Technology

I've come up with a set of rules that describe our reactions to technologies:
1. Anything that is in the world when you're born is normal and ordinary and is just a natural part of the way the world works.
2. Anything that's invented between when you're fifteen and thirty-five is new and exciting and revolutionary and you can probably get a career in it.
3. Anything invented after you're thirty-five is against the natural order of things.
from The Salmon of Doubt: Hitchhiking the Galaxy One Last Time
by Douglas Adams

Manage your online reputation:
Google yourself
Update daily: Updated info usually moves to the head of the line.
Claim your name: Purchase all domains containing your name (yourname.com, yourname.net, etc,) even if you're not planning to create a personal website. Doing this will prevent others from hijacking your name and online search results.
Sign up for alerts: When your name appears in a news article or posting, alerts, such as Google.com/alerts, will let you know. Socialmention.com has alerts that will inform yhou when you pop up in a tweet or are tagged in a photo on Flickr or Facebook.

Nine posture tips when at the computer:
1. Sit up straight and deep in the seat. Your feet should be flat on the floor or on the footrest.
2. Keep your lower arms level with the desk and keep your wrists straight. This helps prevent carpal tunnel syndrome.
3. Sit close enough to your keyboard to eliminate strtching but far enough to avoid leaning. Your shoulders should be back, and your head shold be directly over your shoulders.
4. Tap the keyboard lightly. Don't pound.
5. Place your mouse wihin easy reach of your dominant hand. Hold the mouse loosely.
6. Place the monitor at eye level, 16 to 24 inches away.
7. Exercise your eyes frequently. Look away and focus on distant objects.
8. Periodically look up at the ceiling to give your posture muscles a break.

Roll Your Own Search Engine: http://www.rollyo.com/
Roll Your Own lets you set up searchrolls. A searchroll is your very own customized search tool. Start by specifying the sites you want to search. Then sign up to save your searchroll. Registration is free. When you want to do a search, just enter your search phrase. Your search will be limited to the sites you specify. Pay close attention to your settings. Your searchroll and profile may be made public. You're given the option of making it private, though. You can check out some of the public searchrolls.

To remove a program properly, click Start>>Control Panel. Double-click Add or Remove Programs. Find the program in the list and delete it. Shut down the windows you opened. Open Windows Explorer (Start>>All Programs>>Accessories>>Windows Explorer). Click Program Files, under C:. In the left pane, look for the name of the program you deleted. If it is there, click it once to highlight it. Then, click Delete (Del).

Yahoo!: http://audio.search.yahoo.com
Yahoo offers audio searches here. With it, you can locate specific music, sound effects and other audio, such as speeches. Yahoo!'s audio search works similarly to its Web search. Simply type your search term and hit Enter. You can limit the results to music or other files. You can also specify if the search term is an artist, album or song title. For further refined results, click the More Options button. Yahoo! lists songs available from numerous music download sites. You'll need to pay for these downloads. But Yahoo! also searches free audio files that are posted legally.

America Online's Singingfish: http://www.singingfish.com
Singingfish only indexes free files. Included are songs, newscasts and other audio files that are posted legally to the
Internet. Singingfish allows you to limit your search to specific file formats. Categories help you limit the type of content. Some files can be downloaded to your computer. However, others are streaming audio. This means you must connect to the site to listen.

You can add an account to your Windows XP system by going to the Start Menu to Control Panels and clicking on User Accounts. You need to be logged on as the computer's Administrator (with the master account, probably the one you're already using if you set up the computer) to create the new account. Windows XP offers two main types of personal computer accounts for home users: Administrator and Limited. The Administrator account has the most power and freedom, and allows you to do things like install new hardware and software, manage all the other user accounts and make changes that affect the whole system. The Limited account type has restricted abilities and may not be able to install certain programs, but the user can change the password, customize certain desktop settings and see files in the Shared Documents folder. There is also an account type called Standard for some Windows XP Professional systems, and most XP computers have a Guest account with limited powers that can be turned on for users who aren't around long enough to need a personalized account name and password.

You can use one earphone for a hands-free cellphone or other device, however, New York State traffic law does not permit headphones in both ears when driving. Article 9, Section 375, Subdivision 24-a states, "It shall be unlawful to operate upon any public highway in this state a motor vehicle, limited-use automobile, limited-use motorcycle or bicycle while the operator is wearing more than one earphone attached to a radio, tape player or other audio device." If you do not live in New York, check with the Department of Motor Vehicles in your state for specific regulations. Even if wearing a full set of headphones while driving is legal in some places, it may cancel out your ability to hear car horns and other audio clues. An FM transmitter or other device connecting the music player to the car's stereo system is an alternative.

Audacity: http://audacity.sourceforge.net/
This is a free, cross-platform sound editor.
To trim a sound file, with the cursor select the part of the audio you want to keep and play it to be sure it's exactly what you want. Then choose Trim in the Edit menu. Then go to the file menu and save it under a new name (as MP3 or WAV or whatever).
Dividing up a long file is just as simple. Select and listen then trim. When you save the selected sequence go back to the Edit menu and select Undo
Trim. You'll find the complete file before the trim and then can go on to the next segment and do the same.
A tutorial can be found at: http://audacity.sourceforge.net/manual-1.2/index.html

System Restore.
System Restore debuted in Windows Me. It is also part of Windows XP. It takes snapshots of your system. The snapshots are called restore points. System Restore is useful if you run into sudden problems in Windows. You can return your system to the way it was before problems started. By default, System Restore may keep restore points for the last 90 days. Choose a date and Windows will become its former self.
Restore points are made automatically every 24 hours. That's assuming the computer is turned on. Otherwise, the restore point is created when you boot up. Restore points also are created when you install a program or download an unsigned driver. Drivers tell Windows how to use devices like printers. Unsigned drivers are those not certified by Microsoft.
To find System Restore, click Start>>All Programs>> Accessories>>System Tools>>System Restore. To choose a restore point, select "Restore my computer to an earlier time." Then click the Next button.
System Restore will display a miniature calendar. Select any day emphasized in bold. Look for the day that you installed the game. That day's restore points will be listed beside the calendar. Each restore point also bears a short description to help you choose. They typically look something like "Windows Update" or "Installed iTunes." Select a restore point and click the Next button. System Restore will prompt you to confirm your choice. Click the Next button. Your computer will automatically shut down and restart using the restore point.
System Restore does not disturb your e-mail or other documents. In fact, it leaves the entire My Documents folder untouched. And a new restore point is made when you use System Restore. It ensures that you can undo the restore if you're not satisfied.
System Restore is handy, but it involves a trade-off: It uses a lot of space. It can use up to 12 percent of your hard drive. But you can adjust the amount of space allowed for System Restore. In Windows Me, click Start>>Settings>>Control Panel. Double-click System. Select the Performance tab. Click the File System button. Select the Hard Disk tab. Under Settings, you'll find a slider to adjust System Restore's allowed space. But don't be too stingy. System Restore requires at least 200 megabytes to continue making restore points. And the allowed space determines how far back you can restore your computer. In Windows XP, click Start>>Control Panel. Double-click System. Select the System Restore tab. You'll see the slider to adjust the space reserved for System Restore.
Do not rely on System Restore as a general backup. It won't recover old versions of your documents. Neither will it recover documents that you've deleted. It simply restores Windows to an earlier state.

Task Bar
The Windows taskbar goes across the desktop. It has the Start button at one end, and the clock at the other. It normally is at the bottom of the desktop, but it can be moved to the top or sides. You can drag it to the bottom of the screen, or to one side. Hold down the left mouse button and drag it. If it won't move, it might be locked. Right-click it. Clear the check from Lock the Taskbar.
Once moved, the taskbar should stay put. If it doesn't, lock it. Right-click the taskbar and click Lock the Taskbar.

