2016 Pre-school Engagement Programme - Session 3

Introduction to Google Forms and Sheets

Dear 2016 Sec 1 students,

In the Pre-School Engagement Activities - Session 2, we have seen Google docs and slides at work. In this session, we will see how Google Forms and Sheets can work hand in hand.

• Google Sheets App handles data and make meaning out of them using functions and formulas.
• Like Docs and Slides, Sheets are cloud-based and facilitates collaborative editing and commenting.

Furthermore, it is tightly integrated with Google Forms App and data collected from a form can go straight to a sheet.

Here are some quick starts reference material and the cheat sheets for Google Sheets and Google Forms

QUICK STARTS 

• Sheets basics (Recommended time - at least 10 mins) 
• Forms basics (Recommended time - 10 mins) 

SHEETS, err, CHEAT SHEET

Video introduction to the latest change in Google Sheets.

FORMS CHEAT SHEETS 

Let do a simple activity in Forms to collate information on the participation of 2015 Sec 1 students on the Pre-School Engagement Activities:

Activity 1 - Progress Tracking Form Activity

1. Based on your participation in the activities so far, complete the form below:

2. Access the form data at https://goo.gl/HDxudO and make a copy in your own drive.

3. Check out the auto summary of responses generated by Google Forms. Using built-in functions such as AVERAGE or COUNTIF, create a summary of responses for questions 1 to 3.

4. Turn in your work in Google Classroom, submitting your spreadsheet generated from this activity.

Activity 2 - Data Gathering Task

1. Each of you will design a survey with at least 3 questions and at most 6 questions.
The questions must revolve around a general theme or hypothesis, eg, Study habits of 2016 Sec 1 SST students, Food that we love etc .

2. Create a Google Form and get at least fifteen Sec 1 Students (2016) to respond. Store the responses in a separate spreadsheet with the same name as the form.

3. Generate a report of the findings in a one-page Google Doc. (Hint: You can grab a report template from docs.google.com.) The Doc must have more than one chart and a concluding paragraph. Embed the Google Doc as a post in your blog.

4. Turn in your work in Google Classroom, submitting your form, responses spreadsheet and the 1-page Gdoc report generated from this activity.

That's it for session 3. In the next session, we will learn some Online Virtual Note and Mind Mapping Apps. The learning material will be posted on Wednesday 16 Dec 2015.

2016 Pre-school Engagement Programme - Session 2

Dear 2016 Sec 1 Students,

Those who have NOT completed session 1 of the 2016 Pre-school Engagement Programme are encouraged to revisit the session before continuing this one. Do be informed that the learning material and quizzes are available in Google Classroom.

For those who have, welcome back! It is encouraging to see the number of submissions in this period of the year. I understand that many may be going overseas for a holiday and might not be able to keep to the schedule spelled out in the overview post. Do try to catch up the missed sessions before school reopens.

Today, we will introduce the SST account, which is a Google Apps account which allows you access to a wide range of online services.

Essentially, your SST account gives you access to services shown below:

Among these apps, Google Drive is the home for Docs, Sheets, Slides and more. Watch the video below to get a better understanding on Google Drive.

For resources on Google Drive, a good site to start with is http://learn.googleapps.com/products/drive/get-started/ (Recommended time - 10-15 mins)

After reading the guide, you should be able to :

• Set up Google Drive 
• Organize, find, and share files 
• Open and preview files 

INTRODUCING THE MEMBERS OF GOOGLE DRIVE

Here's a quick rundown of the basic google apps available in Google Drive.

DOCS

• Google Docs is an online word processor that lets you create and format text documents and collaborate with other people in real time. Here's what you can do with Google Docs: 
• Upload a Word document and convert it to a Google document 
• Add flair and formatting to your documents by adjusting margins, spacing, fonts, and colours — all that fun stuff 
• Invite other people to collaborate on a document with you, giving them edit, comment or view access 
• Collaborate online in real time and chat with other collaborators — right from inside the document 
• View your document's revision history and roll back to any previous version 
• Download a Google document to your desktop as a Word, OpenOffice, RTF, PDF, HTML or zip file 
• Translate a document to a different language 
• Email your documents to other people as attachments 

