"Each school had to submit a proposal on how they would use new technology.

"I had some reservations at first," said Mother Teresa principal Charolette Player, who admits to not being as tech-savvy as her staff. "But after seeing our staff's proposal I fully supported it."

The grant consists of five hand-held Tablet PCs with special Microsoft software and a wireless network. Each tablet also comes with a wireless projector allowing teachers to project computer images anywhere in class with no cords.

The HP-made tablets are basically lap- top computers, the size of a fat notebook, that use a special pen-like stylus instead of a mouse. They recognize and automatically save anyone's onscreen hand-writing but can also convert notes to editable text and allow documents, drawings or pictures to be "marked" or commented on much like real paper."