Defragmenting
Windows does its best to use your hard drive space efficiently. It tries to fill in small gaps left behind by deleted files. To do it, Windows may split some files into pieces that will fit. This happens again and again as you move, delete or save files.
Eventually, all those split files affect your computer's speed. Your favorite game or shareware might be stored as dozens of fragments. Your computer has to find them all just to start it up. Your waiting time will eventually grow to test your patience.
To keep your computer up to speed, you should defragment the hard drive. Windows includes a handy tool for the job. It's aptly named Disk Defragmenter.
Disk Defragmenter will sort those scattered fragments back together. You can find it by clicking Start>>Programs>>Accessories>> System Tools.
At times, Disk Defragmenter can run into problems. Here are the common trouble spots:
The Defragmenter needs an error-free hard drive. Disk Defragmenter will stop if it discovers errors on your hard drive. This could cause the Defragmenter to stop consistently at the same place. It could also leave your hard drive only partially defragmented. Try checking your hard drive for errors.
All versions of Windows include utilities to check the hard drive. In Windows 98, click Start>>Programs>>Accessories>>System Tools>>ScanDisk. Select the hard drive from the list. It's usually drive C. Select the "Thorough test" option. It will check your hard drive for errors and physical imperfections. Check "Automatically fix errors." Click Start.
In Windows XP, click Start>>My Computer. In Windows 2000, just double-click the My Computer icon. In both systems, right-click the hard drive icon. It's usually drive C. Select Properties from the pop-up menu. Select the Tools tab. Under Error-checking, click the Check Now button. Select the two boxes. Click Start and reboot.
The Defragmenter needs lots of space. A near-full hard drive is the bane of the Defragmenter. Windows requires at least 15 percent of your hard drive free to complete defragmentation. According to Microsoft, less space will result in an incomplete defragmentation. If you don't have enough free space, that could cause Disk Defragmenter to stop in the same place each time. A nearly full hard drive is a likely culprit for older computers. Typical Windows 98 or ME system hard drives are small by current standards. They could be quickly overwhelmed with videos and music. And new software packages tend to take more space than older versions. Consider using Disk Cleanup to free some hard drive space. It's another handy tool built into Windows. Click Start>>Programs>>Accessories>>System Tools>>Disk Cleanup. Select the Disk Cleanup tab. You'll see a list of files that Windows plans to delete for you. You can highlight a file from the list for its brief explanation. Beside each file is a checkbox. Windows will delete only files that are marked. It also shows the total space you'll get back from those files. After you choose which files to delete, click OK.
The Defragmenter must work alone. In fact, it often won't play at all if something else runs. So it is necessary that all other programs be shut down while Disk Defragmenter is doing its thing. If necessary, you can run Defragmenter in Safe Mode. To do that, reboot the computer and tap F8. That should get you into a menu of startup options, including Safe Mode. If it doesn't, reboot and try again. Once you get the menu, pick Safe Mode. It will look odd, because only a minimum of drivers and other programs are started with Windows. You should be able to run Disk Defragmenter in Safe Mode.

Adding Sound to PowerPoint presentations
Sound can start at the beginning or middle of the slide show, but only one sound can play at a time.
Navigate to the slide where you want it to start. Click Insert>>Movies and Sounds. To record narration, select Record Sound. Click the red circle to start recording and the button with the square to stop. To insert music, select “Sound from File” instead of Record Sound. Navigate to your file and click OK.
PowerPoint asks you how you want the sound to play. Select Automatically. A picture of a speaker will appear on the slide. You can drag the sound icon off the slide. The sound will still play, but the icon won’t appear on the slide.
Next, set the sound options. In PowerPoint 2002 or 2003, right-click the speaker. Select Custom Animation. In the Custom Animation task pane, click the sound file name. Then click the arrow at the right of it. Select Effect Options.
On the Effect tab, select when you want the sound to start and stop. You can have it play throughout the entire show. Select After in the “Stop playing” section. Then type 999 in the box. You can also have it stop “On click” or “After current slide.” Click OK.
Setting sound options in PowerPoint 97 or 2000 is a little different. Right-click the speaker and select Custom Animation. Click the Multimedia Settings tab. Under “While playing,” click “Continue slide show” or “Pause slide show.” Under “Stop playing,” select “After current slide” or enter a number. Click OK.
Your presentation might not play the same on all computers. Many factors contribute to the way it plays. The biggest are processor speed and amount of memory. The slides and audio may not be synchronized correctly. Also, animations could become jerky and slow.
There are things you can do to minimize problems. If possible, only use one audio file for the entire presentation. Audacity: http://audacity.sourceforge.net/, a free audio-editing program, will combine multiple files into one. It will also allow you to combine music and a voice-over.
Keep animations and graphics simple. Also, make sure your photos are optimized. For full-screen slide shows, set the photo resolution to the same size as your screen. To find your screen resolution, right-click your desktop and select Properties. The resolution setting is on the Settings tab.
Also, set the dpi at 75 or 96. This is adequate for viewing the photos on a monitor. If you anticipate people will print them, set it between 150 and 300 dpi. If you need photo-editing software, you might try Picasa: http://www.picasa.com/ or Irfanview: http://www.irfanview.com/. Both are free.
You can also burn your presentation to DVD. This will be viewable in most stand-alone DVD players.
If you would like to publish this presentation on a Web site, you could use Producer: http://www.microsoft.com/office/powerpoint/producer/prodinfo/default.mspx. This free add-on from Microsoft lets you use audio, video, slides and images to create rich-media presentations viewable in a browser.

Google Language Tools: http://www.google.com/language_tools
The Google Language Tool allows you to conduct searches in specific countries or languages. It even translates text and Web pages--provided
it's one of the languages made available. Read Chinese Web sites in English or convert German text into Spanish.
You can evern set your Google home page to Klingon, Pig Latin or Elmer Fudd language!

Deleting Wallpaper (background) Graphics
Windows allows you to use whatever you like as background on your desktop. That is what you see after Windows boots up.
To access that, you right-click on an unoccupied area of the desktop. Click Properties and select the Desktop tab. You'll find a drop down list under Background.
To the right is a Browse button. Click that to find your pictures.
Right click and choose delete.

Stickies 5.0: http://www.zhornsoftware.co.uk/stickies/
This is a simple text-based tool that will not mess with your system files or write to your Registry. It looks just like a little yellow sticky note. Once on the screen, Stickies remain where they're placed, even through reboots. You can hide them, e-mail them or have them act as reminders.

AbiWord: http://www.abisource.com/
AbiWord is a free word processor similar to Microsoft Word. Programmers who encourage free software (called Open Source) created AbiWord. Using this software, you can read and write Word documents. You can create tables, lists, images and styles. You caneven mail merge. AbiWord is multi-platform-- use it on Windows, Linux and other operating systems.

How to set up a monitor for best viewing
To prevent eye strain, your monitor should be at least 25 inches from your eyes, preferably more. Plus, you want the viewing area of the monitor to be between 15-degrees and 50-degrees below horizontal eye level.

Lighting is important, too. You want to use indirect lighting in your office or work area and avoid overhead fluorescent lights. If necessary, install blinds or shades to control outside light.
Most monitors have buttons that let you set brightness, contrast, focus, readability, convergence and more.
If your monitor did not come with software and you can't deal with themonitor's buttons, download and use the Nokia Test.
This free utility helps set any monitor for optimum display. You'll find it at:
http://www.construnet.hu/nokia/Monitors/TEST/monitor_test.html
A good monitor setting using the Internet is 800 X 600. Unless you have a minimum 19-inch monitor, Web pages will probably look too small at 1024 X 768. And if you use a lower resolution, such as 640 X 480, you might have to scroll from left to right to see the whole page.
If you are using a flat panel monitor with Windows XP, make sure that you use ClearType. It can make the type on your flat-panel much more readable. For instructions on how to set it up, go to: http://www.komando.com/tips_show.asp?showID=6823

EdWeb - Exploring Technology and School Reform: http://www.edwebproject.org/

Here are some standard terms & definitions:
PDA - a generic term, short for personal digital assistant -- basically electronic organizers or toned-down laptops with small LCD screens, usually pen or keyboard input, and software for organization, OCR, and contact management. Some have web browsing or e-mail. Most are designed to fit in one hand while you use the other hand for input. Just like Mac and Win, the software you use on your PDA is dependent upon the operating system - Palm OS for Palm PDAs or Windows CE for Pocket PCs
Pocket PC - a PDA which runs Windows CE operating system. Made by companies like Dell, HP, Toshiba and more.
Palm Pilot or Palm PDA- a PDA which runs Palm OS. Made by Palm One, Treo (Handspring) and others, the word "Palm" has become almost generic, like kleenex or thermos.
Talking Books for PDAs - these are usually WAV or MP3 files - you don't get to see the text on your Palm or Pocket PC - just sit back & listen... Some people are converting text to MP3 files and exporting these to their Palms or Pocket PCs -- they'll sound like text-to-speech, but the text won't appear on the screen.
TTS / Text-to-Speech - software (for any OS) that converts text on screen into spoken words.

