But again, technology is only as good as those people are eager and willing to use it!
Slide 16 pretty much sums it up!Check it out!This ppt would also be good to show the students and assign one slide to a pair of them. Have them discuss and share with the class what that slide is saying about technology in the classroom, in the world and its users.

Benefits of Powerpoint with a Data Projector

http://www.kented.org.uk/ngfl/subjects/literacy/powerpoint/halfway.html

This site details the benefits of using ppt with a data projector for literacy. The example on the site suggests that using a data projector with ppt reaches all students, regardless of the number of students in the class (as opposed to showing them a picture from a book, whereby, it is not a guarantee that all students will be able to see it).
New slides could be added, created the students, to supplement the lesson.
The site also includes some feedback from the students who received the ppt lesson using a data projector. Some feedback included the idea that words were easier to follow because they were bigger, having it on the computer was exciting because there were different sounds and graphics. Students Jay and Laura made a great comment in stating that it was great to see the pictures bigger and that the teacher didn't have to turn the book around so all students could see it.
There are some downfalls. One being that if pictures can't be scanned into the ppt, then the graphics shown will lose some of their visual appeal that would lend itself to getting the meaning and intent out of the pictures.
I think it's a great tool for the primary classroom. The teacher was quick to mention that it wouldn't replace their mandatory "read alouds", but using it could help to teach some expectations.