Spex+

Overview
Spex is an easy-to-use, colourful simulation/modelling program. It supports both these aspects of the ICT Curriculum, as well as the 'solving real life problems involving money' aspect of the Numeracy Strategy. The 2D to 3D facility could also support shape and space topics. The title consists of a selection of 'environments' to be designed, with even more environments on an additional disc. Children choose an environment to work in and are given a budget to work within. They then drag and drop objects into the plan view of the environment, arranging and rearranging them as they please, but keeping within the budget. They can also adjust wall and floor colours and add friezes, windows and doors to the walls. At the click of a button, the plan can be changed from 2D to 3D and back again. The disc also comes with printable worksheets and structured schemes of work. These give easy to follow instructions, which meant even my least able could work independently. Ideally, I would have used it in the ICT suite, with the whole class working on it in pairs simultaneously. As it was, careful planning meant it slotted into Maths, Geography and ICT lessons. Although the rest of the class were always doing something different, it was possible to link the learning objectives.

Installation
Installation was very straightforward from the CD-ROM. Additional files could be loaded from a second CD-ROM to give greater choice of environments. Once installed, all environments can be run without the disc. The program loads all the environments from the hard disc on start up, but this does not take long. There is no uninstall option, but Spex+ and Spex+ Environments come up as separate listings in Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel.

Content
Curriculum Relevance
The title supports Maths topics, including shape and space; budgeting using real life costings; scale, measurement and units. It also supports Geography topics such as the link between plans and the real world and mapping. It can be used to enhance creativity (trying different arrangements) and to explore different methods of presenting information. It also supports the ICT simulation topic and spreadsheets and modelling. Not all of the environments allow for budgeting, so this needs to be checked in advance if you are using the title to support 'the budgeting using real life costings topic'.

Design & Navigation
When the program is opened, it loads all the available environments very quickly before a window pops up with large, easily identifiable, labelled icons for the different environments. A click of the mouse on the relevant icon and another on the OK button opens the settings window for that particular environment. These can be adjusted either by the teacher, or the pupil. Clicking on OK opens the environment screen, which is clearly laid out with most options easily visible. Almost all functions can be controlled using large, colourful buttons at the bottom of the screen. The icons on these buttons are easily interpreted and there is very little need for use of the menu bar. One particularly useful feature is the facility to move objects between environments, making a very wide range of objects available for each environment.

Ease of Use
This title is for learner use and can be used with minimal initial input. My class of 7-9 year olds needed no additional input once they had begun. The buttons are self-explanatory and all functions can be undone. There is no onscreen help, but the user manual is well illustrated and very clear. Work can be saved at any stage and easily reloaded. The supporting documentation, which can be printed off the disc, includes example schemes of work with step-by-step instructions, as well as templates for your own schemes of work.

Special Needs
This is a very visual program, which requires very little reading so that poor readers have no problem using it.

Courseware
Pupils can work through different environments, but there is no built in progression or definite end to each scenario. Pupils need to keep track of whether or not they are still within budget. There is no signal when the budget is exceeded. Pupils can click on the 'budget' button and a window pops up with the budget, amount spent and amount remaining. The amount remaining goes into negative numbers when the budget is exceeded. Where an environment has a budget, this can be adjusted to make the task take more or less time.

Conclusion
This is an easy and fun to use program, which had the children engrossed and gave them a sense of independence. It is an excellent way to introduce the concept of planning. The 2D to 3D function is a satisfying and instant way for children to compare 2D and 3D objects.
The children loved the modelling aspect of the title - clicking and choosing items and arranging them in the rooms and responded well to the added challenge of keeping within budget. I found the budgeting and spreadsheet features particularly useful. The title is an excellent way to introduce the children to spreadsheets, as they can see why they are useful. The spreadsheets, like everything else, are clear, colourful and easy to follow. The program is colourful and simple to use with large bright icons. It can be used to support many different topics and subjects.

Summary
My primary purpose in using this title was to introduce the pupils to spreadsheets and to give them a context for solving money problems. Pupils worked in pairs, for 20 minutes at a time, rotating throughout Numeracy lessons over the whole five weeks. I chose two particularly computer-literate pupils to use the program first. Having set the rest of the class doing group work, I talked the first pair through using the software and made sure they would be concentrating on keeping within budget and checking the spreadsheet regularly. I allowed the first pair to teach the next and so on, so that they consolidated their learning through teaching. I needed to make sure I had time during each 20-minute session to observe the pair using the program, so that I could assess their progress. Where this wasn't possible, I would sit with them at another time and ask them to talk me through their saved project, explaining their choices and referring to the spreadsheet.

