The purpose of this newsletter is to keep K-12 physical educators abreast of current trends in using technology in physical education. This newsletter is published monthly (except July and January). Written and Published by Bonnie Mohnsen
Sponsored by pesoftware.com
http://www.pesoftware.com/news.html Contact Bonnie Mohnsen for advertising rates Distribution: 6500 physical educators!
Update on PEP Bill! "How do I apply for a PEP grant?" is the number one question coming into the National Association for Sport and Physical Education (NASPE) these days. As you know, the U.S. Congress approved a mammoth omnibus spending bill on December 15, 2000, which included a $5 million appropriation for the Physical Education for Progress Act for fiscal year 2001. Here's what we know so far:
According to officials at the U.S. Department of Education, they believe the PEP grant guidelines will be announced sometime in March and school districts will have six weeks to submit proposals. The winning grants will be announced the first week of June 2001 and recipients will have 12 months to complete their projects.
Grants are to help initiate, expand and improve physical education programs for kindergarten through grade 12 students. Funds can be used to purchase equipment, develop curriculum, hire and/or train physical education staff, and support other initiatives designed to enable students to participate in physical education activities.
Efforts to get the full $400 million appropriated over the next five years will be enhanced by the success of these first grants. It is critical that programs show significant improvement in student learning and increased physical activity as a result of the funding provided by these grants. Therefore, so that you are ready when the appropriate guidelines are announced, NASPE recommends that you:
1) Begin thinking of concrete ways that you can improve your physical education program and what resources are needed to do so.
2) Talk to your building administrator about this opportunity and request his/her support in soliciting these funds.
3) Stay current on PEP funding news by becoming a member of NASPE/AAHPERD, participating on the NASPE listserv and by visiting website at www.aahperd.org/naspe.
Encourage everyone you know to write to the new U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige to encourage him to support quality physical education programs in the new Administration. His address is:
The Honorable Rod Paige U.S. Department of Education 400 Maryland Avenue SW Washington, DC 20202In addition to thinking of ways to improve your physical education program, it is also important for everyone to thank their Senators and Representatives for their support of the PEP bill and to begin writing letters now to members of the U.S. Congress's various Appropriation Committees as well as the Education Committees. NASPE will provide you a full list of the committees' members once they are approved by Congress.
In the meantime, here are the names of the respective Republican Chairs:
Representative C.W. Bill Young (R-FL-10th), Chair, House of Representatives Appropriations Committee Representative Ralph Regula (R-OH-16th) Chair, Labor, Health and Human Services Appropriations Subcommittee Representative John Boehner (R-OH-8th) Chair, House Education and the Workforce Committee Senator Ted Stevens (R-AK), Chair, U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA), Chair, Appropriations Subcommittee: Labor, Health and Human Services, Education Senator Jim Jeffords (R-VT), Chair, Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions CommitteesIn addition, we need to write letters seeking full funding for the Physical Education for Progress Act to the members of all of these committees. Please let us know if you have personal relationships with any of these individuals.
Thank you for your continued support and enthusiasm. With your help we are bringing physical education to the forefront of education!
Thank You NASPE for Making This a Reality!
Using Technology in Physical Education, 3rd edition
New Edition - Available March 2001
Bonnie Mohnsen
ISBN 1-893166-26-0 $25.00 +s/h Using Technology in Physical Education provides comprehensive information and practical classroom applications for:
- technology devices
- videocassette and camcorders
- computers and peripherals
- telecommunications
- instructional and assessment software
- multimedia systems
For complete information on books, software, task cards, and consulting services along with an order form - check out Bonnie's Fitware: (http://www.pesoftware.com/)
Question and Answers
Q. When I go to a Web site and it says something to the effect of "Get the plug-in," what is a plug-in?
Plug-ins are small software programs that allow your browser to do more than originally created to do. For example, many Web pages contain pictures, animation, video clips, or sounds. These features are contained within the page as small, proprietary-format files.
Plug-ins, such as RealPlayer (www.real.com) or Adobe Acrobat (www.adobe.com), make it possible for your browser to work with a new type of file without having to use what's called an external helper application or program. Before the arrival of plug-ins, we had to download, install, and configure a separate software program to accomplish tasks that plug-ins handle so easily and conveniently.
When you encounter a "Get the plug-in" message, it's usually a link to the plug-in itself, so click the link and follow the instructions. It's fast and easy, so give it a try!
Q. What's the difference between a laser printer and an inkjet printer?
An inkjet printer works by spraying jets of ink onto a page. Because it's a relatively low-tech way to print, inkjet printers tend to be much less expensive than laser printers. Laser printers use laser beams, mirrors, and heat. They're more complex technologically but generally print faster and produce cleaner and clearer copies than do inkjet printers.
Q. Software programs are continually being updated, and it's really hard to know when an update is available. Any Internet-based services available to keep tract of things like that?
You can get software update notifications by e-mail whenever your favorite software is updated. You can register for this free service at www.versions.com.
