Going Global Update

I haven't updated you on our "Going Global" project efforts lately, so here you go...

We are still reading The Maze of Bones as part of our Online Book Club. We should be finishing it up soon. Students have shared podcasts and a digital poster with the other members of the club. The digital posters (called "glogs") turned out really well. Students researched the life of Benjamin Franklin, who the characters in the novel must learn about, and then made something that looks like this:



(Special thanks to Chase J. for letting me share that!)

We'll be wrapping up the book shortly, but before we do, we'll be participating in a first (as far as I know) at UPA Elementary...we'll be talking to another class via Skype! On Friday afternoon, we'll be using our microphone and webcam to discuss the book with Mrs. Temske's class in Georgia. This is very exciting and should be lots of fun. I'll definitely be sharing the results with you after Friday.

Another first for us is our new connections with classes in Asia. One involves a school in Taiwan. Over the next few months we'll be learning about their school, their community, their language, their culture, etc. And they'll be learning from us. Their class sent us Christmas cards this week and we'll be returning the favor soon. We'll also be making a slideshow that shows them our school and city.

The other Asian connection is with a student in Russia named Denis. He and a couple groups of my students have been trading emails. It's going to be a great way to practice our writing and communication skills AND learn about another country and culture.

Finally, our bagel sale went really well. We now have raised over $60 for the entrepreneurial project in The Philippines. Students will now decide if we should have one more sale to support this cause or to choose another project to donate to.

Wow! That's a lot. Sometimes I don't realize how much it is until I type it out. And there's more to come, of course. Stay tuned!