Country Search Engines and Regional Search Engines: http://www.philb.com/countryse.htm
A useful collection of links for those who only want to search within a specific country's or region's web resources.

Evaluating the Quality of Information on the Internet: http://www.virtualchase.com/quality/

New York City Settlement Houses Community Learning Centers: http://clc.unhny.org/resources/cl_currix.cfm
This site has a collection of lesson plans for integrating life skills and job readiness activities into a computer literacy curriculum for adults. It includes learning resources for teachers and students, model projects and assessment tools. And it's free!

NetHistory: http://www.nethistory.info/index.html
This site offeres resources and links to the Internet's past. For instance, in the sites "Web History" section is a link to the World Wide Web Vitual Library. There, students and researchers can access the Wayback Machine, a service that allows peole to visit archived Web sites. Visitors can typein a URL, select a date range and then begin srufing on an archived version of the Web.

Harnessing Technology to Serve Adult Literacy: http://www.alri.org/harness.html
This sister has technology solutions for ordinary adult education classroom needs and problems. Most of the technology solutions (Web sites and others) have been suggested by teachers working in adult basic education/ESOL.

Teach PowerPoint to Students: http://www.standards.dfes.gov.uk/midbins/keystage3/TU8.3.PDF

Creating community media with some no-cost software tools for windows.
skype.com, the no-cost voice-over-ip phone service for windows computers, now can do conference calls for up to 5 people. If you record the audio from these conference calls, you can compress the audio and put it up on the
web as audio-on-demand.
Using the no-cost microsoft producer 2003: http://www.microsoft.com/office/powerpoint/producer, you can add synchronized PowerPoint slides with jpeg photos of the conference call participants. You can learn most of
what this program can do in an hour or two.

Adobe PhotoShop Elements
Chinese New Year Project: http://www.adobe.com/education/pdf/pse_tutorials/chinese_newyears.pdf
This fourteen page booklet that tells how to use PhotoShop Elements by creating a project to use in the classroom about the Chinese New Year.

Flash Tutorials
http://www.billstruhar.com/flashgroup/on-line/
http://www.roundworldmedia.com/f5/flashintro.html
http://hotwired.lycos.com/webmonkey/multimedia/shockwave_flash/tutorials/tutorial8.html
http://www.echoecho.com/flash.htm
http://www.macromedia.com/support/flash/applications/learning_interactions
http://www.w3schools.com/flash/
http://www.baycongroup.com/flash/00_flash.htm
http://www.flashkit.com/tutorials/
http://www.trainingtools.com/online/flash5/ch01/index.htm
http://graphicssoft.about.com/cs/flash/index.htm

Ideas for Wireless Computers in Schools
Consider purchasing laptop carts that are capable of having 2 batteries installed at one time in order to increase the
amount of "up" time.
Prepare students the previous day on the assignment and use of the machines
Label each computer with a matching labeled storage slot in the mobile cart. Students are asked to log the computer number they are using on a log sheet. The teacher can distribute one log sheet per row, one per class or just put the
numbers on the log sheet for the students as they are working. There are various reasons to label the computers. One -- students sign a sheet of paper denoting which computer they are using that period. We
know who used the computer and if they saved on the C drive accidentally we can locate it easily. This method also allows a teacher to easily look at cart slots and recognize which computer is missing and who has it from
the log sheet.
Rubber shelving (cut in mat sizes) can be placed on student desks. Some of classroom desks are slanted. The mobile computers do have rubber strips to stop them from sliding but an additional mat helps other things from sliding off when students bump desks getting up and down.

Elementanry Word Processing Curriculum: http://www.minnetonka.k12.mn.us/mhs/bused/Teachers/Noy
es/Elementary%20Word%20Processing%20Curriculum.htm
Curriculum for grades 1-5 with worksheets ready to use in class.

WIKI's are somewhat similar to Blogs. The difference with WIKI's is that they are meant to be collaborative. http://c2.com/cgi/wiki?WikiGettingStartedFaq: Wiki's are a "collection of Web pages which can be edited by anyone, at any time, from anywhere. On a wiki, somebody can start a wiki page by asking a question. Someone can come along and edit that page to answer the question. Somebody else can come along and edit the answer to cover an additional point, or clarify a point, or whatever. If somebody edits the page by adding a follow-up question, it can be left on that page and then answered. Maybe it makes more sense to move it to its own page."
In an educational context, instead of having groups present with the standard poster in front of the classroom, WIKIs would allow for some interesting collaborative web publishing. (However, remember that in WIKI's anyone can create/delete content.)
Everything2: http://everything2.com/index.pl
Wikipedia: http://www.wikipedia.org/
Wikipedia is a free encyclopedia written collaboratively by its readers.

Mrs. Cannon's Computer Lab: http://www.computerlab.kids.new.net/

Basic HTML: http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/ndlpedu/educators/workshop/html/basic.html

HTML for Beginners: http://builder.cnet.com/webbuilding/0-3881-8-5893399-1.html

Blogger: http://new.blogger.com/home.pyra

Why switch from paper journals to blogs
- unlike a paper journal, the blog can be in both the teachers' hands AND the student hands simultaneously. No longer is it necessary to take the journal "away" from the student to grade or read it.
- Similarly, once you add a comments function to the blog, there is plenty of "room" (a virtually infinite amount, unlike in paper margins) for each discussion to remain concrete where it needs to, and, since comments pop up in a separate window from the blog, teachers can comment without red-penning the journal itself -- making the comments easier to
accept.
-Students learn technology in an integrated manner, rather than as a discrete subject (ideal, since that's how technology works real life).
-Blogs lay a good foundation for web design.
-Students like blogs.
-Blogs allow you to post pictures, links, and diagrams to help you get your idea across.

Enetation: http://www.enetation.co.uk/

Stamp It Out!: http://www.stampitout.wildjelly.com/index.html
Make your own stamps using your own graphics.

What is a Computer?: http://www.multcolib.org/seniors/seniors/tutorials/basics/page01.html

Internet Conduct - Internet Reference Material: http://www.isoc.org/policy/conduct/conduct.html

Library Web Manager's Reference Center: http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/Web4Lib/RefCenter/
All kinds of useful resources here: guides to assistive technology, training materials, library-specific web design, scripting and programming sources, access policies, privacy protection, print managers, current awareness resources, etc.

Keeping Up Web Site: http://staff.philau.edu/bells/keepup/
The Keeping Up Web Site is designed to help library and information science professionals, information technologists, instructional technologists, and other academic technology support professionals develop and maintain a program of self-guided professional development.

Ten Commandments Of Computer Ethics
Created by the Computer Ethics Institute: http://www.brook.edu/dybdocroot/its/cei/overview/Ten_Commanments_of_Computer_Ethics.htm
1. Thou Shalt Not Use A Computer To Harm Other People.
2. Thou Shalt Not Interfere With Other People’s Computer Work.
3. Thou Shalt Not Snoop Around In Other People’s Computer Files.
4. Thou Shalt Not Use A Computer To Steal.
5. Thou Shalt Not Use A Computer To Bear False Witness.
6. Thou Shalt Not Copy Or Use Proprietary Software For Which You have Not Paid.
7. Thou Shalt Not Use Other People’s Computer Resources Without Authorization Or Proper Compensation.
8. Thou Shalt Not Appropriate Other People’s Intellectual Output.
9. Thou Shalt Think About The Social Consequences Of The Program You Are Writing Or The System You Are Designing.
10. Thou Shalt Always Use A Computer In Ways That Insure Consideration And Respect For Your Fellow Humans.

NetPals email service: http://netpals.lsoft.com is primarily for bulletins and community communications. It is from Lsoft, who makes the ListServ software. They offer free hosting of email lists generated with their Listserv Lite software to educational insititutions. You can set up your list to be open to the public or just to participants; you can allow people to
join or force them to be added by the list administrator; you can moderate the list or leave it open. It can take about a week for the Netpals folks to authorize a new email list, so understand that you will have some delay.

Think.com: http://www.think.com is a free service designed for education. With it you can set up free Websites & email
for everyone in your school.

