Having recently attended the ACTEM conference (www.actem.org), I felt rejuvinated in my mission. David Warlick presented a thought provoking keynote, and all of the sessions were useful and informative. While using the new MacBook Pro in sessions on podcasting w/ iLife 06 and Keynote and Pages, I was struck by the simplicty of these programs and their high degree of performance. It also made me want to go out and buy the new MacBook Pro immediately. What a beautiful machine! It inspired me with its innovation and ease of use. I love the built in iSight camera - actually, I loved everything about it! Time to start saving my pennies (and nickels, dimes and quarters), because the model I would love to buy is around $2500. Remember just a few years ago when a new Pentium 100 cost that much!

Just about 3 weeks of school has passed us by and it has been wonderful to see that teachers are using technology inherently as a tool for learning. Today we did a virtual tour of Ellis Island (from Scholastic) with Grade 4 students. They were fascinated and the focus of the lesson wasn't lost. The students understood that although it wasn't easy to immigrate to this country, people did and still do because of the framework developed by our forefathers. Using a simple LCD projector and BrainPop, students are engaged by informational movies about The Bill of Rights, The Constitution, Democracy and human body systems. The next step is for them to write about what they are learning in a blog or podcast.

It is finally here! A place to talk about teaching and integrating technology in our schools! The purpose of this blog is to share our experiences using technology in our everyday teaching. When I think of our accomplishments last year, I recall vividly, Mrs. Call's Fairy Tale News, Our Kindergarten Community, Colony Quest and Rocks and Minerals informational slideshow presentations. There is some real excitement around this year - especially with Web 2.0! Please check back here soon for information about Web 2.0 and technology integration planned for this year at Stevens Brook Elementary, Sebago Elementary, and Songo Locks Elementary.