December 5, 2017 - LAST CLASS 44 minutes
Website Demonstration:  Students were shown how updates are made to websites.  The use of Google Sites to quickly edit a webpage was demonstrated. Using a web hosting service to update a website 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. 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) December 1, 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. 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. 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) Technology Current Event Video: We finished class today with a short video from BlueHost about how websites work. November 29, 2017 104 minutes   Online 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)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. November 20, 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)  A sample project:  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) * Class time was shorter today due to the half-day schedule November 16, 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)  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. Technology Current Event Video:  We watched a 2010 TED Presentation by Jane McGonigal about her ideas about Online Computer Gaming and it's potential for the future.  We only watched the first 10 minutes of the video in class.  (PA-BCIT Standard:  15.4.8.A, 15.6.8.M) November 14, 2017 44 minutes  Technology Current Event Video: We finished class with a short video from Boston Dynamics about their most recent Atlas robot. November 10, 2017 64 minutes*  Finish and Print Brochures:   Students also had a chance to review a rough draft with the teacher. Everyone finished and printed 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 short video from PBS OffBook about careers in graphic design.  November 9, 2017 44 minutes   Technology Current Event Video: The class watched a 4 minute long video of a professional designer using Adobe Photoshop CS6 to create a concert poster. November 8, 2017 91 minutes  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.   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. Technology Current Event Video:  We finished class today with a TED presentation by Margaret Stewart about how copyright issues are handled by YouTube.  November 3, 2017 44 minutes * Mr. McNulty was absent today. Students did the following activities: Internet Moment: Students went to GeoGuessr.com today and had about 5 minutes to get the highest score possible. In this class Brenna was the winner with almost 15,000 points. Finish Font Guide Project:  All students had time to finish the MS Publisher project that we started last class. A few students needed a little more time to finish the font guide.   Technology Current Event Video: The class watched a 4 minute long video of a professional designer using Adobe Photoshop CS6 to create a concert poster. November 1, 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) Online Game: Our class played an online corporate logo game from Kahoot. Using a Google Hangout to broadcast the game was also demonstrated. After the game we discussed why logos are so common in our graphic rich world and how they can be very effective way to communicate.  In our class Jack came in first place, Eric came in second place and Jake came in third.   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. Logo Design Video:   We finished class today with a short video from Vox about the basics of logo design.   Font Conference Video:  As a follow-up to the Font Presentation we watched a short video from College Humor about a fictitious "Font Conference". October 30, 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.  Video Conference Practice: Our students had a chance to meet Mrs. Zablatnik's students at the Vocational High School in St. Veit, Austria. They are seniors and they are currently studying World War I. We explained that our students are studying American history at the time of the Revolution and they haven't gotten to World War I yet. We were surprised to learn that they have 5 years of high school in Austria. We only had a few minutes to talk with them since it was the end of their school day.(PA-BCIT: 15.2.8.H, 15.3.8.K, 15.3.8.M, 15.7.8.I, 15.7.8.J, 15.3.8.X, 15.4.8.A, 15.4.8.B)  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. 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:  38.7 WPM. Click here for more information about typing speeds at Newtown Middle School. We also reviewed the graph below:   Online Typing Activities: As a follow up to the typing test students were given some time to find some 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 finish projects. Technology Current Event Video: We finished class today with a short video a cooking activity that high school students from the Vocational High School in St. Veit Austria did with local elementary school students. October 26, 2017 44 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. Technology Current Event Video: We finished class today with a video about a new typing technology called the tap strap. October 24, 2017 91 minutes  Assigned 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)Online Game with Students in Hungary: Our class played Kahoot.it with 8th grade English language students at Boglári Altalanos Iskola, a Primary School in Balatonboglár, Hungary. It was a 20 question "Flags of the World" quiz and a student in Hungary won. Chase from our class came in third place. We use a Google Hangout to share the Kahoot questions and to also share video from each of our classes. During the game we also had a visit from Sebastian Panakal, the Principal of eSchool Kerala in India.   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) 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 neck and then everyone had a chance to get up and move around the room some. 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.  Technology Current Event Video: We finished class today with a short video from David Lee EdTech about the basic features in Google Drive. October 20, 2017 97 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.  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) 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 was also 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. 
Student passwords must fit the following parameters: Upper case letters, lower case letters, numbers and symbols. (PA-BCIT Standard: 15.4.8.F)  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. We discussed the difference between your professional and personal image and what online "personal branding" was all about. Students were reminded of the importance of learning to manage what they looked like online. Students then shared their images using network drives. Sharing files by using drag & drop and the district Swap Drive was demonstrated. The best use of the H: & X: drives was also explained.  Everyone then had an opportunity to set their school profile picture.  Technology Current Event Video:  We finished class today with a video about ten Google-X projects that Alphabet is working on. * Class time was shorter today due to the FBI Cyber Safety Assembly |
