Along with a successful 1 to 1 laptop program and a bank of computer software applications that promote and support a powerful learning environment, students at SACS will also be introduced and be provided unique and effective opportunities for learning using the internet, a skill that will be applicable past their K12 education. As part of their learning experience they will be introduced to Web 2.0 tools, internet resources, and various learning portals. As you are aware, new internet tools arise every day. Some of the more common tools that your children may encounter and use are found in a general description below.
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While integrating the web with today's 21st century learning experience is essential, your child's safety and security are our number one priority. Any websites and tools used in SACS have been, and will continue to be, thoroughly examined and vetted by our educators. You will find that most of the websites integrated into SACS classrooms are also used commonly across the country in education today. While many sites, along with COPA rules designate the age of 13 as the end of necessitating parental permission, we are going a step further and asking both parent awareness and permission for all of our students. We encourage our parents to be aware, read a site's Terms of Use, and to be a partner with their child(ren) in exploring the web and its many opportunities. We strive to promote proper digital citizenship and internet safety in our classrooms and encourage this to be reinforced at home. Internet sites that require a student account or log in will be made available to parents by the teacher, and also posted on the internet. Parents are given the opportunity and are encouraged to grant permission when registering their child at SACS. Approved sites will be listed and updated on the district website. Please visit it often. In some instances we may ask to have an additional permission form when our vetting process mandates this. We also encourage you to read the Board Approved SACS Acceptable Use Policy for Technology which is posted on our website. In fact we encourage you to also review this policy with your child(ren).
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We thank you for providing us the opportunity to bring the very best in educational technology to the students in Southwest Allen. We are confident that as a district we are providing our students the opportunity to prepare for an amazing future. We feel that by introducing and allowing our students to use internet tools in their educational experiences not only allows for engagement and success, it will open up opportunities for that all important lifelong learning experience. Your continued partnership in promoting 21st century learning is both necessary and appreciated.

Common Categories of Web Tools and Resources for Education

Discover the categories of educational tools listed below. Also take a moment and visit the approved website list. Please note that this will be an ever growing list so please be sure to return.

Canvas is the district's Learning Management System tool.  It is very similar to the systems run in the post K12 world e.g., Blackboard. 

Canvas is a way to simplify teaching and learning by connecting all the digital tools teachers use in one easy place.  It allows students and teachers to "meet" in a virtual space to talk, share content, and provides our students online opportunities for learning.  Our internet filters integrate with Canvas giving our students an extra layer of monitoring. 
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Google Apps - This includes the online suite of productivity and digital resources from Google such as word processing, spreadsheets, presentation tools, and graphic organizers. It also allows students to work collaboratively on a project through shared documents. It even includes an area for storage allowing for seamless work on documents both at home, school, or anywhere. Students are encourages to use their SACS domain Google account which attempts to keep all students with in the district domain.
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Blogs - This is a website that allows students to authentically publish online. It is an awesome tool providing students a voice, similar to what may have been found in school newspapers and magazines. Students at SACS are limited to Blog sites that are approved and vetted by the district.
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Wikis and Websites Production Suites - These are tools that allow students to publish content they are learning and exploring. It allows students to add, remove, and edit content online. It is a wonderful way to allow students to publish and create. Students at SACS will be encouraged to use sites that are approved and vetted by the district.
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Podcasts, Videos, and Presentation Tools - A podcast is a digital audio file that is created and distributed over the Internet for playback on portable media players (such as .mp3 players) and personal computers. Video creation allows students to create multimedia presentations that can demonstrate their learning and help them feel connected to real world situations. Many times these will be stored an accessed on various multimedia hosting sites in the cloud such as You Tube
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Formative Learning Portals and Tools - These are sites that allow students to learn and practice certain skills sometimes requiring an account. This may include a curricular hosted site, an interactive game, or a portal that provides lessons and assessment. Any site that requires a student account is vetted and approved by the district.
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Collaboration and Communication Tools - These are interactive sites that allow students and teachers to work together in a virtual space online. They allow for increased productivity and real world learning scenarios. Some require a student account and some do not. Those requiring an account should be approved and vetted by the district.