Teaching with this Product
I used this title to support Numeracy work on solving real-life money problems. It also supported Geography work on planning and ICT work on simulations and modelling. Pupils had done some work on 2D planning previously, having produced drawn plans for a new arrangement for the classroom, as part of Geography work. They had also already done practical and written exercises on solving problems involving money and continued this work throughout the rotation. The software was used by pairs of children working together with very little need for teacher support. It allowed pupils to explore many different variables, to try out several different combinations of 'spending', in a very visual way, through selecting combinations of objects for various environments. It encouraged excellent collaborative work as pupils discussed what to use and where to put it. More able pupils were able to predict when their budget might run out and even plan 'purchases' in advance.

Classroom Organisation
As there was only a single user licence with the title, I installed it on the school laptop, which I plugged in at a corner of the classroom. Pupils took turns to work on the program in pairs, while the rest of the class did different activities in groups. They had the set of Spex worksheets to guide them through the program and remind them of what to do.

Use of ICT to Achieve Objectives
I used the title to provide another context in which children could explore and solve problems involving money. Although the environments are simulations, the program did make the problems seem more real and relevant. Because pupils had to stay within budget and yet wanted to create the most interesting and exciting environment possible, they had a 'real' reason to consider 'purchases' carefully. The fact that the spreadsheet could not be changed, except by altering which objects were in the environment, made it an excellent introduction to the whole idea of spreadsheets. Pupils could see clearly how their purchases affected the figures and they got a good grasp of what a spreadsheet is, without having to grapple with numbers and calculations. Some pupils needed more encouragement than others to stay focused on remaining within the budget, as there is nothing to stop them adding more items once the limit has been reached. The environments are colourful and interesting and it is easy for children to lose sight of the learning objectives and get carried away if they are not guided.

Using this Product
The children needed very little input before they were able to use this program. All the controls are mouse operated: drag and drop, or left-click on icons. The pupils had all learnt how to save in previous ICT lessons and were reminded to do so regularly. I did talk through the spreadsheet with each pair, as they had not seen these before and I wanted to be sure they understood the concept.

Monitoring & Assessment
Children were made aware of their learning objectives and I discussed their progress with them during and after their use of the program. Much of the assessment however, was through observation of the interaction between partners, listening to their discussions and ultimately seeing whether or not they stayed within budget.

Special Needs
This title was not evaluated with Special Educational Needs children in mind.

Overview
The software has been produced to enable children to "design places - to enrich Mathematics, Geography and Design Technology Curriculum areas". The Egyptian tomb environment also affords links to the History Curriculum. Spex+ has not been created with a specific age group in mind, but can be used to meet the needs of children throughout the Primary age range and particularly upper Key Stage 2.

Spex+ consists of a CD-ROM with computer based activities, an example Scheme of Work, teacher project ideas, numerous pupil worksheets and a user manual with information on the following: installation instructions; set up procedures; icon and toolbar details; instructions on how to change from plan to 3D view and a few troubleshooting tips.

The title enables the children to experiment with design ideas without the need for technical drawing skills, as it is packed with relevant graphics for each environment. It is simple to use, great fun and offers all operators the chance to design a sophisticated plan, or 3D view of their chosen room, or environment.

The product is simple and easy to use in the Primary classroom after demonstration of the tool bar and icons and discussion of the task. A single classroom-based computer, linked to a projector was used for demonstration purposes and then a bank of four workstations was used by individual, or pairs of children to experiment with the software and develop their design talents for the purpose of this evaluation.

Installation
Spex+ should start automatically. If not, click on Start, Run and type d:\setup.exe (where D is the letter of your CD-ROM drive) and click OK. Then follow the onscreen instructions. The computer needs to restart. Create a shortcut to the software on the desktop and click to start the program. The first time, you will be asked to enter your Registration/Serial number, which is on the enclosed licence. Uninstall is straightforward through Control Panel/Add/Remove.