SHEETS

• Google Sheets is an online spreadsheet app that lets you create and format spreadsheets and simultaneously work with other people. Here's what you can do with Google Sheets: 
• Import and convert Excel, .csv, .txt and .ods formatted data to a Google spreadsheet 
• Export Excel, .csv, .txt and .ods formatted data, as well as PDF and HTML files 
• Use formula editing to perform calculations on your data, and use formatting make it look the way you'd like 
• Chat in real time with others who are editing your spreadsheet 
• Create charts with your data 
• Embed a spreadsheet — or individual sheets of your spreadsheet — on your blog or website 

SLIDES

• Google Slides is an online presentations app that allows you to show off your work in a visual way. Here's what you can do with Google Slides: 
• Create and edit presentations 
• Edit a presentation with friends or coworkers, and share it with others effortlessly 
• Import .pptx and .pps files and convert them to Google presentations 
• Download your presentations as a PDF, a PPT, or a .txt file 
• Insert images and videos into your presentation 
• Publish and embed your presentations in a website 

FORMS 

• Create a Google form 
• Add and edit questions, headers, and page breaks 
• Add a theme to a form 
• Control your form's page-to-page navigation 
• Share your form with collaborators 
• Send your form to respondents 
• Choose a form response destination 
• View and manage form responses 
• Edit form responses after submitting 
• Deleting a form or form responses 
• Pre-populate form answers 
• Additional forms options for Google Apps users 

Use the Google Apps Document and Support site for learning resources on Google Apps.

Specifically, learn the basics of Docs, Slides and Spreadsheet by following these links:

QUICK STARTS 

• Docs basics (Recommended time - at least 10 mins) 
• Sheets basics (Recommended time - at least 10 mins) 
• Slides basics (Recommended time - at least 10 mins) 

CHEAT SHEETS 

Activity 1 - Google Drive and My Learning in SST 

With a basic familiarity of Google Drive operations, complete Drive Task 1:

1. Create a folder named 00 School Work your Drive folder.
2. Create the following 12 folders in the folder created in step 1. 

(Hint: To facilitate sorting in Google Drive, you might want to use the 2-digits numbering system, i.e. 01 English, 02 Maths, 03 Science etc).

     3. Screen-capture the 12 folders in your google drive and submit to Session 2 - Activity 1           in Google Classroom.

Activity 2 - About Myself and My Learning Style

1. From Google Classroom Assignment, open a copy of the file 2016 About myself and my learning style.gdoc.
2. Replace and insert at least 2 original images to the google doc.
3. Complete the rest of the cells with the titles: 

• My proudest achievement in 2015 
• My strength in learning 
• My resolution in 2016 
• Area of weakness I will improve on 

   4. Invite a new schoolmate to add at least 1 comment on the doc. 

       Refer to this spreadsheet for the email list of your new schoolmates.

   5. Turn in your work in Google Classroom.

Activity 3 - A Ho Ho Ho Holiday and season greetings

1. Open the shared slide - A Ho ho ho holiday and season greetings for all

2. Insert a new slide. Add your name prominently using the text box feature. 

3. Insert a non-copyrighted image as background. Theme of slide is "Season's Greetings!". 

4. Add a comment to another slide created by someone else.

    Rules - No trolling nor spamming! Watch what you say online, and be nice!

5. Add other design elements on your slide using any feature of Google slide. 

Bonus: Embed your slide in your blog created in Session 1, like how I did it below:

6. Turn in your work in Google Classroom.

That's all for Session 2. 

Next up: 2016 Pre-School Engagement Programme - Session 3
(Postponed to Monday 14 Dec)

Title: My SST Account, Introduction to Google Apps (Part 2)

MOE Independent School Bursary (ISB) Applications 2016

Dear Students

Please be reminded that applications for the MOE Independent School Bursary (ISB) are open for eligible students who are Singapore Citizens. Current ISB awards will expire on 31 December 2015. Current recipients are required to submit a fresh application for 2016 if they wish to continue receiving the MOE ISB.

Interested applicants may obtain the application form by either downloading the form from SST website or collect a hardcopy form from SST General Office. Completed applications are to be submitted directly to SST General Office for processing.

Applicants are reminded to ensure the proper submission of applications with all required supporting documents; incomplete applications will not be processed. Applicants who qualify for 100% ISB are strongly encouraged to submit their applications as early as possible to facilitate processing and approval.

