Saturday, November 17, 2012
Digital Wish grant gives Nashua classrooms one-to-one computing
NASHUA – Melanie Conley was sitting at her desk Tuesday, hard at work on a project about the life processes of plants.
But the Amherst Street Elementary School student’s project had none of the traditional pieces: no poster board, no construction paper, no scissors or glue. Instead, she had only one tool: a laptop.
“I love working on the computer,” Melanie said, nearly jumping with excitement.
Melanie and her classmates moved with ease through Microsoft PowerPoint, making elaborate slide shows complete with illustrations and photographs, animated text, and even voice recordings and videos.
The project was part of the classroom’s efforts to increase technology in all areas of the curriculum, a task made easier this year for the class, and another at Mount Pleasant Elementary School, thanks to a $90,000 grant from Dell and Vermont nonprofit Digital Wish.
The grant supplied a laptop for each student in Katie Scurrah’s fourth-grade class at Amherst Street Elementary and Sue Porter’s fifth-grade class at Mount Pleasant beginning last month.
A technology integrator, who helps train teachers and students to use the technology effectively, and curriculum materials were also provided.
The grant comes from Dell YouthConnect. Digital Wish worked ...(more )...
