May
i3 Monthly Update
Connecting Globally
Commonly Used Tech Tools for Connecting Globally
This month’s focus on “Connecting Globally” is focused on how we can facilitate and connect our students globally. This can include understanding a variety of backgrounds and cultures; collaborating with experts or community members; or leading students through virtual field trips.
Did you know that a way to connect globally easily in the classroom is using Google Education apps such as Google Earth and Google Arts & Culture? These apps provide opportunities to explore our world and its many cultures without leaving the classroom.
New Ideas for Connecting Globally
The sites described and linked below offer a variety of ways to link with other classrooms. There are opportunities to work jointly on projects, work towards finding solutions to problems in our world today, create together or sequentially: all while broadening our children's worlds past the confines of the Garland city limit or school district!
ePals Global Community
An inclusive site that presents several projects that apply to a broad range of age levels and interests. The site lets you filter your students’ age range, type of experience, where you can choose from cultural, language, or subject-based, and source, which refers to the organization sponsoring the event such as McGraw Hill or the Smithsonian. These filters help narrow your search to locate an experience that would be most relevant for your age group of learners.
ePals serves ages 3 - 19! (click the link on the pic)
Global Read Aloud
Began in 2010, the goal of Global Read Aloud is to connect the world with a single book. Each year a book is chosen and in the 6 weeks from October through November, the book is read aloud to the class. Each teacher decides how involved the class will be (connect to one other class or many). The hope is to help the children see they are part of the larger world. Check out the blog and click on the picture to visit GRA's website.
Completely free, for students ages 6-11, in English or Spanish! Check out how you can connect your class & partner with class/es around the world!
iEARN projects align to the UN sustainable development goals. (click the picture above for more information)
iEARN
Founded in 1988 as a way of connecting students of the USA and the USSR, iEARN leverages global project-based learning and virtual exchange activities allowing two million K-12 students to "learn with the world, not just about it."
Imagine the world is living all on one street. The homes on the left end of the street are the poorest and the homes on the right end are the wealthiest and everyone is sorted in between. Except you don't need to imagine this because the creator of Dollar Street provides visual data from the bed to the ceiling, from the tooth brush to the toilet, of precisely what these situations look like. Check out the site linked above and watch the TED talk to the right.
Travelling Tales
Travelling Tales is a program in which classes collaborate to create a shared book. Five classes sign up to create a story, and each class develops a portion of the story.
The program is designed to fit into existing language and literacy lessons, rather than be used as an add-on. The stories are elaborated with visuals and text delivered through an interactive video format.
Travelling Tales books are being written all the time in and among schools around the world. The power of this collaboration is that it does not require any alignment of time zones for shared work.
You are already doing so much! You have grown in using technology in the classroom over the past several years. Are you sharing your successes? Tweet your triumphs! Share with me: @dghtymusicrocks, with the school: @DES_Hornets, and with the Digital Learning Team: @DigitalGISD.
Want to be caught being techy? Email me! I'd love to come by your classroom, take some pics, and share your successes!