Web Sites To Visit Compendium of Standards and Benchmarks
http://mcrel.org/standards-benchmarks
http://www.allclipartsite.com
http://www.lessonplansearch.com
http://www.schoolgrants.org/
http://www.royaltyfreemusic.com/
MP3? The MP3 format is a compression system for music. The MP3 format helps reduce the number of bytes in a song without hurting the quality of the song's sound. The goal of the MP3 format is to compress a CD-quality song by a factor of 10 to 14 without losing the CD quality of the sound. With MP3, a 32 megabyte song on a CD compresses down to 3 megabytes or so. This lets you download a song in minutes rather than hours, and it lets you store hundreds of songs on your computer's har disk without taking up that much space.
Folk Dance Samples
Miserlou
www.playj.com/listensearch/static/Artist_4236.html
Hora
PDA Information
3Com has released Desktop 4.0, a free software upgrade available at
http://www.palm.com/software/desktop/
However, at the moment, Desktop v4.0 installer only supports handhelds from 3Com. If you use a Visor, you can download Desktop 4.0 from 3Com's site, but when you run the installer, it will overwrite Handspring's HotSync manager and the Visor's USB interface. The installer doesn't offer any custom installation options, which will end your ability to HotSync with a Visor.
Here is the solution:
- -go to http://www.palm.com/software/desktop/
- -download and install Desktop 4.0
- -go to http://www.handspring.com/support/ ts_soft_download.jhtml
- -enter your device's serial number and then download Handspring's version of Desktop 3.1
- -make a backup of your directory
- -double click the Desktop3.1.exe
- -the installer may ask if it can close your HotSync Manager. Tell it yes.
- -when the installer gets to the Setup Type screen, select Custom, choose the path to your directory, and click Next.
- -on the Select Components screen, uncheck everything but the HotSync Manager. Click Next.
- -on the Connect Cable screen, select either "USB cradle" or "Both USB and serial cradle" depending on your configuration and click Next.
- -on the Choose Default Destop Application screen, you're probably going to want to choose "Synchronize with Desktop". Then click Next.
- -you may see a screen that says "Third Party Conduit(s) Detected". Use your existing conduits. click Next
- -select the folder where your Desktop program resides and click Next.
- -click Finish.
Browser Tricks Scrolling Short Cut
It's easy to get impatient when you're scrolling through a lengthy Web page. The Up or Down arrow keys seem to take forever. A quicker method is to press CTRL and END (or HOME) at the same time. This trick will send you directly to the end or beginning in most current Windows-compatibleprograms.
Printing Tips
When you find something that you want to print:
1. Highlight (hold down the mouse button and drag) the sections/pictures you want to print.
2. Select the File menu and click Print.
3. In the Print dialog box, click the Selection radio button and click OK.
Multiwindow Browsing Shortcut:
To save time while browsing the Web, you can open any link on a Web page in an entirely new browser window. This allows you to continue reading the current Web page while you wait for the new one to load. It also makes it quicker to return to the current page, because you don't have to click the "Back" button and wait for the page to reload. Follow the instructions below for your browser:
Microsoft Internet Explorer (Windows): Hold down the "Shift" key as you click a link.
Microsoft Internet Explorer (Macintosh): Hold down the "Command" key as you click a link.
Netscape Communicator: Right-click a link (on Mac systems, click and hold down your mouse button) and select "Open in New Window" or "New Window with this Link" from the menu.
Upcoming Events Seminars
"Using Technology to Improve your Health and Physical Education Program" - Bonnie Mohnsen, Facilitator.
- March 12 - Kansas City, MO
- March 13 - Omaha, NE
- March 14 - St Louis, MO
- March 15 - Indianapolis, IN
- March 16 - Chicago North, IL
"Building a Quality Physical Education Program" - Bonnie Mohnsen, Facilitator.
- April 23 - Salt Lake City, UT
- April 24 - Boise, ID
- April 25 - Spokane, WA
- April 26 - Seattle, WA
- April 27 - Portland, OR
For more information on the above seminars, contact:
- Bureau of Education and Research
- http://www.ber.org
- 425-453-2121
New Online Course:
Course Cost: $75
Additional Cost for One College Credit: $35 (CSU Fullerton) Deadline March 5, 2001 As a result of our survey last month, our first online course (sponsored by Bonnie's Fitware) will be a one unit course on Fitness Technology for Physical Educators. The course consists of six modules and requires approximately 16 online hours to complete.
Module 1: Introducing Fitness Testing: The What, Why, and How
Module 2: Evaluating Software - Selecting the Fitness Report to Meet Your Needs
Module 3: Fitnessgram Software
Module 4: Fitware Fitness Report
Module 5: Fitness Reporter
Module 6: Final Evaluation of Software.
In order to register, send a $75 check made out to Bonnie's Fitware (18832 Stefani Ave, Cerritos, CA 90703) with a note that you wish to enroll in the Using Fitness Reports Course. During Module 1 you will be given directions for applying for college credit - optional!
In our April Issue:
More Questions and Answsers!
How to use Muscle Flash?
Digital Cameras
Web Activity for Physical Education Answers to your questions - be sure to ask: bmohnsen@earthlink.net
For more information about using technology in physical education or to submit questions contact Bonnie Mohnsen
