Chromebooks: Wings to Explore Minutiae of Atoms & Expanses of Space
Help me give my students 2 more classroom ASUS 4GB RAM, 16 GB SSD Chromebooks, so each student can have one-on-one access to a computer for half of the school day to develop and document in-depth learning.
My 6th grade students are truly "filled with wonder." They come to class eager to learn and positively brimming with enthusiasm to tackle new material whether about atoms and molecules, our solar system, or about ancient civilizations such as Mesopotamia and Egypt which have influenced our own.
Many of these computer novices often beg for permission to stay in at recess or stay after school to polish the sleek, attractive, electronic documents they are creating as they master the use of Google Slides to document their learning.
Access to this technology allows them to develop expertise they share with one another and provides a constant source of strong motivation, making the classroom positively buzz with concentration and excitement.
Being a few devices short of a full complement of classroom Chromebooks impedes us from fully leveraging the academic power of tools like Google Forms. Adding 2 more Chromebooks will provide students with one-on-one access for half of the school day and will transform the way I deploy technology in class. Google Classroom is amazing, but not all students have access from home. More Chromebooks means they will be able to master its use during school, preparing them for a bright future.
My Project
My students already use computers in class daily for final project work. They created slideshows about planets in our solar system, reinforcing their understanding of the 4 states of matter and gravitational force. They also made a slideshow documenting Mesopotamian advances in mastery of their natural surroundings in the Fertile Crescent by using damming and irrigation and about the development of written language: Cuneiform. This work fosters deep understanding about how humanity makes technological and systemic innovations in response to problems they encounter. Being actively engaged in gathering information and illustrations, students build enduring understandings that will act as a framework for subsequent learning.
However, because not all students have access to a Chromebook at the same time, we are limited in how we can use computers for formative learning.
Having students come in and fill out daily editing practice in the form of questions on a Google Form will give me at-a-glance information on how well they have understood grammar and punctuation we are studying in class. Clarifying mini-lessons could be given immediately to students in need, while groups of other students could be directed to complete relevant practice based on their performance.
One-on-one, student to device access will give me easy access to electronic reading-response journals and will provide evidence of students' ability to read closely and make inferences that build sound comprehension and their ability to cite textual evidence in support of their claims. An electronic document, unlike a notebook and pencil version, can be easily cast on a screen for all to see, providing examples of work on which we can improve or anchor work toward which we should strive. More Chromebooks will mean each child will feel energized and eager to learn because there are enough devices to go around.
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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Mrs. Ijaika and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
