THE LAPTOPS ARE BACK!!!

We have received the broken laptops from the Apple Repair Depot.  I am going to do my best to have them ready for the students by Monday afternoon.

Email me if you have any questions: matt@wornickjds.org

===================================
Matt Harris
Director of Technology
Ronald C. Wornick Jewish Day School

Week of Sept 27-29

This was a short week, but a productive one.  For the first time, we brought out the computers and used them in the classrooms.  The response was quite positive and I foresee a very productive year.  The middle school students are very eager and excited about their computers which makes me happy, but sadly, I had to disappoint them by not letting them take their computers home over the weekend.

Back to school night was a huge success.  I was able to give 8, yes 8, presentations over the course of the evening.  I spoke about the laptop responsibilities to the middle school parents and curriculum overviews to all grades.  My favorite part of the evening was the opportunity I was given to meet so many of the parents at our school.  

Kindergarten: Talked about the parts of the computer and what they do.  We identified the input devices and the output devices in addition to the CPU.  We re-inforced the importance of good listening and following directions.  The students completed a worksheet where they identified the five parts of the computer: CPU, mouse, keyboard, printer, monitor.

1st Grade: The students were assigned numbers and given their first opportunity to work with the computers.  We ran through a review of the procedures of logging onto the computer, clicking the correct icons, and reviewed the password.  The students noted changes to the desktop and the dock.  They were given free time in Kid Pix to explore.

2nd Grade:  The students were assigned numbers and given their first opportunity to work with the computers.  We ran through a review of the procedures of logging onto the computer, clicking the correct icons, and reviewed the password.  The students noted changes to the desktop and the dock.  They were given free time in Kid Pix to explore.

3rd Grade: We talked about the parts of a computer: CPU, Monitor, Printer, Mouse and Keyboard.  We also discussed the flow of information and where all the processing occurs in a computer.  We did an activity sheet where students identified the parts of the computer and described their functions.  The students also got to describe how the data flows on the computer and how the pieces are connected.

4th Grade:  No Class — There will also be no class next week.

5th Grade: Students began their Metaphor Photo Album projects.  They will be using photos attained from the internet to create a digital photo album that is to be used as a response to the following question: Who should win the presidential election and why?  The students visited images.google.com to search for images they will be using in their photo albums.  They downloaded these photos locally onto their iBooks.

6th Grade: I gave the students an activity sheet that will take them on a short tour of their laptops.  They were given the opportunity change their password, desktop pattern, dock preferences, setup their email, and more.  This project will take two weeks to complete.

Note: The students were informed that they could not take home their laptops this weekend because the laptop agreement is not completed.  I foresee that it will be ready by next week and the students will be allowed to take their computers home next week.

7th Grade:  I gave the students an activity sheet that will take them on a short tour of their laptops.  They were given the opportunity change their password, desktop pattern, dock preferences, setup their email, and more.  This project will take two weeks to complete.

Note: The students were informed that they could not take home their laptops this weekend because the laptop agreement is not completed.  I foresee that it will be ready by next week and the students will be allowed to take their computers home next week.

8th Grade:  I gave the students an activity sheet that will take them on a short tour of their laptops.  They were given the opportunity change their password, desktop pattern, dock preferences, setup their email, and more.  This project will take two weeks to complete.

Note: The students were informed that they could not take home their laptops this weekend because the laptop agreement is not completed.  I foresee that it will be ready by next week and the students will be allowed to take their computers home next week.

If you have any questions, feel free to email me at matt@wornickjds.org

Have a great weekend!!!

===================================
Matt Harris
Director of Technology
Ronald C. Wornick Jewish Day School

The Week of Sept 20-24

This was our first week of real instruction, and I think the kids were excited. Especially the middle school students. I think if I had held back their laptops another week, they would have exploded.

Note to Middle School Parents: If you did not come to the technology information session a few weeks ago, please come on Tuesday at 6:45 pm (right before Back to School night). I have some important information for you that must be heard in order for us to allow the laptops to leave the school.

Kindergarten: No Class

1st Grade: We talked about the parts of a computer: CPU, Monitor, Printer, Mouse and Keyboard. We also discussed the flow of information and where all the processing occurs in a computer. We did an activity sheet where students identified the parts of the computer and described their functions.

2nd Grade: We talked about the parts of a computer: CPU, Monitor, Printer, Mouse and Keyboard. We also discussed the flow of information and where all the processing occurs in a computer. We did an activity sheet where students identified the parts of the computer and described their functions. The students also identified the flow of data and how the computers are interconnected.

3rd Grade: No Class

4th Grade: We had further review of the rules of the class and the need for mutual respect.

We talked about the parts of a computer: CPU, Monitor, Printer, Mouse and Keyboard. We also discussed the flow of information and where all the processing occurs in a computer. We did an activity sheet where students identified the parts of the computer and described their functions. The students also got to describe how the data flows on the computer and how the pieces are connected. We began talking about the functionality of the monitor and its use of pixels, but we ran out of time.
Homework: Finish shading in your picture. Look at from a distance. Do you notice that the curves look better from far away?

5th Grade: Students were given access to the laptops for the first time. This year the 5th graders have been given personalized accounts on the elementary school laptops. They logged into their accounts and personalized them. We talked about the importance of good passwords and how to pick a good password. They personalized the desktop, the
dock, and their login icon.

