Presented By Atomic Speedway
(Piketon) – In the not so distant past, five-year-olds with school-issued laptops may have simply sounded like a pipe dream. At Jasper Elementary, though, technology has become an essential component in the classroom, particularly since the COVID-19 pandemic. Last year, Fluor-BWXT Portsmouth (FBP) donated $3,500 to purchase Chromebook computers and STEM-related (science, technology, engineering and math) activity items for the students.
Technology expert Jennifer Buckler teaches students from multiple levels because of the tremendous need to get kids back on track since the pandemic. Each class receives 45 minutes of technology a day.
“We want to make sure our students are ready for the next grade,” Buckler said. “There are a lot of issues with kids being over-stimulated since COVID and they struggle with attention and focus.”
“We’re also trying to complement what they’re learning in their regular classrooms, so if they’re learning the letter U in their homeroom, I’m focusing on the letter U too.”
Buckler has been teaching for 17 years; currently, some of her fourth grade students are non-readers. With FBP’s donation, she was able to purchase 12 Chromebooks and a variety of STEM activities to help keep the students interested and engaged.
“We are thrilled to be able to support our local teachers and their students,” said Deneen Garner, lead community relations specialist at FBP. “It is exciting to see the kids interact with engaging tools that help hold their interest while they learn and to know that we were able to be a small part of that.”
“The Chromebooks that we got are touchscreen—which has been a lifesaver,” Buckler said.
Buckler works on reading-based projects with students from kindergarten to 4th grade, utilizing online tools such as Google Classroom, and has science projects such as learning how an incubator works by hatching chickens in the classroom.
For more information about Fluor-BWXT, please visit www.fbportsmouth.com.
