Laptops!!

     It is official- laptops are our newest coolest learning toy! Today we completed our second round with our classroom laptops, and we LOVED every minute of it! Each Wednesday (for now) will be our "Technology" day in which we spend the afternoon becoming familar and comfortable learning in a digital world. Last week we learned the guidelines for taking care of our personal laptops, as well as the procedures for how to properly use them as a learning tool. We even had a chance to explore the website SpellingCity. We were able to play a bunch of interactive games in which to practice our weekly words. Isn't learning through play the best way?! Please visit this website frequently to practice more at home. The link for the site will be posted on the right-hand side of this blog all year under the header "Websites to Play On".
     This week we got to play with two more interactive sites. The first site contained a game called Keyboard Climber. We learned how to properly rest our palms on either side of the tracking pad of the laptop and to use both hands when typing. The kids were able to help a monkey climb a tree if they could successfully type the given letters using the correct hand in time. This game will also come in handy at home to help us build typing fluency. Hey, that sounds just like how we are trying to become fluent readers and mathematical thinkers as well. Isn't it amazing how is all ties together?! The other awesome site we visited today was where each partner pair could make their own Wordle. We had a blast creating our own word clouds about Second Grade. See if you can make a family "wordle" at home. If you print it out and bring it to school, you can receive two BONUS behavior bucks to add to your account! Both links for these sites will also be available on the right-hand side of our blog for you to use all school year when playing at home. We will continue to add websites to the list as we introduce them in class. For now... have fun learning as you play!