6th Grade: The students were given their laptops for the first time. They were instructed in the proper care of the power cord and the power brick. We did a full demonstration of Apple Remote Desktop and held a discussion about its benefits. The students were informed about their email accounts and the three documents they are going to have to sign before they can take the laptops home: Acceptable Use Policy, Laptop Contract, Email Agreement.

Note: Students are NOT allowed to take the laptops home this week and were instructed to NOT change ANY of the settings, including the password.

7th Grade: The students were given back their laptops. They all seemed very excited. Students whose screens were broken should have them back in a week or so. We did a full demonstration of Apple Remote Desktop and held a discussion about its benefits. The students were informed about their email accounts and the three documents they are going to have to sign before they can take the laptops home: Acceptable Use Policy, Laptop Contract, Email Agreement.

Note: Students are NOT allowed to take the laptops home this week and were instructed to NOT change ANY of the settings, including the password.

8th Grade: The students were given back their laptops. They all seemed very excited. We did a full demonstration of Apple Remote Desktop and held a discussion about its benefits. The students were given free time to explore their computers. The students were informed about their email accounts and the three documents they are going to have to
sign before they can take the laptops home: Acceptable Use Policy, Laptop Contract, Email Agreement.

Note: Students are NOT allowed to take the laptops home this week and were instructed to NOT change ANY of the settings, including the password.

If you have any questions, feel free to email me at matt@wornickjds.org

Have a great weekend!!!

==============================
Matt Harris
Director of Technology
Ronald C. Wornick Jewish Day School

Week of Sept 13

We finished the doing orientation. But it was a short week...someone I
know was going to Hawaii...Talk to you all on Tuesday.

Kindergarten: We spoke about the rules, about respecting the computer,
others, ourselves, and me.

1st Grade: No Class

2nd Grade: No Class

3rd Grade: We spoke about the rules, about respecting the computer,
others, ourselves, and me. We also talked about areas of interest the
students have for the coming year. I also informed the students that
they would have the added privilege/responsibility of having their own
accounts on the laptops.
Homework: Answer the following questions: How much does it cost to make
a phone call on a pay phone? How long did it take you to find this
answer?

4th Grade: No Class

5th Grade: No Class

6th Grade: No Class

7th Grade: No Class

8th Grade: No Class

If you have any questions, feel free to email me at matt@wornickjds.org

Have a great weekend!!!

Matt Harris
Director of Technology
Ronald C. Wornick Jewish Day School

The Week of Sept 7-10

Well, we had our first week of Technology class for every grade, except for grades 3 and K due to the monday holiday. We spent most of our time this week covering rules of the class, talking about respect during class time, and discussing the year to come. I must say I am pretty impressed with our kids this year and I think we are going to do some fun projects.

Kindergarten: No class.

1st Grade: We spoke about the rules, about respecting the computer, others, ourselves, and me.

2nd Grade: We spoke about the rules, about respecting the computer, others, ourselves, and me.

3rd Grade: No class.

4th Grade: We spoke about the rules, about respecting the computer, others, ourselves, and me. We also talked about areas of interest the students have for the coming year. I ran into some discipline issues that are requiring me to hold off a week before I bring the laptops into the class room. Next session we will be doing an activity to demonstrate responsibility with the computers.
Homework: Answer the following questions: How much does it cost to make a phone call on a pay phone? How long did it take you to find this answer?

5th Grade: We spoke about the rules, about respecting the computer, others, ourselves, and me. We also talked about areas of interest the students have for the coming year. I also informed the students that they would have the added privilege/responsibility of having their own accounts on the laptops.
Homework: Answer the following questions: How much does it cost to make a phone call on a pay phone? How long did it take you to find this answer?

6th Grade: We spoke about the rules, about respecting the computer, others, ourselves, and me. We also talked about areas of interest the students have for the coming year. We talked about the rules and responsibilities of having their own personal laptop and we reviewed the information given at the parent meeting last week.

7th Grade: We spoke about the rules, about respecting the computer, others, ourselves, and me. We also talked about areas of interest the students have for the coming year. We talked about the rules and responsibilities of having their own personal laptop and we reviewed the information given at the parent meeting last week. I fielded several questions from the students regarding changes to the computers and the makeup of the class.

8th Grade: We spoke about the rules, about respecting the computer, others, ourselves, and me. We also talked about areas of interest the students have for the coming year. We talked about the rules and responsibilities of having their own personal laptop and we reviewed the information given at the parent meeting last week. We had a roundtable discussion about what would be covered this year in class. I think they were excited.

If you have any questions, feel free to email me at matt@wornickjds.org

Have a great weekend!!!

Matt Harris
Director of Technology
Ronald C. Wornick Jewish Day School

How this is going to work...

Welcome back to school everyone! I don't know about all of you, but I am really excited about this coming school. We have some fun and exciting changes in technology at the school waiting for you this year. The technology curriculum with began to implement last year is even better with fresh lessons and projects. We have also extended a brand new technology curriculum into the Middle School. Like I said, I am very excited.

By popular request, I have decided to create a weekly update of the technology curriculum for each grade. I will be posting my weekly updates online in the form of this Blog. Updates will come for every grade level on Fridays before school is let out. The updates will include information on what was covered in class, what to expect in the coming weeks, and the assigned homework, if any.

Along with information about technology classes, this weekly update will provide an opportunity for parents and students to leave comments regarding the curriculum. Please keep all comments on topic and less than three sentences. Thank you.

Please visit this site often and leave your comments or questions. You may also email me at matt@wornickjds.org at any time.

I am looking forward to a great school year.