When the computers work, so do the students! This is a lesson I'm learning the hard way! When our notebook computers quit working, so do the students in the computer center and in my small group as I have to stop teaching and take on the role of IT specialist!
My students love to learn with technology!
About half of our rural school's students are from low-income homes. Many of my students do not have the same level of access to technology that children in other homes have. So when my classroom received six hand-me-down notebook computers a couple of years ago, I was thrilled that the students would have the opportunity to improve their skills with the technology that is so new and enjoyable to them. With these notebooks, students were excited to begin using a fantastic early literacy program which instructs and allows practice at each child's individual ability level.
My Project
Each day, while some students work independently at the computer lab, two teacher's aides and I teach the other children in small group settings. The students thrive on the individualized instruction from the computer program and from the adults in the classroom. However, as the notebooks have become older, it seems there isn't a day when all the notebooks are working. With all of the error messages, slow booting, and freezing up we have experienced, I spend more time fixing computers or finding something else for the "independent" group to do than I spend teaching my small group. I have heard of the advantages and the ease of using Chromebooks in the classroom. My goal is to obtain six Chromebooks to be used in literacy centers. My students will also use the Chromebook center during math time to improve their skills with addition and subtraction facts.
My first graders need small group instruction with a teacher whose attention is undivided.
They also need the individualized learning experiences that technology can provide only when it is reliable. Chromebooks, with their ability to boot quickly and to run smoothly with little tech support, would help the students to keep working at independent centers. This would also help me to be a more effective teacher to each small group, resulting in increased learning and progress for every student.
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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. Jackie Clove Jewett and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
