This project plan was created for the Holiday Card Exchange Project

Student goals

• Research the significant national events in the past year within our country
• Reflect and collaborate within the classroom to compile a summary of our year’s events
• Create presentation to share information with partner schools globally
• Receive, discuss and reflect on the information about past year’s significant national events from schools globally
• Increase global understanding through collaboration and interaction
• Increase understanding of the world’s significant past year’s events

Teacher goals

• Develop Professional Learning Network (PLN) through collaboration with teachers globally
• Deepen understanding of other cultures and educational systems
• Contribute to global understanding by sharing aspects of our culture through professional collaboration

Curriculum Standards

Common Core State Standards - English Language Arts & Literacy in History/Social Studies, and Technology

• RT 5-12.1 Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from text
• RT 6-12.8 Distinguish among fact, opinion, and reasoned judgment in a text
• W 5-12.2 Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas and information clearly and accurately through effective selection, organization, and analysis of topic
• W 5-12.6 Use of technology to produce and publish writing and to interact and collaborate with others
• W 5-12.7Conduct short as well as more sustained research projects based on focused questions, demonstrating understanding or the subject under investigation
• SL 5-12.1 Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher led) with diverse partners on grade topics andtexts, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.

Timetable and Specific Lessons

Early September

• Teachers divide into similar age level groups

Late September-November

• Classrooms connect with partner schools for introductions and school/country background information - Via teacher email, iEARN forum or Web 2.0 tools

• Individual Classrooms research their country’s past year in terms of significant events - Political, economic, disasters, triumphs, news

• Each classroom develops a project to convey their research findings to the partner countries - Possible options: Web 2.0 tools, PowerPoint, Video message

• Each class reviews their partner’s presentations and compares and contrasts between events, relationships to other world events, and global impact.

• Students create Holiday cards for their partner schools and exchange via mail.

• Schools exchange photos of the exchange

• Wrap-up exchange via teacher email or other online source

Collaboration

• Students will become prepared for the global collaboration through learning about the partner schools’ backgrounds in September and through ongoing discussions within the classroom.
• Modes of communication and collaboration will be determined by the available technology in the partner grouping. Possibilities: iEARN forum, teacher email, web 2.0 tools, Skype

Assessment of student work

• Students will be evaluated by the classroom teacher for
  • Thoroughness of research
  • Quality of project in terms of content and presentation
  • Engagement in process
  • Depth of understanding  after comparing and connecting world events

Conclusion of activity

• After reviewing and reflecting of all of the projects in the group, schools will send holiday cards for the New Year.  They will also meet via teacher email, iEARN forum or other method to discuss final understandings.