Eastern Middle SchoolChromebooks at School
Fall Rollout Information
Each grade will be participating in multiple digital citizenship lessons, covering responsible and ethical use, information privacy and security, cyberbullying, appropriate communication, and online reputation/digital footprint. This includes the Responsible Use for Chromebook (grade 6) and the Responsible Use for Chromebook (grades 7 and 8) document which explains expectations.
After the digital citizenship lessons, 6th grade will have a "rollout day" where the student devices will be handed out and each academic class period will be spent teaching and reviewing basic use and care of the device, including the Chrome browser, Google Apps for Education, Schoology, Aspen, and features of the device itself. In addition, 7th and 8th grades will use Advisor Base time to review the basics as well.
Teachers are being asked to incorporate appropriate elements of digital citizenship into their lessons throughout the year, as it is important to create mindful habits with these topics.
Parents should complete the Student Device Loan form located on the GPS Information Technology Forms webpage.
Click on the links below to open the FAQs:
FAQ
- What device will my student receive?
- What are the replacement costs?
- What if we lose the charge cord?
- Does my student need a case or label?
- Is my child going to be online all day long?
- What are Schoology and Aspen?
- What are my responsibilities as a parent?
- Can we print from the chromebook at home?
- Are there any parent training links?
What device will my student receive?
What are the replacement costs?
$240 for the Google Chromebook and $35 for the Chromebook charger according to the Student Device Loan form.
What if we lose the charge cord?
Does my student need a case or label?
A padded carrying case (sized for an 11.5-12 inch laptop) with handles or a strap would be a good option. Each chromebook will have a label on the top for student name identification, and a district barcode label on the bottom. Neither of those should be removed. Any other stickers or labels students wish to add must be completely removable.
Is my child going to be online all day long?
What are Schoology and Aspen?
What is Schoology? This is the learning management system where teachers post homework, link documents and allow for online submissions of some assignments. This is NOT where students' actual grades are kept.
What is Aspen? This is the student information database where grades are posted. Parents have access to a family account, where they can see all of their secondary students' posted grades and information. Students have access to their own personal account, where they only see their own grades.
For more information about Schoology and Aspen, students can refer to the GPS Student Portals page or contact the EMS Media Center.
Parents can refer to the GPS Parent Portals page for more information about Schoology and Aspen. Email the Parent Portal Helpdesk (parent_portal@greenwich.k12.ct.us) if you have difficulty logging into either Schoology or Aspen.
What are my responsibilities as a parent?
Please:
1. Complete the Student Device Loan form and indicate whether you are willing to have your student bring his/her chromebook home for use.
2. Provide a consistent, safe place where your student can charge his or her chromebook each night, and ensure that your student comes to school with his or her chromebook.
3. Reinforce appropriate use of the device. The chromebook should be considered a "work laptop." It is not for gaming or other activities which are not school-related. All activity on the chromebooks goes through an online filtering service provided by the district, and may be monitored at any time. Filters are not perfect, however, and thus we recommend adult supervision at home.