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Saturday, January 19, 2013

Online Collaborative Projects

Happy 3 day weekend to everyone!  I wanted to share a collaborative project that my class is participating in.  It's through an amazing online resource called projectsbyjen.com
She has created an online database of projects that your kiddos can be involved in.  They are all different.....from sending in a picture of your favorite pair of shoes, to having a penpal from across the world.  I think that's my favorite part.....some are super simple & some projects are more involved.  I know what you're saying, "this is great in theory, but I don't have any time for things that arent tested on (insert state standardized test!)". Well.....
They don't have to take any valuable class time, per se.  The project I'm participating in is, "what's the weather like at your school today?"  I have a weather watcher of the day.  I keep track of it with a class list & a clothespin that moves down the list.  When that student comes in, they grab an iPad, take a friend to go outside & snap a quick pic of the sky outside, and come back in to use the kid journal app to complete their entry.  All during our morning announcements/ unpacking/ breakfast time.  No extra class time needed!  
    App shout out:  I love this app:  kids journal.  It does cost $1.99, but IMO its totally worth it.  
Simple kid-friendly interface.  They can very easily add a picture to their entry by clicking PICTURES not words.  This app is even successful for my non-readers!  For this project, my weather watcher uses the FREE weather bug app to find out the high & low for the day, and to check on whether it will be sunny, cloudy, etc.  
Then they open the kid journal app to take a picture.  Next, they sit down and journal about the weather.  My advanced students are writing independently, but I also offer a sentence frame for my less confident writers.  They are required to tell the high & low temperatures for the day.  Also what the sky will look like: rainy, cloudy, sunny, snowing (yeah, right!). Last, they have to add one more sentence of their choice--usually about what they would wear for the weather.  That's it....the whole process Thames about 10 minutes of morning time, and the kids are so excited about it!  
We are also going to get to Skype with another classroom to compare their weather with ours!  
What about y'all?  What sorts of projects are your kid-doodles working on?






2 comments:

  1. Carrie, thank you so much for linking up to Middle School Matters Blog! This was a great "find" to share. What an awesome app - and a fun way to get your students to work together!
    Stephanie @ http://middleschoolmattersblog.blogspot.com

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  2. Thanks for sharing this site. I will be sure to check it out.
    Maria
    First Grade Carousel

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