Merry Christmas!

    
     So you surprised your child with a new device for Christmas, maybe a Kindle, iPod, Samsung Tablet, mini iPad...the list goes on and on. So, now what? Check out the link below from Common Sense Media. This guide will help you maximize the potential of their new device for both learning and fun. It includes suggestions for some of the best apps (free and paid) based on device type and your child's age range. Many of these are apps we use in the classroom as well!
Enjoy!

Holiday App Guide

We are thankful for our students!

Here at Bon Air we are thankful for all of our students and the joy they bring us every day in class. We are thankful you chose Bon Air as your child's school. We hope all of our Bon Air Families had a wonderful Thanksgiving.

The Kindergarteners celebrated Thanksgiving last week with their annual Thanksgiving Feast in the cafeteria. Each child created an "I Am Thankful" placemat and pilgrim or Native American hat. Every student was given a Ziplock bag containing one ingredient for their feast mixture. One by one, children added marshmallows, pretzels, M& M's, cheese crackers, etc to the mix. Then once each ingredient had been added the teachers stirred the mixture to create a tasty snack for the entire group. Pictures to come soon!

 

 

College GO Week Presentations

This year during College GO Week our students in grades K-8 all participated in a series of activities to promote college awareness. These activities included:

• College Vocabulary of the day (diploma, university, education, degree, application)
• Career Read Alouds
• Community Day (visits from Policeman, Firemen, Paramedics, etc)
• Career Profile Drawings (draw what you want to be when you grow up!)
• Graduation Plan Applications
• College Pledges
• Career Powerpoint Presentations (details below)

Each year students add more content to their career Powerpoint Presentation. They start creating this presentation in third grade. They select the career of their choice and find photos that illustrate that particular career track. In fourth grade they add on to this presentation by  finding a definition of their career choice and listing interesting facts. In fifth grade they take all of the above and add in some final touches, including education options to support their career after high school and the types of skills they will need to be successful. They set goals for themselves to lead a clear path towards their career of choice.

Here are some screen shots of some of our student's presentations.

 

In the spring our  first graders-fifth graders will start their college visits. Each year we send every student to campuses that offer classes to support their career goals.

• First Grade tours the Kokomo Career Center
• Second Grade participates in team-building activities at IUK
• Third Grade visits Ivy Tech's campus and ask questions to a student panel
• Fourth Grade tours Indiana Wesleyan in Marion, IN and gets to visit a dorm room and eat lunch in their Union Hall.
• Fifth Grade travels to Purdue University where they receive the full campus experience visiting a lecture hall, dorm, Elliott Hall of Music and a walking tour of popular student hang-outs on campus.

Check back in the Spring to see photos of our campus visits!

Type to Learn 4

Last year, during our first year as a 1:1 computing school, teachers noticed that students lacked the ability to type efficiently using a laptop keyboard. We found that students were more familiar with how to text on their phones or use an on-screen tablet keyboard to type. Many of our students still used the old "hunt and peck" method for typing. This severely decreased their speed and accuracy while they were researching, blogging or journaling online. In addition this cut down on the amount of words they could type for timed writing assessments. We felt we had to find a solution to this problem.

We purchased a program called Type to Learn 4 through Sunburst Digital programs for students in grades 3-8 that used laptop computers. We spent a semester getting the program ready for students and training teachers how to use the software. Finally after anxiously waiting for several months the students have been able to log on and practice correct keyboarding skills and procedures. Plus the kids find the videogame-like setup of the program engaging and entertaining.

There are 34 lessons included in the program. Students progress through the lessons and assessments and are scored on their words per minute and accuracy levels. Then based on the improvement shown over the course of time they can unlock mini-games to practice their skills even further. Teachers can also upload custom content like spelling words or specific passages and use the program integrated in with their daily curriculum. The program helps students improve on their accuracy, left and right hand coordination, speed, timing, and words per minute. It is our goal to further enhance their typing skills so they can be successful in their later years of education.

