All Posts

2011 (165)

12/20/11 - Tech Tip #64: Reset Default Font
Q: If you're like me, you don't like MS Office 2007 or 2010's default font of Calibri, size 11 with a double space between paragraphs. Here's how you fix that:
12/19/11 - Monday Freebies #25: Intro to PowerPoint–with KidPix Pictures
12/14/11 - What Should You Include on a Younger Child’s Computer
12/13/11 - Tech Tip #63: Don’t Like Double Space Between Paragraphs?
Q: My Word 2010 came with a double space between paragraphs as the default, but I don't like that. I've tried to reset it to single space, but it doesn't fix it. What do I do? A: I don't either. What was Bill Gates thinking?
12/12/11 - Monday Freebies #21: Another Holiday Card
Create a holiday card using Publisher’s templates. Make it simple (don’t edit text, add only one picture) for youngers. Let olders change as much as they wish. Use this lesson to teach youngers about templates and olders about design, and menus. This project is very easy so shows students how fun and simple computers are.
12/09/11 - Weekend Websites #79: 57 Kindergarten Websites That Tie into Classroom Lessons
12/06/11 - Tech Tip #62: Email from Word (Or PowerPoint or Excel)
was helping one of the faculty at my school. She couldn't print a document (server problems) so I suggested she email it to herself at home and print it there. She started going online to her Yahoo account and I stopped her. Click the email tool on the Word toolbar.
12/05/11 - Monday Freebies #24: Holiday Newsletter
12/02/11 - Weekend Website #77: Blackle
Blackle was created by Heap Media to remind us all to take small steps in our everyday lives to save energy.
11/30/11 - Product Review: Luna Projection Camera
11/29/11 - Tech Tip #61: How to Get Youngers to Use the Right Mouse Button
Kids always get confused when I'm explaining directions that require the right mouse button. I've found an easy way to clarify. Here's an example: "Right click with your mouse"
11/28/11 - Monday Freebies #20: Make a Holiday Card
11/23/11 - #41: Where is That?
11/22/11 - Tech Tip #60: How to Add Shortcuts to the Desktop
Q: How do I create a shortcut on my desktop so I can find my programs easier?
11/21/11 - Monday Freebies #3: How to Make Wallpaper
11/18/11 - Weekend Website #75: Solar System Scope
An interactive trip through the solar system that can be embedded into a web page (must take Flash, so not WP.com, but it worked fine on my WP.org side) or a start page (click to see my sample). what a great way to get kids excited about space.
11/15/11 - Tech Tip #59: Shortkey for the Copyright Symbol
Q: How do you create the copyright symbol in Word?
11/14/11 - Monday Freebies
11/08/11 - Tech Tip #58: Show all Your Tools on Toolbars
Q: I work with younger students (first grade, second grade, even third grade). We're using Office 2003. When I direct them to the menu bar and one of the dropdown menu choices, sometimes it isn't there. Instead, there's a chevron--double arrow--that they have to click to expand the menu. This is confusing for youngers. Is there any way to have the entire menu drop down rather than the truncated version?
11/07/11 - #37: Use Oregon Trail to Teach Westward Expansion
11/04/11 - Weekend Website #73: 3 Programs to Teach Architecture in First Grade
Three projects over six weeks and your students will learn about blueprints, room layout, dimensions. Plus, they'll understand how to think about a three-dimensional object and then spatially lay it out on paper. This is challenging, but fun for first graders.
11/02/11 - How to Find Reliable Internet Sources
11/01/11 - Tech Tip #57: How to Create a Chart Really Fast
Q: What's the easiest way to introduce 3rd graders to Excel charts?
10/26/11 - Thirty-two More Ways to Use Spare Classroom Time
10/26/11 - How to Stop Hating Your Computer
10/25/11 - Tech Tip #56: Force a New Page
Q: I'm teaching my students to create a book report with a cover page. what's the easiest way to get the cover on the first page and the report on the second?
10/21/11 - Weekend Website #75: Solar System Scope
An interactive trip through the solar system that can be embedded into a web page (must take Flash, so not WP.com, but it worked fine on my WP.org side) or a start page (click to see my sample). what a great way to get kids excited about space.
10/20/11 - 23 Websites to Support Math Automaticity in K-5
10/18/11 - Tech Tip #55: Find a Lost Shortcut
Q: I can't find the shortcut for a program I want to open. It's not on the desktop, on the start menu or in 'all programs'. How do I open the program? A: Try 'Start button', then type in the name of the program where it says 'start search'. The shortcut shows up.
10/17/11 - Monday Freebies #20: Make a Holiday Card
start each week off with a fully-adaptable K-8 lesson that includes step-by-step directions as well as relevant ISTE national standards, tie-ins, extensions, troubleshooting and more. Eventually, you'll get the entire Technology Toolkit book. If you can't wait, you can purchase the curriculum here.
