Microsoft Office 2007 is fresh and new. At first I wasn’t to sure, things weren’t where I knew they were in the 2003 version. Once you become familiar with the applications and the infamous “Ribbon” you will learn to love it as I did. Microsoft has prepared oodles of support and training materials on Office 2007. Below you will find links to the more tutorials, support and training that I have found most valuable. After leading a training on Office 2007, resources for Access were requested, you will find links to those below.
Video Tutorials
The following are Video Tutorials for individual Office Applications. Each is less than eight minutes long! This is a fantastic way to start using each application!
The following are also provided by Microsoft. In this section you can select which content area you would like to view the self-paced lesson for. Each lesson includes audio demonstration, some with an option for visual as well. At the end is a short test and a quick reference card.
So many times I have wanted to do something quick that I know just how to do in Office 2003 and then can’t find how to do it in Office 2007. These conversion flash files have been a lifesaver! Just open them up, do the steps you would have done in Office 2003 and it will tell you what steps to take in Office 2007! Currently one does not exist for Publisher.
Record lessons for students (and parents!) to access in their own time.
Enable students to do a presentation about themselves rather than only sticking to PowerPoint!
Create a short introduction to your school, or the course you run, for potential to access, and to let parents know what they can expect their children to be doing — get student contributions too!
Create a class radio station.
Enable students to submit work in the form of a podcast.
Create audio resources for use by sight-impaired students.
Find and use podcasts as part of project research materials.
Use foreign language podcasts to improve linguistic skills.
Use podcasts to get an insight into another country’s culture, or another person’s daily lifestyle.
Enable students to create dynamic presentations without the complexity of digital video.
Subscribe to various podcasts in different subjects in order to provide extra curriculum resources at virtually no cost.
Provide students with a different way of carrying out surveys in the local area.
Create an audio blog of a school field trip.
Create an enhanced podcast entitled “My summer holiday”.
Subscribe or listen to different podcasts in order to help students develop their critical faculties.
Ask students to create a podcast to meet a real need, as part of a coursework project, for example for a local business.
Web 2.0 is a term that was introduced in 2004 to describe a new generation of Web applications which provides dynamic user participation, social interaction and collaboration. In a nutshell, the next step of the www.
In an article written in 2005, Tim O’Reilly lists on O’reillyNet a sampling of an initial brainstorming of applications that are Web 1.0 vs. Web 2.0 at that time:
Wikipedia Definition: A blog (an abridgment of the term web log) is a website, usually maintained by an individual, with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in reverse chronological order. “Blog” can also be used as a verb, meaning to maintain or add content to a blog.
Many blogs provide commentary or news on a particular subject; others function as more personal online diaries. A typical blog combines text, images, and links to other blogs, web pages, and other media related to its topic. The ability for readers to leave comments in an interactive format is an important part of many blogs. As of December 2007, blog search engine Technorati was tracking more than 112 million blogs.
Blogs Defined by others:
6 & 7 Year Olds Define Blogs– A TeacherTube video titled, “What’s a Blog, Described by 6 & 7 Year Olds”. Students from Nelson, New Zealand educate you about what they think a blog is, how they use them and what they love about them.
[flashvideo width="425" height="350" filename="http://www.teachertube.com/flvideo/1908.flv" /]
Why should Teachers have a Blog:
A blog is a web page that’s easy to publish and interactive way to communicate. It can be a reflective practice for the author and readers. It’s an accessible way to share ideas, explore them and take part in a larger community. It allows others to add input to the blog in a discussion or comment form. As you think about your reasons for having a blog, decide on your audience. Are you a classroom teacher trying to reach your parents? Are you a leader wanting more collaborative communication with your peers or other proffessionals? Are you planning to build a blog for your students to contribute to and interact with each other? In essence, the reason for having a blog is communication. In the words of James Humes, “The art of communication is the language of leadership.”
Why Should Teachers Blog?by Chris Lehmann Principal of the Science Leadership Academy in Philadelphia, PA
a. PDF File Strategies for Educational Blogging by Dr. Soo Wai Man, Temasek Polytechnic. Very insightful.
b. http://supportblogging.com/ - a wiki that lists hundreds of edublogs, teacher blogs and student blogs.
c. http://anne.teachesme.com/about/ Edublog Insights. A blog by Anne Davis, Georgia State University. Lots of reflective thinking, links to educational blogs and ideas on blog use. In her words, “This EduBlog is a place to reflect, discuss, and explore possibilities for the use of weblogs in education.”
Some of you may be asking, why would I blog, what is it? A blog is a website that let’s users comment and keeps all posts in chronological order. It allows a conversation between users and is a great tool to use for profesional development. Blogs are also searchable and can be “tagged” with keywords to access to previous information.