Parents you can  download this program to your home computer since your child has a school account. Contact Mrs. Hollingsworth at jhollingsworth@kokomoschools.com for assistance or visit the Bon Air Tech Support page for Parents on our school website for instructions.

Check out what some fifth grade students have to say about using the program in class.

APPy Hour in Kindergarten

When you walk into a kindergarten classroom at the Bon Air Technology Academy you will be surrounded by squeals of joy and laughter as students are actively engaged while working on their own KUNO Android Tablet.  The room is filled with excitement as the students use their tablets to practice math and reading skills. As they work at their own pace and get correct answers, students receive positive reinforcement, which motivates them to continue to work hard. One student said, “I love playing on my KUNO with numbers and reading.  The games are awesome!”

The purchase of these apps was made possible thanks to the Kokomo Public Schools Education Foundation mini-grant program. In the spring of last year, the kindergarten teachers at Bon Air were awarded a $500 mini grant to purchase apps for their students’ devices. They purchased the apps Monkey Math World Adventure and Monkey Word School Adventure for all of their students. These apps use interactive games to help students learn the skills needed to be successful in the Kindergarten classroom. The paid version of the app tracks their progress so that each child is working at his or her own pace. This allows the teacher to differentiate the learning in the classroom so that all students are working at their appropriate level. These apps are invaluable tools in any classroom because they give the teacher the ability to differentiate instruction based on the learners’ needs. Previously, the teachers were using free versions of the app which did not allow access to the tracking features nor the full scope of the skills included in the program.  Students are even using their indoor recess time to utilize these apps and learn more! Darcie York, kindergarten teacher said, “The Kuno is a great resource for the students to be engaged in their learning as well as working at their own pace.  My students love their "Kuno time!”

Check out our Kindergarteners in action below!!
http://youtu.be/wTcnBncBUsI

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Class Websites

Did you know that every classroom at Bon Air, including art, music, gym, library, and speech, ALL have classroom webpages? Mrs. Concus even has a page too! There is also a page for parents to use for support with technology. All of these things are available to you with a click of a button.

To access your child's page, please go to the Kokomo Center homepage (www.kokomoschools.com). We recently launched a new homepage so things might look a bit different. To get to Bon Air, simple click Bon Air Academy from the drop down list in the top left corner.

You will then see some of our amazing children's pictures scrolling across the top! From here click on Classes/Teachers. You will see a list of all the websites available to you. Click on the site you want to visit. You will immediately see a guest version of that teacher's website. If you login (upper right corner) you will get full access to the site. This login step is very important, or you will not be able to see very much. This is for confidentially and the protection of the students that are enrolled in that class.

You can visit these sites, to look for announcements from the teacher, daily schedules, find educational websites, and much, much more!

Please contact me, Mrs. Hollingsworth, if you need help accessing your child's site. My email is jhollingsworth@kokomoschools.com . Enjoy!!

Reunited and It Feels So Good!

Hello Bon Air families! I apologize for the delay in posts this semester. My apologies there have not been as many posts, but boy do I have some things to catch you up on! Let's start from the beginning and hopefully I can get everyone up to date easily.

We started the year with a successful device deployment. We welcomed nearly 300 middle school students back to the building so there were many extra computers to assign and distribute. Check out some photos below of our students picking up their computers at the beginning of the year. All students in grades K-2 were issued a KUNO 3 tablet, students in 3-5 have an HP 3115m
Laptop, and students in 6-8 have a Lenovo x131e Thinkpad.

Students came to the library to pick up their devices. Many entered with big smiles on their faces and immediately spotted their computer from the year before neatly organized on the tables. Devices were given hugs and kisses as students were reunited with their machines. One student even said, "Oh! I have missed you so much!"

 

Welcome Back Middle Schoolers!

Bon Air Middle School reopened on August 7th as the district's first one-to-one technology school. A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held during the school's open house festivities. 

Middle school classrooms underwent renovations over the summer  to prepare for the reopening. This included new furniture to increase student collaboration and engagement, brighter paint jobs, and brand new Lenovo laptops for every student.  It also included the addition of a graphic design/creative arts class to student's rotation options.

