Computer and Workplace Skills
SEVCA and VAL Offer a Free Workshop Series
SEVCA (Southeastern Vermont Community Action) in collaboration with VAL (Vermont Adult Learning) is providing a series of six free basic Computer and Workplace Skills workshops. This workshop series will provide participants with training, support and resources to gain foundational knowledge using a computer and improve workplace skills. Classes start September 21st, 2022, with additional dates: 9/28, 10/5, 10/12, 10/19 and 10/26. Enrollment is limited to 10.
SEVCA will provide a gift card incentive to Vermont residents who attend all six sessions. Springfield Area Working Communities Challenge (WCC) will provide a refurbished laptop to *eligible* participants attending all 6 sessions. The workshops will be held in person at Vermont Adult Learning, 100 River Street in Springfield and will be taught by SEVCA instructor Diane Heileman. *For more information on laptop eligibility or to enroll in the workshop series, contact: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
Computer and Workplace Skills Workshops, Descriptions and Schedule:
1. The Laptop: Wednesday, Sept 21 9:30am – 11:30am
Basic knowledge of laptop care can extend the life of a laptop by years and supports efficient laptop performance. Students will learn about basic computer care plus become familiar with the physical components of the laptop, including ports and connections, keypad, specialty keys, TouchPad, battery, power charger, webcam, speakers, indicator lights and more.
2. The Desktop: Wednesday, Sept 28 9:30am – 11:30am
Students will learn the parts of the desktop and how to personalize it, how to find and open applications, use the TouchPad and optional mouse, understand the parts of a window, open and manage multiple windows, find, save and search for files, create folders and organize files. We will review maintaining Windows via system updates, manage disk space, troubleshooting techniques, and backups.
3. The Internet- Connecting, Searching and Safety: Wednesday, Oct 5 9:30am – 11:30am
This class will address the steps involved to connect a laptop to a network and navigate through the internet. Students will search the internet for information, save and organize websites for easy access (“bookmark” and “favorites”). We will also cover what to look for in a safe website, signs of a possible fraudulent site, review web browser options. This class also addresses workplace policies for internet usage.
4. Email skills using Gmail: Wednesday, Oct 12 9:30am – 11:30am
Students will learn the parts of an email, how to create, search, send and reply to an email. Topics include formatting options in text (fonts, size, colors), attaching documents and photos, website links, and email customization options, recognize and deal with unwanted email (spam), plus email usage in the workplace.
5. Introduction to Microsoft Word: Wednesday, Oct 19 9:30am – 11:30am
This class will focus on basic Microsoft Office Word skills. Students will create, edit, save and print Word documents, set up fonts and text formatting options (bold, underline, bullets, indents, margins, etc.), insert graphic objects and photos from the desktop and internet, use spelling and grammar tools.
6. Introduction to spreadsheets using Microsoft Excel: Wednesday, Oct 26 9:30am-12:00pm
Excel is a spreadsheet program that is easy to use and allows you to store, manipulate, analyze, and visualize data. In this beginner's Excel class, students will learn how to create and update a basic spreadsheet, enter and format data, calculate totals through formulas, create simple reports and charts.