Smilebox plus editor Tutorial

Do you want to bring your photos and videos to life? Your best option is Smilebox plus editor . It is a website which allows you to create slideshows, invitations,  congratulations cards, collages, scrapbooks, photo albums and other interactive designs. As this online tool offers 1000 customizable templates to choose from, you will not be short of inspiration. 

Thanks to Smilebox plus editor, you can include photos, videos and songs in your slideshow and end up with original results, even when you don't know how to use a design programme. 

I find this site useful because students can become more creative and express themselves through these slideshows by telling their own story. They can also present a topic of their interest in a more engaging way to teach others about it. 

Some advantages of this web 2.0 tool are the following:

• It allows the creation of multimedia material such as audio visuals and this material can eventually be used in combination with social networks, blogs and wikis.
• It fosters students' motivation and enhances learning.
• It encourages an alternative way to communicate content.

There are some steps you should follow to make use of this tool:

Step 1

Go to https://www.smilebox.com/. Before creating anything, you need to click on the "Sign in" button which is in the right corner at the top of the website. You can join in with your facebook account or fill in the fields with your full name, email and password. Once you have joined the site, you have to choose the product you want to create. The options are at the top of the page.

Step 2
Afterwards, a window will pop up and you have to choose personal or business use. The site will lead you to a selection of templates for you to choose.

Step 3
After you have clicked on the template of your choice, another window will pop up and ask you to click on the green button "Personalize", so that you can adapt the template as you want. 

Step 4
The site will ask you where you want to import the photos from (Facebook, Instagram, mobile phone or your computer). Once, you have clicked on one of the options, select the photos you want to include in your slideshow.

Step 5

In the cover slide of your slideshow, you can edit many things: the background music, the colour scheme, the background colour of your first slide, the speed of the slideshow. You can edit these items by choosing the options from the menu on the right of the screen. Also, you can change the title of your slideshow and the author by clicking on them. A menu will pop up to provide you options to change the type, colour and size of your font. Afterwards, you can click on the arrow to go to the next slide.

Step 6

Drag and drop an image from the left part of the screen to the center of your slide. You can also click on "Add text" and write the description of the slide or a phrase you want to include.

Step 7

After dragging and dropping images in each slide, you can finally save your production by clicking on the grey button "Save" in the top right corner of the website. By clicking on the button "Preview and share", which is next to the Save button, you can see how your product will be like for your audience (with the music you have chosen and the transition of your slides) 

Step 8

If you click on the save button, the website will ask you to give your slideshow a name. If you click on the preview and share button, the website will show how your slideshow will be like for your audience and after that, you click on the arrow so that the site will show you several options: share via email, share on facebook, share on twitter, get link, download video or share by SMS. Click on the option you prefer and you are ready to share your slideshow with anyone you want.

References:

Ledesma, P. (2012, July). Web 2.0 Tools in ELT. Retrieved from https://es.scribd.com/document/100215769/Paula-Ledesma-Web-2-0-Tools-in-ELT