2016-17 8-A.6

June 12, 2017 - LAST CLASS
104 minutes

Online game to end hunger 
Internet Moment: Students had a chance to explore FreeRice.com today. This website, created by John Breen who also created Poverty.com. It gives students and others a chance to practice their vocabulary skills while helping to support the United Nations World Food Program. 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 it is a legitimate website (according to snopes.com). We then looked at several bogus websites such as this one about the 1993 Velcro Crop Failure in California, DHMO Awareness, the Bureau of Sasquatch Affairs, and the endangered Tree Octopus. We also watched videos about being a Google Autocompleter and West Jet Airline offering child-free flights. These websites and videos serve as a good reminder that we all need to be skeptical of what we find online and to always independently verify the facts. (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.3.8.I, 15.4.8.A, 15.6.8.L)

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 last class. 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 (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.4.8.A, 15.6.8.M)

Online Collaboration Project:Students finished working on their group travel itinerary. For this project our students are working in groups of 4-5 and they are planning a 7 day trip to Kathmandu, Nepal where they will participate in some tourism activities of their choice. Using Google as a currency converter was also demonstrated. Click here for the project directions and here for the project rubric. Click here to enlarge the project description. (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.3.8.E, 15.3.8.M, 15.3.8.S, 15.3.8.U, 15.3.12.W, 15.3.8.X, 15.4.8.D)

Make-up Time & Checking Grades: Since this is our last full class all students had time to make up any work they may have missed. All projects were handed back and students could submit anything they missed or re-submit a project that they hadn't finished for full credit. All students were asked to log into the HAC and check their grades for this class. 

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. Students were also reminded that this was their only required computer class here at Council Rock and that should they wish to learn more about computer technology they should look carefully at the High School Program Planning Guide for the many elective classes that incorporate computer skills. (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.6.8.M, 15.2.8.E)

Technology Current Event Video: For our last current event this year we watched a TED Presentation by Gary Kovacs, the CEO of Mozilla, about how internet users are tracked. He demonstrated how many companies were following him and his daughter when they were online during a typical day. During the presentation he demonstrated how a free download for Firefox called Collusion (now called Lightbeam) can be used to find out who is tracking you online. (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.4.8.A, 15.5.8.J, 15.9.8.L, 15.9.8.M)













June 8, 2017
94 minutes

Internet Moment:  Students were shown GeoGuessr.com today and we spent about 5 minutes playing the game at the beginning class today.   The highest score in our class today was Julianna with over 10,000 points. 

Online Collaboration Project:  Students continued working on their group travel itinerary. For this project our students are working in groups of 4-5 and they are planning a 7 day trip to Kathmandu, Nepal where they will participate in some tourism activities of their choice. Using Google as a currency converter was also demonstrated. Click here for the project directions and here for the project rubric. Click here to enlarge the project description. (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.3.8.E, 15.3.8.M, 15.3.8.S, 15.3.8.U, 15.3.12.W, 15.3.8.X, 15.4.8.D)

Technology Current Event Video:  Unfortunately we ran out of time for a video today.









June 6, 2016
91 minutes

Internet Moment: Today we explored Google Earth and discussed how a three dimensional virtual environment can be used to augment human memory. We started by discussing what spatial memory is and how it is used to make modern video games so engaging. Students were then introduced to the memory palace or method of loci as an effective way to use 3 dimensional visual imagery to help a person remember large amounts of information. We then went to Google Earth and began a tour of the earth, the sky, Mars and the moon. The whole class followed a specific list of locations. Next week all students will take a quiz to see how much of the Google Earth tour they can recall. (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.4.8.A, 15.6.8.M)

Asynchronous Online Collaboration Project:  Each student used a Google Drawing to make a Venn Diagram that listed their favorite foods. Their partners for this project are 8th grade students from the computer classes at Richboro Middle School & Holland Middle School. This project was an example of asynchronous online collaboration. All students finished their part of the Venn Diagrams and then emailed their partners to ask them . Click here to enlarge the project description. (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.3.8.E, 15.3.8.M, 15.3.8.S, 15.3.8.T, 15.3.8.U, 15.3.12.W, 15.3.8.X, 15.4.8.D, 15.4.8.F) 

A sample project:



Office Yoga Break: For our break today everyone had a chance to get up and move around the room and review each other's work. Then, before getting back to work, we practiced a simple yoga stretch for your thigh.

http://www.todayincomputerclass.com/images/onlinecollaboration01.jpgOnline Collaboration Project:   For this project our students are planning a 7 day trip to Kathmandu, Nepal where they will participate in some tourism activities of their choice.  Click here for the project directions and here for the project rubric. Using Google as a currency converter was also demonstrated. Click here for the project rubric. (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.3.8.E, 15.3.8.M, 15.3.8.S, 15.3.8.U, 15.3.12.W, 15.3.8.X, 15.4.8.D)(ISTE Standards: 1c, 2a, 2b, 2d, 3b, 3c, 3d, 4a, 4b, 4c, 6a, 6b, 6d)

Technology Current Event Video: We finished class today with a short video about tourism & vacations in Kathmandu, Nepal.











