collaborative projects for elementary students

[Jonah Salsich]

I teach 3rd grade in Connecticut. I have done a few collaborative projects in the past and am hoping to build on these experiences.

This year I am hoping to do a collaborative project learning about rainforests with schools in Belize and Costa Rica during our habitats and adaptation unit. Other schools are welcome to join. As a culminating project my students will turn our room into a rainforest and give guided tours to raise money for habitat protection. This would be around November.

Some other 3rd grade teachers I correspond with around the country have also discussed the possibility of sharing information about local Native American history (a fairly common unit) to compare how the natural resources of an area influence lifestyle (food, clothing, and housing, etc.). This could be done through a shared blog or a wiki. It would be great to have classes from different parts of the country share what they have learned. We cover this unit in December, but it is flexible.

Also, in April/May I do a collaborative learning project about kites around the world. We learn about kite traditions and then use measurement and division/fractions to design, build, and fly kites. Last year 6 other classes from around the world joined us and we shared our learning on this website. This year I will switch the website to an edublogs platform as that seems to be more compatible with other countries' IT.

Finally, we would love to extend our literature circle discussions beyond the classroom by sharing books with others and discussing them through either voicethread, a wiki, a blog, or video-conferencing.

If anyone is interested in any of these projects, please let me know. And I am always up for other ideas! Collaboration and project learning is fun and engaging for us teachers as well as for the students.

[Julie Lindsay]

Hi Jonah
Thanks for sharing your ideas and desire to collaborate! I love your kite project in particular and the stories and pictures on the project blog are show a vibrant project and a willingness of other classrooms to share.

I have just started teaching in Beijing at BISS and will share the kite project with our Elementary School teachers. I hope we can become part of this as well. I agree, Edublogs is more accessible, however I woudl encourage you to try a wiki platform as each school could have their own wiki page etc. With Flat Classroom projects we especially use Wikispaces.

Julie Lindsay

[Jonah Salsich]

Hi Julie,
It would be great to have your school participate in the kite project! It is very flexible and can be incorporated into each school's curriculum goals (math, science, social studies, literacy, etc.). As China is the birthplace of kites it would be fantastic to have a participant from Beijing. (I was lucky enough to visit China last Oct. and loved Beijing).

Thanks for your feedback about wikis vs. blogs. I'm still learning about wikis. I love the collaboration aspect, but prefer the aesthetics and audience aspect of edublogs. It would be nice for each school to have their own page though... Ultimately, I guess it will be whatever works best for the participants.

Jonah

[Jonah Salsich]

Hi Julie,
I have seen the light with wikispaces! I started a wiki for sharing information about local Native American cultures, and quickly realized the benefits of having a shared platform for multiple users to add content.

So, I have started to put together a wiki for the kite project. It is in the early stages, as I won't start that unit until March/April, but I think it will allow for greater collaboration. I hope your school can be a part of the project!

Thanks for the advice!
-Jonah

[Katherine Bolman]

Have you started your work about local Native American history? I have developed a part of my course in the history of art under the title of North America. I need to know more about the earliest times. Please let me know what time period this group will start with. If you can use any of the information from my website I would be delighted. Please let me know. The website is found at ahaafoundation.org

[Jonah Salsich]

Hi Katherine,
A few teachers have started their research and sharing, but most of us will begin in November. Each teacher is using the project to meet their curriculum needs, but I think most of us are focusing on the time period right before or at European contact. I have shared your website with the other members, and I will certainly let you know what we find out about the art of the diverse areas.
Thanks!