Our Lady of Hungary Regional School

1300 Newport Ave    Northampton, PA 18067

(610) 262-9171

Computer Activities

Grades K-5

Art Activities

Grades 2 -8

September, 2008

Kindergarten has been working with Computer Alphabet activities such as placing the letters in correct alphabetic order, writing the letters of the alphabet as they appear on computer screens, doing a lot of matching up beginning letters with words or pictures, and then doing Mathematical  computer activities as counting bananas, little babies, fish, etc.  They have also been doing shape matching and sorting, such as Bert's bottle caps. and putting jigsaw puzzles together on the computer. We usually do many logic and organizational skill activities.

First grade has completed keyboard introduction activities,  and will be progressing to develop finger key placements using both hands.  They are learning to recognize and locate all the numbers and letters of the keyboard.  They are given text typing activities to try to reinforce using 2-hand home key finger placement.  They have been given practice with capitalization using the keyboard and some punctuation activities.

During School Year 07-08, first grade has also been doing many teacher organized as well as student text and graphic activities  on Kidspiration and KidPix Deluxe.

Math practice with telling time on analog and digital clocks, adding and subtracting has been given on Treasure Math Storm.

Second grade will be practicing higher level keyboarding skills over and over again on levels that are appropriate for each person individually.  Each child is made to feel at home on his or her typing level regardless of what the entire class is doing

During School Year 07-08, second grade is doing more typing of text, i.e., sentences, paragraphs, and stories of their own. They are being supervised to make sure they use home keys as they type text materials. All are working very hard to master Home Position on the keyboard all year.

We have also gone online often to do research such as finding pictures of animals, and specific information about animals.  We have used KidPix to create pictures or graphics in response to questions or partial sentences...For breakfast I like to eat (they insert a cereal bowl graphic).  They have finished stories online that were started with their own sentences and ideas.

Third grade will be  practicing higher level keyboarding skills appropriate for each person individually.  They do lots of extra text typing to make sure they are staying with home keys as they type.  We do stories many kinds of ways, and they input text responses in them. Each child has done a simple Powerpoint on the 3 types of communities they learn about in 3rd grade...urban, suburban, and rural.  We have also done plurals, contractions, and parts of speech in computer activities on Word.

Through internet websites, third grade has been given Math computer activities on simple times tables (2x and 3x), double digit addition and subtraction skills. and story problems.

Through Third Grade Adventures, logic and mathematical activities are frequently practiced also. Through 4th Grade Halloween Adventures, 3rd grade third grade works with Math, Science, Music and Language Arts practice.

In Kidpix they did stamping activities in an 8 bubble diagram

Fourth Grade is developing writing skills and working on computer units related to their classroom curriculum.  We started out with the Water Cycle in Kidspiration and  then the Kidspiration Cloud template. This led to "Everything Weather"  where we reviewed hurricanes, tornadoes, and snow storms.  A weather folder for each child was started in the classroom and worksheets and notes from computer classes, when completed, were taken and filed therein.  

In Language Arts, we worked on 4th grade spelling words on www.spellingtime.com. We have written a number of paragraphs and stories on Microsoft Word including Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas as themes. We did a persuasive writing activity on minerals, minerals, and gems.

We did a class Powerpoint on sea creatures, where they had to select, find information about and pictorial or graphic materials on the creature of their choice.

Another big item for fourth grade this year has been keyboarding and remaining with home keys whenever they sit down at a computer to type any kind of text material. There are no typos allowed.  Text is expected to be just about perfect by fourth grade. (double spacing after sentences, proper use of capital letters, etc.)

Fifth Grade is developing more proficient keyboarding skill and a nice variety of writing skills. Importance of home keys is stressed and results of their typing practice is printed out for them (so they know their speed and accuracy levels).

On Kidspiration we compared differences between Earth and Moon, and researched on the internet to find specific characteristics of each. We did inner and outer planets on Kidspiration.  We did two Flower Diagrams on plants when 5th grade was studying plants in Science. We did an Early Explorer Kidspiration research lesson, where they went online and found very specific information and pictures of many Early Explorers.

On Word we did writings about Keeping Christ in Christmas and descriptive typing about graphics we found online. We did a Halloween story.  We worked with 5th grade level spelling words on www.spellingtime.com.  They were told a word and had to spell it accurately using the keyboard.

Art Education - Grades 2-8

Grade 2 is introduced to Fine Arts lessons for the first time. Emphasis is on how to properly use the tools, procedures to follow, and good listening. Management of scissors, watercolor pans, brushes, and cups, cut papers, gluing and making drawings are big items. They will learn 6 ways to use watercolors, how all colors start from the 3 primary colors. They will be doing toothbrush stencil painting, a "bug's life", butterflies, and simple animals as themes.

Grade 3 will make masks with 9 by 12 construction paper, a "famous artists fan" using famous art as a basis for their designs. They will do a color wheel, a four-sectioned window pane picture.  We may be doing small paper mache dinosaurs (3-d), fraction art, pointilist pictures, and watercolor butterflies.  They will also learn the 7 art elements this year and how we used them to create art.

Grade 4 will review the color  wheel and how all colors come from the 3 primary colors. They will also learn the 7 art elements by making a treehouse, a horizon line watercolor landscape(what is a horizon?) They will do oval action figures and a carbon resist watercolor landscape painting.

Grade 5 will be doing lots of color studies..Egyptian portraits using Paul Klee's cubist technique. They will do a linear repeated design, and a shiny glass vase decorated to take home using all the color they wish.

Grade 6 will begin with a circular color study, next a coral reef with shiny fish.  They will work on night sky paintings.  They will be doing Carbon Resist shapes on watercolor landscapes.

Grade 7's 3-d form experience will be making a paper mache dog or cat.  They will be learning balance, center of interest, and symmetry with a Mandala drawing.They will practice drawing hands, portraits, and contour drawings of live plants.

Grade 8 will be reviewing the six art element and through the projects, drawings, and 3-d experiences begin to see the way Art elements are organized with principles of balance, symmetry repetition, patterning, and unity. Next the Renaissance Art, a copy of a Discovery age person using a grid, painting and texture elements in the clothing.  They will also do an acetate see-through painting of animals or plants. Finally, they will learn to sketch a sunflower plant.

All  children will be given sketch books also to create whatever they would like.

Grade 7 has done a  lesson on radial balance (mandala) and negative and positive space in a monochrome figure.  They did a "form" lesson called Cylinder Sillies.  Grade 7 entered the AAA Poster contest and had one finalist in the national competition.  We worked with color in a tempera paint Autumn composition.

We did a texture/flat textiled pattern composition with a Hand drawing.

Our latest "form" project is a paper mache bowl, which 7th grade requested to do.

Grade 8 has done a very good variety of projects, such as making 12 colors out of the 3 primary colors, a "name" project and a Mandala design. They have used colored pencils the way they should be used, considering the effects colors have on each other.

Shading (dark and light) or Value in Art has been stressed a lot this year, as it is a hard concept to develop.

We have also gotten into 2 "form" or 3-d projects - a kachina doll and a standing paper mache figure.

We did chalk pastel portraits of one another. Also each person submitted an entry into the AAA poster contest and we had one finalist. Theme was being a good car passenger.

There are 2 or 3 more "advanced art students" in grade 8, who have completed projects in addition to what everyone else has done.
 

 Edited on 08/25/2008

Questions or Comments on the website please contact mduda@olhrs.com