Superintendent Jeff Hauswald shared with the Kokomo Perspective his thoughts about reopening the school, "The reopening of Bon Air Middle School as a one-to-one technology school is another exciting step in Kokomo Schools’ continued growth and progress as a district,” he said. “I thank the teachers and staff who have worked so hard over the past year to prepare for this opening.”                                  

Interactive 100 Chart from ABCya.com

Students in Mrs. Enoch's second grade class have been using an interactive version of a 100's chart from ABCya.com. Students in this class used the chart on their daily math problems and were also encouraged to use this resource on their final test. The chart opens and allows the user to manipulate the chart to solve problems. Students can also select their color options, include their name, and print if needed. While visiting their classroom I saw many students using both their fingers and the painting option to discover their answers to math problems. This is a great tool to help our visual learners understand math computation facts.

Click on the link below to start using an Interactive 100 Chart in your classroom today!
http://www.abcya.com/interactive_100_number_chart.htm

LifeSkills Students Using iPads

Not all students at Bon Air’s One-to-One Technology School have laptop computers!  The younger students in the Life Skills classes have been making great strides in their learning with the introduction of less complicated and extremely appealing IPADs.  With a simple finger swipe to the touchscreen, students can easily interact with free or inexpensive downloadable applications that improve not only academic skills, but communication, fine motor, self-help, visual and social/behavioral skills.  Some favorite apps of our students include “Match It Up” 1, 2 &3 (from My First Apps), Dexteria Jr. (from Binary Labs, Inc.) and the Peekaboo apps (from Night and Day Studios, Inc.)

-Article submitted by Janet Harrison, Life Skills teacher

Doughnuts with Dad

The line spanned nearly down an entire hallway as dad's, stepdads, uncles, and grandparents joined their student for a morning filled with fun! Students entered the cafeteria to celebrate together by enjoying a doughnut and juice. After breakfast they worked as a team on various paper airplane designs. After some brainstorming on the perfect airplane model and some precision folding they took their planes to the old gym to test their flying capability. Students climbed step ladders and tested their planes to try and acquire the longest distance. Some planes flew over 16 feet across the gym! Once flight testing concluded, groups got their pictures taken together and showed their guests their classrooms. Below are some pictures from the event. Mom's mark your calendar, Muffins with Mom's starts this Thursday May 9th. :-)

 

 

 

Bubbles for Autism

Giggles, cheers, and laughter filled the air, along with thousands of bubbles, at the Bon Air Elementary playground area Monday afternoon (April 22nd) as 531 students and staff joined a nation-wide effort to set a Guinness World Record for Autism Awareness by blowing bubbles.

Bon Air Elementary School students and staff were part of a national effort spearheaded by Faces 4 Autism, a non-profit organization in New Jersey, which wanted to spread hope to families and individuals with Autism by blowing bubbles.

“Smiles were in abundance on the faces of the students and staff as we enjoyed our sun-filled event outside blowing bubbles,” Mrs. Monica Schuck, who organized the event at Bon Air Elementary, said. “The bubble event was the first of a week-long of activities planned to help increase our students’ understanding of people with Autism.”

Mrs. Schuck, who is a special education teacher in the Autism support classroom at Bon Air, noted that April is Autism Awareness Month.

Sum Dog Mathematics

Students in all grade levels have been practicing their math skills using a free online site called SumDog.com. Students aim to score well on educational games covering a variety of mathematics skills. Teachers can select specific skills for students to work on over the course of time. Sumdog also includes a variety of games to engage all styles of learners. One Bon Air teacher said, "My kids had a wonderful experience with Sumdog this year. They were highly-motivated competing with the world while having a friendly competition with classmates. They loved when I made up competitions and also when they were entered in Sumdog's weekly contests."

These pictures were taken earlier in the semester when Mrs. Catt's third grade class participated in their first Sum Dog competition. "The kids cheer if I let them have a few minutes to get on Sumdog!," said another teacher. Watch the movie to learn more about Sum Dog competitions. Bon Air will be participating in the May 10th- 16th competition....will you? See you on the leaderboard!

