Preschool technology

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Permalink Reply by Heidi McDaniel on April 3, 2008 at 10:27am

Hi! I am the technology teacher for grades 1-5 at a small private school and I use microsoft word to create shape pictures with the first and second graders. i have them start by drawing just circles and filling them with one color, then add squares or rectangles, then add different fill effects. In second grade they make a collage using 8 shapes with 4 different fill effects that are really quite nice and very individualized.

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Permalink Reply by RoJene Willard on April 12, 2008 at 11:18am

Thanks for posting this lesson. My students are creating books that will be sent to a publisher. I have been trying to think of a way that we could add some interest to their author page. I am going to have them use the star and then fill it with their picture. Thanks again. You made my day! Rojene

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Permalink Reply by Dee James on April 3, 2008 at 3:19pm

I liked your idea. I am wondering how hard it will be for preschoolers?

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Permalink Reply by Heidi McDaniel on April 4, 2008 at 6:33am

It would be fairly simple if you had them just point and click - that makes a smallish circle. IF they can drag they can increase and vary the size and shape of the circle. Using the paint bucket to choose a fill color might be the hardest part. If you set your Toolbar to Large Icons it should be easier for them to do and see.
I would definitely start by setting up the page for them before they came in. I usually set it to Landscape and use the Whole page view so that they see what it will look like when they print it.
Also, depending on their keyboard knowledge, you could let them use Word Art to put their name on the page. I start the year in first and second grade with a document where they just insert 5 or more Word Arts with their first name in a document to familiarize them with the location of the keys for their name. They love using the Word Art and it can be very pretty!
Hope this helps - I have attached an example.
Have a great day - Heidi

Attachments:

• Shapes 1.doc, 96 KB

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Permalink Reply by Ian Nixon on April 11, 2008 at 11:10am

I am a Kg-4th grade tech integrator in a private school, but I have worked with preschoolers too. I would recommend Kidspiration. If you create your own templates there where the students can show their understanding by dragging and dropping the pictures into the correct boxes. I like Kidspiration because of large photos, icons and a child friendly interface. Check out the link: http://www.inspiration.com/productinfo/kidspiration/index.cfm and attached is a graphic that would give you an idea of what I talking about too. Keep in mind it may take time to build these templates tailored to your student needs, but that is the small price to pay for having something you can use for awhile.

I would also suggest a paint program like Pixie from Tech4Learning [http://www.tech4learning.com/pixie/] or a free one like Tux Paint [http://www.tuxpaint.org/]

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Permalink Reply by Stacy on April 12, 2008 at 12:44pm

I teach tech to grades 1-6. I think KidPix is a fabulous drawing/painting program for young kids. Kids love it and it is easy to use. I have used it with preschoolers and kindergarteners. In fact, my 3 year old daughter is pretty proficient at it. And she essentially taught herself!

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Permalink Reply by peach on April 13, 2008 at 4:29pm

I use KidPix with Kindergarten students and they love it. It has a paint program and other features that the students like to use.

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