November....Thankful for Much

It's the last day of November, and our school district is having Snow Day #2 already!  Two days in a row the snow has fallen and the wind has blow it into drifts everywhere!  Sounds like a good time to write a blog!  November has flown by, as it always seems to do as we enter into the holiday season!  

Third Graders are preparing two songs on their recorders for their performance on December 13.  We have now learned five different note fingerings:  B-A-G-high C- and low E.  
Students did an activity that is part of the Candy Corn Music Puzzle Bundle by Tracy King on TPT.  The bundle includes puzzles for Dynamics, Notes and Rests and Recorders.  In this activity, students matched up note names, notes on the staff and the corresponding fingering on the recorder.  It was an enjoyable way to learn!

The highlight of our month was the entire school performing for our Veterans on Veterans Day.  We sang "Thankful for the USA" written by Teresa Jennings.  It's a fun, upbeat song, and we enjoyed learning it.  With the audience, we also sang "The Battle Hymn of the Republic", a song by American writer Julia Ward Howeusing, the music from the song "John Brown's Body".  Students sang three verses to this patriotic song, and from Kindergarten to Sixth grade, it was a favorite!  Students dressed up in their patriotic attire and proudly honored the veterans who were able to attend.  Many classes helped decorate the gym, with many many art projects.  It was great!

A special part of the day was that the Veterans stayed and shared lunch with the students.  Two of our grandchildren were happy to share some special time with Grandpa!

"I'm The Fastest Turkey" has to be students' all-time favorite musical game to play at Thanksgiving time!  The game is an echo game, with elements of Duck Duck Goose involved.  My beautiful turkey puppet is used as a prop.  Mr. Turkey gets lots of petting too!  For me, it gives me a chance to hear the students sing alone, to assess their singing voices in areas such as pitch, rhythm and dynamics.  I think that even high school students would play this game if given a chance!

Students in grades 4-6  in technology class have been blogging this month.  They are finishing up blogs on a favorite book they have read recently.  If you have one of these students in your family, ask them to share their blog with you!  Third graders will begin blogging.  Students are required to apply what they have been taught in other subject areas when they are writing....good grammar, correct spelling, appropriate sentence structure.  There are different specific requirements for each grade level, corresponding to what's required of them in their other classes.  

Integral to writing is the skill of proofreading.  Students not only proofread their own writing, but work together with a partner to proof each other's work.  It's always good to have another set of eyes look at your work!

The holidays provide a variety of games that not only work on computer skills such as mouse control, Internet navigation, typing etc. but also skills from other academic areas.  Kindergarten students reviewed counting by 1's, 5's and 10's while completing this turkey activity.  

Students in all grade levels continue to improve their speed and accuracy when keyboarding.  "Awesome posture" is something we visit about frequently as well!
Holiday Concerts are coming soon!  Hope to see many friends and family there to share the joy of making music with our students!

Type to Learn!

Beginning the 2nd semester of First Grade, students work to improve their keyboarding skills with a program called TTL4.  (Type to Learn).  TTL4 has 36 lessons, 5 typing games with each lesson, and 7 keyboarding assessments.

Review of previously learned keys, demonstration of new keys, practice exercises and assessment, with continuous reinforcement of home row positioning, is a cycle followed throughout all of the 36 lessons.  There is emphasis on words per minute speed as well as accuracy.

What students like most about TTL4 is that it's in the form of a game with adventure, information, and lots of specialized activities.

As a teacher, I have access to view the work of each student, and am able to personalize their individual plan and requirements for advancement.  According to the accuracy and speed achieved in a lesson, goals for upcoming lessons are adjusted accordingly.

Students are exposed to lessons that incorporate real-world typing content, as well as cross-curricular.  Examples include historical documents, literature passage, and original writing tasks.

I asked the 2nd grade students what their favorite game was.  It was a split between Drone Control and Dig This.

Drone Control ActivityThis is a timed typing game focusing on speed as well as accuracy. Students type the displayed text as quickly as possible to command a drone to move through dangerous terrain. They must reach their destination before time runs out.
The amount of content provided to the student in this game depends on their individual WPM goal. Students must type fast enough to meet their WPM goal in the time allotted in order to successfully reach their destination. WPM and accuracy are always recorded.

Dig This ActivityThis typing game focuses on accuracy and typing to a beat to encourage a smooth typing cadence. Students type the text displayed in order to break the ice or stones and reveal what's hidden beneath. The metronome beat for cadence can be turned on or off by the teacher in settings, as well as by the student in the game itself. (http://ttl4.sunburst.com/typing-games.php)

Students in grades 1-6 work in TTL4 quite often in technology, as well as trying our hands at other online keyboard activities.  Keyboarding is a skill that everyone needs in their lives.  These students are off to a good start!

One of the fun games on TTL4

Practicing Home Row Keys

Both WPM and Accuracy are emphasized

Look at that beautiful home row position!

It's a whole row of spectacular home row positions!

Let's Move Those Fingers!!

Was developed by gunmakers E. Remington & Sons in Ilion, NY from 1874-1878.  It was named  the "Sholes & Glidden Type Writer," and it was produced by the gunmakers E. Remington & Sons in Ilion, NY from 1874-1878.  Read more about how the design came about here.

