September 10, 2005 Newsletter

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Dear Carmody Middle School 7th Grade Computer Class Parents and Their Children:

Welcome to the single, most exciting Dr. Data newsletter of all time. Please read and print it out for future reference as it is that important.

Brand New Instructional Process Beginning Monday, September 12, 2005

1. Web-based instruction for the rest of the semester! Dr. Data is attempting to revolutionized Carmody instruction in which all assignments, directions, procedures, etc. will be posted on the Carmody Middle School 7th Grade Elective Class web site for all daily assigments from September 12, 2005 to December 20, 2005. What's needed for this innovative, revolutionary instruction at Carmody Middle School?
   • Computer with Internet access at: home, work, relative, friend's or neighbor's. But at a public or school library and/or at a church's computer could also work.
   • Internet browser (suggest Mozilla Firefox, but Netscape Navigator or Microsoft Explorer will also work). Information in the third heading below on how to download Mozilla's Firefox for free.
   • Ability to print a hard copy of daily assignments.
   • If you don't have any of the above, your child can read and print out all assignments in school, including weekly newsletters at no charge.

2. If you don't Adobe's Acrobat Reader (free product), you will need to download it at: http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html and learn more about it at: http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/adobepdf.html since most daily assignments will be saved in .PDF file format (Adobe Acrobat) and the free reader allows you to read and print it.
   
   
3. Your child will learn how to log into the PC lab computers as well as how to print, use the Internet and save their daily work as follows on Monday, September 12, 2005.
   • Students will log into their school computer that they have been assigned to with username (usually their first initial followed by their last name: never going beyond 8 characters and no blank spaces) and their password which should be their student number. If a student does not have an Internet permission form signed by a parent, a neighboring student will print the daily assignment for that student on a daily basis.
   • Students will go to a web browser and go to the following URL for getting class assignments at: http://www.kuzmich.com/carmody/Body_Frame.htm. Then go to the "Curriculum" box. Suggest they use Mozilla Firefox as the first choice. But Microsoft Explorer is also on each computer plus Netscape Navigator as well. Note: Firefox tends to work better on older computers as well as new ones. You can download it for free at: http://www.mozilla.com
   • Then go to the unit of instruction for the individual assignments (word processing, database, spreadsheets, Internet search engines, etc.) For example for the present four-week word processing unit, go to: http://www.kuzmich.com/carmody/claris_syllabus.html for twenty days of assignments with the actual daily assignments posted with links. Just click on the assignment and you'll know what the class will be doing every day. Students are to print out the daily assignment and type it via the instructions given and submit to Dr. Data by placing in the inbox for their class period. Both parents and students will know in advance what assignments are due for the next four weeks! And when students are absent, they can easily do most of them at home except as noted in the daily assignment for some of them have to done in class only.
   • Students can also print out their assignments in advance of class so they don't have to take class time printing out in class. The first assignment on Monday and Tuesday will be: http://www.kuzmich.com/carmody/Knock%20Jokes.pdf and is entitled: "Knock, Knock Jokes."
     
     
4. For specific teaching standards that are being taught each and day, go to: http://www.kuzmich.com/carmody/Scorecard.html for daily standards being taught in each assignment.
   
   
5. Word Processing Rules for All 20 Assignments:
   • All titles of assignments must be 24 point type size or whatever size permits the type to be displaced on a single line.
   • Margins should be in the standard one inch format (top, bottom, left and right).
   • All regular text in 12 point type size.
   • Be sure to type in left, right and/or center justification as illustrated on the printed assignment document.
   • Imitate single, double, triple spacing as given in the assignments sheets.
   • Indent where given (usually it is five spaces indenting format)
   • When given bold, italics and/or underlined words, you need to do it as illustrated.
   • Follow all instructions for each assignment. Some exercises will have to be type more than once which is done through the copy and paste procedures that will be demonstrated in class.
   • Staple multiple pages together with student's name, date and period on first page at the top right corner all on separate lines..
   • Whenever assignment is completed at home, parent must sign assignment with a short note with their name and date of completion.
   • Don't forget to use the spelling checker for typos will result in a lower grade. In ClarisWorks, go to the "Edit" pull-down menu and then go to "Writing Tools" and then select "Check Document Spelling."

