Module 1

Productivity Tools
Microsoft Office Suite and Open Source Alternatives

Module Objectives:
At the end of the module, you should be able to:
1. Learn about Microsoft Office Suite productivity tools and other open source
alternatives
2. Apply word processing productivity tools
3. Apply spreadsheet productivity tools
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I. Microsoft Office Suite and Open Source Alternatives

Productivity tools are computer programs or software which can be used to increase
productivity of students in doing their academic tasks in school. Productivity tools such as
word processors, spreadsheets, and databases are powerful tools that can help you create
and organize faster and have your school work done more efficiently.

Microsoft Office Suite

Microsoft Office Suite is one of the most commonly-used productivity tools in school. Some
of the Microsoft Office applications and their functions are summarized in Table 1.

Table 1. Microsoft Office Applications

Application Function
Use to create and share professional-looking
documents with state-of-the-art-editing, reviewing, and
sharing tools.
Use to analyze and visualize your data in new and
intuitive ways.
Use to create, collaborate, and effectively present your
ideas.
Use to harness your thoughts in your very own digital
notebook.
Use to organize email, coordinate schedules, and stay
up to date with contacts.
Use to create your own custom database apps fast, and
harness the power of your data.
Use to print and share professional-looking publications
with powerful, easy-to-use tools.
Source: www.microsoft.com

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 Tasks:
1. Search in the internet more information about the Microsoft Office productivity tools
(www.microsoft.com).
2. Look for the Microsoft Office productivity tools that are available in your classroom.

Discussion
Be prepared to answer the following questions and share your feedback to the class:
1. Can you tell which among the productivity tools are you using in your school?
2. Which among the Microsoft productivity tools are you familiar with?
3. Which among the Microsoft productivity tools you want to learn more?
4. What new knowledge did you learn in this lesson?

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Open Source Alternatives

Aside from the Microsoft Office Suite, there are also open source alternatives such as the
Apache Open Office, Libre Office, NeoOffice and G Suite which can be used as productivity
tools.

Apache Open Office

Apache Open Office is an open-source office software suite for word processing,
spreadsheets, presentations, graphics and databases which can be downloaded and used
completely free of charge for any purpose (www.openoffice.org). An overview of its
applications are summarized in Table 2.

Table 2. Apache Open Office Applications

Application Function

Writer a word processor you can use for anything from

writing a quick letter to producing an entire book.
Calc a powerful spreadsheet with all the tools you need
to calculate, analyze, and present your data in
numerical reports or sizzling graphics.

Impress the fastest, most powerful way to create

effective multimedia presentations.

Draw lets you produce everything from simple diagrams

to dynamic 3D illustrations.

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 Base lets you manipulate databases seamlessly. Create
and modify tables, forms, queries, and reports, all from
within Apache OpenOffice.

Math lets you create mathematical equations with a

graphic user interface or by directly typing your formulas
into the equation editor.

Source: www.openoffice.org

Libre Office

LibreOffice is another freely available, fully-featured office productivity suite. Some of its
applications and functions are summarized in Table 3.

Table 3. Libre Office Applications

Application Function

Writer is a feature-rich tool for creating letters, books,

reports, newsletters, brochures, and other documents.

Calc has all of the advanced analysis, charting, and

decision making features expected from a high-end
spreadsheet.
Impress provides all the common multimedia
presentation tools, such as special effects, animation,
and drawing tools.
Draw is a vector drawing tool that can produce
everything from simple diagrams or flowcharts to 3D
artwork.

Base provides tools for day-to-day database work within

a simple interface. It can create and edit forms, reports,
queries, tables, views, and relations, so that managing a
relational database is much the same as in other
popular database applications.

Math is the LibreOffice formula or equation editor. You

can use it to create complex equations that include
symbols or characters not available in standard font
sets.
Source: www.openoffice.org

NeoOffice
NeoOffice is an office suite for Mac that is based on OpenOffice and LibreOffice which
allows you to view, edit, and save OpenOffice documents, LibreOffice documents, and
simple Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint documents (www.neooffice.org).

