Thursday, February 28

Completing the Internet Safety Project

Today you need to work to complete your Internet Safety project.  Tomorrow will be the last class period you will have to work on the project.  If you will not get done tomorrow during class then you and your partner will need to find a mutually agreeable time to come in and get some extra work done (before school, lunch recess, after school today, etc.).

If you are done you will have keyboarding work to complete - while you are doing this you will be required to have your speedskin on the keyboard.  If you have homework to complete for another class you may split the class time between your homework and the keying.

Embedded below is the rubric for the Internet Safety project - make sure that you are meeting the guidelines as set forth below.

Wednesday, February 27

Software vs. Programs; Video; Internet Safety

This week 2 of the vocab words are easily confused.  To help alleviate that confusion I will explain the difference between them.  The two vocab words are software and program.

We will watch this short video on Internet Safety:

DETECTING LIES AND STAYING TRUE:



Remember, if you are done with your project at least 50% of your time in class will be keying as we give the other groups until Friday to complete their project.  You may use the other time to complete homework if you have it.

Tuesday, February 26

Cut and paste vs. Copy and paste; Internet Safety

We are going to start by discussing the difference between cut and paste and copy and paste.  This is a very basic formatting characteristic when using a computer that you need to understand.  Both of these actions are available in every software program.

What is the keyboard shortcut (on a Mac) for copy?  cut?  paste?
What is the keyboard shortcut (on a PC) for copy?  cut?  paste?

Here is the next video on Internet Safety:




If you are done with your project you will be practicing your keying.  However, I am willing to give you some time to complete homework from another class.  So, the agreement will be that half of the time you will spend on keying, the other half you can use to work on homework that you need to do.  However, reading a book will not count as homework.  You will not be logged onto the computer when you are working on homework.  If you have no homework then you will be practicing your keying.

Monday, February 25

Vocab week #4; Internet Safety

Several things to start the week off with:

  1. There is a vocab quiz this week.  If you are responsible for defining words you should have your definitions to your words posted by Tuesday night.  Check here to see if it is your week.
  2. There were quite a few people who did not turn in their crossword puzzle that was due on Friday.  You should be turning it in ASAP!  I have one puzzle that was turned into my mailbox but that does not have a name on it - if you think it belongs to you then I would suggest putting your name on it so you get credit.
  3. Speaking of handing in assignments - do not turn them into the office.  When you submit a completed assignment that is physically handed in, hand it in in class.  
  4. Extensions - this is one of the vocab words for this week.  We will discuss it's importance today in class.

Here is a video for Internet Safety.  You may want or need to take notes to incorporate what you learn here into your Internet Safety video.




Friday, February 22

Code Red procedures; Internet Safety; crossword puzzle due

Hand in your crossword puzzle - please make sure your name is at the top!  Also, do NOT hand in your assignments to the office.  The ladies' job in the office is not to take assignments you are handing in and give them to teachers.  If you have an assignment to hand in you come down to your teacher and give it to them yourself.

We are going to start today with talking about Code Red procedures when there is an intruder in the building.  Unfortunately, these have become all too common, so we are going to make sure that we know what to do and how to do it.  These are important procedures to understand...hopefully we will NEVER have to use the procedures that we are going to talk about.







Also, for those who are responsible for defining words for week #4 on the class Wikispaces page, you need to have your definitions posted by Tuesday of next week.  Completing your definitions over the weekend would work out perfectly.

Thursday, February 21

Classroom information; Password video

*New missing assignment lists have been posted.

*The number of hall passes used is as follows (remember, you only have 4 exits for the semester, and the ones that aren't used count as extra credit):
3rd:
Beard, Bergman, DeYoung, Mitchum, Park - 2

4th:
Dudley, Jensen, Lohman

6th:
Cuervorst, Gorman

7th:
Flies, Hessler - 3, Hultman - 3, Kisner, Rosenow - 3, Saucedo, Verdick - 2

8th:
Bolte - 4 (no more exits!), Cantu - 3, Corgan - 2, DePauw - 2, Dowell - 3, Haverland, Krug, Murfin - 2, Paxton - 2, Perren - 3, Wise



How to choose a safe password - Explania

Here are a few websites that I found that you could easily use on your own to create your own passwords:

PC Tools

Random.org

Password Generator

Password Bird

Wednesday, February 20

Identity Theft - Internet Safety

We will start with watching this video about Identity Theft:

Identity Theft

After watching the video we will continue working on our Internet Safety project.  Again, you should not be in Xtranormal as you are gathering information.  Gather your information first, then once you have all of the information for your project you will want to organize it, then you can go to Xtranormal and enter your information.

