Technology class and Kindergarten students

[James Stewart]

This year, my district has decided to increase technology class time for kindergarten students from 25 minutes once a week to 50 minutes. I am looking to see what other districts provide their kindergarten students for technology class. I will need to provide multiple, short activities to use with students. Since I am also the media teacher, I plan on beginning the class with a story. Whenever possible, I will connect a technology activity with that story. Other activities that I have done in the past include websites to practice mouse skills, read along/abc's, drawing skills and using the smartboard for interactive websites. I would appreciate any other suggestions from fellow technology teachers to fill these 50 minutes. I will have to recruit parent helpers as I will be the only adult present during this time. Thanks for your input.

[Kelley Irish]

Wow that is a long time for the little ones. Here I usually show a Letter People Video for the letter of the week, Practice on starfall once a month, and link literature such as Where the Wild things are-then have them build tTheir Wild Selves on the site. I bearely cover everything in 30 minutes-byt that is about all their attention span can handle. Can they come twice for 25 minutes each time-or are you giving planning time to the classroom teacher?

[Linda Van Tassel]

Try these sites if you have not used them before. I went from a Mac lab last year to PC. I still use appleworks with the lower elementary.
Here are a few web sites. I use
The first one is part of another program they can do it until you start to hear them calling out dog or cow.

http://www.headsprout.com/code/launchMA.cfm
http://www.mouseprogram.com/ skip the right click on this mouse practice all together.
http://www.starfall.com/
http://teachingtreasures.com.au/teaching-tools/englishk-3/typing_sk...
http://literacycenter.net/letters_en/typing_en_uc.asp
http://www.abcya.com/kindergarten_computers.htm

In first grade they do alot of
getting used to the computer and the keyboard. I stress shift, spacing teaching them how to type their names.
Kindergarten does not come to the lab at our school, they have four student pc’s in each room for math and Study Island. We only have ½ day KDG.

[Chrysoula Malogianni]

I have worked 3-4 years as a kindergarten teacher in Greece and I have tried to use technology in my teaching. Children love computers!!! The schools I have been working did not have any tech equipment so I had to bring my laptop in class. I used it in many project as a tool. I can say though that the most successful lesson with technology was on social studies We communicated via skype with an other kindergarten class in an other city. Kids loved it and they learned so many thing (about the subject matter and technology at the same time).