Aimee Kelly

SLM 521

Spring 2004

Collaborative Learning

I am currently teaching a third-grade class. Next year I am moving to a fourth-grade class. My results are for activities I could possibly use at the end of my third-grade year, and next year for the fourth grade.

Journey North - This collaborative activity is appropriate for many different ages (K-12) and would work nicely for both my third and fourth grade classes. Here, students across the nation share their observations of the migrations and signs of spring. The data from all classes is correlated and shared on the Internet. This is a great science activity.

Date visited - April 22, 2004

http://www.learner.org/jnorth/

Lab's Alive - This site is appropriate for third through twelfth graders. The project is developed for each class by selecting from themes, experiments, and topics suited to the age group. After completion of the experiments, classes will complete multimedia presentations to share with other classes about their project. Students can e-mail other classes and discuss experiments they are working on. This is a great science activity.

Date visited - April 22, 2004

http://www.eduweb.vic.gov.au/public/gc/Search/Project1.asp?529

The Environmentally Friendly Project - This project is appropriate for grades one through twelve. Students study the environment in their locality and sharing this data with other students from around the world. The study of each class is age appropriate and can many things from the native plants and animals to the consequences of the inhabitants' actions. This is a good science activity.

Date visited - April 22, 2004

http://www.eduweb.vic.gov.au/public/gc/Search/Project1.asp?607

Geometry Gallery - This is an excellent project allowing students, grades 3-5, to determine meanings of geometry vocabulary, illustrate the shape by creating an interesting animal that represents it, and sharing their ideas with other students around the world on the web. Students have the opportunity to view others' work and use it as a reference and a device for remembering the meaning of these weird words. This is a really neat math activity

Date visited - April 22, 2004

http://teams.lacoe.edu/documentation/classrooms/amy/geometry/projects/geoanimals/geoanimals.html

Global Grocery List - This is a project in its 16^th year. It allows students of many ages to share the prices of grocery items in their locality. These prices are then collected with data from all over the world. Students can use the data for analysis and comparison in a variety of subjects. This data would be especially useful in Social Studies and Math but could also be integrated for Language Arts.

Date visited - April 22, 2004

http://www.landmark-project.com/ggl/

Elephants of Cameroon - This site allows students to follow the progress of scientist Dr. Mike Loomis as he works to improve the state of the endangered elephants in Cameroon. Students can watch audio clips and view diary entries from Cameroon every day. Classes can also voice their opinions in the discussion group section of the site. This site could be used well for many age groups but would fit quite nicely with the Tropical Rainforest Unit we do in the third grade.

Date visited - April 22, 2004

http://www.fieldtripearth.org/div_index.xml?id=3

Postcard Geography - This site is specifically focused on teaching geography to many children including my elementary schoolers. A teacher can subscribe and receive a postcard everyday highlighting a place in the U.S.A. Fun graphics teach the kids about state symbols, facts on the locality, and maps of the state. If a class has a question about the postcard, they can e-mail it in and the developers of the program will respond.

Date visited - April 22, 2004

http://www.postcardsfrom.com/h/pcgeo.html

The Investigators - This site is appropriate for students grades 3-9. It addresses standards in the areas of Social Studies and Language Arts. Students journey the world looking for clues to solve puzzles. They collaborate with students and teachers from around the world to solve the puzzles and share answers.

Date visited - April 22, 2004

http://www.dovetonnorth.vic.edu.au/collab/tour.htm

Monster Exchange - In this creative activity, students, grades K-8, draw their own original monster, and share their monster online with other students, through a written description. The students on the receiving end try to draw the monster from the written description. The new pictures, written descriptions, and original pictures are then loaded onto the Internet. Students can see how accurate the new pictures are. There are opportunities for the students to chat and have feedback on the experience. This is a great activity for reading comprehension and descriptive writing.

Date visited - April 22, 2004

http://www.monsterexchange.org/

Poet's Corner - In this activity, students of all ages work their muscles in Language Arts. Students read poems written by other students and write their own poems, which are then posted to the Internet. This activity is set up so that there is a time period to write a specific type of poem. Once the poems are submitted, the person who maintains the site puts the poems into an anthology and sends it to participating classes.

Date visited - April 23, 2004

http://teachit.acreekps.vic.edu.au/poetry/poem.htm