Also, remember the crossword puzzle is due Friday.  If you have yours done now you are welcome to turn it in - but make sure your name is on it!

Tuesday, February 19

Internet Safety project; Cyberbullying

To start with, what I'd like you to do is go to Word and write out a definition for Cyberbullying.  This should be your own definition - do not look this up either on the Internet or somewhere else.  Just enter your best definition off the top of your head.  I will guide you through the rest of our little exercise as you complete your definition.

Once we are done with the Cyberbullying exercise you will be working with your partner on your Internet Safety project.  At this point you should be gathering information to create your movie.  Don't spend all of your time messing around in Xtranormal.  You need to gather your information for your 4 different areas of Internet Safety FIRST, and then you can worry about creating your video.

When you are creating your video, you need to go through a simple series of steps to creating a movie that will be easy to understand and that will earn you a good score.  First, explain what area of Internet Safety you are discussing (Cyberbullying, Identity theft, passwords, etc.) - usually a great way to do that is to provide a definition so that your audience can learn what that area of Internet Safety is.  Secondly, provide details about that particular area of Internet Safety.  You may want to provide stats or give examples of that particular area.  Last, or in addition to the details, what needs to be done so that you can stay safe online within this area of Internet Safety?

 Today I will also be handing out a crossword puzzle - this will be due on Friday.  It is a homework assignment - you will need to work on this outside of class.

Friday, February 15

Vocab quiz #3; Xtranormal

We will take time to review for the quiz.  Once we are ready to take the quiz you can go to Classmarker - do not go there until you are instructed to do so.

Internet Safety
Today we are going to start by choosing a partner for your project.  Once you have chosen a partner you will need to get with your partner at a computer and then go to Xtranormal.

Once at Xtranormal you will need to choose a setting for your project and then choose 2 characters.

If we have enough time we will look at some cyberbullying statistics.  This is an important area to understand as the use of social networks and online communication continues to be a large part of our everyday lives. Here is the website:  Cyberbullying


Thursday, February 14

Learn 3, 6, and 2; Internet Safety project

After reviewing what we learned yesterday we are going to learn the last 3 numbers across the top of the keyboard.  They are the 3 (L2), the 6 (R1), and the 2 (L3).

We are going to begin our Internet Safety project by joining another website - this one is called Xtranormal.  Here is an example of what Geico has done, using Xtranormal, to create a TV advertisement:





You will be working with a partner to complete this project, so the first priority will be to find someone you trust to work with.  Groups must consist of only 2 people!

As a group you will be researching information on Internet Safety.  You may use Google to do your research, or you may use the many websites that are on the Internet Safety page on the class blog.  You will need to compile your information with your partner, and then you will create a story/animated movie using Xtranormal that will explain what you have learned about Internet Safety.

Wednesday, February 13

Learn 5 & 7

To start you will be reviewing the 3 keys that you learned yesterday.  Type lines 1-8 on Lesson 13D, page 30, each line once.

Next, you are going to learn the 5 (L1) and the 7 (R1).  These are keyed with the index fingers and they should be relatively easy to learn.  Turn to page 31, Lesson 14B, and type lines 1-4 twice each.

After completing these lines you will be going to the following website:  http://www.netsmartz.org/Cyberbullying.  When you get to this website you will type the first paragraph and the "Common forms of Cyberbullying".  In order to do this you will need to shrink your browser so that it takes up half of your screen, and then you will need to have Microsoft Word open in the other half so that you can view the webpage and type in Microsoft Word at the same time.  Here is an example of what your screen should look like as you are doing this:


Tuesday, February 12

Review 8 & 1; Learn 9, 4, & 0

**REMINDER**
If you are responsible for defining vocabulary words on the Wikispaces page those need to be completed by tonight.  This is homework and should be completed on your own time.  