VOTE FOR BON AIR ON FACEBOOK!

Vote for BON AIR on

 

Bon Air Elementary is applying for the “Share the Good” grant offered from the Seeds of Change program in hopes to win $25,000 to put towards creating a community garden. Our students will learn where food comes from, the importance of a healthy diet, the process involved in food production, and the preservation of food for later use. The students will participate in the planning and construction of the school community garden, nurture the garden, and harvest healthy foods. The harvested fruits and vegetables will be a fresh and healthy addition to the “Buddy Bags” that are provided by a local church and sent home with our students to provide nutritional meals to our students on the weekends. Additional produce would be donated to local families and community food pantries.

We need your help to be selected!! Please visit the Seeds of Change Facebook page (link below) and LIKE their page. Then visit the “Share the Good Area” and type in Bon Air’s zip code (46901). Open our application and vote! You can vote one time per day. If you have any questions or you cannot access our application please call Bon Air for help. Also share this on your own Facebook page so your friends and family know to vote for us too!

Seeds of Change Facebook Page

https://www.facebook.com/seedsofchange?fref=ts#!/seedsofchange

Check out our Chicks!

BABY CHICKS!

Mrs. Jensen’s science classes will be welcoming several new feathery members to their class VERY SOON! Check out the link below to view the status of their baby chick eggs and watch in real time on the day they make their arrival (as soon as tonight or tomorrow). J It is currently Day 19 in their life cycle so it will be any time! You can view her live feed by visiting the link below.

https://new.livestream.com/accounts/3593751/events/2023729

You will have to create a Livestream account using your school email. This will allow you to view the feed and make comments as your class watches. It only takes 1-2 minutes, very simple. Just set up email and password, click on confirmation link, a few profile settings and you are in.

TIPS

11) The Livestream feed works best in either Firefox or Chrome. You have Firefox already installed on your tablet. Just use the Windows Icon on the bottom left hand corner of your screen, and then in the search bar type in “Firefox.” You can then click on the Firefox browser to use the Internet. Copy and paste the link above into the browser’s top search bar and you are on your way to Livestream.

22) You will have to create a Livestream account using your school email. This will allow you to view the feed and make comments as your class watches. It only takes 1-2 minutes, very simple. Just set up email and password, click on confirmation link in your inbox, a few profile settings and you are in.

33) It will show a puzzle piece and will instruct you to “click to run Adobe Flash.” Click…..and ENJOY!!!

 

 

 

 

Using Virtual Manipulatives to Create Digital Pictures in Mathematics

All students learn differently. This is a proven point. It is also proven that students prefer to demonstrate their knowledge of curriculum in multiple ways. Our visual/spatial learners gather and demonstrate knowledge using sight.  These students prefer designing a mural or diorama over a written book report or a worksheet.  During Digital Learning Day, our third grade math classes used virtual manipulative sites to create visual representations of mathematics concepts. The goal of their lessons were to prove their answers were correct by creating picture graphics on their device.

Here are some of our favorite virtual manipulative sites.

http://www.glencoe.com/sites/common_assets/mathematics/ebook_assets/vmf/VMF-Interface.html

http://www.fuelthebrain.com/Interactives/app.php?ID=201

 http://nlvm.usu.edu/

A student in Mrs. Catt's class uses geometric shapes to create a picture.

 Students in this class were allowed to use a certain numbers of shapes and then were required to identify all the shapes in their final picture.

 Students in Mrs. York's class worked on multiplication. They used virtual base ten blocks to solve double-digit multiplication problems. They were required to show their work (with the virtual manipulatives instead of paper/pencil) before moving on to the next problem.

 

 

Ideas for using virtual manipulatives in your classroom:

• Use fraction bars to find like fractions
• Create patterns
• Count money
• Use base ten blocks for addition, subtraction, multiplication and division
• Create graphs
• Use a virtual hundreds chart for addition and subtraction
• Create various types of geometric shapes
• Tangrams and Pentominoes
• Digital geoboards (eliminate those flying rubber bands!)
• Practice with clocks and telling time