Laura+Ballard

1. The purpose of this program is to help students become more efficient at writing including all of the different phases. It is a research based program that will definitely help your student. This program is for grades 7-9. 2. This software program falls into the category of drill and practice, but I believe it would become more fun like an instructional game. 3. If my class had a big paper coming up and they were just beginning to put it together, we could use this software to help with every step of writing the paper including planning, rough drafts and final drafts. 4. The strengths of this program are that it goes through every phase of writing. It also has a separate part of the program for different types of papers such as persuasive or expository. The weaknesses are not really obvious yet, I would have to test the product first. 5. This product can be purchased from Gamco.com which is an educational software site, and can be purchased from $188.95 for a single computer to $458.95 for a lab. []
 * Writing Process Series 7-9**

**Vocabulary Stretch** 1. The purpose of this software is to help students enhance their vocabulary. This program is intended for grades 4-9. 2. This software program belongs in the category drill and practice but also instructional game. It helps students learn through activities like crossword puzzles and word matching. 3. Vocabulary is important in any English classroom. I could use this program to have the students learn words that are in the readings we do in class or just words I assign every week. 4. The strengths of this program are that it makes vocabulary seem fun. Crossword puzzles are like games and if you can make learning fun and exciting that is so important. The weaknesses are that I wouldn’t be able to program the software to use vocabulary words that I wanted specifically. 5. This product can be purchased from Merit Software which specializes in interactive learning. It costs from $39.00 for 2 students to $125.00 for 42 students. []

Speedstudy 8th Grade Language Arts ** 1. The purpose of this software program is to help students become better at studying for tests in English, and to be able to learn the basics faster. It will help students in eighth grade learn to love language arts. 2. This software program belongs in the category of problem solving because it takes a mystery and makes the student use Language Arts to solve it. 3. In my classroom I would use this program if maybe I had a student that was struggling finding interest in the class due to lack of knowledge or basic skills, especially when it comes to testing in my class. 4. The strengths of this software are that it helps the student with studying for language arts which can be a difficult subject to study for. The weakness is that its specifically for studying and not really a general purpose. 5. This software can be purchased from Alleducationalsoftware.com for $13.75 for individual use. []

1. The purpose of this software is for the student to learn how to build up their grammar skills. It will also help me in getting to know my students through a placement test. This software does not say what grades it is specific to, but I would imagine 7-9. 2. This software would be a drill and practice exercise for students. It includes many grammar lessons followed by interactive exercises. 3. If I were to use this in my classroom I would probably use it for specific students habitually and my entire classroom when they need a refresher or even right before we write a paper. 4. The strength of this software is that it has so many different options and a variety of lessons that I could integrate into my classroom activities. The weaknesses are not apparent yet, I would have to actually mess with the program and see how it runs. 5. This software can be purchased at The English Teacher.com. However, I was unable to find out how much it would cost. []
 * BIG - Building-up In Grammar**

**Knowledge Adventure Reading Blaster Ages** 1. This software program is meant to help younger learners get started with language arts. It is for ages 6-8 and would be useful if I decided to teach a younger level with an emphasis in English 2. This software would be an instructional game. The students would be playing and learning at the same time which is helpful with a younger group. 3. If I were to teach elementary school, I would be able to use this maybe twice a week when we focus on Language Arts. It would give my students something to look forward to and be excited about. 4. The strength of this software is that its so fun for the student and I will be able to see how they are doing. The weakness of the software is that if the student gets too caught up in the game it will be hard to tell if they are learning. 5. This software can be purchased at Computer products for education for $59.95. []

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Laura

I think you did a good job on this assignment. I also found the BIG software helpful because it tracks the progress of each student, which will be helpful for us when we actually become teachers. I also thought that the Reading Blaster game could be very helpful to younger kids. Although I plan to work with high school students I feel that if I did decide to work with younger ages that would definitely be helpful.

Serenity Matlock-Way