Teaching Then & Now with The McGrew Crew

My last year to teach in a public school setting was in 2007. I was pregnant with our first child and my husband and I decided that I would stay home for a little bit while our children were still very young. I'm absolutely amazed at how teaching has changed in the (almost) 10 years I've been away. I think the biggest way is probably technology. I joke with teacher friends that if I went back I would immediately ask where my over-head projector is!

During the first few years of staying home with my kids my husband and I made another decision that I never would have expected when I was teaching. For various reasons, we decided to home school our children. We have entered our 4th year now and are enjoying it very much! Since I'm not currently in the public school setting I can't really talk about what new technology is being used in schools today. But, there are some technology advances that we use at home that I did not use as a student myself, or when teaching. 

Leap Frog

I love the Leap Frog TAG reader pen system. I'm amazed at what all can be done with it. It has books and activities for a variety of topics and subjects. It can be used from two years old until approximately 8 or 9. It provides immediate feedback and helps kids feel more in control of their learning. I love to sit and read books, or do games, etc. with my kids, but it's also very easy for them to use independently if I'm needed elsewhere. Another aspect I love about it? It's portable!

iPad

Of course, the iPad, or another comparable tablet. Once again, it allows learning to be taken anywhere. This is something that's so very different from teaching years ago. Tablets provide fun, interactive learning experiences for children in a variety of subjects. It addresses different learning styles and can often be tailored according to different student needs and abilities. 

These are just a couple of the MANY technology advances that we use in our home school on a daily basis. I can only imagine what we will be using to teach our kids in another 10 years!