Back to Basics

Integrating technology into the classroom this year has been a bit of a struggle for me. 

I was excited to begin the school year with all the ideas in my head of the amazing work my students were going to be introduced to and produce. With the kiddos being labeled as 'tech-savvy,' I was ready to hit the ground running with Google Classroom and itsLearning.

To my surprise, my students were able to use computers/iPads when it was something they wanted to do, but when it came to fundamentals on the computer, they were lost looked at me so confused. I was flooded with questions:

• How do I turn the computer on? Why isn't it turning on?
• Where is the browser?
• How do I refresh the page?
• Okay, now where do I go?
• Is it not in Clever? Do I have to type?

As I took a step back and observed my students, they were becoming more frustrated with a task I was excited to start because they had not taken the time to learn how exactly to use technology. I became more frustrated because I was personally teaching keyboard shortcuts, which buttons meant what, and where we actually start typing.

This was EYE.OPENING. In order for us to use devices meaningfully in class, I have had to teach a small snippet of computer fundamentals with each computer time. Instead of having everything available at the touch of a button, my students have had to learn how to type, the keyboard shortcuts, and how to navigate appropriately. 

Though this is still not perfect, I believe as a class we have improved and it's a continuous work in progress! :)