June 2, 2017
104 minutes

Internet Moment:  To start our class today Mr. McNulty demonstrated how Google and other companies use GPS data from cell phones to track the locations of individuals.  In the demonstration Mr. McNulty showed the class a detailed map prepared by Google of exactly where he and his family were in August of 2014. Using location history (now known as timeline) students could see that he was riding Dumbo the Flying Elephant at precisely 1:08 on August 10, 2014. Everyone then had a chance to open their own Google Accounts and check their location history.  Students were also shown how to access location history on an iPhone.

Log on and Check Grades: All students were asked to log into the Home Access Center and check their grades. Since January 1st, 2015 all HAC accounts have been updated so that students can accessed their grades using their regular district log in and password. All students should be able to log in and check their grades routinely. Students were also reminded to check out the eSchoolPLUS app that's available from Google Play and the iTunes Store.

https://login.microsoftonline.com/
Office 365 Accounts:
  All students were reminded that they have Office 365 accounts. As part of this process students had to set their time zone.  We discussed GMT, UTC and Zulu time as part of this activity.  They were also shown how they can access them online from anywhere.  They were also shown how to access their One Drive. Students were also reminded that if they logged onto their Office 365 accounts at home they could download several Microsoft Office programs onto their personal computers for free.  Students also had some time to explore Office 365.

Office Yoga Break:  Students are always reminded to not spend too much time sitting in front of computers.  Breaks should be taken at least every 30-40 minutes.  For our break today we practiced a simple yoga stretch for your back and then everyone had a chance to get up and move around the room some.

https://scratch.mit.edu/help/videos/Introduction to Scratch: As a follow-up to the Blockly Maze Tutorial the class was shown Scratch which is a free online code editor developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Students who enjoyed using Blockly, were told that Scratch would be the next step for them to try. All students had about 10 minutes to experiment with Scratch and to view some featured student projects. Students were also encouraged to check out the Scratch Tutorial Videos page on their own and consider joining Scratch. We also watched a short video by the MIT Scratch Team about some of their latest developments.

Technology Current Event Video:  We finished class today with a TED presentation by Keller Rinaudo about his smartphone powered robot called Romo.













May 26, 2017
91 minutes

Internet Moment: Today we explored 
NewsMap.jp which is a graphical interpretation of the top news stories on Google News. It was created by Marcos Weskamp, a self described software architect. He was also part of the team that founded Flipboard which seeks to bring the design experience of magazines to web and tablet technology. As part of this activity we discussed the important relationship between internet technology and the design process.  We also discussed what working in careers that involve technology might be like.  (CRETS:  4a, 4c, 6c, 6d, 7c) (PA BCIT Standards: 15.2.8.B, 15.2.8.C, 15.2.8.D, 15.2.8.E)
http://www.todayincomputerclass.com/8th/FullPageAd.JPG

Finish Full Page Ad Project:  All students had time today to finish the Full Page Ad project using MS Publisher that we started last class. Everyone had a chance to print a black & white rough draft and review it with the teacher before printing their final draft in color. Click here to enlarge the project description.(PA-BCIT Standards: 15.3.8.A, 15.3.8.B, 15.3.8.E, 15.4.8.D, 15.4.8.G, 15.9.8.A)

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. As part of our break today we practiced a simple office yoga stretch for your forearm.

Hour of Code:  Today our class participated in the Hour of Code. We started by viewing the source code for this webpage.  Students were told that this code, a mixture of HTML and JavaScript, was the list of specific instructions that tell your web browser how to display the webpage.  We then watched the tutorial video below to introduce the online coding activity.  Students then went to the online Blockly Moana Tutorial to write JavaScript.  

Technology Current Event Video:  We finished class today with a video from Code.org about why schools should teach computer coding.











