Teachers:
Mrs. Maxwell |
Email
Mrs. Reed |
Email
Technology Blog
At. St. John Fisher School, technology
is used to support all areas of the
curriculum. Specific technology
skills and programs are taught in
conjunction with core content in
language arts, math, religion, science
and social studies. Our youngest
students learn to navigate their way
around the Internet to preselected sites
in the core subject areas. They
become familiar with the keyboard and
mouse while they build early reading and
math skills, learn about the life cycle
of a butterfly, or about community
helpers. In third grade, students
take a full-fledged keyboarding course
with the goal of gaining speed and
accuracy to help them in their writing
assignments. Also in third grade,
students learn to use PowerPoint to make
multimedia presentations. With
each passing grade, new skills are
introduced, so students become confident
in all areas of Microsoft Office, and
have published work on the web using web
tools such as
Storybird,
Glogster, and
Animoto. These tools allow
students to write and publish stories,
create interactive, digital posters, and
produce videos and multimedia on topics
and concepts being presented across the
curriculum. Students learn to search
effectively, evaluate web resources for
accurate information, and cite resources
properly in research papers.We have
three computer labs and a cart of
30-iPads available for student use in
the classrooms. Click
here to read a recent article in the
Southtown about our iPad program. The majority of
our classrooms are now equipped with
laptops and ceiling mounted projectors
for digital presentations created by our
teachers. Every student attends
computer class once a week, and
additionally, teachers can book one of
the labs for various projects.
We begin
the year for all students in grades 3-8
with a unit on Internet Safety. More information about Internet safety
and other computer activities is posted
on our blog. We encourage
safe and responsible use of technology
by all of our students, and all must
follow our
Acceptable Use Policy.
Keeping
teachers current with the latest
technologies and integration ideas
requires quite a bit of ongoing
training. St. John Fisher School
hosts a teacher professional development
program attended by not only our own
faculty, but teachers throughout the
Chicago area. Online and hands-on
courses are available. Please
visit the
Teachers' Teacher website or refer
to our
2011-12 Schedule for more
information. |
