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We set out to help teachers improve their classroom practice, through collaborating and sharing expertise with teachers around the world …

We wanted our students to have regular opportunities to share, learn and collaborate with children around the world, helping them to discover our common humanity …

We set out to create a community which fosters global dialogue and discussion between teachers and students …

Here are the skills:Sense-making. The ability to determine the deeper meaning or significance of what is being expressedSocial intelligence. The ability to connect to others in a deep and direct way, to sense and stimulate reactions and desired interactionsNovel and adaptive thinking. Proficiency at thinking and coming up with solutions and responses beyond that which is rote or rule-basedCross-cultural competency. The ability to operate in different cultural settingsComputational thinking. The ability to translate vast amounts of data into abstract concepts and to understand data-based reasoningNew-media literacy. The ability to critically assess and develop content that uses new media forms and to leverage these media for persuasive communicationTransdisciplinarity. Literacy in and ability to understand concepts across multiple disciplinesDesign mind-set. Ability to represent and develop tasks and work processes for desired outcomesCognitive load management. The ability to discriminate and filter information for importance and to understand how to maximize cognitive functioning using a variety of tools and techniquesVirtual collaboration. The ability to work productively, drive engagement and demonstrate presence as a member of a virtual team

Edutopia is dedicated to transforming the learning process by helping educators implement the strategies below

Integrated Studies

There is increasing recognition that the end result of computer literacy is not knowing how to operate computers, but to use technology as a tool for organization, communication, research, and problem solving. This is an important shift in approach and emphasis. 

Successful integrated information skills programs are designed around collaborative projects jointly planned and taught by teachers and library media professionals. Information technology skills instruction can and should be imbedded in such a curriculum. Library media specialists, computer teachers, and classroom teachers need to work together to develop units and lessons that will include both technology skills, information skills, and content-area curriculum outcomes. 

Students need to be able to use computers and other technologies flexibly, creatively and purposefully. All learners should be able to recognize what they need to accomplish, determine whether a computer will help them to do so, and then be able to use the computer as part of the process of accomplishing their task. Individual computer skills take on a new meaning when they are integrated within this type of information problem-solving process, and students develop true "information technology literacy" because they have genuinely applied various information technology skills as part of the learning process. 

Mobility offers the ability to engage learners of all ages with anywhere, anytime access.

The presence of socially connected, multitasking students in the classroom urges educators to move away from an "information-dissemination" role toward a more interactive, collaborative process in which they guide learners in the skill of evaluating and assessing available information.

creating innovative and interactive learning activities that fully engage learners in experiences they perceive to be both interesting and relevant to their interests and future.

The iPad is far superior to the workbooks- instant, self correcting, gives immediate feedback, kids progress at own levels and can be working at differentiated levels.

Other curriculum areas we use the iPad in are science (as a journal to record our observations) to check the weather, Social Studies- we tweet other kindergarten classrooms and find them on maps and the globe and learn about their lives; comparing similarities and discussing differences and even collaborating on play projects.