Friday, August 30

1st Vocab Quiz!; review of all letters learned

Today you are going to be taking your first vocab quiz.  You will get a few minutes at the beginning of the hour to review - use them wisely.  You may use your class' wikispaces page to review, but you may NOT!  use anything while you are taking the quiz.

As I mentioned yesterday, make sure that you answer all the questions and that you submit the quiz when you are done.  Failure to do this may mean that you will have to come in on your own time and retake the quiz - which I'm sure you'd rather not have to do.

After the quiz, you need to open your Google account and create a new Google Doc - we went over how to do this on Wednesday so you should understand how to do this.  If you do not remember, click here and you will find directions on how to open a Google Doc.  Once you have your Google Doc opened rename it "August 30".

After renaming your Google Doc go to page 9 in the book and type drill 4C all lines once.  Your speed skin should be on your keyboard at all times while doing this!

Once you have completed drill 4C you may choose to type any lines from any page that we have already worked on.  In other words, you can choose to type from pages 5, 6, 7, 8, or 9.  Before you begin typing on any page please label what you are typing.  For example, yours might look like this (without the font color and italics):

3F, page 8
he has nine;
she got the jars;
he likes the old song;
he goes to the lake at one;
she has to go get the eight dogs;
he is a hand on the rig in the north;

You will continue keying drills that you choose until the end of the hour.

At the end of the day make sure that you are logged out of your Classmarker and your Google accounts.

Thursday, August 29

Learn period and left shift key; bookmark websites

Today we will learn two new keys that are not letters - they are the period (R3) and the Left Shift key (L4).

Additionally we will be checking our Classmarker accounts to make sure that you are able to get logged in - this will be how you take your quiz tomorrow, and with me being gone you will need to make sure everything is in working order today.  I gave you your username and password yesterday.

Lastly, if we have time, we will learn how to bookmark websites so you don't always have to type the web address in in the URL bar.  I've listed several websites on the board that you have been frequenting - it would be helpful to bookmark those.  Remember that a bookmark only works on the computer you are using, and only with the browser you are using - they do not transfer from one computer to the next or from one browser (on the same computer) to another.

Wednesday, August 28

Learn N and G; create a Google Doc

The new keys for today include the N (R1) and the G (L1).  These should be fairly easy as you will be using the index fingers on each hand to type these keys.


After learning our new keys we will be learning how to create a Google Doc.  You will use this to store all of your passwords for the various different websites that we have been using.


Also, this is your last day to enter your vocab definitions on the wikispaces page.  If you have not yet completed this activity you will need to have this done today in order to get credit.  Also, some of you may notice that after you post your definition the definition you have added has been changed.  Sometimes I will go in and edit your definitions so that they are easier for everyone to understand.  Don't be alarmed - it's just me trying to make it easier for everyone to study for the quiz.


Tuesday, August 27

New keys O and T

Today we will add the O and the T to our arsenal of keying expertise.  The O will be the most difficult as you will be using your right ring finger (R3); the T (L1) should be fairly easy despite being one of the two keys on the keyboard that doesn't follow the "normal" techniques based on the offset of the keys on the keyboard.

Also, remember if you are responsible for defining vocab words on the Wikispaces page that you need to have that done by tomorrow (Wednesday).  Please remember to post your definition with your name in parentheses so it is easy to tell who posted the definition.  If you have forgotten your password I will show you today in class how to change your password.



Monday, August 26

First week of vocab; Learn the I and the R

As a reminder, we do have a vocab quiz at the end of this week.  Just so you know, the vocab quizzes will be online, and we'll make sure that you are able to get into your account later this week.  Again, remember that each quiz is worth 10 points; but also remember that each quiz has at least 11 questions, so if you are able to answer all questions correctly you will receive at least 1 extra credit point.  There isn't any one question that is the extra credit question - each question carries the same weight.  So, you could alternatively look at this as you can miss one question and still get 10/10 on the quiz.

Those of you who are responsible for posting vocab definitions on the wikispaces page need to have that done by Wednesday, August 28.

Also, you will now have passes if you need to leave the room to go to your locker or to the restroom.  You will get 4 exits for the entire semester (that's 4 between now and December).  The ones you don't use will be added to your grade at the end of the semester as extra credit points.  So, as an example, if you use 1 exit pass this semester you will receive 3 extra credit points at the end of the semester.

Today we are going to go back to Word and learn the I (R2) and the R (L1).  Hopefully, by the end of this week, we will have at least 14 of the 26 letters of the alphabet learned.

There is an interesting infographic at this website: Internet infographic      Let's take a look!

Friday, August 23

Wikispaces; learn I and the R

Today we are going to make sure everyone's got their Wikispaces account and that it is active, and we'll also cover how to log into and edit the Wikispaces page.  Remember, this is where your definitions will need to be posted for the vocabulary review.

After covering that we will add the I and R keys to what we have already learned on the keyboard.

Thursday, August 22

Vocabulary; Review H and E; learn I and R

We are going to begin by talking about the vocab words and vocab lists for the class.  This will start next week, and we will need to get several things done in order to get this accomplished by next week.  The first of those is to get you access to the wikispaces page so that you can submit vocabulary definitions (that's already been done by me - you will need to verify by checking your gmail, and we'll do that in a little bit).

