Middle School

Now we start getting the students ready for High School.  We will meet twice a week for 45 minutes each class.  The focus will be learning and reinforcing basic skills such as typing, spreadsheets, and presentations.

We will start learning how to type without looking at the keyboard.  The program we are using is at the website typing.com.  The students have their own username and passwords that they will use during class.  I don’t want them signing in at home because we are using blanked out keyboards to discourage them from looking down.  Also, I want to make sure it is actually them doing their own work.

The students will receive a @rosaryschool.com Gmail address.  What this means is that they will have an email account that is under the protective bubble of Rosary School.  The students can only send and receive emails from within the @rosaryschool.com domain.  That’s a fancy way of saying that they will only be able to send and receive emails from students and staff members at Rosary School.  Another safeguard is that every email that a student receives is automatically copied and forwarded to the email security account that I monitor.  Anything inappropriate will be found and dealt with immediately.  It is important to note that this Gmail address is the property of Rosary School.  The students have been told that I have full access to their accounts.  There is no invasion of privacy because we own the account.  If they don’t want me to read it, don’t put it in here.

Another benefit to the Gmail account is that the students can connect to the google classroom.  This is a big deal in middle school and will be huge to them in high school.  It allows students to connect to their assignments and do them anywhere they have an internet connection.  They can start typing an assignment in the computer lab, update it later on a classroom iPad, then finish it at home.  Once it’s finished, they can turn it in electronically.  We are saving a bunch of trees with this system.

Another great feature of this system is that their work is saved automatically.  There is no need for a thumb drive.  Another benefit is that the teachers can access the assignment at any time.  If they choose to, they can look at the assignment before it is due to see their progress.  The teachers can also type a friendly reminder into the document to encourage them to pick up the pace.