When Holly Schaefer, kindergarten teacher at North Elementary School in Holts Summit, first heard about the U.S. Cellular teachers grant, she wasn't sure she would get the grant, but decided to give it a try.
Schaefer applied for the grant through DonorsChoose.org and she received two new iPads for her classroom last week from U.S. Cellular.
U.S. Cellular recently awarded more than 1,747 teachers grant money for classroom materials and projects.
Helen Jarvis, Bartley Elementary School teacher in Fulton, also received materials through the grant program for a classroom project she calls "O' the places we will go: virtual field tripping." The project includes technology components to take students on a virtual field trip. She applied for the grant to buy books to accompany the technology component. She received just under $1,000 from U.S. Cellular to purchase 160 books. The books were ordered and should be at the school in the next couple weeks.
"I'm glad that these kids will have these books to take home and share with their parents," Jarvis said.
All classrooms at North Elementary have five iPads per class for the students to share. North Principal Barb Martin said utilizing technology in the classroom is important to the school district.
"It's integration," Martin said. "That's the way of the 21st century."
Schaefer said having the two additional iPads, for a total of seven in her classroom, will allow the class to work a little faster on lessons that involve using the iPads.
Her kindergarten class has been working on narrative stories for the past three weeks. They wrote and edited their stories, then published them using the 30 hands app on the iPad. The app is used to publish student writing and create presentations.
Schaefer said utilizing the iPads in curriculum keeps kids engaged and motivated.
"One of my struggling writers was the first to publish today. Because he was excited about it," Schaefer said.
Because the class had the two additional iPads, Schaefer said they were able to publish everyone's stories in one class period. Without the extra technology, it would have taken two class periods to publish everyone's assignments.
She uses a variety of other apps with her class including Letter School, which works on alphabet recognition and letter formation, and Rhyme Time- Focus, which is used to rhyme words at various levels of play.
Schaefer is already thinking about what projects to propose next year if U.S. Cellular does the grant program again.
"It doesn't hurt to try," Schaefer said, talking about applying for grants.