2018-19 8-C.2

December 6, 2018 - LAST CLASS
110 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 Hungarian Velcro Crop, 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 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)

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 shown how to change the background color, the font color, the font style and how to insert an image. Everyone was also shown how to embed a youtube video into a website.  Click here to enlarge the project description.(PA-BCIT Standards: 15.3.8.S, 15.4.8.H)

Video:  We finished our basic HTML activity with a short video about how websites work.

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. Students were also reminded to check out the eSchoolPLUS app that's available from Google Play and the iTunes Store as well as a free app called Graded.us which can be used to check your grades on your phone.

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)













December 3, 2018
44 minutes

Online Game:  Our class played a Kahoot game with Mrs. Gershman's Computer Class at Newtown Middle School and Mrs. Bovino's Computer Class here at Holland Middle School.  Mr. McCarthy also joined us for the game and competed for RMS.  We played a 15 question quiz about how holidays are celebrated around the world.  Sarah at NMS came in first place, second place went to Adrianna at HMS and Ainsley at NMS came in third place.  We used a Google Hangout to share the Kahoot questions with the other school. 


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.












November 28, 2018
110 minutes

Internet Moment:
  We looked at eBay.com today and discussed buying and selling things online.  Most of our students have bought things online and some of them have sold items online.  
Using auctions to find the true value of something was explained.  Ebay was presented as a great way for people to get started in internet commerce.  We also discussed the immigrant story of Pierre Omidyar and the development of internet commerce over the years.  We also talked about ways students can get involved with buying and selling online.

Finish Full Page Ad Project:  All students had time to finish the advertising project that we started last class.  Finished projects were turned in using a shared Google Slideshow. Students also printed out a final draft in class.  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)

Break:  Students are always reminded to not spend too much time sitting in front of computers.  For our break today everyone had a chance to get up and move around the room some and share their project ideas.

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 PBS News Hour about the effects of screen time on teenage brains.











November 26, 2018
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/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.  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 Pond5 about how public domain works. In the video the three ways content enters the public domain is explained (through government, through dedication and time).












November 19, 2018
60 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)

Log on and Check Grades: All students were asked to log into the Home Access Center and check their grades. Starting in 7th grade all Council Rock students have their own HAC username 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 as well as other free apps.

Technology Current Event Video:  We finished class today with a short video demonstrating various robotics projects.


* Class time was shorter today due to the half day schedule









November 15, 2018
44 minutes*

https://www.khanacademy.org/
Internet Moment: Everyone had a chance to explore Khan Academy and look for video lessons that relate to what they are currently learning in 8th grade. Students were reminded that this resource can help them with their homework here at the middle school and at the high school next year.  (PA-BCIT Standards: 15.6.8.M, 15.4.8.A, 15.8.8.K) (ISTE Standards: 1d, 3b, 3c) 

Copyright Brochure Project:   Students also practiced their typing today by re-typing the text of the original brochure. Everyone had time to finish and print this project in class today. 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 short video from PBS OffBook about careers in graphic design.  


*Class time was shorter today due to an early dismissal








November 14, 2018
15 minutes*

http://www.weather.govInternet Moment:
 Students were shown Weather.gov (the National Weather Service) as an example of a huge online database that's full of real-time and archived information. We checked our local weather and spent a few minutes checking the satellite images and Doppler radar for the whole United States. Students were also shown how to access the hourly weather graphs for our area to get precipitation predictions. We also discussed how federal government publications, such as the NWS website, can not be copyrighted and are therefore in the public domain. (PA BCIT Standards: 15.3.5.V, 15.4.8.A, 15.6.5.L)

*Class time was shorter today due to an assembly









November 13, 2018

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. Students were shown the effects of major events like the Industrial Revolution, the Spanish Influenza pandemic, and World War II.  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 also had a chance to work on their brochure project today.  Students were shown how to print on both sides of a sheet of paper and how to trifold a brochure.  Students also had a chance to review a rough draft with the teacher.  Several students finished and printed this project in class today.  Everyone will have time to finish the 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 today with a Channel 4 News interview of Hans Rosling in the U.K.  He is the creator of GapMinder.org and in the interview he discusses how the world is actually much better off than you think.













November 9, 2018
80 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)

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 Bing Images to find public domain 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.  


* Class time was shorter today due to the Veterans Day Assembly











November 5, 2018
110 minutes

https://www.dafont.com/
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)

https://crsd4-my.sharepoint.com/personal/jmcnulty_crsd_org/_layouts/15/WopiFrame.aspx?guestaccesstoken=D48bfZc9rBpsoW0b2rFaAwmxfOLAw%2fanausEglhHvRw%3d&docid=0253d2fd0a106497e86c2680a76982f42&action=view
Finish Formal Email Activity:  Student practiced good email etiquette by sending a formal thank you email to a Council Rock faculty member of their choice.  Everyone had time to finish the email activity we started last 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, 15.4.8.G)

Email Etiquette For Students Video:  We finished class today with a short video about how to email a teacher.  (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, 15.4.8.G)


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11bX6_dM6UQ
Carpal Tunnel 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)

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".













