Enjoyed meeting you

Catherine and Diane - I enjoyed meeting both of you and exploring blogging together. Diane, so sorry that I had to leave early on Friday. I have chuckled over our pictures a few times since I have been home. Hope that you have a wonderful August.

PhotoShop Elements

1. Take pictures.
2. Upload from camera to PhotoShop Elements using camera cable with a USB port. Pictures are stored in the Organizer.
3. Fix red eye on all photos by using Auto Red Eye Fix in the Edit menu.
4. Edit>Standard Edit -- This opens the workplace.
5. Getting the picture - go to file>open>My Documents>My Pictures>Adobe>Digital Pictures
6. On the workplace screen, to remove a blemish use the eye dropper to match color, then use spot healing brush (looks like a bandaid.)
7. To crop a picture, choose the cropping tool. Drag a rectangle around the area you want to keep. Click the OK button (the check mark.)
8. Selecting parts of the image. Lasso -- draws circle around area. Magnetic Lasso -- circle image, points that lock onto specific parts of the image. To adjust -- Shift enlarges lasso (+) or Alt shrinks lasso(-).
9. Magnifying the image makes it easier to select specific areas.
10. Magic Wand -- automatically encampsulates the image by color. The tolerant level can be adjusted to grab more or less of the image.
11. Applying filters -- Artistic adjustments change the image to different types of media such as water color or pencil.
12. Color -- In lower left corner, click on either foreground or background to choose color. Match color -- use the eye dropper to pick up a color that matches.
13. Add text -- In Photoshop, choose T (text tool), set font, color, and size. Magnify image and type message

Ethics of Sharing

We should teach and model the ethics of sharing, but we see the students for a short time each day. The effort should be universal - at school and at home.

The effort should include more public awareness of the issue and the consequences.
For instance, we all understand the consequences of robbing a bank. Downloading a song is not an issue that carries the same negative implications.

One technique to raise awareness involves invoking a child's sense of fairness. The developers of computer software suffer financially when they are "ripped off" When a child considers facing a world without computers, he or she will be able to personalize the effects.

Schools imposing consequences raises a number of issues. Are schools willing to impose penalties if parents do not support them?

Kids can pick up immediately what the boundaries are in each classroom. Consistency is critical amd it helps the children to have structure and to do the "right thing."

Impressing the importance of the issue on children at an early age assists in breaking the cycle.
Parental education is a critical adjunct to the educational efforts, so that they will reinforce the message.

Diane's Notes from Ch 12 -- Windows focus

Chapter 12 – Word Processing

· The manual does serve a purpose. Use it as a reference.
· Write your own notes. You will need them again, and you may help someone.
· Use the Help feature.

Beginner Hints
· Enter only at the end of a paragraph
· Use the Tab key not the space bar
· You can never save too many times
· Save before you print
· File names should be descriptive

Experienced Hints
· Become a Tab expert
· Save often
· Replace is a useful edit tool
· Use folders to organize your files
· Back up your work

Selecting text
· One word – DC on word
· One line – LM, click once
· One paragraph – LM, DC or TC in paragraph
· Entire document – Ctrl A, Edit>Select All, TC in margin
· One sentence – Ctrl click on sentence
· Large section -- Shift click method

Tabs (can be done on ruler)
· Pre-set stopping points
· Default – ½ inch
· Right, Left, Center, Decimal
· Tab box – at the right of the ruler, click for the different tab stops
· Format > Tabs > Choose type, choose leaders, etc.

Margins
· File > Page Setup

Indents (done on ruler)
· End of lines
· First line indent marker
· Hanging indent marker
· Left Indent marker
· Right Indent marker

Views
· Under View in Menu bar
· At bottom right of screen
· 5 views: normal, web layout, print layout, outline, reading layout
· ¶ (Show/Hide) displays all characters on screen

Toolbars
· View > Toolbars
· Most popular – Standard and Formatting
· Customize

Smartboard Pros and Cons

1. It is very visual.
2. The kinesthetic aspect enhances motor memory.
3. Instant access to the Internet and interaction with other applications make it fast and easy.
4. The vast amount of information at your fingertips broadens teacher's ability to use resources.

CONS

1. Currently, the mobile Smartboard have wire problems.
2. Positioning people is time consuming and awkward.
3. If positioning on a wall, ensure that there are no mechanicals behind it.

Regarding note taking. With or without the smart board, students need to be taught how to take notes to prepare them for college. Great way to have guided notes.

The 5 Toughest Questions

Here's the questions we found the most challenging:

1. Number 9- A CD rom holds about 650 meg which is the same as 650000 K.
2. Number 16 - Baud rate refers to the rate that data passes through a cable.
3. Number 19 -- The MP3 file is a compressed sound file, typically 3 to 6 MB
4. Number 11 -- RAM -- Random Access Memory, temporary memory
5. Number 12 -- ROM -- Read Only Memory, built in memory

Bonus: What are your plans for the $33?

Our First Post

We did it! It was much easier than . . . giving birth. A lot less time and better results.