07 COURSE DESCRIPTIONS

Cool Tools for Educators Courses
Picutre This!! - Learn to take and edit digital pictures using easy to use software. Make class more engaging by using pictures that you and your students have taken. If you have a camera, feel free to bring it and get your questions answered. Learn to use free photo editing software like Picasso, Gimp Shop, Photostory...

Be Your Own Movie Director - Create interesting video using a free program called Photostory from Microsoft . PhotoStory will let you make movies from still pictures. You can use it to create visual portfolios, stories, and much more.

Shopping on United Streaming -Take a look at the latest version of United Streaming. Yes there are videos but did you know about Writing Prompts, Image Gallery, Blackline Masters and Teachers Guides, Calendar, Quiz Maker? Go beyond the basics to find out all the neat things it will do for you to make teaching easier and better.

Just the Facts Please – Using Galileo - A favorite for many year but has recently undergone a facelift you will want to see the new easier to navigate Galileo. The New Georgia Encyclopedia is a must!

Web 2.0 - Blogs , Wikis, RSS feeds how can they change the classroom? Enhance writing and research skills among your students. Share information acquired with others through a wiki. Lead the student to develop informational blogs and wikis (project-based learning).

Hook Me Up -This hands-on lab will let you learn how to get things hooked up in you class. Learn by doing while you practice connecting digital cameras, connecting to a wireless network, hooking up a DVD player, voting systems and other types of equipment.

Google World -If you just use Google for searching web sites you’re only using 1% of what it can do for you. Learn about Google’s other services like calendar, docs, scholar and many others.

Creating “MY SPACE” on the Web! - Web site design has never been easier. Create web sites using N-VU a free program that is full featured and stable. Also take a brief look at content management systems like Joomla and how they might benefit you.

Graphing Math - Get the most out of those Graphing Calculators. We can show you lesson ideas and neat tips and tricks to engage your students.

Discovering Data with Probes - Data probes can make science and math real. Learn to use these probes to gather information and organize it using a computer. Work with a variety of probes that measure things like temperature and speed.

Live With Office -Office 2007 has changed the way we view document creating. Come take a tour of the three most used components; Word, PowerPoint, and Excel. Find out what is new, what has changed, and where things moved to.

Perfect Publisher - Want to create professional looking newsletters, brochures, and flyers? This class will show you how Publisher can fit your needs. Publisher is not only great for administrative uses but is also a wonderful alternative to the normal assignments we give students.

ActivAdventure - Take a fresh look at ActivStudio flipcharts. This class will feature some new and exciting ways you can use flipcharts in you classroom. Learn some tips and tricks that will make your flipcharts more interesting and engaging.

What’s the Answer? - ActiVotes are a great tool to increase student participation. Participants will discover how activotes can be used to give tests, review materials, and gauge student learning during instruction.

Unwrap a Pack of SMARTies - Take a fresh look a SMART notebook. This class will feature some new and exciting ways you can use notebook in you classroom. Learn some tips and tricks that will make your notebooks more interesting and engaging.

Click Away? -CPS voters are a great tool to increase student participation. Participants will discover how the CPS system can be used to give tests, review materials, and measure student learning during instruction.

Interactive Whiteboard Courses

Activboard Basics -New to Activboard? In this class you will learn the basics of how to use the board. You will find out how to work with applications, websites, and Activstudio to do great interactive lessons. We will also show you some great websites that you can use as resources.

Activboard Advanced -Want to get more out of your board? This class will teach you how to use Activstudio’s advanced features. You will learn how to create nonlinear presentations, add multimedia, and use other advanced techniques to create truly engaging lessons.

Smart Board Basics-New to Smart Board? In this class you will learn the basics of how to use the board. You will find out how to work with applications, websites, and Smart Notebook to do great interactive lessons. We will also show you some great websites that you can use as resources.

Smart Board Advanced -Want to get more out of your board? This class will teach you how to use Activstudio’s advanced features. You will learn how to create nonlinear presentations, add multimedia, and use other advanced techniques to create truly engaging lessons.

lesson plan builder - Attend one day or both days, use the interactive whiteboard of choice to design flipcharts or notebook lessons using the GPS. Walk away with your lessons ready to start the new school year.

Productivity Courses

Adobe Photoshop Elements - The digital photography revolution is here and more and more people now want the power to edit, share and print their own photographs. Photoshop Elements provides this power in a comprehensive and flexible program that is much cheaper than Adobe Photoshop. Participants in this class will learn how to use the most common image editing techniques. Starting with the Elements interface, participants will learn to do colour enhancements as well as techniques such as cloning, cropping and rotating. Other topics covered will include adding text and graphical objects and also creating a variety of special effects. It is increasingly common for digital images to be used on the Internet, therefore details about optimising images for the
Web as well as creating Web photo galleries will be covered. Finally, step-by-step examples of common editing processes such as adding and removing objects from an image will be shared.

Beginning Dreamweaver - This course is specifically designed for participants who design and maintain school Web pages and seek to enhance their Internet/Web design and development skills. Master the best and most widely used Web design tool available. You’ll learn the basics of document creation, and how to insert and format different types of page context.

Computer Forensics - Learn how to perform forensics tasks in an educational environment. This course will show you the hardware and software needed to perform forensics task. You will learn proper procedures for gathering evidence. WE will also discuss the leagal issues surround forensics in schools.

Digital Storytelling - Teach your students how to use multimedia applications to create stories. We will explore various programs including Photostory and WINK.

DVD Authoring - Take your digital video projects to the next level. This "hands on" class will show you how to use authoring software to quickly and easily produce professional looking DVD videos complete with menus and chapters.

geometer's sketchpad - Geometer's Sketchpad is a dynamic construction and exploration software application that can be used to teach geometry and algebra. With the implementation of the new Georgia Performance Standards, many geometry and other higher level math concepts will be taught at the elementary, middle and high school levels. Teachers will participate in “hands-on” activities that align with the GPS for both algebra and geometry.
go paperless! - Learn how to create interactive Adobe Pdf forms with text fields, pop-up boxes and buttons. Use the forms online for registrations, surveys, expense forms...

JavaScript - JavaScript is an easy-to-use scripting language that allows you to add some action to your web pages. What action? Well, how about a message box that pops up and says “Welcome!” when someone loads your page? Or a scrolling text message in your status bar? Or a counter to record how many people visits your site? These are just a few examples.

Office 2007 Afternoons - Learn how to use components of the new Office Suite; Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Publisher. Each class will take you through the basics of an application while pointing out the differences from earlier versions.

movie maker 2.1 - Always dreamed of directing? Here’s your chance to capture the events of a project, a field trip or the school year and turn them into a movie. The participant will capture pictures, add video effects, transitions, voice overs, narrations, audio clips publish to CD and Web.

Virtual PC/Virtual Server -Virtual machines can help you run servers more efficiently and make it easier to test new software and updates. This course will cover both creating virtual pcs that run many operating systems and creating a virtual server based on Windows 2003 Server.

Podcasting - Podcasting is a way to distribute, to a worldwide audience a downloadable, digital audio file for use on the listener's computer, iPod, handheld or other devices that play the files. Participants will learn how to find and subscribe to podcasts as well as how to create and discuss how to publish their own Podcast.

Video Podcasting - Video Podcasting is a way to distribute, to a worldwide audience a downloadable, digital video file for use on the listener's computer, iPod, handheld or other devices that will play the video files. Participants will learn how to find and subscribe to video podcasts as well as how to create and discuss how to publish their own video Podcast.