Home PublicationsL&LIssuesVolume 27 (1999-2000) February (No. 5)

Do It Step-by-Step: A Systematic Approach to Designing Multimedia Projects   by Michael F. Ruffini

Multimedia programs are interactive, are student centered, and motivate students to engage in higher-order thinking. A step-by-step approach to project design can result in effective multimedia projects. Michael guides teachers in developing multimedia projects using a systems approach. Students can also follow the steps in completing their projects. Download the full article (PDF, 343 KB, PDF Instructions)

	Software Releases   by Judi Mathis Johnson
Judi describes some of the newest releases for math, language arts, productivity, and special needs. Download the full article (PDF, 165 KB, PDF Instructions)

Read the current letters to the editor. And, submit your reactions to any L&L article or topic to Kate Conley, editor, kconley@iste.org.

	IT as Language and Content   by David Moursund
David discusses the idea of information technology as a language and a content area. This idea relates back to his list of powerful ideas from vol. 27 no. 1. Download the full article (PDF, 116 KB, PDF Instructions)

Beyond Just Doing It: Making Discerning Decisions about Using Electronic Graphing Tools   by Cathy Miles Grant

Do your students understand the data they are creating just because they can hand in a computer-generated graph of it? Maybe, or maybe not. Cathy Miles Grant describes a project that incorporates both hand-drawn and computer-generated graphs to enrich students’ understanding of data and what they represent. This work is adapted from a piece Cathy wrote for TERC. Visit TERC’s Web site to download the original document. http://modelschools.terc.edu/modelschools/ TEMPLATE/Publications/Publications.cfm

	Vaughn, Nekomi, and Luis: What They Were Doing in Middle School Physical Education   by Bonnie Mohnsen
Inspired by Jeanie Hemmer’s series “Melissa’s Year in Sixth Grade” (L&L vol. 25 no. 6), “Eduardo’s Year in Seventh Grade” (L&L vol. 25 no. 7), “Lakeisha’s Year in Eighth Grade” (L&L vol. 25 no. 8), Bonnie describes technology uses for middle-school physical education. See and visit the resources she offers readers.

Too Few Computers and Too Many Kids: What Can I Do? Part I   by Tamela Randolph, Jacqueline Scolari, and Douglas Bedient

Even one-computer classrooms can use technology effectively. This article begins a four-part series that suggests different activities to ensure that your students are using computers wisely, even if they can’t all use them at once. This month’s installment focuses on general curriculum applications, organization and management, and class enhancement. Complementary Web sites, arranged by task number, appear in this supplement. Future articles will address specific disciplines: language arts, geography, and social studies in the March 2000 issue of L&L; science, mathematics, and consumer education in April; and foreign language, art, health, and physical education in May.

	World Tour   by Fanny Sosenke
Students use an interdisciplinary, technology-based project to plan a fictitious rock band’s world tour.

	Far Out Measurements: Bringing the Planets Closer to Home Using Image Processing Techniques   by Tim Slater and Brian Beaudrie
Image processing software and real science data on the Web can help integrate mathematics and astronomy.

	Earth & Mars: Using Math to Compare Planets   by Bob Albrecht and Paul Davis
Bob and Paul present questions and investigations to help compare Earth and Mars in terms of mass, size, shape, volume, density, rotation speeds, gravity, and so on.

	Taboo Topic No Longer: Why Telecollaborative Projects Sometimes Fail   by Judi Harris
It’s time to tell the truth: K–12 online activities sometimes falter. Why does this happen? What valuable lessons can we learn from “developmentally delayed” projects? Judi presents various Web resources that discuss this problem or present a successful model.

Mining the Internet Online
   by Glen Bull, Gina Bull, & Judi Harris
Mining the Internet is an ongoing column in  L&L. Frequently the Internet changes substantially in the six months between the time that a column is submitted and the time it appears in print. The Mining the Internet Web site will provide a location for updates to each issue’s column. It will also provide a way to offer active links to Internet locations mentioned in the column and a place for material that would not fit in the confines of a four-page column. The column will therefore become a hybrid mix of print materials that will appear in each issue of  L&L and supplementary materials that will be placed on the Web each month.

http://teach.virginia.edu/go/mining/

Copyright © 2000, ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education). All rights reserved.