ALVEDA GILLIAM SITS BEHIND HER COMPUTER in a crowded classroom at Foshay Learning Center in Los Angeles and listens carefully as Foshay tech coordinator Maria Tovares explains how to manipulate a mouse and enter a word processing program.

Carefully moving her mouse across the desktop, Gilliam double clicks the ClarisWorks icon and suddenly realizes she has taken the first step into a new adventure -- the world of computers. Throughout the day, the 36th Street Children's Center pre-school teacher, along with about 20 of her colleagues from schools throughout urban Los Angeles, will also learn how to use a spread sheet, graphics program, and what Gilliam is most looking forward to -- telecommunications.

"We want to go full blast with this training," Gilliam said. "We can hardly wait to bring the outside world to our children through the Internet."

This group of teachers, classified personnel and parents are learning computer basics with the hopes of using their newly acquired knowledge to improve literacy for urban elementary school children.

Funding for the project, known as Technology Enhanced Learning and Literacy in Urban Schools, or TELL US, has been provided by a $200,000 grant from the Los Angeles Annenberg Metropolitan Project (LAAMP). The four-year grant is earmarked to promote literacy, technology and parent education. It will be used to train two technically sophisticated teachers and six computer-competent teachers by the end of this year from six school sites. Participating schools include Foshay Learning Center, 32nd St./USC, Norwood, Menlo, Normandie and 52nd Street schools.

The plan calls for using these trained individuals to train the remainder of their own faculty next year. Teachers already experienced using computers are conducting the three-part training along with staff from the Los Angeles Educational Partnership and LAEP's Urban Learning Center program.

"Using computers is a way to turn them (children) on and get them going with an approach that is different, but an effective way to help them learn,"Tovares said.

Robby Flournoy, a parent of a five- and six-ear-old who attend Normandy Avenue Children's Center, said his past experience with computers has taught him that they can be an important learning tool.

"I want to help my children get a head start," he said. "With me learning more about [computers] I can help them and improve their learning."

Brenda Bridgeman, a 36th Street Children's Center aide, said it is her experience that computers make learning more fun for children. "I've watched several children use the computer to learn the alphabet," she said. "And the real benefit is that they can easily teach each other how to use different programs because it's fun."

Additional TELL US trainings are scheduled to take place on March 13 and 14 and 27 and 28.