The Techno Cheetah

Our 2012 technology fundraiser has begun.  Thanks to the PTA’s generous donation, we are raffling off a Kindle Fire!  The Fire is a multi-touch, WiFi ready tablet device for reading, games, videos, apps, and more.

The forms for the raffle went home in the Friday folders on January 27.  You can print extra raffle tickets by downloading the form.  Raffle tickets can be purchased through March 15 (including STEM Night) and the drawing will be held during the morning announcements on March 16.

All proceeds from the raffle will go to help Bellows Spring’s technology department.

Good luck!

Students in grades K through 5 are encouraged to enter the 2012 Doodle 4 Google competition where they can use their artistic talents to redesign Google’s homepage logo around the theme “If I could travel in time, I’d visit……” .

The student doodle has to be completed on the second page of the entry form and should be done in pencil, crayon, felt tip, paint or by using computer drawing or design software (eg. Pixie). We will collect and send the entries from our students. Since all entries must be postmarked no later than March 20, 2012, we will accept entries at Bellows Spring Elementary School up until March 9, 2012. Additional information about the contest rules can be found at: http://www.google.com/doodle4google/

Mrs. Quinn and Mr. Robb, Instructional Technology teachers, will share details about this competition in class. Parents can download and complete forms at home. New this year: entry forms can be completed on the computer as the fields are editable. We look forward to seeing what our creative students produce for this exciting competition!

STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) Announcement!

Attention Parents!

We are in the process of planning our STEM Night for Thursday, March 15, 2012.  One part of this event will be a showcase of parent demonstrations related to STEM careers. If you are interested in sharing your STEM career, go to STEM to complete an interest form.

From the STEM Committee

Note: There will be a separate sign-up for families to register at another time. This form is ONLY for parents willing to volunteer STEM career information.

Fourth and fifth grade students have recently started using Type to Learn 4 to practice their keyboarding skills.  Students will continue to use Type to Learn as a warm up activity at the beginning of technology class throughout the year.  But your keyboarding practice can continue at home . . .

Thanks to the license that Howard County Public Schools purchased, students have the opportunity to continue practicing their keyboarding skills at home.  If you are a 4th or 5th grader and would like to to use TTL4 at home follow these steps (with your parent’s permission):

1. Go to http://ttl4.sunburst.com/downloads/#FullVersions
2. Download either the Windows or Mac full version (It’s a large file so it may take a while; be patient!)
3. Use the same username and password you use in school to login to TTL4.
4. Enter Account Code 113048

Since the student data automatically gets saved online, students can continue on the level at home that they left off at in school and vice versa!

Earthquakes, hurricanes, and power outages! What an unusual start to the school year. Despite the recent events, we hope you had a wonderful summer.

Welcome to the 2011- 2012 school year and the Instructional Technology Program at Bellows Spring Elementary School!

We have some exciting new changes in technology this year.  First, we are thrilled to announce that we have received brand new MacBooks for the students in technology class.

In addition to the new laptops, each student will receive a new username and password to login to the computers.  These usernames are unique and will be used through the rest of each student’s career in Howard County Public Schools.  Finally, there are now two technology classrooms.  Mrs. Quinn and Mr. Robb each have their own classroom, which allows two classes to meet simultaneously to accommodate our growing student population.

Students in grades K through 5 receive one 60 minute session per week of technology instruction.  Our goal is to ensure a dynamic and creative learning environment through the seamless integration of technology. We work with the classroom teachers to enhance the content in art, health, language arts, math, science, and social studies. We use a variety of software programs and web-based applications including Pixie 2, Word, Kidspiration, PowerPoint, Excel, and Google Earth. The technology classroom is a nurturing environment for all students to excel and a rich curriculum is offered at each grade level. Positive student behavior is promoted and reinforced with an emphasis on respectfulness, responsibility, readiness, and persistence.

We look forward to an exciting year with your children. Technology rocks at Bellows Spring Elementary School!

David Robb and Lorraine Quinn
Instructional Technology Teachers

Check out the National Winner in the Doodle 4 Google Competition!

National Winner

Thank you to the many students who submitted entries for the Doodle 4 Google competition. Although none of our students won, you can view the regional finalists here: Doodle for Google . If you decide to help determine the four national finalists by voting online, be sure to visit this site by May 13, 2011.

We look forward to entering this competition again next year!