Grades 6 - 8 Class Projects & Links
General Technological Awareness Resources
Introduction to Excel
Label the Parts of the Excel Window - You must use Microsoft Internet Explorer version 5.01
or later to access this interactive quiz
Keyboarding Resources
Class Projects
Subjects: Social Studies, Language Arts, Technology skills
Required Software: Microsoft® PowerPoint, Microsoft® Internet Explorer or
Netscape
Grade Level:
Intermediate
Students become virtual travel agents researching a trip for their clients and then publish and present the data in a PowerPoint presentation.
Subjects: Technology, Math, Language Arts
Grade Level: Intermediate - Middle School
In this lesson, students create various spreadsheets from statistics gathered about the Iditarod dog sled race and then prepare charts from the data collected. Students learn about different chart types and their suitability for various types of data.
Subjects: Art, Language Arts
Grade Level: Intermediate - Middle School
In this lesson, students create a presentation based on their study of tall tales. They learn about exaggeration and simile as well as introductions and summaries of their topic.
Math Games - Educational math Web sites for students in grades six through eight.
Odyssey of Life - Human Development
Creating Your Own Ad
Subjects: Language Arts
Required Software: Microsoft® Internet Explorer or
Netscape, Microsoft® Word
Time
Allotted: 3-4 class periods
Grade Level: Middle School
Students will use selected Internet sites together with Microsoft® Word to
learn about advertising and create their own ad.
Southeast Asia
Subjects: Social Studies, Language Arts
Required Software: Microsoft® Internet Explorer or
Netscape, Microsoft® PowerPoint
Time
Allotted: 3-4 class periods
Grade Level: Middle School
Students will use selected Internet sites together with productivity software to
learn about the Southeast Asian country of their choice.
Central Asia
Subjects: Social Studies, Language Arts
Required Software: Microsoft® Internet Explorer or
Netscape, Microsoft® PowerPoint
Time
Allotted: 3-4 class periods
Grade Level: Middle School
Students will use selected Internet sites together with productivity software to
learn about the Central Asian country of their choice.
Europe
Subjects: Social Studies, Language Arts
Required Software: Microsoft® Internet Explorer or
Netscape, Microsoft® PowerPoint
Time
Allotted: 3-4 class periods
Grade Level: Middle School
Students will use selected Internet sites together with productivity software to
learn about the European country of their choice.
Mythology Trivia - use Websites to find answers to the questionnaire
Subject: Language Arts
Required Software: Microsoft® Word
Time
Allotted: 3 class periods
Grade Level: 6 - 8
Students create a newsletter featuring their original poetry as well as topical information important to them and their academic lifestyle.
Subject: Language Arts.
Science
Required Software: Microsoft® PowerPoint
Time
Allotted: 2-3 class periods
Grade Level: 4 - 8
Poetry can be used to express motion. Students learn the various poetry styles and also motion words which can be related to science by creating their own poem and setting it to motion in a PowerPoint presentation.
Subjects: , Math, Social Studies, LA
Required Software: Microsoft® Internet Explorer or Netscape, Microsoft®
Excel
Time
Allotted: 3 - 4 class periods
Grade Level: Middle School - High School
In this lesson, students get data from the Internet and learn to parse the data in a spreadsheet using Microsoft Excel. They then learn to sort and filter the database to find the answers to selected questions regarding the average rainfall data they have obtained.
Using Excel for a Timeline and Crossword Puzzles
Creating a Database of Civil War Battles
Subjects: Social Studies, LA
Required Software: Microsoft® Internet Explorer or Netscape, Microsoft®
Excel
Time
Allotted: 3 - 4 class periods
Grade Level: Intermediate - Middle School
In this lesson, students create a database using Microsoft Excel after conducting research on the Internet and learn to sort and filter the database to find the answers to selected questions regarding Civil War battles.
Harriet
Tubman Timeline Project
Subjects: Social Studies, LA
Required Software: Microsoft® Internet Explorer or Netscape, Microsoft®
PowerPoint
Time
Allotted: 3 - 4 class periods
Grade Level: Intermediate - Middle School
In this lesson, students create a multimedia presentation timeline describing the main events in Harriet Tubman's life.
Subjects: Technology skills, Language ArtsGrade Level: Middle School - High School
Students learn the basics of conducting research on the Internet using safe searching techniques. Students use educational Web sites where they can get homework help that gives them a safe way to find the answers to their questions online.
