Technology

Since 2009, Sacred Heart has been designated an Apple Distinguished School for successful integration of technology. The Apple Distinguished School award is reserved for schools that have implemented a 21st-century vision of education. As a result, the school is frequently visited by educators from other schools, parochial and public, observing how 1:1 iPad devices, Smart Boards, and Apple TV are integrated into the curriculum.

Junior Kindergarten through first-grade students attend weekly technology classes to learn the basics of using a trackpad, keyboarding, and saving a document. They learn the fundamentals of coding and engineering through resources such as Ozobots and Scratch. Students in grades two through three attend STEAM (Science Technology Engineering Arts Mathematics) class in the dedicated STEAM Lab once a week while fourth through eighth-grade students attend twice a week. In the dedicated STEAM lab, students engage in projects using the 3D printer, robots, and other engineering materials. 

Click here for more information STEAM or SHS STEAM Website

Technology is integrated into the curriculum in several ways so that students naturally learn to use it appropriately and productively. Each classroom has a SmartBoard and Apple TV to assist in the delivery of in-class programs and lessons. Multimedia lessons help teachers make learning interactive and dynamic. As a GAFE (Google Apps for Education) school, students can collaborate with classmates on a group project over the internet, turn in their work virtually, and increase their organizational skills (since there are no papers to lose).

All students at Sacred Heart have access to a digital device. Classes in Kindergarten-8th grades are 1:1 iPad devices. Beginning in 6th-grade students take their iPads home. With each student having a personal device, technology becomes a natural part of each student's development. The curriculum always drives how the technology is used, and students use these resources as naturally as picking up a crayon or calculator.

The use of technology is not limited to the students. Our PowerSchool Student Identification System allows parents to access real-time information on their child's progress by subject. Between meetings with teachers, parents can check on their child's homework assignments, test scores, and overall class grades. In this way, technology helps us keep an open dialogue between parents, students, and teachers.