Teacher and Student Reflections
on Technology at SMS!
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Ms. Washburn and Pre-K
Technology has played a major role in Pre-K this year. During the year, we began going to the computer lab to use the Smart Board. The children were able to interact with the Smart board by touching it and watching images according to our weekly theme. They were able to see pictures and listen to facts that they were not able to do in the classroom. For instance, when we were talking about the zoo the children were able to take an interactive trip to the zoo thus making them feel as though they were actually there. The smart board also helped the children distinguish between the four seasons and identify the planet earth while we were learning about space. Technology has definitely made an impact in our classroom this year.
Ms. Tomasulo and Kindergarten
This year the Kindergarten has been working on various reading programs using the Smart Board. They have worked on sequencing and story and sentence structure. In addition, they have built their vocabulary and sight word recognition through the use of various programs and web sites that Mr. K., our tech coach, has introduced to us. During the course of the year with the help of Mr. K., I, too, have been able to find and correlate interactive reading programs into different literature themes. We have also learned how to research topics and watch mini clips related to themes.
Kindergarten student sharing:
We liked using the Smart Board to complete sentences, to unscramble words, to play the sight word game, to play the subtraction game and the recycling game. We loved watching the Easter video clip about Jesus on the Smart Board.
Ms. Sattler and Grade 1
This year has been filled with many new adventures, but the newest experience was implementing technology into the classroom. I have learned how to actively engage children in this useful, educational and fun learning tool. It was important for my growth as a teacher to create an environment that was technologically advanced. The children were excited every week to use the Smart Board or to log on to the computer and use one of the websites based upon the theme we were studying. I have also used technology as a foundation of the lessons I planned each week. I look forward to many more experiences I will have working with technology and expanding the minds of children.
First Grade student sharing:
We liked to see videos on the computer and to use the Smart Board
On the Smart Board we did math, shapes, and money. We even played fun math games and learned about recycling and birds
We liked watching School House Rock on the computer
We learned about birds on a video clip.
What I like about school is that we have Smart Boards, and we get to see videos, play games, and learn many things on them.
Using the computer is my favorite because we learn math on it
Mr. Kovitz, our Tech coach, helps us work on the Smart Board and to learn many new things
Mrs. Hund and Grade 2
We have had a wonderful year! One of the highlights was having a Smart Board installed in our classroom! We have been able to watch video clips about Farming, Animals, Recycling, and much more. As we learned cursive writing, Mrs. Hund introduced the letters, and we traced them right on the Smart Board. We had Math Drills in Addition, Subtraction, and even Multiplication using many interactive websites! It’s so much more fun going up to the board to write our answers, or just touching the correct answer, than just practicing in our notebooks! When we were learning flips, turns and slides in Geometry, we named all the shapes and then with the touch of our finger on the Smart Board, we flipped, turned and slid our shapes all over! In our morning work Mrs. Hund would write two sentences on the Smart Board with lots of capitalization, punctuation, and spelling mistakes. We would take turns coming up to the Smart Board and making the corrections ourselves. We are very grateful to all who support our school and made it possible for our class to have a Smart Board. We are also grateful to our Technology Teacher, Mr. Kovitz, who helps us find wonderful websites and continues to teach us all the terrific things the Smart Board can do.
Second Grade student sharing:
Our Smart Board is really fun, and it helps us learn.
In the computer lab we find a lot of great websites that help us learn new thing
It’s fun that we have a Smart Board right in our classroom.
If we don’t know something, we can go right to the computer and “Google it” right away.
The Smart Board has games that make math fun.
The Smart Board teaches us fun new stuff.
You get to write answers on the Smart Board and check if they’re right.
The Smart Board is great because it is much bigger than a computer, and it has lots of details.
We love our Smart Board!
Ms. NIxon and Grade 3
In the fall, when I learned of all the technology that we were going to explore, I felt excited and nervous. I wanted to learn new ways to incorportate technology into the classroom. Since then, I have found new and exciting ways to integrate technology into the third grade curriculum. I learned to teach a subject and then explore ways with the students to gain a better understanding through certain sites or programs. The third grade students have found learning more interesting and fun! I have integrated a variety of websites and programs into all subject areas. We used Power Media Pus to learn about mammals, the food chain, and the venus fly trap. The Educate LLC site allowed us to work together on many educational games and writing pieces, including Acrostic poems and friendly letters. We have used the Rainforest Math site on the Smart Board to review with the students telling time and fractions. The Mr. Nussbaum site, a favorite, is a great interactive site that we have used in the computer lab in the areas of Math (especially with multiplication and division) and Language Arts.
