EL DORADO HILLS, California—In elementary classrooms where words come alive, young readers develop a host of skills related to literacy. Terri Haverty's third-grade classroom at William Brooks Elementary is just such a place. Her students listen to stories read aloud, read children's literature together, and talk about the books they love. Technology offers one more way to support the literacy skills of these young readers and boost their interest in the written word.

Haverty's classroom activities weave together the related literacy activities of speaking, listening, reading, and writing. She explains: "The children are reading different genres each month. In addition, they are read aloud to in class. We also have a core literature series we do as a whole class and a literature book of anthologies. Each time the children present their book reports orally," she says, "they also write a book review to put up on their individual Web sites."

A master teacher in the Intel® Teach to the Future program, Haverty values technology as a tool that can encourage and support reading. "Students love working on their Web sites and feel very empowered by them," she says. "It is motivating and nonthreatening to all levels of ability." Both reading and technology standards are addressed by these classroom activities.

As another way to encourage children to explore the meaning of the stories they read, Haverty has students use graphics software to illustrate their favorite elements of plot or character. "Their drawings are amazing," she says. "Even some of my students who struggle with how to put down words are demonstrating their understanding of the book through their illustrations." Pictures can become departure points for lively conversations, which build more communication and literacy skills. The students' illustrations are included on their personal Web pages, adding more richness and creativity to the sites.

Haverty admires her students' courage to explore new tools for learning. "They are so brave to try new things without the fear of failing," she says. "They teach me something new every day." To inspire risk-taking, she often reminds students that their teacher doesn't know everything. "I often tell them how great it is to be human and to get to learn from my errors."

El Dorado Hills is a small but growing community in the Sierra Nevada foothills east of Sacramento. William Brooks Elementary enrolls about 500 students. "Our teachers are doing amazing things," Haverty praises, "and we have a great group of parents who are very supportive and express high expectations for their children." The school has a technology lab with 22 computers, networked so that students can access classroom work. Most classes also have four computers. Haverty makes frequent use of a projector to demonstrate "whole-class ideas."

Along with their personal Web pages, students are also building a yearbook on their class Web site. Says Haverty, "It's a great way for them to remember what third grade was all about."