Welcome Parents and Guardians
Technology can be a scary arena for parents these days. I am here to help where I can to mold my students into responsible digital citizens. Working with parents is critical to keeping kids safe and smart in their choices when using the socially connected technologies of today.
Hopefully this page will offer you some resources to help you guide your child
safely through today's technologies. Please let me know through email if there is anything you would like to see added to this page.
Hopefully this page will offer you some resources to help you guide your child
safely through today's technologies. Please let me know through email if there is anything you would like to see added to this page.
Internet SafetyWe start each year with Internet Safety lessons. This year I will be using presentations and background information is from netsmartz.org. I
encourage parents and guardians to look into the presentations and information available on this site. I will be using age appropriate presentation and information based on each grade level. One of the important things we will learn about and discuss is reporting predators and cyberbullies and what that actually means. My hope is to make each and every student aware that when online they must be careful about giving out to much information about themselves. With technology changing as fast as it is, we all really need to be educated on what our kids are doing at all times. I will periodically post important information on this page to links that might be of interest to each of you in this area. |
Common Sense MediaCommon Sense Media offers a tremendous array of information regarding safe practices and parenting in the digital age. They have information on everything from cyberbullying to video gaming to good family movies and TV shows. I recommend signing up for their newsletter.
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WHAT IS EDMODO?
Edmodo is an educational site that takes the ideas of a social network and refines them and to make it appropriate for a classroom. Using Edmodo, students and teachers can reach out to one another and connect by sharing ideas, problems, and helpful tips. A teacher can assign and grade work on Edmodo. Students can get help from the entire class on Edmodo. It is a safe environment. There is no bullying or inappropriate content, because the teacher an see everything that is posted on Edmodo. Information will be coming home soon.
Why is my student learning Computer Programming?
In the past few years programming has become very popular — moving out from the narrow domain of the “geek” to the broader world, including the K-12 education space. Earlier this year, President Obama asserted and endorsed that requiring computer programming education in schools made sense. And recently, a viral video from code.org encouraged students to learn to code.
We live in a society where everyone uses a cell phone or a computer, with most using both. Today’s kids live in a very different world than their parents did as children. Today’s world is full of web services – Youtube, Netflix, Instagram, Twitter and Facebook are all a key part of kids’ daily lives. Even the toys they play with are digital and many are programmable, such as Legos and the new-generation LeapFrogs, which have sensors.
It is one thing to know how to use these programs. It’s another, however, to understand how the logic behind them works. This is a challenge today’s kids will love as it deals with the digital world they inhabit. Knowing how to program helps kids understand and tinker with the world that they are living in.
In the future, the amount of technology and our reliance on it will only increase. The students of today need to be able to not only consume this technology, but to understand and control it. (www.Tynker.com)
All my students, from kindergarten to 8th grade participated in the Hour of Code. They were excited to come to computer class. I am really amazed at the feedback the students are giving me. I overheard one 8th grade student tell another that he hopes they have programming class in high school. Made my day! - Cindy Stinson
In the past few years programming has become very popular — moving out from the narrow domain of the “geek” to the broader world, including the K-12 education space. Earlier this year, President Obama asserted and endorsed that requiring computer programming education in schools made sense. And recently, a viral video from code.org encouraged students to learn to code.
We live in a society where everyone uses a cell phone or a computer, with most using both. Today’s kids live in a very different world than their parents did as children. Today’s world is full of web services – Youtube, Netflix, Instagram, Twitter and Facebook are all a key part of kids’ daily lives. Even the toys they play with are digital and many are programmable, such as Legos and the new-generation LeapFrogs, which have sensors.
It is one thing to know how to use these programs. It’s another, however, to understand how the logic behind them works. This is a challenge today’s kids will love as it deals with the digital world they inhabit. Knowing how to program helps kids understand and tinker with the world that they are living in.
In the future, the amount of technology and our reliance on it will only increase. The students of today need to be able to not only consume this technology, but to understand and control it. (www.Tynker.com)
All my students, from kindergarten to 8th grade participated in the Hour of Code. They were excited to come to computer class. I am really amazed at the feedback the students are giving me. I overheard one 8th grade student tell another that he hopes they have programming class in high school. Made my day! - Cindy Stinson