10/14/11 - Weekend Website #68: Live Like Bear Grylls
If you want to spice up a unit on landforms, have students look into surviving these unique natural habitats. To get out with their lives, they'll have to understand the flora and fauna, dangers and helpers. Here are some websites they can visit to improve their survival toolkit:
10/11/11 - Tech Tip #54: How to Auto Forward a PowerPoint Slideshow
Q: My students are learning to use Powerpoint for presentations. They'll stand in front of the class and the slideshow will play behind them. We want it to go automatically without requiring them to click the mouse or push the space bar. How do we do that? A: Presentations are a great skill to teach students. I applaud you on this. Auto-forward isn't difficult:
10/10/11 - Monday Freebies #3: How to Make Wallpaper
Kids love personalizing their computer stations. Show them how to create their own wallpaper using internet pictures, pictures on the computer or their own photos or drawings
10/07/11 - Weekend Website #72: 62 Favorite 1st Grade Websites
These are my 62 favorite first grade websites. I sprinkle them in throughout the year, adding several each week to the class internet start page, deleting others. I make sure I have 3-4 each week that integrate with classroom lesson plans, 3-4 that deal with technology skills and a few that simply excite students about tech in education.
10/06/11 - How to Use Excel to Teach Math Arrays
10/05/11 - Easi-Speak Digital Microphone is Simple
10/04/11 - Tech Tip #53: How to Pin Any Program to the Start Menu
Q: There's a program I use all the time, but it's not on my desktop. I have to click through All-Programs-(etc--wherever it is you must go to find it). Is there a way to add it to my start menu so I can find it more easily? A: Absolutely. Click through All-programs to wherever it is, but don't open the program. Instead, right click on the icon that would normally open the program and select 'pin to start menu' from the drop down menu. This will attack this program to your Start button in the future. Much easier!
10/01/11 - Weekend Website #71: 5 Great FREE Programs for Kids
09/30/11 - Weekend Website #67: 20 Websites to Learn Everything About Landforms
09/28/11 - 18 Great Poetry Websites
09/27/11 - Tech Tip #52: Roll Your Computer Back to a Problem-Free Date
Q: Something happened and now my computer isn't working right. I downloaded a program/music/video or installed a new holiday program and it hasn't worked right since. What do I do? A: These days, that's not as hard as it used to be. All you have to do is type 'restore' in the search box (on the start menu) and follow instructions. What it'll do is turn your computer back to an earlier date, before you did the download or the install. It won't affect documents, only the bad stuff. It's saved me several times.
09/23/11 - Weekend Website #65: Noodle
Plus, Noodle offers a 'school selection' tool, to enable parents and high schoolers to search for the right school, from kindergarten through college. Once you've set up an account, Noodle allows you to keep track of the schools you’ve applied to or been admitted to, or classify schools based on criteria such as cost, campus setting, etc. You can keep these lists private or make them public so that your friends can see them.
09/20/11 - Tech Tip #51: Copy Images From Google Images
Q: To copy an image from Google Images (or Bing), I right-click on the picture, select copy, then paste it into my document (with right-click, paste). But, It's hard to move around. Isn't there an easier way. A: You're probably grabbing the thumbnail rather than the real image. Before copying the picture, go to the full size image by clicking on the gallery thumbnail...
09/17/11 - Weekend Website #66: What’s Your Carbon Footprint
This is a fun, albeit simplistic approach to carbon counting. As a teacher, I find it a wonderfully simply way to deliver the message to students that the size of their carbon footprint matters. This site has a few easy fill-ins about family cars, travel and where the reader lives, then calculates an average carbon footprint. For example, when I answered the four or five easy questions about my home (with lots of prompts about 'average' which I can see students defaulting to), it gave me a rundown on my profile:
09/14/11 - MS Word for Grades 2-5
09/13/11 - Tech Tip #50: The Easiest Way to Outline
Q: My fifth graders are learning outlining in the classroom. Is there an easy way to tie that into technology? A: Outlining can't be easier than doing it in Word. Here's what you do:
09/10/11 - Weekend Website #64: Khan Academy
One final note, the ISTE tech conference I attended back in June of over 15,000 educators chronically listed Khan Academy as among the most-important websites for video tutorials on the web. Attendees and presenters constantly raved about Khan Academy as a self-help site far beyond any other available, on a par with MIT's offering of free videos of their course offerings. Check it out. You won't be disappointed.
09/08/11 - #39: Google Earth Board
09/06/11 - Tech Tip #48: Quickly Switch Between Windows
Q: I'm copy-pasting between a Word doc and an Excel doc on my computer. I know how to do that, but here's the problem: I have three Word docs open. I don't want to close the other two because I'll need them soon. It takes a lot of time to click down to the taskbar, bring up the Word group and find the correct Word doc. Is there an easier way? A: Oh yes, Much easier. Use Alt+tab. That takes you to the last window you visited. If you're toggling between two windows, this is the perfect solution. I use it a lot for grading and report cards.
09/01/11 - School’s Back–Do Your Children Need Computers?
08/30/11 - Tech Tip #45: Your Screen Upside Down?
Q: My screen is sideways 90 degrees. How do I fix that? A: If you ever needed this, you're going to be blessing me. If you've never faced that off-kilter screen, you're going to wonder why I'd post this tip.