May 24, 2017
96 minutes*

Internet Moment: Today students had an opportunity to play a financial education game from Visa called: Financial Football. Students had 5 minutes to play the game which involved answering multiple choice questions that tested their financial literacy. We then discussed any terms that confused them. Students were also reminded that they can go back to PracticalMoneySkills.com on their own. Students were also reminded to check out the Personal Finance & Investing class at our high school. (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.6.8.B, 15.6.8.G, 15.6.8.H, 15.6.8.I, 15.6.8.K) (ISTE Standards: 1c, 5c, 5a)

http://www.todayincomputerclass.com/8th/Brochure.JPG
Finish Brochure Project: All students had time to finish this project today. Students were reminded to use Google Images and Bing Images to find free images that were in the public domain. Students were shown how to print on both sides of a sheet of paper and how to trifold a brochure. Everyone had a chance to finish and print this project in class today. 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)

Break:  Students are always reminded to not spend too much time sitting in front of computers.  Breaks should be taken every 30-40 minutes.  For our break today we practiced a simple yoga stretch for your deltoid muscles and then everyone had a chance to get up and move around some.

MLA Format Quiz: Students took a short online quiz about using the MLA Format in MS Word. They will be using this format for their academic papers at the high school.

http://www.todayincomputerclass.com/8th/FullPageAd.JPG
Full page Ad Project: Today students started a classic graphic design project to help them continue to develop their own sense of design and their skills in MS Publisher. Each student selected a full page, full color magazine advertisement to recreate in MS Publisher. The student version of the ad must advertise something different than the original but it should look very similar to the original. Students were also shown how to copy and paste images into either MS Word or PowerPoint and use that program to remove the background in a picture. We also discussed copyright law and fair use for educational purposes.  Click here to enlarge the project description.  We will finish this project next class.  (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.3.8.A, 15.3.8.B, 15.3.8.E, 15.4.8.D, 15.4.8.G, 15.9.8.A)

Technology Current Event Video:  We finished class today with a short video from PBS OffBook about graphic design.  

* Class time was shorter today due to the Keystone testing schedule










May 22, 2017
44 minutes

http://www.gapminder.org/
Internet Moment: Today our students were introduced to the "joy of statistics" by viewing Gap Minder.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 had changed in Japan, Canada and the United States. Student were also shown that countries where students have poor dental hygiene also tend to have higher math test scores as an example of a spurious correlation. Everyone then had time to explore the website on their own. (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.4.8.A, 15.7.8.A, 15.7.8.F, 15.7.8.H, 15.7.8.L, 15.8.8.A, 15.9.8.J)

http://www.todayincomputerclass.com/8th/Brochure.JPG
Brochure Project: All students had time to finish this project today. Students were reminded to use Google Images and Bing Images to find free images that were in the public domain. Students were shown how to print on both sides of a sheet of paper and how to trifold a brochure. Everyone will have a chance to finish and print this project next class. 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)

Technology Current Event Video:  We finished class with a video of Hans Rosling talking about the changes in statistics over the last 200 years.











May 18, 2017
91 minutes

Internet Moment: Today we looked at three online resources for free ebooks and audio books. We started with the Gutenberg Project (Gutenberg.org) which offers free access to 46,000 ebooks and over 100,000 additional free ebooks from other resources. We then looked at Lit2Go which is a free online collection of audio books in MP3 format that is available from the University of South Florida. Finally we visited Google Books (books.google.com) and discussed how to access and search the text of the free ebooks available there. We also discussed copyright laws and how these books came to be available online or in the public domain. Students were also reminded to search for free ebook reader apps for their phone and tablet devices. (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.1.5.B, 15.2.5.L, 15.3.8.E, 15.4.8.B)

Finish Font Guide:
  All students had some time to finish the font guide project that we started last class.  Everyone printed and turned in the project today.  
Click here to enlarge the project description.  (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.3.8.E, 15.4.8.G, 15.4.2.K, 15.3.8.X)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11bX6_dM6UQ
Stretch 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. As part of our break today we practiced a simple stretch for your fingers. Before the stretch the causes and symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome were explained to the class. After the stretch all students had an opportunity to take a short break and move around. (ISTE Standards: 5a, 5b, 5c)

http://www.todayincomputerclass.com/8th/Brochure.JPG
Copyright Brochure Project:  Students take an existing brochure and recreate it in Publisher 2016 using a template as a starting point. The original brochure they were given was about copyright laws. Students were shown how to use Google Images and Bing Images to find free images that they could even use for commercial purposes. Students also practiced their typing today by re-typing the text of the original brochure. Everyone will have time to finish and print this project next class. Click here to enlarge the project description. (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.9.5.L, 15.3.8.E, 15.3.5.H, 15.4.5.K, 15.4.8.B, 15.3.8.U)

Technology Current Event Video:  We finished class today with a TED presentation by Margaret Stewart about how copyright issues are handled by YouTube.  















