2017-18 8-A.1

October 18, 2017 - LAST CLASS
94 minutes

News Video:  We started class today by watching a video from Fox 29 News about our principal's overnight stay on the roof of our building.  Our school raised over $8,000 to help Wolfe Elementary School in Houston, Texas recover from Hurricane Harvey.  You can view all of Mr. Long's videos from the roof here.
Google Gadget - "Include gadget (iframe)"

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, All About Explorers, 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)

Website Demonstration:  To finish our Basic HTML activity accessing and uploading to a web server was demonstrated as was the use of Google Sites to quickly edit a webpage.  Embedding code was also demonstrated.

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. 

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 deltoid muscles.

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.

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)









October 16, 2017
91 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 for Schools which was created by the SOS Children's Villages which is a not for profit group in the United Kingdom.

Online Quiz Demonstration:  Our class experimented with an online Kahoot.it quiz in preparation for an activity that our 7th graders will be doing tomorrow with students in Greece and Hungary.

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 sides and then everyone had a chance to get up and move around the room some.
https://www.anymeeting.com/

Introduction to Webinars:  Today students were introduced to what a webinar or web conference is and what online education could look like for them in the future. AnyMeeting was used to project the presentation from the teacher's desktop to each student's screen. The use of webcams and desktop sharing was also demonstrated. (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.3.5.J, 15.3.5.K, 15.6.8.M, 15.3.8.X, 15.4.8.A)

http://www.todayincomputerclass.com/8th/BasicHTML.JPG
Started Basic HTML: Students learned about computer coding by creating a website in basic HTML (Hypertext Markup Language). Students typed the HTML into Notepad to create a simple webpage. Students were also shown how to change the background color, change the font color, the font style, inserting images and adding a hyperlink. We also experimented with adding free Java-Script from the DynamicDrive.com website. 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 with a short video from BlueHost about how websites work.












October 12, 2017
104 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/images/onlinecollaboration01.jpg
Online Collaboration Project:Students had some time to finish the travel itineraries that they created using a shared Google Slide Show. For this project our students are planning a 7 day trip to Cape Town, South Africa. 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)(ISTE Standards: 1c, 2a, 2b, 2d, 3b, 3c, 3d, 4a, 4b, 4c, 6a, 6b, 6d)

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 calves.

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.  

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 that was 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 video from Code.org about why schools should teach computer coding.












October 10, 2017
44 minutes

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)

http://www.todayincomputerclass.com/images/onlinecollaboration01.jpgOnline Collaboration Project:  Students continued working on their travel itinerary. They are using a shared Google Slide Show to create a travel itinerary for a 7 day trip to Cape Town, South Africa. Click here for the project directions and here for the project rubric. Using Google as a currency converter was also demonstrated and students were reminded to use the calculator on their computers to total their travel expenses. 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:  We finished class today with a promotional video from Google about collaborating online using Docs, Sheets and Slides.











October 6, 2017
78 minutes*

Internet Moment:  To celebrate German-American Day our class visited a German News site in Westphalia and voted in a photography contest.  After voting we discussed how easily online survey results can be easily skewed so that they don't reflect accurate results.  Many students said they had participated in and made online surveys.  We also discussed the methodology of the School Climate Survey that our students took this morning from Hanover Research and students identified some of the strengths and weaknesses of that survey. 
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.

http://www.todayincomputerclass.com/8th/Collaboration.jpg
Finish Asymmetrical Collaboration Project: Students logged into their Google Drive accounts and reviewed the favorite foods Venn diagram project that they did with students at Richboro Middle School & Holland Middle School. This project was an example of asynchronous online collaboration.  All students printed their finished Venn diagrams in class today. 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)

http://www.todayincomputerclass.com/images/onlinecollaboration01.jpgOnline Collaboration Project:  Today we started a group project in which students will use online collaboration tools to plan a travel itinerary. Students will work in groups of 4-5 and they will use a shared Google Slide Show to create a travel itinerary. For this project our students will be planning a 7 day trip to Cape Town, South Africa 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 and students were reminded to use the calculator on their computers to total their travel expenses. 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:  We finished class today with a short video about tourism & vacations in Capetown, South Africa.


* Class time was shorter today due to the Hanover School Climate Survey









October 4, 2017
104 minutes

Internet Moment: Today we explored the online version of  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 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)

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)

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 thigh.

