"Shared" Field Trip Using Edmodo!

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While on Twitter one evening I mentioned to a fellow fourth grade teacher that my class was traveling to Plimoth Plantation in Plymouth, MA  to learn more about the Pilgrims and Wampanoags. 

She tweeted back:  “Jealous!” 

As she is located in Indiana it made me sad to think that she and her class would never, in all likelihood, get to experience this amazing ‘living’ museum, and that’s when my “Shared Field Trip” using Edmodo was born!  

As I’m a new Edmodo user I have been looking for ways to seamlessly incorporate it into my daily lessons.  Being able to connect and collaborate on projects with classrooms around the globe makes this a valuable real world tool.  Knowing that many of my Twitter PLN also use Edmodo made me think that this would be an effective way to share our trip.

How it worked:

·      Created an Edmodo Group and Tweeted the “request to join” URL a day or two before the trip

·      Students/Classes joined the Plimoth Plantation Field Trip Group

·      Links to set prior knowledge were shared to the Group

·      Groups brainstormed and asked questions about Pilgrims/Wampanoags

·      2 iPads were utilized on the field trip to retrieve/respond to the groups’ inquiries

·      Further responses were made upon our return to our classroom.

Helpful Hints:

Screen Shot of Edmodo Page

·      Group code or “request to join” URL Code should be sent out well in advance (a week or more)

·      Questions should be made known before leaving for the trip

·      Upload Video & audio links from the trip

·      Decide ahead if it “shared field trip” will be in ‘real time’

·      Check for Wifi connections before arrival

·      Try to use more than one device

Benefits:

·      Motivating for students

·      Makes trip even more interactive

·      Gives students greater purpose

·      Many students/groups benefit from shared knowledge

·      Connecting and Collaborating Globally

Truly my students were more motivated knowing their counterparts in the Group wanted information.  It became important for them to inquire for the ‘group’ as they realized this was a way to help the students in the far away classes.   Each one of my students wanted to be able to respond and be a part of the learning.   I heard from the other teachers in the group that their students were just as excited to receive answers from us, thereby extending the learning for all.  

In May we will be going to the Museum of Fine Arts and I know Edmodo will be right there with us! 

Resources:

Edmodo

Ideas for Using Edmodo

The First Thanksgiving

Cybraryman: Thanksgiving Page

 

Mock Presidential Election

Every four years the students at our school are treated to a Mock Presidential Election.  This year the Fourth Graders were in charge of "manning the polls".  

 In preparation of the day, students created Obama/Romney posters that were to adorn the walls of the school or to be held by the campaigners during voting hours.   

Students at the "check in" table were given class lists and conducted the check in just like it would be done  an actual election. Instead of "Street Name", the poll worker asked "Teacher's Name", then Student Name.   The child's name was crossed off the voting list. 

Checking In

Next, voters were handed a ballot and then directed to the polling booths (desks with privacy screens).  

Voting in the Booth

After choosing their candidate, the voter proceeded to the "check out" station. 

Checking Out

The most exciting moment came when the ballots were entered into the antique ballot box, which was actually used for the town's Precinct 6 many, many years ago.  As each ballot was entered, poll workers cranked the handle.  As the ballot dropped into the box a  distinctive "ding" alerted all that the ballot was officially entered!  

Ballot being Counted!

At the end of the day, Poll workers tabulated the results.  A total of 458 students and staff participated in today's event.  

The final results announced at the end of the day:
264 votes for President Barak Obama and 
221 votes for Mitt Romney    
  
Our results were then added to the KidVote Result Google Doc.  Schools from all 50 states are sending in their class/school results. We will review the information at the end of the week to compare our class/school with the rest of the United States. 

This 'election' experience has given the students a better understanding of events that take place at the this special time of the year.  Hoping that this experience will remain with them not only for the next four years but for many years to come!

Visit from German Exchange Students

An opportunity that couldn't be passed up presented itself this morning.  It seems that our local high school is hosting three exchange students from Germany who happened to be visiting our elementary school this morning.  They were good enough to come to our classroom and spend some time with us.

