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Genesis Grade Book Update
The following changes are now available in the Genesis Grade
Book. Based on teacher feedback, the developers of the grade
book have programmed specific improvements to better meet the
needs of Kyrene teachers. The changes include:
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Assignment Grid
Editing:
The ability to mouse/arrow throughout the assignment grid to
enter scores and District and teacher comment codes (MI, LA,
AB, etc.). Teachers will no longer have to open assignments one at a
time.
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New Screen Views:
The choice of three views: small, medium and large. These
views will allow you to customize the number of students and
assignments you can view without scrolling.
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Warning Message
for Saving:
Teachers will receive a warning message if they attempt to
navigate away from the active window without saving changes.
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Portal Preview:
By clicking on the student picture in the attendance window
and choosing Student Experience, teachers have the ability to
see exactly what a parent will see for the individual student.
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Grade Weighting
Display in the Parent Portal:
This will allow parents to see how assignments, homework,
classwork, tests, etc., are weighted by the teacher.
Click here to watch a brief video of the new grid editing
features
Grid Editing
Overview
For step by step directions go to
http://www.kyrene.org/edtech/genesis_gradebook/new_features.htm
The developers are continuing
to work on other issues with the program, including, but not
limited to:
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Enabling
elementary Art, Music, and PE to have a class-by-class grade
book.
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Enabling
Gifted and Resource teachers’ grades to show in the Parent
Portal in grades 4-5.
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Reports will
be redesigned to be more flexible in terms of what is on them
and how they are printed.
Teachers
are encouraged to continue forwarding issues/enhancement
requests to their Ed Tech Specialist. These issues/requests will
be forwarded to the grade book developers.

Classroom Seating Charts
Seating Charts in Genesis
Teachers can create seating charts in
Genesis. They are done by manipulating the spots on the
student attendance grid. Seating charts can be created for
multiple classes or multiple configurations during a day.
For seating chart directions in Genesis, click here:
Genesis Seating Charts
Seating Charts in PowerPoint
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There is a PowerPoint template for seating charts.
To open the PowerPoint seating chart templates, open
PowerPoint, go to Templates, choose
Diagrams, and click on Seating Charts. When you
click on Download, you will get several seating chart
configurations.
For a simple PowerPoint seating chart,
click here:
PowerPoint Seating Charts
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SMART Notebook Tips
In SMART Notebook, teachers can create
themed pages using elements such as fonts, background colors and
images to add consistency and style to lessons on Notebook
pages. Learn more about Themes in Notebook by clicking here
Themes in Notebook 10.
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Sometimes teachers want to create their own table. This can be done by
drawing horizontal and vertical lines using the line tool. To assist
with the allignment of the rows and columns, simply use the Active
Alignment feature.
The
Active Alignment feature allows you to display guidelines on a
page to assist you in aligning objects with other objects, as
well as the page's vertical and horizontal centers. You can also
set objects to align automatically with these guidelines when
you move objects on a page.
When in Notebook, go to Format and choose Alignment. Click the
boxes to indicate the active features you want and choose the
color of your alignment grid.
As
objects are moved and resized, the alignment grid lines appear. |
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For
additional information about SMART Notebook, access the Ed Tech page
SMART Notebook
What's New with
BrainPOP?
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BrainPOP and
BrainPOP Jr. offer a number of age-appropriate resources that
can gently explain the H1N1 flu, its origins, its spread, and
appropriate precautions.
♦
On
BrainPOP:
We've updated
BrainPOP's
Swine Flu movie to include the most recent information
available. The movie is supported by a related FYI, quiz,
activities, and Q&A.
♦
On
BrainPOP Jr.:
The BrainPOP
Jr.
Washing Hands movie serves as an excellent primer for
younger students, teaching them about the basics of personal
hygiene. |
Bookmark
BrainPOP's Educators online curriculum calendar to quickly access a
list of
timely movies and
additional lesson planning tips. Click
here to access
Curriculum Calendar.
Logon information for Kyrene students
and teachers can be found here >
BrainPOP Logon Information.
KIP: Kyrene's Information Portal
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KIP provides a wealth of information and tools for Kyrene
teachers. Print a class roster, sign up for professional
growth courses, print a transcript, and access student
assessment data in KIP.
Want to see
how your 08-09 class of students performed on last year’s
AIMS, MSS, CASS and Dibels?
Reports are already created to assist you in analyzing your
08-09 class and student data. Click on the
Assessment Center drop down menu and then click on
Report Center. Specific Multiple Measure Reports
(MMRs) have already been created to assist you. For even
easier access to assessment information, click on the
Shortcuts drop down menu. There is a link to the
08-09 Class/Student data right there. Click here to go to
Inform
KIP.
Looking
for a Professional Development course to improve your
knowledge and skill?
View current professional growth courses and sign up in
KIP. Click on the INFORM drop down menu and choose
Kyrene Professional Growth Online. Click on the
appropriate subject link, then the course title, and
then choose a section based on the dates. Click on the
section number to register. |

