The ceremony XOs to children is always an emotional moment. This is the culmination of weeks of work for the local team and members of OLPC France. The team describes this great moment today and its preparation.

J-5

Monday afternoon we finished recording the data of XOs from the School Server. This part has given rise to many technical difficulties for us because it seems difficult to control when the backup is triggered from the machine. Otherwise we fail to see the contents of the backups.

Finally, forty machines are backed up, so we have a sample of activities for children that allows us to analyze the work done for a year.

J-3

Wednesday morning we flashed all the XOs that we made this year, they are now fully installed and ready to be given to children. As for XOs in 2009 that children had given us, we have added their content (activity and e-books) that we screened in our meetings in Paris.

We also made several large posters for each classroom so that children do not forget the main elements that are not yet integrated by all. We are indeed realized that many children had difficulties because they forgot some basic manipulations. The posters remind and it is important to stop an activity before opening another or explain how to troubleshoot mouse ...

In the afternoon we made a second one training with teachers. Each teacher worked on activities that are appropriate to his class and at their own pace with a team member.

With joy we found that the teachers worked at home, they asked us questions after hours training and are excited to work with XOs.

XOs missing

The inventory conducted upon arrival we've done that several XOs were missing, we must respond.

Children with XO disappeared are individually summoned to the teachers, the team and Stefano who gathered for the occasion. Each child was interviewed individually to see how XO's have disappeared. Two XOs are found very quickly. But gradually as the children's answers, we realize that many XOs were exchanged between children. Indeed even if the color of the character displayed on the XO changed, many have the same color. Thus there were reversals of loading sessions. Worse, when the first XOs have disappeared, some children took the XO another child to replace him.

Finally, it appears that two children were actually returned to the mountain, taking their XO. Not possible to recover immediately.

J-1

Yesterday's meeting and makes us think we left a bitter taste, so we prepare more precisely the ceremony handing over of computers.

With the teachers we establish a complete list of children who already have a computer and those who do not. We assign each child an XO noting the serial number of each computer and the card number. Everything is indexed and stored in a spreadsheet for the big day.

Better, to avoid exchange losses and we decide to enroll in permanent marker the name and class of each child.

Finally we agree with the teachers they supervise each session that children do use their own machine. We also agree that an inventory be made each month in each class.

D-Day

After waking up very early, we set up the ceremony XOs to children. We sent all of our headquarters XOs in schools, classified by grade and number.

The ceremony took place Friday morning, unusually in place of the school. Each teacher has a specific role so that everything goes smoothly.

Stefano gave a speech on XOs with a short summary of the previous year and guidance for the coming year. He returned to the disappearance of some XOs and clearly indicates that they are dishonest and theft is not eligible for the atmosphere of the village especially when it concerns children and education.

After the speech the ceremony starts, the children are called one, class by class.

All parents are present and must accompany their child when he gets his computer. They also sign a load of responsibility.

The set is listed in a spreadsheet inventory: 137 computers are deployed at all.

At the end of the ceremony, we are launching a Grand Concours week-long to mobilize children. Each class must perform an activity with the XO. For CP1, CP2: Remember to activity as quickly; for EC: create the most beautiful drawing, for CM1, CM2: write a presentation of themselves, a poem or a story with as much as possible color and format changes. The top two students in each class will be rewarded with prizes.

Finally at the end of the morning, we organize the traditional group shots.

It was a very successful day punctuated by songs and laughter of children.