This was a short month due to snow days and Holiday Break. We continued to learn with technology and link to core classes when possible.
Kindergarten students have been getting more comfortable using our laptops. They practiced choosing what is different in a series of pictures. They began in a simple lesson on the Internet - http://www.funbrain.com/oddballs/index.html to choose which animal, shape or machine is different. Then we moved to our program Big Thinkers Kindergarten to choose which of 3 dolls is different. Some of these are tricky, so they need to look closely to be observant. Students had some fun during our last class together in Dec., decorating gingerbread cookies on a fun website, http://www.theoworlds.com/christmas. They were also able to build a snowman at http://www.starfall.com/n/holiday/snowman/load.htm?f. The students choose hats, scarves, and etc. for their snowman, then listen to the 10 little snowmen song.
1st grade classes worked on math skills in our fun Math Workshop program. They spent several classes in the "bowling alley" clicking on the answer to addition problems as they receive bowling pins, so the very silly gorilla could bowl. Students had some fun during our last class together in Dec. They created beautiful snowflakes that could spin, rotate, snow, melt and more at http://dinosaurdesign.com/SnowflakeFactory.htm. They were also able to build a snowman at http://www.starfall.com/n/holiday/snowman/load.htm?f. The students choose hats, scarves, and etc. for their snowman, then listen to the 10 little snowmen song.
2nd grade classes have begun their Wampanoag Indian power point slide. They completed the Internet research in Nov., so are working to type facts onto a power point slide as well as learn to change font, font size and color. When the slides are complete, I will put all of each class's slides together to create a class power point slide show. During the last class of the month, we built a snowman online at http://pbskids.org/readingrainbow/games/index.html. Students answered questions to reveal changes to their snowman. At http://dinosaurdesign.com/SnowflakeFactory.htm, they created beautiful snowflakes that could spin, rotate, snow, melt and more. The snowflake works well with symmetry that was being discussed in the 2nd grade classes.
3rd grade students have studied the characteristics of plants and animals in the classroom. In technology class they played an interactive game to review and learn about plant and animal characteristics at A Touch of Class http://www.sciencenetlinks.com/interactives/class.html
Both 3rd and 4th grade classes were able to have a little creative fun during their last class in December. "Make a Flake" at http://snowflakes.barkleyus.com/ is great for very creative snowflake design. Students can save their designs to view in the online gallery (by number only).
3rd and 4th grade classes are finishing up on their unit in keyboarding. This has been very important time spent in using proper fingering and learning the keys to improve their speed and accuracy when typing. We have only 30 minutes each week for technology classes. This month, the snow days impacted our keyboarding time. For extra keyboarding practice, I encourage students to try an online keyboarding game for additional practice. After break, both grades will need to move on to accomplish our technology curriculum.
As with all Internet websites, please check these in advance. Sometimes websites move or change. Some keyboarding websites to check are:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/typing/
http://gwydir.demon.co.uk/jo/typing/
http://www.netrover.com/~kingskid/typing_spell/typing.htm
http://www.davis.k12.ut.us/cjh/appliedtech/Business/Keyboarding/Index.html
http://www.customtyping.com/goalie_demo.htm
http://www.powertyping.com/fog/foggies.html
http://www.typeonline.co.uk/copypractice.php
http://funschool.kaboose.com/fun-blaster/games/game_type_me.html
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Friday, November 27, 2009
November - Thanks to Technology
Thanks to technology at Knapp Forest, our students learn skills that allow them to more efficiently use computers in our world.
This month Kindergarten students began by using our Big Thinkers Kindergarten program to practice additional skills in identifying patterns, working in 3 levels depending on skill. Students worked on additional math skills using stamps in our Kid Pix program. They stamped a number, drew a dice with the correct number of dots, then added the correct number of picture stamps. This month students also drew a turkey in our Kid Pix program.
1st grade students have begun using a program, Big Thinkers First Grade to do a type of puzzle using a grid to help them place shapes to form a picture. This provides additional work with spacial relationships which can be quite challenging. Students also drew a turkey as an illustration for a poem using our Kid Pix program. Students began to work on addition in our Math Workshop program in the "bowling alley" gaining a bowling pin for each correctly answered addition problem. When 10 pins are earned, the gorilla bowls. Students love this fun way of doing math.
2nd grade classes have been busy doing Internet research about Wampanoag Indians and the Pilgrims. They have been preparing to begin working on a power point slide in December. Classes study the Wampanoag Indians this month in their classrooms. In tech class, students visited a wonderful Scholastic website. Students can go through phases of life comparing the Wampanoag Indians and the Pilgrims daily life. There's great pictures as well as audio on the website that reads the text to the students. The website address is http://www.scholastic.com/scholastic_thanksgiving/daily_life/
Another website with good information is from Plimoth Plantation. The website address for this is http://www.plimoth.org/education/olc/index_js2.html. There's audio on this website as well as learning activities.
