Spanish-American Institute

935 Using Lotus 1-2-3 80 Classes

Prerequisite(s): None

Textbooks: Cathy Vento and Iris Blanc, Learning Lotus I-2-3, DDC Publishing, 1995 (or comparable text).

Course Description: While developing English language skills, this course introduces students to Lotus 1-2-3, including Lotus concepts, features, functions, and applications.

Objectives: By the end of the course, students should be able:

• to read about Lotus 1-2-3 situations and understand what is being discussed or described;
• to read and follow directions when practicing textbook exercises;
• to read about simple cases requiring a Lotus solution and to decide how to present useful information in spreadsheet or graph form that addresses the problem;
• to ask questions concerning concepts and implementation;
• to explain orally and in writing procedures used or results obtained;
• to explain to others the content of Lotus spreadsheets, charts, and graphs;
• to understand the basics of creating a Lotus spreadsheet or graph;
• to understand how to navigate toolbars and use menus to customize Lotus; and
• to understand how Lotus 1-2-3 can be applied to problems in daily life, in different fields, and in real world situations. .

Instructional Methods: Classes include language development and critical thinking sessions followed by hands-on practice and drills. Students will complete periodic summary exercises that require application of all skills learned to date. Each student will create a portfolio of finished output.

Grading: The final grade is based on the following:

Class Participation	25%
Assignments	50%
Exams	25%
Total	100%

The grading scale is: A=90-100%, B+=85-89%, B=80-84%, C+=75-79%, C=70-74%, D=65-69%, F=60-64%.

Course Outline:

Week	Topics	Assignments and Tests
1-2	Mapping the text and course: introduction to the course and the book, including learning aids Vocabulary log guidelines: write two complete sentences for each word, one that describes its meaning and one that gives an example of its use. Lotus basics: the Lotus 1-2-3 and Windows screens, Lotus templates, menu items and commands, dialog boxes, setting view preferences, changing screen display, getting help, etc. Exploring the worksheet. Ordinal transition words in giving directions.	Vocabulary log. Lesson 1 reading. Lesson 1 exercises. Turn any list of 5 or more sequential directions in the text into a paragraph, using numerical transition words: first, second, third, etc.
3-5	Using the worksheet: exploring the worksheet using directional and express keys, labels and values, corrections, saving/closing a file, exiting, printing Using formulas and functions Inserting and moving columns and rows. Advanced functions. More transition words in giving directions. Oral practice interpreting spreadsheets.	Vocabulary log. Lesson 3-7 reading. Exercises 4-54. Turn any list of 4 or more sequential directions from the chapter into a paragraph, making use of some or all of the following transition words: first, next, then, after, last. In a paragraph or more, describe what the spreadsheet in exercise 23 tells you. In a paragraph or more, explain which country would offer the best price for Heavy Metals Import Company, based on the spreadsheet information.
6-7	Creating and graphs: using titles and legends, printing graphs, graph settings Oral practice interpreting graphs.	Vocabulary log. Lesson 8 reading. Exercises 54-64. Pick one of the graphs in exercise 58 and explain what it tells you. Develop a spreadsheet that tracks one of your weekly or monthly costs (e.g., for food, for telephone, for electricity, etc.). Then display the results in a graph
8-9	Worksheet enhancements: changing fonts, typestyles, shading/patterns/colors, lines/shadows/boxes, frames and grids, printing/compression and landscape, using graphics, and adding paragraph text. Review for exam, week 8.	Vocabulary log. Lesson 9 reading. Exercises 65-74. Explain how you enhanced the Sigma and Company's worksheet in exercise 74. Exam, week 8.
10-11	Using simple database functions: creating, sorting, querying, calculating	Vocabulary log. Lesson 10 reading. Exercises 75-86. Explain how you organized the transaction data for Noah Auto Sales by describing the parts of your spreadsheet for exercise 86.
12-13	Using simple macros: creating, naming, running, stepping/debugging, editing, and hiding	Vocabulary log. Lesson 11 reading. Exercises 87-90. In a paragraph or more, describe how you updated the OWN worksheet in exercise 89. Summarize the steps you took to prepare a weekly payroll for the Gingerbread Cookie Company.
14-16	Summary applications: using spreadsheets in accounting, economics, finance, marketing, math, sales, and science. Close reading of problems from each discipline. Review for exam, week 16.	Vocabulary log. Lesson 12 reading. Exercises 91-97. Keep a time log for a week. Develop a spreadsheet that shows how you used your time. Then develop a graph with the same data. Finally, write a paragraph describing areas where you wasted time and areas where you saved time doing something. Exam, week 16.

rev. 2/04