I hope everyone has a safe and wonderful summer. The children have had a great year in the computer lab. They have come so far.  I am so proud of them!

Kindergarten -  The students worked on letter recognition and placement of the letters on the keyboard with the Keyseekers and Keyboard Climber websites.  They also explored Starfall.com website for beginning readers.  It is a wonderful website for K-2 and the children really love it.

1st Grade - The students explored various interactive math websites on coin counting to help with the mastery of their math lesson.  They also watched a Brain Pop Jr. video on fractions.  As a follow up to their zoo trip, they explored the New York Zoos and Aquarium website “Build Your Wild Self”.  They created some great animals!

2nd Grade - We are spending the last few weeks focusing on keyboarding skills through various websites.  Dance Mat Typing is a great website to practice keyboarding over the summer.

3rd Grade - They are continuing to practice keyboarding with Type to Learn software.  They finished and printed their stories using Kid Works.  The students practiced their Spelling words with Spelling Central. They enter their Spelling words into the website and it creates online activities using those words. It creates word searches, ABC order, word scramble, etc.

4th Grade - We have been working on activities to correspond to their Science unit.  The children created Astronaut Mission Patches using Kid Pix.  They did a great Job on them.  Very creative!  They explored a wonderful interactive website on NASA’s 50-Year Journey.  Next week we will be focusing on volcanoes and earthquakes with Brain Pop videos and interactive websites.

5th Grade - They did such a great job on their Monster project.  They were very good at describing and at following another classmates description.  It was amazing how many of the pictures look so much like the original.

6th Grade - The students are working on their composer posters using the Glogster website.  They are looking great!

7th Grade - The students finished presenting their Power Points to the class.  They were very creative. There was a wonderful selection of people, places and things.  We started an introduction to Excel and learned how to create a pie chart.

8th Grade - They students created Time Magazine covers featuring themselves as Person of the Year.  Look for them at the Dinner Dance.  We started an introduction to Garage Band.  So many of them have such great musical ability!  I really enjoyed working with the 8th graders this year.  I wish them all they best in high school!

I hope everyone has a safe and wonderful summer. The children have had a great year in the computer lab. They have come so far.  I am so proud of them!

Kindergarten -  The students worked on the letter recognition and placement of the letters on the keyboard with the Keyseekers and Keyboard Climber websites.  They also explored Starfall.com website for beginning readers.  It is a wonderful website for K-2 and the children really love it.

1st Grade - The students explored various interactive math websites on coin counting to help with the mastery of their math lesson.  They also watched a Brain Pop Jr. video on fractions.  As a follow up to their zoo trip, they explored the New York Zoos and Aquarium website “Build Your Wild Self”.  They created some great animals!

2nd Grade - We are spending the last few weeks focusing on keyboarding skills through various websites.  Dance Mat Typing is a great website to practice keyboarding over the summer.

3rd Grade - They are continuing to practice keyboarding with Type to Learn software.  They finished and printed their stories using Kid Works.  The students practiced their Spelling words with Spelling Central. They enter their Spelling words into the website and it creates online activities using those words. It creates word searches, ABC order, word scramble, etc.

4th Grade - We have been working on activities to correspond to their Science unit.  The children created Astronaut Mission Patches using Kid Pix.  They did a great Job on them.  Very creative!  They explored a wonderful interactive website on NASA’s 50-Year Journey.  Next week we will be focusing on volcanoes and earthquakes with Brain Pop videos and interactive websites.

5th Grade - They did such a great job on their Monster project.  They were very good at describing and at following another classmates description.  It was amazing how many of the pictures look so much like the original.

6th Grade - The students are working on their composer posters using the Glogster website.  They are looking great!

7th Grade - The students finished presenting their Power Points to the class.  They were very creative. There was a wonderful selection of people, places and things.  We started an introduction to Excel and learned how to create a pie chart.

8th Grade - They students created Time Magazine cover featuring themselves as Person of the Year.  Look for them at the Dinner Dance.  We started an introduction to Garage Band.  So many of them have such great musical ability!  I really enjoyed working with the 8th graders this year.  I wish them all they best in high school!

Can it be May already? The children have been working very hard in the Computer Lab.  You should be very proud of them!

Kindergarten - The children showed off their Kid Pix skills by drawing and printing a spring picture.  They have great imaginations! We reviewed the alphabet and alphabetical order by exploring various educational websites. On game day, they enjoyed ABCya, PBS Kids and UP to Ten websites.

1st Grade - The students used their keyboarding and drawing skills by typing a spring poem and drawing a picture to go along with it using Kid Pix.  They did a great job! I was so happy with the way they came out. We watched Brain Pop Jr. videos on money and time to correspond to their math lesson and practiced math problems on the interactive website that goes along with their book. In anticipation of their trip to the zoo, the children explored the National Geographic Creature Feature website.  It has great photos and videos of animals.

