Using Excel in the Classroom

Adrienne R. Grossman

ED554

Fall 2006

Communicating with Parents

There is an endless stream of paper going from the school to home, and sometimes back again.

Field trip permission slips, conference appointments, reading logs- it might be helpful to create a spreadsheet to handle all of this.

Parent Communication

Parent-Teacher Conference 2nd Notice sent for Conference Zoo Field Trip- Permission SlipZoo Field Trip - $2

Fee

Anna 10/6/2006 2:30 N/A yes yes

Brian 10/6/2006 2:00 N/A yes yes

Carlos no response yes yes yes

Dalia 10/6/2006 10:00 N/A yes yes

Eric 10/6/2006 9:30 N/A yes yes

Francesca no response yes no yes

George 10/6/2006 10:30 N/A yes yes

Heather 10/6/2006 11:00 N/A yes yes - PTA

Classroom Management

An important aspect of classroom management is making sure that all students are involved.

It can be a natural tendency to call on the student you know can give the right answer, or who is the loudest.

With Excel, you can keep track of classroom participation.

Honors and Privileges

It’s very common in classrooms to have one child be the “line leader,” another run errands to the school office, etc.

Fairness is very important here, as all kids must have their turn.

Spreadsheets can help you keep track of who’s done what, and will also let the students see that you are being fair.

Homework

Who’s turned theirs in? Who’s given a report/presentation? You can use Excel to keep track of this as well.

Of course, grades can be added too. Homework passes, extra credit, different

options taken can all be tracked.

Sept. 2006

Book Report Choice:Poster Choice: Diorama Extra Credit?

Anna yes yes no

Brian yes yes no

Carlos yes yes yes

Dalia yes yes yes

David yes yes no

Eric yes yes yes

Francesca yes yes yes

George yes yes no

Helena yes yes no

Cooperative Learning Activities

A great way to teach-kids are involved and learn to work with each other.

But the grouping has to be done with some care. Different strengths and personality types should be considered.

You may not always want the same kids working together. There are various ways to create groups, but however you create them, use Excel to note the resulting combinations of students. Then you can tweak as necessary.

Cooperative Learning Groups

Group A Group B Group C

Renewable or Not? Anna, Brian, Carlos David, Dalia, Eric, Francesca George, Helena, Iris, Juan

Every Drop Counts David, Helena, Anna Brian, Iris, Juan, Carlos Dalia, Eric, Francesca, George

H2O Olympics George, Carlos, Juan Iris, Francesca, Brian, Anna Dalia, Eric, David, Helena

Screening/Testing

Kids are often pulled for one-on-one testing. In situations where all the kids will eventually be screened, Excel can provide a place to keep your records.

Similarly, if you are having a volunteer or specialist do some kind of work with each student, this could be a way to ensure that all students are seen.

Testing and Screening

Reading with Volunteer Address Testing Hearing Screening

Anna

Brian

Carlos

Dalia

David

Eric

Francesca

George

Helena

Conclusion

Excel can be a useful organizational tool, particularly if you teach multiple classes in a day.

It might be helpful when you need to compile reports, or have a meeting regarding a particular student.

It is better than having little slips of paper cluttering your desk.