Subjects: Music, Language Arts, ScienceGrade Level: Middle School - High School
The purpose of this lesson is to develop an understanding of why skepticism is important in research by looking at Internet articles regarding studies about the effect of playing Mozart's music to children/students. In this lesson, students create a report based on research they do about the pros and cons of The Mozart Effect. They read articles from the Internet about the pros and cons of this controversial topic and then decide which side of the topic on which to base their report.
Subjects: PE, Nutrition, Health, Language ArtsGrade Level: Intermediate - Middle School
In this lesson, students learn about health and nutrition using webquests.
Art History - Research and Reporting
Subjects: Art, Language ArtsGrade Level: Intermediate - Middle School
In this lesson, students create a report based on research they do using search engines and online encyclopedias. They learn search techniques in addition to reporting skills.
Subjects: ScienceGrade Level: Intermediate - Middle School
In this lesson, students create a multimedia presentation describing a constellation and such attributes as: what it looks like, its brightest stars, which months it is visible, which month it will appear closest to its zenith, how it got its name, etc. Students will learn how to research their constellation on the Internet to find pertinent information to place in their presentation.
Subject: Science
Required Software: Internet Explorer or Netscape, Microsoft® PowerPoint, Microsoft®
Excel, Microsoft® Word
Time
Allotted: 4 - 5 class periods
Grade Level: 6 - 8
Students will use a web browser to research any of six major biomes and then use
any of the Microsoft® Office components to report about them: grasslands (prairie), desert,
tundra, tropical rainforest, deciduous forest, or taiga (coniferous
forest).
Subject: Language Arts
Required Software: Microsoft® PowerPoint
Time
Allotted: 2-3 class periods
Grade Level: 4 - 8
Students will use Microsoft PowerPoint to create complete societies.
Subject: Math
Required Software: Microsoft® Excel
Time
Allotted: 2-3 class periods
Grade Level: 4 - 8
Students will use Microsoft Excel to track grades in a spreadsheet helping them
to understand the meaning of averaging scores to calculate a grade and begin to
understand the idea of how their action or inaction affects subsequent
consequences.
Virtual Journey Travel Service
Subjects: Geography, Math,
Language Arts
Required Software: Microsoft® Internet Explorer or
Netscape, Microsoft® Word, Microsoft® Excel
Optional Software: Microsoft® PowerPoint
Time Allotted: 3-4 class periods
Grade Level: Middle School - High School
Students will use selected Internet sites together with productivity software to
plan a trip to the country of their choice: Brazil, Japan,
Australia, or Norway.
This activity reinforces standard characteristics of twenty common elements on the periodic table of elements as well as teaches students more skills using PowerPoint.
Subjects: Science - ChemistryStudents learn about an element of their choice by creating a PowerPoint presentation wherein they attempt to convince their audience to vote for their element. Students continue their exploration of PowerPoint by adding graphics, sounds, video, etc. to their presentations.
Subjects: Math, Language ArtsGrade Level: Intermediate - Middle School
This lesson shows students the benefits of using graphs to communicate information, answer questions, and solve problems as they investigate color distribution in bags of M&M's. Working with actual bags of candy, students will sort and classify contents, summarize their findings on a worksheet, convert the numbers into charts, and make predictions about color distribution in other bags of candy.
Subjects: Science, Social Studies, GeographyGrade Level: Middle School - High School
From El Nino to killer heat waves, weather extremes capture headlines and the popular imagination. This science and geography activity builds on kids' natural fascination with weather disasters.
Researching & Reporting About Composers
Subjects: Music History, Language ArtsGrade Level: Middle School - High School
The Music History Hall of Fame is currently developing its nomination list for inductees. Students have been assigned the job of nominating a candidate for induction into the Hall of Fame by submitting nominations in the form of a biographical sketch audio-visual presentation using Microsoft PowerPoint persuading voters to elect a candidate.
Subject: Math, Social
Studies, Science
Required Software: Microsoft® Excel
Time
Allotted: 2-3 class periods
Grade Level: 4 - 8
Students learn best when they make a personal connection to the subject at hand. In this activity, they become their own raw data to analyze, compare, and convert.
Subject: Language Arts
Required Software: Microsoft® Word
Time
Allotted: 2-3 class periods
Grade Level: 4 - 8
Outlines are a useful organizational tool for writing essays. They help the writer to arrange data and thoughts in a logical order. This exercise instructs students in the use of creating outlines as an integral part of writing an essay.
Subjects: Language Arts
Grade Level: Intermediate - Middle School
The five sentence paragraph is explored here helping students to understand not only the fundamentals of paragraph construction, but also the basics of using a word processor such as Microsoft Word to create it and to jazz it up.
Fun & Games
