ELEMENTARY NEWS  Imagine the shock and surprise on the faces of Thornwilde Elmentary 1st graders as they opened boxes full of Kindle Fire HD tablets last week.
On-line retailer Amazon Fulfillment Center donated 40 tablets and $2500 in gift cards for Thornwilde's Special Education department to help the district grow its technology programs to assist students with learning differences. Principal Pam Thamann says, "We are always working on being college and career ready from 1st grade all the way up, so the Kindles will allow them to do a lot of things that we wouldn't be able to do normally." Kentucky State Senator John Schickel, R-Union and Boone County Judge Executive Gary Moore joined Superintendent Dr. Randy Poe and Deputy Superintendent Karen Cheser for the gift announcement.  
  FREE APP! TenMarks, the math instruction company acquired by Amazon last year, released its first app for Amazon's Kindle platform this morning, and said its summer math program, normally $39/student, will now be available for free. The release of TenMarks Math for Students for Kindle Fire tablets is a new step by Amazon into the educational market and the first major move by TenMarks since the acquisition was announced last fall. It's part of a broader push by the Seattle technology company to beef up its educational lineup and make the Kindle Fire more competitive against the iPad. The TenMarks app is also available on the Apple tablet and the web. It's designed for students from First Grade through Algebra 2 and Geometry, helping them retain lessons from the previous year and gear up for the next. To learn more click here. Dollars $ Sense  Students at Burlington Elementary are learning the value of money. This money management class sponsored by Boone County 4-H Dollars & Sense provided a simulated bank, stores and charities set up in the gym where they have to spend their money. They start off with a certain amount of play money from the bank. They can choose to buy, save or donate. The suprising lesson for the adults on this day was how generous the student were. Many were giving up to half of their $$ to charity.
TED Ed Final Presentations   These are TED-Ed graduates from New Haven Elementary. They spent the last 12 weeks (one day a week) after school learning to debate and create presentations in front of their peers. On this day they are giving their final presentations to their fellow classmates. Henry Clark explained optical illusions. Lawson Murdock chose significant events in sports and Zachary Cobb's idea was about how to turn an iphone into a universal remote. Over the last few weeks these students learned skills in storyteling/storyboarding, production and using visual teechniques to communicate their ideas.   | 
Want to get a head start on High School? This summer, Boone County Schools will offer online blended learning courses in 
