Thornton Academy

Thornton Academy is one of Maine’s eleven independent town academies and supports students from both international and surrounding communities. In grades 6 and 7, all students have an 11-inch MacBook Air; in grades 8 to 12, all students have an iPad mini.

Students are engaged in the use of technology all across Thornton's historic campus. Creative projects abound in the humanities, with students sharing their knowledge about history and literature analysis with a variety of iPad applications. A defining feature of Thornton Academy is its robust visual and performing arts program. In both the newly renovated dance studio and the chorus room, students use Apple TV to stream and critique video of performances.

A recently constructed STEM wing has classrooms with large flatscreen displays, Apple TV, and flexible lab spaces with state-of-the-art equipment. Students photograph lab specimens and label the points of interest with apps. The iPad devices have replaced timers, graph paper, and notebooks—and created new opportunities for learning.