08/24/11 - Teach Animal Adaptations with an MS Word Diagram
08/23/11 - Tech Tip #46: The Easiest Way to Explain Right and Left to (Little) Kids
Q: I teach kindergarten. They don't always understand the difference between left and right. A: There are two times kids get confused about right and left when I'm teaching:
08/22/11 - 31 Human Body Websites for 2nd-5th Grade
08/19/11 - Weekend Website #61: Brainy Widgets from Wolfram Alpha
Wolfram Alpha has a boatload of educational widgets you can put on your website to amaze your students. Simply go to their widget gallery, select the category you prefer (I picked technology) and pick your widget. I picked creating QR codes because I can see my students adding this to their wikis next year as another way of sharing their name:
08/17/11 - Tech Tip #47: Tool Tips
Q: I'm supposed to find a tool on the toolbar, but there are so many and I have no idea what they are for? It's just as bunch of pictures to me. Is there an easy way to figure this out? A: To figure out what a tool does on the toolbar or 2007/10''s ribbon, hover your mouse over the tool (place the mouse above it without clicking). A tool tip will appear with a clue as to what it's for.
08/15/11 - 20 Websites to Learn Everything About Landforms
08/12/11 - Weekend Website #60: Google Tools and Bloom’s Taxonomy
Bloom's Taxonomy has long been accepted as the de rigueur classification of learning objectives. Its consideration as a foundational and essential element within the education community is memorialized in the 1994 yearbook of the National Society for the Study of Education. Lesson plans are written with a focus on which of these objectives are met and how to achieve all of them within a school year.
08/10/11 - Tech Tip #49: The Fifteen Second Slideshow
Q: My kindergarten and first grade students are too young to create their own slideshows for Open House (or any parent day) and I'm just too busy. What's an easy way to display their work digitally for parents that also involves the students in the preparation? A: I had this problem last year. I simply ran out of time trying to prepare so I offloaded the work onto the students. I was worried it would be too much, but it turned into a wonderful experience for students and parents alike. Here's all you do:
08/05/11 - Weekend Websites #59: 62 First Grade Websites That Tie into Classroom Lessons
These are my 62 favorite first grade websites. I sprinkle them in throughout the year, adding several each week to the class internet start page, deleting others. I make sure I have 3-4 each week that integrate with classroom lesson plans, 3-4 that deal with technology skills and a few that simply excite students about tech in education. Here's the list:
08/04/11 - Tech Ten Commandments–the Christian Version
08/03/11 - 10 Great Virtual Field Trips
08/02/11 - Tech Tip #44: Clean Your Computer Weekly
Q: I'm afraid of getting slammed with viruses, malware, all that bad stuff that comes with visiting the internet. What do I do? A: If you take reasonable precautions, the chances of being hit are minimized. Here's what I do:
07/29/11 - Weekend Websites #57: 28 Websites to Teach Tech to Kindergarten-First Grade
07/28/11 - Are you as Tech-Smart as a Fifth Grader?
07/25/11 - #40: Wonders of Google Earth
07/24/11 - Weekend Websites #56: 23 Websites to Support Math Automaticity in K-5
07/22/11 - Weekend Website #55: Science for Fifth Graders
07/21/11 - About Me
I'm glad you asked that question because, they absolutely do stand out. They start kids in kindergarten with age-appropriate and challenging skills in programs such as keyboarding and KidPix, and that wonderful online reading site, Starfall.com.
07/19/11 - Tech Tip #43: Back Up Often
Q: How often should I back up my current project? How about my whole hard drive? A: I teach my students to save early, save often when they're working on a project. You decide what you can tolerate losing. Ten minutes or Ten hours. After all, if the computer loses your work, you're the one who has to start over.
07/16/11 - Weekend Website #54: 20 Great Research Websites for Kids
07/15/11 - Weekend Website #61: Brainy Widgets from Wolfram Alpha
07/12/11 - Tech Tip #42: How to (Re)Set Your Homepage
Q: My homepage got hijacked! I mean, it no longer opens up to what it used to. How do I fix that? A: Go to the page you want as your homepage. Here's what you do next:
07/10/11 - Weekend Website #53: 41 Websites for Teachers to Integrate Tech into Your Classroom
07/09/11 - Weekend Website #52: 7 Sites About Coin Counting
07/07/11 - ISTE Debrief: Don’t Hide the Internet from Today’s Kids
07/05/11 - Tech Tip #41: Repair Your Computer With System Restore
Q: I don't know what I did, but my computer doesn't run right anymore. What can I do? A: With access to the internet, computer malfunctions have become even more prevalent than ever. Sometimes you download a program--or your child mistakenly pushes a button that allows malware on your computer. Suddenly, through no fault of your own, things just aren't working right anymore.
06/30/11 - #35: Sponge Activities for Vocabulary Building
06/24/11 - Weekend Website #51: 17 Story Sites for First and Second Grade
06/22/11 - #10: Drawing in Photoshop
06/17/11 - Weekend Website #50 Visuword
Visuwords is an online graphical dictionary where you can look up words to find their meanings and associations with other words and concepts. The tool enables you to produce diagrams and learn how words associate and is another of the great Open Source websites (yes, they give their source code as well as the web site away for free)--like Visual Thesaurus, Wordle, Tagxedo--that makes the study of words as visual as a picture.
06/14/11 - #38: Introduction to Google Earth
06/14/11 - Tech Tip #40: Where Did Windows Explorer Go?
Q: I have Windows 7 and I can't find Explorer anymore. Where did it go? A: Right click on the start button and select 'Explore'.