6. How To Save Student's daily assignments in the PC Lab at Carmody in room 110.
   
• Finish the assignment as best you can for every class period.
• Go to the file pull-down menu and select "Save As."
• Click on the "folder box"with in the "Save As" box and scroll for Drive H: (note: if you didn't log in correctly with your username and password, you will not be able to save to your folder on the school server, will not be able to print anything and can't access the Internet.
• Strongly suggest that one save regularly every five minutes or so there's no chance that one's work will never be lost more than in a five minutes increments.
• Note: all student work done in school must be saved in their school folder to validate that they actually did the work. If not, your child may not get credit for the assignment and will need to do it "again."
7. How to Print in the PC Lab at Carmody in room 110

• Go to file and select print
• Go to "Setup" and select the HP 5si 1printer for room 110
• Click on OK and it will be printer
• Alternative printer is the HP 5si 2printer for room 110

What Else Is New!

8. Grades may be changing because... beginning Tuesday, September 13th, there will be daily assignments due and that means student absences and daily assignments not completed and submitted will be missing grades which will effect grades noticeably. In addition, students will have the school typing program test them every Friday. So by the end of the semester, there will nearly 100 grades for every students, or over 13,000 grades per semester for Dr. Data has to input into the electronic gradebook. That's a lot grading for Dr. Data!! Hopefully, the "Parent Portal" will soon be available so you can check your child's grades 24/7 for all of their classes. If not by this next weekend, Dr. Data will printout progress reports by Monday, September 19, 2005. So you can see your child's grades since the grading period does close on September 30th and hopefully there's sufficient time for your child to make up missing assignments/tests in Dr. Data's class.

9. Word processing instruction will be taking place for the next four weeks beginning on Monday, September 12th. For specific references to this curriculum and daily assignments, please go to: http://www.kuzmich.com/carmody/claris_syllabus.html for the schedule and descriptions.
   We will be using ClarisWorks in class, but at home, you can use any word processor that you already have to makeup assignments such as: Microsoft Word, Microsoft Works, WordPerfect. Note: students can complete most word processing assignments at home when not finished in class. Just have the parent write a short note with a signature and date of completion and submit it to Dr. Data. Or students can finish the assignments on another day in class.

10. Note: every unit of instruction in Dr. Data's classes has a final project to validate content mastery. For our 3-week keyboarding unit of instruction, a video tape recording of every one of our students typing in home row will be photographed this coming Monday and Tuesday. Suggest your child wear a bright colored shirt! The purpose is to demonstrate eye contact not on the fingers, correct posture, "home row" hand position, positive attitude, etc. while keyboarding. At parent teacher conference on October 12 and 13, 2005, you can view the video for proof of how well your child types. Hopefully by the end of the semester, your child can realistically double or triple their present speed along with improved accuracy. You will learn the specific plans on how this can be done.

11. The four-week unit of word processing instruction will conclude with a two-page Korean Pen Pal letter that will be in CSAP standards and mailed to Seoul, Korea to Mr. Young-Hun SHIN, English Chairperson in Kwangju district in Seoul, Korea. Their Korean students have studied English since 1st grade and basically read and write as well as our Carmody students. Deadline for submitting the preliminary draft to me is Friday, September 30, 2005, and the final copy along with pictures and other memorabilia is Friday, October 7, 2005. For specific details about this final project, please go to: http://www.kuzmich.com/carmody/penpal_908.html

12. I believe it may be important for your child to have access to my 7th grade class’s keyboarding software application for home use. Why? I'd like my students to double and/or triple the speed of their present typing speed of words per minute by the end of the semester. If so, your child be a super typist forever. Unfortunately, some students will not practice beyond class time and consequently, their speeds do not change much. But I know it is possible to accomplish this double or triple speed improvement, especially if coordinate with typing practice at home between now and the end of school. It would also be possible for others in your family to benefit from this instructional CD-ROM. Especially if you have younger children who could also be exposed to it. Carmody Middle School has a site license for the software application, All the Right Type, for use in our school PC computer lab. This is a highly effective ‘learn to keyboard” program. Ingenuity Works, the publisher of All the Right Type, has a special arrangement that enables students and parents to purchase a home version of this program for a very reasonable reduced price. You will receive a flyer on Monday via your child concerning this special pricing, but I have also enclosed the introduction letter and form for you to complete. In order to participate, you need to fill out the attached Student Bulk Order Form and returning it to me accompanied by a check in the amount of $21.00 (per program) by September 23, 2005. Be sure to include your child’s name on the check. The check should be addressed to: Carmody Middle School. No cash please. These charges include:
    • A hybrid CD-ROM that works on nearly every PC and Macintosh computer from all Macintosh’s from system 8.6 and higher to OS 10 and PC’s from Windows 95, 98, 2000 and XP.
    • A manual and a warranty card.
    • All shipping charges from Vancouver, Canada to Carmody.
    • All taxes.

