Animated Step-by-Steps®

Monday, January 23, 2017

Converting Files from PowerPoint Show

Animated Step-by-Steps® are routinely saved as PowerPoint Show versions. This ensures that the file will open up in presentation mode, ready to go. When an ASbyS is saved in PowerPoint Show mode, it cannot be edited.

There are, however, instances in which you may wish to convert your files to .ppt files to allow you to edit them. For example, you may wish to

1. have the symbols appear when a new page opens rather than after all the page animations are complete. This allows you to ‘read’ the page using the symbols. This may be your preference if students in your class are cognitively young and can benefit receptively from an upfront emphasis on symbols.

2. substitute photo faces of your students for the illustrated faces that appear in the original download. In order to use the change picture feature you will need to have a .ppt or .pptx file.

3. add voice output to key symbols creating an additional avenue for audience participation for a student that is cognitively young.

To covert a powerpoint show (.pps) to a editable powerpoint file (.ppt) the ‘file extension’ must be visible. When the file extension (appearing as 3 or 4 letters after the dot in a file name) is visible the coversion process is as simple as changing the letters of the file extension. So for the file Making Colorful Crayons.pps, the .pps file extension would be selected/highlighted and changed into the replacement extension .ppt.

If you don’t see the file extensions on your files, you will need to tell your operating system to show the file name extensions:

On Mac OS:

Finder Menu … Preferences … Advanced Tab … check box Show all file name extensions

On Windows 7 OS:

Start Button … Control Panel … Appearance and Personalization … Folder Options … View Tab … Uncheck the box Hide extensions for known file types … OK

Reference:

Marcovitz, D. (2012). Powerful powerpoint for educators. Using visual basic for applications to make powerPoint interactive. 2^nd ed.

…’til the next post … (new posts every Monday)

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Augmentative Communication Consultant

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Monday, January 16, 2017

Have You Noticed This Problem with the Microsoft Powerpoint app?

Before I post Animated Step-by-Steps® resources on the Teachers Pay Teachers site, I typically import the resource into the Microsoft PowerPoint app on my iPad Pro to make sure that I haven’t overlooked any problems. Lately I’ve been noticing that the Microsoft PowerPoint app has been responding differently.

When I use the swipe to the left motion to trigger the animations, some come in with sound, others do not. As you know from a previous post, there are two ways to trigger the ASbyS animations in PowerPoint … a swipe to the left …. and touching an imaginary narrow vertical bar on the far right side of the screen. In the past my thinking has always been … If the child can motorically perform a reliable swipe to the left, go with that as it has a more direct cognitive link to the stars signaling an animation; otherwise, go with the tap on the far right as it is motorically easier.

This ‘animation-sound’ problem does not occur when using the Microsoft PowerPoint software on the computer or by extension on the interactive whiteboard. I’ve field tested some simple modifications but none seem to solve the problem. I’ve been hanging out on the microsoft office forums trying to find an explanation or more importantly a solution but so far have received no insight into the problem.

So in the interim, when you use your Animated Step-by-Step resource on your iPad, you may need to trigger the page animations by touching the ‘imaginary bar’ on the far right of your iPad screen.

Stay tuned. I hope a solution will be forthcoming.