A major emphasis of technology at the elementary level has always been improving our keyboarding skills.  Even though we don't normally type on "regular" typewriters any more, keyboarding is an integral part of our life.  Most occupations have a technological component and technology is integrated into your child's education from Day #1.  Throughout the year we will also cover such topics as Internet Safety, Digital Communication, using appropriate digital tools and resources and use of computer applications.

South Dakota is now part of The Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium, a state-led consortium working to develop assessments to measure student progress toward college- and career-readiness. This assessment system is aligned to the  Common Core State Standards (CCSS) .  One major difference we see in these tests is that they are all given online (vs. paper and pencil) and that the test itself is more rigorous, requiring deeper thinking with extended explanations in more of an essay-type format (vs. multiple choice).  Of course, students need to be proficient in their keyboarding skills for this type of assessment!

Kindergarteners are just learning where the keys on the keyboard are located.  We play a variety of online games as to develop this skill.  Mouse control is also a new skill for many Kindergarteners.  We are also learning the correct terminology used for different parts of the computer hardware  (monitor, keyboard etc.) as well as vocabulary for things located on the desktop of the computer (icon, dock, cursor etc.)

First Graders are about to begin a program called Dance Mat Typing, an introduction to touch typing for ages 7-11.  There are 4 levels that will gradually build keyboarding skills. Dance Mat Typing is a fun program with some singing and dancing of their characters built into the program.  Kids love the British accent as well!

Third-Sixth graders use a program called Type To Learn.  This is a cumulative touch typing program which retains students' information from year to year.  Review, demonstration, practice and assessment are all included in this program.  Accuracy AND words per minute (speed) are analyzed and assessed. Since this program is in a game format, it is engaging for the students.

• KEYBOARDING TIPS!

• Use the correct fingers
• There's no need to rush!
• Always rest your wrists on the desk
• You should take a rest, and shake your hands and arms to relax your muscles if you get tired
• It's important not to look at your hands when you are learning to type. The best way to ensure that you don't look at your hands is to cover them up - you can make a simple box out of cardboard or wood to cover both the keys and your hands
• Sit comfortably with your back up straight and your feet on the ground!

The Piano Guys

I have enjoyed watching and listening to The Piano Guys.  They have been together for just over a year, and have exploded in popularity on YouTube.  All are from Utah.  The group is made up of one piano player, Jon Schmidt, and one other instrumentalist, Steven Sharp Nelson, on cello.  The other three – Paul Anderson, Tel Stewart and Al van der Beek – are equally significant members of the group.  Read more about them on their website The Piano Guys.

Five guys from different walks of life with different skill sets, from different places -- each had built their own careers: a piano store owner/videographer (Paul Anderson), a music producer (Al van der Beek), a videographer/editor (Tel Stewart), a pianist (Jon Schmidt), and a cellist (Steven Sharp Nelson). But all with the same ambition: to inspire the world with the talents given them. Each met through seemingly-happenstance, but divinely-influenced circumstances. Combined, they had the tools, the passion, and the drive necessary to independently build one of the most successful music video production companies in the world. They are famous for taking their instruments (especially grand pianos) and video equipment to unbelievable places. But above all, ThePianoGuys love what they do -- and it shows. At the end of the day, they are ordinary guys that love their families and that thank God for the opportunity they have to do what they love.

                               -taken from The Piano Guys Official Channel

Enjoy listening to One Direction - What Makes You Beautiful (5 Piano Guys, 1 piano).  Be sure to read the Story Behind The Song below the video too, located on the YouTube page!

Thursday Techie Tip: Is Good Posture at the Computer REALLY Important??

YES! It surely is! "One of the key elements in ensuring that people can work comfortably and effectively is good posture." --Celine Mckeown.

From the first day of Kindergarten onward, I stress the importance of good posture while at the computer keyboard. By not sitting in the correct position,it is easy to end up with back, neck or knee pain. Over the years, this could easily turn into Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. Here are a few tips to remember:

**Push your hips as far back as they can go in the chair. Adjust the seat height so that your feet are flat on the floor and your knees equal to, or slightly lower than, your hips.

**Your keyboard should be situated directly in front of you, and be centered with your body.

**Adjust the keyboard height so that your shoulders are relaxed, your elbows are in a slightly open position, and your wrists and hands are straight.

**The wrist rest should only be used to rest the palms of the hands between keystrokes and not while typing.

**Adjust the monitor and source documents so that your neck is in a neutral, relaxed position. Center the monitor directly in front of you, above your keyboard.

**Sit at least an arm's length away from the screen.

**Keep your fingers relaxed while typing and using a mouse.

**Use a soft touch on the keyboard instead of pounding keys with unnecessary force.

**Avoid holding a pen or anything else in your hands while you type or use the mouse.

**Exercise your hand by pushing on top of your fingers, and using backward resistance movements. This simple exercise will prevent you from developing carpal tunnel finger problems in the future. Even if you don’t have any problems right now, you may prevent pain later in life by doing a few good exercises

Practicing Typing Skills

Here's a good site students can go to for practicing their typing skills at home!
http://powertyping.com/#pt