If the network goes down, the computer goes on strike, or the hardware decides not to cooperate, teach a lesson on technology trouble shooting and share funny stories (you can get TONS from the internet) about computer problems that you or the students have experienced. The kids LOVE to hear about technology illiterate people (the teacher included!) Also, you can use that time to discuss issues such as software piracy, internet netiquette, etc. Have these lessons on file for emergencies.

Do a quick screen capture of your entire screen by simply pressing the "PrtScn" key (Print Screen) on your keyboard. While this captures the entire screen, you may only need a screen capture of the active window, so you'd have to crop the image to isolate the portion you want.
You can also make a screen capture of a single window instead of the whole screen. To capture just the active window, simply press Alt-Print Screen. This copies a picture of only the active window to your Clipboard, then you can
then paste it into a graphics program such as Paint (located in your Accessories folder) to save the image for use.

HTML: An Interactive Tutorial for Beginners: http://www.davesite.com/webstation/html/

New Culture of Teaching for the 21st Century: http://www.edletter.org/dc/wiske.htm
"To maximize the benefits of technological innovation, we need to change the way we think about teaching in K-12 schools"

Ethical Dilemmas And Distance Learning:
http://www.distance-educator.com/dnews/?name=News&file=article&sid=9405

The Children's Partnership: http://www.childrenspartnership.org is a national nonprofit child
advocacy organization, with generous support from the Markle Foundation and the AOL
Time Warner Foundation. "We undertake research, analysis, and advocacy to place the needs of America's nearly 70 million children and youth, particularly the underserved, at the forefront of emerging policy debates."

11 Tips for Creating Tables in Word: http://www.microsoft.com/office/using/column13.asp

Computer Lab Rules
C - Come into the room with clean hands
O - Operate the equipment properly
M - Make sure you listen to directions
P - Push your chair in when you are finished
U - Use your inside voice
T - Touch the keyboard carefully
E - Eat and drink outside the lab
R - Remember to take your printing with you

Computer Training Tutorials: http://www.ckls.org/~crippel/computerlab/tutorials/mouse/

SMART Education: http://smarteducation.cant.ac.uk/home.asp
Research on use of Smart Boards

Tomorrows Online Teachers: http://www.downes.ca/files/tomorrows.ppt

Webfolio: http://www.tnellen.com/cybereng/webfolio.html
This site has a good basic description of webfolios and how to set them up in schools.

NEA today debate: Should School Computer Labs be Phased Out?: http://www.nea.org/neatoday/9909/debate.html
A classroom teacher outlines her reasons why the computer lab should be phased out while a computer lab instructor argues for the continuation of this model. At the end of the article is a closed discussion forum
where readers have voiced their opinion. Think about the pros and cons of each model.

Kent School District Technology Standards: http://www.kent.k12.wa.us/curriculum/tech/student_standards/index.html
Technology Integration Resources: http://www.kent.k12.wa.us/curriculum/tech/tech_int.html

Mountain Brook Schools Technology Education Curriculum: http://www.mtnbrook.k12.al.us/curr/cf/tech/tech.htm
Mountain Brook Schools Technology Scope and Sequence: http://www.mtnbrook.k12.al.us/curr/cf/tech/s&sgrid.pdf

FTC: Open servers make schools unwary accomplices to spam: http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/ssunreg.cfm?ArticleID=4462&ul=%2Fnews%2Fshow
Story%2Ecfm%3FArticleID%3D4462

Wiseman Tech: http://www.wisemantech.com/

Free typing programs
Kid's Typing Skills: http://www.kidwaresoftware.com/kidtype.htm
Tux Typing 2: http://tuxtype.sourceforge.net/

Tammy's Technology Tips for Teachers: http://www.essdack.org/tips/index.html

Web Literacy: http://www.libertycenter.k12.oh.us/schwartz/default.htm

WEB LITERACY and Critical Thinking: A Teacher's Tool Kit: http://www.techlearning.com/db_area/archives/TL/2003/03/toolkit.html

Emacs/W3: http://www.cs.indiana.edu/elisp/w3/docs.html is a full-featured Web browser.

Amaya: http://www.w3.org/Amaya/ is the World Wide Web Consortium's own Web browser that also doubles as an authoring tool within the same window. It contains a Zoom feature in the View menu (Alt + or Alt - on the keyboards) that enables users to increase the size of text and graphics as they appear on a Web page. Amaya includes a WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) editing interface. Assuming you have write access to a particular Web page, you can first browse a Web page and then edit it within the same window simply by single-clicking within the editing window. However, the authoring interface is not accessible to windows screen readers.

Resources for teaching information technology ethics to children and young adults:
http://www.doug-johnson.com/ethics/

TEEM (Teachers Evaluating Educational Multimedia): http://www.teem.org.uk/ is an educational software evaluation service. The site provides free access evaluations written by teachers of the products.

Keyboarding Research and Resources: http://ci.coe.uni.edu/facstaff/zeitz/web/general/keyboardingresearch.html

Infocrumb's Computing Resources: http://infocrumb.netfirms.com/comp_res.htm

Journal of Interactive Media in Education: http://www-jime.open.ac.uk/

Digital Portfolios: http://www.richerpicture.com/dp_main.htm
Digital Portfolios: http://www.bobpearlman.org/BestPractices/dp.htm

Electronic Portfolios: http://www.essdack.org/port/index.html

E-portfolio Demos: http://www.eradc.org/blog/archives/000044.php
"The following is a list of e-portfolio systems that allow you to go in and try out a demo account."

General Resources: http://www.elainefitzgerald.com/generalresources.htm
"Project Based Checklist
The use of these checklists keeps students on track and allows them to take responsibility for their own learning through peer- and self-evaluation.
To Excel in the Classroom: Lessons incorporating Excel, includes strategies
Techno Bits: Curriculum themed newsletter by an Instructional Technology Specialist in Georgia
Minutes from Me: Technology Connected Activities from Franklin Institute Online
Integrating Technology: Technology connected lessons from Northside in San Antonio, TX RubiStar
RubiStar is a tool to help the teacher who wants to use rubrics but does not have the time to develop them from scratch.
WebQuests: A WebQuest is an inquiry-oriented activity in which some or all of the information that learners interact with comes from resources on the internet."

Assessment of Electronic Portfolios: http://www.essdack.org/port/rubric.html

Distance Educator: http://66.227.114.185/distance-educator.com/index.phtml

Learning Technology: The Myths and Facts: http://www.twinisles.com/dev/research/learntech.htm

eLearn Magazine: http://www.elearnmag.org/index.cfm
eLearning Magazine: Instructional Design for Flow in Online Learning: http://www.elearnmag.org/subpage/sub_page.cfm?section=4&list_item=10&page=1

Focus on the Locus: http://www.fno.org/may03/focus.html
" Maybe schools should focus on the locus - put computers, dollars and emphasis where they are most likely to do the most good?"

Using Multiple Intelligence Theory in the Virtual Classroom: http://www.learningcircuits.org/2003/jun2003/elearn.html
This article is aimed at those who design online learning events, but for those working in 'real' classrooms, it gives a useful matching of multiple intelligences with technologies.

Barriers to Distance Education: http://www.emoderators.com/barriers/index.shtml

Endgame - Encouraging Completion in E-learning
Shepherd, Clive
http://www.fastrak-consulting.co.uk/tactix/Features/endgame.htm
Elearning, at least to the extent that it is delivered in self-study format, suffers in the same way as all of its distance learning predecessors: from high drop-out rates. Although most learners start with good intentions of completing, far too high a proportion never achieve the benefits they were seeking when they were enrolled. In this article, Clive Shepherd explores whether drop-out rates are any real indicator of the success of e-learning and, to the extent that they are, what can be done to reduce them to manageable levels.

Lifelong Learning
Smith , Mark K
http://www.infed.org/lifelonglearning/b-life.htm
Lifelong learning, (along with ideas such as 'the learning society') have become popular with politicians and policymakers in a number of countries. But what does it mean? The author explores what it means.