06/09/11 - #36: My First Report
06/08/11 - #33: Grow Your Story
06/06/11 - #30: A Cover Page in Publisher
06/03/11 - Weekend Website #49: Tux Paint
In my classroom, we use KidPix. It's a wonderful program to introduce students to tools, toolbars, text, drag-and-drop mouse skills and all the basics required to use the computer. It's the gold standard for acclimatizing children to computers. Students always love it and parents always want to know how to get it for them.
06/02/11 - 5 Best Online Keyboarding Programs
05/30/11 - Thank You
05/25/11 - #4: Photoshop for Fifth Graders: The First Step is Word
05/24/11 - Tech Tip #39: My Computer Won’t Turn Off
Q: I'm pushing the power button on my laptop (or desktop, but more commonly this happens with laptops), but it won't turn off. What do I do? A: Push the power button and hold it in for a count of ten. That'll work. If not (there's always that one that breaks all the rules), hold it for a count of twenty
05/23/11 - Nineteen Ways to Use Spare Classroom Time
05/20/11 - Weekend Website #48: Wolfram|Alpha for Educators
05/19/11 - #4: Photoshop for Fifth Graders: The First Step is Word
Before we get into Photoshop, we'll start with a program your fifth grader is most likely comfortable with: MS Word. For basic image editing, Word does a pretty good job, so we'll start with a project using Word's tools:
05/17/11 - Tech Tip #38: My Desktop Icons Are All Different
Q: My desktop icons (those little pictures that allow you to open a program) are all different. What happened? A: I get this question a lot. Push the start button and check who the log in is. That's the name at the top of the right-hand side of the start menu. It should have your log-in name. Any other, log out and log in as yourself and the world will tilt back to normal.
05/16/11 - #12: Create Simple Shapes in Excel
05/11/11 - Tech Tip #37: My MS Word Toolbar Disappeared
Q: My tools for formatting disappeared from the top of my MS Word (2003). Where'd they go and what do I do? A: They do disappear at times, for no good reason. Here's the simple fix: * Right-click in the toolbar area at the top.
05/09/11 - #3: Windows Skills: Make Your Own Wallpaper
05/07/11 - #101: Don’t Print Homework–Email it!
05/06/11 - Photoshop for Fifth Graders: the Basics
05/05/11 - #30: A Cover Page in Publisher
05/04/11 - What are Your Favorite Summer School Keyboard Activities
05/03/11 - Tech Tip #36: The Internet Toolbar Disappeared
Q: My internet toolbar disappeared. All I see at the top of the screen is, more of the page I'm on. No tools. What do I do? A: Push F11. You can hide the internet toolbar or unhide with F11. It's that simple.
05/02/11 - Book Review: 55 Technology Projects for the Digital Classroom
The all-in-one K-8 toolkit for the lab specialist, classroom teacher and homeschooler, with a years-worth of simple-to-follow projects. Integrate technology into language arts, geography, history, problem solving, research skills, and science lesson plans and units of inquiry using teacher resources that meet NETS-S national guidelines and many state standards.
04/29/11 - Weekend Website #46: Computer Lab Favorites
04/28/11 - #95: Teach About Inventions with PowerPoint
04/27/11 - #75: Tessellations in Excel
04/26/11 - Tech Tip #33: My Desktop Icons are Messed Up
Q: I have several kids/students who share the same computer. Kids being kids loving moving the icons around on the desktop. Sometimes they create the first letter of their name in icons. It's cute, but makes it difficult for the next student to find the shortcut they need. What's the best way to handle this? A: I've tried everything. Refusing to allow them to play doesn't work and asking them to undo their play at the end of their time doesn't either. The best solution is to teach all students how to organize their desktop:
04/25/11 - #67: Teach PowerPoint in Elementary School
04/22/11 - Weekend Website #45: Google Art Project
Explore museums from around the world with Google's incredible Street View technology. Discover and view hundreds of artworks at incredible zoom levels, and even create and share your own collection of masterpieces.
04/19/11 - Tech Tip #34: My Program Froze
04/18/11 - #29: A PowerPoint Slideshow for Third Graders
04/16/11 - Weekend Website #44: Mission US
Mission US is a FREE multimedia project featuring free interactive adventure games set in different eras of U.S. history.
04/14/11 - #45: How to Use MS Word to Teach Geography
04/13/11 - Tech Tip #35: My Program Closed Down
04/12/11 - Tech Tip #32: My Taskbar Got Moved to the Side
Q: The taskbar at the bottom of my screen got moved. I liked it at the bottom. How do I move it back?
04/11/11 - #7: Fifth Grade Cropping in Photoshop
04/09/11 - Weekend Website #41: Spanish Help
This starts as a dictionary, but it's so much more.
04/08/11 - Weekend Websites #39: Big Huge Labs
This site definitely lives up to its tagline--Helping you do cool stuff with your digital photos. It includes over two dozen projects that can be printed and/or posted on the web. What a plethora of tools. You can:
04/07/11 - #27: Internet Skills for K-8: Blogs
04/06/11 - #28: My Storybook
04/05/11 - Tech Tip #31: What’s Today’s Date
04/04/11 - #12: Create Simple Shapes in Excel
03/31/11 - #3: Windows Skills: Make Your Own Wallpaper
03/30/11 - Tech Tip #30: Menu Command is Greyed Out
Q: I pushed the menu command I wanted to use (in MS Office 2003). I got the drop-down list, but the command I needed was greyed out. When I pushed it, nothing happened. What do I do?
