The Techno Cheetah

Third grade students have recently started using Type to Learn 4 to practice their keyboarding skills in technology class.  Students will continue to use Type to Learn through grade 5.  But this keyboarding practice can continue at home . . .

If you are a 3rd grader and would like to to use TTL4 at home, follow these steps (with your parent’s permission). This information was already shared with 4th and 5th graders at the beginning of the school year.

1. Go to http://ttl4.sunburst.com/downloads/#FullVersions
2. Download either the Windows or Mac full version (It’s a large file so it may take a while; be patient!)
3. Use the same username and password you use in school to login to TTL4. (These are the same credentials used to login to the computer at school.)
4. Enter Account Code: 113048

The student data automatically gets saved online. Happy typing!

• We are excited to announce our plans for the 2013 technology fundraiser.  Thanks to the PTA’s generous donation, we are raffling off a Kindle Fire!  The Fire is a multi-touch, WiFi ready tablet device for reading, games, videos, apps, and more.

The forms for the raffle went home last week with the student Friday folders.  You can print extra raffle tickets by printing this form.  The drawing will be held during the morning announcements on April 12, 2013.

All proceeds from the raffle will go towards the Bellows Spring’s technology department.

Good luck to all who take a chance on this raffle to win a Kindle Fire!

Students in grades K through 12 are encouraged to enter the 2013 Doodle 4 Google competition where they can use their artistic talents to redesign Google’s homepage logo around the theme “My Best Day Ever…”.

The doodle must be a completed on the second page of the official entry form. “Eligible Doodles must be two-dimensional and scannable. This includes any artistic material that will remain flat on the page. This could include: paint, pencils, crayons, markers, chalk, pastels, charcoal, or cray-pas. Computer-generated images are also accepted. This means that any materials that may cause the image to be three-dimensional will not be accepted.”

“One talented student artist will see their artwork appear on the Google homepage, receive a $30,000 college scholarship, and a $50,000 technology grant for their school along with some other cool prizes!”

Information about Doodle 4 Google will be shared in technology class. Students can bring their completed entries into school, mail on their own, or upload directly to the site. Check out all the details at this site: http://www.google.com/doodle4google/

We need volunteers to present at STEM Night. If interested, complete this form (at the link below). Thank you!

From the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Math) Committee:
We are in the process of planning our STEM Night for Thursday,  February 21, 2013. One part of this event will include a showcase of parent demonstrations related to STEM careers set up in the cafeteria. Parents who volunteer to present will stay with their display the entire time and would be responsible for the following:
• Create  a display board that highlights your career and how it is related to STEM.
• Bring in a hands-on activity or interactive model.
• Stay at your station for all the rotations and informally speak with other parents and students.
If you are interested in sharing exciting information about  your career at STEM Night,  please open the link below and complete the form.

STEM Form

Note: There will be a separate sign-up for families to attend this event. This form is ONLY if you are willing to present at STEM Night about your career.

Learning how to use the GAfE (Google Apps for Education) workspace is just one of the many exciting objectives covered in technology class. This is an innovative way for students to create, share, and collaborate.

Any documents created in class are saved as PDF files before they are uploaded to the GAfE. Therefore, the same software is not needed at home in order to view any of the documents.

Reminder: This is a private workspace that is only available to staff and students of the Howard County Public School System. If you are a parent, please help your child access this site at home. See the attached instructions. GAFE at Home

The Howard County Public School System  has implemented a private workspace with Google Apps for Education (GAfE) and is only available to staff and students of the Howard County Public School System. This valuable tool is accessible to all HCPSS schools during the 2012-2013 school year.
Materials can be accessed by students and staff, both in school and at home. The electronic materials will be housed, and communication and collaboration will take place, in the GAfE. To access the GAfE,  bookmark https://hcpss.me and click on Private. The students will log in with their username and password.
To learn how to use GAFE, as well as, best practices, you may access the GAFE website, especially the FAQs and learning tutorials at https://sites.google.com/a/hcpss.me/gafe/faq-s.
At this time, only students in grades 4 and 5 have used the GAfE in technology class. We will introduce this workspace to our students in grades K-2 later this year.

At Bellows Spring our third graders are learning about mechanical engineering.  Ms. Berruz and Mrs. Quinn, technology teachers, are collaborating with  the classroom teachers to implement the engineering curriculum developed by the Museum of Science in Boston.  Under the direction of the Elementary Science Office and the Office of Instructional Technology, this engineering unit has been revised to align with new Maryland Common Core Curriculum Standards, National Educational Technology Standards, and HCPSS science curriculum. Throughout the lessons from “Catching the Wind: Designing Windmills”, students will utilize the Engineering Design Process to explore different materials, shapes, and designs for their final project.

Second graders will learn about engineering later in the year with  “The Best of Bugs: Designing Hand Pollinators”.  This is a county wide initiative and the curriculum for grades 4 and 5 will be implemented next year with grades K and 1 to follow. Stay tuned for more details!