G Suite
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G Suite is a package of cloud-based services that can provide your company or school with
a whole new way to work together online—not just using email and chat, but over video
conferences, social media, real-time document collaborations, and more (www.google.com).
Some of the G Suite applications and its functions are summarized in table

Table 4. G Suite Applications

Application Function
Word processing for teams
Create and edit text documents right in your browser—no dedicated
software required. Multiple people can work at the same time, and
every change is saved automatically.

Advanced, fast, online spreadsheets

Create spreadsheets in your browser—no dedicated software
needed. Handle everything from simple task lists to data analysis
with charts, filters and pivot tables.

Easy to create surveys and forms for everyone

Create custom forms for surveys and questionnaires at no extra
cost. Gather everything in a spreadsheet and analyze data right
in Google Sheets.

Beautiful presentations created together

Create and edit polished presentations in your browser—no
software required. Multiple people can work at the same time so
everyone always has the latest version.

Source: www.google.com

Tasks:
1. Search in the internet more information about the alternative open-source
productivity tools (www.openoffice.org, www.neooffice.org, www.google.com)
2. Search in the internet other alternative open-source productivity tools which you think
can be used in your school.
3. Look for the Microsoft Office productivity tools that are available in your classroom.

Discussion
Be prepared to answer the following questions and share your feedback to the class:
1. Can you tell which among the alternative open-source productivity tools are you
using in your school?
2. Which among the alternative open-source productivity tools are you familiar with?
3. Which among the alternative open-source productivity tools you want to learn more?
4. What new knowledge did you learn in this lesson?

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II. Applying Word Processing Productivity Tools

As a student, what are the common projects or assignments that you were asked do in
school? What tools and materials do you usually use to complete your tasks? Productivity
tool such as the word processing software allows us to create products faster and easier.
To enhance your skills in creating products such as articles, survey questionnaires, class
schedule, flyer, letters, reports, resume, invitations, newsletter, timetable, etc., using a word
processing software, some activities are provided below. You may use any word processing
software discussed in Unit I, to complete your tasks.

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Project 1: Creating an Article

How do you share a story about an event or an activity in your community? What are the
information that you give to make the story complete and interesting? Writing an article can
be an effective and fun way to tell your story. Let's try this using the word processing
productivity tool.

Plan It

For this project, you will write an article on a recent event or activity that you were involved
in. A sample article is provided for your reference (see Fig. 1).

Fig. 1. Sample Article (Source: www.upou.edu.ph)

Tasks
1. Start the word processing software and open a new, blank document.
2. Save your document as "Project 1".
3. Type the title of your article.
4. Highlight the title, then click "Center Text" to put the title in the center of the
document.
5. Type all the information needed in your story like the name of the event or activity,
date, venue, participants.

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 6. You may also add a photo to make it more interesting.
7. Click the "Help" button and search the topic if you need help in performing the tasks.
8. Save your work.

Discussion
Be prepared to answer the following questions and share your output to the class:
1. How is your experience in creating the business card?
2. What new skill did you learn in doing this project?
3. Which among the tasks in doing the project you found the easiest?
4. Which among the tasks in doing the project you found the most difficult?

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Project 2: Creating a Survey Questionnaire

Have you experienced being approached by someone to answer a survey before? What are
the information that were asked in the survey? A survey questionnaire is an instrument used
to gather information commonly for a research study. Try to create one using the word
processing productivity tool.

Plan It
For this project, think of an interesting topic that you wish to research on. You can ask your
classmates as the respondents. List down all the information that you want to ask from
them. Create a survey questionnaire. A survey questionnaire is provided for your reference
(see Fig. 2).