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*TIP:
Have your class dates appear in your Outlook calendar by adding
the dates in KIP.
To have your course dates appear in your Outlook calendar and
remind you when you have a session coming up, simply click on the
small E in the Calendar Event column when you sign up for the
course. A box with all class dates will pop up. Click on each of
the dates, and then click Open. A meeting notice will pop up.
Click to Save the event in your calendar.
Want to print a transcript?
Saving and printing a transcript is easy in
KIP. Transcripts are sent via email as a PDF file. This can be
saved or printed for future use. Click here for instructions
Save and Print Your PGO Transcript.
Work Smart Tips
PowerPoint
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Use The Pointer
as a Pen in PowerPoint
While in Slide Show mode, click on the pen tool at the
bottom left corner of the slide
Choose the type of Pen
Choose the color
This pen can now be used to write on the slide

Create A Writable Textbox on a Slide
Click on the Developer Tab
Add a text box by clicking on the Text Box icon
Click and drag to add it to the slide
Right-click the text box to change the properties
Select Font and size
Make MultiLine = True
EnterKeyBehavior = True
View Slide Show > you can now type in the text box |
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Outlook
Trying to
schedule a meeting is difficult when coordinating several people.
To help with this, you can email your calendar. Follow these
instructions to email your Outlook calendar:
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1.
In the Calendar Navigation Pane click on the Send a Calendar via
E-mail… link.
2. Select the Date Range and Detail level you would like for the
calendar you are sending and click OK.

3. An email message will open up with your calendar inserted in the
message window.
4. Add the recipient in the To field and click Send.
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Microsoft Word
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Many teachers have asked how to change the default line
spacing in Word 2007 and set a font, size, and color for use
with all future Word documents. |
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Open a new Word document
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If you wish to change the
line spacing back to the previous style:
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Click the Change Styles
button and select > Style Set > Word 2003
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Click the Change Styles
button and select Set as Default
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If you wish to change your
default font:
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Click the arrow at the
bottom-right of the Font tab to open the full Font menu
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Select your desired font
in place of +Body
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Click Default at
the bottom left of the window
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Click Yes to
confirm the change
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Make sure you are
selecting your Font after you reset the default
Style Set, as resetting
the default Style Set may
change your Font.
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Here is the trick…
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Click the Office Button
and select Save As… Other formats
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Type any temporary
filename (you won’t need this file again) and select the
Word Macro-Enabled Template format
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Save the new .dotm file
anywhere you want (you won’t need it again).
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Exit Word, and the
Normal.dotm template will be updated with your changes.
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Electronic Resources for WRAC in
the Middle Schools
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The
Educational Technology Specialists have developed
technology-enriched WRAC activities that align to the Kyrene
curriculum standards in Language Arts specifically assigned to
math, science and social studies content areas in grades 6-8.
This bank of resources supports instruction in teaching
reading and writing skills in middle school classrooms. These
resources support teachers in improving teaching and learning
in the classroom.
This
bank of resources is available online at:
http://www.kyrene.org/wrac.
Teachers can access and use these resources to support reading
and writing instruction in their classrooms with particular
emphasis on the WRAC objectives targeted for the specific
content areas addressed. |
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Please send feedback, comments, and ideas for newsletter articles,
and success stories to Kathy Grams. We love hearing from
our teachers and are always looking for stories to use in upcoming
newsletters to communicate successes and strategies across the
district.
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