The vocabulary for this class is really split into 2 parts - on one hand you will be responsible for knowing all of the vocabulary words for any given week, and you will demonstrate your knowledge by completing a vocab quiz.  On the other hand you will be required to find definitions for the vocab words and post them to the wiki for everyone to study off of.  This "research process" will be graded, just as the vocab quizzes will be graded.

When you post a definition to the Wiki, your definition should be easy to understand.  Sometimes, after finding a definition, you will see that the definition that you have found doesn't help you to understand what that vocab word means (or is).  Therefore, find definitions that are easy to understand, and if you can't find one that makes sense please see me so I can help you write an easy-to-understand definition.

Additionally, if you have a vocab word that is an acronym (GPS, WWW, or FAQ) then please include what the letters stand for (for example, WWW stands for World Wide Web, and when you enter your vocab definition on the wiki make sure to include that).

This will seem a little foreign to begin with, but we will be talking about this every day between now and the end of next week, which is when your first quiz will be.

You may want to set up a calendar reminder so that you receive an email - this way you will be reminded several days in advance of when you need to have a definition posted on the wiki.  And, since you already know the words that you will be asked to define, you could find a definition for each of your words and save those definitions in a Google Doc - then when it is your week all you have to do is copy from your Google Doc to the Wiki.

Once we get done with this we will go back to the book and review the H and E, and if we have time we will learn the I and the R.

Wednesday, August 21

Pop Quiz!! Vocab lists

Today we are going to start with a small pop quiz.  You will need something to write with...I have something to write on for you.  Before we take the pop quiz we will do a short little review/warmup of the home row.

After completing the pop quiz we will then move on to page 5.  On page 5 we will be learning 2 new keys - the H (R1) and the E (L2).




Tuesday, August 20

Reminders/suggestions; Home row practice

As we begin to learn the keyboard I like to continually remind you of little things that are easy to forget, and that really do make a difference in improving your keying.

  1. When keying your forearms should not be resting on your thighs (I did not mention this yesterday so this is not really a reminder).  Remember that your fingers are the only "things" touching anything - everything else on your lower arm should not be touching the keyboard, countertop, or anything else.
  2. If you keep your keyboard at the edge of the countertop you will avoid having issues with #1 above.  This will also be a benefit when it comes to the technique sheet and grading.
  3. The speed skins will move slightly as you are typing - I understand your frustration in this regard, but do the best that you can.
  4. In order to be able to key at a proficient level you need to fight through the urge to constantly look at your keyboard (that's part of why we have the speed skins).  This will probably be a "weird sensation" - you are used to using your visual senses to help you accomplish what you do on a daily basis.  However, we want to get to a point where looking at your keyboard is not necessary.
Today we are going to spend quite a bit of time learning the home row.  We will start with page 4 in the book, and we will be keying in Microsoft Word (as we will normally do).

I would also like you to log into your Google account today.  We are going to learn how to save a document into your Google docs towards the end of the hour.

Monday, August 19

Learning the keyboard - the beginning!

I have one classroom rule, and that is RESPECT!  When you stop to think about it, that covers a lot of territory.  If you can keep that one thought in mind when you make a decision in my room you will have no problems.

Today we are going to begin learning how to key correctly.  As I have already mentioned, this will be the same method that your parents learned, and many other people have also gone through.  Let's start by looking at pages 2 and 3 in the book to learn what the correct techniques are for the touch typing technique that you will be learning in here this semester. 

When keying in here you will have your speed skin on your keyboard at all times unless I tell you it is ok to remove it.  You will learn to key without looking at the keys (yes it is possible - millions have already done it!).  

The harder you work today at doing things correctly the easier it will be tomorrow (you'll hear that often).  I say this because a lot of what will happen in here is you getting rid of bad habits (or unlearning bad habits that you have developed over years of sitting at a keyboard and not knowing how to do things correctly). You are going to be frustrated...it's not going to be easy...but if you work the techniques correctly now you will be much better later.

As you work on our exercises today concentrate hard on using the correct fingers (see page below).  Forget about making mistakes (oops...I just made one while typing this!), don't worry about keying fast - just concentrate on making sure you are using the correct fingers on the correct keys. 

The other techniques will help you to make small differences.  But, small differences now will add up to be large differences later. 

Page 4 - all lines once
Page 5 - learn the H (R1) and the E (L2)





techniquesheet -

Friday, August 16

Friday, Aug. 16th

We will finish covering the Computer Network policy today.

After that is done we will start with learning of the keyboard.  Literally millions (maybe billions) of people have learned the "Home Row" method of keying, and that is how you are going to learn to key in here.  This is not a method that I have developed or created...instead this method of learning to key has been in existence for many, many years.  Your parents probably learned to key the same way, although they may have learned on a typewriter instead of a computer.



To give you a little history...the keyboard that you are using is called the QWERTY keyboard.  It has been in existence for over 125 years (created in 1875) and is by far and away the most commonly used keyboard.  


There is another keyboard layout (it is called the DVORAK keyboard), but it has not been in existence as long as the QWERTY keyboard, and it is not as popular in its use.




Learning to key is a skill - just like playing an instrument or playing a sport - and therefore it takes practice, and lots of it, to become good at it.  My goal is to help you get better, but I can't help you get better if you don't TRY to get better yourself.  In other words, you have to make an effort to improve - it doesn't just happen

Today we will start with the home row and learn to use the keys on the home row as well as how to arrange our work station.