Encouraging communication and collaboration that goes beyond the confines of the classroom walls.

Digital-Age Learning

As foundational technology skills penetrate throughout our society, students will be expected to apply the basics in authentic, integrated ways to solve problems, complete projects, and creatively extend their abilities. The National Education Technology Standards (NETS) were developed to help students prepare to work, live, and contribute to the social and civic fabric of their communities.

MDIRSS Student E-mail Info

The new standards identify several higher-order thinking skills and digital citizenship as critical for students to learn effectively for a lifetime and live productively in our emerging global society. These areas include the ability to:

• Demonstrate creativity and innovation• Communicate and collaborate• Conduct research and use information• Think critically, solve problems, and make decisions• Use technology effectively and productively

(excerpted from International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) website)

By providing students in MDIRSS with school e-mail accounts, we are facilitating communication and collaboration to help them meet these goals while maintaining control over student privacy at the elementary and middle school levels. Because student privacy is a priority, students will only be able to send and receive e-mails from people in the MDIRSS First Class e-mail system. For a more detailed explanation of e-mail access for grades 4-8, as well as e-mail etiquette we aim to teach, please see the back of this flyer.

Grade 4In 4th grade, students will be assigned a school e-mail account that will be be available to them throughout their MDIRSS academic career. Initially 4th graders will only be able to e-mail their teachers. This is to give them time to practice how the e-mail system works and to introduce them to the e-mail etiquette guidelines. Part way through the year they will be able to e-mail their 4th grade peers in their school as a means to practice keyboarding. Towards the end of 4th grade all students will participate in a Key Pals unit that warrants opening up the e-mail system to allow a 4th grader from one MDIRSS school to e-mail an assigned 4th grader from another MDIRSS school.

E-mail etiquette becomes increasingly important in a global society. Because we recognize this, we aim to teach students to:

• put a short descriptive subject in the subject line so the receiver has a general idea what the e-mail is about

• reply with quote so that the sender knows to what you are replying

• be aware of the intended audience because e-mailing an assignment to a teacher or collaborating with another student dictates a more formal level of correspondence than Instant Messaging or Chatting with a friend

• send and open attachments

• realize the importance of keeping passwords private

• be able to differentiate between Reply and Reply All to avoid needless embarrassing situations

• always have the permission of the original sender before forwarding or Cc-ing an e-mail on to anyone else

• never assume that e-mail is private so do not write anything you donʼt want someone else to read

• refrain from using all caps because it often makes people think the sender is yelling

Grade 5

In 5th grade, students will be able to e-mail their teachers, as well as their 5th grade peers in their own school to facilitate collaboration. Cross district e-mail with other 5th graders will be provided on as-needed basis for school projects.

Grade 6

In 6th grade, students will be able to e-mail their teachers, as well as their 6th grade peers in their own school, as well as their 6th grade peers across the district.

Grade 7 & 8

In 7th and 8th grade, students will be able to e-mail their teachers, as well as peers from across the district in both grades 7 and 8.