Content
Curriculum Relevance
Spex+ can be used to support the requirement for using a graphics package to model ideas and develop designing skills. The children can learn that a computer can be used to represent real, or fantasy situations; they can evaluate simulations by comparing them with real situations and then consider their usefulness. They can learn to use an objects-based graphics package to produce images and visual models; they learn the key differences between an object-based program and a paint package. It enables them to develop their understanding of buildings, focusing on rooms and how they can be adapted for different purposes.

Pupils can be taught how to represent models in plan and 3D views, thus reinforcing their understanding of how different an object looks from different angles. They can reflect on where and how they spend their leisure time; develop their understanding of settlement and streets.

It can help to reinforce the children's understanding of aspects of Ancient Egyptian society, in particular the important features of a tomb, their burial procedures and the afterlife.

Design & Navigation
Clicking on the Spex+ icon opens a title screen. Click and the Place Setup window appears. Scroll to view the options and select the required place. The operator now has the opportunity to select width and depth measurements, or use the default values already set. Units of measurements can be changed to imperial measures, or metric and a new budget imposed, rather than the default amount.

Items are positioned by selecting and dragging. Rotation of the items has to be done in the Items window before dragging and they are simply rotated by double clicking. Any items chosen incorrectly can be easily deleted by selecting and using the delete key.

The toolbar icons include: 3D view, plan view, walls view, spreadsheet, colour, (item select displays available groups of items), budget, new design (to start a new design), next wall selector, zoom in and zoom out. Save, Save As and Print options are accessed through File. Edit allows you to cut, copy, paste and delete items, Options shows groups and tips and View allow access to toolbars, colours and the different views.

The user manual contains a brief summary of each icon. Once demonstrated, the children are soon happily using all the features. The CD-ROM contains all kinds of information, including a Scheme of Work, projects and numerous worksheets. I printed these off at my earliest opportunity and compiled a reference folder. There is no facility to make electronic notes whilst using the application.

The title is suitable for individual use, or pairs.

Ease of Use
A child can use the software with minimal help. The icons are meaningful and can be easily selected by a mouse click. An icon tip appears once the cursor is held over it. An item tip is available through Options; once selected, it gives a brief description of the item. Children are unable to inadvertently lose their work. After clicking quit: 'X', or the New Design icon, a window asking if you want to 'Save the untitled work' appears and you are required to affirm, or cancel before you can continue. The operating instructions in the user manual are clear and make the software easy to use. The children can print either the 2D, or 3D view. Alternatively, an unfinished design can be saved in a Design folder, which allows the teacher to locate saved files easily for assessment purposes. The publishers include a worksheet of weekly lesson focuses and a Scheme of Work, as well as numerous worksheets. These have been produced with the National Curriculum in mind and are linked to the QCA ICT Scheme of Work.
The information is appropriate to Primary classrooms. Spex+ is aimed at supporting the ICT and Design Technology Curricula, providing resources to explore design through ICT. There are only the tips to read onscreen.

Special Needs
The icons are large, simple and clear. The screens are uncluttered and therefore suitable for young children, or the visually impaired. However, there is no facility for the help option to be spoken.

Courseware
The software does not include onscreen exercises. Suggested activities are referred to in the worksheets on the CD-ROM. There is no facility for assessment.

Conclusion
Spex+ is a super, relevant resource, which has been produced to enable pupils to understand how ICT can be used to explore certain aspects of design that might be difficult for those children (and adults) who lack technical drawing skills. The software encourages creativity and exploration by the children. It is an invaluable resource to those of us Primary teachers who are struggling to find a different kind of graphics package, which links to other areas of the Curriculum. The Egyptian tomb environment is a great way for children to reinforce work on hieroglyphics, wall paintings and the contents of tombs. The home and school environments support all kinds of work on design for a purpose and to a budget, as do the leisure, shop and garden environments. Once introduced, the children respond quickly and positively. Several of my pupils are beginning to create their own weird and wonderful environments by using items from all the available environments and many have asked to come in at lunchtime to use it.

Summary
Spex+ is a super resource aimed at providing a library of environments and items for young designers to explore alternative creative ideas, thus supporting the graphical modelling strand of the National Curriculum for ICT. Included in the title is a home environment of four rooms: kitchen, bathroom, bedroom and lounge. Other environments are available including a street, classroom, leisure pool, moon base, IT room, Egyptian tomb and garden. The title includes, as well as the computer-based activities, a user manual containing: installation instructions; set up procedures; icon and toolbar details; instructions on how to change from plan to 3D view and a few troubleshooting tips. The CD-ROM also contains an example Scheme of Work, teacher project ideas and numerous pupil worksheets.