November 1, 2018
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.  We also discussed that changing location settings on your mobile device doesn't necessarily mean that location data isn't being collected.

https://kahoot.it/
Online Game:
 Our class played an online logo quiz game today.  Many teachers at the middle school and high school use online games such as Kahoot, Quizlet and Quizizz for review activities and all of our students should be familiar with how to use them.  Students were reminded that these games can also be played on smart phones and they can even be assigned as homework.  The concept of gamification in education was also discussed. In our game Evan came in third place, Patrick came in second and first place went to Ilana.

http://www.todayincomputerclass.com/8th/PublisherLogo.JPG
Publisher Logo Project:  We started with an introduction to MS Publisher. 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 by making a simple logo.  We then shared the finished logos in 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)

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 did a gallery walk. 


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.  Students were also reminded that the emails they send using their school account are not private in any way. 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, 15.4.8.G)

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















October 30, 2018
91 minutes


http://youtube.com/watch?v=pjRISAALgGU
Live Video Interview:
 Our class had an opportunity to participate in a live online interview with Dr. Thad  Starner who is the founder and director of the Contextual Computing Group at Georgia Tech's College of Computing.  Because of the timing we were only able to participate in the last part of the interview.  The interview which was conducted by Mr. Steve Sherman of Living Maths in Cape Town, South Africa. In preparation for the interview watched a TV news video about the Mobile Music Touch device and we had a brief video chat with Mr. Sherman about the interview.  Students also had time to research Dr. Starner on their own and everyone was asked to prepare three questions to ask him. We also discussed what to do and not do during a live video conference.  The complete interview can be viewed below. (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)


Keyboard History: Students were shown a short presentation about the development of typewriters and computer keyboards. The reasons for the QWERTY layout were also explained and students were reminded that the only way to really improve their typing speeds are to use the home row and learn to touch type.

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:  37.3 WPM.  We also reviewed the typing speed graph below and discussed what a bell curve is.


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 everyone had a chance to get up and move around. 

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 will also be practicing downloading a Google Doc as a Word Doc next class.  Click here to enlarge the project description. (PA-B.C.I.T. Standards: 15.3.5.A, 15.3.8.A)
 

Technology Current Event Video:  We finished class today with a new video that Dr. Starner recommended to us from the BBC Earth series.  The video is about some new research work they're doing at Georgia Tech to communicate with dolphins.

https://www.facebook.com/bbcearth/videos/322173715048017/











October 26, 2018
110 minutes

https://virtualpiano.net
Internet Moment:
  We started class today by visiting Virtual Piano and students had some time to explore their musical talent.  We also watched a video of someone using the virtual piano to play some Mozart.  This was another example of an online learning opportunity.

Researching Dr. Thad Starner: 
 Next Tuesday our class will have an opportunity to participate in a live video chat with Dr. Thad Starner.  The interview will be conducted by Mr. Steve Sherman the founder of LivingMaths in Capetown, South Africa and students from all around the world will be able to participate.  In preparation for the interview our students had an opportunity to research about Dr. Starner's Mobile Music Touch invention.  We also watched this video below to learn about it.  Students were asked to prepare at least three questions for the interview on Tuesday.  We also had a video chat with Mr. Sherman about the interview.  He talked to us about Dr. Starner's work on the Google Glass project and we discussed some of the problems with that idea.  During the video chat Mr. Sherman was actually in his car driving to an evening activity at a nearby school in Capetown.  He was going to be running a bingo event at an overnight camp and it was after 7:00 PM there.


Dialect Activity: 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 Slide show. (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 Mr. Karnoscak's 5th Grade students at Wescott School in Northbrook, IL.   

 
https://www.bing.com/search?q=wescott+school+in+northbrook%2C+il&form=EDGTCT&qs=PF&cvid=a2f5a29ee1db47098dbfd5cf93e98750&refig=3627770a1ca84c9bcf527e51c73b1660&cc=US&setlang=en-US
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)

Technology Current Event Video:  We finished class today with a short video from Microsoft about some of the possible uses for technology in the future.  (PA-BCIT Standard: 15.4.8.A)










October 24, 2018
44 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 Bing 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.

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 workstations. 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)

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:  Unfortunately we ran out of time for a video.












October 22, 2018

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)  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.

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
  • Use numbers, letters and symbols 
Student passwords must fit the following parameters: Upper case letters, lower case letters, numbers and symbols. (PA-BCIT Standard: 15.4.8.F)

https://accounts.google.com/ServiceLogin?service=mail&passive=true&rm=false&continue=https://mail.google.com/mail/&ss=1&scc=1&ltmpl=default&ltmplcache=2&emr=1&osid=1#identifier
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. 

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: Today's video was inspired by an original presentation created by a high school teacher in Colorado, Mr. Karl Fisch. Here is a link to his blog: THE FISCHBOWL for more information.   This remix of the original presentation was done by Katy Scott in July 2018.  (PA-BCIT Standard: 15.4.8.A)