Fig.2. Sample Survey Questionnaire

Tasks
1. Start the word processing software and open a new, blank document.
2. Save your document as "Project 2".
3. Type the title of your survey questionnaire.
4. Highlight the title, then click "Center Text" to put the title in the center of the

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 document.
5. Type all the information you want to ask your classmates/respondents. You may
include different types of questions (Multiple Choice questions, Closed-ended
questions, Rating scale questions, Likert-type scales, Rank order questions, Open-
ended questions, etc)
6. You may also draw AutoShapes, add colorful border and fill effects such as a
pattern, texture, or gradient.
7. Click the "Help" button and search the topic if you need help in performing the tasks.
8. Save your work.

Discussion
1. How is your experience in creating the survey questionnaire?
2. Why did you choose to do that research topic for your survey?
3. What new skill did you learn in doing this project?
4. Which among the tasks in doing the project you found the easiest?
5. Which among the tasks in doing the project you found the most difficult?

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Project 3: Creating a Class Schedule

Proper time management is very important in a student's life. At the start of a school year,
schedule of classes is given to students so they can organize their activities and manage
their time properly. Creating a class schedule using a word processing software is one way
to organize your class activities to make you more productive.

Plan It
Create your class schedule for this school year. A sample class schedule is provided for
your reference (see Fig. 3).

Fig. 4. Sample Class Schedule

Tasks

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 1. Start the word processing software and open a new, blank document.
2. Save your document as "Project 3".
3. Type the title, ex. "JESI'S CLASS SCHEDULE".
4. Highlight the title, then click "Center Text" to put the title in the center of the
document.
5. Click on Table from the menu bar. Select Insert, and then Table.
6. Think of how many rows and columns do you need for your timetable and enter the
desired number of rows and columns.
7. Click OK to insert your table.
8. Fill up the columns and rows with your schedule of activities.
9. Click the "Help" button and search the topic if you need help with in performing the
tasks.
10. Again, save your document.

Discussion
Be prepared to answer the following questions and share your output to the class:
1. What are the information that you added to complete your Class Schedule?
2. What new skill did you learn in creating this project?
3. Which among the tasks in doing the project you found the easiest?
4. Which among the tasks in doing the project you found the most difficult?

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Project 4: Creating a Flyer

How do you usually learn about an event in your community? There are several ways to
advertise an event and one of these is through a flyer. A flyer is a form of advertisement
being used in a community. Flyers can be in a form of paper to be handed out to people.
Sometimes, it can be seen in walls and windows. And nowadays, it can also be distributed
online. Now let's try this using the word processing productivity tool.

Plan It

Think about an upcoming event in your school. For this project, you are task to design a
flyer for the event. A sample flyer is provided for your reference (see Fig. 4).

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 Fig. 2. Sample Flyer (Source: www.upou.edu.ph)

Tasks
1. Start the word processing software and open a new, blank document.
2. Save your document as "Project 4".
3. Using a Microsoft Word, you can easily create a flyer using a template.
4. You can also create a flyer from scratch using any word processing software. To do
this, you can make a WordArt out of the name of the event that you have in mind.
Type a catchy title and add other information such as date, time, and venue. Move
the WordArt and change the font, size, style and color according to your preference.
5. You may also add a clip art picture, draw AutoShapes, add colorful border and fill
effects such as a pattern, texture, or gradient.
6. Click the "Help" button and search the topic if you need help in performing the tasks.
7. Save your work.

Discussion
Be prepared to answer the following questions and share your output to the class:
1. Why did you decide to create a flyer for that specific event in your community?
2. What new skill did you learn in creating this project?
3. Which among the tasks in doing the project you found the easiest?
4. Which among the tasks in doing the project you found the most difficult?

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Project 5: Creating a Business Card

One way to advertise a business is through a business card. What are the information that
you usually see in a business card? Business card contains the name and address of the
business, a person's name, position, email address and telephone numbers. One easy way
to do this is to use a word processing productivity tool.

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 Plan It
Think of a business that you want to pursue in the future. Design a business card for
yourself. A sample business card is provided for your reference (see Fig. 5).

