Bold Thinkers and Technology

Second through fourth grade students begin each year with “Pre-Project” work. The goal for this period is to review ways students can represent their thinking in a variety of ways, through art, sculpture, writing, photography, and more.  Then, they can use these techniques throughout the year.

This year, 4th grade teachers, Katie Christo, and Kathy Bartelmay tied this to work students do in Writers Workshop. Since writers always want an authentic audience, teachers decided students would create materials to teach other students in the school about our Recycling Program.  The message, or theme, we wanted to convey was that recycling is important to save the earth.  Students rotated through three centers to create information to teach about recycling:

Photography: Students learned how photographers can tell a story with a beginning, middle and end in only four photographs.  Students studied the work of other photographers and then carefully framed each shot to tell a story.  They also uploaded their pictures, edited, and printed them.

Movie Making: Students studied commercials to learn how advertisers craft a commercial to influence others.  We noticed that commercials often have a slogan, catchy music, sound effects and a theme or message.  Students first created a storyboard on paper to map out their commercial.  Students then took footage with Flip video cameras, edited their movies, and added sound in Windows Movie Maker.  Student commercials were then shared with the school community.

Presentations: Students learned how presentations are changing and how you can use a presentation to tell a story.  Students looked at examples of presentations on http://www.slideshare.net and then created their own stand alone presentation about recycling at Duke School.  


Duke School believes that students should be given every tool possible to become successful learners. Technology is like any other tool, pencils, paintbrushes, and books, it opens up a whole new world of learning. A second grade student can refer to an online encyclopedia for information on a project topic, a beginning reader can listen to a book online with pictures to go along with it, and a fourth grader can learn how to use PowerPoint effectively for sharing and presenting project work. Duke School uses technology among other things as a tool to help students become bold thinkers and 21st Century problem solvers.


Katie Christo is the new Technology Curriculum Coordinator.  She works closely with teachers to help them integrate technology into the classroom.  Katie supports teachers in planning projects, co-teaching, and mentoring students as they learn and use technology skills. Her goal is to provide the students of Duke School with the technology tools, resources, and skills they will need to boldly and creatively shape their future. For more information about Katie Christo click here http://katiechristo.pbworks.com/About-Me.

Who is David O'Connell?

...as reported by 5th grader Joey Uzarski

I knew this wouldn’t be any ordinary day at school. Today I was going to interview the new middle school director. I mean why would anybody pick me, a fifth grader? Ok, I have to admit; it was really fun. I walked in with a pencil, four sheets of paper, and a clipboard. I felt like a real news reporter or something. At least that’s how I pictured myself. I interviewed David O'Connell in his office which was kind of cozy. My first impression of David was that he was formal, but by the look in his eyes, you could see he was really nice. Or at least that’s what it looked like. It’s true! He didn’t look like one of those heads of school with a huge beard, glasses and a pipe. No way. He was awesome. He sat at his desk as I started talking to him about his career.

Why did you choose Duke School?
I chose Duke School because it impressed me when I came here. It was the independence that the students have and that’s something different than other schools that I’ve been a part of. I liked the kids when I met them, I liked the teachers, and I liked the administrators.  I felt like I was a good fit for this school.

What type of job did you have before you came to Duke School and why did you like it?
I was in Belgium, and I was the head principal there, so it was a similar job.  I liked that the school was international. Kids from about thirty-five different countries came to this school and that gave the school a really nice feel because they all came from different countries. It was a really cool place to be.

What made you move back to the United States?
I wanted to be closer to my family.  I had been away from my family for eighteen years. Part of my decision was to get back into the culture.  I missed that. Part of it was to get back into the US educational system, which is a little bit different than the European educational system. 

What do you wish to accomplish at Duke School?
Good question…well for me, I want people to feel like we are one big school now.  I know we are still working on that.  I’d like to see more extracurricular things for kids, more art, more music, more sports, without loosing things like project or the academic work.

If you could have any other job than a middle school director, what would it be?
I liked being a teacher a lot.  I’d like to be a teacher again.

I then asked him about his personal life. I wanted to know a little more about him and at this point, I didn’t feel afraid to ask him these questions because I had gotten to know him a little bit.

What were your big interests when you were in middle school?
Cars and baseball, and I wanted independence. I couldn’t wait until I was eighteen. 

Who is your favorite author?
John Steinbeck.

What kind of books does he write?
He does both fiction, and non-fiction, but he writes things about the human condition, about people during the Depression. I’ve always liked him.

What kind of food is your favorite?
My favorite type of food is Thai.  I like Thai and Indian food. I really enjoy spicy food.

What is your favorite sport?
I love to watch basketball. I am terrible at playing basketball, so my favorite sport is golf. I am terrible at golf, but I enjoy it.

Who is your favorite sports team?
That’s a tough one. Mostly, just from being a kid, it is probably the Detroit Tigers. I don't follow them very much anymore, but they were always the team that I followed as a kid.

What do enjoy in your spare time?
I like to travel, bike ride, play golf, tennis, and I like to read.

I am so excited about this school year, and am very excited about David. I have learned through this interview that he is not here to just keep the middle school going. He is here to bring the school together and to continue to make it a happy place to educate kids.