Title: Teaching Students to use HyperStudio For Presenting Their Projects
Subject
:
Science Reports, Book Report, Personal Yearbooks...etc.
Intended Grade Level
:
5 (suitable for grades 3 and up)

Description:

The purpose of this unit is to give student the opportunity to present science information to their classmates with the aid of technology. Students will have already worked in teams to select and research their topic. After being shown how to use the program HyperStudio, they will decide which points they would like to include in their classroom presentation. They will be encouraged to use technology to enhance their presentation. Their final product will be presented to the rest of the class using the LCD panel or projector. It will also be saved on the computer for use by future students. Some stacks will be available on the school web site.

Materials/Hardware/Software:

  • Four or more Macintosh computers, at least one with a video input card if you plan to bring in images from a VCR
  • HyperStudio 3.01 for Mac, Roger Wagner, Pub.
  • LCD Panel & Overhead Projector, or digital projector*
  • VCR connected to Mac to pull in camcorder images *
  • Digital Cameras *
  • Scanner *
  • Various CD's, trade and text books dealing with Science topics *
  • Teacher familiar with the above materials
  • Sample HyperStudio Stacks: Student examples can be downloaded from this excellent science source: http://MBGnet.mobot.org/MBGnet/hstudio/index.htm
  • Examples of some HyperStudio stacks made by Onekama students

* These pieces of equipment were used for this project, however, it is possible to make presentations with only the HyperStudio program.

Activities/Procedures:

Teacher Pre-Activities:

1. Become familiar with what can be done with HyperStudio. Have a manual available as a reference.

2. Make several sample stacks for the first time you teach this (or download some from the sources above). Later you will be able to use stacks created by former students. Examine the sample stacks ("Wetlands" and "Raising a Calf") which were made by fifth grade students. The simple "Make Presentations" stack may be useful for use with students.

3. Before beginning the unit the teacher should model the use of HyperStudio to present her own everyday classroom lessons. She should give information during her own presentations such as, "This is a text box. Here's how to get a text box. I can change the size of the letters...", "This hyperlink leads back to my main page. This is how I added a button/hyperlink to the page...", "I can draw directly on the page using a drawing tool. Here's how I bring in photographs...." . In this way the students will see what is possible.

4. The teacher should make a list of possible topics to aid those students who have difficulty choosing. Students could skim through their past science lessons for ideas, but don't limit students to the book. Stress that Science is all around us. Possibilities could include such topics as: Causes of Erosion, Lake Effect Snow, The Rock Cycle, How Our Digestive System Functions. If you are working with mainstreamed students, lead them to an easier topic such as "Using Electricity Safely". Provide them with a list of safety suggestions. Suggest they illustrate each page to fit a safety suggestion. Show them how to make buttons to lead directly from one page to another.

5. Divide the students into groups of two or more by their interest in a topic. Two may choose to make a "Wetlands" presentation because of where they live: see "Wetlands". A student may choose to work alone because their topic is personal: see "Raising a Calf". When several students work together, they may choose to divide the task into two or three parts with each student making a stack for that part. Later the stacks can be linked for one smooth final presentation.

Student Pre-Activities:

1. Work with your group to decide what you wish to include in your report. Use your science text book or science trade books for ideas. Think about the land around your home for possible ideas.

2. In addition to the traditional notes, gather photographs, diagrams, maps, digital images, and video that will improve your report.

Activities: Days 1 & 2

1. Planning must first be done on paper. Ask students to think about what it is they wish to present to the audience. Remind them that presenters do not need to put every word of their presentation on the screen, only the important words. Remind them that they will probably be speaking as they present, and some information could be presented orally.

2. Planning on paper: Plan for a minimum number of pages to start: a title page, a menu page, an author page, a page that lists your sources, and several pages for information. Students can make their plan on paper or post sample pages on a bulletin board. Students should divide up the work among group members.

Activities: Days 3 & 4

3. Teacher models setting up a stack. Make a stack with at least 7 pages (called cards). In "about this stack", set stack to "current screen size" and if you plan to have photographs set the color to thousands before you begin. (If you plan to present your stack on the Internet you will have to stay with "standard card size".) Use of photographs uses up more memory. re-set the amount of memory available to the program. This will depend on what your machines can handle. We have set ours to three times the default setting.

4. Use a student stacks to model how the authors of the stacks might have though during the planning. Speak as though you were the author of the stack, "Well, I will need three pages, one for each kind of wetland. And I want a page for pictures that show wetlands. It isn't important which page they see first --so I will use buttons and let the viewer decide which one to view." and on the "Raising a Calf" stack, say, "I want to tell about how my calf grew up so I want a page for each stage. I will put the pages in chronological order, with buttons that lead from one page to the next."

5. Caution students not to get involved with buttons and hyperlinks until later. Show them how they can use "apple >" from page to page. There is also a "story board" available. For those students who use buttons before they know where they want to go, show them how to delete buttons.

Caution: save often. Suggest using "save as" and save with a new name each day. Example: Save as "Wetlands.1" on the first day then "Wetlands.2" on the second day. In this way if there is a problem with a stack crashing the students can go back to one saved on a previous day and not have lost everything.