3rd and 4th grades are continuing to work on keyboarding using our UltraKey program. They are learning the fundamentals. 3rd grade students will concentrate on building accuracy this year. They must achieve 95% accuracy to pass a "skill check" in the program. The speed is only 5 words per minute. Speed comes with accuracy. 4th grade students must achieve 95% accuracy with 10 words per minute in order to pass a level. They can't move on until they pass each level. We will be concentrating on keyboarding now until Holiday Break in Dec.
Mrs. Kaminski's class has not begun working on keyboarding yet. They have been doing Internet research during tech class. The class has just begun working on a spreadsheet, which will continue during December.
This month Kindergarten students began by using our Big Thinkers Kindergarten program to practice additional skills in identifying patterns, working in 3 levels depending on skill. Students worked on additional math skills using stamps in our Kid Pix program. They stamped a number, drew a dice with the correct number of dots, then added the correct number of picture stamps. This month students also drew a turkey in our Kid Pix program.
1st grade students have begun using a program, Big Thinkers First Grade to do a type of puzzle using a grid to help them place shapes to form a picture. This provides additional work with spacial relationships which can be quite challenging. Students also drew a turkey as an illustration for a poem using our Kid Pix program. Students began to work on addition in our Math Workshop program in the "bowling alley" gaining a bowling pin for each correctly answered addition problem. When 10 pins are earned, the gorilla bowls. Students love this fun way of doing math.
2nd grade classes have been busy doing Internet research about Wampanoag Indians and the Pilgrims. They have been preparing to begin working on a power point slide in December. Classes study the Wampanoag Indians this month in their classrooms. In tech class, students visited a wonderful Scholastic website. Students can go through phases of life comparing the Wampanoag Indians and the Pilgrims daily life. There's great pictures as well as audio on the website that reads the text to the students. The website address is http://www.scholastic.com/scholastic_thanksgiving/daily_life/
Another website with good information is from Plimoth Plantation. The website address for this is http://www.plimoth.org/education/olc/index_js2.html. There's audio on this website as well as learning activities.
3rd and 4th grades are continuing to work on keyboarding using our UltraKey program. They are learning the fundamentals. 3rd grade students will concentrate on building accuracy this year. They must achieve 95% accuracy to pass a "skill check" in the program. The speed is only 5 words per minute. Speed comes with accuracy. 4th grade students must achieve 95% accuracy with 10 words per minute in order to pass a level. They can't move on until they pass each level. We will be concentrating on keyboarding now until Holiday Break in Dec.
Mrs. Kaminski's class has not begun working on keyboarding yet. They have been doing Internet research during tech class. The class has just begun working on a spreadsheet, which will continue during December.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
October - Technology can be scary at first...
This month Kindergarten students have been working with color, shapes, and patterns in their classroom. We extend this work in computer technology class. We use a software program, Big Thinkers Kindergarten, which has a component that addresses all three of these. Kindergarten students also began to practice typing their first names. I have the keyboards set to type in all caps, since they are working with capital letters in the classroom. They continue to type their first name in Kid Pix several times. It is an important step for them to find all the letters of their name on the computer keyboard. They type their name on each lesson in computer technology class before printing. This month Kindergarten classes also drew a pumpkin and practiced with Halloween "stickers" in Kid Pix - resizing and moving them.
First Grade students did the following: They typed the number words from one to ten and draw tally marks next to each word. They had been learning how to spell number words in the classroom as well as learning how to illustrate numbers by drawing tally marks. They also drew a clock as they work on telling time. The clock is an extension of learning in the classroom. As we approach Halloween, students illustrated the 5 Little Pumpkins poem. That means that they will drew a picture to go with the poem. All of these lessons were done using Kid Pix, and were printed to bring home. Most classes began to work on spacial relationship puzzles in our Math Workshop program. Students move and flip the pieces to fit on the shape. They learn, while having fun. When completed properly, the puzzle animates for them!
Second Grade students continued to work on spacial relationship puzzles in our Math Workshop program. They have been studying about plants in their classrooms. In technology class, they did a 4 section page in Kid Pix, in which an apple tree was depicted in each of the 4 seasons. As we approached Halloween, students drew a picture to illustrate their choice of 2 Jack Prelutsky poems.
Third Grade classes finished doing media center searches by title, author, subject, and keyword, using the Knapp Forest Library webpage. They answered specific questions that required them to perform each type of search. I checked these, then gave the sheets to Mrs. Doctor so that she could see how they are doing. Then, they were released to use the computers in the media center to do book searches. After searches,they began UltraKey, our keyboarding program. They will work on keyboarding until December break. Keyboarding is an important skill, as it speeds up their work time in nearly everything, making them more productive. It is a life skill.
