Test

Here is my slideshow from the Picasa album:




And here is an image - note that I can have the text wrap around it, or change the image size.

April 18, 2008

The following is the code that is the HTML code for creating a basic layout for your web page (you can copy and paste it into your web page):

First part: goes AFTER the <BODY> tag and BEFORE the rest of your web page:

<TABLE width=600 border=1 bgcolor=green>
<TR>
<TD colspan=3>
IMAGE OF TITLE GOES HERE
</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD width=50> </TD>
<TD>


Second part: goes AFTER the content of your web page, and before the final </BODY> tag:

</TD>
<TD width=50> </TD>
</TR>
</TABLE>

April 11, 2008

EXTRA CREDIT!!

For those of you who are interested in receiving extra credit in this class, you may do one of the following by the last day of class (May 30th):

• Complete your Podcast: You can use GarageBand (Mac) or Audacity (PC/Mac) to record your podcasts. I would also accept video. You can also use online tools to record the podcast (search Google). If you are going to change your topic YOU MUST GET MY PERMISSION FIRST!!
• Create another Webpage: You must come up with a topic and then get my permission first.

All work must be done at home. I will give credit for the amount of work completed.

March 21, 2008

In-Class Assignment:

In this assignment you will create a new page for your Atlas on the geography of your country.

• Create a folder inside of your main folder called "quiz-putyournamehere"
• Create another new folder inside of the "quiz-..." folder named "images"
• Use Notepad to create a new html file inside of the quiz folder called "index.html"
• Go online and find:
• a map of your country
• a picture of the landscape of your country (for instance, a picture of forests, or mountains, or the coastline, etc.)
• Download the images into your new images folder
• In the index.html file:
• Put in the basic structure of an html file (head tags, body tags, etc.)
• Set the title that appears in the tab to "Geography"
• Set the background color of the page to a color other than white.
  
• Create a title that will appear at the top of the web page. It should say "Geography of thenameofyourcountry" and be large, centered and any color other than black.
• Create another title under this one that is bold, regular sized, and left-aligned. It should say "Map"
• Put the map image that you downloaded under the Map title and center it.
• Create another title under this that is also bold, regular size and left-aligned. It should say "Landscape"
• Put the landscape image that you downloaded under the Landscape title and center it.
• Under this create a line of text that is left-aligned and that says: "The following features can be found in thenameofyourcountry:" - underline the word "features"
• Create a bullet list that lists some of the landscape features of your country (could be things like forest, mountain, glacier, plains, steppe, desert, etc.)
• Put the entire quiz folder into a zip file and email it to me using Gaggle.
  
• Extra Credit:
• Create a links section at the bottom of your page with links to the web pages that you used (see how to make links at the bottom of the HTML cheat sheet)
• Create a graphic for your page using photoshop and insert the image at the top of the page.
  

February 22, 2008

Assignment

• Due: complete it in class today OR finish at home BEFORE next class.
• Finish in class: show me the web page before you leave.
• Finish at home: copy the files onto a USB flash drive to transfer to your computer at home, and then bring them back next class.
• EXTRA CREDIT: I will give extra credit to anybody who emails the web site to me (NOTE: you will need to ZIP the files first before sending them).
  

I would like to see the following items in your country web site:

• Title in the tab (i.e. use the "title" tag.
• Title at the top of the web page. This should be CENTERED.
  
• At least one image related to your country.
• At least 3 paragraphs of text (they can be short).
• Use the Bold/Italic/Underline tags, and also the Font tag to highlight important words.
  

February 8, 2008

Today we will begin to learn about basic web design.

Basic rules of HTML:

1. File names should be lower case with no spaces or special characters (only - or _ allowed)
2. HTML code itself can be in any case
3. Tags: Tags are command that let you control the appearance of your page. They are enclosed in special brackets, like this: <> Tags always have a begin tag and an end tag: the end tag has a backslash in it.
4. The code for every web page has two parts:
1. Head: this is the part that controls the formatting of the page
2. Body: everything in this section shows up on the web page.

Helpful HTML Links: Go to Hillcrest Links and click on Web Design on the left.

Click here to download Mr. Calkins' helpful HTML cheat sheet!

Project: We are going to begin a new class project today - creating an online atlas. Each student needs to choose one country to research; you will then start building a web page about that country with images, maps, text, etc.

February 1, 2008

Today in class we will talk more about what the Internet is and how it works.

Assignment: think of a country that you would like to research. It could be a country that is interesting to you, or that you know from traveling or from relatives. Next week you will begin to create a web page about this country.

January 25, 2008

Parts of the Computer:

• Computer parts (JR)

Check the Connection Speed of your computer:

• Speed Test: click the Start button.

