Microsoft Excel for Beginners: The Vacation Project

During this class, students will learn the basic functions of Microsoft Excel and get hands-on practice. We will begin by discussing real-world uses for Excel and related vocabulary. We will then dive in and begin using the program. This is a one-time class in a series of “Microsoft Excel for Beginners” classes that I offer. All classes in this series can be taken in any order. While similar, each class will have some unique features of Excel taught and will provide good practice in using the program.
In this class, students will imagine they are planning a vacation and trip to an amusement park!  We will use Excel to create ride list. Once we create the list, we will learn to add a filter so we can sort the list. Next, we will use Excel to create a vacation budget. Creating a budget will allow students practice using formatting and formula functions.

This class will not only teach the basics of Excel, but it will excite students to discover ways they can use Excel in their everyday lives. I will share my screen so students can watch me using the program as I describe its functions.  Students should have Microsoft Excel on their computer prior to starting class, so they can use the program and follow along as I teach the class.  As time allows, the students will have the ability to share their screen in order to ask questions and share their work.  
I will be demonstrating with an installed version of Excel. However, there is a free online version available at Microsoft.com, which can also work well for learners during class. In order to maximize class time for all students, please ensure your learner is signed into Excel before class begins.

Students do not need any experience with Excel, but should have basic desktop or laptop knowledge, such as the ability to use a mouse, use a keyboard and open a program. Students do not need knowledge of Disney World for this class.

Topics covered will include:
•	Vocabulary (cell, column, row, worksheet, formula, budget, sum)
•	Organizing data
•	Gridlines
•	Formatting cells (color, currency)
•	Sum function
•	Multiplication formula
•	Filtering cells

Troubleshooting during class:
Occasionally, learners may need additional help in completing a task in Excel. I am able to give students the ability to share their screen so that I can see exactly what they are looking at. Usually, this works very well, and I am able to talk them through the task. (This will not work if the learner is using Excel on a separate device than their Outschool class.) If the learner is still not able to complete the task, they are able to grant me remote access so that I can complete the task for them. This allows us to move and cover all material in the class. If the learner is not able to grant remote access, I will ask they skip the step we are troubleshooting, and we will move on, in fairness to all learners. At the end of class, I will revisit the skipped step and further troubleshoot with the learner.