Fig. 5. Sample Business Card

Tasks
1. Start the word processing software and open a new, blank document.
2. Save your document as "Project 5".
3. Draw a rectangle (3.5 x 2 inches).
4. Type all the information you want to be seen in your business card.
5. You may also add a clip art picture, draw AutoShapes, add colorful border and fill
effects such as a pattern, texture, or gradient.
6. Select and group all of the objects in the business card. Then copy and paste the
business card to fill the whole page.
7. Click the "Help" button and search the topic if you need help in performing the tasks.
8. Save your work.

Discussion
Be prepared to answer the following questions and share your output to the class:
1. How is your experience in creating the business card?
2. What new skill did you learn in doing this project?
3. Which among the tasks in doing the project you found the easiest?
4. Which among the tasks in doing the project you found the most difficult?

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III. Applying Spreadsheet Productivity Tools

As a student, what are the common projects or assignments in school that requires you to
store, present, and manipulate your data? What tools and materials do you usually use to
complete your tasks? Productivity tool such as the spreadsheet software allows us to store,
present, and manipulate your data faster and easier.
To enhance your skills in creating projects such as survey, address book, classroom
inventory, budget, statistics, and others, using a spreadsheet software, some activities are

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provided below. You may use any spreadsheet software discussed in Unit I, to complete
your tasks.

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Project 6: Survey
Go back to your completed survey questionnaire (Project 2). Are you ready now to distribute
it to your classmates and store the data using a spreadsheet productivity tool? Storing the
data results to organize your data is easier and more efficient if done using a spreadsheet
software.

Plan It
Distribute the survey questionnaire to your classmates. Collect the accomplished survey
questionnaires and be ready to encode the results. Create a survey table and store the data
using a spreadsheet software. A sample survey table based on the survey questionnaire
(Project 2) is provided for your reference (see Fig. 6).

Fig. 6. Sample Survey

Tasks
1. Start the spreadsheet software and open a new, blank spreadsheet.
2. Change the name of the file to "Project 6".
3. Change the name of the sheet to "Survey results".
4. Look at the survey questionnaire and enter the column labels based on the survey
questionnaire.
5. Fill-up the columns and rows with the information from the survey questionnaire.
6. You may change the look of the column and rows if you wish.
7. You may sort the rows in ascending order or according to name or age.
8. Click the "Help" button and search the topic you need help with in performing the
tasks.
9. Again, save your document.

Discussion
Be prepared to answer the following questions and share your output to the class:
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 1. What are the information that you gathered in your survey?
2. What new skill did you learn in doing this project?
3. What are the challenges you encountered to finish this project?
4. What actions did you make to resolve the challenges?

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Project 7: Address Book

One of the ways to track the information such as names, address, telephone number, and
email address of the people around you is to make an address book. Storing such
information to organize your address book is easier and more efficient if done using a
spreadsheet software.

Plan It
Ask at least ten of your classmates their name, address, telephone number and email
address. Build a spreadsheet to store all the information for your address book. A sample
address book is provided for your reference (see Fig. 7).

Fig. 6. Sample Address Book

Tasks
1. Start the spreadsheet software and open a new, blank spreadsheet.
2. Change the name of the file to "Project 7".
3. Change the name of the sheet to "Address Book".
4. Enter the column labels with the gathered information (ex. "Name", "Address",
"Telephone Number", "Email Address").
5. Fill-up the columns and rows with the information you gathered.
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 6. You may change the look of the column and rows if you wish.
7. You may sort the rows in ascending order or according to name or address.
8. Click the "Help" button and search the topic you need help with in performing the
tasks.
9. Again, save your document.

Discussion
Be prepared to answer the following questions and share your output to the class:
1. What are the information that you gathered in your address book?
2. What new skill did you learn in doing this project?
3. What are the challenges you encountered to finish this project?
4. What actions did you make to resolve the challenges?
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Project 8: Classroom Inventory

What are the usual school supplies and materials being used inside the classroom? What
are the equipment used in school? One way to monitor the materials, school supplies and
equipment inside the classroom is by doing an inventory. Storing such information to
organize your inventory is easier and more efficient if done using a spreadsheet software.

