The COMPUTER DEPARTMENT

 

A BEST PRACTICE of NEW JERSEY WINNER

Kindergarten

Throughout the year the kindergarten students will use educational software that is integrated into various curricular areas. Initially, they will be introduced to the Edmark series of Educational software. This series includes three pieces of curriculum-based software. Students will use Millie's Math house to develop fundamental math concepts. They will work interactively in Bailey's Book house to develop basic language and pre-reading skills. Also in Bailey's Book house they will learn to make and print out cards for various occasions. Additionally, in Sammy's Science house they will be introduced to basic scientific processes associated with plants, animals, seasons, and weather. Student will learn to use Kid Pix Studio Deluxe as a creativity tool.

First Grade

Students in the first grade continue to use the Edmark software series. They are introduced to Math Blasters, which helps to review fundamental math concepts. Students are taught to use The Graph Club Software, a fundamental graphing program. This graphing tool enables the students to begin to construct graphs and to analyze data. First grade students will develop multimedia presentations using Kid Pix Deluxe. They will ultimately create a slide show that will combine student created artwork, sound, and animation.

Second Grade

In the second grade students begin to use the Internet to complete curriculum based projects. They are working on an interdisciplinary unit of study on the Rainforest in which they used the Internet and the Culture World Rainforest CD to complete their research. The students will be typing their research results in Microsoft Word. A comprehensive Keyboarding course is introduced to the students in second grade. Students learn proper keyboarding techniques using the Type to Learn software by Sunburst.

Third Grade

Students in the third grade continue to develop keyboarding skills as they progress through twenty-two lessons in the Type To Learn program. They use their acquired typing skills to create curriculum-based projects using the Microsoft Office products. Students in the third grade are introduced to Microsoft Word, Microsoft Publisher, and Microsoft PowerPoint. Third grade students complete an interdisciplinary Multicultural Digital Art Portfolio using Microsoft PowerPoint. Third grade students also learn to use the Intel computer microscopes. The students complete a lab report based on what they viewed under the microscope.

Fourth Grade

Fourth grade students continue to develop the skills they learned in third grade. They maintain their keyboarding skills by regularly completing typing lessons in Type To Learn. They complete several curriculum-based projects using the Microsoft Office software. They continue to upgrade their skills in Microsoft PowerPoint and they continue to develop their Multicultural Digital Art Portfolio. The fourth grade students also complete research using the Intel computer microscopes and they complete lab reports.

Science Integration

This year students in grades k-4 will be studying the life cycle of the butterfly and they will follow the monarch butterfly's migration pattern. Butterfly eggs will be hatched in the computer lab in September and in April. Students will have the opportunity to watch the eggs hatch and to mature into butterfly's. Students in grades k-2 will read Monarch butterfly by Gail Gibbons, Butterfly House by Eve Bunting and The Very Hungary Caterpillar by Eric Carle. They will use the Kid Pix software to create butterflies on the computer. The First and Second grade students will make slide shows in Kid Pix depicting the life cycle of the butterfly. The Third and Fourth grade students will vies prepared slides of butterfly wings using the Intel computer microscope. They will also use the Intel microscopes t o video the development of the butterfly's as they mature.

Computer Club Students in the Third and Fourth Grade are eligible to participate in this extracurricular club. Students participating in the club will be exposed to various pieces of software, and they will work in cooperative teams to complete several projects. Meetings are held in the Elementary Computer Lab from 8:15 a.m. until 9:00 a.m. Third grade computer club meets on Wednesday mornings and Fourth Grade meets on Thursday mornings. Parents are responsible for transportation and must drop their child off promptly by 8:15 a.m.