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My Latest International Teaching Adventure is Coming True! Hello Elementary Friends, I am so pleased to announce that I am embarking on yet another international teaching experience.  Along with two teachers from my school I will be traveling to Bucerias, Nayarit, Mexico to teach in a private school - Colegio, Bucerias.  Susan Romanyshyn (second grade teacher) and Amber Schlueter (English as a Second Language Teacher) and I are participating in a program named "Teaching Beyond Borders" and will be led by Dr. Margaret Fraser from Metro State University.  Dr. Peg Fraser and I have worked together closely over the past 10 years as Metro State places practicum, field based, and student teachers at Mortensen for their undergraduate internships prior to being certified as licensed teachers.  Dr. Fraser has hosted study abroad opportunities for her undergraduate students for many years and has developed a relationship with Colegio - Bucerias.  She is now offering her p...

What are the Benefits of Students Having Their  Own Laptop Computer for School Use? Hello Elementary Friends, Like many schools and districts across the country Mortensen Elementary School is launching an area wide initiative to put a laptop computer into the hands of each student in grades two through five.  This will be a "two to three year roll-out" starting next year with second graders having a $200 Google Chromebook on the fee sheets at the beginning of school.  I have participated in several planning sessions to get this initiative off the ground, and I have collaborated with my area elementary principal colleagues in discussing the pros and cons of this endeavor.  As we have considered the ramifications of such an ambitious program, I have pondered over the effectiveness of such an effort.  Will having his/her own device actually improve a student's learning experience?  Does the addition of technology increase student achievement in the core conten...