Just four months ago, a class of 20 first graders at Monarch Academy, a K-5 charter school in Oakland, California, couldn't operate a mouse, much less log in to and operate a digital program. By February, the kids had become capable computer users, able to tackle a range of activities and the Web and ready for the next new thing their…

Teachers are using technological innovations--including interactive whiteboards--in pre-K-grade 3 classrooms across the country. An IWB is a wall-mounted, touch-sensitive flat screen. When connected to a computer (or another electronic device) and a projector, it displays enlarged instructional content (such as a math word problem, pictures or…

"Scratch" is a media-rich digital environment that utilises a building block command structure to manipulate graphic, audio, and video aspects. It incorporates elements of Logo including "tinkerability" in the programming process. In "Scratch" students use geometric and measurement concepts such as coordinates, angle,…

This article describes instructional practices with blogs in elementary classrooms. Schools need to prepare students for the new literacies required when reading on the Internet; blogging is an easy way to begin. A theoretical rationale for blogging with elementary students is provided. Learning from the examples of successful blogs by elementary…

In this article, the authors describe a project that integrated computer technology skills with art history, photography, and layout/design. Approximately 160 fourth graders became photographers and created books on the following concepts: position words, numbers, colors, alphabet, shapes, and patterns. The books were professionally bound and…

All humans use objects in their environment as tools for actions. Some tools are more useful than others for certain people and populations. This paper describes how different first-graders used handheld computers as tools when writing. While all 17 children in the observed classroom were competent users of their handheld computers, their use of…

There is a need to incorporate constructivist environments in the pedagogical practice. A constructivist learning environment allows students to build up their own knowledge (based on previous one) while working jointly among them in a reflexive process directed by the teacher. Wireless interconnected handhelds can introduce a space that favours…

This case study looks at teacher candidates who were enrolled in a content-area literacy course and used online technologies and literacy strategies to promote meaningful learning among students at a remote elementary school some 45 miles away from the university campus. As they worked under the guidance of a classroom teacher, a professor and a…