2nd Grade - The students used their Kid Pix skills to create and print a picture to represent their First Communion.  They did a beautiful job! So many great ideas. On game day they explored the PBS Kids, Up to Ten, Funbrain, Childtopia and Starfall websites.  They are reading a story about a Librarian, so we watched Brain Pop Jr. videos on the Library and choosing a book to correspond to their lesson.  They also explored the Meet a Librarian interactive website from Scholastic.  They have been practicing their keyboarding with Type to Learn software.

3rd Grade - They created and printed an Acrostic Poem for National Poetry Month using the Read, Write and Think website.  Our current project is writing a story and creating a scene for their book cover using Kid Works.

4th Grade - The students have been continuing to improve their keyboarding skills with Type to Learn software and their word processing skills by learning to create a title page for a book report. We celebrated Earth Day by watching a United Streaming video on How We Celebrate Earth Day and Keep the Earth Healthy.  They created and printed poems for National Poetry Month using the Read, Write and Think website. Our current project is creating Astronaut Mission Patches using Kid Pix to correspond to their Science unit on space.  They explored websites with real patches from the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo missions to get ideas.

5th Grade - To celebrate National Poetry Month, we watched a Brain Pop video on poetry and created Autobiographical poems using Word.  They applied the word processing skills of line spacing, changing font size and color and inserting and manipulating clip art on this project.  Our currents project involves drawing skills and learning to be very descriptive in your writing.  First the students will draw a monster with Kid Pix, then describe it as accurately as possible using word.  They will then receive another classmates description and try to redraw that monster.

6th Grade - The students finished their Power Point slides on Chicago Landmarks and we viewed the finished presentation.  They did a great job!  We discussed and had a quiz on our April Buzz Words. We watched a United Streaming video on Internet Safety.  It covered the topics - Social Network Sites, Online Shopping, Internet Scams and Cyber Bullies.  We discussed and demonstrated how to spot a legitimate website and use websites such as easywhois.com to find the owner of a domain name.  They continue to work on their keyboarding skills with Mavis Beacon.  They learned how to created posters using the Glogster edu website.  They are going to create posters of the composers that they researched for Music class and I will create a class wikispace to showcase their work.

7th Grade - The students had quizzes on their March and April Buzz Words.  They are continuing their keyboarding with Mavis Beacon. They finished their Power Point presentations and will begin presenting them to the class.  I let them choose their topics for this project. They came up with great ideas!

8th Grade - The students had a quiz on the April Buzz Words.  They finished creating a slide show using IPhoto.  Our current project is creating Time Magazine covers using Power Point, Word Art and Photo Booth.

Finally, spring seems have arrived!  I hope everyone has a wonderful Easter break.

Kindergarten - We have been continuing to work with the Kid Pix tools. The students learned about backgrounds and stickers and used what they learned to create a print a spring picture. We watched a Brain Pop Jr. movie on Internet safety and discussed the FBI Internet Safety Rules handout. The children explored the Clifford interactive stories website sponsored by Scholastic.  It stresses phonics for early readers.

1st Grade - We watched Brain Pop Jr. movies on the seasons and the senses to correspond to their Science units on weather and the senses. They explored “Our Weather Page” website created by 1st graders.  They continued to learn to use Kid Pix tools by learning how to use the text box.  The students used the tools that they have learned to create and print a St. Patrick’s Day picture with Kid Pix and to celebrate Easter and National Poetry month, they are typing a spring poem with the text feature and drawing a picture to go along with it.

2nd Grade - The students have been continuing their keyboarding with Type to Learn software and learned about Internet Safety by exploring the “Bad Guy Patrol” website. We watched a Brain Pop Jr. movie on poetry and created a Shape Poem for National Poetry Month.

3rd Grade - Students worked on the www.freerice.com website to answer multiplication problems.  Every right answer donates 10 grains of rice to the United Nations World Food Program.  We learned about effective Internet searches beyond Google.  They learned to use search engines geared at elementary students such at Fact Monster and Ask for Kids.  There are links to these sites on the MHR website.  Click on Computer Lab then click on Search Engines.  We also practiced math problems on the website that corresponds to their Math book.

4th Grade - The students finished and printed the formal business letters that they wrote to Ms. Conroy.  They did a great job. She enjoyed reading them! Students worked on the www.freerice.com website to answer vocabulary and grammar questions.  Every right answer donates 10 grains of rice to the United Nations World Food Program.  We continued learning about word processing skills by learning how to address an envelope using Microsoft Word and learning to insert and manipulate symbols in Word.

