I like to consider myself somewhat mechanically inclined when it comes to computers and software. Combined with my obsessive-compulsive nature, I greatly enjoy exploring software and figuring out how it all works. And, quite honestly, I usually manage to get a pretty good grasp of things by the time I'm through and ready to share the software with my students.
This isn't always the case, however, when it comes to working with Excel and spreadsheets. I don't know what it is about them: perhaps it's that I don't work with them enough or that when it comes to mathematical equations, I'm easily confused. Whatever the case may be, I always feel insecure about working with spreadsheets, although I would love to know more. And even though I teach the basics to my 5th and 6th graders, I tend not to delve too deeply because typically they, too, are easily confused. In addition, I don't find spreadsheet software, such as Excel, to be kid-friendly, with, perhaps, the exception of InspireData (makers of Inspiration and Kidspiration). Finally, I have yet to really grasp how to manipulate a graph. Boo hoo for me, I guess.
With all this "baggage" in mind, I assumed I wasn't going to be thrilled with this week's topic of exploring spreadsheets, but I discovered that it was fine. Of course, I didn't have to do anything too complicated, so that helped, but I think it was more than that. For someone who doesn't work regularly with spreadsheets, Google Docs spreadsheet was perfect because of its simplicity. Everything was so nicely laid out for me that I didn't feel overwhelmed with a ton of options. Maybe this ease of use might be a major complaint for those of you who really understand the intricacies of spreadsheets, but I liked it. In fact, I'm thinking that Google Docs might be a great way to introduce spreadsheets and formulas before moving onto the much more complicated Excel. Perhaps I could use the recipe assignment as a good way to begin working with formulas.
Along with the spreadsheets, I did enjoy checking out NetTrekker and found the spreadsheet lesson plan to be very useful. I like things narrowed down and the fact that NetTrekker is for educators. There are numerous educational sites out there, but not all are helpful. I also liked my ability to plug in the readability when searching. I found not only lspreadsheet esson plans but several tutorials as well. I'm always having trouble finding tutorials for younger students. I'm hoping I'll be able to incorporate these next month when I move into spreadsheets with my 6th graders.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Monday, February 23, 2009
How Do YOU Spell Relief?
I have to admit that I'm thrilled we had two weeks to get through the "to-do's" this week. I finally felt like I had a real chance to absorb the material and create thoughtful responses to what we're learning. The sections on online word processors and search engines were very revealing for me. I really had never thought much about search engines nor the search process and had simply moved to Google because it was the thing to do and it always gave me the answers I needed. Now, however, I'm thinking twice about how I search for information, and I do try to navigate to the search engine I think might offer me the information I need. I have to admit, however, that searching correctly still has me a bit baffled. Like many things, it's too overwhelming for me - too much information to get straight. The word processing programs, on the other hand, are a great asset for my classroom. I can't wait to have the students give them a try and compare them to see which they prefer. As I mentioned in the Forum section, I have really, really struggled with our server and all the glitches that we've been experiencing with Word 2000. I have had students create and save documents, for example, only to open them later and find the page completely blank. I have also had students creat documents at home on 2007 and then discover they can't open them with 2000 at school. And then I've had the endless problem of students creating documents in 2000 and having no way to take their documents home because they've either forgotten their flash drives or they don't know how to email (my very young students). Finally, we've had another saving issue with our mobile lab of 25 laptops all of which have Word 2007 but are not networked. The students are not allowed to save on them, so the students are forced to finish their work during class time. The suggested online word processing sites will offer my young students a great alternative.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Rethinking, Not Reinventing The Wheel
I'm finding our content this week to be both educational and amusing. I'm still in the freshness of being a returning student so getting used to the jargon of textbook language is a daunting task for me. I guess I'm too used to discussing technology with 2nd graders and reading their work. However, after reading Chapter 1 several times, I'm making the adjustment and am finding myself falling back into student/learner mode.
