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This is your home base for Computer Concepts and Advanced Computer Concepts. From here you can access lessons, lecture videos, projects, project rubrics, useful external links, and examples of good student projects. You can use this page at school or at home, and be sure to report any errors, whether typographical or technical, to Mr. Miller for extra credit!
Computer Concepts
Computer Concepts teaches a number of skills that apply to the real world as well as future high school courses. This course uses three of the most widely-used software applications from Microsoft's Office Suite, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Word, and Microsoft PowerPoint, to teach these important skills. The majority of the work for this course is done in the classroom, and is hands-on using up-to-date computers and software. The Excel unit teaches the basics of spreadsheets through a series of projects that show how Excel can be used to manipulate data quickly. Emphasis is placed on using shortcuts in Excel to make data entry and calculations quick and easy. Students will also learn how to make their spreadsheets stand out by using colors and formatting.
In the Microsoft Word unit students will focus less on typing and more on formatting and designing different types of Word documents. Students will create a three-column newsletter that details their life, a number of one-page announcements that can be used in the business world, and title pages that can be used as the cover for school papers. The course will also teach the mail merge features of Word and Excel that are extremely useful for sending out mass mailings.
The final unit will focus on Microsoft PowerPoint. Students will learn tips for giving a useful presentation using PowerPoint as a guide instead of using it as a crutch. PowerPoint is a powerful tool for any presentation if it is used well, but too often it is made to be the main focus of the presentation. In addition, some of the multimedia aspects of PowerPoint will be introduced and students will create a PowerPoint project that plays their favorite song along with the song's lyrics while displaying relevant information and pictures.
A final project will bring all three units together and will have students working for a travel agency designing a travel package to their favorite destination. Students will use Excel to compare hotel and flight costs, Word to create an announcement for the package, and PowerPoint to assist the presentation they will give on the final day of class. This course also applies towards 1 credit at Waubonsee Community College for Keyboarding.
Advanced Computer Concepts
Prerequisite: Computer Concepts or Computer Formatting and Applications
The follow-up course to Computer Concepts introduces another application from Microsoft's Office Suite, Microsoft Access, that will teach students about databases and how to build a successful data base. Advanced Computer Concepts will also cover a wide range of computer topics from the history of the modern computer industry to computer hardware.
The first unit of Advanced Computer Concepts will focus on Microsoft Excel. Students will build on the knowledge they already have on Excel to create more complex spreadsheets using functions such as if statements, the PMT function, and conditional formatting. Students will create larger spreadsheets that demonstrate their knowledge of Excel such as a teacher's grade book, a spreadsheet to keep track of a checking account, and a spreadsheet that determines the actual cost per month of different car loans.
After Excel students will watch the 1999 movie Pirates of Silicon Valley. The movie details how Steve Jobs and Bill Gates jump-started the modern computer industry when they founded Apple and Microsoft, respectively, and how their competition fueled innovation in computers. The movie is extremely accurate compared to the real life experiences of Jobs and Gates, and students will write a short ACT-style essay on a topic related to the film.
Microsoft Access can be a difficult program to learn as databases are not a topic that students generally encounter before high school, but databases are used by just about every successful business in the world, and people with experience creating and maintaining databases are extremely valuable in the business world. Microsoft Access is one of the most popular database programs available, and students will use it to learn the basics of databases and eventually design their own database that other students will use to enter data.
Another subject taught in Advanced Computer Concepts is computer hardware. Once a week students will participate in Hardware Friday that allows them to get hands-on with the internal workings of computers. In small groups students will open computers to learn what the different components look like. They will also learn how components such as RAM, hard drives, processors, DVD drives, and PCI slots work. After this course students should know how to install some of these components in their own computers.
Finally, students will create a video in groups detailing a subject of their choosing. They will then use software such as Apple's iMovie and GarageBand or Adobe's Premier to edit their video down to 3 minutes or less. These videos will be presented at the end of the term.
The final project in Advanced Computer Concepts is similar to the project from the first course. Students will work for a company trying to sell time share properties. They will use Excel to project potential profit on the properties, Access to keep a database of the properties and their owners, and PowerPoint to assist in a sales pitch for the time shares. This course also applies toward 2 credits at Waubonsee Community College for Keyboarding and Beginning Word Processing.