My Overall impression of Lincoln Elementary School, in Cedar Falls, Iowa was what a beautiful place for students and teachers to go to school. The environment was so welcoming and safe for students to express their ideas and participate in the class discussions. Teachers collaborated with each other to learn the new technologies and were very open to new ideas and to what each teacher brought to the table. It is a place were students want to go to school and learn. This was an awesome experience to see all these things in an elementary school.
Some technologies that were used in Lincoln Elementary School that I saw were so amazing, creative, and mind blowing how they used them in a classroom setting. At Lincoln we saw a first grade class use the Mimio-Boards. This was rather interesting, the students really enjoyed being involved in the lesson. They seemed to be more engaged in what was going on because they were able to participate more and actually see what was going on. There seemed to be a lot more that you can do with the Mimio-Board then in a traditional classroom. Another Technology that was used in the first grade classroom was a microphone. The teacher used a microphone when she was talking to the class. This was very unusual but after she talked about why she used one, I thought it was an ingenious idea. She uses it so that students can hear her in all parts of the room, she wont have to raise her voice, and it helps the students pay attention more. I think using a microphone in the classroom benefits both the teacher and the students. The teacher wont strain her voice and the students will be able to hear the teacher where ever they are in the room. Sixth Grade students used Google SketchUp in their mathematics class. They had to create a 3D structure using Google SketchUp. Their teacher didn't know everything about it and the students enjoyed this expect because they got the opportunity to teach their teacher something.
From visiting Lincoln Elementary school I will most definitely use some sort of interactive whiteboard in my classroom. Having one in a classroom just makes for an endless amount of possibilities for me as a teacher and my students to have. They will allow for many hands on activities and for students to be more involved in every lesson! Interactive whiteboards are amazing and the possibilities to use them are endless!