In many ways, Chapter 1 reinforced some of the things I am already doing in class. Since teaching technology is not in my background and the curriculum at my school, in the past, had treated computer class as a non-graded, educational extra-curricular, I have spent much time browsing the Internet for curriculum ideas, often borrowing from others. Many of these lessons are geared toward a much older crowd, however, so I have spent a lot of time adjusting the process to satisfy my product, to use the language of Chapter 1. Interestingly enough, I often find I don't need to make radical changes or reinvent the wheel; I just need to tweek here and there and allow enough time and support for my younger students. What has amazed me is that, although I have certainly made the mistake of "setting the bar" too high, in terms of content (i.e., the time I had 2nd graders visit websites to answer questions on an animal; their reading level made it impossible to even visit the most kid-friendly sites), there have been several instances where I just assumed they wouldn't be able to handle a software application, only to discover that they had very little trouble. Thus, my challenge has been to figure out what software will really work for them. Hence, I'm looking forward to our unit on software assessment.
On the other hand, Chapter 1 also clearly highlights my follies, particularly when accomodating my product. My employment and educational background focussed on teaching english to Grades 9-12, as opposed to computer tech to K-6. For the most part, their needs were often addressed with tutors and counselors, and, therefore, there was little to do on my part. Thus, I know I have students with various needs, but I have to be honest in admitting that the content of my lessons don't always address those individual needs and that sometimes I simply demand too much of them. The adjustments I have made have really had more to do with the physical environment of my lab and not necessarily the content. For example, I used to demand that any student working on the computer in my lab must follow the recommended guidelines on keyboarding posture: sit with both feet on the floor; face the computer; arms relaxed at the side. No exceptions. As the year progressed and I watched many of my students grow restless, I quickly realized that the posture requirements were too many and not suited for little kids. Yes, as an adult whose feet can actually touch the ground when sitting and whose back demands that she sit up straight, I can understand how the principles apply; however, for a bunch of squirrly first graders who have no spine and whose feet dangle willy-nilly, sitting still for 45 minutes was just short of torturing them. In hindsight, I guess that I was realizing that many students weren't able to utilize the technology effectively because I had made the environment too stifling. Now, if needed, I allow students to freely stand or walk around the library if they feel they need a break or are becoming too restless. In the long run, I find that their focus is much better. As I continue to analyze my product, I know now that I need to continue to strive to meet the needs of the individuals so that they can make the best use of my class time and equipment.
In many ways, Chapter 1 reinforced some of the things I am already doing in class. Since teaching technology is not in my background and the curriculum at my school, in the past, had treated computer class as a non-graded, educational extra-curricular, I have spent much time browsing the Internet for curriculum ideas, often borrowing from others. Many of these lessons are geared toward a much older crowd, however, so I have spent a lot of time adjusting the process to satisfy my product, to use the language of Chapter 1. Interestingly enough, I often find I don't need to make radical changes or reinvent the wheel; I just need to tweek here and there and allow enough time and support for my younger students. What has amazed me is that, although I have certainly made the mistake of "setting the bar" too high, in terms of content (i.e., the time I had 2nd graders visit websites to answer questions on an animal; their reading level made it impossible to even visit the most kid-friendly sites), there have been several instances where I just assumed they wouldn't be able to handle a software application, only to discover that they had very little trouble. Thus, my challenge has been to figure out what software will really work for them. Hence, I'm looking forward to our unit on software assessment.
On the other hand, Chapter 1 also clearly highlights my follies, particularly when accomodating my product. My employment and educational background focussed on teaching english to Grades 9-12, as opposed to computer tech to K-6. For the most part, their needs were often addressed with tutors and counselors, and, therefore, there was little to do on my part. Thus, I know I have students with various needs, but I have to be honest in admitting that the content of my lessons don't always address those individual needs and that sometimes I simply demand too much of them. The adjustments I have made have really had more to do with the physical environment of my lab and not necessarily the content. For example, I used to demand that any student working on the computer in my lab must follow the recommended guidelines on keyboarding posture: sit with both feet on the floor; face the computer; arms relaxed at the side. No exceptions. As the year progressed and I watched many of my students grow restless, I quickly realized that the posture requirements were too many and not suited for little kids. Yes, as an adult whose feet can actually touch the ground when sitting and whose back demands that she sit up straight, I can understand how the principles apply; however, for a bunch of squirrly first graders who have no spine and whose feet dangle willy-nilly, sitting still for 45 minutes was just short of torturing them. In hindsight, I guess that I was realizing that many students weren't able to utilize the technology effectively because I had made the environment too stifling. Now, if needed, I allow students to freely stand or walk around the library if they feel they need a break or are becoming too restless. In the long run, I find that their focus is much better. As I continue to analyze my product, I know now that I need to continue to strive to meet the needs of the individuals so that they can make the best use of my class time and equipment.
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