May 15, 2017
104 minutes

Internet Moment: Today we looked at two online resources for fonts. DaFont.com  offers over 31,000 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. (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.3.8.E, 15.6.5.M, 15.4.5.A)

http://www.todayincomputerclass.com/8th/PublisherLogo.JPG
Publisher Logo Project:  We started with an introduction to MS Publisher 2016. Publisher was described as a graphic design program which is used to express your ideas visually. The field of graphic design was also explained.  Students were reminded that learning basic graphic design skills will help them to communicate their ideas effectively. Students then became familiar with Publisher 2016 by making a simple logo. We saved this project and shared them with the class during a gallery walk activity. Click here to enlarge the project description. (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.3.8.S, 15.4.5.G, 15.6.5.M, 15.3.8.X, 15.9.8.A, 15.9.5.L)

Font Presentation: In this presentation the development of the two basic font families (serif & sans serif) as well as the best uses for each was discussed. Students were also shown how they read primarily through identifying sight words and why it's so hard to spell check and grammar check your own work.

http://www.todayincomputerclass.com/8th/FontGuide.JPG
Publisher Font Guide Project: Students made a Font Guide in MS Publisher. When finished the student version should look just like the original. We also discussed the concept of WYSIWYG in graphic design. This project gave students another opportunity to get familiar with the program's features. They also had to demonstrate the ability to make something very specific. Click here to enlarge the project description. Everyone will have time to finish this project next.  (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.3.8.E, 15.4.8.G, 15.4.2.K, 15.3.8.X)

Office Yoga Break:  Students are always reminded to not spend too much time sitting in front of computers.  Breaks should be taken at least every 30-40 minutes.  For our break today we practiced a simple yoga stretch for your back and then everyone had a chance to get up and move around the room some.

Font Conference Video:  As a follow-up to the Font Presentation we watched a short video from College Humor about a fictitious "Font Conference".













May 11, 2017
24 minutes*

Internet Moment: We started class today by visiting some online logo quizzes and students had some time to test their knowledge. Students were reminded that we live in a very graphical world and that they are routinely exposed to thousands of corporate logos every day.

http://www.todayincomputerclass.com/8th/FavoriteLinks.JPG
Favorite Links Project:  Students started this project today. Each student used Google Docs to make a list of six favorite websites. They then turned the names of the websites into hyperlinks. The hyperlinks were then laid out on a table and we talked about using and formatting tables. We also discussed appropriate websites for school. Next class everyone will turn in their finished project using a shared Google Doc. Click here to enlarge the project description. (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.3.8.E, 15.4.5.G)

Logo Design Video:  We finished this activity with a short video from PBS Digital Studios about the art of logo design. 


* Class time was shorter today due to a special assembly








May 9, 2017
91 minutes

Internet Moment: To help our students understand cultural diversity on the internet we investigated what our own accents sound like by taking the NY Times Dialect Quiz. Students then had an opportunity to compare the dialect heat maps from all the students in our class using a shared Google Doc. (PA-BCIT Standard: 15.3.8.J, 15.3.8.K, 15.3.8.X, 15.4.8.D)

Language Differences Video: As a follow-up to the dialect activity we watched a short video from The Atlantic about the various dialects in the United States.

Office Yoga Break:
  
Students are always reminded to not spend too much time sitting in front of computers.  For our break today we practiced a simple yoga stretch for your ankles and then everyone had a chance to get up and move around the room some.

https://www.google.com/drive/Google Drive: Students were shown how to access their Google Drive today. We created folders for all their classes and students were reminded that they will have access to their google drive until they graduate from high school. Students were also reminded that they can access their Google Drive from anywhere in the world where they have internet access.  Students were also shown how they can use Google Drive on a smart phone.    Google Play    iTunes Store

Student Blogging Activity:
 Our students prepared a one paragraph blog comment for students at the Darbari Lal DAV Model School in New Delhi, India.  Our students were asked to choose one of the following blog entries to comment on:  
Our students were asked to demonstrate appropriate internet communication skills and paragraph writing skills. Students were reminded to use the spelling and grammar checking features in Google Docs to help them. Our students also demonstrated using the MLA format in Google Docs as part of this project.  Everyone was also reminded that whenever they post anything online they should make an effort to make sure it will reflect positively on them.  Everyone had a opportunity to share their Google Doc with another student and have it proofread before we posted the comments online.  This activity gave us an opportunity to  talk about the differences and similarities between cultures and schools around the world.  (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.3.8.G, 15.3.8.M, 15.4.5.A, 15.4.8.B)

How to Comment on a Blog: We finished this activity with a short video created by Mrs. Yollis' 3rd grade students in California. In the video they explained how to write a quality blog comment.












