Kindergarten students connect via Skype with Texas students

Hello Texans!

What is your temperature?

Busy Bear checks the numbers.

How many clovers did you find?

What: Students share classroom project results with students from various participating schools.

Materials:

• Projects by Jen materials
• Skype account (ACS skype)
• Monitor for easier viewing of video conferencing

Time: 2-3 days

Challenges: 

• Coordinate a time to Skype with the other school

Tips: 

• Communicate time of Skype with Tech Director to help set up t.v. monitor with laptop or other device
  
  • Send Skype request a few days before the scheduled event to ensure a connection
• An iPad may give more flexibility for filming, as opposed to a laptop
• Prepare questions in advance and assign students to specific ones

Narrative:
Mrs. Diepstra has been participating in various Projects by Jen and decided to attempt a Skype contact. We discussed how to coordinate times with the other teacher and our tech director, Mr. Musch. We tested the Skype connection prior to the event. 

The students loved seeing the other class and asking them questions about their shared experience with the Lucky Charms graph. They also enjoyed asking questions about the weather in Texas and comparing it to the weather in Michigan. We found out that children in Texas have indoor recess if the weather is below 40 degrees.

4th Grade Mystery Skype USA

Google Map searching

Researching Mystery Skype location

What: Students contact schools in other regions of the USA and use map skills to determine where the school is located.

Materials:

• Google accounts
• Atlas
• Skype account
• Webcam 
• Google Question Sheet
• Resources: How to Set up a Mystery Skype account and Mystery Skype Etiquette

Time: 2-3 weeks

Challenges: 

• Locating a school that matches the region the class is investigating might be a challenge. May want to use #mysteryskype in Twitter.
• Search for buddies on Mystery Skype.
• Schedule to align time zones.

Tips: 

• Have a practice session where you pretend to be a mystery skype location for the students to guess. Review the process.
• Show students how to use Google Maps.
• Demonstrate how to add questions for the inquirers or questioners to find during the session so that all can contribute during the discussion. 
• Students should be assigned jobs. I adapted the jobs from Mr. Solarz's class.
• All students should be listening and taking notes during the session.

Narrative:
The 4th grade teachers and I wanted a way for students to make their investigation of the regions of the US "come alive." We decided to attempt a Mystery Skype with various schools from the regions where we were studying. We had never done a "live" connection for Mystery Skype since the 5th grade "Mystery Skype" was actually a YouTube "conversation."

Pictures taken by Class Photographers.