7th & 8th graders update Hopedale.net
The 7th and 8th grade Encore classes at Olympia Middle School
has taken on the task of updating and maintaining the City of
Hopedale’s website (www.hopedale.net). In cooperation with the
Hopedale Betterment Association, and under the guidance of OMS
technology teacher, Jason Smith, students have added their designs
to several pages on the Hopedale website.
Every 9 weeks a new group of 7th and 8th graders get the
opportunity to have their page uploaded to the Hopedale site. So
far, student work has shown up on the following pages:
Hopedale
Betterment/History
Churches
Schools-Calendars
for Olympia and Christian Life Academy
Students have been learning how to use Microsoft Excel
spreadsheets, Microsoft Publisher, and Microsoft FrontPage during
their 9 week technology encore class. At the end of each unit,
students have an assignment which corresponds to a page on the
Hopedale site. One student’s work is selected out of all received
and then posted online.
The idea for the collaboration started early in the 2008-2009
school year when students were researching their hometowns for an
in-class assignment. Students were supposed to find history and
pictures of their hometown as part of an autobiographical
Powerpoint presentation. Several students from Hopedale were unable
to find information and pictures.
At the end of October of 2008, Jason Smith approached the
members of the Hopedale Betterment Association about the idea of
8th graders building/updating/maintaining the Hopedale.net site.
Betterment Association members: Tom Hieser, Kurt Litwiller, Debbie
Birkey, Jerome Grimmer, Don Maurer, and Brian Reed liked the idea
and allowed Mr. Smith and his classes to undertake the Hopedale.net
transformation.
The site had previously been designed by a Hopedale citizen but lacked updated information. Since the initiation of the project many pages have been consolidated, reorganized, and updated. This project has motivated many students to work to the best of their abilities in hopes of having their page displayed online. It also is a great way to tie the “real world” into the classroom.
