Team 10 prepares for the arrival of the Board.

Team 10 practices in front of members of the Clerc Center Management Team (CCMT). CCMT members provide feedback to the presenters to help polish the presentation.

Social studies teacher Jennie Vaccaro checks the equipment one last time. A few final words of advice for Phuong Dang from Lead Teacher Chet Virnig. Teacher Margaret Simpson gives a final check to the digital camera.

Student Steven Santiago and teacher Jennie Vaccaro practice the AlphaSmart PowerPoint presentation one last time.

Board Members arrive.

Clerc Center Dean Kathy Jankowski welcomes Board members and splits them into two teams.

Activity #1 - AphaSmarts in the English Classroom

Through a grant from the Higgs Family Foundation, Team 10 received 10 AlphaSmarts. Team 10 teacher Margaret Klotz uses the AlphaSmarts with her students for taking notes, typing up initial drafts of papers and others purposes. They come in very handy when there are not enough computers available for all of the students to use at the same time or for trips to the MSSD library for research.

Margaret Klotz, Team 10 English teacher, introduces Team 10 student, Steven Santiago.

Margaret Klotz, Team 10 English teacher, introduces herself and Team 10 student Steven Santiago. Steven will lead the presentation.

Steven explains the use of the AlphaSmart to Board Members.

Steven explains that the AlphaSmart is a portable word processor with 8 files. Each file can hold up to 12.5 pages. The AlphaSmart has a spelling checker and a calculator. Its files can be uploaded to a computer for use in a word processor, an email, a PowerPoint presentation, etc.

Board Members Dr. Benjamin Soukup, Jr and Dr. Carol Padden and Gallaudet’s Special Assistant to the President for Planning Mr. Fred Weiner listen and learn.

Board members are asked to type one sentence each sharing what they know about the Middle Ages.

Gallaudet Provost Jane Fernandes, Gallaudet’s Executive Director of Development Ms. Cathy Sweet-Windham and Special Assistant to the President for Diversity and Community Relations Mr. Lindsay Dunn listen to their assignment.

Board member Mr. Charles Williams, now in the student role, types a sentence into the AlphaSmart about the Middle Ages.

Board member Dr. Benjamin Soukup, Jr, types in his sentence with advice from Board member Dr. Carol Padden.

Board member Ms. Susan Dickinson passes her AlphaSmart to teammate and Board member Dr. David Stewart so that he can type in his sentence about the Middle Ages.

Chairman of the Board, Dr. Glenn Anderson works hard on his sentence with encouragement from Board member Ms. Pamela Holmes.

Steven uploads the text from the AlphaSmart to the laptop.

While the teams continue to type in their sentences on the Middle Ages, Steven prepares the cables and the laptop for the upload.

The AlphaSmart is connected to the computer by a wire. Steven pushes a key to send the text into the Microsoft Word program on the laptop. The student can now further edit the document, adding graphics, highlighting words, etc. The text could also have been imported into an email message or any other program that accepts text.

This is how the text looks when it comes into Microsoft Word. The student can now manipulate his original text using the power of this advanced word processor.

Activity #2 - Jeopardy – Fun and Learning in Social Studies

There are several game templates that have been created for use with Microsoft PowerPoint. One of those is Jeopardy. Team 10 teacher Jennie Vaccaro uses the game to reinforce Social Studies content with her students.

Jennie Introduces the students.

Phuong introduces herself and the topic.

Team 10 Teacher Jennie Vaccaro introduces students Steven Santiago and Phuong Dang. Steven and Phuong will serve as presenters and then as the game show hosts.

Phuong explains that she grew up in Viet Nam and has just recently come to MSSD where she is learning ASL (American Sign Language). She tells the Board that they will learn about the use of the Jeopardy game in the Team 10 classroom.