Technology & Media    Winter, 2010   
We ordered 16 new computers for our classrooms at a cost of $817 per computer. The Technology Plan specifies that one of our goals was to update classroom computers. We set up the new computers and they are in use now. We offer a Sponsor-A-Classroom Computer Program in which people may donate money to cover all or a portion of the cost of a computer. If you are interested in supporting school technology please contact Ms. Elchert at 529-3213 or call the school office at 251-2376. We are grateful for your support!

Grants Received!

Catholic Aid
Thanks goes once again to the Catholic Aid Association for the $500 Technology Grant.
Mrs. Lindeman wrote the grant and is using a portion of the grant for
a new printer in the school office. Thank you!

Colgate-Palmolive and Coborn's has donated 125 new books to the school's Media Center through a program entitled "Reading Is Fundamental". The books have been cataloged and are being processed now. They will be available to students very soon. Many of the books discuss how to stay healthy by eating well and taking care of yourself. Others are award winners. Students will write thank you notes to acknowledge our gratitude for the good selection of books. The children are very excited to try them out!

We the People Bookshelf: Picturing America
"Picturing America" Collection

The “Picturing America” Bookshelf includes the following titles, which were selected by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), in cooperation with the American Library Association (ALA) and the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of ALA. Our school received delivery of these books in April, 2009. They coordinate with "Picturing America" described below.

               Kindergarten to Grade 3
Walt Whitman: Words for America by Barbara Kerley
Cosechando esperanza: La historia de César Chávez by Kathleen Krull (translated by Alma Flor Ada and F. Isabel Campoy)
Harvesting Hope: The Story of Cesar Chavez by Kathleen Krull
The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Sweet Music in Harlem by Debbie Taylor

                      Grades 4 to 6
The Birchbark House by Louise Erdrich
American Tall Tales by Mary Pope Osborne
On the Wings of Heroes by Richard Peck
Forty Acres and Maybe a Mule by Harriette Gillem Robinet
The Captain’s Dog: My Journey with the Lewis and Clark Tribe by Roland Smith

                      Grades 7 to 8
The Life and Death of Crazy Horse by Russell Freedman
La leyenda de Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving (translated by Manuel Broncano)
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving
Across America on an Emigrant Train by Jim Murphy
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain

                      Grades 9 to 12
Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation by Joseph J. Ellis
Restless Spirit: The Life and Work of Dorothea Lange by Elizabeth Partridge
Travels with Charley in Search of America by John Steinbeck
Viajes con Charley - En busca de América by John Steinbeck (translated by José Manuel Alvarez Flórez)
Democracy in America by Alexis de Tocqueville

            Bonus books for readers of all ages:
Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out by The National Children’s Book and Literacy Alliance
1776: The Illustrated Edition by David McCullough

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We received notice that we were awarded the grant opportunity to the "Picturing America" pilot project of the We the People program of the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) conducted in cooperation with the ALA Public Programs Office. Picturing America will provide a collection of 20 double-sided, laminated posters depicting works of American art, related reading lists, and a 100-page resource book with information about the paintings, sculpture, architecture, and crafts reproduced. We will use these resources in the classrooms and in the Media Center. Volunteers began classroom presentations in April, 2008. We will continue classroom presentations during the 2008-2009 and 2009-2010 school years. Students are very engaged!
http://publicprograms.ala.org/picturingamerica/


Technology Plan Approved 2008
The SA&SMCES Technology Plan was revised, approved by the Technology Planning Committee, sent off in early December to the Department of Education in the State of Minnesota for its review and approved in April, 2008! If you can assist us in meeting our goals, please let us know. See our home page for a link to our Technology Plan.

Technology fundraising: Due to a generous donor the board game Pickel the Pirate is for sale in the School Office for $15.00. This board game makes a great gift for the entire family. It's fun for all ages!
Proceeds this year will go into a fund earmarked for the purpose of upgrading the classroom computers.

                                            Internet Safety
The Internet is an amazing tool for young and old. However, Internet usage can become problematic if there is inadequate supervision. Experts tell us that computers should never be allowed in children’s rooms. Computers need to be placed in central locations where parents are always there to monitor content. Rules about Internet usage need to be established by parents. For example, children should never be allowed to access the Internet without asking their parents for permission each time. Parents must determine what is appropriate to view.

We are raising children who are technologically savvy. They understand how to use computers and are very comfortable doing so. This is a very positive development. However, children are children, and their maturity levels are those of children. They are naive. Predators do and will take advantage. It is important to be vigilant.

Ms. Elchert, Media Specialist, 529-3213

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