Computer Capers
October 2006
www.buddyproject.org
Fabulous Phases Slideshow
Statements About a Statue
Have you noticed the beautiful “show” the
moon puts on during a crisp fall night? Why is
that so? To learn more about the moon and its
phases, gather some information and do research
using books, online sources, even watching your
local weather broadcast. Next, create a “show” of
your own… a presentation about what you have
learned and the phases of the moon. Be sure to
include a slide with the title, one slide for each of
the 8 phases, any additional information you want
to include, and then a concluding slide. Try to use
the drawing tools on each slide to illustrate the
phase yourself or find a piece of clip art. If you
have a digital camera, “catch” each phase in the
night sky yourself, and use these original images
in your presentation.
Have fun during your “shining”
moment, delivering your
presentation to your family and
friends. They will enjoy learning
about the moon and its fabulous
phases too!
The Statue of Liberty, given to the United States
by France, was dedicated on Oct. 28th, 1886.
To celebrate this special date for our country
and to learn more about her, write an
informational piece about the history and
significance of Lady Liberty. Use your
computer to conduct research on the
internet as well as to compose your
writing. While gathering your research,
look for and capture usable photos or
clipart for illustrating your work. Format
your document with appropriate margins,
spacing, etc. Make the text “wrap” around your
pictures. While writing about the history and
significance of the Statue of Liberty, keep in mind
the following questions: Does your piece engage
the interest of the reader?...have a clear purpose?
Did you develop your topic with supporting details
gathered from your research? ...conclude with a
summary linked to the purpose? Proofread your
final document and check for design errors before
publishing your final work that gives tribute to a
symbol that our country cherishes.
Indiana Science Standard 4.3.1 Observe and report that the moon
can be seen sometimes at night and sometimes during the day.
Language Arts Standard 4.4.7 Use multiple reference materials
and online information (the Internet) as aids to writing. 4.7.12
Make informational presentations that: • focus on one main topic.•
include facts and details that help listeners focus.• incorporate
more than one source of information (including speakers, books,
newspapers, television broadcasts, radio reports, or Web sites).
Cereal Comparison
IN Language Arts Standard 6.4.3 Write informational pieces of
several paragraphs that: • engage the interest of the reader. • state a
clear purpose. • develop the topic with supporting details and precise
language. • conclude with a detailed summary linked to the purpose
of the composition 6.4.6 Use organizational features of electronic
text (on computers), such as bulletin boards, databases, keyword
searches, and e-mail addresses, to locate information. 6.4.7 Use a
computer to compose documents with appropriate formatting by
using word-processing skills and principles of design, including
margins, tabs, spacing, columns, and page orientation.
Can you make sense of the information on the side of your cereal box? What do all those numbers
mean? Does each cereal box contain the same information? Create a database of information to help you
organize and compare each different cereal and what it contains. Begin a new database with field names
that might include: Cereal name, Serving size in cups, Serving size in oz., # of Servings in the box, # of
calories, # of grams of fat, # of grams of protein, # of grams of carbohydrates, # of grams of sugars, and
finally the first 3 ingredients listed. Next, locate all of the cereal boxes that your family eats and check out
the “Nutrition Facts” on the side of each box. Enter a new record for each kind. After each cereal has been
entered into the database, view your data in “list” form and “sort” it in different ways to help you analyze
the data. Which cereal contains the most sugar?...fat?...protein?...calories?...carbohydrates?
Is there a standard for serving size? If all of the serving sizes were based on one cup,
would your answers for most sugar, fat, calories, etc be the same? Explain. What
ingredients are most popular? Are you surprised? Finally, based on the information that you
have gathered, is your favorite cereal the best choice nutritionally? Explain why or why
not. Next time you shop for cereals, think about what you learned, using the information
to guide your choice of breakfast cereals.
Indiana Health Standard 3.2.5 Analyzes information from the labels of health-related products.