My knowledge of computers and implementation of technology into the classroom has grown this year. I am becoming more and more acquainted with the Smart Board, which I have used and will continue to use with the students. I continue to grow in this area with the help of Mr. Kovitz, our Tech coach. Using technology in the classroom has definitely made learning more fun and enjoyable for the students.
Third Grade student sharing:
Using technology allowed us to look at video clips to better understand food chains.
The Mr. Nussbaum website made multiplication and division more exciting because we had to try to defeat the dragon
In the computer lab we used different websites to research endangered species and saints.
We enjoyed using the Smart Board and touching the screen. We were able to understand telling time and to move around the fractions.
We love going to the computer lab because Mr. Kovitz helps us find different websites.
Mrs. Guttman and Grade 4
The fourth grade has been very active this year in incorporating the technology we have available here at St. Margaret’s. For example, we created Power Point Presentations on our personal narratives, and then presented them on the Smart Board. We also created pieces of expository writing on many varied topics spanning from the Sisters of the Resurrection to the History of Hershey. The writing pieces were created using the Internet for research and the expertise of Mr. Kovitz, our Tech Coach, on how to use Microsoft Word. In addition, we completed summaries and alternate ending for the story, Because of Winn-Dixie. The class also created photo collages of pictures from the book and movie to accompany their project. Overall, the year has been one full of activity both in the classroom and the Computer Lab.
Fourth Grade student sharing:
We liked not only hearing about historical events, but also researching using websites and interactive activities.
We enjoyed creating power point presentations this year.
We loved the interactive activities we did on the Smart Board.
The teachers have more knowledge of technology this year.
Mr. Hamilton and Grade 5
This year has seen many changes in our school and in my classroom. These changes have been good ones, and the future holds even more. We started the year off with the 7th grade doing a PowerPoint presentation on the Smart Board. The students looked up information regarding a subject matter that we were studying in Social Studies, the Boston Massacre. They spent time in the computer lab looking up the necessary information that they needed to complete the assignment. After they finished their research, they worked in teams to take the information and put it into a Power Point presentation. They were given a rubric which they had to follow. The presentations were absolutely great. They worked hard and learned many things that could not be learned in textbooks. This was done in the second marking, and they also presented another project in the 4th marking period.
Both 7th grade Religion and 8th Grade Social Studies classes used the computer lab. In the 8th grade, the students did a WebQuest on the Civil War. Once again, this was a great learning experience.
The 5th grade Religion class also used the computer lab to gather information on Marian feast days. At first this was a daunting feat for many of them. But thanks to a typing software program obtained by Sr. Kathleen, Mavis Beacon, the students managed to go from pecking on the keyboard to actually typing correctly. They then proceeded to find information concerning many different feast days of Mary, and then they created a paper on what they found. This was not only a lesson in Religion but in computer skills.
This is only the beginning. This coming August I will be taking a Smart Board workshop where I will learn how to incorporate the Internet for Social Studies into the Smart Board Notebook.
As I said at the beginning, change is great and hopefully the coming year will be more exciting and the learning even better. As teachers we have to change with the technology that’s available, and at St. Margaret’s we have been blessed with such technology. We will use it to the best of our ability to make lessons new and the learning more exciting!
Fifth Grade student sharing:
Learning to type with Mavis Beacon was so much fun because it also has games.
I like not looking at the keyboard when using Mavis Beacon.
I like Mavis Beacon because I always had trouble typing, and now I can type faster.
What I like about going to the computer lab is learning how to find information myself.
I like using the Smart Board and the notebook program because it is fun.
Mrs. Berical and Grade 6
During this school year my class and I have made great progress incorporating technology in our classroom. We have used the newly-installed Smart Board to share great interactive lessons on the Middle Ages. We've played timed games to locate different parts of speech in grammar. The video clips, which we have used brought ancient Greece and Rome to life for us. Expository papers were researched, organized, and written in our computer lab, and Google Earth brought a whole new concept of using maps into our class.