When they entered our classroom we were preparing for our Mystery Skype call. They sat right down with the to help and guide the students as they worked to guess the state.  (Kansas has now been added to our growing list of Mystery States!).

Towards the end of the day the three visiting students, Daniel, Maren & Esther, returned to Room 310.  They were given a list of color, number, food and sport words and asked to teach the students the German translation.  All of the students Americans and Germans enjoyed the experience.  It was an engaging and heartwarming activity.

The fourth graders were so interested and curious about what life is like in Germany.  The high school students in turn were patient and thoughtful with their answers. Esther shared with her group that today just happens to be German Reunification Day (which is like our Independence Day). She explained about the Berlin Wall and how it was removed. 



This type of learning doesn't happen everyday and so when an occasion such as this arises we need to capitalize on it.  All of these kids will remember this day for many years to come! So happy to be a part of this Global learning!

 

Teachable Moment - Ashrita Furman, Record Breaker

Grab your pogo stick and hop your way right into the Guinness Book of Records! That's what I think my students will be doing after our lesson on MAIN IDEA and supporting details. 

The worksheet being used to review the skill had information about a gentleman who climbed up and down Mt. Fuji on his pogo stick.  Imagine the stamina and strength it would take to accomplish this feat! As the students continued reading they became fascinated by Ashrita Furman, the man who holds over a hundred other records in the Guinness Book of Records.

The students started asking lots of great questions.  Why did he decide to break the records?  How many records did he break? Where is he from?  Why did climbing Mt. Fuji on a pogo stick bring inner peace? (the paragraph mentioned it brought Ashrita inner peace)  What is inner peace?  Is he still alive?

Not realizing the interest this would spark, we decided to take a few moments to research this unusual record-breaker.  His website, which you can reach it by clicking HERE, has all kind of fun and amazing information.  It also includes the video below:



Students each wrote a letter to Ashrita in their writing journal.  They asked their questions about his records while also telling him about the records they would like break.  One student wants to be the first to eat the most gummy bears in 5 minutes while another wants to pass a football non-stop and still another wants to write continuously in cursive. We have contacted Ashrita through his website and hope to hear back from him!

One never knows where the learning will take us.  The key is to take those teachable moments and follow where it leads!

Advice on "How to get started" by Ashrita Furman himself can be found on this page of his website: How to Get in the Guinness Book.

Please share in the comment section the record you would like to break!  

top photo credit: Scott Beale via photopin cc

Place Value Games in Math

"2 or 20?" asks the teacher? "Twenty, twenty...twenty," whispered the students on team B. Students in the class of a second grade teacher were totally engaged playing a math game (seen in the second part of the video below). As a way to get my students thinking about "Place Value", I decided to try this with my class at the beginning of school . So we played "101 and Out" with the whole class a couple of times. Getting the hang of it quickly, the students were able to play against a partner. Here is the video from Teaching Channel if you'd like to see how it works:




At first I thought the game might be too baby-ish for fourth graders. It was just right to start the year. Soon they will play a variation called "1001 and Out". Just changing the rules a bit to suit the higher place value needs.

"High Number Toss" was the next game we played to help students with reading, writing and comparing larger numbers (into the millions). (This is an EVERYDAY Mathematics game.) It is a bit more complicated as it requires students to correctly insert commas to help them identify the numbers.



The students loved this game because they wanted to see who could create the largest number. I loved this game because it afforded me the opportunity for formative assessment. This game also has a DECIMAL version.

Finally, Who doesn't love a good Jeopardy Game? I know my students have always loved playing (especially when I take out some teacher bells for them to 'ring' in). This online version from Super Teacher Tools is a great for "Place Value Review". You can play with up to 10 Teams (or just one). Click on the picture below to play the game.



Introducing a few new games at a time is a great way to keep students engaged and learning. Please feel free to share any place value games that work in your classroom!