Lumosity by Autiana

Lumosity

        Hi My name is Auti and I will be telling you about Lumosity is like a brain learning game. I will be sharing some pros and some cons about Lumosity. It is a fun learning app that has lots of fun games of  attention,math, and lots more. There will be three games you can play for free that day. The people at Lumosity company pick them out for you do not get to pick unless you have a subscription you have to pay for like every month I think.

We’re going to do two of each pros and cons Lumosity I like and dislike first pro is that helps you learn more and get your brain going for the day. First con is that you can’t play every game that day unless you have a subscription that you pay for it every month. You have to play the three games that were chosen for that day. A Second pro is the games are fun to play and have tutorials on how to play that game. The second con is that some of the games are on a timeline which makes it harder to focus on the game and learn more because you’re focusing on the time which some games are good with a timer but some are not.

How to play some of these games:

Attention trains of thought

The way this game works is there are different color train stations and different color trains like the pink train and the train station. They are the same color. You have to move the train tracks in the right direction of the train station so that the right train can go into the right train station. The way you move the train tracks is by the green circle light thing you can move those from turning down or going straight or whichever way to let you go so I would push the green dot circle where you see the train tracks and I would push it and then it would make it go straight so that I could go in the right train station. Every time there will be a new color that you have to match to the train station. As you get better and better, more trains and stations will appear.

Math:

This game can be fairly easy to play. It’s math can’t be that hard can it? So this game works by having two numbers you have to figure out. Is the top bigger or smaller or are they equal in numbers like this 19 is obviously bigger and 17 I hope you agree. So what you are gonna do is you’re going to tap on 19 to say it’s bigger For example if you had a 19 on the top in a 19 on the bottom it would be to push the equal at the bottom now if it was 26 on the top and 45 on the bottom were obviously click 45 on the bottom but it’s Not always going to be which ones bigger there’s also gonna be math problems so like 5+5 = and then on the bottom might says 56+5 equals whatever and you have to figure that out to know which one is smaller and which one is bigger.

Xbox Series X vs. PS5 by Teigan

The long battle between Xbox and Playstation has continued into a new console generation.  In this blog, I will predict which console will have the better sales and I will determine that by 3 things: the specs, the fan base/exclusives, and the hype.  

First, let’s talk about the hype.  Hype is an important part of a console’s success.  Hype is the thing that a console uses before it comes out into the market to get people excited about it.  However, hype can be a double-edged sword.  If a console promises something, and they don’t follow through on that promise, or the promise falls short, it can hurt the success of the console tremendously.  Let’s start with the hype (promises) from Xbox.  Xbox has promised full ray tracing, enhanced I/O capabilities, full 4K, 120 FPS, the ability to switch between games effortlessly, low prices, SSD, and many more.  The list of promises from PS5 is definitely shorter but what it lacks in length, it makes up for in content.  The list includes partial ray tracing capabilities, SSD, IRMF audio, and enhanced I/O capabilities.  

The next thing to consider is the specs. Let’s start with Xbox’s specs with its CPU being 8x Zen 2 cores at 3.8GHz(3.6 with SMT) and its GPU being a custom RDNA 2 at 12 TFLOPS, 52 CU’s at 1.825GHz. Also, its process is TSMC 7nm enhanced and its memory is 16GB GDDR6. Internal storage is a 1TB custom NVMe SSD with a 1TB card expansion slot. Another thing to consider is IO throughput at an amazing 2.4GB/s(raw) and 4.8GB/s (compressed) and the optical drive being a 4K UHD Blu-ray drive. All in all, it runs at a smooth 4K at 60FPS-up to 120FPS. Now onto PS5’s specs. Its CPU is 8x Zen 2 cores at 3.5GHz (variable frequency) and its GPU at 10.28 TFLOPS,36 CU’s at 2.23GHz(variable frequency) and the architecture being an RDNA 2 custom. Memory interface is 16GB GDDR6 and internal storage being a nice 825GB SSD. IO throughput is 5.5 GB/s(raw), typical 8-9 GB/s(compressed). Optical drive is the same as Xbox’s. Sadly, we don’t know the exact FPS range as PS5 hasn’t released a test video but we can assume it’s around the same as Xbox’s. Even though Xbox’s specs are technically better on paper, the difference in game is so small it’s unnoticeable. That makes them tied in this department.

The final thing to consider is the player fan base and the exclusive games on each console. A console is nothing without its players and what makes the players stay on that console are the exclusives. Sure, their specs are something to consider, but let's face it, only nerds (a.k.a me) look at the specs and most people only buy a console for its exclusives. So, let’s see what each console has. First, let's start with PS5. PS5’s exclusives include God of War, Gran Turismo, Spider-man, Uncharted, BloodBorne, and Horizon Zero Dawn and you can expect to see new titles released for most of these franchises within a year or two of launch. Now, onto Xbox’s exclusives. Xbox’s exclusives include Gears of War, Halo, Senua’s Saga, Scorn, and a few unannounced titles from sub companies of Microsoft.

