The boys in Years 9-11 have now been using their devices for a term and we have been very pleased with the integration of eLearning across curriculum areas. The boys have been very positive about their BYOD experience so far and have provided valuable feedback.

Charging of Devices

Please remind your son to charge his device at the end of the school day. As Term One progressed, we noticed that a number of students were forgetting to charge their device at night. This creates problems when they arrive at school the following day and the battery quickly runs out. Your son can go to the library at interval or lunchtime to re-charge his device, provided he brings his charger with him. It is worth noting that the boys do need to look after their charger. We have noticed that some of the wires on the chargers are getting crimped, which is damaging the charger.

Office 365

Christchurch Boys’ High School students can download Office 365 on up to five personally-owned PCs/Macs and up to five mobile devices, including iOS and Android devices. This will give him access to full versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and OneNote. Instructions on how to download Office 365 can be found on Moodle, under the ICT Help section. Students will need to sign into Moodle using their username and password.

Loan Devices

If your son’s device is away being repaired then he is eligible to borrow a loan device from the technicians, provided that there is one available. Students can collect the device from the Technician’s Office beside C13 after form time. The device must be returned at the end of the school day. If your son does not have access to another computer at home, he can use the computers in the library at interval, lunchtime or after school to complete homework.

OneNote

OneNote is a programme that many of our teachers are using in their classroom. We just want to remind students that they do not have to be connected to the Wi-Fi to be able to use it. If students are working in the desktop version of OneNote, it will sync to the cloud version the next time that they come into Wi-Fi range.

Typing Skills

It has come to our attention that some of our students are experiencing some difficulty with typing. Your son may benefit from spending ten minutes per day developing his typing skills by using a free online typing tutorial. Listed below are some websites that offer free typing tutorials:

https://www.typingclub.com/
https://www.keyhero.com/free-typing-test/

Cyber Safety

NetSafe are a New Zealand organisation that focus on helping New Zealand internet users to stay safe online. They have some excellent resources to support teenagers and parents.

Below are some of the topics that are covered on their website:

· Get help with online bullying and harassment
· Snapchat: A guide for parents
· Staying safe online
· What is a digital footprint?
· Sexting