Category: Lesson plans

Use the Quick Publication template to make a fast cover page for a report, project, etc, in the classroom. Pay attention to layout, grammar, spelling, design.

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This is one of the most popular fourth grade projects in my curriculum. Students love the research and can’t believe how great the report is when presented with PowerPoint. (more…)

Excel will clear up the confusion about tessellations. They are simple, quick and fun. Read on: (more…)

This is a wonderful project that shows students the joy of learning and research through PowerPoint. Be sure they’re comfortable with PowerPoint by completing several of the prior projects: (more…)

Where Am I?

Use MS Word target diagram to organize the Universe. Start with the student’s town in the center and build out. Show students how to color the diagram. For olders, add a table at the bottom with the location and a fact about it. This is a great way to show kids how they can organize their thoughts with pictures, diagrams, tables—lots of ways other than simple text

Grade Level: 3-5

Background: Using MS Word.

Vocabulary: diagram, graphic organizer, solar system

Time: About 30 minutes

Steps:

• Open MS Word. Add a heading to the top.
• Add a title–Where We Are–centered, bold and font 14. Use this to point out the toolbar with the four alignment tools, bold, fonts and font size (more…)

Before trying this lesson, start here and here and here, with background training on image editing. Don’t worry. It’s not hard–just the basics.

Ready? Let’s start with what Adobe Photoshop is–a grown-up KidPix, and the default photo-editing program for anyone serious about graphics. This series of projects (available in 55 Technology Projects for the Digital Classroom Volume I) introduces students to a traditionally-challenging program in an easy to understand way, each scaffolding to the next, thus avoiding the frustration and confusion inherent in most Photoshop training.

There are three ways to crop in Photoshop:

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Blogs are the most exciting educational tool to come along since… well, wikis, twitter and email. Without any effort on the teacher’s part, students become enthralled with writing. (more…)

Create a ten-sentence story, using characters, setting, plot, rising action, climax and resolution. One sentence per page with a picture to communicate the idea. Include a cover, About the Author. Use this lesson to teach students how to use Publisher’s design gallery

Click on lessons for a full size alternative. (more…)

What’s the first thing you think of when I say, Excel. Numbers, right–turning data into information. That is Excel’s ‘killer app’, but the ingenious human brain has come up with another striking use for Excel: Drawing. I spent a long time trying to find a lesson that taught drawing in Excel and/or offered example. I finally gave up and created my own. (more…)

One of the best ways to get students interested in technology is allow them to personalize their work area. That starts with placing wallpaper of their choice on their desktop. Read on: (more…)