"Racing for Technology": http://www.fno.org/may03/maycartoon.html

Scenario-Based E-Learning Model: A CDC Case Study: http://www.learningcircuits.org/2003/apr2003/gathany.htm

Designing Your Online Course to Efficiently and Effectively Facilitate Learning - Instructional Design Tutorial: http://fdc.uwsuper.edu/InstDsgn/

How the Mind Makes Meaning in E-Learning, Part I: http://www.xplana.com/whitepapers/archives/mind_makes_meaning_part1

Effective Online Teaching - How Far Do The Frameworks Go?: http://www.ericit.org/fulltext/IR021460.pdf
As online learning becomes a mainstream phenomenon in courses with face to face components as well as those conducted at a distance, a number of frameworks have emerged to describe the role and attributes of the effective online teacher. Effective teaching and course management skills for rapidly changing environments are one aspect of the requirements. Online teachers must also be recognized, to some extent, as agents of change within their own
institutions.

Online Courses Incorporate Interaction With Teachers: http://www.cta.org/CaliforniaEducator/v7i9/Feature_6.htm
There is no reason for classroom teachers to distance themselves from distance learning, says Ray Gen, who teaches English, social studies and technology at El Segundo High School. In fact, Gen has done exactly the opposite: He
has designed online curriculum that more closely resembles traditional classrooms and teacher-student interaction.

Corporations Embrace Online Learning: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A26874-2003Apr23.html

Lessons From Afar - Distance-learning has not taken the world by storm: http://www.economist.com/globalExecutive/education/executive/displayStory.cfm?story_id=1762562#Static

One Size Doesn't Fit All: Pedagogy in the Online Environment vol. 1 & 2: Vol 2:
http://www.ncver.edu.au/research/proj/nr0F05_1.pdf
http://www.ncver.edu.au/research/proj/nr0F05_2.pdf
Brennan, Roslin
How well has traditional teaching practice or pedagogy adapted for online learning? This two-volume report studies the process of teaching and learning online as well as the function, work and 'art' of a teacher or trainer. Brennan examines the principles and practices which underpin the pedagogy of online delivery from various vantage points and, as a result, has succeeded in identifying what features contribute to effective student learning. These principles are used to analyse the current practices of online delivery of the VET courses sampled for this study. Volume 2 contains the data and survey material used in volume 1, which is the main report.

Researching the Size and Scope of Online Usage in the Vocational Education and Training Sector
http://www.ncver.edu.au/research/proj/nr0F06.pdf
Hill, Robyn et.al.
An overview of the extent and usage of online learning in Australia's vocational education and training (VET) sector is presented in this report. Findings are based on quantitative and qualitative research approaches.

Louisiana Making Connections: http://www.lcet.doe.state.la.us/conn/lessonplans.php
This is a searchable website of teacher-created plans that are aligned to Louisiana content and technology standards..

Cajon Valley in El Cajon, CA standards based lesson planner: http://www.cajon.k12.ca.us/Ed_Resources/resources.html

Teaching in the Wireless Cloud: http://www.thefeature.com/index.jsp?url=article.jsp?pageid=35265
During the 1990s, "American colleges gradually admitted instructional technology into campus life. Now these schools are catching the m-learning wave, building wireless infrastructures, and experimenting with pilot programmes. New ways of learning are emerging as wireless education unfolds."

Virus pushes schools to go virtual-Threat of SARS forces teachers to conduct classes online using Bay Area technologies: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2003/04/21/BU190788.DTL

Are Desktops Dead?: http://www.districtadministration.com/page.cfm?id=352
"Technology- and how it is used- is changing quickly. But 85 percent of the computers schools expect to purchase this year are still desktops. Is this a sign that districts remain out of touch, or an understanding of exactly how districts are using computers?"

Mentoring for Effective Technology Integration: What works?: http://www.temple.edu/martec/techmentors/start.html

Is There a Future for Online Ed?: http://www.universitybusiness.com/page.cfm?id=188

Ten Ways Online Education Matches, or Surpasses, Face-to-Face Learning: http://ts.mivu.org/default.asp?show=article&id=1059

The Global e-Learning Framework: An Interview with Badrul Khan: http://ts.mivu.org/default.asp?show=article&id=1019

Education Reform: http://www.edreform.net/
"a national network of leaders skilled in assisting, districts, preparation programs and large-scale systems to plan and undertake sustained educational reform efforts"

Weaving a Secure Web Around Education: A Guide to Technology Standards and Security: http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2003381is a publication of the National Center For Education
Statistics' National Forum on Education Statistics and provides recommendations for development, maintenance, and standardization for effective websites, particularly those relating to schools.

Scenario-Based E-Learning Model: A CDC Case Study: http://www.learningcircuits.org/2003/apr2003/gathany.htm

eXpLOrE, LeArN, and gRoW @ rightinclass: http://www.rightinclass.com/
" This site is for educators seeking knowledge and tools to help plan for, create, and integrate technology “right in class.”

Understand Your Acceptable Use Policy: http://www.cybersmartcurriculum.org/lesson_plans/45_07.asp
This site includes a lesson plan and handout for teaching students about AUPs.

The Traits of an Effective Technology Coach and Signs of a Robust Program: http://www.fno.org/jan02/techcoach.html
This site discusses the many roles coaches can play, such as cheerleader, sidekick, or judge.

Web Teacher: http://www.webteacher.org/windows.html
These Web tutorials by Tech Corp cover Web Basics, Communicating, Multimedia, Homepage Construction, Peripherals and Utilities, and The Web in Your Classroom.

Videoconferencing Introduction: http://www.kn.pacbell.com/wired/vidconf/intro.html
This site features instructional strategies, netiquette, and equipment for videoconferencing.

Wired ShiRE: Creating a School Website:
http://www.wiredshire.org.uk/curricular-resources/projects/school-website.htm
Discover hints and tips for creating a school Web site.

Communicating With Parents: http://www.learnnc.org/newlnc/newteach.nsf/doc/parents?OpenDocument
Check out this advice and see sample letters to parents.

Six Factors to Consider when Planning Online Distance Learning Programs in Higher Education: http://www.westga.edu/%7Edistance/ojdla/spring61/levy61.htm

The University of Rhode Island and The Rhode Island Foundation-Teachers in Technology Initiative: http://www.ri.net/RITTI_Fellows/Carlson-Pickering/MI_Tech.htm
Multiple Intelligences and Technology

High-tech school opens doors to the future of city education:
http://www.sunspot.net/news/local/bal-md.digital29mar29.story

Useful links for Instructional Materials Production and Use: http://courses.unt.edu/csimpson/5720links.htm

Does Your Web Site Give People What They Want?: http://www.guidestar.org/news/features/web_users_want.stm
Contains information about what nonprofit website visitors want.

Weaving a Secure Web Around Education: A Guide to Technology Standards and Security: http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2003/2003381.pdf
The publication of the National Center For Education Statistics' National Forum on Education Statistics (US) provides recommendations for development, maintenance, and standardization for effective web sites.

NPower: http://npower.org/index.htm
" NPower's mission is to ensure all nonprofits – regardless of size, scope or geography – can use technology to expand the reach and impact of their work."

E-Learning Readiness Survey - 20 Key Strategic Questions You and Your Organization Must Answer About the Sustainability of Your E-Learning Efforts: http://books.mcgraw-hill.com/training/elearning/eLearning_Survey.pdf
E-Learning presents great opportunities and great challenges. How ready are you? Answer these 20 key questions about building a durable e-learning strategy. Then, determine for yourself how ready you, your organisation and
your company are to bring learning into the digital age. There are no hard and fast rules as to where you should be in your e-learning journey; use this survey to help you think about where you are doing well and where you need to concentrate your efforts.

E-Learning 1.0 - Writing for Global E-Learners: http://www.learningcircuits.org/2003/mar2003/elearn.html
"The Web has brought e-learning to all parts of the globe. Your students may be across town or across an ocean. How should you write so that learners around the world or from different cultures can easily read and understand
your instructional materials? Whether you're developing distance learning for a multinational company or communicating with global learners via email, you must ensure that your writing is inclusive."
Learning Circuits, March 2003

Do as We Say Not as We Do: The Great Gamble on Teacher Quality by Jamie McKenzie: http://nochildleft.com/2003/apr03do.html
The Secretary of Education throws $10 million behind online teacher preparation despite a lack of scientific
evidence that virtual learning will prove effective.

