Week 4

Dust Echoes

Dust Echoes is a series of 12 animated dreamtime stories, telling stories of love, loyalty, duty to country and aboriginal custom and law. In our workshop I watched ''Mermaid Story'' and then used Inspiration and Paint to copy and paste the images. I put these images in sequence order and used sentences from the study guide provided on the website.

Below is my final piece that i created in Inspiration.

This activity would be useful for VELS level 4 as they can 'improve the appearance of a finished product' (VELS level 4) by using different tools and techniques. By practising cutting, pasting and editing pictures and writing, students will gain a better understanding of how these tools work.

M &Ms and Microsoft Excel

Next we looked at M&Ms and how we can use them to create tables and charts on Microsoft Excel. The M&Ms website (www.m-ms.com/us) has tables which provide information (percentages) about energy, sodium etc in each packet of M&Ms (ie: nutrition panels). Students can use this website to further investigate the percentages of each ingredient in the chocolate, which can lead to a maths lesson.

We did an activity, where we had a packet of M&Ms and we had to create a frequency table of the different colours of the M&Ms found in the packet. First we created this frequency table in Microsoft Excel and then we created a bar graph. Students will find this computer program easy to use and navigate.

Below is the frequency table and bar graph that I created:

Week 3

How to Make a Frog Jump ?


Today in our workshop we tried to make a 'frog' jump. the materials we were allowed to use:


1. a small piece of carboard
2. picture of a frog
3. rubber band
4. sticky tape
5. glue-stick
6. scissors



our group stuck the picture of the frog to the cardboard and folded the cardboard into a sort of table looking structure and wrapped the rubber band around the cardboard. we then pushed down on the rubber band and the frog appeared to 'jump.'

After completing this activity, students can be encouraged to create a flowchart or poster on the computer (using programs like Inspiration, Microsoft Word or Microsoft Publisher), describing the steps/stages taken in order to make the frog jump.

If students were to complete this activity in class, for an extension activity, students could use a bigger piece of cardboard.

QUIA Website

The QUIA website (www.quia.com/web) can be used to make quizs with multiple choice answers. This is a great way for students to test their knowledge about a topic. Not only can they be given these quizes to complete on the computer, but they can create their own quizes and complete other students' ones.


I created a quiz about zoo animals. the link to my quiz is http://www.quia.com/quiz/2514028.html


A snapshot of my quiz is displayed here :



















The Quiz website can also be used to create different activies, such as hangman, jumbled words, scavenger hunts and many more.

I created a 'hang man' game about underwater animals. A link to my hangman game is here : http://www.quia.com/hm/668203.html

This is a snapshot of my hang man game:





Websites such as Quia are helpful for students to revise for a test or assesment in a 'fun' way on the computer. It will encourage them to develop their hand and eye coordination (especially in the junior levels) by using the mouse, whilst making them think about the questions.

Week 2

Brochure Designs & E-portfolios

Today's workshop consisted of lots of information about the process of applying for jobs as graduate teachers. Greg Powell provided interesting ways on how to handle an interview.

We were then shown how to create a pamphlet on Microsoft Publisher. I created one about the attractions which can be found in France. Please see below for my finished product.

Microsoft Publisher is an excellent program for students to express themselves using ICT. According to VELS students will need to be able to use recommended search engines to find information about their topic. Once they have done this, they can display their findings in a range of ways on Excel.


Rather than always writing information, it is useful for students to type and to create brochures and collages on the computer in order to express their creative sides as well. They can use their brochure to advertise an item or a holiday destination.When students have completed their brochures, they can look at different writing styles, formating and how the information is presented, which can lead onto lessons about how effective advertising is and how it can be improved.

In our workshop we were then directed to create an e-portfolio on Microsoft Publisher. A portfolio is a way to relfect on one's experiences and beliefs and an e-portfolio allows you to upload your portfolio onto the internet, so that potential employers are able to gain a better understanding about their future employees. Progression Point 3.25 in VELS says that students should be able to create an electronic portfolio to display their work. This program makes it easy for students to do this.

Below is an example of an e-portofolio which I created on Publisher.

Microsoft Publisher allows students to create many different types of texs such as menus, news letters, banners and many others. In this day and age, where computers and the internet are used daily by many people all over the world, it is important for students to be exposed to computers and to become familiar with useful programs such as Publisher.