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      A handy tool to use when conferencing with students that have written their draft in Word is the Comment tool.  Place the cursor at the end of the line in the area your comment would be related (remember protocol does not allow you to specifically pinpoint errors or places of changes) .  Then go to Insert, Comment.  Type your comment in the box.  

Math

Need a real world math activity?  Seems like everybody is dieting these days so here is a lesson involving the computer's calculator.  Sarah Marques class at Johnson recently tried this lesson.  Students were amazed at the number of calories some foods had.  

New Sites

   Need some new backgrounds for your Power Point projects?  Check out the free power point templates and other cool freebies at the Digital Studio site. 

Digital Storytelling 

(Another one computer activity)

Another use for DS provides a lesson in story sequence for any grade level..  Quickly choose 3 or 4 clipart pieces through a Word document, copy, paste them into the Paint program so you can save them as a .jpg.  Then pull the files into Windows Movie Maker or Pinnacle Studio 8 in an order that would lend to a story line.  Provide time for students to brainstorm a story using the pictures.  You can create the story together letting a different student speak the parts into the story.  Or, as in round robin writing let students take turns telling a line and let the story grow as students take turns.  After the movie is made, students can draft their own story from the storyline. 

   Power Point could be used as well for a short, simple story.  

   Your TRT would be happy to help you with this lesson.  Consider having the TRT facilitate this activity as a center in your classroom or a whole class session.  

Music

Get familiar with the music terms that are heard in the music classroom. How can you sneak these terms into your teaching day?  Connect your classroom computer to your TV.  Set your screen saver for Marquee and type in a music term and its definition in a large font size.  When your screen saver comes on the information will scroll across your TV screen.  

Recommended by others

Suzanne Weaver, TRT @ Beaumont Middle School: "There is a new up grade for smart board.  I just found this today. Neat stuff!  The download does take awhile." 

Curriculum Map

The Curriculum Map Activities site is a new web page added to this site.  Presently you will find the link on the HOME page of this site.