Today you are going to start with a pop quiz - make sure that you have something to write with.

After the pop quiz you will be reviewing the keys we learned yesterday (the 8 and the 1), and then you will learn 3 new keys.  The 9 (R3), the 4 (L1), and the 0 (R4). Your speed skin should be on your keyboard the entire hour.


Monday, February 11

Folders; Tool Bar/Menu Bar/Drop-down Menu; Learn 8 & 1

First we need to create a folder for Computer Applications so that we can save our files into the folder.  You may want to do this both in your account and on your flash drive.

Next, we need to go to Google (keep your fingers crossed!!!) and attach your file that you saved to an email, and then send it to me so I can grade it.

After completing those things we are going to discuss the difference between 3 important functional parts of Microsoft Word (however, we could use any Microsoft program to discuss this).  You need to be able to distinguish between a Tool bar, a Menu bar, and a drop-down menu.

Lastly we will be learning the 8 (R2) and the 1 (L4).  These will be the numbers across the top of the keyboard.

Friday, February 8

Vocab Quiz #2 (Hardware list #2); FA1

I will be giving you a couple of minutes at the beginning of class to review your vocab words.  After the review you will be going to Classmarker to take Vocab Quiz #2 - BUT, do not go to Classmarker until you are told to do so.

Once you arrive at Classmarker for the quiz, there are 2 pages for the quiz (make sure you answer the questions on page 2!), and then make sure you submit the quiz.

After completing the quiz you will be working on FA1 (Formatting Activity 1) - it is embedded below and should be completed today.  After completing the Formatting Activity you can go to the practice websites on the blog - KEEP YOUR SPEED SKINS ON THE KEYBOARD!

There are a couple of work-arounds when you are completing the formatting activity that you need to be aware of.

Step 6 - We have not yet created a folder called "Computer Apps" - I'll show you how to do this on Monday.  For now just save your file to Documents.

Step 8 - When you get done, DO NOT EMAIL IT TO ME!  Instead, just save it for now...I will go over how to attach files on Monday as well.


FA1

Thursday, February 7

Google; Review keys; Learning to format in Word - FA1

We are going to start in Google, and I am going to show you how to create a contact in Google so you can start saving email addresses (rather than trying to remember everyone's email address).  I also will show you how you can save a document in an email and then access that document at home - all of this without even sending an email.

After going over what I want to show you in Google we are going to review all keys learned.  To do this we are going to go to Typing Web Tutor, and I will show you where I want you to be on that website once everyone gets to the website.

After using this as our warmup, I will be covering some very basic formatting features in Word.  You will pay attention as I go over this information, and then using the information that I cover you will complete the Formatting Activity below.  The assignment below will not be due until tomorrow, but you can turn it in today if you get done.

Wednesday, February 6

"House cleaning items"; Learn Caps lock and ?

There are several things that have come up recently that need to be taken care of so we make sure we are all on the same page.

WIKI'S:
If you can't get into the Wikispaces page at home, you should be making it a priority to come see me the following morning ASAP!  If you are telling me that your password is not working, you are not typing in your username or your password correctly.  I can't help you with your password other than to say that you need to make sure that you type it in correctly.  However, there is a way to reset your password.  If you look at the image below, this is the sign in screen once you get to the wikispaces page.  To reset your password, type in your username or email, then below the password click on "Forget your password?" (as seen below).


This will send an email to your Gmail account asking you to click on a link and reset your password.  My suggestion is that you follow this procedure if you are unable to get into your Wiki account.

ABSENCES/MAKE UP WORK:
You are responsible for finding out what you missed and then making up the work that you missed while you were absent.  One advantage you have in my class is that you can read the blog from home to find out what we did in class.  It may not always say when an assignment will be due, but by watching what is posted on the blog you will have a pretty good idea of what you missed in class if you are gone.

