Friday, January 28, 2011

What a great start we are off to in Computer Applications class! I am so pleased with the progress my classes are making in just the short time I have seen them. These are truly some amazing young students!
Take a look at what we have been up to:.

• We all have successfully become members of Edmodo. Edmodo is a social network designed for teacher/student interaction with an emphasis on quick communication, polling, assignment sharing, and more. The students are really enjoying the "face-book" like appearance and it is giving me an opportunity to teach about online etiquette and safety. If you would like to join with a parent account, please contact me and I will set up a code for you. pharesr@edgewood.k12.oh.us
  
• We began our journey into the world of Word Processing. The students have discovered the function of all of the tools on the tool bar, how to insert clip art and word art, and how to use auto shapes to create graphic designs. If you would like to see your child's work ask them to show you their edmodo account.
  

Our goal is to teach you to be a 21st century citizen right along with us. I will be having guest student bloggers to help you in your journey. Your first lesson is on how to comment on a blog. I hope you will take time to comment to our class. (If you are a student reading this and you would like to be a "guest blogger" please let me know.)

Meet Ivan. He is going to tell you how to comment on this blog.


Hey! I am going to tell you how to comment on this blog.

1. Click "comments" below the post.
2. Type what you want to say to our class or to Mrs. Phares.
3. Where it says "comment as" choose "Name/URL."
4. Choose it, and then you can type you're first name.
5. And add this website's url as "URL" or you can leave the "URL" field blank.

I also work on a blog for Mr. Steiner. If you would like to look at it you can click this link.

http://edge201.000a.biz

Thanks! :) Bye!

Hello Second Semester

Please allow me to take this time to welcome the parents of my new second semester students. Hold on to your hats, because I have a feeling this is going to be an exciting semester for you and your son or daughter. They will be discovering many 21st century tools they will need to be successful in their upcoming studies. We hope to bring you right along with us on this exciting journey.

You have some homework:

We will be using Edmodo in our classroom. Edmodo is a safe social learning platform that lets our class connect both at school and from home. Edmodo Parent Accounts are available and I’d like to invite you to join our classroom online.

With Parent Accounts, you can :

● Send messages to your child and me, either together or individually

● View homework assignments, due dates

● Stay up to date on your child’s grades

● Receive updates on class and school events

Edmodo is accessible not just online but on any mobile device, so remember to set up your notifications to receive alerts and check edmodo on your phone. In addition, you can download free Edmodo Apps for both iPhone and Android.

Each parent has a unique code so you will need to contact me and I will give you your code.

My contact information is as follows:

email: Pharesr@edgewood.k12.oh.us

Phone: 513-867-7430 ext: 301

Thank you and I am looking forward to learning with you.

All Good Things!

I can't believe how fast this semester has went. Today was the last day to see my students. I will miss them all so much.

I want them to stay in touch with me so I have designed a blog just for them. You can see it at http://edgems.wordpress.com/.

Thank you to all of the parents and Grand-Parents and Great Grand-Parents who made our Skype unit a success. The kids were so excited. Do you remember when it was long distance to call from Trenton to Seven Mile? Now, we can Skype across the world for free! Amazing!

Skype in Room 301 on PhotoPeach



Thank you for sharing your amazing children with me. I hope I can continue to be a positive influence in their lives. Please contact me ANYTIME if there is anything I can do for you. pharesr@edgewood.k12.oh.us

What do you do while we are at school?

We will be starting our Internet video conferencing unit this week and my students will be introduced to "skype." To make this experience intriguing to my students I would like to involve as many parents and grandparents as possible.

My plans include skyping with parents or grandparents. If you have a computer with a webcam, you will be able to skype (video chat) with your son or daughter's class.

Here is how I envision the project:

Before the Skype Date:

• Your son/daughter will learn about skype in class.
• Your son/daughter will help you set up your skype account and instruct you on how to use the software.

Skype Date:

• Your son/daughter will be responsible for placing the skype call to you.
• Once the connection is established they will ask you the following questions.

1. What is your job title? ( Grandparents could speak about what they retired from. Of course, I believe stay-at-home parents is an occupation in itself.)
2. What is your top job description? What do you do at work?
3. What is the one piece of advice you would have for students my age?

The entire process will take you about 5-10 minutes and will be an incredible help to our class.

Can you help? Please email me at pharesr@edgewood.k12.oh.us .

Thank you