Weeks 10-12 - Type Formatting

When we create stories, poems, letters, etc., we don't just communicate with the words we use. We also communicate by the way our words look. Bold and italic type are used for emphasis. Colors can help communicate a feeling or emotion. Type size can be adjusted to give particular words more or less importance. And the endless variety of fonts can range from silly and playful to structured and traditional. Type formatting can be a very important form of communication.

Over the past three weeks, the second graders explored all they can do with type by formatting their spelling words and poems. We also read The Book With No Pictures by B.J. Novak which is a great example of how we can communicate a great deal just by changing the way our type looks. This book is definitely a favorite with grade 2.

Week 9 - Tech Teamwork

This week, the second graders worked in teams to take a computer-based quiz. Each team of four students shared a computer, with one "pilot" at the controls. On their screen, they were presented with a series of quiz questions covering a variety of topics we've discussed so far this year. The students needed to discuss the questions, the answers, and their thoughts on each, coming to a conclusion together. I was impressed with how well our second graders worked AS A TEAM to come up with the correct answers. Their performance was spectacular. Great job, TEAMS!

Week 8 - Typing Posture and October Race

I love Halloween. Not only because of the costumes and candy, but also because it's the perfect time to talk about our posture. I call it Frankenstein Posture (cue scary music). Frank (we're close friends) has ideal posture for typing. And he gives us a great reference for whenever we sit at the computer.

We also competed in the second leg of our Typing Race. The October portion of the race was as tight a competition as you could get...all four classes finished with about 6 words per minute! This week's Typing Supernovas were Arjun R. (12 wpm) and Iniya M. (11 wpm). Nice job! There's plenty of racing ahead, so keep practicing!

Week 7 - Saving our Wild Side

These kids are animals! Everyone has a wild side and this week, the Baker second graders got a chance to explore theirs. We went to a fun website created by the Wildlife Conservation Society. It's called Build Your Wild Self and it gives kids the chance to see what they might look like with various animal parts. Elephant legs, fox ears, gorilla arms, sea lion flippers...they tried them all and a whole lot more. The kids got a chance to explore the different animal parts and learn a bit about the animals themselves. Not only did they create some crazy new species, but like true conservationists, they also saved them! Saved them to their P drive, that is. (Note: the site has a few minor glitches, but they still had fun. See...computers aren't perfect after all.)

Week 6 - Saving Pumpkins

Halloween is right around the corner. So what better way to practice our saving than to carve a bunch of pumpkins and keep them for later! Students went on ABCYa's Make a Pumpkin game and created their own pumpkins. In fact they created three, giving each a unique name so they could remember it for later. After creating and saving their pumpkins, I asked the students to go into their P drive (their personal drive at Baker) and choose one of their pumpkins to open and print out to take home. They did a great job! I don't know about you, but when I was a kid, carving pumpkins was a lot messier than this.

Week 5 - Naming and Saving Files

Saving is a very important part of working with computers. So we dedicate a lot of time to the process of saving. And a big part of that process is giving a proper name to your file. This week, the second graders were builders. As their "foreman," I asked them to create a house. The only requirement I gave them was that their house had to be the color I specified. All other aspects of the design were up to them. I asked them to build three different houses with three different colors. They had to save each one, giving each file an appropriate name. So when I asked to "review their designs" of their pink house, they should be able to find and open that file without trouble. We built some nice neighborhoods this week, But more importantly, we created a solid foundation for proper saving of computer files.

Week 4 - Typing Race (September)

Each year, the classes compete against each other in a typing speed competition. The winning class gets crowned Baker Second Grade Typing Champion and wins a trophy to keep in their classroom at the end of the year. This year, we're racing with rockets. Get ready for LIFTOFF!

The first leg of our race was pretty tight, with 3 teams tied for the second spot. But Mrs. Bottinelli's class soared to the lead with an average speed of over 4 words per minute. This was Mrs. B's first weekly win in the history of the competition. So needless to say, she was over the moon. The kids were pretty happy too. Arjun R. was our Typing Supernova this month with an amazing 12 wpm!! Great job job to Arjun and all of our second graders. Keep practicing (check out theTyping Practice tab at the top of this page for some great typing practice resources)! There's plenty of racing ahead!