Technology Class

2nd grade integrated their math skills (surveys and graphing) with technology by using their survey results to create bar/column graphs using Microsoft Excel. Here are some examples. Click on each one to enlarge.

After they were able to complete their excel bar graph I introduced them to a wonderful website called Create a Graph.  This website allows the user to input any data and create great looking bar graphs, pie graphs, area graphs and more! We used it to create a pie graph. By the end of the class period students had a bar graph AND a pie graph of their survey information! Wow!

Just wanted to share a couple of pictures of students sharing their voicethreads. I want to give kudos to Mrs. Oyama and Ms. Everett for venturing into the “unknown” by going TECH with the reading portion of the progressfolios! This is a first for our campus!

Click on the individual pictures to enlarge.

In 2nd grade we are integrating language arts (reading, writing, and speaking)  with technology. We reviewed the application Kidspiration, using the diagram/web tool to create a “story elements” web. After a demonstration of the activity, students opened up storylineonline.net and selected a story to listen to. After listening to their story, they went to Kidspiration to create a web which included the title of the book, main characters, setting, and main events.

Here are students working on their Kidspiration webs.

Papa ‘elima is busy on a new project that will use Inspiration 8, the internet, iPhoto, Garageband, and iMovie. Whew! Lots and lots of work. And it is based on their favorite subject: THEMSELVES! Yes. They are doing a Me Movie. All About Me. My. Myself. And I. Me Now. Me Future. 

They will be choosing their photos from a website called compfight.com. And the reason we have chosen this one is that they can choose pictures that do not have strict copyright restrictions and can be legally used. We take copyright very seriously here at Kamehameha and want our students to learn the importance of citing work created by others and, for educational uses, giving credit where credit is due. On compfight.com students can select “Creative Commons” only to ensure that they will not be infringing on anyone’s copyright restrictions.

Here are some students hard at work looking for appropriate photos:

During the second trimester Papa ʻEhā haumāna will be learning about internet safety. The focus will be the “online community” and how to stay safe, avoid inappropriate behavior and use websites in a pono manner.

As always, parents should monitor their children’s use of computers in the home, at all time. I can teach them the important skills to know and I can reinforce this knowledge here at school, but most time on the internet is spent at home.

Our first lesson was spent using Inspiration 8 to create a mind map of the different communities we participate in and what our kuleana is in those various communities.

The students came up with a list of POWER responsibilities, that is, responsibilities that resonated in many students’ mind maps. These included: listen, practice, be respectful and “show up” (be present).

Here are some of the groups in 4B in their discussion groups with their Inspiration 8 mind maps.

Papa ‘ehā students are learning the tricks and tools and ins and outs for MS Powerpoint 2008. This is in preparation of their digital progressfolios. There is a wonderful website available to our KS ʻohana called Atomic Learning. There are hundreds of videos on Atomic Learning for learning most programs available to us. Here is a link for MS Powerpoint How Tos that might be useful to you. If it asks you for a username and password I will be happy to share it with you. The username is ksbe and the password is a yummy fruit that is yellow on the inside, it has a crown on it, and its skin is a bit pokey and is yellow orange when ripe. Remember, click HERE for the link.

screen shot of Atomic Learning offerings in ppt

Today was day 2 of our Skype adventure.  We were fortunate to connect with Darren Cooper, a Maori who resides in Aukland and attended Kamehameha Schools Kapālama as an exchange student in 1987. Eight 4th graders and their teachers, Kumu Kala and Kumu Silva, were able to ask Mr. Cooper questions that will help them with their research project.

I am so grateful to the IT department at KS for allowing us this opportunity to use SKYPE to kōkua our keiki to communicate and collaborate for their research project. Native peoples talking with one another, thousands of miles between us not a hindrance in sharing aloha for one another. Mahalo nui.

Mahalo nui to our wonderful PTO for funding a full year subscription to ixl.com.

Students can access ixl.com from home and parents can see their childrenʻs progress! What a great way to support your keikiʻs growth in math.

Practice makes perfect, and IXL makes math practice fun. With unlimited math questions in more than 1,000 topics, students improve their skills and confidence and always have new challenges to meet.

Here are students from 1A have a good time on ixl!

Papa ʻehā had an awesome Skype with Andrew and Andrea LePendu who live in Punaauia, Tahiti! Those whose Island Groups research project focuses on French Polynesia got to ask them questions pertinent to their research. The LePendus were quite impressed with the great questions papa ʻehā students ask them. Maururu, Merci Uncle Andrew and Aunty Andrea!!! All the way from Punaauia!!!