October 16, 2013 - LAST CLASS 94 minutes Internet Moment: Students had a chance to explore FreeRice.com today. This website, created by John Breen who also created Poverty.com, gives students and others a chance to practice their vocabulary skills while helping to support the United Nations World Food Programme.  After having time to use the site students were asked to prove whether or not this website was bogus or real. After doing some research we learned that though it is a legitimate website (according to snopes.com) another website called the Daily Cow claimed that FreeRice.com does not donate exactly 10 grains of rice for every correct answer. We then looked at a website about the 1993 Velcro Crop Failure in California. This bogus website and others like it serve as a good reminder to students that they have to be very skeptical of what they find online and to always independently verify the facts themselves.  We also looked at the Bureau of Sasquatch Affairs, Dihydrogen Monoxide, and Petrol Direct.  (PA-BCIT Standards:  15.3.8.I, 15.4.8.A, 15.6.8.L) Computer Vocabulary Quiz:  After our break today students had an opportunity to study Computer Vocabulary Lists 1 & 2 before taking the online quizzes.  These quizzes give many of our students credit for the computer knowledge that they already know. Closure to Computer Class: Students were reminded that computers are constantly changing and that they have to learn to adjust to new programs, new hardware and new ways of using technology all the time. We are all constantly learning to adapt to new technology.  All students were also reminded that this was the "Basic Computer Skills" class and that there will many more opportunities to learn more about computers at the high school, but those classes will be electives.  Students should study the High School Program Planning Guide to find out about the opportunities to learn more next year.  (PA-BCIT Standard:  15.2.8.E, 15.8.8.K) October 14, 2013 91 minutes Internet Moment: Today we explored Google Sketchup which is a great example of a free CAD program.  CAD, or computer aided design/drafting, has become very common across many fields and students should have some knowledge of what 3D designing looks and feels like on a computer. Though it is available at school, Google Sketchup is a free download that students can download at home so they can continue to learn more about this important skill on their own.  (PA-BCIT Standard:  15.9.8.F)   Office Yoga Break:  Today we practiced a simple yoga stretch for your wrist.  Students are always reminded to not spend too much time sitting in front of computers and that they should take breaks every 30-40 minutes.  After the stretch everyone had a chance to get up and move around the room.  Using Google Drive to Collaborate:  To make this Venn diagram our students used an online Google Drawing that was set-up by their teacher in advance.  Students were shown how they can easily make their own online Google Presentations (if they have a Gmail account and access to Google Drive).  Sharing presentations with others was also practiced.  Technology Current Event Video: After the description and demonstration of how to use Google Drive we watched a short video from GCFLearnFree.org about collaborating online using Google Drive. October 10, 2013 104 minutes Internet Moment:  Today in class we discussed what an entrepreneur is and what they do.  We also discussed examples of taking a business risk.  We then went to Kickstarter.com to view the ideas and projects of some real entrepreneurs and students were asked to search for an idea that they might be willing to risk their own money in. We also discussed the meaning of the phrase caveat emptor.  (PA-BCIT Standards:  15.5.5.A, 15.5.8.A, 15.5.5.B, 15.5.8.D)  Office Yoga Break:  During long classes like this one students are always reminded to take breaks and get exercise. Students shouldn't spend more than 30-40 minutes in front of a computer without taking a break. For our break today we practiced a simple office yoga stretch for your neck.  After the break everyone had a chance to get up and walk around and share ideas by viewing each other's projects. Technology Current Event Video:  Today we finished class with a video from the BBC about how webcams, the internet and robotics are being combined to create a "RoboDoc" in Northern Ireland.  (PA BCIT Standards:  15.4.5.A, 15.4.8.A) October 8, 2013 44 minutes   Technology Current Event Video:  We finished class today with a short video from CNN in which they discuss the legalities of a public school district's decision to hire an outside contractor to monitor their student's use of social media sites such as Facebook. October 4, 2013 91 minutes Internet Moment:  Today all students had a chance to visit www.sos.fbi.gov and try the online learning activities for 7th graders that are there.  This is part of a monthly competition that is run by the FBI and the intent of the online activities is to help students develop internet safety awareness.  Office Yoga Break: Students are always reminded to not spend too much time in front of computers and to take breaks every 30-40 minutes. Today students were challenged to try a simple yoga stretch for your back. After the stretch all students had an opportunity to take a short break and move around.  (PA-BCIT Standard:  15.4.5.D) Technology Current Event Video:  To finish class today we watched the first part of a recent TED Presentation by Jane McGonigal.  She is a game designed and in a previous TED talk she hypothesized that people should play more computer games, not less.  In this talk she suggests that not only are games not a waste of time but could actually improve and your quality and length of life.  