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


  







October 2, 2017
44 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 Sergy with 21,500 points.

http://www.todayincomputerclass.com/8th/Brochure.JPG
Brochure Project: All students had time to work on 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)

Technology Current Event Video:  We finished class today with a 2011 TED presentation by Eric Whitacre about his virtual choir project.  This was an example of asynchronous online collaboration.  (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.4.8.A, 15.3.12.W, 15.6.8.M)










September 28, 2017
91 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
Brochure Project: All students had time to work on this typing project today.  Students were reminded to use Google Images and Bing Images to find free images that were in the public domain.  Next class Students will be shown how to print on both sides of a sheet of paper and how to trifold a brochure.  Students will also have a chance to review a rough draft with the teacher before they turn it in.  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)

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/Collaboration.jpg
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 to do their part. 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:


Technology Current Event Video:  We finished class with a short video from EnvKids in Europe about Asynchronous collaboration projects at school.












September 26, 2017
91 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
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)

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 shoulders and then everyone had a chance to get up and move around the room some.

Live Online Interview:
 At the beginning of class today our students had an opportunity to participate in a live interview with Dr. Henry Oster who was a survivor of the Holocaust and the co-author of The Kindness of the Hangman.  He now lives in California and the interview was conducted by Mr. Sherman of LivingMaths.com in Cape Town, South Africa.   There were participants from around the world.  In the interview Henry described his childhood and teenage experiences in 1930's Germany and Poland.  Because of our schedule we were not able to participate in the live interview but we did have an opportunity to meet Dr. Oster privately before the interview and ask him some questions.  We finished class today by watching the start of the live interview that was broadcast via YouTube.  This was a great opportunity to use free video conferencing technology in a learning environment. (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.2.8.D, 15.2.8.Q, 15.3.8.M, 15.3.8.X, 15.4.8.A, 15.6.8.M, 15.5.8.A, 15.5.8.D)













September 20, 2017
33 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 54,000 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 Project:  All students had time to finish the MS Publisher project that we started last class.  Everyone printed and turned in their finished font guide.  
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)

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

*  Class time was shorter today due to the magazine drive assembly.








September 18, 2017
91 minutes

Internet Moment: Today we looked at two online resources for fonts. DaFont.com  offers over 33,000 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)

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.

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 class. (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.3.8.E, 15.4.8.G, 15.4.2.K, 15.3.8.X)

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











September 14, 2017
104 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.


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)

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 sides and then everyone had a chance to get up and move around the room some.

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.

Technology Current Event Video:  We finished class today with a conceptual video from the Corning Corporation about the possible used for their glass products in the future.  (PA-BCIT Standard: 15.4.8.A)














September 12, 2017
94 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.

http://www.todayincomputerclass.com/8th/MLAparagraph.JPG
MLA Format: All 8th grade students must demonstrate the ability to use the MLA format in MS Word and Google Docs (which is the format used at Council Rock and most colleges). Click here to enlarge the project description. Students were shown how to set-up their Word Documents in the MLA Format. This project involves several skills including: double spacing, changing fonts and sizes, changing indentation settings and accessing the header. As part of this project we practiced uploading a Word doc from our network drive to Google Drive. We also practiced downloading a Google Doc as a Word Doc.  Click here to enlarge the project description. (PA-B.C.I.T. Standards: 15.3.5.A, 15.3.8.A)

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:  38.6 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 today with a short video about an alternative way to type using the SwiftKey Tilt typing app on a smart phone. (PA-BCIT Standard: 15.4.8.A)













September 8, 2017
91 minutes

Internet Moment: Students were asked to compare three popular news aggregator 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)

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.

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 "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. 


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://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.


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 Office 365 accounts and accessed their Outlook 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)












September 6, 2017
70 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.

Setting up Student Passwords: All students were given some suggestions to help them develop good passwords. Some suggested good password practices were: Come up with a collection of passwords to rotate through instead of just one, make a pass phrase instead of a password, mix number, letters and symbols together. Student passwords must fit the following parameters: 
  1. Include upper case letters
  2. Include lower case letters
  3. Include numbers
  4. Include symbols/punctuation
    * Note that 3 of the 4 options are required.
(PA-BCIT Standard:  15.4.8.F)

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. 

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.  Everyone had time to make some folders and organize their Google Drive.

Technology Current Event Video:  We finished class today with a short video from NewTech HD about a new technology for interacting with computers called Gest.  (PA-BCIT Standard: 15.4.8.A)