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Saturday 8 September 2012

Whiteboard crayons!! WoW




I wanted to share these amazing new( new to me!) whiteboard crayons that I found at Officeworks.  I don't know if anyone else out there has found these but I was like "Wow!  That is a fantastic idea!"  I use individual whiteboards almost daily in my classroom as well as laminated games and activities that may require students to write on them.  It is a constant battle to keep lids on markers and when you rub off whiteboard markers from the laminate it always leaves a mark or smear. I have used whiteboard spray, insect repellent, tea-tree oil and a mountain of other things to keep the laminate clean.  I go through packets and packets of whiteboard markers and I usually end up buying the cheapest ones I can find.
So you can imagine how excited I was!  I wouldn't say they are cheap, this packet of 8 cost roughly $8.00 (Australian) but since then I have found some a bit cheaper on  line.  I can imagine they will last a lot longer than whiteboard markers though.

Well when I got to school I immediately tried them out!  Here is how they look on a whiteboard.


They come with a wipe off mitt and a built in sharpener in the back of the box.  I found the colours to be bright and they were easily wiped off leaving no residue however, I think the sharpener is a bit inconvenient as I doubt I will keep the box just for the sharpener.

So after I tried the small whiteboard, I tried them on the large board but I wouldn't recommend using them on a larger board.  A whiteboard marker has a wider point and these crayons have a finer point making it difficult to see them from a distance.  Then I tried them on a plastic sleeve, no problems!  Then I tried them on a plastic cup that I use for our multiplication Tower of Power, ( I can't remember where I saw that idea...maybe Pinterest, however if it was you please let me know so I can credit you.)  no problems.  I like to be able to change the cups so I was using whiteboard markers instead of permanent markers- but every time the students re-stacked the cups the answer on the inside would wipe off.  The crayons did not!  Here's how they look on the cups.


This is one of my kiddos practicing her 11 x tables before doing the Tower of Power.

I am sure that they would even write well on the plastic plate whiteboards that Clutter Free Classroom posted about.  You can see that post here.

I would love to hear from anyone else who has used these in the classroom and what your thoughts are  about them.  I am loving the fact that I won't have to chase kiddos up for leaving the lid off the marker.  My only worry is that they will snap like normal crayons, but so far so good.  

6 comments:

  1. Never seen nor heard of these before!!! Officeworks, you say - always a joy to visit...

    I have the same problem with the whiteboard markers not coming off, particularly on laminated posters.

    We put whiteboard markers on the student booklist so that each has 4 to use for the year. The theory was that each child will always have their own working markers...ha, ha....

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    1. When I was teaching in QLD we had the same sort of thing on the book list....didn't work. Here in NSW the parents are supposed to pay a levy and the school provides the stationery. Whiteboard markers don't make the list here, so I spend ALOT of $ on markers. Well no more!
      Thanks for stopping by Judith

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  2. Ooooooo they look fantastic! Officeworks here I come!

    Thanks for sharing!

    Alison

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  3. Wow! They do look bright on the small whiteboards! I will have to look for these...I hadn't heard of them before. Thanks for sharing!
    Diane
    schoolhousetreasures

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  4. What a cool product! Crayons are fab. I remember from our "big retail store" days that I used to use the cheap perfume to get marker off the laminated numbers. Worked a treat ;)

    Abs

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  5. Oh Abs, you are funny!!! Our "big" retail days/nights! I don't think my hayfever could stand the cheap perfume these days, but I will keep that one up my sleeve for just in case.
    Tania

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