5th Grade - We watched a Brain Pop video on Helen Keller for Women’s History Month and finished and discussed the Women of Accomplishment Internet search. Students worked on the www.freerice.com website to answer vocabulary and grammar questions.  Every right answer donates 10 grains of rice to the United Nations World Food Program.  They watched a Brain Pop movie on Poetry and started an Autobiographical Poem using Word for National Poetry Month.

6th Grade - The students researched various websites chosen by Mr. Zale for their composer project. They continued working on their Power Point project on Chicago landmarks.  They are doing a great job on their slides, very creative! We discussed and had a quiz on the March Buzz Words.

7th Grade - The students began working on a Power Point presentation on a subject of their choice.  We also discussed the March Buzz Words and will have a quiz on them next week.

8th Grade - The students presented their Power Points on National Parks to the class.  They did an excellent job on them!  I was very happy with the results.  We are going to have an 8th grade class memories Wiki that the students will collaborate on.  They received their permission slips and will receive their login information after they bring in their signed slip.  Our next project is creating a slide show and adding music using IPhoto.

 I can’t believe it’s the middle of March already!  The children have been working very hard in Computer class.  They have come so far this year.

I wanted to remind everyone of a great website. WWW.FREERICE.COM.  It donates 10 grains of rice to the United Nations World Food Program every time you get a correct answer.  They started out with just vocabulary, but have expanded to grammar, math, foreign languages, art, world geography and science. The great thing about it is that it adjusts to your level.  A 3rd grader or a college student can both work on the same vocabulary site. 

I also wanted to remind you that MHR has a subscription to Encyclopedia Britannica online.  You can access it directly through the MHR website.  Click on the computer lab tab, then click on the Encyclopedia Britannica tab.  It is a great resource that breaks down the material into elementary, middle school and high school.  Username:  mstholy    Password:  60805. 

Kindergarten - The students have been continuing to master the Kid Pix tools.  They learned about using the mixer, stamps, stickers and creating backgrounds.  For game day they were able to choose between the PBSkids, UPTOTEN and STARFALL websites. We watched a Brain Pop Jr. video on Internet Safety and discussed the FBI Internet Safety Rules handout.

1st Grade - The children are continuing to learn the Kid Pix tools.  They have been working on paper texture, stickers and backgrounds.  They also learned how to create a text box and change font and font size.  We watched a Brain Pop Jr. movie on Seasons to correspond to their lesson on weather.  They created St. Patrick’s Day signs using Kid Pix.  They did a great job, they are so creative!

2nd Grade - The students have been mastering the Kid Pix tools that we have learned so far and practicing some new ones - the fill bucket, the mixer tools and the stamp tools.  We learned about Internet Safety with the Bad Guy Patrol website and they are continuing their keyboarding skills with Type to Learn software.

3rd Grade - We watched a Brain Pop video on the water cycle and finished and  printed their family albums using Kid Works software.  They did a great job on them!!  They are continuing to master their keyboarding skills with Type to Learn software.  The students practiced their multiplication and vocabulary skills with the freerice.com website.  We learned about effective Internet searching beyond Google by learning to use search engines geared at elementary students.  They can be found on the MHR website by clicking on computer lab, then the search engines tab.

4th Grade - We learned about Black History Month with an Internet Scavenger Hunt on famous African Americans.  They continued their word processing skills by learning to type a formal business letter.  The students wrote letters to Ms. Conroy telling her about 4th grade.  They did a great job!  They are continuing their keyboarding with Type to Learn software.  The students worked on their vocabulary skills with the freerice.com website.

5th Grade -  We watched Brain Pop videos on Ecosystems and Measuring Matter in preparation for the Terra Nova tests.  They explored the National Geographic Underground Railroad interactive website for Black History Month. The students completed a Women of Accomplishment Internet Scavenger Hunt and watched Brain Pop videos on Judy Blume and Helen Keller for Women’s History Month. They also worked on the freerice.com website to practice their vocabulary and grammar.

6th Grade - They used their skills at IWorks Pages to create St. Patrick’s Day posters.  We watched a Brain Pop video on bibliographies and learned how to use the Citation Machine website in preparation for their Composer papers in Music.  They also research their individual composer using website suggested by Mr. Zale.  The students started learning to create a Power Point presentation.  We are putting together a class slideshow on Chicago Landmarks.  Each student is researching and creating a Power Point slide for their landmark.

7th Grade - The students watched Brain Pop videos on Water and Air Pollution in preparation for the Terra Nova exams.  We are continuing our lesson on Power Point.  They researched a topic of their choice and started creating their slideshows.  They will learn how to save them to a flash drive and then present their Power Point to the class.

8th Grade - The students finished their Power Point presentations on the National Parks.  They learned how to save their work to a flash drive and then presented their slideshow to the class.  They did a great job on them!!