Now, onto the part you have all been waiting for . . . which one has the best chance to emerge victorious in future sales and success?  Given the previously listed data, one would have to assume that PS5 might come out on top.  However, if (and I don’t think it will be too big of a stretch for a company the size of Microsoft) Xbox can add a few more confirmed exclusives and if they can boost their hype and if they can fulfill all their promises, I would predict that it would be an easy win for the Microsoft giant.

How to Make a Kahoot Quiz by Landon

How to create kahoot quizzes 

By Landon Farley 

If you're wondering how to create a kahoot quiz you’re in the perfect place because we are going to go step by step on how to create your very own kahoot quiz.

First off let’s start by going to create.kahoot.com and login.

Then go to the top left Corner and click create.

Now you should see this screen which is just a completely blank quiz

Now the first thing you're going to want to do is think of what you want your quiz to be about and the first question. Finally put your first question in the biggest box above just like me. I have decided to do mine about Tasmanian devils.

Next you want to adjust the time by clicking the circle that says 20 seconds one you have done this a scroll wheel will appear and you can pick the amount of time you want the question to last.

Next drag the little oval with a 1000 in it to either increase or decrease the amount of points that the question will give a person.

Next if you click the single select and you can either select single select or multi select. Multi select will allow more than one answer to be correct. Single select means just one answer is correct.

Next fill in all the questions and remember to check one correct by pressing the button below the questions

Finally you need to add a picture, click the biggest box right in the center of your screen and three options will appear.

If you click “image library by Getty Images” then this is where you may find any free images from kahoot sorted by category.

You could also pick “upload an image” from there you can upload an image from your photo library.

The final option is “add YouTube videos” from here you just put in a YouTube link in the box and you can play a video on your kahoot

I am going to select a picture from my camera roll now we’re done with this question. Click the “add question to the left'' then select either ''quiz” or ''true or false” quiz is the question we did before and true or false is the same just true or false.

Next continue to make as many questions as you like until you're done at which point you will want to click the done button in the top right corner. Finally give your quiz a name, thumbnail, and description.

CONGRATULATIONS you have now made your very own kahoot quiz. I hope you found this article helpful for this is landon from the columbine ihelpu center saying goodbye.

Remote Learning Tips by Carlos T.

Carlos created a Google Slides slideshow about tips for students to be successful in remote learning.  To see the slideshow click on the link below.

Remote Learning Tips Slideshow

Keynote by Ayla

Keynote

    Keynote is a presentation app developed to design and personalize a presentation.  Keynote helps you create, edits, and give stunning presentations straight from your iPhone or iPad. It has smooth transitions, a sturdy layout, and easily adjustable settings. Make anything possible with keynote.

     The layout of Keynote is smart, you can put awesome transitions, change to cool backgrounds, mess with the font, etc.  Nonetheless, Keynote is cool because it has way more opportunities than Google Slides. It is more fun, easy and just better to use. All in all, I love Keynote and use it for everything.

Pros!

• All available features are very intuitive.

• This program includes animation, video and audio options.

• It works smoothly with iCloud.

• There are many beautiful themes available.

• The program is not expensive compared to similar ones.

• It has been built for iPad.

Cons

• There may be some problems with opening native documents of Keynote.

• The process of documents importing is a bit slow.

• You have to purchase other programs for iWork if you want to use them with Keynote.

• The timeline for animation can’t be displayed.

• You can’t run Keynote on Microsoft

    For classroom use you can have all of your students make a presentation for either practice, fun, or a certain unit. For practice pick a broad subject and have everyone make a presentation, then compare. My ELA/reading teacher, Mrs.Osborn, had us do genius hour. A genius hour is when you have everyone pick a topic that they are interested in, give them a few weeks to brew up a presentation then have everyone practice public speaking by having everyone present. Or maybe you want to see what your classroom learned during this past unit. Throw them a random topic from that unit and see who was listening. For example if you teach a reading class and you had just finished a book, you could have everyone make a keynote about that book. You can have requirements or have random groups pick a topic on the book.

     All in all, Keynote is an amazing app that was produced by Apple. I would fully recommend it. It is simple, yet interesting. It is one of my most used apps. Enjoy your time withKeynote!

Team Lineup (a Coaching App) By Elizabeth B.

Elizabeth Birchem

Team Line Up

A Coaching app

Introduction

     Team Line up is an app meant for sports coaches to help them with game drills. You can choose what kinda backdrop you need. They have basketball, American football, baseball, cricket, ice hockey, and many more fields/courts.

How to Use the app

     When you first open the app there are a bunch of soccer fields and how you change the backdrop is next to where you can put your team name as a little icon. When you click on that icon a bunch of options for will show up and you can start putting your players on the field.

Pros

On your backdrop, you can add as many or as little players you need. You can customize the color of your player to match your jersey and do other colors for other teams! With the players, you can put their names on the little players so you don’t get confused about who’s who. It shows the entire court at an aerial view so you can put your players anywhere. Also, when you chose your court the ball used in the game will show up so you can use the ball. You can also put in your team name.

