Lego Robotics

This week we have been working on Lego Robotics and programming.  We are building a Lego alligator robot that we are going to program.  This also meant learning the Lego pieces names.  We also learned a bit about a Sphero Ball.  This week has been very robotic!  Mrs. Brown asked me to think about a question I have that I will try to answer tomorrow in class through discovery.  My question is this:  How do people create a program that will control how something works?

First Week in Technology

The first week of Technology we have learned about the parts of the computer, talked about our jobs in the classroom, and learned about digital citizenship.  We even took apart a computer.  We now know about the parts of a computer and how to stay safe online.  I believe this week has been a very productive one. 

And the Oscar Goes To...

The Oscar goes to all of us.  Despite some setbacks with regard to time, we were able to complete our Digital Citizenship Film Festival videos just as the bell was ringing to signify the end of our last Technology class.  Whew.  It was a wild ride.  I am proud of the effort and energy that each student put into their project.  While watching the videos and reflecting on the process, it was interesting to hear what each student learned.  Comments ranged from, "I learned the importance of working on a team", "I learned how to crop a video clip", "I learned that you are never done editing", "I learned to pay attention to my privacy settings when working with social media", "I learned how to manipulate the voices within a video", and so much more.  Whether it was a learning moment regarding technical skills or a lesson in diplomacy and digital citizenship, we all grew our knowledge bank.  Even I did.  I learned to have faith in my students ability to stay on task without being micromanaged.  I found it so impressive that they were motivated enough to get the project done and follow along with the timeline (even when two days that we didn't have class were not accounted for on that timeline giving the impression they would have more time than they actually had).  Each student added their own flavor of creativity to their projects and some had to learn by doing, even if I told them that making a different choice might be better.  I respect that.  In the end, we created projects that we can be proud of and had a ball sharing, reflecting, and celebrating our work.  It is hard to believe that this

became this

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Script (Google Docs)

This week in Technology we're making our scripts for our movies. The word processing program that we're using is Google Docs. Google Docs is a sight that you use to type, you can share what you're typing with friends or with a teacher. You're teacher and friends are allowed to comment on what you're writing. Google Docs is basically like Microsoft Word with more and less features in a different way.  You can share your script with others and contribute to it at the same time.  It is great for working on our scripts outside of class when we are not together.

New Hit Movie On Digital Citizenship!

 Today in class we are making a movie on digital citizenship. We each picked a number and divided into groups of three based on the number that we drew. The class is on the computers with their groups deciding how they want their movie to be using google docs to write their scripts.  Looking around the room I see very good teamwork and cooperation. The class can't wait to continue this tomorrow!:)

Footprints

Every time you post a picture you leave even more information about yourself online.  We are learning about our own individual digital footprints.  We are going to be making movies about digital citizenship using mobile devices and iMovie.  We watched videos today on Digital Citizenship to see how we could make the most effective films.  We discussed what we liked and didn't like about each film and why.  This will help us in making the best "Protech the Ones We Love" movies.

Making Our Alligator Move

 Last week, we built Lego alligators. Today, we are plugging the motor and sensor into the USB port on the computer to make it crunch and move the jaw up and down as though it is chomping. We logged on to our computer and went to the Lego WeDo software.  The software gave us  instructions that made us be able to control the alligator robot. Then, we made it sense food so that the jaw would open and close as the food approached.  It was very cool. I hope we get to do this again!