Having been a classroom teacher for many years, I was somewhat reticent in embracing this "new-fangled tech stuff". Now I can't wait to learn more. I must, after all, keep up with the students!
Sixth Grade student sharing:
The Smart Board is awesome.
We enjoy the Mavis Beacon typing program
On the Smart Board we would watch videos in Social Studies to help us to understand castles, monasteries, and cathedrals.
Ms. Peterson and Grade 7-1
This year my class and I have gained many new technological skills. We have become proficient using the Smart Board both as a teaching tool and for fun. Our technology coach, Mike Kovitz, has been a tremendous help with his computer expertise.
I am extremely grateful to have had the Smart Board installed in our classroom as it has facilitated academic growth for the middle school students. We have used the computer in both Science and Religion classes. Our last science project was a Smart Board lesson each child in seventh grade completed to educate classmates on various genetic diseases. One project we did in Religion involved using the computers to create Smart Board presentations about the different ways diverse cultures celebrate the Sacrament of Matrimony.
My “busy bees” have also learned how to type faster and more accurately. The Mavis Beacon program has been very helpful in riding the “Hunting and Pecking Disease” that plagued the class. I’m very proud of their accomplishments. I hope that the children will carry their newly acquired knowledge and computer skills with them into eighth grade.
Seventh Grade student sharing:
The Smart Boards are a great addition to our classrooms and make lessons more interactive.
In the computer lab we are able to research, type reports, and create presentations in each subject area.
Last year the computers in the lab did not work properly, loaded slowly and were damaged or non-functioning. Now when we go to the lab, we do not waste time because everything works properly. There are also enough computers for every student in class.
I pay more attention in class because the Smart Board is colorful and attractive.
Our Tech coach, Mr. Kovitz, has been very helpful.
Mavis Beacon has taught us how to type faster and better.
With the Smart Board we are able to create better class presentatio
Our improved technology here at SMS has helped to improve my school work.
We can now access the Internet easier in the computer lab.
The Smart Board helps to make our classes more fun and interactive.
Using the Smart Notebook is very helpful in designing projects.
Ms. Scott and Grade 7-2
Technology played an important role in the seventh and eighth grade language arts and literature classes this year. Video clips were used to scaffold some lessons and inspire interest in others. The seventh grade research paper was on genetic diseases, a topic that they were only just learning in science. It was, therefore, very useful to watch clips on these illnesses, most of which were new to them. Students were also given a chance to create text using multimedia technology. They prepared "lessons" on political cartoons that required that they explain the meaning of a cartoon, as well as ask questions on another. This activity, as well as various Power Point presentations and other interactive, promoted speaking and comprehension skills.
Technology, especially the Smart Board, has been a teaching tool. It was easy to create graphic organizers for many lessons, providing visual stimulus that appeals to so many learners. Pictures inspired setting of stories, displayed vocabulary and questions kept the focus for a read aloud, and games reinforced words encountered in vocabulary lessons.
Students have also enjoyed exploring educational sites such as www.mped.org and www.educatellc.com independently. They were also very enthusiastic about learning to type using the tutor program, Mavis Beacon. For our students, we do not, and could not, use technology enough.
Seventh Grade student sharing:
I think the computers are awesome. Now we can do Smart Board presentations. We enjoy doing these presentations.
I think the technology this year is better than it was last year. The computers work faster and have more fun things for us to do. The computer lab has improved so much.
The Smart Board and computer lab have been helpful in making learning more efficient and fun for us.
We enjoy using the new typing program, Mavis Beacon. It teaches us how to type better.
Ms. Fitzgerald and Grade 8
This year has been an exciting year for technology in all math classes from grades 5 through 8. The 5th grade students gave their first Smart Board presentation in April and did an outstanding job. They acted as “teachers” as they reviewed topics learned throughout the year. All other math classes continued to use the software almost everyday in class and students’ utilized the helpful interactive websites online. In the 8th grade religion class, each student researched a saint and presented a Smart Board lesson as he/she “taught” the class. They included pictures, prayers, and quotes and used the more complex Smart Board tools within their presentations.
I am very proud of all my classes and their individual accomplishments and independence using the technology. I can’t wait to see what next year brings us!!!!
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