http://www.cityquest.nl/
Description
Ages: 5-19
Registration/Duration:
Participant Limit: unlimited
City Quest is a way for students to learn about other cities around the world through technology. Students research information about historical buildings and other tourist type information about their town and submit reports to the project coordinator. These are posted on the project's site and students can take a "tour" of other cities around the world. Clicking on the "Participants" link will show other schools involved in the project and information about their city. "Travel Buddies" were sent to schools in other countries for students to learn more about everyday life and schools in different countries. The travel buddies are stuffed animals that would bring some artifacts from the host country to help students actually see the real items that are a part of that culture. Also, the project can be viewed in three different languages based on the three host schools in the Untied States, Japan, and Holland. There are several games for students, newsletters about the progress of the project, and chatmeetings including audio clips of teachers sharing their languages with other classes. A forum was created for participants to post their thoughts on various topics related to the project, however it has not been updated since 2000. The project site was fairly easy to navigate and it was definitely kid-friendly. It appears that the project coordinators work hard to maintain the site.
Objectives
For Project:
- Social Studies
- Community Workers
- Mapping
- Reading
- Reading posted reports
- Writing
- Organizing notes for non-fiction writing
- Note Taking
- Technology
- Word Processing to submit reports
- Communication Tools
AACPS Curriculum Connections:
All of these intended project outcomes fit in very well with my curriculum. In Social Studies, we study cultures around the world for a "Parade" unit and this would be an excellent way to learn about a country's culture first hand from a student's perspective. With grade levels ranging from elementary to high school, the teacher would have to differentiate the reading along with reading some of the entries aloud to students. More capable students could read some of the more advanced reading and struggling students could read some of the primary postings. Students could also connect this project with Science and study the weather of other countries. This would also help to get parents and other community members involved to help students learn about their community.
Technical needs
For this project, I would need classroom access to the Internet, a digital camera or scanner, and audio play back capabilities. For movies on the project site, I will need Real Player installed, Windows Media Player updated, and enable .exe files from the virus scan system. I will also need a VRML-viewer if I plan to view their City Hall tour. There are links on the site as to recommended downloads for this. With most of these requirements, I should not have a problem completing the project. I will need to contact the technology department and inquire about changing the settings of the virus scan system. Having only one computer in the classroom may make it difficult for all students to see new information, but they will have opportunities to view the project site with a partner during class time. This project would be able to stretch over the entire school year and would take quite a bet of time to complete. With parent volunteer help, I feel I could complete most aspects of this project over the course of the school year.
Benefits
Reading information written by other students about real places makes this an authentic project that will engage students in learning. With the “Travel Buddies” students will learn about different cultures through a child’s eyes. Again, this will help the students because children often have a different view of what is important in their culture than adults and students will be more interested in reading. The movies provide an opportunity for students to see and hear the students from the participating countries and also hear different languages. The project site has many fun activities for students and a place for them to see their published reports along with the others. One of the coordinators responded to my email and said: “We feel the Internet has given our students the chance to learn outside of the four walls of our classrooms in a way that could not be done before.” (Joan Goble)
To The Top
Daffodils and Tulips
Wandering Wally
Electronic Postcards
www.elementaryworkshop.org/Students/Daffodils/Daffodilprojectindex.html
Description
Ages: any
Registration/Duration: ongoing
Participant Limit: unlimited
Students around the world plant tulip or daffodil bulbs during the same week in November. They collect data relating to the weather and geography of the area to send to other participants in the project. When the blooms begin to appear students add to their data the measurements of the blooms and compare information with other nations. The site has a great layout and is easy to navigate. There are links to gardening tips, with some pertaining to other countries. Students can find facts about the various bulbs planted. Also, there are links for students to learn about latitude and longitude and use this to find where other cities involved are located. There are participants from many different countries, concentrated mostly in Asia and Eastern Europe.
Objectives:
For Project:
AACPS Curriculum Connections
All of these skills students will use during the project are present in my county curriculum. At a second grade level, many of these will be very guided and this could be a great opportunity for students to work collaboratively to collect and report the data.