03/29/11 - Tech Tip: I Deleted a File!
03/28/11 - #2: How to KidPix II
03/25/11 - Weekend Website #34: Block Posters
What a great way to upsize student projects. Simply upload a digital picture created by students. Tell the program what size you'd like the poster and the program automatically figures out how to lay it out on 8x10 sheets and its ready to print.
03/22/11 - Tech Tip #28: 5 Ways to Fix a No-Sound Problem–For Free
Q: I can't get any sound out of my computer. Do I need a new sound card? A: Before you invest that kind of money, try these easy fixes:
03/20/11 - Weekend Website #32: SqoolTube
While YouTube has some of the best training videos around, if your school's like mine, you can't access it on campus. Which means, I'm constantly on the look-out for a good alternative in this video-oriented education world I find myself. I found Sqooltube.
03/16/11 - Five More Must-have Freebies For Your Computer
03/15/11 - Tech Tip #24: How to Open A New Word Doc Without the Program
Q: I can't find the Word icon that opens MS Word. What do I do? A: Let's say
03/13/11 - Weekend Website #30: Breathing Earth
When you arrive at Breathing Earth, it’s not obvious what to do. You see a map of the world, browns and oranges with a few darker shades. Occasionally, a nation lights up, painted red. Bursts of blue and black explode here and there, seemingly randomly. Look closer. There’s order to the chaos.
03/10/11 - 9 of the Best Math Websites Out There
03/09/11 - Tech Tip #27: My Taskbar Disappeared
Q: My taskbar disappeared. What do I do? A: Push the flying windows key (it's located between Ctrl and Alt on the bottom left of your keyboard). That brings up the start button
03/08/11 - Tech Tip #26: My Mouse Doesn’t Work
Q: My mouse stopped working. Do I need to buy a new one? A: Maybe, but try a few things first:
03/05/11 - Weekend Website #28: Bing Maps
If you're a Google Earth/Google Maps fan--as I am--you probably haven't kept up with what Bing Maps is doing over there, in the competitor's home. I came across this video on TED and was blown away. Blaise Agüera y Arcas is the architect of Bing Maps at Microsoft, building augmented reality into searchable maps.
03/04/11 - Weekend Website #27: TED
TED, as its tagline says, is truly 'riveting talks by remarkable people, free to the world'. T-E-D stands for Technology, entertainment, design, and gives you a good idea how they approach this avenue for sharing knowledge.
03/02/11 - Tech Tip #23: I Deleted a File By Accident
Q: I deleted a file! I need it back! What do I do? A. Here's what you do:
03/01/11 - Tech Tip #25: My Keyboard Doesn’t Work
You sit down to type, start in on that long project with an imminent deadline, and nothing happens. The cursor blinks... and blinks... and blinks... but goes nowhere.
02/28/11 - Where Would You Like to Go Today?
02/25/11 - Weekend Website #26: Tagxedo
If you haven't discovered Tagxedo, you have a treat in store. As its tagline suggests, it is a tag cloud with style. Think Wordle on steroids. Tagxedo takes words and turns them into pictures, as does Wordle, but it has all those options you wanted and couldn't find on Wordle. Remember saying, "I wish I could turn this into a picture of a ____ (fill in the blank with your favorite)." Or, "I wish I could save this."
02/17/11 - Four Online Sites to Teach Mouse Skills
02/16/11 - 14 Websites to Learn Everything About Landforms
02/15/11 - Tech Tip #21: How to Make a Small Webpage Window Big
Q: When I open the internet (or a document), the window is small. It barely fills half the screen. What's the quickest way to make it bigger? A: There are two easy solutions, one faster than the other
02/14/11 - How to Become Survivorman–or Bear Grylls–in Third Grade
02/10/11 - Solid Education Option: Homeschooling
Twenty one percent don't like the environment in traditional schools. Another 17 percent are home schooled because their parents are dissatisfied with the academic instruction that’s available to them
02/09/11 - Tech Tip #20: How to Add A Link to Word
Q: I want to link my Word document (or my Outlook email) to a website. How do I do that? A: Follow these easy steps:
02/08/11 - 16 Great Research Websites for Kids
02/04/11 - Weekend Website #21: Test Your Typing Speed
I use this as practice in my tech classes. Students love seeing their typing speed improve, and it shows them the importance of subtracting for errors (we all know how time-consuming correcting typos is). I often see them go to this site during free time, especially when the next speed quiz is imminent. I think your kids will enjoy it, too.
02/03/11 - Can Your Fifth Grader Answer This Math Problem?
Teaching Math In 1950: A logger sold a truckload of lumber for $100. His cost of production is 4/5 of the price. What is his profit? Teaching Math In 1960: A logger sold a truckload of lumber for $100. His cost of production is 4/5 of the price, or $80. What is his profit?
02/02/11 - Is Handwriting Like Camera Film–So Last Generation
* 1 in 10 Americans are endangered by the poor handwriting of physicians. * citizens miss out on $95,000,000 in tax refunds because the taxman can't read their handwriting * Poor handwriting costs businesses $200,000,000 in time and money that result in confused and inefficient employees, phone calls made to wrong numbers, and letters delivered to incorrect addresses.