We only watched the first 5 minutes of the video in class. October 2, 2014 44 minutes* Internet Moment:  Today we explored Google Earth and discussed how a 3 dimensional virtual environment can be used to augment human memory.  We talked about how the most popular video games that students play are so engaging because of the 3 dimensional visual imagery that is used in them.  Students were introduced to the memory palace or method of loci as an effective way to use 3 dimensional visual imagery to help you remember large amounts of information.  Students then opened Google Earth and we began a tour of the earth, the sky, Mars and the moon. The whole class followed a specific list of locations. Google Earth Tour Quiz:  As a follow-up to our previous tour on Google Earth students were challenged to list everywhere they had gone and what they had seen on their tour of the 3 dimensional visual imagery in Google Earth. This activity helped to demonstrate the effectiveness of using 3D spatial references, such as the virtual environment of Google Earth, to augment memory.    QUIZ:  Where I went on Google Earth Today Technology Current Event Video:  We finished class today with a short video about how to use the memory palace technique. *Class time was shorter today due to the half day schedule September 30, 2013 44 minutes Internet Moment:  Today we discussed what a wiki is and visited the largest wiki in the internet: Wikipedia. Students were shown how easily a wikipedia article can be edited and we discussed some of the reason it can't be used in academic work.  However, students were shown what parts of a wikipedia article they could use to help them when they are doing research for school projects.  We also looked at an edited version of Wikipedia that is intended to be used by students.  The Wikipedia Selection forSchools which was created by the SOS Children's Villages which is a not for profit group in the United Kingdom.  (PA-BCIT Standards:  15.3.8.G, 15.3.8.E, 15.3.8.T, 15.3.8.I) Finish Basic HTML:  Today we finished the webpage by experimenting with adding JAVAScript from DynamicDrive.com.   Click here to enlarge the project description.  (PA-BCIT Standards:  15.3.8.S, 15.4.8.H) Technology Current Event Video: We finished class today by watching a TEDx Presentation by Ward Cunningham, in which he discusses his invention of Wiki. He also discusses his most recent ideas about how to share data on the internet. September 26, 2013 91 minutes   Technology Current Event Video:  Today we watched the first part of a TED presentation by Tim Berners-Lee about how and why he developed the World Wide Web and HTML code 20 years ago. September 24, 2013 91 minutes Internet Moment:  Today we looked at two online resources for fonts.  DaFont.com offers over 20,000 fonts that are either freeware, shareware, demo versions or in the public domain.  These fonts can be downloaded and installed but students were also shown how they can use the Snipping Tool to get images of the fonts they might like.  Students were also shown how they could make their own font using a website like YourFonts.com.  Finish Brochure Project:  All students had time today to finish the copyright brochure project in MS Publisher.   We reviewed how to find images online that were not copyright protected and the importance of respecting copyrights. Students were also shown how to print on both sides of a sheet of paper and how to trifold a brochure.  Each student also had an opportunity to review a rough draft of their project with the teacher.  Click here to enlarge the project description.  (PA-BCIT Standards:  15.1.5.B, 15.3.5.A, 15.3.8.B, 15.3.5.D, 15.3.8.D, 15.3.8.E, 15.4.8.G, 15.3.8.U, 15.6.8.L) Office Yoga Break: Students are always reminded to not spend too much time in front of computers and to take breaks every 30-40 minutes.  Today we practiced a simple yoga stretch for your legs.  After the stretch all students had an opportunity to take a short break and move around.  (PA-BCIT Standard:  15.4.5.D,) Technology Current Event Video:  Students were shown a video about a new after hours marketing techniques that a trendy clothing store in South Africa is experimenting with.  The Loom Integrated Marketing Campaign.  (PA-BCIT Standards:  15.4.8.A, 15.9.8.L) September 20, 2013 44 minutes Internet Moment: Today our students were introduced to the "joy of statistics" by viewing GapMinder.org which is a free online resource where statistics from all around the world are presented in an easy to understand visual format. We looked at the "Wealth & Health of Nations" chart. As a demonstration of how the website works we tracked the life expectancy and income changes in the USA and Japan over the last 200 years.  We also looked at how 8th grade math scores and changing in Japan and the United States.  Students then had time to explore the website on their own.  (PA-BCIT Standards:  15.4.8.A, 15.6.5.L, 15.6.8.M, 15.7.8.A, 15.7.8.F, 15.7.8.H, 15.7.8.L, 15.7.8.F) Technology Current Event Video:  We watched the first 6 minutes of a TED Presentation by Hans Rosling, the creator of GapMinder.org about how studying statistics can be used to help people better understand the world.  In this video he was explaining how generally believed mindsets don't match the statistical data sets that are out there.  (PA-BCIT Standards:  15.7.8.F, 15.5.8.H) September 18, 2013 91 minutes   Office Yoga Break:  Students are always reminded to take breaks every 30 to 40 minutes when they are using a computer or any other electronic device.  For our break today we practiced a simple yoga stretch for your spine and all students then had an opportunity to get up and walk around.  Technology Current Event Video:   We watched part of a TED Presentation by John Maeda, the President of the Rhode Island School of Design.  In the video he talked about how different font choices can be used to convey meaning (up to about 7:20).  