Computer Skills Curriculum
Database Lesson Plan

Title: Computer Databases on the Job

Other Curriculum Objectives that can be addressed by this lesson plan
English Language Arts 2.1, 2.2, 4.1; Social Studies: Skill Goal I, Skill Goal II; Computer Skills: (Gr. 5) 1.2; Information Skills 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 2.1, 2.2

Grade: 5
Competency 1.2: Identify computers as tools for accessing current information.

Measure 1.2.2: Discuss and write a paragraph on how accessing current database information with a computer improves the work of a pharmacist, home supply clerk, motel manager, or agriculture extension agent.

Materials Needed: Survey pages for each student.

Time: Two class sessions.

Terms: Database, Current Database

Glossary

Activities

Pre-Activity:

• 1. Ask students to name places they have seen workers using computers to put in information. (e.g., video store, drug store or pharmacist, library, motel or hotel registration desk)
• 2. Have students make a list of the different workers to use in surveying family, other teachers, students, and neighbors. The survey question to ask is
  "Have you ever seen this worker use a computer to record or look up information?"
• 3. Have students record the total of the number of people responding "yes" for each worker and the total number of people they surveyed. A suggested Survey Page is provided at the end of this lesson.

Activity:

• 1. After students have completed their survey, have each student report the total number of people who had seen each worker use a computer and the total number of people surveyed.
• 2. Discuss the concept of a database as the collection of records that each of these workers is using.
• 3. Ask students to suggest how each of these workers can do his job better using the computer database than he could with the same information on sheets of papers or on index cards.
• 4. Group the students into the same number of groups as the number of workers on the survey. Assign each group one worker type. Have the students decide how best to complete the statement "I use a computer database to σσσ" Place these statements with the name of the worker on a class display or bulletin board entitled COMPUTER DATABASES ON THE JOB!
• 5. (Optional) Invite a person who is one of the worker types studied to speak to the class to tell how he uses the computer database.

Measure

Write a paragraph on how accessing current database information with a computer improves the work of one of the following types of workers:

	a pharmacist, 
	home supply clerk, 
	motel manager, or 
	agriculture extension agent.