More information about ISB and other scholarships are available on the SST website.

Thank you.

2016 Pre-school Engagement Programme - Session 1

Dear 2016 Sec 1 students,

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Welcome to SST's big family! Greetings from Mr Dean Ang, HOD ICT. I will be your online guide with 5 online sessions of learning.

If you are a Sec 1 student (2016) reading this blog post, chances are you have already received your SST account and waiting for your new learning device, the Macbook, to start an exciting learning journey in a few weeks time.

Most of you will have an Internet connected computer at home, let the learning begin as soon as today! 

You will need the following:

• An SST account
  Refer to the following post for instructions to activating your account.
• A computer connected to the InternetSince not everyone has received his or her learning device (MacBook), I shall focus on cross platforms web-based applications accessible within a browser of an Internet connected desktop computer.

In SST, blogs are commonly used communication platforms. The Students Blog is our main announcement platform where information is disseminated to the student community. 

Each class also has a class blog where class activities and daily homework are posted there keep all (students and parents) informed of the happenings at the class level. Similarly, some subjects run activities via the subject blogs too.

You will be required to participate in blog activities quite regularly, as someone to comment on blog post, or as a co-author. It is therefore important for all to be familiar with the features of the blog.

Managing your own blog(s)

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To access your own blog,

• Log in to your SST (Google) account
• Click on the Apps launcher, click "More" to display the dropdown menu.
• Select "Blogger"

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Activity 1 - Setting up My Blogger's Profile

1. You will be prompted to login again. The following will be displayed.

Choose "Blogger Profile" (on the right) to create a limited Blogger profile.

2. If the Blogger Profile is not available, choose the Google+ profile first. Click on the Gear icon  to revert to Blogger profile. The reason is that Google+ service will not be activated for Secondary 1 students.

 

3. Enter your FULL Name in when prompted to update the Blogger profile.

3. Next, you are ready to create your first blog.

Click at "New Blog" (on the left) to begin

4. For the first blog, give the blog title, "My SST Journey begins here".

Create your own blog address. You are encouraged to name it with "sst-" before your full name (e.g. sst-chuawaitan.blogspot.com). 

Choose a template before clicking at "Create blog!" at the bottom right.

5. You are now ready to blog. You will be "brought" to the dashboard where your blog is.

Click at "New Blog" to start blogging.

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Activity 2 - Introducing Yourself

1. In your first blog post, you are going to do an introduction about about yourself.

Your target audience: Your Form Teacher and Classmates in 2016

• Blog title: About me (I)
• Insert image of an object that you would like your peers to associate you. 
• Give a brief introduction about yourself. It should include...
• Your name, how you would like your peers to address you
• What are some things you like to do (i.e. your hobbies)? 
• e.g. Are there some sports you enjoy doing? 
• e.g. What are your favourite pastimes?
• Your personality and behaviour that you would like your peers to take note of
• e.g. Do you enjoy talking to people? 
• Do you tend to quickly get into action?

2. Make an attempt to change the size, font and colour of the text and even highlight some key words that you would like to draw others' attention to.

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Activity 3 - Embedding a Video Clip from Youtube.com

Besides text, we can also embed video clips into a blog.

1. Create a new post entitled "A video clip that caught my attention".

2. Identify one video clip in "Youtube EDU" (http://www.youtube.com/education?category=K-12) that you find interesting and would like to introduce it to your audience.

3. Underneath the video clip, click at "Share" followed by the "Embed" button.

4. The HTML code will be displayed. Copy the HTML code.

5. Return to the blog post, switch to the "HTML" mode and paste the code in the space.

It should look like this:

6. Switch back to "Compose" mode and the post should look like this:

7.  In the same post, add the following:

• Title of the video clip 
• Briefly what is the content of the video clip
• In 3 bullet points, describe briefly what you have learnt from this video clip?

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Classroom is a free web-based platform that integrates your SST Google Apps account with all your Google Apps services for your online learning activities. 

Students can keep track of what’s due on the assignments page and on Calendar and begin working with just a click. 

Visit the Google Classroom help page to understand more about Classroom.

