The children were very motivated by the use of technology in our classroom this semester. Children that may not have normally participated in large group discussions became a lively part of the group after they observed their friend's ideas up on the screen in front of them.

Using the technology this semester also became a valuable tool for building  the self-images of my students. By displaying both their verbal and visual ideas on the large screen, the children were sent the message that their ideas are important. Rather than just calling on a child to respond and then moving on to someone else, the computer and the projector allowed me to show them that what they share is important enough to discuss and record, and will not just be passed by.

Finally, I think the use of technology this semester provided a fresh way for the children to view the concepts involved in our long-term project of flight.  Each of the technology based lessons that the children were invited to become involved in encouraged them to represent, summarize and/or further explore their ideas and understandings, which is a valuable part of the learning process when using the Reggio Emilia Approach.

Integrating all of the information and technology into an organized whole was the biggest challenge for me throughout this project.  Learning how to transfer images from a digital camera to a computer, export files, and integrate samples from software such as Kidspiration and Kid Pix into my e-portfolio are just some of the hurdles that I crossed in my integration process.

Another major barrier that I came across was the absence of a zip drive on my home computer, the place where I planned to put my portfolio together.  However, after explaining my situation to the secretary in the office, I was granted the use of the Child Development Center's removable zip drive to transfer some of the large files from the school computer's desktop to my home computer.

The final major barrier that I encountered in this project was the instability of the Internet connection in the classroom. On the day of lesson six: "Researching Flight on the Internet," the Internet connection suddenly went out.  I quickly thought about how the situation might be resolved and decided try to use the materials from the Child Development Center office once again. Luckily, the secretary graciously allowed me to bring the children down to the workroom in the office and research from the computer and Internet connection in there. Although we lost a lot of time with having to travel back and forth, we were still able to search a few of the Websites that I had marked. Since we didn't have as much time as I had hoped and the children were a little cramped and had a hard time seeing, I sent a letter home to the families with the Websites that we researched so that the children would be able to have additional opportunities to view the sites and solidify their understandings.

After participating in the MITTEN Project, I have gained a wealth of new knowledge in the area of technology. With only one computer in the classroom, I have learned how to be both creative and flexible and now feel very prepared and excited to meaningfully integrate technology into my future classroom.