Technical Requirements
I’m not certain how students post their findings to report to the other participants as the only registration information was to email IEARN. Internet access would be required to view the project site and a digital camera would be most helpful to show the others involved our flower progress. There is a forum set up that requires a password. I would have to check with the school network to see if I could access the forum.
Benefits
This project could engage students in curriculum activities all year long. Students would be in charge of their learning with planning where the bulbs will be planted to give them the best possible location. During the waiting to bloom period, students could learn about other areas of the world and compare weather and geography by communicating with the other participants. Having students plant the bulbs outdoors and not in pots in the classroom helps to make the experience more authentic. Also, the project allows them the opportunity to share their findings and see if other countries find similar information and results. There are many extension activities that could be implemented with this project, such as writing a creative story about daffodils or tulips. This project would also allow students to get outdoors for something other than recess.
www.lebanoncatholicschool.org/wally.htm
Description
Ages: 5-9
Registration/Duration:
Participant Limit: 100 classrooms
“Wally” the ant travels to different classrooms for two weeks each, and students keep a journal of things that Wally learns and activities he does in class. The project site gives a template of Wally that is printed out for students to decorate. When they submit their reports via email, they include a picture of the students with Wally. The project coordinator posts the journal entries on the Web site. Students are able to see where Wally has visited and learn about other classrooms around the country. Currently, all except one classroom participating is from the United States. There is one school from Greece.
Objectives:
For Project:
AACPS Curriculum Connections:
The main objective of this project is to help students develop writing skills and demonstrate the power of technology in learning. Writing is always in the curriculum, and there are several other connections that go beyond what the project describes. Students could learn about culture and schooling in other parts of the country and map where Wally has traveled. During Science students could research ants and learn about different types that they could post to the project site.
Technical Requirements
This is a fairly basic project and would primarily require Internet access in the classroom and a digital camera. The teacher would submit the journal entries via email, so the students would not need an account. Initially the project would not take very long as Wally only visits for two weeks. Reading the other entries could be an ongoing activity for only a few minutes each week or so.
Benefits
Teachers are encouraged to have the whole class submit one journal entry together which would allow each student to share an event or activity about Wally. That creates an atmosphere of sharing and students can see their contributions on the Web site. A similar activity could be done through postal mail, however using the Internet students can see their work published quicker, and this would give them a feeling of accomplishing something exciting. Also, this would not be a very difficult project to incorporate into the classroom and would present a fun way for students to practice writing and teach some technology skills. I think an extension could be to use the teacher’s email service for students to write to other schools involved and ask questions they have developed to learn more specific information.
www.genevaschools.org/austinbg/class/gray/internet/electronic/index.htm
Description
Ages: unknown
Registration/Duration: open until October 16, 2006
Participant Limit: unknown
This is a project that allows students to send postcards through email to participants around the world. When the teacher registers, they will receive a list of participants to send postcards to. There are guidelines for what to include in the postcards with a space for additional comments. The coordinator asks that the postcards be 250 words or less. Students may send a postcard as an entire class, a small group, or individually. Also, the coordinator asks that classes should respond to all postcards they receive. There is a map with each continent listed below to view the current participants. The project site is quite annoying with sound playing on each section and multiple animated objects.
Objectives
For Project:
National Standards:
There is a link provided to choose a state to display standards.
AACPS Curriculum Connections:
As most state standards are modeled after the national standards, all of these skills will fit into my curriculum.
Technical Requirements
For this project I will need Internet access with an email account. I did not notice any pictures or graphics with the examples, but that should not be difficult with a digital camera or scanner. This project could easily extend throughout the school year and not take much time out of required content.
Benefits
This could be a very basic project to introduce students to communicating with technology to enhance learning. I feel this is a very authentic task as students are communicating with other students about real life events. As with the City Quest project, students will be able to learn about other countries directly from other students and ask specific questions for them to answer. This same activity could be done through postal mail as some of the other projects; however students will experience quicker communications and be able to see their work on the Internet. Under the “Comments” tab, teachers praise how motivating this project has been in their classrooms and how students even fight over reading postcards received from other participants. One of the teachers set up a classroom map to place the postcards on from other countries involved. This is a great visual for students to connect the information to where the postcard came from.
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