How the Internet works:

• Peter Packet
  

January 11

Assignment: Click Here to create your computer

December 21

Today we will begin working on our scripts using a Wiki - see link to our class Wiki in the Links List.

Today's Podcasts:

• Steinhart Aquarium Audio Tours
• National Geographic Wild Chronicles

Homework:

• Finish script by next class (January 11, 2008)
  

December 14

Proposals need to be finished by next week! Please break it into sections (with a section title):

• Description
• Outline (in bullet form); for example:
• Intro segment with music and title (20 sec)
• Narrator introduces topic (20 sec)
• Report live from marshmallow eating contest (45 sec)
• Narrator interviews man who ate 1000 marshmallows (1 min)
• Report live from marshmallow factory (sound of explosion in background) (30 sec)
• Conclusion (Narrator) (15 sec)
• Conclusion segment with music and credits (20 sec)
• Multimedia: list the different voices, sound effects, types of images, etc.
• Interest to Others: how will you make the topic of universal appeal? what themes will you bring up?

Comments by Group:

1. (Manza, Renso, Emmit): Need Proposal. I gave you an extension because of the podcast that you brought in, but you need to give me a topic by today's class and a complete proposal by next (you are already at -20% for not bringing it in last class)
   
2. (Aubrey, Marely, Phoebe): Need Proposal. I gave you an extension because I split your group, but you need to give me a topic by today's class and a complete proposal by next (you are already at -20% for not having something on the first day that it was due).
3. (Elizabeth, Austin): Good start. Please add in an outline and the other sections as I explained above.
4. (Zach, Mark, Patrick): You need to flesh out the proposal. Create a description, outline, etc. as I explained above.
   
5. (Liam, Nick): Need Proposal. I gave you an extension because I split your group, but you need to give me a topic by today's class and a complete proposal by next (you are already at -20% for not having something on the first day that it was due).
6. (Dora, Kelsey): Please update your proposal to the format that I explained above. Also work on how to make your podcast idea interesting to a broader audience.
   
7. (Julia, Julia): Need an outline in your proposal (and sub titles so that I know which part is which). Need more info on the multimedia section.

Today's Podcasts:

• To the Best of Our Knowledge: scroll down to Sunday 9/2/2007 1:00 PM
• 60 Second Science
  

December 7

Today we will talk about Online Research and then break into groups to work on your research and proposals.

Use the Research Page that I created on the Hillcrest Links site as your research start point.

Types of Search Engines:

• Clusters: Use to help you define a topic
• Directories: Get info on a specific topic (once you know it)
  
• Keyword / Boolean: Use to find specific information or answer specific question
  

November 30

Today we are going to begin talking about Internet Research (see link to list of search engines in the sidebar). If we have time, at the end of class you will get some time to begin research for your podcast.

Podcast Steps

1. Proposal
2. Research
3. Storyboard
4. Edit/Review
5. Get/Make Audio
1. Record voiceover
2. Find music, sounds, interviews, etc.
6. Make Podcast
7. Process/Upload

Homework

• Group that handed in Proposal: Refine it per our conversation
• Groups that did not hand in Proposal: MUST hand in by next class
  

November 16

Class Assignment

• Click on the Comments link for this entry.
• Choose "Other" under Choose an Identity and enter in your first name.
• Tell me which podcast you listened to.
  
• Type 2 paragraphs in the Comment field: what did you like and what did you not like about the podcast? Be as specific as possible.

Steinhart Aquarium - Audio Exhibit Tours

Homework

• Split into groups of 3.
  
• Decide on a topic. It can be either:
• Redo one of the Steinhart Aquarium audio tours
• Choose a topic of your own - something that you know something about and can teach a "general audience" about.
• Write a 1-2 page proposal that includes:
• Topic title
• Group members
• Description: Explain what your topic will be about. Use specifics to clarify exactly how you will approach it.
  
• Outline: Break your topic down into sub-topics, each with a brief description and how long it will last.
• How will you make your podcast interesting to your average listener?
• How will you use multi-media (images, sounds, music, interviews, etc.) to enhance your podcast?
• Submit the proposal in Word (or .pdf) to my E-mail account (on the right under Contact:) before class on the 30th.
  
  

November 9

WELCOME!

Welcome to the first class - this is your class Blog. I will be using it to post class notes, links and homework. It is also a place for you to post comments or respond to questions.

Comments: NEVER place any personal information (like last names, age, date of birth, etc.) in your comments!!

Homework

• Please fill out the following survey on computers.
• Go to the Apple Learning Interchange website and subscribe to one of the podcasts listed. If you do not have iTunes on a computer at home, or another program for listening to podcasts, do it with a friend, or ask your teacher for permission to use the computer lab.