We recently received the following note of thanks from one of our grant recipients, and felt that we should pass it on in full. It is truly the community that donates to BWEF that deserves this thanks, whether it is through an Annual Fund donation, a Thank-A-Teacher gift, attendance at the Bee, raffle ticket purchases, or even a social media share...you all are making a difference in the lives of the BWRSD children. Please read, and watch, on:

Hello BWEF, Happy New Year!

I wanted to share a quick snap shot of the students at KMS using the ipad technology in the classroom. Please see the video below.

I use the ipads daily and the technology has changed the lesson in the classroom. In the special ed boost class my students need repeated practice to learn. When the students complete their class assignment they then go on the app Moby Maxx and Khan Academy at their individual level to practice the common core standards. The students are excited and engaged in learning.

The technology travels with me into the inclusion classrooms in language arts, math and social studies for all the students to use. In language arts class we have been using the ipads for research, online assignments and or quick visual examples to learn. In math we have been using math apps to extend the math curriculum to show visual and hands on learning with math instruction. Finally in social studies, we have been having students practicing depth of knowledge skills (DOK) and having them create their own comprehension questions after reading the social studies text. We have the students share the questions in a trivia game using an app called Kahoot. I have also been able to create a practice quiz and study guides on Quizlet for any student to use before a test.

It is so nice to have technology at our finger tips to teach with, and I have been able to share that technology with the teachers on the TEAM that I work with. Every night the ipads are locked in my special ed room in a charging lock box that the school system supplied me with. During the day the ipads can be used by any teacher on my team who may want to continue the same lesson we did in the inclusion class with their other students.

I too as a teacher have been learning with the ipads. I have been taking an ipad to the special ed meetings I attend and have found it to be extremely helpful. I know have access to Tienet, a special education IEP data base where ever I go. I can create behavior charts for students and use apps for student data.

Thank you again for purchasing the ipads for the classroom and I hope you enjoy the video attached. This technology is teaching students at levels that is not possible with paper and pencil. Students and teachers are using the technology daily and classroom lessons are being taught on the cutting edge.

Sincerely,

Jennifer Crandall
Special Education Teacher
7th Grade Explorers Team
Kickemuit Middle School