[IAEP] Letter to GPA Parents

[Caroline Meeks]

On Sun, Aug 2, 2009 at 6:33 PM, Bill Kerr <billkerr at gmail.com> wrote:

> supply a phone number to call if it is not working?


We want them to wait till classes start in Sept. We expect, based on our
experiences this summer, that a number of the sticks will become corrupt.
Nothing we can do about it over the phone. :(  I promised the kids they
could take the sticks home and I think some of them will have success.

>
> won't the families have to go into CMOS (or whatever) to configure booting
> off the USB stick?
>

BIOS. No, if we give them a CD and they put that in first most computers are
set to boot from CD.


>  I have had students take sticks home (last year) and come back saying they
> can't get it to work. To enter CMOS requires holding down either Delete or
> F2 key depending on the PC and then figuring out settings. I would see this
> as the main block point. ie. you could demo to a student at school but it
> might be different at home.
>

Right and we have 2nd and 3rd graders.  Bigger challenge then we can attack
in one session this week.  Big important challenge.

>
> I would replace "kids" with "students" throughout
>

Thanks

>
> yes, I would have put in less background information  - as long as the
> opportunity is there somehow for those who want more to obtain it
>

I'm hoping to learn more about what the right amount of detail is with
experience.  The parents have a variety of primary languages and I
imagine a variety of literacy levels. The school will translate into
spanish for us but some
of the parents are not native Spanish speakers either.  Perhaps I am
worrying about this too much.

Thanks for your input.  Parent communication will be one of our big
challenges this Sept.

Cheers,
Caroline

>
> cheers
>
>
> On Fri, Jul 31, 2009 at 10:24 AM, Caroline Meeks <
> caroline at solutiongrove.com> wrote:
>
>> First draft - Comments? Suggestions? Do you think I put in too much
>> background information?
>>
>> Dear Parent,
>>
>>
>> Your child will take home from camp a USB stick and a CD that they used in
>> school this summer.  Their work this summer is the first part of a school
>> wide program to use “Sugar on a Stick” at the GPA.  The GPA will be the
>> first school that uses a USB stick to bring Sugar home.
>>
>>
>> Sugar is the name of the software and you can learn more at
>> www.sugarlabs.org.  Your kids are the first ones to use it on a USB stick
>> but almost a million kids are using it on the “One Laptop per Child”
>> computers in countries like Peru and Uruguay.
>>
>>
>> If there is a computer at home the students can try to use Sugar.  We will
>> teach them how to do it in class.  It may not work on your computer yet.
>> The stick may also stop working at some point. That is fine, we are doing a
>> pilot test and we know there are still problems.  We will work all next year
>> to make sure it works for all students.
>>
>>
>> Please have your student bring the stick back to school on the first day
>> of school regardless of whether or not it works.
>>
>>
>> The kids all had a wonderful time working with Sugar this summer and
>> produced some amazing things!  Pictures of their work are up on the web:
>> We may also be creating some videos that will include your children and
>> their work, if you have signed a release form.
>>
>>
>> If you would like to know more about Sugar and our plans for the Fall or
>> if you’d like to volunteer to help in the fall please email
>> caroline at sugarlabs.org
>>
>>
>> Thank you and we look forward to meeting you all in September!
>>
>>
>> Sincerely
>>
>> Caroline Meeks
>>
>> Sugar Labs
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Instructions for booting your computer with Sugar.
>>
>>
>> Put in the CD
>>
>> Turn off the computer
>>
>> Plug in the USB
>>
>> Turn on the computer
>>
>>
>> If you have a Mac, hold down the “c” key as it starts up and as you hear
>> the chime.
>>
>>
>> Please don’t be frustrated if it doesn’t work! We’ll figure out why and
>> fix it this fall.
>>
>> --
>> Caroline Meeks
>> Solution Grove
>> Caroline at SolutionGrove.com
>>
>> 617-500-3488 - Office
>> 505-213-3268 - Fax
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> IAEP -- It's An Education Project (not a laptop project!)
>> IAEP at lists.sugarlabs.org
>> http://lists.sugarlabs.org/listinfo/iaep
>>
>
>
>
>


-- 
Caroline Meeks
Solution Grove
Caroline at SolutionGrove.com

617-500-3488 - Office
505-213-3268 - Fax
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