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MANAGING YOUR CLASSES

A Class titled "2016 Pre-school Engagement Programme" has been created and you have been invited to join as a student. The instructions and learning material available in this blog will be made available in the Class under the STREAM tab. Accept the class and submit the url links of Activities 1-3.

To accept an invitation to join a class:

Web browser

1. Sign in to Classroom at classroom.google.com
2. Click Join to join the class.

Mobile app

1. Touch .
2. On the class card, touch Join to join the class.

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Activity 4 - Submitting the url links for Activities 1-3

1. Sign in to Google Classroom and click on the Assignment 4, titled "Submission of url links for Activities 1-3".

2. Complete and submit the 3 urls from Activities 1-3 to Google form. Add the first url (to your main blog) to the assignment before you turn it in and mark it as done.

That's it for Session 1. 

Next up: 2016 Pre-School Engagement Programme - Session 2
Title: My SST Account, Introduction to Google Apps (Part 1)

Here's a little video from Google that shows some of the things your SST account can do.

2016 Pre-school Engagement Programme - Overview

Dear 2016 Sec 1 Students

A warm welcome and congratulation to making it to the SST family!  

In December 2015, the ICT Department will be rolling out a series of web-based activities with the objective of preparing you for the ICT-enabled activities that you will go through in the new academic year.

The activities will be carried out primarily in two modes:

1. Online instructions or tutorials on SST Student Blog
2. Activities submission through Google Classroom

Look out for a personalised email from me in the next few days.

Starting from 7 December 2015, instructions on these activities will be posted up in the Students blog. If you miss anyone of the activities, simply refer to the left panel and filter the blog posts that come with the label "2016 Pre-School Engagement Programme". The related posts will be displayed. 

You may also visit Google Classroom to your enrolled course "2016 Pre-School Engagement Programme" to catch up the missed information.

The schedule for the activities are as follows:

• Session 1 : 7 December 2015 (Monday) 

• Blogger.com / Google Classroom

• Session 2: 9 December 2015 (Wednesday) 

• My SST Account, Introduction to Google Apps (Part 1)

• Session 3:  11 December 2015 (Friday)

• My SST Account, Introduction to Google Apps (Part 2)

• Session 4: 14 December 2015 (Wednesday)

• Online Virtual Note and Mind Mapping Apps

• Session 5: 16 December 2015 (Friday)

• Online Infographic Web App

I look forward to seeing you during registration day on 23 December 2015. 
Meanwhile, have a great time learning and exploring!

regards,

Mr Dean Ang Ngee Keng 洪仪庆
Head of Department

Information and Communication Technology,

Google Certified Teacher

Google for Education Qualified-Chrome

Apple Foundation Trainer

School of Science and Technology, Singapore
1 Technology Drive, Singapore 138572
T: (65) 6571 7419 | F: (65) 6872 0856

Website | Facebook | Twitter

50 Years of Singapore's Foreign Policy exhibition, Capitol Piazza, 1-13 December 2015

2016 Secondary 1 Students. Setting up Your SST Email account

Update (2015, 1 December): 
Emails are Ready!

Please proceed to set up your email: Setting Up Your SST Mail

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Info Hub Operating Days (Nov- Dec School Holidays)

Dear Students,

Please note the Info Hub will be operating as usual except for the following dates during the year end school holidays.

9 - 13 November 2015
11 & 14 December 2015

Science Talent Development Programme

SST Science TDP has organised the following programmes during the holidays to cater to 

students who are interested in Science and Engineering activities.

(a) Young Engineers Award (Silver)

2 pax - 7 Dec (Aerospace) 

5 pax - 9 Dec (Basic Electronics)

(b) Young Defence Scientist Programme (30 Nov to 4 Dec) 

Sec 2 - 3 pax 

Sec 3 - 3 pax

(c) Internship 

Volunex - 2 pax, 16-27 Nov 

XPC - 2 pax, 23 Nov - 18 Dec

Piasim - 3 pax, 23 Nov - 4 Dec 

Piasim - 3 pax, 7 - 18 Dec 

(d) AEM (Common Chronic Diseases) (23-26 Nov)

20 pax

(e) Renesas Grand Prix (18 Nov) 

6 pax 

Students who are still keen to be involved during the holidays, please contact Mr Tan Hoe Teck 

at tan_hoe_teck@sst.edu.sg for more information.