Two students at Bainbridge High get familiarized with their new Chromebooks at BHS.

Twenty-eight students from Marlo Dorny’s 10th-grade English class gathered in the school’s library Friday morning to pick up their take-home laptop computers, carrying cases, charger cords and carrying straps. Each laptop was labeled with a student’s name, and each one also had a green sticker that said, “Provided by technology levy.”

The distribution of Chromebooks — which cost about $350 to $400 each — to sophomore students is the latest rollout of the tech devices to Bainbridge students. Students at Eagle Harbor High were given their laptops in the fall, and Chromebooks and carts are already in place in third- and fourth-grade classrooms so that each student is assigned a specific Chromebook. Ninth-graders at BHS have also been issued take-home Chromebooks, and all seventh- and eighth-graders in the school district have take-home devices.

Bainbridge High students were reminded during their Chromebook orientation session Friday that the devices are for learning and not for recreational use. They were also encouraged to buy insurance to cover the cost of their Chromebook in the event of accidental damage. (The most common cause of Chromebook damage? Stuffing it into an already stuffed backpack.)

Students were also warned not to fiddle with the filtering software on the laptops.

(Brian Kelly | Bainbridge Island Review)