Instructional Technology

The Office of Instructional Technology supports educators to enhance instruction through technology for all learners. The goal of the Office of Instructional Technology is to provide relevant and authentic learning opportunities that offer students the chance to be creative, curious and academically rigorous by incorporating the use of technology.  The technology approved for use is reviewed for data privacy and safety. Educators work to ensure the technology selected supports learning excellence. 

Below you will find information about the most used technology resources in Frederick County Public Schools.  For more information about any of these resources, please contact Denise Henry-Orndorff, Supervisor of Instructional Technology and Innovation for Frederick County Public Schools.

For more information about any of these resources, please contact Denise Henry-Orndorff, Supervisor of Instructional Technology and Innovation for Frederick County Public Schools.

Instructional Technology Resources

Seesaw (Elementary Only)

Seesaw is a secure digital learning platform designed specifically for elementary students to showcase their growth and stay connected with their teachers and families. Students use creative tools—like photos, videos, drawings, and voice recordings—to build a digital portfolio of their schoolwork, allowing them to explain their thinking in their own words. For parents, Seesaw provides a "window into the classroom," giving you real-time updates on your child’s progress and a direct line of communication with the teacher. It is a powerful way to celebrate your child’s learning and support their education from home.

Wayground 

Wayground (formerly known as Quizizz) is an interactive learning platform that teachers use to make lessons, practice, and assessments more engaging and personalized. It uses a gamified format to turn routine classwork into a fun, low-stress experience that boosts student confidence.  The division provides the paid version of Wayground to teachers. 

Canva (for Education)

Canva is a powerful visual communication tool that allows students and teachers to design everything from interactive presentations and posters to videos and digital storybooks.  Using a simple drag-and-drop interface, students can combine text, images, and animations to create professional-looking projects, helping them develop essential digital literacy skills. This version is for school use only. 

Google Workspace for Education

Google Workspace for Education is a secure, cloud-based suite of productivity tools designed to help students and teachers collaborate, organize, and create in a digital environment.  Because it is built specifically for schools, it includes enhanced privacy protections that are ad-free and compliant with student data safety laws (like COPPA and FERPA), ensuring a safe space for children to build essential digital literacy skills. 

Within this secure "digital ecosystem," students have access to a variety of tools that help them grow from passive technology users into active digital creators. Their school-managed account serves as a gateway to Google Classroom, where they find their daily assignments, join live discussions, and receive direct feedback from their teachers. For creative projects, they use Google Docs for writing, Google Slides for visual presentations, and Google Drawings for graphic organizers, all while collaborating in real-time with their peers. All of their work is automatically organized and saved in Google Drive, a cloud-based filing cabinet that ensures their projects are accessible from any device and never get lost in a backpack. By using these tools, students don't just complete schoolwork; they build essential skills in organization, teamwork, and digital citizenship that prepare them for the future.

WeVideo

WeVideo is a secure, cloud-based video editing tool.  Rather than just writing a traditional report, students use WeVideo to create short films, podcasts, and digital presentations by combining video clips, images, and music.  It provides a safe, ad-free environment where children can collaborate with their classmates in real-time, helping them develop modern skills like creative communication and digital literacy. A student's teacher will give them a join code to have access to the full library of tools.  

Discovery Education

Discovery Education is a high-quality digital library and learning platform that brings the world into the classroom through thousands of videos, interactive activities, and virtual field trips. Teachers use it to supplement lessons with engaging, real-world content from trusted sources like Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, and Shark Week.   At the middle level the science and social studies textbooks, which are called Techbooks, are accessed through Discover Education.

Formative

Formative is a real-time learning platform that acts like a "digital pulse check" for the classroom. Teachers use it to create interactive lessons, assignments, and assessments where they can see student work as it happens. It turns a regular worksheet into an engaging experience where they can draw their answers, record their voice, or upload a photo of their work.  The division provides the paid version of Formative at the secondary level, and elementary uses the free version. 

Technology and Innovation in Our Schools

Our students use a variety of hands-on tools to move beyond being passive screen-users. By interacting with robotics, engineering kits, and professional-grade media equipment, they develop critical thinking, persistence, and creative problem-solving skills.

Robotics and Coding Tools

(Logic & Math: Understanding sequences and cause-and-effect.)

• Bee-Bots: A colorful, easy-to-operate robot shaped like a bumblebee. It’s the perfect "first robot" for our youngest learners, helping them learn the basics of sequencing by pressing buttons to make the bee move.

• Sphero indi: A student-favorite car-shaped robot designed for "screenless" coding. Students use colored silicone tiles to tell the car what to do—for example, green means "go," red means "stop," and pink means "turn." It’s a fantastic way for children to learn the logic of programming through play.

• Ozobots: These tiny, pocket-sized robots can "see" colors. Students use markers to draw paths and color-coded commands (like "spin" or "speed up"), bridging the gap between physical drawing and digital logic.

• Root Robots: A versatile robot that grows with your child. It can drive on floors or climb magnetic whiteboards! Students code it to draw pictures, play music, or navigate mazes.

• Sphero BOLT: A durable, robotic ball controlled via a tablet. Students "drive" the Sphero or program it to complete obstacle courses, teaching them about physics and speed in a high-energy way.

Engineering and Invention Kits

(Engineering: Building, testing, and "failing forward" to find solutions.)

• Hummingbird Kits: A "robotics construction set" that uses sensors, motors, and lights. Students use everyday craft materials like cardboard to build moving, glowing inventions of their own design.
• Makey Makey: An invention kit that turns everyday objects into touchpads. By using alligator clips, students can turn bananas into piano keys or Play-Doh into a video game controller to learn about circuits.
• imagiLab Charms: A wearable device that students program using a coding language called Python. They design colorful pixel art on an app and "upload" it to their charm to wear on a backpack.

Media and Immersive Tools

(Communication: Sharing ideas clearly and creatively with an audience.)

• 360° Cameras: These cameras capture an entire room all at once. Students use them to become "experience designers," creating immersive virtual tours or science reports that allow the viewer to look in every direction.