Head-to-head Typing Contest Originally uploaded by mgolding Something interesting happened on Friday that I’m excited to share. I set up my middle school keyboarding class in a March Madness-like competition. The goal was to infuse class spirit and assess the kids’ typing speeds (we use Typing Master software). Students battled each other for the highest [...]
Archive for January, 2008
I can’t wait ’till this idea hits the shelves: it’s a keyboard-in-a-glove. The following podcast by Robert Scoble features the inventor of the mouse, Doug Engelbart. He’s showing off a keyboard replacement that uses a glove and a binary letter-coding system. [podtech content=http://media1.podtech.net/media/2008/01/PID_013327/Podtech_DougEngelbart2.flv&postURL=http://www.podtech.net/home/4864/meeting-the-user-input-visionary&totalTime=1806000&breadcrumb=9509f63cf2134c8e83725bb018c9f2b7] I teach keyboarding now and my middle school students always struggle with [...]
I have one really geeky class this semester: Linux Systems Administration. Last semester, the same students studied Windows XP Professional with me. Because installing Linux on dedicated lab computers is out of the question (my 4 other classes need Windows), I found 2 alternative environments to use: Ubuntu Linux live CDs and shell accounts on [...]
I’ve been developing a plan to incorporate more data analysis with my Pre-Algebra students. They’re in grades 6 and 7. As you know, when something’s on your mind, you start noticing it all around you. Which might explain how I came across two fun graphs in my RSS reader today. First up is from Indexed [...]
I wrote the following for students because it’s too exhausting to keep track of the forgetful kids’ passwords. This way, they can keep track of passwords and links from a central location. (I encourage the forgetful kids to write passwords down, which security guru Bruce Schneier says is ok.) If I was setting up a [...]
In his post “The first thing to do this year“, Seth Godin suggests Googling yourself: If you’re a salesperson, your prospects already do. If you’re looking for a job, your prospective employers already do. If you’ve got a job, your co-workers already do. I’d add, “If you’re a teacher, your students already do.” (An interesting [...]
