1. EDreach.us This website seems to have a ton of information regarding technology in the classroom. There are links and lists for all kinds of ideas for how to get funding for technology in your classroom. I am thinking that now may be the perfect time for me to try to get some grants for bringing technology to my school. I think that putting technology into a preschool setting is a relatively new concept. I know that there are no preschools in my area that have any beyond some computers in the classroom. I think it will need to wait until after this term is over so I can keep my sanity but I intend to pursue searching for funding. You never know until you try.
2. hatchearlychildhood.com This is the website for a company that sells and sets up technology for early childhood classrooms. This gives me some great ideas for where to begin and what things are possible for the classroom. There are also links to research about bringing technology into the early childhood classroom. There is also a link to their blog that has lots of different discussions about technology in the early childhood setting. One of the articles was about thinking of technology as food. There is junk food and there is healthy food and you need to determine which is which before you feed it to your child.
3. ecetech.net This website is for early childhood educators that want to explore using technology in the classroom. It is just beginning (founded in Jan. 2012) so I am sure it will get even better. There are links to events from conferences to webinairs. Another part I really like is the Top Picks list where they highlight new apps and things that are on the market for preschool teachers and kids. There is a part called Techspirations that is exactly what I am looking for. It goes into detail about how to fund and plan for bringing technology into your school or center, determining which technology is developmentally appropriate, etc.
4. naeyc.org NAEYC is the National Assosciation for the Education of Young Children. This is the group to belong to if you are an early childhood teacher. There are over 80,o00 members. They offer a great deal of professional development opportunities through conferences, classes, publications, etc. They also advocate for early childhood when it comes to public policy. There are many discussion boards where you can ask for advice, give advice, etc. It has been a great resource and will continue to be as I pursue this new adventure of becoming more involved with technology in the classroom.
5. earlychildhoodtech.edublogs.org This is a blog for people who work with little kids and who enjoy technology. One of the posts talked about the security issues you need to concern yourself with. For instance, if you make a class blog do you have permission from all the parents to have photos of their children on there, etc. I think she takes it a little over the top, blurring images and such but it gets me thinking anyway. I have enjoyed what I have read and will continue to be a follower.
6. ehow.com There were several lists on Ehow of places to apply to for grant money for pre-k technology. It seemed like each list that I found had links to other lists. Some had a few of the same places but each of them had some unique places to look for funding. This will be a great resource for applying for as many grants as possible. If you have lots of hooks in the water you are more likely to get a bite.
7. teachpreschool.org This is a link to an article on a blog I like to follow. She writes about how she uses technology in her own life but rarely brings it into the classroom. She is changing her mind about its appropriateness thanks to her daughter. She has watched her daughter be a wonderful mother to her son, actively engaging with him, playing, etc. but also bringing technology into his life. She has learned from her daughter that technology doesn’t need to be seen as a sterile and cold way to teach.
8. education.com This is a list of I-Pad Apps for Preschoolers. While I would like to have a smartboard and all kinds of technology stuff for the classroom the reality is that is going to take a while. I think the most realistic plan is to ask for an I-Pad for Christmas and bring mine to school and work with the kids from my I-Pad. Not only is this realistic but also a smart way to go, I think. I will learn some of what works and what doesn’t before investing thousands into systems for the whole classroom. This is a link to just one of many lists of I-Pad apps on education.com
9. edutopia.org Even though this site is specifically for k-12 it is still a great resource for me. There is a lot of information about all kinds of new ideas in education. There are discussion boards where you can interact with other teachers. I especially like the video of the week. This week it is about virtual learning, going to school online.
10. kinderiq.com This site is dedicated to helping families and teachers with kindergarten readiness. One of the parts of this website that I would utilize the most I think is the different assessment pieces. There is also a great deal of information about computers for the age group and lesson plans for using technology in your classroom.
Celia Formiller 