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Printable Version

This lesson is designed as an enrichment activity to integrate the use of computers into the curriculum. I did this lesson at the Computer Lab but it can also be modified to take place in a classroom equipped with a few computers. The main purpose is to teach computer skills through integration with a thematic unit. It is assumed that the students have worked on a unit about different kinds of animals already.

STANDARDS ADDRESSED:

National Educational Technology Standards (NETS) - Standard 3 http://cnets.iste.org/index2.html

GENERAL GOALS:

To use technology tools to prepare an electronic presentation to enhance learning and use creativity to communicate previously acquired knowledge about animals.

SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES:

1. To explain the characteristics of at least four types of animals.
2. To add a text box to a graphic file.
3. To recognize the A drive as the drive that reads diskettes.
4. To save a file to a storage device such as a diskette.
5. To retrieve previously saved files to import them into the presentation program.
6. To add transitions and sounds to the individual slides.

REQUIRED MATERIALS:

Computers equipped with Kid Pix.

STEP-BY-STEP PROCEDURES:

1. Open Kid Pix and instruct the students to make a title page. They can create the title using the letters stamps in their favorite colors. Then, using the text tool, they will insert a textbox to write their names. They can decorate this page using the stamps features of the program.
2. The students will learn how to save the file to their own diskettes. They will select the A drive and give a short name to the file. E.g. title. Explain to the students that the program does not accept more than eight letters file names.
3. Open a new page to draw the first animal; farm animal. Demonstrate to the students how to use different tools for this task. With the line tool they can divide the page in half (one half for the drawing and the other half for the explanation).
4. The pencil tool can be used to make the drawing. They can change the color of the pencil by choosing different colors from the color palette at the bottom of the screen.
5. After the students draw the animal they will proceed to add a textbox on the other half of the page to explain in their own words the characteristics of the animal they chose. They can change the font and its size by choosing another one from the menu at the bottom of the screen. The students will need to save this new page in the same way they saved the previous one. Name this file - farm.
6. Proceed to make new pages for each type of animal (farm, domestic, ocean, wild). Each page should have an explanation of the characteristics of the animal they choose to draw and the students can decorate the page with nature stamps if they wish. Let them use their creativity and explore the features of the program. Each page should be saved with a short name that would be easy to identify.
7. After all the pictures are made and saved, instruct the students to go back to the 'picker screen' (File - Return to Picker) and choose 'Slide Show'. If this is done another day, when they open the program they will already be in the 'picker screen'. For each 'truck' or slide choose to insert one picture starting with the one that was saved as title. Demonstrate to the students how to retrieve the files from Drive A.
8. After all the pictures have been selected and added to the slides, the students can proceed to add sounds. They can choose to add a sound from the program or they can choose to record their own voice explaining the slide. If they are going to choose a sound from the program, encourage them to preview the available sounds before making a decision. If they are going to record their voice, remind them to listen to the recording before clicking on OK.
9. Next, the students will proceed to apply a transition to the slides. Again encourage them to preview the different transitions before making a decision.
10. The last step is to save the slide show. Review the file saving techniques that the students have learned and assist them to save the show. They will go to the file menu and choose 'Save a Show'. They will select Drive A: and will give the file a short descriptive name. E.g. animals.
11. The students will play the slide show to share it with their peers. From the menu bar they will choose 'Play Once'.

E-Mail Jannette Torres!

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