| Chromebooks - Grade B or Better, Various Brands |
Why I need this:
At Stillwater Christian School, we believe that it is increasingly important to teach our students life skills and technology savvy - especially in the digital age in which we live. We are looking to introduce a keyboard typing curriculum for the 2026-2027 school year for our fourth, fifth, and sixth grade students that aligns with our biblical world view. The typing course will be housed in our Library/STEM classroom, offered by our Librarian and STEM teacher, Heather DalleTezze.
At Stillwater Christian School, one primary mission is to offer students the tools needed to equip them to learn, with a goal that we have encouraged lifelong learning. Our lower school consists of pre-K, kinder, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th grade students. Our upper school comprises students in grades 7-12. Our library primarily serves the lower school demographic, and houses classes in addition to our standard library curriculum, including both STEM and typing. In order to effectively provide the tools needed for our students, we are in need of 25 chrome books to keep in our library for all lower school students to utilize as needed. The first use of the chrome books will be to serve the 105 students currently enrolled in our 4th, 5th and 6th grade classes. These classes are typically comprised of no more than 25 students at a time, who enter the classroom ready to learn. The chrome books will provide these 100+ students with an opportunity to access a laptop in a guided class, ensuring digital accountability.
In order to serve our students well, guide them through digital literacy and citizenship, and provide accountability, we are in need of 25 chrome books (approximately $3,750, depending on chrome book sale prices) for students to utilize during the online typing course we would like to offer (typedinfaith.com). We would also like to purchase a supplemental typing curriculum in book format ($200) from christiankeyboarding.com. Our goal is to utilize the chrome books for typing class in the library only, and "whitelist" only the website that the students need to log into for the class. Other online access will not be available on these chrome books during class, thus enabling complete dedication to the curriculum and less temptation to search the internet for other means of stimulation. We plan to have a fully dedicated teacher as well as a teachers aid to provide guidance through, and digital accountability, during this online typing course. We are also interested in supplementing the typing course by coordinating assignments from other classes, including history, English, language arts, literature, and memory scripture verses for bible class. The use of chrome books for word processing of the Christian keyboarding book, as well as online typing curriculum, will be a valuable life skill for these students moving forward. In the future, the purchased chrome books will be utilized each year for the typing class, and could also be utilized in the library for online research, including utilization of our subscription to world book encyclopedia online and other valuable research subscription-based services. The chrome books can provide a safe outlet for us to effectively guide students to trustworthy resources online. We appreciate your consideration in making this class a successful offering for so many of our students.
The chrome books will enable students to access word processing documents for the typing curriculum offered in book format (christiankeyboarding.com), as well as assignments coordinated for other classes. These word processing documents will enable teachers to share, print, and check students' work and help them correct and edit mistakes. The online typing course students will be enrolled in provides the teacher with a back-end dashboard with insight into students progress: including words typed per minute, mistakes, and areas needing improvement. If students need to work on an area to improve accuracy, the lessons in the online curriculum can be repeated until mastery is reached. Students begin with 4 modules of the typing program, working their way through the keyboard home row, top row, bottom row, and special characters and punctuation. This should be completed in approximately half of the school year. The remaining modules are for students to practice typing, increasing speed, and decreasing mistakes. Teachers have full visibility into the students progress through the 900+ lessons, and the ability to repeat any lessons students may benefit from. The second half of the year will incorporate typing "projects" outside of the designated curriculum, when grade-level teachers recommend a student can benefit from typing an assignment, or practicing a memorization verse or speech. Grade level teachers and aids, with the librarian, will coordinate to evaluate student mastery. |
