Teaching and E-learning

Learning Over Lunch
This week’s session was on ‘Introduction to student’s collaborating on Google Docs’. Check out the online version .

I am also in the process of putting together a one page handout for staff and students which will provide step-by-step instructions on how to:
• Create a Google Document
• Upload a document to Google Docs
• How to share a document
• How to comment on a shared document
• How to view a revision history of a document

Next week’s Learning Over Lunch session will take place on Wednesday (available online Thursday)
Topic: ‘Introduction to creating a quiz or survey on Google Docs’

Professional Viewing Recommendation
K12 Online 10
Over last few weeks and next week there is a completely free ICT PD conference taking place!
K12 Online invites participation from educators around the world interested in innovative ways Web 2.0 tools and technologies can be used to improve learning. This FREE conference is run by volunteers and open to everyone. The 2010 conference theme is "Cultivating the Future." This year’s conference began with a pre-conference keynote the week of October 11, 2010. The following two weeks, October 18 and October 25, forty presentations will be posted online for participants to view, download, and discuss.

Check out the link here to see the schedule for upcoming presentations and for links to presentations that have already taken place:

Presentation Spotlight
‘Leveraging the Power of Blogs and Wikis in Student Learning’



This presentation looks at how students in a senior Physics class are using a combination of wikis and blogs to enrich their learning. It presents a really useful model for integrating ICT strategies that are readily available to us through Moodle and Google apps such as Google Sites and Blogger – a must watch for anyone looking for ideas for 2011!
You can also access a range of supporting documents for the K12 Online website.

Top Tech Tips
Problems in Google docs?
Having trouble with Google docs at school (i.e. the cursor being in the wrong place)
Try opening up Google Docs through Mozilla Firefox rather than Internet Explorer – this seems to help.

Google Docs shortcuts
Try these short cuts to save time on hunting around the tool bars!
Select all - Ctrl+A
Bold – Ctrl+B
Copy – Ctrl+C
Italicize- Ctrl+I
Insert link - Ctrl+K
Print - Ctrl+P
Save - Ctrl+S
Underline - Ctrl+U
Paste - Ctrl+V
Cut - Ctrl+X
Undo - Ctrl+Z
Redo - Ctrl+Y

The slide show below is designed to provide some basic tips and strategies, encouraging teachers to welcome laptops into the classroom!
The one about turning all screens away works well when not using, or when working in groups with just a few netbooks in use.

His most recent article also has a few ideas for when less is more…"

Learning Over Lunch

This week’s session was on ‘Introduction to student’s collaborating on Google Docs’. Check out the online version .

Professional Viewing Recommendation

Educational ideas now and for the future – Ewan MacIntosh
In this EDtalk Ewan McIntosh from No Tosh talks about the benefits of students directing their own learning - benefits for teachers as well as students. Ewan gives some examples, and believes that over time outcomes from student-directed learning can be tied back to the curriculum.



Did you know?

There are now subject specific pages on our blog (some are still a work in progress!)

The aim of these pages is to provide some handy Learning Area specific links to support teaching and learning.

English Page
Languages Page
Maths Page
Science Page
Social Sciences Page

(Arts and Technology links are on the way - promise!)

Feel free to send your recommendations, feedback or ideas!

The aim of this workshop is to provide a very basic introduction to the Google Docs environment and to provide teachers with an opportunity to learn how to upload (or create), share and collaborate on a document.
Want to learn a little more about Google Docs? Watch the video below.



Potential uses in the classroom?

• Shared writing of class notes
• Jigsaw writing activities
• Collaborative stories
• Collaborative presentations
• Shared study notes
• Peer feedback
• Online bus stop activities

Your ideas?

Welcome to 'Introduction to Blogger'

The aim of this workshop is to give you a brief introduction into what blogging is, consider some possible advantages and to get some ideas for using blogger with your colleagues and students.

Please use the slide show below to provide support at a pace that suits you.

Tip - If you would like to see the slide show in a full screen - click the view on slideshare.
Want to view the slide show and work on blogger at the same time? Use the 'Restore Down' button and the open the internet a second time and 'Restore Down' that page as well. You should be able to then re-size so you can see one beside the other.

Learning over Lunch

This week’s session was on ‘Using Blogs for Student’s Writing’. Check out the online version here.

Next week’s session will be: ‘Introduction to students collaborating on Google Docs’
(available online Friday)

Professional Reading Recommendation

e-Learning and implications for New Zealand schools: a literature review
This e-Learning literature review examined texts across a range of countries, but within a relatively short time frame of the preceding five years. A range of criteria were used to select or eliminate studies for closer review (see Methodology and Methods section). Some key terms are defined for the purpose of this review: outcomes, e-Learning, tools, affordances, Web 2.0.
Author: Noeline Wright
Date Published: July 2010

Tip: Don’t have time to read the whole report? Check out the Executive Summary and Conclusion.

Top Tech Tip!

How to do a screenshot
1. Access the screen that you want to capture, whether that's your desktop or an Internet page or whatever.
2. Now look at your keyboard. Find the button that says "prt sc". On some computers, it will say "PrtScn". Either way, it's short for "print screen". It's normally located in the top right corner of your keyboard near the other function buttons on the computer.
3. Determine whether or not you will also need to use your "shift" key. If your "prt sc" button is a button of its own, you won't. If it's got other functions on it, you might. (Like with other buttons, if "prt sc" is on the top half of the button, it requires "shift" to be accessed.) Try pressing it by itself if you aren't sure. If that doesn't work, you can come back to this step and try adding "alt".
4. Optional step: If you want to only capture the "active" screen and not the other materials that you may see on your computer at this time, you will hit "alt" before hitting the "prt sc" button.
5. Once you've pressed "print screen", your computer should have done the screen capture. However, it needs somewhere to put the image that you've capture. You'll need to open your favorite image editing program. Paste the image into the program using any of the paste methods: Ctrl + V, right click and paste or file-paste.
6. Edit the image in any way that you see fit. This is an option step for screen capture.
7. Save the file. Name it and store in it such a way that you will be able to find it later. After all, you didn't just capture the image to go ahead and lose it!
Source: http://hubpages.com/hub/How-to-Do-a-Screen-Capture-on-a-PC

Welcome to 'Learning over Lunch'! A weekly online workshop for secondary teachers. This week's workshop looks at how blogging can be used for students writing, as well a brief intro to blogger.com.

Teaching and E-learning is a blog written by teachers for teachers. Weekly posts will include: technology updates, recommended reading, online tutorials and top tips for teachers.

Teaching and E-learning is aimed at all teachers, providing ongoing ideas and support for introducing, implementing and embedding e-learning into the secondary classroom.

Please feel free to join the conversation - we welcome your ideas, suggestions and feedback!

Claire Amos
Director of e-learning
Epsom Girls Grammar School