Pre-K teacher Ms. Erin Kipp requested Boogie Boards (erasable reusable electronic drawing tablets) for her classroom to advance students' fine motor activities. Waterloo Schools Foundation was able to provide Ms. Kipp with $300 to purchase 15 tablets.
"Young children spend a great deal of time on technology," says Ms. Kipp. "However, I am seeing the need for writing, drawing, and fine motor activities that iPads and gaming systems cannot provide."
Students are inexperienced with the art of using hands and fingers to draw pictures, write their names, and create beginning writing marks - which leads to the ability to write stories and become artistic.
Ms. Kipp's students will utilize these boards during choice time; for example, two students that love to draw can pair up with students struggling with their fine motor skills. The partnership allows the drawing peer to show/teach the struggling student what is possible when you draw.
These boards will especially be useful during small group literacy to develop letter formation to prepare for kindergarten writing. Math small groups will be able to utilize the boards for number formation, connecting visual amounts to numeral amounts, and creating shapes.