Fourth Grade classes practiced doing media center searches by title, author, subject, and keyword, using the Knapp Forest Media Center webpage. They answerd some questions that required them to do each type of search for themselves. I checked these, then gave the sheets to Mrs. Doctor so that she could see how they are doing. Mrs. Duffy's class and Miss Burn's class began using UltraKey, our keyboarding program. Mrs. Kaminsky's class, Mrs. Boersma's class, and Mrs. Johnson's class have been working on research for their assigned habitat field guide. These habitat field guides have been researched in their classrooms as well.
First Grade students did the following: They typed the number words from one to ten and draw tally marks next to each word. They had been learning how to spell number words in the classroom as well as learning how to illustrate numbers by drawing tally marks. They also drew a clock as they work on telling time. The clock is an extension of learning in the classroom. As we approach Halloween, students illustrated the 5 Little Pumpkins poem. That means that they will drew a picture to go with the poem. All of these lessons were done using Kid Pix, and were printed to bring home. Most classes began to work on spacial relationship puzzles in our Math Workshop program. Students move and flip the pieces to fit on the shape. They learn, while having fun. When completed properly, the puzzle animates for them!
Second Grade students continued to work on spacial relationship puzzles in our Math Workshop program. They have been studying about plants in their classrooms. In technology class, they did a 4 section page in Kid Pix, in which an apple tree was depicted in each of the 4 seasons. As we approached Halloween, students drew a picture to illustrate their choice of 2 Jack Prelutsky poems.
Third Grade classes finished doing media center searches by title, author, subject, and keyword, using the Knapp Forest Library webpage. They answered specific questions that required them to perform each type of search. I checked these, then gave the sheets to Mrs. Doctor so that she could see how they are doing. Then, they were released to use the computers in the media center to do book searches. After searches,they began UltraKey, our keyboarding program. They will work on keyboarding until December break. Keyboarding is an important skill, as it speeds up their work time in nearly everything, making them more productive. It is a life skill.
Fourth Grade classes practiced doing media center searches by title, author, subject, and keyword, using the Knapp Forest Media Center webpage. They answerd some questions that required them to do each type of search for themselves. I checked these, then gave the sheets to Mrs. Doctor so that she could see how they are doing. Mrs. Duffy's class and Miss Burn's class began using UltraKey, our keyboarding program. Mrs. Kaminsky's class, Mrs. Boersma's class, and Mrs. Johnson's class have been working on research for their assigned habitat field guide. These habitat field guides have been researched in their classrooms as well.
Saturday, September 19, 2009
September - Getting Started!
Welcome back to a brand new school year! I am excited to have your children in technology classes. I've created this blog to help you to know what your children are learning in technology classes at Knapp Forest Elementary. This year, for the most part, I'll be posting entries at or near the end of each month.
All computer technology lessons throughout the year are integrated into classroom topics when possible. Lessons also follow the Forest Hills Technology Curriculum. The technology curriculum follows the Michigan and National technology standards.
During the first week or two of September all classes are getting the year started by going over computer technology class rules and parts and terminology of the computer. This is in accordance with their grade level.
Kindergarten students learn basic parts of the computer only. After that, they practice drawing using Kid Pix, a great software program for younger students.
After the first week's class, Kindergarten students play a game on the computer called Facetoons. This is a freeware game that is an update of the old potato head game. It's very simple, but motivates these young students to move eyes, noses, mouths, ears, etc. onto the different fruits to make a funny face that moves. This is a fun way to give students practice in "click and drag" with the computer mouse. It does make a big difference in their confidence level. During the next class, students will draw a simple face in our Kid Pix program. It's different to draw on computers than on paper.
1st grade students review computer parts and learn about laptops vs. desktop computers, hardware vs. software, and what menus and icons are. After computer parts and terms,1st grade students begin practicing typing their first name, holding down the shift key to capitalize the first letter. Students draw a face (self portrait) in varying degrees in Kid Pix. This is to reinforce the skills of click and drag using the computer mouse. Our tech curriculum includes teaching skills of drawing using drawing tools. 1st grade students begin typing their color words using Kid Pix. They will draw a small rectangle beside each word to color in later, after printing. They have been working on spelling color words in their classrooms.
2nd Grade students review computer parts and computer terminology such as icons, menus, and desktop. Students practice typing their first and last names using Kid Pix. They practice holding down the shift key while typing the first letter to capitalize it. 2nd grade students learn how to change size and font. Then, students have some fun with puzzles in Math Workshop, a wonderful math software program. As each puzzle is completed, it animates in some way. This is very motivating for the students. We spend some time in math workshop puzzles of graduating difficulty. This is good for sequencing and spacial relationships.