Creating a Unified Digital Campus to Satisfy the Needs of 21st Century Learners: http://ts.mivu.org/default.asp?show=article&id=1058

Using the Project Approach to Online Course Development: http://ts.mivu.org/default.asp?show=article&id=1027

Adventures in Virtualand: The Challenges of Teaching an Online Children's Literature Course: http://ts.mivu.org/default.asp?show=article&id=971

E-Learning Policy Implications for K-12 Educators and Decision Makers: http://www.ncrel.org/policy/pubs/html/pivol11/apr2002d.htm
A paper from NCREL (North Central Regional Educational Laboratory) that considers the costs for both schools and teachers of the development and production of online learning technologies, and whether that cost is
justified by any resultant school improvement or reform.

Videoconferencing in your Classroom: http://www.eddept.wa.edu.au/cmis/eval/curriculum/ict/videoconf/

Barriers to Distance Education: http://www.emoderators.com/barriers/index.shtml

E-Learning Decisions: Modes, Models and Strategies: http://www.downes.ca/files/E-Learning_Decisions.ppt

The Technology Source: http://ts.mivu.org/

Somewhere a place to learn: http://www.fastrak-consulting.co.uk/tactix/Features/aplacetolearn.htm
"The promise of e-learning to provide anytime, anyplace learning leaves us with an awful lot of options. But trainers and learners alike have to make a choice – what is the ideal environment in which to be an e-learner? In this article, Clive Shepherd explores the advantages and disadvantages associated with learning at the desktop, at home or in the learning centre, and comes to see how all options can work given the right conditions."

WGU (Western Governor's University ) Launches Online College to Tackle Licensed Teacher Crisis: http://www.sltrib.com/2003/Mar/03112003/utah/37172.asp

Teaching in the Wireless Cloud: http://www.thefeature.com/index.jsp?url=article.jsp?pageid=35265

Interactive Web-based Training: http://scrtec-ne.unl.edu/SCRTECNE/TechTopics/online/online.html

Classroom Basics Handbook: http://www.k12connections.iptv.org/pdfs/ICNBasics.pdf

The Education Coalition: http://www.tecweb.org/

Any Time, Any Place, Any Path, Any Pace-Taking the Lead on eLearning Policy: http://www.nasbe.org/Educational_Issues/Reports/e_learning.pdf

Guide to Online High School Courses: http://www.nea.org/technology/images/02onlinecourses.pdf

The Impact of Media and Technology in Schools - A Research Report prepared for The Bertelsmann Foundation: http://www.athensacademy.org/instruct/media_tech/reeves0.html

Ohio superintendents cast sights on starting online charter schools:
http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?Date=200207
17&Category=NEWS04&ArtNo=107170046&Ref=AR

Deep in the Hearts of Learners: Insights into the Nature of Online Community:
http://cade.icaap.org/vol17.1/conrad.html

Terms of Engagement: Keeping Learners Online:
http://www.learningcircuits.org/2003/feb2003/elearn.html

The European E-learning Market:
http://www.learningcircuits.org/2003/feb2003/EU_2002.pdf

e-Learning: Bridging the Apathy Gap:
http://www.e-learningguru.com/articles/art8_1.htm

A theory for eLearning: http://ifets.ieee.org/discussions/discuss_march2003.html

Field Guide to Learning Objects: http://www.learningcircuits.org/2002/jul2002/smartforce.pdf
This online booklet from the American Society for Training & Development (ASTD) attempts to clarify the nature of a learning object. Learning Circuits, in collaboration with SmartForce, break down the types of learning
objects - instruction, collaboration, practice, and assessment - that are currently developed by most e-learning suppliers.

Power of the Internet for Learning: http://www.ed.gov/offices/AC/WBEC/FinalReport/WBECReport.pdf

Teachers' Tools for the 21st Century: http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2000/2000102.pdf

Expanding International Educations Through the Internet-No Longer Limited to the Global Studies and Language Curriculum:http://www.ed.gov/Technology/techconf/2000/ed_gragert.pdf

E-Learning Policy Implications for K-12 Educators and Decision Makers:
http://www.ncrel.org/policy/pubs/html/pivol11/apr2002d.htm

New publication to help teachers examine implications of online education:
http://www.ctf-fce.ca/E/PRESS/2003/pr03-7.htm

Five Obstacles to Technology Integration at a Small Liberal Arts University: http://www.thejournal.com/magazine/vault/A4344.cfm

The Sustainablility Challenge: Taking EdTech To The Next Level: http://www.benton.org/Library/sustainability/sus_challenge.html

10 Damaging E-learning Myths:
http://www.elearningpost.com/features/archives/001749.asp

Beyond Bamboozlement: http://www.fno.org/apr03/bamboozlement.html
Jamie McKenzie discusses how to make sure the money spent on technology is well spent.

Computers idle in public schools: http://www.usatoday.com/usatonline/20030318/4956328s.htm

School District Technology Assessment Tools
PCC Assessment Tool: http://www.mff.org/publications/publications.taf?page=280
A PDF document designed to provide educators with an opportunity to assess their status within the skill and knowledge areas described in that continuum. The PCC Assessment Tool is a print only tool that
features 5 sub-assessments.
enGauge: http://www.ncrel.org/engauge/
An extensive, comprehensive online assessment tool for district technology planning. Designed and maintained by NCREL this site is designed to help districts and schools plan and evaluate the system wide use of educational technology.
Taglit: http://www.taglit.org/Taglit/Preview/Index.htm
Taking a Good Look at Instructional Technology (TAGLIT) is an online set of assessment tools designed to provide school personnel with information about the current status of instructional technology at their school. TAGLIT includes Leader, Teacher and Student questionnaires.
STaRChart: http://www.ceoforum.org/starchart.cfm
The CEO Forum's Interactive School Technology and Readiness (STaR) Chart, a self-assessment tool designed to provide schools with the information they need to better integrate technology into their educational process. Here, you can complete an online, multiple-choice questionnaire that will provide you with instant feedback on how well
your school is doing in this process.
CTAP2: Assessment http://ctap2.iassessment.org/
CTAP2 is an on-line, teacher self-assessment tool that allows educators to determine their level of technology proficiency. The self-assessment is based upon rubrics established in each area of technology competency
and is aligned with the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC) technology standard.

One Hand Typing and Keyboard Systems and Rules: http://www.aboutonehandtyping.com/introduction.html
Use of One Hand: http://www.jan.wvu.edu/soar/other/onehand.html

Internet 101: http://www.internet101.org/internet101.html

Basic Computer Operations: http://www.wcu.edu/ccenter_inf/CatOnline/Basics/index.html

Activities for Computer Applications:
http://hs.houstonisd.org/WaltripHS/departments/tech/activities/activities.htm

Computer Art: http://www2.fultonschools.org/teacher/marquis
Instructional site by Kerry Marquis (teacher at Benjamin Banekker High School, Georgia). This site give you an outline for a high school curriculum (also suitable for middle school) with online lessons for Flash, student work sheets, PowerPoint presentations, Scavenger Hunts and more. A resource for teachers in middle school and high school.

Photo Design: http://www.angelfire.com/art/andthings
Instructional site by Kerry Marquis (teacher at Benjamin Banekker High School, Georgia). This introductory course to photo design incorporates a history of photography as well as the creating of a pinhole camera and a personal photo journal.

HTML Goodies: http://www.htmlgoodies.com/primers/basics.html

HTML Links: http://stream.minot.k12.nd.us/craigs_links/index.php?cat=33

Technology Tutorials found on the Web:
http://www.internet4classrooms.com/on-line2.htm

Mrs. Canon's Computer Lab: http://www.computerlab.kids.new.net/
learn about the computer, internet, how to keyboard, use a mouse, and more.

Tech Pals team could be a a service organization for the school.
The students could:
1) clean and done minor tune-ups on their assigned teachers' computers each week.
2) search the Internet for pictures to use in a multimedia presentation they create to accompany the school's choir's songs.
3) use desktop publishing to create a Wall of Honor of scanned veterans' pictures for year's Veteran's Day celebration.
4) use a video camera and digital camera to record events of the school.
5) make inspirational posters on the computer and post them around the school.