Activities: Days 5 & 6

6. After deciding what they want on their title page, the student team assigns one team member to design it. They may create graphics in Kid Pix, or other drawing program if they prefer. They may choose to use photographic images (see "adding images" below).

7. After deciding what they want on the content pages, the student team assigns one of the team members to begin designing the page and entering text. It is very important that students have a well drawn out plan before sitting down at the computer.

8. The teacher visits each group and gives "mini-lessons" as needed. After the teacher gives an "invisible button" lesson once or twice, she will refer further questions on that topic to the group that now understands the idea. (Do not be surprised if certain students become "experts" and wander about looking for "students".) Images of students working with HyperStudio

9. Caution: These stacks will be transferred to the teacher station computer for presentation. If you do not have a zip drive, external drive, or network, you will want to be sure that the stack is small enough to fit on a floppy disk. This can be done by having more than one stack per presentation and linking the stacks after you bring them to the presentation computer. If the students are using photographs, they will want to have many stacks or you will have memory problems.

Adding Images to your HyperStudio Stack

Certain images from encyclopedia CD's may enhance the presentation. Help students decide what is really needed, and what is clutter. HyperStudio will import images. Show how to do this as a mini-lesson. Images can be imported from the Internet.

Teachers may choose to allow clip-art and stampers. (I don't) You can discourage clip-art by not giving information about it. Should they "discover" it, (and they will) explain that you think their own student-made graphics look much better. They can make their own graphics right in HyperStudio or make them in a program such as KidPix and import to HyperStudio.

When needed, give a mini-lesson on importing images from a VCR. Some students may gather information with a camcorder and bring in the video tape. (This was done by the boys who made the Wetlands presentation) They may, for example, look for signs of erosion. Show them how to hook the VCR to the back of the computer. Use "Options > get a graphic object > from video" to pull in the frames you want. Images students brought in from a VCR.

To scan images, use the directions that came with your individual scanner. (The "Raising a Calf" presentation uses scanned images)

This is the first year we will have Digital cameras in our classroom, therefore using it with children is new to me. The student will all be shown how to use the camera as part of this project. At a minimum, they will use the digital camera to add their own digital photo to the authors' page. (I am considering lending it to students for the week-end. I would expect the student to have a plan telling what they wish to photograph before borrowing the camera.)

Activities: Days 7 - 10

9. The teacher may choose to spend the first few minutes of each class period giving a "mini-lesson" on a needed topic. In this way she demonstrates the use of the LCD equipment. The students spend the remaining time working on their project. When a stack is done, the student presentations need to be transferred to the teacher station.

10. As students finish their stack they will need to work together to plan how to present to the whole group. Who will run the computer? Who will say what? Students need to be reminded to speak loudly and face the audience. They should run through their presentation several times before actually presenting to the class.

Activities: Making the Presentation to the class

11. Allow one or more days for students to present. Give a question and comment time after each presentation. (If this is the first time you have had students presenting in your classroom, discuss the idea of "helpful, supportive comments" as opposed to "put-downs". This behavior will have been modeled by the teacher. ) Images of students making presentations.

 

Assessment/Evaluation:

Grading Scale for Projects

  Grade of A (4) Grade of B (3) Grade of C (2)
Content Convincingly and clearly presents the material in their own words

Information is accurate

Interesting details hold attention of audience

Able to present material reasonable well

What is given is accurate

Could have been clearer or presented in a more interesting manner

Gaps in information

May have some unclear or inaccurate information

Use of Equipment Integrates technology to improve the presentation

Uses the three types of technology well

Shows ability with two or more pieces of equipment

Does fairly well integrating into presentation

Attempts to use one or more pieces of equipment

Adequate ability shown

Group Work Shows a team spirit

Share responsibility

Works well together

Shows that they planned their presentation carefully

Work as a team with no quibbling

Each member does part of the work

Adequate team cooperation

Generally get along

Could have shared the work more efficiently

Total 12 9 6

 

12 = A 10 = B+ 8 = B- 6 = C
11 = A- 9 = B 7 = C+ 5 Needed more help

 

Follow-up Activities:

Go to other Classrooms and make presentations in person, or make self-contained stacks (see manual for directions) and place them on the computers in other classes.

Our class will make two more HyperStudio presentations this year. Already they are excited about beginning a Book Report using one of the 15 Book Bowl Books. Before beginning they will need to read the book carefully and plan their stack.

Visit our class at the Onekama Fifth Grade Homepage:
Grade 5 Homepage 1997-1998
Grade 5 Homepage 1998-1999
Grade 5 HomePage 1999-2000
Grade 5 HomePage 2000-2001

 

Name: Barbara Eldridge
School:
Onekama Elementary School
Address
: 5016 Main Street, Onekama, MI 49675

Return to Creating a WebPage / See some HyperStudio Presentions

Digital Camera Images of Students Working With HyperStudio

Main Onekama School: http://www.onekama.k12.mi.us