The 3rd and 4th grade classes learn additional computer technology terms such as desktop, taskbar, shortcuts, and more in depth about the menu bars. Fourth grade classes discuss uses of technology in our world including advantages and disadvantages.
Grades 3 and 4 create their own folders inside their teacher's class folder, on our kfe elementary network, which is part of our district's technology network. With their own folders in place, they are ready to save documents. 3rd and 4th grade classes practice logging in and logging off of the laptops. They need to practice this right away, since at Knapp Forest, teachers use the carts of wireless laptops in their classrooms.
3rd grade classes will review graphing coordinates in preparation for the MEAP. This is done with some interactive games on the Internet. I will begin to give 3rd grade classes practice on doing searches for media center materials using the Knapp Forest library/media center website. Each student will answer questions that require a title, author, series and keyword search. When they complete the instruction, they will be released to use the computers in the media center to do materials searches.
4th grade math begins with geometric polygons in Unit 1. In technology class, they will do a polygons lesson using Microsoft Word autoshapes. Students will create the shapes, then label each in a text box, with the proper name, and fill the polygons with a light shade of color. They will save and print these when complete. I give these to the classroom teacher. This lesson reinforces the study of geometric polygons as well as the learning of new technology skills. I'll also give 4th graders practice using our Knapp Forest library/media center website. Students will answer several questions requiring various types of searches - author, title, keyword, and series. This allows each student a chance to experience doing searches.
All computer technology lessons throughout the year are integrated into classroom topics when possible. Lessons also follow the Forest Hills Technology Curriculum. The technology curriculum follows the Michigan and National technology standards.
During the first week or two of September all classes are getting the year started by going over computer technology class rules and parts and terminology of the computer. This is in accordance with their grade level.
Kindergarten students learn basic parts of the computer only. After that, they practice drawing using Kid Pix, a great software program for younger students.
After the first week's class, Kindergarten students play a game on the computer called Facetoons. This is a freeware game that is an update of the old potato head game. It's very simple, but motivates these young students to move eyes, noses, mouths, ears, etc. onto the different fruits to make a funny face that moves. This is a fun way to give students practice in "click and drag" with the computer mouse. It does make a big difference in their confidence level. During the next class, students will draw a simple face in our Kid Pix program. It's different to draw on computers than on paper.
1st grade students review computer parts and learn about laptops vs. desktop computers, hardware vs. software, and what menus and icons are. After computer parts and terms,1st grade students begin practicing typing their first name, holding down the shift key to capitalize the first letter. Students draw a face (self portrait) in varying degrees in Kid Pix. This is to reinforce the skills of click and drag using the computer mouse. Our tech curriculum includes teaching skills of drawing using drawing tools. 1st grade students begin typing their color words using Kid Pix. They will draw a small rectangle beside each word to color in later, after printing. They have been working on spelling color words in their classrooms.
2nd Grade students review computer parts and computer terminology such as icons, menus, and desktop. Students practice typing their first and last names using Kid Pix. They practice holding down the shift key while typing the first letter to capitalize it. 2nd grade students learn how to change size and font. Then, students have some fun with puzzles in Math Workshop, a wonderful math software program. As each puzzle is completed, it animates in some way. This is very motivating for the students. We spend some time in math workshop puzzles of graduating difficulty. This is good for sequencing and spacial relationships.
The 3rd and 4th grade classes learn additional computer technology terms such as desktop, taskbar, shortcuts, and more in depth about the menu bars. Fourth grade classes discuss uses of technology in our world including advantages and disadvantages.
Grades 3 and 4 create their own folders inside their teacher's class folder, on our kfe elementary network, which is part of our district's technology network. With their own folders in place, they are ready to save documents. 3rd and 4th grade classes practice logging in and logging off of the laptops. They need to practice this right away, since at Knapp Forest, teachers use the carts of wireless laptops in their classrooms.
3rd grade classes will review graphing coordinates in preparation for the MEAP. This is done with some interactive games on the Internet. I will begin to give 3rd grade classes practice on doing searches for media center materials using the Knapp Forest library/media center website. Each student will answer questions that require a title, author, series and keyword search. When they complete the instruction, they will be released to use the computers in the media center to do materials searches.
4th grade math begins with geometric polygons in Unit 1. In technology class, they will do a polygons lesson using Microsoft Word autoshapes. Students will create the shapes, then label each in a text box, with the proper name, and fill the polygons with a light shade of color. They will save and print these when complete. I give these to the classroom teacher. This lesson reinforces the study of geometric polygons as well as the learning of new technology skills. I'll also give 4th graders practice using our Knapp Forest library/media center website. Students will answer several questions requiring various types of searches - author, title, keyword, and series. This allows each student a chance to experience doing searches.
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