Software Tools

PowerPoint Games

For this assignment, we were tasked with using a template for a "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" PowerPoint game to create a presentation that we might show in a classroom. I chose to do a U.S. history quiz because history is my favorite field. PowerPoint is not exactly an optimal program for this type of thing, but it is not too difficult to figure out, especially with the template already there. I was able to create a game that I was happy with, and might even save to show at some point in the future. Knowledge of things like this is useful because it gives students a fun way to learn and also show the teacher where they might be as a group. I think games like this are especially useful as either review before a test, or as an introduction to a subject. This fits in with standard 2 of the NETS for Teachers, which is to design and develop digital-age learning experiences and assessments, because it involves adapting material to fit a new and interactive method of presentation

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Excel Spreadsheet

This assignment was meant to familiarize us with Microsoft's Excel spreadsheet program. Although it looks intimidating, Excel is actually fairly simple to use, although its depth makes it still difficult to master. We followed instructions that taught both how to fill out spreadsheets manually, and how to set cells to automatically fill based on what is entered into other cells. This is extremely useful in compiling data; for example, figuring out grades. Teaching students to use at least the basics of Excel would be just a generally useful thing for them to know. It also fits in nicely with standard three of the NETS for Teachers. Knowing how to properly manage data on with a computer program would certainly help in modeling digital-age work.