All sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders at the Saratoga school are given a laptop to use for the entire year, and some teachers are finding ways to maximize the technology. In some math classes, the laptops have replaced textbooks. In Linda Sherburne's seventh-grade pre-algebra class, students practice computing surface area with online laptop lessons.

"What I do is I have the online text on my computer. I plug it into the projector and shine it on the whiteboard," Sherburne said. "It enhances my presentation, I believe."

The online curriculum is currently available to sixth- and seventh-grade students only; the eighth-grade textbook hasn't been changed yet. Social studies and French classes use supplemental material on CDs, but the online curriculum is unique to the math classes. This is the second year the school is using this program. Sherburne said she isn't aware of any other local schools teaching from an online source, other than a high school in Redwood City.

But St. Andrew's hasn't abandoned paper and books. The students keep their textbooks at home for reference and still have to complete homework assignments on paper. But Sherburne said the online curriculum opens new avenues for both teachers and students.

Students get immediate feedback when they take online quizzes, and because the questions are in a multiple-choice format, Sherburne said they get extra practice at taking standardized tests.

As a teacher, Sherburne likes the program because she has better illustrations at her disposal. Drawing three-dimensional objects on a flat surface can always be tricky, but the online material has been a gift.

"Right now, we're doing volumes of solids. It saves me time in preparing the drawings. The presentation is more engaging, prettier and, therefore, more motivating for my students," she said.

While Sherburne sees only advantages to the laptop lessons, she knows not everybody feels the same way.

"I have several parents who dislike it or don't appreciate it. They want the book to look back at examples," she said. "But parents don't have the same amount of practice that students have. I tell them they have the textbook at home and can look at it."

There are also some students who naturally prefer seeing the lesson on a flat sheet of paper. Sherburne said no one is forced to do lessons on the laptop.

"I tell them, do what you're comfortable with," she said.

She tells the story of one student who disliked using the laptop and wanted to do the work on paper. She had regularly printed out worksheets for him to take home, but one day the student rejected them.

"I have it on the computer," the student said.

It just takes time, Sherburne said.

"We let them make the transition as they're comfortable making it," she said. "In this case, it happened. The more they use it, the more comfortable they are."

Yet Sherburne is confident the day when students are taught by talking machines will never come. During a recent lesson on calculating surface area with variables, students were unclear on how to get the right answer.

"Ms. Sherburne, I don't get this," several said, shooting their hands up.

Their teacher went to each confused child, going over the concepts and steps with them.

"The teacher will not be replaced," she said.

Student Clayton Hutchins of Saratoga is already a fan of the online curriculum, but said computers present modern-day inconveniences that don't happen with books.

"It's harder when the Internet connection drops," Clayton said.

When Sherburne was done with her lesson, he worked on his exercises, doing the calculations on a small individual whiteboard, as were all his classmates. He wrote some numbers down, stopped and started over, using his sleeve to wipe the board clean when he ran out of room. One by one, he went through each problem, clicking on each answer he picked from a list of possibilities.

Two rows over, Sarah Shoemaker of Saratoga was showing her work on her whiteboard to Sherburne, who was answering a question for her. Like Clayton, she also liked having lessons on the computer. Among the benefits: finding out right away if she is doing her work correctly and leaving one textbook at home. Another bonus, Sarah said, is being able to follow along on the laptop when she is on vacation or is absent.

Other classes should also follow the same model so "you can have everything in one place," said Sarah.

Sherburne admits she has "over-the-top enthusiasm" for the curriculum but said her eagerness is directed at making students better learners.

"I just love introducing them to every possible medium so they can enjoy math, and school in general," she said.