The title was used by the teacher to provide an objects-based graphics package for the children to produce and explore graphical models of the home, garden, or leisure pool environment. Later, this was extended to creating an Egyptian tomb to coincide with a History topic. It was used with a class of Year 6 children and by individual, or paired children working individually for 10-15 minute sessions on a classroom-based PC.

Teaching with this Product
Spex+ supports the ICT Curriculum at Key Stage 2 and was used to provide the knowledge, skills and understanding needed to use an object-based graphics package to produce images and visual models.

The first sessions were used for the children to become familiar with the bedroom environment and tool bars: the items available, the plan and 3D views and the implications of budget. Spex+ contains a number of worksheets, which provide lesson focuses and activities for the children to investigate before attempting their own designs. The program was demonstrated and discussed as a whole class before individual children, or pairs used it. Their ideas could be saved and then discussed in a plenary session by the whole class.

Spex+ enables the pupils to build on earlier work using a paint package and to understand the difference between that and an object-based package.

The children had been asked to draw a sketch plan of their own bedroom as preparatory work before the title was introduced to the class. They were then asked to try to recreate a plan of the room using the software including toys, lamps, etc. on furniture to develop their understanding of how objects can be rotated and layered. Once the children had done this, they were then asked to redesign their bedroom on a budget. Finally, they were challenged to create a house including a bedroom, kitchen, lounge and bathroom.

We are now starting a new History topic on the Ancient Egyptians and I have begun to use Spex+ to reinforce their understanding of Egyptian tombs: the wall paintings, hieroglyphics, furniture and burial artifacts.

Classroom Organisation
I used a single computer linked to a projector with the whole class for introducing the software: the environments, the views, the toolbar and the icons. I then organised use of the classroom-based machine, for individuals, or pairs of children to work on. The initial tasks to practice using the software were quite short and took approximately 10 minutes per couple. A similar length of time was allocated once the children started their designs and their work was saved. Use of the computer was organised by rota while the rest of the class worked on other activities: exploring plan views of items; planning room designs on paper; investigating budgets for furnishing their rooms; drawing 3D and 2D views of furniture; work on materials and their properties, which linked with the current Science topic.

Use of ICT to Achieve Objectives
The title was used to develop the children's understanding of graphics packages and how they can be used to represent real, or fantasy situations, which can then be evaluated by comparing them with real situations. It was also used to discuss how a budget could affect the design. The spreadsheet facility emphasises how a computer can simplify this.

The title involves activities that could be achieved in other ways. However, it has the advantage of showing how the computer can simplify exploration of design by using a library of objects that can be rotated, layered and manipulated by the click of a mouse. The design can be viewed at anytime in 3D view and the spreadsheet supports the children to maintain a budget.

The tasks can be easily set up so they offer opportunities for teacher intervention in order to stimulate and direct pupils' learning, as well as during plenary sessions. Questions used include: What factors do you need to consider when designing the bedroom? Placing the bed? The wardrobes and other furniture? Where do you need to place the power points and why?

The Scheme of Work, teacher resources and worksheets offer examples of a valuable way in which to structure pupils' work to focus on relevant aspects of the topic and to maximise use of time. The children's work once saved can be viewed, discussed and evaluated by the whole class.

Using this Product
Spex+ is a fun, practical resource with which to nurture children's design talents. Once the environments, toolbars and item windows have been demonstrated, as well as guidance given on how to place, rotate, delete, stack and move items, the children need very little support to use the title. The main skills required are clicking and dragging, as well as a familiarity with toolbars.

The resource provides a valuable opportunity to demonstrate the versatility of the computer as a modelling tool within the classroom environment.

Monitoring & Assessment
Pupils' progress was monitored by using clear teaching objectives and differentiated learning outcomes, structuring the use of the title, use of questioning and then whole class discussion of their saved work using the projector.

The children save their work in a central design folder, thus enabling the teacher to locate their work easily and regularly review/assess their ideas.

Special Needs
The graphics of items are in the main, large and clear. Small items are labelled and once selected, a clear 3D view appears at the bottom of the items window.

The fun factor of designing familiar environments motivates children with learning and behavioural difficulties to the extent that many children asked for extra time at lunchtimes to experiment with the package.