iWant YOU To Help Us Get iPads!

My Students

If someone visited our class, he or she would see a group of students, but the students might not see them. That is because my students are diligently working in small groups or with me on activities that they have chosen. In our classroom, we are striving to be independent readers and learners!

My students are nothing short of incredible.

They are diligent workers, scientific thinkers, and are hungry for reading new books. They each have their own wonderful personalities, which makes working with them fun and enlightening. They have internalized our classroom procedures, expectations, and character traits so well that when they arrive they get to work right away, and are always asking me what will come next. My students, however, have grown up in rural Eastern North Carolina where access to technology is lacking and the poverty rate is high. A majority of my students do not have access to the Internet or a computer at home, so they are lacking in many 21st century technological skills. My school does the best it can to provide technology, but I unfortunately only have one Smart Board that frequently malfunctions. I also only have one working desktop computer. Therefore, it is impossible for me to provide my students with the access to technology that they desperately need.

My Project

In our classroom we use a structure called Daily 5. While the students are engaged in independent or small-group balanced literacy activities, I am working on remediation or enriching small groups. With 5 iPad minis and cases, I would be able to set up my Listen to Reading station which is one of the Daily 5s I have not been able to introduce. They will be able to access various iPad apps and websites where they can listen to books read aloud and follow along with them. This would be great for my low readers. Another way these iPads and cases will be used would be to access a program called Achieve3000. This program allows students to work on engaging reading activities at their own lexile level which is perfect for differentiating instruction. The program even has Common Core-aligned resources my students can use. Aside from using the internet or apps, my students can learn from their peers by using the video option where they can record one another explaining different concepts.

The possibilities are endless when it comes to having these iPads!

The technology I currently have in my classroom can only be used in a whole-class setting. If you help us get these iPads, it will have an even greater impact on the lives of my students because they will be able to engage one-on-one with technology on a regular basis. Having reliable access to technology will help my students become globally aware and will push them to take even more responsibility for their own learning!