Dear Parents,

Technology is rapidly becoming an intregal part of our everyday lives. This reality is not going to change in the

future, and in fact, it will only become more true as time goes by. Computers, palm pilots, ipods, laptops,

gps devices, etc, are all examples of the many forms technology takes. There is a downside, however, to all of

these technology advances. That downside is there is an ever-widening gap between those who have access to

technology, and those who don’t. That gap is referred to as the digital divide. The digital divide also refers to

those who have the skills and knowledge to use technology and those who don’t. Often times, this divide is the

result of one’s economic status, and is also found among certain groups of society, such as certain racial

(white/minority), or geographical (urban/rural) groups. In addition, the term global digital divide refers to the

gap which occurs in technology between countries.

Here at Congress, one of our goals as your child’s educators is to provide our students with the skills and

knowledge necessary to become functioning members of the technological society. We will be working on

computers on a regular basis, as well as handheld computers (find more about those on page 3). In addition,

students will be learning about proper computer usage, components, how to research, etc.

For more information about the digital divide, here is a good website to check out when you have time.

http://www.digitaldivide.org/dd/digitaldivide.html

Yours in Education,

Brooke Haskins

Works Cited

Digital Divide.org. 7 February 2008.

<http://www.digitaldivide.org/dd/ digitaldivide.html.>

Wikipedia –Digital Divide. 2008. 7 February 2008.

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_divide>.

Handheld Computers

Just imagine it…the capability to surf the web, digitally alter a photo, write a paper, and check your homework all in the palm of your hand.

No need to boot up your computer, you can do it in the car while your waiting in line at your favorite fast food resteraunt. No, this is not

some far-fetched futuristic scenario, this is the reality of the handheld computer.

Handheld computers, also sometimes referred to as palms or the Windows Mobile PC, are not only fantastic technological gadgets for the

average joe, but for students as well. The capabilities of the handheld seem endless, and their application to the field of education does as

well. According to Kathy Schrock, with handhelds, a student can make use of writing, computing, reading, graphing, presenting, record

keeping, photography, videotaping, surfing the web, e-mailing, blogging, web conferencing, and instant messaging. In addition, handhelds

have wireless capabilities and Bluetooth, which allows students to effortlessly share and collaborate data. Some other features include a

large internal memory, and an immense assortment of software available to support math, science, english, social studies, physical

education, family and consumer science, music, drama and foreign languages. They are as valuable to a student as a laptop or desktop

computer, but much more affordable.

Below is a list of the pros and cons of handhelds, because with any new and expensive technology, it is important to be aware of all facets,

good and bad.

Pros of Handhelds over Laptops/Desktops Cons of Handheld Computers

+ Longer battery life - Small viewing screens can be hard to read

+ Turns on/off immediately - Graffiti writing option can be tricky

+ Allows students to be mobile - While cheaper than laptops/desktops

+ Less Expensive than laptops/desktops - They are still a costly purchase

Works Cited

Schrock, Kathleen. “All the Rage for a Reason.” I.E. Magazine. Nov. 2005. 7 Feb. 2008

<http://kathyschrock.net/power/>.

Lamb, Annette. “PDAs-Personal Digital Assistants.” Feb. 2005. 7 Feb. 2008.

<C:\Users\Owner\Documents\Discover the New World of Handhelds.mht>.

This Week’s Assignments This Week’s Highlights

		This week in Social Studies we will be exploring our city and state. We will learn about our state bird, flower, flag, reptile, etc, as well as some history of our city. On Thursday we will take a field trip to the Library, where we will look up some historic documents pertaining to our city. On Friday, Fire Chief Dan Henderson will be visiting us to tell us about the importance of fire safety, and we will all get to learn how to be Jr. Firefighters. This week’s homework in Math is about Polygons.
			Monday Today we are learning about our state. Tuesday Today we are learning about the season fall. Wednesday Today we are learning about our city. Thursday Today we are going on a field trip to the library. Friday Today we have a special guest from the fire department to tell us about fire safety.
	Reminders to Students
· Wear comfy shoes for our field trip to the library · Bring umbrella in case it rains

The first student of the week of this year will be…

Robbie Smith!

Remember, Robbie, bring some special things from home to share on Monday!

Our First Student of the Week

Reminders to Parents

Your child will need the following supplies this year:

1. backpack

2. 3 spiral notebooks

3. 1 box of pencils

4. erasers

5. rulers

6. dry erase markers/eraser

7. lunch box