    Important: the order will be cancelled unless a minimum of 10 orders are placed.

    If you would like to investigate more about this product, ask your child about this software application as there are using it class daily as well as visit the product's web site for more details at: http://www.ingenuityworks.com/iworks/main/products/all_the_right_type_3/

    Hope this information is helpful. This is the only the second year that we have offered this product to Carmody parents through our site license relationship and the results are amazing for students who practice daily at home. For example for one student who had a lot of difficulty in learning how to type, that child in one semester went from one word per minute to 18 words a minute. Usually, students who practice at home daily will easily double or triple their present typing speed by the end of the semester. And having the same program at home that we use in school is very helpful.

13. If your child doesn't presently have an A or higher in the 7th Grade Elective Computer Class, please to http://www.kuzmich.com/carmody/Success.html and review the 14 points posted on how this can be realistically accomplished. Beginning this week or the fourth week of the semester, daily classroom assignment kick in which can have drastic changes to ones academic standing if daily assignments are not completed and submitted to Dr. Data in an orderly manner But students can also easily complete daily assignments at home for the word processing unit if there is a computer or typewriter at home. For those students who don't have access to computers/typewriters at home, they can make arrangements to stay after school till 3:15 p.m. and use the PC lab on Mondays, Wednesdays (if there is no faculty meeting) and Fridays with advanced notice with Dr. Data. In addition on Tuesdays and Thursdays are available to 3 p.m. via the Carmody Middle Open Lab program in which school buses are provided at no charge to parents/students. So be aware that your child's grades the next two weeks will probably be a good indicator on how well your child is going to do in this class for the rest of this grading period. Please remember to sign your child's web-based progress report each week along with your child's name printed so 25 extra-credit points can be earned each week. For parents without Internet access, have your child print out a weekly progress report every Monday and returned that same week to Dr. Data.

14. Unique Extra-Credit Opportunities! If you should ever not be pleased with your child's grades, there is unlimited makeup on all assignments and tests before the end of the present grading period on September 30, 2005..

• In addition, there are floating A's that can cashed in plus unlimited extra-credit that can be earned at home or after school. Have your child see Dr. Data for more details.
• And if that wasn't enough, students will earn two extra-credit points for every page that they type for a teacher at Carmody that is graded by that teacher and one point per every page for non-school typing assignments (just print them out and submit to Dr. Data).
• Another alternative is to have your child type ten minutes in a typing program and one extra-credit will be awarded for every ten minutes. Parent must write a short note verifying this.
• Other alternatives could be e-mail and letter typed, but Dr. Data will need to see the finished product along with verification by the parent of how much time was required.

Closing Comments

Hope this installment of Dr. Data's 7th grade elective computer class newsletter is helpful in keeping you up-to-date with your child's activities.

If you have any questions about your child's work or class procedures, please don't hesitate to contact Dr. Data at either his e-mail address at: jkuzmich@jeffco.k12.co.us or his voice mail system at: 303-982-8883. For pressing issues, the fastest way to contact Dr. Data is to call the Carmody main office phone at 303-982-8930 and the receptionist will post a "love note" in his mail box for his prompt attention.

Don't forget to visit Dr. Data's lesson plans on his weekly voice message system about the week's instruction. This could be particularly valuable whenever your child is absent from school or on a school field trip. Again, do so, please call 303-982-8883 24/7. The message is usually updated by Friday for the upcoming week's instruction.

Hope this information is helpful. Have a great weekend and look forward to using computers on Monday.

Till next time,

Mr. John Kuzmich, Jr.
(alias Dr. Data )