GPA 9 Introduction to Computer Applications:
http://www.scs.sk.ca/edf/info/gpa9/interfaace.html
This site is a 30 hour course on computer applications for grade 9 students and will introduce some of the fundamentals of computers, programming, graphics, and word processing (Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Netscape Composer, Internet Explorer, Macromedia Flash MX, Painter 7, Visual Basic, and Adobe Acrobat). Divided into sections: 1) Introduction, Computer Care, Keyboarding, acceptable use policy;
2) Internet search techniques, introduction to the internet;
3) Drawing and animation software;
4) Computer language and web page creation;
5) Miscellaneous Summary and evaluation spreadsheets.
The password to the teachers page is vdog61
Grade Level: Middle School, High School, Adult/Professional Content Area: Education (Educational Technology), Technology (General/Other)

The Business Software Alliance and Weekly Reader have teamed up to give students tips on responsible online behavior and warn them about the consequences of software piracy. The "Play It Safe in Cyber Space" curriculum is free to educators for elementary and middle school students and supplements teacher lesson plans with suggested activities and discussion topics on creativity and copyright law issues. For details and a downloadable version of the curriculum, visit: http://www.playitcybersafe.com/index.phtml

CyberSmart!: http://www.cybersmart.org/home/
CyberSmart is a free curriculum designed to help students, parents and teachers work together to boost security on the Internet. The curriculum, co-published by Macmilllan/McGraw-Hill, is nonsequential to allow for flexible implementation by technology teachers, librarians, media specialists and classroom teachers. It includes 65 standards-based lesson plans, student activity sheets, and other materials promoting the responsible and effective use of a school's technology investment. Addressed are such issues as safety, manners and advertising.

Never used Microsoft Access?: http://www.microsoft.com/office/using/column06.asp
Get started with databases the easy way.

"Emerging Risks of Violence in the Digital Age":
http://www.ncsu.edu/meridian/review/525/index.html makes some points about online teen behavior and attitudes. The paper, by Profs. Ilene Berson, Michael Berson, and John Ferron of the University of South Florida, helpfully pulls together what we've all learned from some of the best online-teen studies done in the past few years.

webTeacher: http://www.webteacher.org/windows.html
Grades: Pre-kindergarten - Post-secondary
Whether you're new to the Net or cyber-fluent, you'll find much of interest at this Internet tutorial. Learn the basics of navigating the web, using online technologies for communication, and working with multimedia. The site also walks you through the mechanics of homepage design and how to integrate the Internet into your classroom.

INTEGRATING TECHNOLOGY IN GRADE 2:
http://perrynet.sparcc.org/webunits/Grade2/Resources/
http://www.mtnbrook.k12.al.us/tech/2nd.htm
Find several across-the-curriculum internet activities and suggestions for incorporating technology in to your second grade lessons, for use all during the school year.

AN INTRO TO MAKING VIDEOS IN THE CLASSROOM:
http://www.youthlearn.org/learning/activities/multimedia/video.asp
Use video production as a teaching and learning tool in your own classroom, integrating media literacy skills and promoting both project-based and cooperative learning exercises. Mapping, storyboarding, basic drawing techniques, and photography will all be
covered before students begin videotaping. All skills are covered with instructions and examples to guide the educator as well as the students through the various processes.

Tips for Making Your Movie: http://www.apple.com/education/dv/tips/index.html
This tutorial is aimed at iMovie users (Macintosh) butthey are good, basic movie tips that anyone who is really interested in improving their 'craft' could use.

In Time: http://www.intime.uni.edu/
This is a site which allows you to watch online video vignettes of PreK-12 > teachers integrating technology into their classrooms using numerous teaching strategies; uses Real Player.

Top 10 Web Tips For Teachers: http://mciu.org/~spjvweb/topten.html
Here are some common sense tips for monitoring student internet use, whether in the computer lab or using classroom computers.

Caillou's Magic Keyboard: http://pbskids.org/caillou/keyboard/index.html
Introduce keyboards to early elementary students with this online game. Students will type on the keyboard and then hear their "songs" played back to them. Shockwave is required.

Save Your Bookmarks/Favorite Sites On Your Local Network
With most of today's modern browsers you can easily export your bookmarks/favorite sites on to a disk. Then have your school network administrator add your them to your student's accounts.

Teaching Through Technology Browse by Technology Application: http://www.ecb.org/ttt/tech.htm#digital

Uses for Digital Cameras in your classroom: http://www.lesd.k12.az.us/PV/specials/media/digitalcameras.html

Digital Camera projects
Give 100 children an index card and ask each to write the answer to the question "What is Science?" Placed their pictures on the opposite side. Connect the index cards with
ribbon and hang them in front of my class where the students caan see themselves and their classmates and their answers.
-make locker magnets
-make thank you notes
-use with pen pal letters
-make stickers with student name and picture -make a monthly bulletin board highlighting special activities
-make a memory book for the students for the year
-publish student books. They draw pictures and take pictures of their illustrations with the digital camera and print them on the same page as the text.
-have students interview each other, take pictures of each other, and print off the interview and pictures
-make a weekly newsletter
-white out the background of the student and have them draw a picture around a photo of themselves -make bookmarks with their picture on it
-students make junk sculptures, then write about it and put the picture and writing together for a class book
-take pictures of projects or events to put on the website
-take pictures of the various life stages of butterflies grown in the classroom
-take pictures of different stages of a science experiment
-take pictures of different places in the community to make a community ABC book
-use the pictures of the community to make postcards to be sent to relatives, pen pals, etc.
Use the digital camera during the first week of school to take student pictures. Students then design posters and glue their pictures on the posters. Students must discuss what is on their posters and we display them for the month of September. I use it to take pictures of students completing activites, such as readers theater, cooperative group activites, etc. Its instant feedback and students love it. I also take pictures the last week of school and
students complete Venn diagrams on themselves and share how they are still the same and how they have changed over the year.

Computer Lessons for Kids:
http://www.kidsandcomputers.com/kids/lessons/lesson1.htm
Computers Inside and Out:
http://www.kidsdomain.com/brain/computer/lesson/comp_les1.html
EZ-Tutor For Using Computers: Parts of a Computer:
http://www.elmlane.com/ez_tutor/ucez_02.htm
http://ei.cs.vt.edu/~history/index.html
http://www.digitalcentury.com/encyclo/update/comp_hd.html

Rubrics for computer work
http://www.globalclassroom.org/assessment.htm
http://www.televar.com/~sedwards/workassessment.html
http://www.best-of-web.com/computer/clipart_index.shtml

COMPUTER RESEARCH CARDS: http://abcteach.com/Research/computercard.htm
These printable research guidelines are specifically designed for computer applications. They include keyword functions as well as site location spaces for students to fill in when using the internet for research reports.

Flash 99% Good: First Aid Manual for Usable Flash Sites: http://www.flash99good.com/
This website gives strong reasons to use Flash and, even better, reasons to leave it off most webpages. Grade Level: High School, College, Adult/Professional
Content Area: Technology (Web Development)

Silicon Zoo: http://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/creatures/
This site was set up to show microscopic images found on silicon chips created around the world. But then, go into the microscopy section to see what other things look like when viewed through a microscope. There is a section on beer microscopy; this site is still a great resource for students to explore before their own work on microscopes, or after using
microscopes to figure out how the images are captured.
Grade Level: Elementary, Middle School, High School
Content Area: Science (General), Technology (General)

Technology sites for Administrators
http://www.trumbull.k12.oh.us/Technology/evalhandbook2.pdf
http://www.southcentralrtec.org/resources/administrators.html
http://www.seirtec.org/leader.html
http://www.edu-cyberpg.com/Teachers/Home_Teachers.html
An interview with a principal who practices:
http://www.microsoft.com/education/?ID=DrWhitehead
Tech Standards for Administrators: http://www.ncrtec.org/pd/tssa/
Teaching, learning and computing - national surveys
http://www.crito.uci.edu/tlc/html/findings.html
Planning for technology
http://www.wested.org/tie/techplan/
http://www.cosn.org/resources/012601.htm
Assessment tools: http://profiler.hprtec.org/
Simple Steps to Sanity*Taming the I.T. Beast::http://route26.com/7steps/

The Internet Fraud Complaint Center: http://www1.ifccfbi.gov/index.asp is a joint operation of the FBI and the National White Collar Crime Center. If you think you've been swindled, hacked or otherwise defrauded online, file a complaint here. (You must include your name and phone number.) The details wll be forwarded to the appropriate local, state or federal law-enforcement agency for investigation.