02/01/11 - Tech Tip #19: How to Activate a Link in Word
Q:I see a blue phrase on my page. It's underlined. I'm told that's a link to a website. How do I make it work? A: Activating a link in MS Word or most of the MS Office products is pretty simple.
01/31/11 - Find Great Kids Websites
01/27/11 - Google Earth: User Friendly in the Classroom
01/25/11 - Tech Tip #23: I Deleted a File By Accident
Q: I deleted a file! I need it back! What do I do? A. Here's what you do:
01/24/11 - How Blogs Make Kids Better Writers
01/19/11 - Tech Tip #20: How to Add A Link to Word
Q: I want to link my Word document (or my Outlook email) to a website. How do I do that? A: Follow these easy steps:
01/18/11 - Tech Tip #19: How to Activate a Link in Word
Q:I see a blue phrase on my page. It's underlined. I'm told that's a link to a website. How do I make it work? A: Activating a link in MS Word or most of the MS Office products is pretty simple.
01/17/11 - Just Another Day In Computer Lab
01/13/11 - #32: How to Use Art to Teach Grammar
01/11/11 - Tech Tip #16: Email That Document
Q: I want my home/business/classroom to be as paperless as possible. What's a good first step? A: Do you make fliers or announcements in Publisher, then print them? Don't do that. Use the email tool on the toolbar:
01/10/11 - 10 Top Click-throughs from Ask a Tech Teacher
01/06/11 - Tech Tip #19: How to Activate a Link in Word
Activating a link in MS Word or most of the MS Office products is pretty simple. * hover over the word or phrase * Push Ctrl+click to activate
01/05/11 - Ask a Tech Teacher Receives an Award

2010 (90)

12/21/10 - Tech Tip #18: No Excuse for Spelling Errors
When you see a red squiggly line in a Word doc--or lots of other docs too, even online--it indicates a possible spelling error. I've found that most times, it's true. Y
12/21/10 - Track Santa Christmas Eve
There's so much to like about this website. Target users are young children, so I like that this website requires little reading. Once they get to the site (I have a link on our classroom start page for NORAD Santa), they can watch a Santa video while I get everyone else logged on.
12/14/10 - Tech Tip #17: Don’t Know the Date? No Problem
Q: I don't know why, but I never remember the date. Unfortunately, I have to type it often at school/work/home. Is there a shortcut for people like me?
12/13/10 - Can Technology Help Teachers Plan?
One of the engines helps teachers do what I had presented about years ago and it helps them make those four choices of activities in less than 10 minutes!
12/09/10 - #20: A Holiday Card in KidPix
12/03/10 - Weekend Website #14: The Internet Start Page
I include everything that my students might need to start their tech class experience--a Todo list, links to projects, sponges, a calendar--and I change it weekly, sometimes daily.
12/02/10 - Using an Internet Start Page
12/01/10 - #72: How to Check Your Math in Excel
11/30/10 - Tech Tip #16: Email That Document
Do you make fliers or announcements in Publisher, then print them? Don't do that. Use the email tool on the toolbar:
11/23/10 - Tech Tip #15: Save Early Save Often
A: Saving is easier than you think. I know, you're thinking it is easy, so what's the deal? Do you save every ten minutes?
11/22/10 - 18 Online Keyboard Sites for Kids
11/18/10 - *8: Fifth Grade Cloning in Photoshop
11/17/10 - #46: How to Use Technology to Teach Landforms
11/16/10 - #16: A Holiday Memory in Word or KidPix
11/15/10 - #15: A Holiday Letter for Grades 2-6
11/12/10 - Weekend Website #12: Wacky Faces
This one is pretty freaky. The faces are realistic. They smile at you, react to your mouse movement, wink, stick their tongues out. You have to see it to believe it.
11/10/10 - #87: Use MS Word’s Diagrams to Teach Animal Characteristics
11/09/10 - ASCII Art–Computer Art for Everyone
Here's how I did it: 1. Add a watermark of a picture you like, preferably a single image (I picked a pumpkin for Halloween) 2. Type over it with appropriate letters (if you're more patient than I, you can pick a variety of letters. That would provide more depth) 3. Delete the watermark
11/08/10 - #21: A Holiday Card in Publisher
11/07/10 - Weekend Website #10: Google Mars
What it doesn't have that the software version has is the ability to fly a plane (using Google Earth's built-in Flight Simulator) all over Mars. My students love doing this. I didn't teach it to them at all. They were curious, motivated and figured it out on their own. I love student-led activities.
11/04/10 - How to Use MS Word to Teach Geography
Create a diagram to represent the layers of where we are in the universe. Great for visual thinkers.
11/03/10 - #22: A Holiday Flier in Publisher
11/01/10 - #17: A Holiday Story in MS Word for Grades 2-7
10/30/10 - #112: 10 Ways Twitter Makes You a Better Writer
10/29/10 - Weekend Website #11: Google Moon
As with Google Mars, the online version doesn’t have that the ability to fly a plane or a jet (using Google Earth’s built-in Flight Simulator) all over the moon (BTW--my students fly all around our galaxy, to other planets, other stars. They think it's pretty amazing to land on the Sun!)
