Todd Vogtman
Westernport Elementary
Teacher
Allegany County Public Schools

Todd Vogtman, a teacher at Westernport Elementary in Allegany County, has found innovative—and fun—ways to integrate technology into his fifth grade classroom. He uses a document projector to model concepts and show interactive Web sites to his students. He also works with his students to create songs aligned with Voluntary State Curriculum standards and burn them to CDs. The CDs then become background music for PowerPoint presentations and the center of a release party, to which parents are invited. Students work in graphics and other programs and submit their work electronically. His technological reach extends beyond the classroom through his efforts to communicate with parents and other educators using Moodle online learning community software and through the Allegany County Technology resource Web site.