A Transformation for El Dorado Elementary…

Located in the North East side of the San Fernando Valley, El Dorado Elementary is home to approximately 530 students in Grades K-5. El Dorado is dedicated to inspiring all students to become lifelong learners who are ethically, academically, and technologically prepared for the future. They emphasize a rigorous curriculum that focuses on depth and complexity in the core academic subjects of reading, writing, mathematics, science, and social studies, using technology to achieve this goal.

Under the leadership of Principal Adan Martinez, the staff has decided to work together to integrate technology into their daily teaching practices. Even with limited school funding, El Dorado strives to provide equitable access to all students. The school was recently granted the Riordan Instructional Innovation Grant and the LAUSD Education Technology Grant to help support their efforts.

El Dorado has dedicated funds to building their digital inventory. Teacher and students alike are equipped with a variety of digital tools, such as desktops and mobile devices, which gives them the opportunity to select the device that will support their learning outcome.

The leadership team is intentional about designing and facilitating all professional learning opportunities for their staff. They regularly use OneNote and Google Apps for Education Suite during PDs with the expectation that teachers incorporate their new learnings as part of their instruction. The goal of the leadership team is to build confidence in their teachers so they can use digital tools comfortably and begin to integrate the technology into their instructional practices on a daily basis.

Scan the QR code to view the completed Animal Abuse presentation

This focus has allowed teachers to start shifting their teaching practices toward exploring new ways of making learning more interactive and student-centered. An example can be seen in this fourth grade project where students had to explore a real-world issues or problem, in small groups. They selected one problem to research, take a stand, and convey their message in a visual presentation. The teachers display student projects along with QR codes that allow the classroom visitors to view their final projects.

As a result of the technology integration into daily lessons, students are engaged and interacting with learning in a way never seen before by teachers. These instructional shifts can be seen not only in this fourth grade classroom but, throughout the school.
World Hunger
Scan the QR code to view the completed World Hunger presentation

El Dorado Elementary School has begun to rigorously and intentionally integrate technology into every part of a student’s instructional day. With a dedicated leadership team, greater access to digital tools and resources, and professional learning opportunities, teachers are excited about the the engagement they see in the students and their enthusiasm for learning

Scan the QR code to view the completed World Hunger presentation