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Creating a Global Communications Center in Your Classroom: Collaboration Invite

Posted by Kim Cofino on September 20, 2007 at 10:34pm in Collaborative Projects
Is anyone interested in setting up a global communications center in your elementary classroom, most likely using YackPack? Ideally, we're looking for classes at each grade level (PK - 5). To keep things a bit more streamlined, I have created a wiki to help centralize communication and facilitate collaboration on this project. Here's the idea: Use YackPack to set up mini-personal learning networks for each student in a class. YackPack is a web-based audio communication service that allows students to share and exchange ideas in a user friendly graphical interface that requires little to no reading skills. Each teacher will create a YackPack for each student in your class, each student will have 4 partners in other schools around the world, for a total of 5 students in each Pack. This will enable the exchange to be more constant, more flexible and sometimes involve just a portion of your pack and other times all of your pack (depending on curricular needs). The Pack can be used for: storytelling, practicing reading with emotion, share their favorite book, talk about the author, reflecting on learning and the process of learning (metacognition), collecting “data” (for ex: for graphing activities). Students will use inspiration / kidspiration or an online mind mapping software to brainstorm ideas about what they will talk about so students are not reading from a script. This project could be extended by creating a collaborative Ning or Imbee for the classes for a place to share pictures, videos, etc and/or video conferencing with Skype or TokBox (video e-mail) where video would be required to enrich the experience. Anyone interested?
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Tags: collaboration, elementary, flatclassroom, global, yackpack
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Replies

  • HASTAC September 10, 2008 at 10:28am
    Hi, Kim,

    You might be interested in this year's Digital Media and Learning Competition, which is now open (deadline October 15th). The theme this year is participatory learning, which sounds exactly like what you are going for. Participatory learning is defined broadly as using new digital media for sharing ideas or planning, designing, implementing, or just discussing ideas and goals together.

    For full information, visit http://www.dmlcompetition.net.

    Good luck on your project,
    Mandy
  • webtycho July 28, 2008 at 9:20am
    Kim what happened with this idea? I am interested in documenting for my book.
    Can you please send me a response as soon as possible. .thanks
    Laurence
    • Kim Cofino > webtycho August 28, 2008 at 1:37am
      We ended up revising and using Ning because YackPack went to a paid service only :( Had some quick collaborations on the Ning for our grade 4 classrooms, but will hopefully do more next year. You might also like to have a look at this one: http://booksgoglobal.wikispaces.com - another idea that evolved a bit out of this one.
  • Maria September 28, 2007 at 1:56pm
    Hello Kim
    This sounds wonderful. I'd be interested in setting this up with my kindergarten students. We have tried to use the YackPack walkie talkie in the past. I'm not sure how your project would work but it sounds very interesting. I'm always looking for ways to connect my students to the world but do not find many things for 5-6 year olds.

    Thanks
    • Kim Cofino > Maria August 28, 2008 at 1:40am
      Hi Maria,

      We're not using YackPack any more because they've moved to a paid service only, but I've done a bit with kindergarten and VoiceThread (free for educators). Are you interested in trying to connect that way?

      Kim
  • Paul Harrington September 23, 2007 at 9:29am
    Just a thought - Flashmeeting may also be a useful method of communication ??
    Paul
    • Kim Cofino > Paul Harrington September 23, 2007 at 7:48pm
      Hi Paul,

      Excellent! Would love to use FlashMeeting - just set up a user account :)

      Kim
      • Paul Harrington > Kim Cofino September 24, 2007 at 2:20pm
        Excellent Kim - I caught Lucy Gray's last Flashmeeting - we are planning another jointly in October ( I have a group from UK , NZ and Australia who would certainly be interested in the project)- It will probably be a Pitch your Project Session it would be great to chat about his project then :)
        Paul
  • Paul Harrington September 23, 2007 at 9:27am
    Kim this sounds like a really cool idea - a global communication centre in the classroom - yea count me in with my class of UK Year 4 pupils ( aged 8-9) here in the valleys of South Wales :)
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