Plan It
Look around your classroom. What school materials and supplies available in your
classroom. What equipment do you see? Create a table and store the data using a
spreadsheet software. A sample inventory worksheet is provided for your reference (see Fig.
8).

Fig. 8. Sample Inventory Worksheet

Tasks
1. Start the spreadsheet software and open a new, blank spreadsheet.
2. Change the name of the file to "Project 8".
3. Change the name of the sheet to "Inventory".

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 4. Enter the column labels with the gathered information (ex. "Type", "Description",
"Count", "Unit").
5. Fill-up the columns and rows with the information you gathered.
6. You may change the look of the column and rows if you wish.
7. You may sort the rows in ascending order or according to type or description.
8. Click the "Help" button and search the topic you need help with in performing the
tasks.
9. Again, save your document.

Discussion
Be prepared to answer the following questions and share your output to the class:
1. What are the information that you gathered in your inventory?
2. What new skill did you learn in doing this project?
3. What are the challenges you encountered to finish this project?
4. What actions did you make to resolve the challenges?

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Project 9: Budget
As a student, would it be a good idea and fun to plan and create a budget so you will have
an idea how much you need for a five-school-day per week? Creating a budget to know
much you will need is easier and more efficient if done using a spreadsheet software.

Plan It
Build a spreadsheet for your weekly budget. A sample budget worksheet is provided for your
reference (see Fig. 9).

Fig. 9. Sample Budget Worksheet and Graphical Representation

Tasks
1. Start the spreadsheet software and open a new, blank spreadsheet.
2. Change the name of the file to "Project 9".
3. Change the name of the sheet to "Budget".
4. Enter the column and row labels with the information needed (ex. day, item, cost,
etc).

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 5. Fill-up the columns and rows with the budget.
6. To add the total amount per day, select a cell next to the numbers you want to sum,
click AutoSum and it will automatically computer the sum of the numbers.
7. To add a graph of the budget per day, highlight the cells (ex. "Item/Cost" and
"Monday") and click “Insert" then "Chart.
8. You may choose the type of chart that you wish to use and change the design (color,
font size, font style, etc) of the table and chart if you wish.
9. Click the "Help" button and search the topic you need help with in performing the
tasks.
10. Again, save your document.

Discussion
Be prepared to answer the following questions and share your output to the class:
1. Did you have fun in planning and creating your budget?
2. What new skill did you learn in doing this project?
3. What are the challenges you encountered to finish this project?
4. What actions did you make to resolve the challenges?

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Project 10: Transportation

Imagine you will be going on a trip on a near town near you and you are looking for the
cheapest way to get there. There are different forms of transportation such as train, bus or
jeepney. Which type of the transportation is the cheapest or the fastest? Comparing
different forms of transportation to help you decide is easier and more efficient if done using
a spreadsheet software.

Plan It
Build a spreadsheet where you can store the information on the type of transportation you
can choose from. A sample transportation worksheet is provided for your reference (see Fig.
10).

Fig. 10. Sample Transportation Worksheet

Tasks
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1. Start the spreadsheet software and open a new, blank spreadsheet.
2. Change the name of the file to "Project 10".
3. Change the name of the sheet to "Transportation".
4. Enter the column and row labels with the information needed.
5. Fill-up the columns and rows with the transportation information.
6. To add a graph to easily compare the data, highlight the cells and click “Insert" then
"Chart.
7. You may choose the type of chart that you wish to use and change the design (color,
font size, font style, etc) of the table and chart if you wish.
8. Click the "Help" button and search the topic you need help with in performing the
tasks.
9. Again, save your document.

Discussion
Be prepared to answer the following questions and share your output to the class:
1. What new skill did you learn in doing this project?
2. What are the challenges you encountered to finish this project?
3. What actions did you make to resolve the challenges?

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