Activities for
Computer Learning Month 2001
and the 2001-2002 School Year

Every year, the Computer Learning Foundation hosts Computer Learning Month in October to focus people's attention on the important role of technology in our lives, particularly in our children's learning. This year is an unusual year, and our traditional contests just don't seem relevant or the priority this year. Instead, we are providing activities you can begin during Computer Learning Month, but continue throughout the school year. We hope these activities can help you expand your children's learning about technology while also helping them, yourself and your community deal with the horrible world events that surround us.

This is a time to reach out to others, pull communities together, educate people about what freedom means, help children and others in your community to learn the importance of tolerance for individual differences, cultural differences and different religious beliefs and much more. Our family, our community, our country, freedom and security have taken on the level of importance they always should have had, but sometimes got lost in the day-to-day of our busy lives. We are all grappling with what's happening around us, and our children are no exception. Let's all focus this year on how technology can help us communicate better, how technology can help us help others and how technology can help us heal, move forward and create a stronger world for tomorrow.

Below are a collection of activities you can begin during Computer Learning Month and continue throughout the school year. We have attempted to blend the needs of today with the furthering of children's knowledge of using technology in learning. You'll find activities for desktop presentations (word processing, videos, PowerPoint, HyperStudio, Web pages, desktop publishing), creative expression (computer art, Web pages, graphics, animations, posters, transfers, digital photography). These ideas are only a beginning. You will have many ideas of your own, so if you have ideas for integrating the use of technology with helping children and communities make sense out of what's going on in the world today, share your teaching ideas with us at our Web site. We will be adding new ideas all year. In addition, if your children, school or community group creates something you'd like to share, post it on a web site and let us know about it so we can share it with others. Also take a look at Teacher Created Materials free lesson plans to help your students cope with the national tragedy.

• Create computer videos of the world events happening in their daily lives and how they feel about them.
• Write poems about current events and children's feelings and post them on the school's Web site.
• Create artwork that expresses how they feel about current world events.
• Highlight poetry on heros, freedom, tolerance or other topics with photographs or original art.
• Write a song and lyrics about your feelings about the events of this year. Publish the song on the web.
• Make a holiday card that illustrates their wishes for the world.
• Research different types of security in our lives (locks, intelligence, airport scanners, passwords) and how they help to keep us safe.
• Take part in online communication with students from other nations, possibly through KidLink or Global School House.
• Develop a electronic quilt commemorating the events, people and heros.
• Communicate with other children around the world via email and discuss feelings about the events. Write a report on how children all over the world are feeling and what they are doing to feel better.
• Create a special edition of your school or town newspaper with articles on how the events of the world have changed their feelings and/or attitudes, what students believe are the most important things in life to them and their family, and who local heroes are in their local community. Sprinkle free ads for local nonprofits throughout the paper with information on their services and calls for local contributions.

• Research the history of the current conflicts on the Internet and prepare PowerPoint presentations, desktop published reports or videos.
• Write their autobiography and how the current world events are effecting their lives.
• Use a program such as TimeLiner to create a timeline of events since the September 11th tragedy. Create a future timeline of events are will help the world move forward in peace.
• Write about the future of travel and tourism and what could help.
• Help your community learn to use technology so they have access to all the information resource.
• Create desktop published reports or presentations on each country involved in the current conflict.
• Research World War II and what happened at Pearl Harbor and how it is the same of different as the events of their day.
• Resesarch and create a documentary (video, photo journalistic report or report) on the events learding up to the current conflict and the acts of terrorism
• Explore what terrorism is, how we can prevent its intended effects (i.e., terror) and how it might be avoided in the future.
• Develop a report on why this "war" is different from any our country has ever experienced?
• Research the history of Afghanistan and why they're involved today.
• Write letters to the Afghan children, decorate and illustrate the letters and post them on the Internet for the world to read.

• Define freedom and develop a desktop video or PowerPoint presentation on what it is and why people cherish it.
• 120 nations have united in the efforts to stop terrorism: identify the countries, research their history and culture and create posters, tee shirt transfers, videos, presentations or Web pages that promote the phrase "United We Stand." Graphics might include country flags or symbols; web pages could provide links to information about each country. Hold a local contest and award coupon prizes from local businesses for the best projects. Showcase the best projects in the local businesses.
• Research the history of NATO and NATO countries on the Internet and CD-ROM encyclopedias and prepare a desktop published report about NATO's role in previous and the current conflicts.
• Write poetry about our nation and the importance of freedom
• Create posters or tee shirt transfers that promote patriotism, freedom and world unity.
• Create a photojournalism piece on patriotism in the community. Students take pictures around their community of patriotism, then put them together to tell a story. Ask the local newspaper to include the best ones in different issues of the local paper.
• Investigate why the British who were our first enemy are now among our best world friends.
• Develop a web adventure featuring information about the American flag and flag etiquette.
• Design a travelogue that takes other students to national historic sites in the United States. Include Fort McHenry in Baltimore where there's a moving glimpse of history featuring an attack on America and the writing of the Star Spangled Banner.
• Research on the Internet different groups involved in protecting our freedom and civil rights and publish a newsletter on different positions.