Additionally, when you fail to submit an assignment when it is due, whether you are sick, on vacation, or for some other reason, your grade in Skyward will be a 0 when I post grades for that assignment.  This does not mean that you cannot still earn full credit - I enter a 0 so that it motivates you to get your assignments done sooner, and so that I don't have to go back and enter a 0 later for those that don't turn the assignment in.

If you are in Band or Choir and have assessments, you are responsible for everything you miss the last 15 minutes of class.  If we have an assignment that is due at the end of a period and you leave before you get yours done you will need to find some other time to complete that assignment; you should turn that assignment in the very next day.  Choosing to be in Band or Choir requires sacrificing class time on your part, but you don't get extra time to complete assignments if you are in Band or Choir like you do if you are sick.

Keying:
Start with typing Lesson 7D, lines 1-10 on page 16 once.  After completing this, move to page 17 and learn the Caps Lock key (L4 - next to the A) and the Question Mark (Left Shift + R4).  

The Caps Lock key is used to type a series of capital letters.  A series means several in a row - if you look in the book you will see what I mean.  You should NOT use the Caps Lock key to type a single capital letter - that's what the shift keys are for.  

The question mark should complete a sentence that is asking a question, and you need to space twice after the question mark.

To learn these 2 new keys I want you to type Lesson 8B, lines 1-6 twice, page 17.

When you get done with this I would like you to go to the following website and practice your speed tests.  This is similar to what we did yesterday in terms of practicing to see how fast you type.  The website is here:  Speed test

Tuesday, February 5

Z & colon; vocab video


**REMINDER** - There are still quite a few of you that have not yet entered your definitions on the wikispaces page.  This needs to be done by tonight!

We are going to start today with a video that helps to explain what GPS is.

After watching the short video we will begin learning the last letter (YEAH!!) - the Z (L4).  We also will be learning the colon, which is the same key as the semicolon (using the shift key + R4).  

Once we have completed this we will be moving on to practicing our speed.  I will explain what you need to do once we get to this point.

Monday, February 4

Review P and V; Learn Q and comma

**REMINDER**
If you are responsible for posting definitions for week 2 you need to have that done by the end of the day on Tuesday (end of day meaning midnight...but don't stay up until midnight to get it done!).  Check the vocabulary page if you are not sure if it is your week. 

To start today we need to review all of the keys that we've learned so far.  Turn to page 14 in your book and with your Speed Skins on your keyboard type lines 1-10 from Lesson 6E in Microsoft Word.  When you complete those 10 lines begin typing the 6 lines in Lesson 6F in Word.

After our daily warmup, we will be learning the Q (L4) and the comma (R2).  These may be slightly difficult, as the reaches to both are a little awkward.  Concentrate on using your good technique to make the keying easier.


Friday, February 1

1st vocab quiz; Learn P & V

You will be given several minutes at the beginning of class to review the vocab words for this week.  You will need to go to the class wikispaces page in order to do that, and you will need to login in order to be able to view the vocab words.

You are NOT to go to Classmarker until instructed to do so.  Once you get there you will see vocab quiz #1 - click on the link, and then you will need to click on a second link to start the quiz.  When you are taking the quiz there will be 2 pages - make sure you answer all of the questions on both pages!  When you complete the test make sure to click on submit twice.

Also, there are 11 questions, but the quiz is only worth 10 points.  There is no single "extra credit question" - you are just allowed to miss 1 question and still get 10 out of a possible 10.  If you answer all 11 questions correctly you will earn 1 extra credit point (in other words you will get 11 points out of a possible 10).

Once you have completed your vocab quiz we've got 2 new keys to learn.  The 2 new keys are the P (R4) and the V (L1).  You will be going through Lesson 6D as a class to learn these new keys.  Once you get done learning them you will review using Lesson 6F - each of these 6 lines once (on your own).

If there is still time left you can finish your 10 Facts About Me assignment if you did not get it done yesterday or if you were absent yesterday (if you were absent you may want to watch the video embedded on yesterday's blog - keep the volume to a minimum).  If you have everything done you can go to the practice websites and play the practice games - but KEEP YOUR SPEED SKIN ON YOUR KEYBOARD!