After reading these integration tips and strategies you will be asked to share your thoughts and ideas on integrating what you've learned about handheld technology into your classroom.

• Start slowly; do not expect to use everything you have learned or every feature of the calculator immediately. It is important that the technology supports, clarifies and enhances the teaching process and that you are not just using technology for technology sake.
• Don't be afraid to say "I don't know" and have the students help you in solving the problem. This builds cooperation, teamwork and creative thinking.
• Partner with another teacher or a group of teachers in your school. A support system helps and facilitates the sharing of ideas and activities.
• Let the technology bring an interactive dimension to your classroom. Instead of having the students passively watching you work on the board, consider using a TI-Presenter^TM. Having students "drive" the overhead calculator in the classroom allows students of all skill levels the opportunity of being the "teacher". This also allows you to move about the classroom and work with other students.
• Assign data driven exercises that show the application of the principles being taught. An example: Following each quiz/test during the year, have students input the list of test scores. At the beginning of the year they may learn to find the range, mean, median, mode, etc on the calculator. Eventually you can add a graph, and then move into cumulative data. Within a few months students will be analyzing each test and really beginning to understand concepts as they apply to them.

Over the years, teachers have shared their thoughts regarding technology use in the classroom. Below are a few of our favorite quotes from teachers regarding the use of handheld technology.

• "My #1 tip is to not make technology the focus of the lesson but have it support the lesson."
• "Use the calculator to enhance the teaching of mathematics. It is a tool for learning, not something new to teach."
• "When dealing with a lot of data, technology removes the drudgery and allows the students to explore options and the "what ifs" quickly and easily."
• "Handheld technology is not about getting answers more quickly or bypassing basic skills; it is about having the necessary tools to explore problems in multiple ways and thus develop mathematical thinking skills in students."
• "Technology of any kind is what turns kids on... Anything that helps me reach my students is worthy of integrating".

We hope these integration ideas are helpful and provide incentive to apply what you've learned to your classroom teaching.