May 5, 2017
53 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 now mobile phone based apps like Instagram. This website is the blog or web log 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.

Finish Thank You Emails:  Everyone had time to finish and send the emails we started last class.  We then reviewed the emails as a class.  The directions for this project can be viewed here. (PA-BCIT Standards 15.3.8.E, 15.3.8.M, 15.3.8.O, 15.3.8.Q, 15.3.8.R, 15.3.8.S, 15.3.8.U, 15.3.8.X, 15.4.8.D, 15.3.8.M, 15.4.8.F)

https://www.osha.gov/SLTC/etools/computerworkstations/positions.htmlAssigned Seats: All students have an assigned seat/computer in the lab. 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. Everyone should use the same computer every time they come to the lab. Students were also reminded to adjust the keyboard, mouse, chair and monitor to meet their ergonomic needs when they come to class. We then visited the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) website and searched for their recommendations concerning computer use. We also discussed employment laws in the workplace.  (PA-BCIT Standard: 15.2.8.I, 15.4.5.D, 15.4.2.B, 15.4.8.F)

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: 44.1 WPM. Click here for more information about typing speeds at Newtown Middle School. We also reviewed the graph below:


Technology Current Event Video:  We finished class with a short video from James Mackie that highlights augmented reality technology such as HoloLens.  (PA-BCIT Standard: 15.4.8.A) 


* Class time was shorter today due to an 8th grade assembly









May 3, 2017
40 minutes*

Internet Moment: Students were asked to compare three popular news aggregater websites: Google News, Bing News and Yahoo. We looked at their home pages, their features and their overall appearance. Though the results were split, a plurality of our students said they preferred Google News when looking for current events online.   Students were also asked to explore their own digital footprint by searching for themselves on various news sites.  (PA BCIT Standards: 15.3.8.E, 15.6.5.L)

https://crsd4-my.sharepoint.com/personal/jmcnulty_crsd_org/_layouts/15/WopiFrame.aspx?guestaccesstoken=D48bfZc9rBpsoW0b2rFaAwmxfOLAw%2fanausEglhHvRw%3d&docid=0253d2fd0a106497e86c2680a76982f42&action=view
Basic Email Etiquette: All students logged into their Gmail accounts and accessed their email. We discussed the importance of being able to use email for formal communication and to not think that emails they sent were in any way private. We also discussed what CC: means (carbon copy), what should go in the Subject line of an email and how to start writing a formal email. Each student then practiced good email etiquette by sending a formal thank you email to a Council Rock faculty member of their choice. The directions for this project can be viewed here. (PA-BCIT Standards 15.3.8.E, 15.3.8.M, 15.3.8.O, 15.3.8.Q, 15.3.8.R, 15.3.8.S, 15.3.8.U, 15.3.8.X, 15.4.8.D, 15.3.8.M, 15.4.8.F)






May 1, 2017

91 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 were reminded that it's important to also get used to helping each other.

http://www.todayincomputerclass.com/8th/pixlrproject.JPG
Log On & Explore:  All students were given time to explore the start menu, Cortana and the various programs available to them at school. 

Pixlr.com Project: Students were shown how to use the online photo editor pixlr.com to edit a photograph. We also discussed professional digital photo editing with Adobe PhotoShop. (PA BCIT Standards: 15.4.8.F, 15.4.5.G) Unfortunately we ran out of time to complete this project. Students 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 will also be explained. Click here to enlarge the project description.
Break: Students are always reminded to not spend too much time working on computers and to take breaks every 30-40 minutes. For our break today we conducted a probability experiment about matching birthdays that you can read about here. Everyone was asked to get up and find the other person in the room who shares their birthday to see if there was a match.

Gmail Accounts: Students were shown how to access their CRSD Google Gmail today. Students were reminded that they will have access to their google accounts and school gmail until they graduate from high school. Students were also reminded that they can access their Google email from anywhere in the world where they have internet access. Everyone had time to experiment with sending and receiving emails. Students were also reminded to not use their school email for anything inappropriate. 

Profile Pictures:
  Students opened up their school Google Accounts and we talked about how their profile picture works and that it is public.  They were then shown Cartoonify.de and students had time to make a custom profile picture.  Students were also shown a collection of generic profile pictures that they could use.  We discussed the difference between your professional and personal persona and what an "online brand" was all about.  Students were reminded of the importance of learning to manage what they looked like online.  Everyone then had an opportunity to set their school profile picture.


Technology Current Event Video:  Unfortunately we ran out of time for a video.