Class: Beginning Computer Skills
Unit:
Microsoft Excel
Day:
1
Goals: Introduce Microsoft Excel. Practice exploring new software. Learn Excel vocabulary.
Practice entering information into Excel.
Materials: Explore Excel Handout. Excel Vocabulary and Cursors Handout. Make a Schedule in
Excel Handout.
Beginning of class reminders:
OPENING: WHOLE GROUP (40 MIN)
-
-
Before the class begins working on Excel, now would be a good time to practice exploring a
new program. Hand out the Explore Excel exercise, and encourage students to work
through it. It is important to explain that this is often how experienced computer users
learn to use a new program. Encourage students to not be afraid to start clicking on things.
Have students work on this for as long as they are able, it still may be quite difficult for
them.
Hand out Excel Vocabulary and Cursors. Work through it with the students. Have students
practice using the different cursors. The AutoFill cursor is particularly confusing, but the
students find it quite useful. Here are a few things to point out:
- Selecting a range of cells
- Double clicking on a cell to write in it
- Moving a cell
- Deleting all of the information in a cell or group of cells
- Getting your toolbars and the Formatting Palette
ACTIVITY: INDIVIDUAL OR SMALL GROUP (15 MIN)
-
Hand out Make a Schedule in Excel. Have students work through it. Encourage them to
make a schedule of their own, but they could also try copying the instructor’s to start.
ClOSING: WHOLE GROUP (1-2 MIN)
The Make a Schedule exercise will probably take some more time than is allowed, so have
students save it and plan on continuing and improving the schedule in the next class.
Point out that the explore a new program activity is something we will continue to do with
new programs, and remind the students that this is an important computer skill to have. It
might also be useful to point out that there are tutorials on the Internet.
Explore Excel
When you use a new application, you will need to give yourself some time to discover how it
works on your own. Open Excel, explore the program, and answer some of these questions:
1. What do you know how to do right away? What is easy to do?
2. How is this application similar to other applications you are familiar with?
3.
What keys on the keyboard are useful here?
4. What can you not do? What do you still want to learn?
5. How could you imagine yourself using this program?
Use what you know about other computer programs to find your way through this new one.
Here are some more questions that you might want to ask yourself when using any new
program:
1. What happens when you Control+Click on the screen (right click)? What are your
options from this menu?
2. What menus are available at the top of the screen?
3. Do you have a Toolbar? What are your options in the Toolbar?
4. Is there a Help Menu?
Excel Vocabulary
Cell:
This is Cell A1
Column:
This is Column A
Row:
This is Row 1
Range:
The Range here is
from Cell A1 to Cell B9
Or A1:B9
Excel Cursors
Cursor
Function
This is the “Select Mode” Cursor.
With this cursor you can select the cell that
you want to edit. It is the default cursor in
Excel.
This is the “Click and Drag” Cursor.
With this cursor you click and drag a cell to
move it to another cell.
This is the “Auto Fill” Cursor.
With this cursor you can fill in a series (like
days, months, times, etc). You can only use
auto fill if you move the cursor to the bottom
right of a cell
This is the “Resizing” Cursor.
With this cursor you can make columns
wider or rows taller.
These are the “Select Row” and “Select
Column” Cursors.
And
With these cursors you can highlight an
entire row or column.
Make a Schedule in Excel
Use your Excel Vocabulary and Cursor Knowledge to make a Schedule for your day!
Try to follow these directions to create your Schedule:
1. In Cell B1 write “Monday”
2. Use the Auto Fill Cursor to fill in the rest of the days of the week along the Row 1.
3. In Cell A2 write “9:00 AM”
4. Use the Auto Fill Cursor to add more times down Column A
5. Start adding what you do during the day.
6. If you do things several days or for several hours, you can use your Auto Fill Cursor to
fill in the rest.
In the end, your schedule should look something like this:
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Sleep In
GED Class
Open Lab
Office Hours
10:00 AM
Prepare Class
GED Class
ESL Class
Office Hours
11:00 AM
Prepare Class
12:00 PM
Computer Class
Prepare Class
Computer
Class
ESL Class
Computer
Class
Office Hours
Computer
Class
1:00 PM
Lunch
Lunch
Lunch
Lunch
2:00 PM
Office Hours
Office Hours
Meeting
Office Hours
3:00 PM
Office Hours
Office Hours
Office Hours
Office Hours
4:00 PM
Open Lab
Open Lab
Office Hours
Office Hours
9:00 AM
Friday
Americorps
Day
Americorps
Day
Americorps
Day
Americorps
Day
Americorps
Day
Americorps
Day
Americorps
Day
Americorps
Day
If you still have time left, practice making changes to your schedule. Change fonts. Add a title.
Give the project a border. Add some color. See what else you can do.