**April 29, 2008

4th Quarter Computer Progress reports go home on Friday. It is a homework assignment grade for students to bring the Progress report back to school signed by a parent or guardian.

**March 7th, 2008

Check out the general information page if you are interested in learning a few tips and suggestions about staying safe while surfing the internet.

**March 4th, 2008

I have tried to conserve my resources the best I can and have made it to March before running out of tissues, Clorox wipes and hand sanitizer!! For the next two weeks, any student who brings in Tissues, Clorox wipes, and/or Hand Sanitizer will receive extra credit.

(Make sure if you are leaving supplies on my desk you label it with your first and last name so I can give you your extra credit!!)

**February 26th, 2008

Students will be Word Processing Monsters by the time they are done with Voyager Academy.

**February 15th, 2008

Each student should check their flash drive to make sure they have all of the following activities on their flash drive before their class the week of February 26th - 29th.

Word Processing Vocab

Word Processing Activity 1

*Word Processing Activity 2

*Some classes may not have started this activity at this point.

Flash drives are still a problem for some students. Each day a student comes to class without his/her flash drive, I am taking 5 points off the student's participation grade.

Also, the names of the students not bringing their flash drives goes to Mr. Forsyth at the end of each week.

January 7th, 2008

Welcome Back to School!

Students are finishing up their keyboarding projects and autobiographies (autobiographies only 5-7th grade). Students are making good progress and I'm happy with how many students are taking advantage of Tuesday and Thursday appointments.

Keep up the good work!!

December 10, 2007

Wish list:

Lined notebook paper and flash drives.

It would be really helpful to have a few extra flash drives on hand for some students who cannot afford to purchase one. I could keep these flash drives in my classroom.

If you could help with either item that would be great. Thank you!!**

December 7, 2007

Due to SRI testing next week, I have decided to move the Keyboarding Project Due dates to the week of January 8-11th.

That will give students an extra week to work in class. **

December 6, 2007

** By popular demand I have created a page with a few helpful websites. I will try to find more and make that page be a great resource for our students. Enjoy!! **

Helpful Websites

December 3, 2007

**Appointment Sign-up Sheets are outside my door. Arrange a ride as soon as possible and sign up for a spot if you need one.

Appointments are for Tuesdays and Thursdays until 4:30-5:00. There are only 20 spots each afternoon.

Students should be picked up at the Computer Lab back door. Please come and knock on the door to pick up your student.**

November 30, 2007

** Students, the Keyboarding Project due date is getting closer!

Start making appointments on Tuesdays and Thursdays in December if you need more time. Remember spots fill up fast and there are only so many computers. Make arrangements for a ride ahead of time.

Also, since report cards, I have seen a huge improvement in student behavior, participation, and work effort. This makes me extremely happy and I'm so thankful for this gift. I hope this continues into the New Year.

Lastly...

I really enjoyed the Technology Conference. I learned a lot of information that will benefit my students. I am excited about honing my new skills and really putting that time to good use.

Thank you Voyager Academy for giving me that opportunity and thank you to my wonderful substitute teacher. You made my life so easy while I was gone and the students loved you!!

November 20, 2007

** I will be out of school November 26-29th for a Technology Conference.**

No appointments will be scheduled during that week.

Starting in December all students are encouraged to make appointments on Tuesdays and Thursdays to catch up on Keyboarding or other Computer class work they may have missed or are behind in.

Also...

**A few students continue to forget their flash drives. Students who forget their flash drive will be expected to make an appointment after school to make up the work they could not do in class due to their lack of flash drive.

It is their responsibiliy to remember it for class. If it is lost or stolen, unfortunately, they are expected to buy a new one.**

October 26, 2007

Important Information Addressing Concerns about Keyboarding Project

Students and parents have contacted me about being concerned with their keyboarding project, and I decided to address the issue to everyone. (Or the ones who check my website. Cheers to you!)

The students are responsible to get their work done. We have been working on Keyboarding throughout the semester and the students knew that they would be graded on their work via their Keyboarding Progress Report Card. I hold all students to a high standard, but as I've told them many times, I will always be there to guide them and when I assign something for a grade there will always be an opportunity to seek extra help.

Because I knew some students would need extra time, I arranged my schedule in order for students to finish up their work after school. They were told over a week ago to talk to their parents to arrange a ride and sign up for a time slot first thing Monday morning. Many students took advantage of this opportunity. Many students waited until Wednesday or Thursday to talk with their parents and/or to sign up and found that the spots had been filled.

Also, because I know students are coming into Voyager Academy with all different skills and experience, I designed the project so both ends of the spectrum, and everyone in between, could be successful. There are 5 grading components ranging from completing the levels to time on task. Students could still earn an 'A' without finishing as long as they satisfied the other components.

I hope this clears up a few questions and concerns. The students who took advantage of the time offered and worked hard during the class time should feel very proud of themselves. I did not lower expectations to meet insufficiency and I did not extend my deadline. The students have worked very hard to earn the grades they have in here and I hope this teaches them to be more responsible students. After all they are growing up!

In the future, if you have questions or comments please feel free to contact me directly. My course is independent from their core courses, therefore I am better prepared to answer your questions specific to Computer class.

Sincerely,

Miss Wu