10/28/10 - #24: A Holiday Newsletter in Publisher for Elementary School
10/27/10 - #23: A Holiday Calendar in MS Publisher for Elementary School
10/25/10 - #6: Photoshop for Fifth Graders–Autofixes
10/22/10 - Weekend Website #10: Google Mars
What it doesn't have that the software version has is the ability to fly a plane (using Google Earth's built-in Flight Simulator) all over Mars. My students love doing this. I didn't teach it to them at all. They were curious, motivated and figured it out on their own. I love student-led activities.
10/21/10 - #25: Intro to PowerPoint–with KidPix Pictures
Drawings are done in KidPix. Assign topics (me, my family, etc) for grades K-1 to reinforce the concept of following directions. With 2nd grade, use one picture for each of the parts of a story—characters, plot, setting, climax/resolution. Mix pictures and text. Students can show these to parents at Open House or a parent night using Windows slideshow function (something they can do without assistance after a bit of practice)
10/20/10 - Dr. Seuss–Techie Style
10/19/10 - Tech Tip #14: Desktop Icons Disappear?
Q: My desktop icons disappeared for no known reason. What do I do? A: This is a question I get from parents more often than you'd think.
10/18/10 - #43: How to Teach Geography with KidPix II
Use an Enchanted Learning template. Import it into KidPix. Students use the paint bucket to fill continents and oceans different colors. Then label them as detailed as is age appropriate.
10/16/10 - What’s it Like to Be a Blogger?
10/12/10 - Tech Tip #13: The Powerful Right Mouse Button
Q: I need a faster way to access menus. Is there one? A: Yes, and you'll love it.
10/11/10 - Twenty-one Techie Problems Every Student Can Fix
10/06/10 - Shake Hands with a Computer
show them where each part connects to the computer. Have them plug in andMouse-02 disconnect the headphones, the microphone (if available).
10/05/10 - Tech Tip #12: Wrap Text Around a Picture
Q: I want my text to wrap around the picture I inserted, but it goes under/above it. There's a big white space I can't type in. What do I do? A: I get this from students a lot.
10/04/10 - #44: How to Teach Geography with KidPix I
Create a cross. Label the four directions. Place a picture that coordinates with that direction by it.
09/28/10 - Tech Tip #11: How to Show the Entire Drop Down Menu
Every time I click on a drop down menu in MS Office (Word, Publisher, Excel, PowerPoint), it shows only some of the choices. How can I see all of them?
09/27/10 - #71: Beginning Graphs in MS Excel
Use a template with the topics at the bottom as pictures and numbers along the side. Students use the paint bucket to fill in cells to the right number/level. Great introduction to Excel and collaboration with classroom exploration of math concepts
09/25/10 - #26: Create a Storybook in KidPix
Use the drawings completed in Project #25 and put them into a PowerPoint slideshow. Students learn the basics of PowerPoint including inserting pictures and text, animation, transition, inserting clipart, inserting internet pictures, auto-advance, sound. Have each students present their slideshow when completed to practice the unique skills of presentations using PowerPoint
09/24/10 - #103: Know Your Computer Hardware
Review the parts of the computer so students will understand what they’re learning
09/21/10 - Tech Tip #10: How to Undelete
09/20/10 - #59: Reading + Keyboarding = Success
I test my students speed every trimester. I use an age-appropriate document that will engage their interest so they worry less about their grade. I’ll share with you how I select the piece, what my expectations are for speed per grade and how I approach the test so kids are not stressed by it
09/15/10 - #102: 23 Favorite Keyboard Shortcuts
09/14/10 - Tech Tip #9: Quickly Hide Your Screen
Press "alt+tab" simultaneously on your keyboard (or Command-Tab on a Mac). It'll hide the window that's on your screen and bring up one from behind it. This trick is used most often by office personnel, hiding the fact that they're surfing the Net at work, but it's useful for any number of other reasons. It's also a verb, as in, "I had to alt+tab when my boyfriend dropped by."
09/08/10 - #34: How to Teach Dolch Words with KidPix
Have students type three or four of their site-dolch words into KidPix. Create a quasi-sentence, filling in the missing nouns, verbs, etc with stamps from KidPix toolbars.
09/07/10 - #13: Great Online Art Sites
Online resources for great worldwide museums. Take one lesson to introduce students to these six art sites (five to ten minutes on each) and then allow them to revisit when they have a few minutes at the end of a class projects, unit, before lunch, etc.
09/05/10 - 5 Great Labor Day Websites
he online version includes built-in tours of the moon which are fascinating, but doesn't have the flight simulator that my students can't get enough of. They fly all around our galaxy, to other planets, other stars. They think it’s pretty amazing to land on the Sun!
09/04/10 - What Should You Include on a Younger Child’s Computer
If your child must have MS Office and you are trying to fit the price into a budget, start with Office Web Apps, the free online version of Office. It's compatible with MS Office, much like it but more limited. A good starter.
08/31/10 - #1: How to KidPix I
Students learn about tools, toolbars, drag-drop, multi-media, menus—all tech basics
08/30/10 - Free Lesson Plans That Mix Tech and Ed
08/26/10 - Ten Best Keyboarding Hints You’ll Ever See
Use your thumb for the space bar. That leaves your hands on home row, Curl fingers over home row—they’re cat paws, not dog paws, Use inside fingers for inside keys, outside fingers for outside keys
08/25/10 - #99: Internet ABCs for Elementary Schoolers
Basics for elementary school includes maneuvering through websites, links and more. I also include troubleshooting tips
08/24/10 - Thirty-two More Ways to Use Spare Classroom Time
This one covers language arts, math, science and technology
08/23/10 - Nineteen Ways to Use Spare Classroom Time
08/18/10 - Tech Tip #8: Print a Selection off a Web Page
Highlight the desired text, Press Ctrl+P, In the Print dialog box that appears, in Print Range area, click Selection, then click OK.