Students were encouraged to watched the rest of the video on their own.  (PA BCIT Standard: 15.4.8.A) September 16, 2013 91 minutes Internet Moment:  Today we looked at NewsMap.jp which is an online graphical interpretation of the top news stories in Google News.  We discussed how we work hard at school to prepare students to communicate using text (academic papers) but that students also have to be mindful of the importance of communicating information visually.  This website was used as an example of this.   Start Publisher Font Guide Project: After a presentation about the origins of fonts, the two main categories for fonts Font Conference Video:  As a follow-up to our last activity (the Font Guide Project) we watched a short video from College Humor about a fictitious "Font Conference": September 12, 2013 94 minutes Class Blog:  Students were shown TodayInComputerClass.com and told that they can check here anytime to review what work was done in class.  We also discussed what a web log or blog was, how blogs developed into microblogs like Twitter and how this website is a blog for our class.  Students were also told that their parents will be sent an email with a link to this website so they can also review what we are doing in computer class each day. Internet Moment:  Today we explored three popular  popular news aggregator websites:  Bing News, Google News, and the Yahoo homepage - Students were shown how to use these sites to find current event stories and how to search the news for specific topics.  Typing Test: All students took a typing test using TypingTest.com. Each student had 10 minutes to take the 1 minute test multiple times. Their best adjusted speed was recorded and graphed in an Excel spreadsheet. The average typing speed for this class was:  36.8 WPM  Click here for more information about typing speeds at Newtown Middle School.  We also discussed this graph:   Online Typing Activities: As a follow up to the typing test we looked at the typing speeds for the whole 8th grade in Excel and looked at graphs of past speeds for NMS students. Students were then given some time to find at least 3 online typing activities (tutorials or games) that they enjoyed. They were to then add these typing activities to their favorites or bookmarks list so they could go back and practice their typing skills in class when they finished their projects. Assigned Seats: All students have an assigned seat/computer in computer class. Students have a responsibility to report any problems with the machine they have been assigned. In this way we all participate in maintaining our school computers.  Students were also reminded to adjust the keyboard, mouse, chair and monitor to meet their ergonomic needs.  (PA-BCIT Standard:  15.4.5.D, 15.4.2.B, 15.4.8.F) Finish MLA Paragraph:  All student had time to finish and print this project today. Technology Current Event Video:  As a wrap up to the earlier presentation about the development of computer technology.  The family in Canada banned all technology that came out after 1986.  (PA BCIT Standard: 15.4.8.A) Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy September 10, 2013 91 minutes Basic Computer Knowledge Presentation:  Today students were shown a presentation based on the student computer knowledge survey that they had taken.  This introductory lecture covers basic background information that every student should know about computers such as the development of desktop computers (Apple, IBM & Microsoft), different computer operating systems, internet connection options, developing computer devices (like smart phones and tablet computers) and protecting yourself online.  We finished the presentation today. (PA-BCIT Standards:  15.1.5.B, 15.3.5.V, 15.3.8.T, 15.6.8.M)  Technology Current Events Video:  Unfortunately we ran out of time for a video today. September 4, 2013 - FIRST DAY 80 minutes* Introduction to Basic Computer Skills Class: Basic rules and classroom procedures were explained. Students were specifically reminded that because technology is constantly changing they should get into the habit of helping each other out and demonstrating the ability to learn new computer skills through experimentation. All students reported that they had helped an adult with computer skills but they also need to get used to helping each other.  (PA-BCIT Standard 15.2.5.L, 15.3.8.C, 15.3.8.D, 15.3.5.M, 15.8.5.C)  Setting up Student Passwords: Each student had to create a new password today and they were reminded of some good password practices.  (PA-BCIT Standard:  15.4.8.F)  Student passwords must fit the following parameters:
Log On & Explore: All students were given time to explore the start menu and the various programs available to them at school. Middle School Technology Use Video: Information about the Council Rock School District Acceptable Use Policy, and a quick review of the Facebook Privacy Policy.  (PA-BCIT Standard:  15.1.5.B, 15.3.8.T, 15.4.8.A, 15.4.8.B, 15.8.5.C) Direct link to the Technology Use at the Middle School Video  Pixlr.com Project: Students were shown how to use the online photo editor  http://www.pixlr.com to edit a photograph. Students then shared their modified photos using various district network resources and demonstrated basic skills such as drag & drop. The best use of the H:, S: & X: drives was also explained.  We also discussed professional digital photo editing with Adobe PhotoShop.  (PA-BCIT Standard:  15.4.8.F)  Technology Current Event:  Most classes end with a current event video. Today's video was inspired by an original presentation created by a high school teacher in Colorado, Karl Fisch. Here is a link to his blog:  THE FISCHBOWL for more information. *Class time was shorter today due to the second day schedule and a fire drill |
