APPLICATION 3: Word Newsletter

 

 

 

 

 

Creating a

Newsletter

In Word

Rochelle Henely

July 14, 2006

                                                                           #6662 T1002

 

            My curricular theme for this course is tessellations. I decided to make my newsletter more of a quarterly project guide. I incorporated both my website and my hotlist to create a usable document on paper. Word is the word processor that I choose to work with in my preparation of most documents. I find it easy to use and more importantly, it is available in all the computers I use. This document would be advantageous as a mailer or handout to parents and students to further the methods of communications. Although the internet is available to most homes today, many parents and students still prefer paper communications. Even technological adults such as Lee Canter at times prefer to read a document held in hand (Laureate Education, Inc., 2004).

            One of the features that will enhance my communication with parents is the use of visuals in this document. The parents will quickly have a better understanding of what it is the project is asking for. Although some believe that using graphics to arouse curiosity is a cheap method to instruction (Rieber, L. P., 2000), I think that in this document it benefits the viewer. The visuals quickly define the concept of a tessellation. I have provided samples of tessellations made by nature as well as by hand to pique the interest of the students. I have also incorporated a tessellation that I created for them to enhance. This should create interest and interaction as the students “see” different visions of the final project. The use of “auto shapes” next to an imported tessellation will make the viewer think as they compare the simple shapes with the complex picture. This is truly a benefit of visuals used in education.

            Another feature that I incorporated in the document is the use of links. This would only be available when the document is linked to my webpage, but it is a very useful tool. For paper communications, I would have the addresses of the necessary sites included in the document. Whether the students are working through my list of hot links or with the handout, they will have the information needed to complete the task as requested. The features that have benefited me the most throughout the years are the “help” feature and the Office Assistant. When I am looking for the answer to a problem or just browsing for information, helpful information is always available within the program or on the internet at Microsoft.com.

            A few features that I used in this Word document are new to me. One of the requirements was the use of a header or footer. Since my handout is in landscape layout and the rest of the document is in portrait, I needed to adjust the headers. Using the “Link to Previous” function, I was able to change the size of the headers to fit the pages. Also changing the layout mid-document was a new feature that I learned. Another feature that I researched, but was not able to incorporate, was the “form feature”. I would like to learn and use this feature in conjunction with my website at a later date. This would open the door to immediate feedback and information from my parents and students. Also, incorporating pictures enlarges the size of documents. With the help of colleagues and the Office Assistant, I learned how to compress pictures and edit cropped pictures. This creates less use of memory and is easier to open over the internet.

            Reading required text or tutorials can not give the learner the same experience as hands-on learning. In the creation of this document, I learned and applied a few new options in my documents. I also have questions that I want answered for future use. What I always find in creating a need for the classroom, whether it is a Word document or a Powerpoint presentation, the creator always learns something and is left with a question to look into for further knowledge.

 

 

References

 

Annal, D., (May 2006). Tessellations.org. retrieved July 12, 2006 from  http://www.tessellations.org/

Kryschuk, J., (April 2006). Tessellations: math or art?. Retrieved July 12, 2006 from     http://www.kn.att.com/wired/wired.
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2004). Program two: Using the web as a resource, professional development [Motion picture]. Multi Media Tools.

      Los Angeles: Author.

Rieber, L. P. (2000). Chapter 2: An overview of graphics in instruction. In Computers, graphics, &     learning. Retrieved May 2, 2002 from

     http://www.nowhereroad.com/cgl/chapter2/index.html