08/17/10 - How to Web 2.0 Accessorize Your Classroom
A general overview of Web 2.0 tools, including blogs, wikis, what is a digital citizen, class internet homepages, class internet start pages, twitter, social bookmarks (i.e., delicious),podcasting, photo sharing (i.e., flikr)
08/16/10 - How to Teach Kids Email
Used properly, email encourages collaboration among teachers, encourages conversations between parents-students-faculty and facilitates the paperless submittal of homework and projects (no more dog-ate-my-homework excuses).
08/13/10 - 18 Great FREE Online Keyboard Websites
If you're picking an online program as an alternative to software, it's important to log in so the software remembers what your child has accomplished. If you're going to use online sites as part of an overall typing practice curriculum, here are some other good sites to try:
08/10/10 - #57: Yes, You Should Assign Keyboarding Homework
6 week of keyboarding homework
08/08/10 - Website #14: The Internet Start Page
I include everything that my students might need to start their tech class experience–a Todo list, links to projects, sponges, a calendar–and I change it weekly, sometimes daily. It has tabs, too, so I offer a different tab for each class.
08/03/10 - Which Social Media Should Be Allowed in Schools?
these are the sites that have kids excited about learning--excited about technology. So what are we doing? We're cutting off the most effective avenue for keeping students interested in school because we're afraid of them. Does that sound right to you?
07/28/10 - Tech Tip #7: Making Backgrounds Transparent
Q: When I insert my picture, the background isn't transparent, so it covers everything behind it. I want it see-through. How do I do that? BTW, I'm using Publisher. A: There are two ways, one simpler than the other.
07/27/10 - #70: Create a Timecard in Excel for Grade Two and Up
They’ll have no idea they’re using Excel. Olders can create the template themselves and then fill it in
07/26/10 - Life Wisdom From Your Computer #4: Hourglassing
Patience, persistence and perspiration make an unbeatable combination for success. (Napoleon Hill)
07/23/10 - God is Back: How the Global Revival of Faith is Changing the World.
what has been true all along: the vast majority of people outside the West, and many people in the West, are religious.
07/20/10 - #70: How to Keep a Timecard in Excel
07/19/10 - Help Kids Use the Internet Safely with a Start Page
When you get yours set up, on the To Do list, put what the child should do to start each computer time. This gives them a sense of independence, adultness, as they get started while you’re wrapping something else up.
07/18/10 - You Have Permission to Disrupt Class
Schools throw technology at their problems in hopes software, hardware, internet websites, will fix their shrinking test scores. Be Different.
07/16/10 - Does Homeschooling Work? Yes
The average home schooled 8th grade student performs four grade levels above the national average.
07/14/10 - Tech Tip #5: Reveal a Program
Push the Flying Windows key (it’s between Ctrl and Alt).
07/13/10 - Easy Photo Editing in MS Word
I’ve put it all on one page for you if you want to print it out:
07/12/10 - Life Wisdom From Your Computer #3: Shortcuts
Don't always feel you must reinvent the wheel. You're not capitulating if you take the road more traveled.
07/09/10 - Homeschool Day at the Getty–2010
07/08/10 - Website #2: Zoopz
Zoopz: Easy to understand, to maneuver. Bright colors that attract youngers and almost no ads.
07/07/10 - Tech Tip #4: Zoom In and Out
Hold down the Ctrl and + to zoom in. Hold down Ctrl and – to zoom out.
07/06/10 - #1: How to KidPix I
You want a program that teaches a bit about mouse functions, tools and toolbars, maybe even some text? You're looking for KidPix.
07/05/10 - Life Wisdom From Your Computer #2: Your Processor Speed
Who cares what your processing speed is if your hard drive is to die for?
07/01/10 - Thirty-two Ways to Use Spare Classroom Time
LA, Math, Research, Art--all in quick bursts
06/30/10 - Tech Tip #3: How to Turn a Website Address Into a Link
When you have a website you want to send to people, copy it, paste it into the email/doc. Be sure to add a space or enter afterwards.
06/29/10 - #13: Art Online
Websites for kids with minimum ads and maximum entertainment
06/25/10 - Cornerstone Homeschool math team wins state competition
06/24/10 - Weekend Website #11: Google Moon
I get students to the website and leave the rest to their curiosity and the explorative side of human nature. From first grade on, they figure out what to do.
06/23/10 - Tech Tip #1: Using the (Useless) Insert Key
http://askatechteacher.wordpress.com/
06/22/10 - How to Use MS Word to Teach Geography
Diagrams organize a students thinking and are fun and easy to create
06/22/10 - Life Wisdom From Your Computer #1: Consider RAM
Don't be afraid to say, My RAM is full! That's what computers do.
06/16/10 - Tech Tip #61: How to Get Youngers to Use the Right Mouse Button
Use the other right button--yeah, that makes sense to kids
06/15/10 - Summer Activities to Keep Kids in Tech