For Windows 2000 Professional
A business card is your contact information from the Address Book in vCard format, which can be used with a wide variety of digital devices and operating systems. Once you have created your business card, you can import it, insert it in all messages, or add it to an individual message. Here's how.
To import your business card:
In the Address Book, choose File, Import, Business Card (vCard).
Locate the business card file on your computer or a network drive, select it, and then click Open.
To insert your business card in all messages:
Choose Tools, Options, Compose. The Options dialog box appears.
In the Business Cards section, select the Mail or News check boxes, and then select a business card from the drop-down list.
To add your business card or signature to an individual message:
In a message window, choose Insert, My Business Card.
To insert your business card, you must first create a contact in your Address Book for yourself.
You can include the business card of any contact in your Address Book in a message.

Windows 2000
Unless you or someone else has messed with the AutoCorrect settings, the invisible hand of Word 2000 corrects certain typos as you enter them. You can have Word correct the typos that you make often, and with a little cunning, you can even use the AutoCorrect feature to enter long company names and hard-to-spell names on the fly.
To change the settings and make AutoCorrect work for you, choose Tools, AutoCorrect. The AutoCorrect dialog box appears.
Remove the check marks from the AutoCorrect features that you don't want.
For example, if you enter a lot of computer code in your manuscripts, you don't necessarily want the first letter of sentences to be capitalized automatically, so you should click the Capitalize First Letter of Sentences check box to deselect it.
If you want, remove the check mark from the Replace Text as You Type box to keep Word's invisible hand from correcting idiosyncrasies in capitalization and spelling as you enter them.
Scroll through the list and take a look at the words that are "autocorrected."
If you don't want a word on the list to be corrected, select it and click Delete.
If a word that you often misspell isn't on the list, you can add it to the list and have Word correct it automatically.
Enter the misspelling in the Replace box, enter the right spelling in the With box, and click the Add button.
If you don't like one of the replacement words, select the word on the list, enter a new replacement word in the With box, and click the Replace button.

Windows 2000
A number of predefined color schemes come with Windows 2000 and can be selected from the Schemes drop-down list box. In addition to the Windows Standard, there are high-contrast schemes, large font schemes, and some mood-setting schemes like Desert, Eggplant, Lilac, and Rainy Day. If you don't like any of the schemes, you can create your own. There are 18 individual screen elements that can be customized. Choose one of the individual screen elements from the drop-down list, such as Desktop, and then apply your own color scheme using the steps in the following exercise:
Right-click an empty spot on your Desktop.
Click Properties from the shortcut menu.
Click the Appearances tab on the Display Properties dialog box.
Select Desktop from the items drop-down list.
Click the Color list. If none of the colors on the drop-down list interest you, click Other.
An enhanced selection of colors is available from this dialog box. Select one and click OK, and then click OK again to close the Display Properties dialog box.

The Web can seem pretty neat to a writer who is accustomed to creating work that's printed. Unlike printed pages, Web browsers have scroll bars that enable you to create a page that's as long as you want it to be -- just like an old-fashioned scroll. But when you design a Web page, more is less. The more you put on a page, the less likely someone will look at all of it! Instead of thinking of your Web page as an infinitely extendable page, think of it as a series of panels, such as those in a comic strip. Each panel is the size of the browser window on the user's screen. Upon arriving at your Web site, a user sees the initial panel -- the top part of your home page. The next action the user takes -- scrolling down, clicking a link, or hitting the Back button on the browser -- depends entirely on the user's reaction to that initial panel. Similarly, the user first experiences every link destination in your Web site as a panel and then decides what to do next based on what's in that panel.

Jo Cool or Jo Fool?: http://www.media-awareness.ca/eng/webaware/2joes/johome.htm
That's the title of a just-unveiled online ed game designed by Canada's Media Awareness Network to teach students in grades 6-8 about smart surfing. It comes with a 20-question quiz and a 50-page teacher's guide (in pdf format) that is just as useful to parents. By rating how Jo handles various online situations (on the Web, in IM and email), kids learn about authenticating online information, protecting their privacy, and using the Net safely, responsibly, and ethically.

HICE Palm Pages: http://www.handheld.hice-dev.org/
“Computers can be great learning tools when used effectively, but high costs have long hindered educators from providing each student with a laptop or desktop unit of their own. Today, handheld devices such as Palms are making technology accessible, affordable, and fun for teachers and students alike. The folks from Hi-CE (Center for Highly Interactive Computing in Education at the University of Michigan) have developed a collection of Palm applications for the classroom along with instructions for each.

Boogie Jack's Free Graphics & HTML Tutorials: http://www.boogiejack.com/index.html
Boogie Jack's Web Depot is a webmasters resource site with over 500 pages of free high quality web page graphics, HTML and CSS tutorials, graphics tutorials, cut and paste JavaScript, sound effects, software and software reviews, computer tips and more.

WDVL: Introduction to HTML: http://www.wdvl.com/Authoring/HTML/Intro/

HTML Goodies: http://www.htmlgoodies.com/
How to write in HTML

Technology Applications Center for Educator Development: http://www.tcet.unt.edu/START/
Technology lesson plans, some by grade level, professional development, assessment and more.

Learning HTML for Kids: http://www.goodellgroup.com/tutorial/
This straightforward ad-less guide to HTML covers all the basics in twelve chapters and two concept reviews. Many HTML students, after learning the tags for text, graphics and links, get stuck when they get to tables. Learning HTML for Kids dedicates two chapters to HTML tables, and they are excellent. Before tackling the subject though, get a clear picture in your head of horizontal rows and vertical columns. Remember: a row is wide (from left to right) and a column is tall (from top to bottom.)

Lissa Explains it all: HTML Help for Kids: http://www.lissaexplains.com/
"My name is Lissa. I started this site when I was eleven years old because there were no other Web sites available for kids to learn how to make their own site." If you thought HTML was only for nerds, Lissa is here to tell you otherwise. Full of bright colors and jump-in-your-face graphics, visiting Lissa Explains is like walking into a girl's bedroom. Take time to wander around, and you'll be rewarded with explanations of advanced Web design topics (including frames, CSS, and java-script; a forum for asking HTML questions; and several good resource lists for Webmaster tools such as HTML validators, and CGI scripts.

Beginner Tip: Kid's Wallpaper
Want a unique background image for your computer screen? Let your child use Microsoft's Paint to create a picture for you. When his/her masterpiece is finished, you can choose File, then Set as Wallpaper (Center or Tiled), and have Johnny or Jenny's artwork proudly displayed as your background on your PC.

Kids Domain Computer Connections: http://www.kidsdomain.com/brain/computer/type.html
Links to internet programs where kids can learn to type.

KidsClick: http://www.worldsofsearching.org/ is a tutorial on Internet searching.

The Squirrel Hunt: http://netsquirrel.com/hunt/index.html is a free, Internet research competition. Monthly ten extremely contrived questions [such as "in which city was the Magna Carta signed?"] are asked and you have to use the Internet to find the answers. In addition, to make the Hunt even more challenging, you also have to explain, step-by-step, how you found each of your answers. The Squirrel Hunt is absolutely FREE, and people can participate in the Hunt either individually or in teams. There can be up to five people on a team. There are three separate hunts (Squirrel, Senior, and Junior) corresponding to the 18 - up, 13 - 17, and 12 - under age groups. There is a teacher section. Registration is required only to win prizes. the games can be played without registration.

Webmonkey for Kids: http://hotwired.lycos.com/webmonkey/kids/
This site teaches kids web design, plus fun ways to publish and games to play.   Big graphics and simple text take them through the whole process of building a website, from the basics of the Internet to putting the site online. There is an excellent collections of HTML cheat sheets and links to software.

Doing More with your Digital Camera: http://pictureitproducts.msn.com/GR/Articles/v01/v01_UsingYourDigitalCamera_1_GR.asp

Online Assessments & Evaluation:
http://www.teachers-connect.net/cc/97-98/mid2.htm
Find several excellent guidelines to hold your students accountable for the quality of their work with online research or internet lesson plans.

Using Multimedia Authoring Tools: http://pd.l2l.org/linktuts/multitoc.htm
How can you and your class create amazing multimedia presentations with your internet research? These on-line tutorials will show you how, with topics ranging from Creating Student Multimedia Projects, to putting those projects online.

This site began in March 1998 and was created by Janet Luch.  It was last updated on August 1, 2012 .
Email to studyplans@yahoo.com.