| Welcome to Computer Class! This is going to be an exciting school year! This summer I attended the Discovery STAR Educator Institute at Discovery Communications headquarters in Silver Spring, MD (you know, the Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, Planet Earth, Shark Week and all of that!) I learned so much there! So….this year I would like to do some digital storytelling using some software called Photo Story, and some movie making using Adobe Premiere Elements, and Movie Maker. It is so much fun! We will also experiment with something called a “green screen”, which is a lot of fun!
We will also be following the Iditarod again starting in January learning about the history of the race, and then following the race starting in March, 2008. Last year we were able to participate in a conference call with one of the mushers from Ohio, who ran in the Iditarod race! Maybe we will again be able to have a first-hand account of what it is like to be in this historical event. Atlas Discovery will premiere again in October on Discovery Channel. There will be four new places around the world to learn about. We will be doing PowerPoint and Word projects using this valuable information through our UnitedStreaming subscription to view the videos. Kindergarten through Grade 2 will be working on create spectacular projects using the Paint and KidPix programs, as learning curriculum-enhancing skills using Internet-based lessons and through programs such as Sammy’s Science, Millie’s Math, and Adventures with Buggles. They will also be introduced to the Microsoft Office suite using a program called Scholastic Keys, which is a child’s version of this software, including word processing, PowerPoint, and Excel. Grades 3 through 8 will again be sharpening their typing skills using our Type to Learn program. All students in these grades are required to bring a folder with looseleaf paper and a pen or pencil to each computer class. We will be having a variety of quizzes and tests to assess what they have learned. All grades will be based upon a combination of class projects, quizzes and tests, and class participation and behavior. Hope everyone had a great summer, and I am looking forward to an exciting year of technology! Mrs. Dziok  |