• Research on the Internet and in the library examples of pluralism, tolerance and intolerance. Prepare a video or presentation for the community.
• Create posters or tee shirt transfers that promote positive values ( peace, respect for individual differences, etc.).
• Write a report about the similarities among people who are from different races, religions, countries, beliefs and values.
• Create computer art collage of people in the future world children envision.
• Video tape role-playing or create animated gifs on how to handle conflicts and resolve them.
• Explore different religious beliefs and prayers and why these are so powerful and personal.
• Research different religions and religious conflicts and prepare a report or presentation on how these conflicts might have been avoided, how they might be resolved and how to prevent them in the future.
• There are many different prayers from many different religions. Do research on prayer in different parts of the world. Create a book of worldwide prayer.
• Using digital video and video editing, create an advertisement featuring conflict resolution.
• Read and write illustrated book reportson books that feature understanding between people of different cultures and religions. Books might include: The Boy from Over There by Tamar Bergman; Downsiders by Neal Shusterman; Family Under the Bridge by garth Williams; Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell; Junebug and the Reverend by Alice Mead; the Secret Garden by Frances Burnett; The Shadow Children by Steven Schnur; The Talking Earth by Jean Craighead George; The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth Speare; or Zia by Scott O'Dell
• Use a graphic-organizer program such as Inspiration to come up with a plan for having your class help out in your community, doing a special project in school, etc.
• Use a program such as StageCast to create computer simulations about countries and people working together for peace. And how about simulations of students getting along in school and supporting each other.
• Design a magazine advertisement that promotes peace.
• Create an illustrated publication that tells about the different religions, nationalities and cultures living in your community, what it means to them to be an American and how they view the current world events.
• Create a world friendship quilt using fabric that can go through printers.
• Make a yearbook featuring your class and each student's vision for the future.
• Think about your future. What are your goals for your life? What will people say about you and your achievements. Write an essay, a poem or a play about YOU.
• Create a claymation animation of the world when you are 25 years old.
• Photograph people in random acts of kindness. Put the pictures together into a slideshow.
• Create a world peace board game. Be creative. Make the board, cards, playing pieces, etc. on the computer. Or create the game for others to play on the computer.
• Think of someone in your community who is very special-who helps others without expecting any rewards. Maybe it is not an individual, but a community organization. Think of a way to honor that person or individual.

Having students participate in the Computer Learning Foundation's Our Town Initiative is a great way to help your community during these trying times. Have students work on your town's Web site (or start one from scratch) and add important messages that are relevant to current world events.

• Add important messages to the site about current world events from students' perspectives.
• Create promotional messages to help charities raise money to help victims of the latest tragedy or to support local charities that still need everyone's support.
• Create a section that provides sample ways to make a difference in your community.
• Create a section dedicated to heroes in your community: those who help the Humane Society, hospital, nursing homes, prison ministries,etc.; those who volunteer to serve on medical missions, feed the poor, bring needed services or supplies within our country or to foreign countries; those who befriend people who others may ignore; etc.

Our Town Sweepstakes

Our Town Qualifications: To qualify as an Our Town site and be listed at the Foundation's site in the Our Town section, students must be involved in its development and the Our Town logo must appear somewhere on the home page of the town site with a link to the Computer Learning Foundation's site.

Registration: To register your site in Our Town, just complete the Our Town online registration form.

Sweepstakes: Ten lucky Our Town groups will be drawn at random from qualifying Our Town sites registered by December 31, 2001. Both new and previously started Our Town sites are eligible for the sweepstakes drawing, so long as your site qualifies and you register it (or re-register it) with the Computer Learning Foundation by December 31, 2001. Winners will be notified by February 1, 2002.

One way to ensure a better future for all of us is to support the things we believe in. There is no doubt that the innocent victims of the attacks in New York City and Washington,DC are in great need of the tremendous outpouring of support that the American people have provide. Don't forget, however, during these difficult times, the many thousands of nonprofit organizations that help people year in and year out . Many are being placed in financial jeopardy with so much of the giving going only to the recent tragedy's victims. These other nonprofit organizations also need your support,if they are to survive and continue their missions.