Tech Tips 2Day
"A little fun. A little business. A lot of learning."
March, 2014
A new tech tip for each school day in March. Some tips are web tools, some are trouble-shooting help, and some are just plain interesting and will help you deliver an interactive curriculum. Every tip shows a connection between technology and the curriculum. Have fun!
Jim
(Western Dubuque uses Windows computers so the tips apply to the Windows environment or WD's use of iPads.)
March 3, 2014
Curriculum connection: Tool
March 4, 2014
Curriculum connection: Tool
March 5, 2014
There's a difference between the Backspace and Delete (Del) keys. Use the Backspace to delete the character that's to the left of the blinking cursor. Use Delete to remove the character that's to the right of the blinking cursor.
Curriculum connection: Tool
March 6, 2014
If you have a file that's too large to send by your email provider, try using yousendit.com or transferbigfiles.com. Either may solve the problem of sending those large files!
Curriculum connection: Tool
March 7, 2014
Curriculum connection: Tool
March 10, 2014
Try this quick trick with your mouse: If you would like to highlight a large amount of text, rather than clicking and dragging simply click at the beginning of the text you would like to highlight or copy, hold down the Shift key, and then click at the end of text you would like. Ta-dah! The text will be selected.
Curriculum connection: Tool
March 11, 2014
The scroll wheel on your mouse is a wonderful tool that's often over-looked. If you would like to zoom in and out in a document or web page, hold down the Control (Ctrl) key and roll the wheel away from you to zoom in and toward you to zoom out. Very handy.
Curriculum connection: Tool
March 12, 2014
If you would like to select a word in your document, double-click the word. You can highlight a whole sentence or paragraph by left-clicking three times on any word.
Curriculum connection: Tool
March 13, 2014
Double-click on the top title bar in any window (the empty space, not a word), you can maximize the window. If the window is already maximized, double-clicking it, again, will make it smaller.
Curriculum connection: Tool
March 14, 2014
Twitter trick: You can search for current tweets about anything near you by typing near:"Des Moines Iowa" restaurants (for example).
Curriculum connection: Tool
March 17, 2014
Twitter tips for the beginner:
- Don't follow too many people all at once. You want your own followers so a nice balance of who you are following along with those following you is a good thing.
- Try to engage your followers. Ask thought-provoking questions and/or answer others with questions or productive insights.
- Go ahead... Retweet posts that you like or find interesting. It really feels good to have something you say retweeted by others.
- Don't lose sleep or productive time trying to read every tweet. You simple can't do it.
- Look for people who have a lot of followers and then participate in their conversations. This will help you generate your own followers.
Curriculum connection: Being able to effectively use a social networking site requires a certain amount of restraint. We need to be aware of how to use social networking as a tool and as a positive experience for everybody. Don't be afraid to share the above tips with students or fellow teachers who Tweet.
March 18, 2014
Curriculum connection: Our language constantly evolves with new words being added to our dictionaries almost every day. Learn from your students, social media, and the Internet and appreciate changes in our language.
March 19, 2014
- Ctrl + C or Ctrl + Insert: Copy the highlighted text or selected item.
- Ctrl + F: Open the Find in any program.
- Ctrl + V or Shift + Insert: Paste the text or object that's in the clipboard.
Ctrl + Home or Ctrl + End: Move the cursor to the beginning or end of a document.
- Ctrl + Z and Ctrl + Y: Undo any change or redo the unchange.
Curriculum connection: Tool
March 20, 2014
Curriculum connection: Tool
March 21, 2014
Sometimes it's nice to enable, disable, or uninstall certain features in Windows 7. To quickly do this, click the Start button, type features in the text box, and then press enter. An Uninstall window opens and the Features link is on the left. Make sure you don't delete or turn-off a feature or program that needs to run on your computer!
Curriculum connection: Tool
March 24, 2014
Wouldn't it be handy to rename multiple files at the same time? You can. Simply highlight all the files that you would like to rename and press the F2 key. Then, type in the new name you want the files to be named and press enter. You will see the new name followed by a different number for each file.
Curriculum connection: Tool
March 25, 2014
If you notice that something in Windows 7 is acting strangely, you may be able to discover why by clicking Control Panel > Find and fix problems (Troubleshooting) and you will be able to access troubleshooting packs. Find the pack that addresses the problem and see if the problem can be resolved.
Curriculum connection: Tool
March 26, 2014
Curriculum connection: Help make math and history pertinent to your students in an interesting way. By relating to their ages (or parents, friends, siblings, etc.) you help make math and history relevant.
March 27, 2014
March 28, 2014
- Dress appropriately: Looks matter!
- Camera placement: Keep the camera at eye level with the upper chest and head centered in the frame.
- Quality camera: Cheap cameras yield cheap quality video calls.
- Lighting: Light the background behind you, cameras on each side of you and one aiming up at you.
- Audio: Invest in a decent microphone. You should be heard clearly and cheap mics don't deliver quality audio.
Curriculum connection: Not only does appearance matter when looking for a job or presenting a speech, we need to teacher our students how to present themselves in a professional manner. Video conferencing will probably increase in the future and the need to look appropriate will be important.