Overview
First-grade students experience Digital Learning primarily as an integrated part of the school day. Digital learning integration can help students create, think critically, communicate, collaborate, and have ownership over their own learning. While students may use technology frequently outside of class, most need to be explicitly taught how to use technology actively rather than passively. Digital Learning is intended as a set of tools and mindsets, integrated into all content areas, that support students’ learning journey and learner identity by:
- Engaging students in deeper learning
- Empowering students through agency, voice, identity, and choice
- Supporting access to content in rich, multimodal ways
- Closing access, achievement, and opportunity gaps
Priority Standards
What students will know, what students will do, and what thinking skills students will develop to apply and transfer Digital Learning understandings that endure within the discipline, leverage deeper understandings, and/or support readiness for success at the next grade level.
In first grade, focus on these critical areas:
Technology Skills
Students use Seesaw for a variety of purposes including
- choosing a creativity tool (text, drawing, voice recording, video, photo)
- capturing offline work by taking photos
- supporting parts of the writing process with drawings and voice recordings
- beginning to type words
- viewing other students' work
Digital Agency
Each student is developing their own "Digital Life". As they grow, their Digital Life changes from watching and playing to creating, interacting, researching, and critically thinking about the world online. 1st Grade students will learn about media balance and how they can have positive and safe experiences online.
Technology Care Practices
In 1st grade students learn how to take care of their device in the classroom, including safe handling, appropriate usage and storing their device in the classroom cart.
Instruction: Signature Elements
Below are signature elements of SFUSD Digital Learning instruction that students should experience regularly throughout first grade as they develop as digital learners.
Technology Integration
- Integrate digital tools, such as Seesaw, into content instruction for students to demonstrate learning.
- Provide students opportunities to use digital tools individually or in pairs to access information, express their ideas and identity, and share.
- Support students to explore creativity tools in Seesaw.
- Model technology use with whole class activities and document student offline activities with photos stored in Seesaw.
- Only have students utilize digital tools only when it enhances student learning, with the understanding that in-person interaction without devices is very important for our youngest learners.
Monthly Digital Agency Lessons
Teachers will guide students to navigate their Digital Life safely and responsibly with a series of lessons throughout the year.
Each 1st grader should receive 30 minutes of Digital Agency instruction per month.
Technology Care Systems & Routines
Similar to building classroom norms and rules, build a technology care and use plan together with students.
Set up systems for charging Chromebooks, taking out Chromebooks during lessons and using appropriately for classwork. Support students in learning to balance and self-regulate technology use with other physical learning tools.
Devices
All K-3 classrooms should have access to a cart of Chromebooks for students to use. If you are missing any devices, please first contact your site administrator or your site’s DLeaF. If they are unable to resolve the issue promptly, please contact your Cohort Partner from the SFUSD Digital Learning and Enablement Team.
Clever Badges - Clever, SFUSD's Single Sign-on tool, provides easy and secure access to our digital learning resources. Students in 1st Grade will use their “Clever Badge” to log in to their Chromebooks.
Digital Backpack- The SFUSD Digital Backpack is the collection of applications which have been vetted for student data privacy and supporting district curriculum and content standards. Apps that are not in the Backpack have not been reviewed and should not be used.
Units
1st Grade- Digital Learning Getting Started Guide
Digital Agency - A guide with ready-made learning materials for teachers and students to promote healthy, positive online interactions and behaviors to participate respectfully.
Planning Guide
Explore the 1st Grade Getting Started Guide to support your classroom's digital learning experience. Learn how to incorporate digital learning tools to enable Equitable Access & Demand, Inquiry, Collaboration and Assessment for Learning into your everyday teaching.
SFUSD’s Digital Learning Scope & Sequence identifies digital learning competencies that help prepare students to meet SFUSD’s Graduate Profile and the ISTE Standards for Students.
Reflection Questions
- How are students' developmental needs, communities, and experiences being reflected and honored, or how could they be?
- What opportunities do you see for developing equitable access & demand, inquiry, collaboration, and assessment for learning?
- What are the implications for your own practice? What strengths can you build upon? What will you do first?
Want More?
Contact the Digital Learning and Enablement Team
Find your Cohort Partner’s contact info on this sheet.
This page was last updated on May 17, 2023