Cons 

When you set your characters and the ball on the court/field they stay there and they are very hard to move. When you put your players out on the court/field and you forget to put names or misspell their names then you can’t fix the names or put their name on.

Overall Thoughts

Team LineUp is a good app, but I personally do not recommend this app cause I feel there are better coaching app options out there. I’m not saying Team LineUp is a bad app, it works and is a decent app but I feel like there are better apps out there.  Such as iPractice builder and Coach’s eye.

   

Top 5 iPad Tips and Tricks by Carlos

Block Site by Aiden C.

  Block Site is a very useful app to keep yourself productive online when using google online. It can block out not productive sites that you don’t need, like online games that kids should not be playing in class. Block site can do blacklists or whitelists which you can personally set up. You can redirect from websites so if you are on a website that is not allowed it will take you to a different website instead. Also you can set up a message so if someone is blocked from a website it will say a certain message, this is helpful when you want to tell a kid or adult why they cannot be on a website or to taunt them. You can also set up certain times a kid is allowed on a certain website or if they need to be on that website at a certain time and no other website. Block site is an ultimate tool for staying productive instead of doing random things all day long. It can block out most websites but sometimes it does not work. I recommend using it because it can keep you on track and raise your productivity to 100%.

STEM Class

The STEM class in our school is taught by Mr.Roth and is a class where students get to decide what they want to make,fix or understand and in this blog we will go over the STEM process and how kids use it,the tools,challenges,and goals of a student,and my and other student’s overall opinion of the class.

The STEM process consists of ASK: where students define the problem or want to know about something.IMAGINE: this is the step where they pick how they want to achieve their goals whether that be by YouTube videos,research,or trial and error.PLAN:once the student has an idea of how they want to achieve their goal they plan what the best way to do that is.CREATE:Create is the phase where you put everything together ASK,IMAGINE,and PLAN all mush together to create,fix or understand the plan but then comes the hardest part.TEST:in this step you put your creation or knowledge to the test to see if it works and this can be tested in many ways such as seeing if it does what you wanted it to do or going to someone who does know about what you want to understand and checking if what learned is correct.

The tools in the STEM class range from ordinary saws to drills that can go through wood like it’s butter. This is very good because if a student wants to do an ambitious project they have all the tools so the only limit is your imagination and other people's safety. There are a lot of different challenges people might run into but all projects have different challenges but a problem I think all students can run into is it’s an independent project meaning Mr.Roth may not know how to solve a problem and the internet isn't always correct.I think the goal of every student is to be satisfied with what they have accomplished.

All the machines in Mr.Roth’s room

     

Overall I think this class is perfect for middle schoolers because this is when students get to find what they like and this class gives students the perfect opportunity to find what they are interested in whether that be fixing machines,building drones,or just discovering something new. But if my opinion isn’t enough to convince you then maybe these people’s opinions will. “It’s one of my favorite classes. It’s just really fun,” said an 8th grader and “Mr.Roth is a great teacher and the class he teaches is also pretty great,” said another 8th grader . If that doesn’t convince you I don’t know what will. Thanks for reading.

Prodigy by Rachel W.

Prodigy is a fun math game, a magical wizard world with all sorts of fun things to do. If you want to be the best, then you might want to be staring at your iPad forever.

       When you get into Prodigy, it will ask you for your username and password. If you have never used Prodigy, then you can sign in with google. If you do not want to sign in with google you can create a new account.

If you sign in with google, it will ask you to sign in to your google account. If you are a new player then it will ask you some things for you to create your account. To create an account click on new player.

When you get to this page you can click on home or school. If you click home, then you will be taken to this page:

Choose where you live, in my case America, and since this is a CMS blog, you would choose America.

Next, you choose your state. 

Now pick what grade you’re in, and choose correctly! Especially if you are doing this for a teacher. 

Then, put your name where it says “putyournamehere”. Then put the first letter of your last name.

Now, it will ask you to make a password. Of course I wouldn’t use this kind of password, but maybe something like your student number, or lunch number, just try some things. 

Be ready with a piece of paper or a notecard to write down your password on. 

Next, put in your username and password. It will take you to this page:

Create a character.

Choose where you are. If you choose home, you can pick your world and start playing.  If you are at school and playing this for fun, still choose home. If you are setting up with a teacher, then click school and type in your code. 

Lastly, follow Noot’s instructions. Then you are free to play! 

Pros

This app / website is a fun educational math game, and it helps people with math, and it presents it in a fun way. If you need math practice, but don’t want to actually do just straight up math, Prodigy is a great game. 

Cons

It doesn’t have a lot of math, generally just when you are in a battle. If you are not willing to do math but want to play, you can avoid battles. 

All around you can have fun with this game, but be careful of how you use it. If you are at home, it is ok, but at school make sure you are not avoiding your math!