W O g B n i N n I n i A w R t e E H T SH I F A PROJECT BY B’ CLASS,27 TH Primar y School, Athens and Scoala Georghe Magheru,Caracal,Romania Teachers: Susan Hunter and Nadia Sorina Grozavescu
THE IDEA: • To try an etwinning project in a ΠΕΑΠ class. • To fit the project into our normal lessons, integrating project activities with those required by the ΠΕΑΠ programme. • To have fun with technology and more traditional educational tools.
THE CATALYSTS: The need to keep developing as a teacher – especially as regards the use of ICT/ΤΠΕ Τhe hope that working time would be allocated for projects (and that the ICT lab would be available for use!) The eagerness of the class to take part. The encouragement of an inspirational mentor.
THE CONCEPT: USING PICTURE BOOKS TO ENCOURAGE POSITIVITY The project is intended to be modular so that other story books can be included, according to the issues which teachers want to cover.
Marcus Pfister
The Rainbow Fish by
Room on the Broom by Julia Donaldson
THE PLANNING: WHAT ARE THE AIMS? Thinking about the AIMS:
•Cognitive – to develop students’ foreign language skills •Affective – to develop students’ collaborative skills •Psychomotor – to develop students’ ICT awareness and skills
PLANNING: INCORPORATING ΠΕΑΠ MATERIALS Section of Project
ΠΕΑΠ materials used
Introducing Yourself
A6, I am special - Face outline [B.A06.W01]
Task 1 Meeting the Rainbow Fish
Δ4, The Story of the Rainbow – Colours revision A4, How are you feeling today? – Happy/sad
Task 2 Politeness
B2, School Objects – b and p, polite requests
Task 3 Appearances
B10, Monsters – outside v. inside Γ4, Let’s travel! [Γ’ Magic Book preparation ‘sh’ sounds]
Task 4 Sharing (I can’t…I can)
B3, My favourite toys (song) – sharing B9, Can an octopus hop? (song) - ability Δ2, Why are you happy? – revision of feelings Δ7, The Selfish Giant – selfish v. sharing
SETTING UP THE ETWINNING PROJECT Setting up the etwinning project : • finding a partner, •getting approval, •uploading the first tasks. (All done within the framework of the etwinning Beginners Course).
THE EXECUTION: CARRYING OUT THE ACTIVITIES AND UPLOADING THEM Introducing Yourself
• • •
The first section of an etwinning project allows you and your students to meet your partners and their students. We uploaded our ‘hairy’ self portraits with our likes in picture form. [ΠΕΑΠ Α6] We uploaded an Animoto video of our pictures, too. We commented on our partners’ pictures using Voki.
Reflection: - Students very eager to ‘meet’ their partners. Enjoyed making portraits but disappointed not to be able to see/chat to partners in real time. Next time ensure tech. knowledge and availability of equipment before commencing.
INTRODUCING OURSELVES: SELF PORTRAITS WITH OUR LIKES
TASK 1: MEETING THE RAINBOW FISH – FIRST IMPRESSIONS! This section of the project deals with the Rainbow Fish’s appearance and how it creates expectations of behaviour. •
We created a seascape home for the fish and revised colours [ΠΕΑΠ Δ4 The Story of the Rainbow ]
•
We thought about ‘ beautiful’ and when we feel happy or sad. We uploaded our photos so that our partners could guess.
TASK 1: OUR SEASCAPE: FOCUS ON BLUE, PURPLE, PINK
TASK 1: HAPPY FISH AND SAD FISH We made hand-held masks of happy and sad fish, uploaded them onto a Padlet wall and asked our partners to guess the feelings [ΠΕΑΠ Α6 How are you today?]
TASK 1: CAN YOU GUESS HOW WE’RE FEELING?
THE CHRISTMAS FISH: PRACTISING ‘B’ AND ‘P’ We linked the ΠΕΑΠ activities on School Objects [B2] with our etwinning powerpoint of The Christmas Fish . We asked our partners to guess the ‘b’ and ‘p’ objects
TASK 2: BEING POLITE Here, we thought about when we had felt sad because others’ behaviour. •
We drew pictures and made a utellstory of them for our partners to guess.
•
We practised being impolite and then polite in everyday situations, recorded our dialogues and uploaded the ‘polite children’ videos for our partners to share.
Reflection – Ls found it difficult to think of their own examples (and it was extreeeeemely difficult to guess their pictures!) Next time relate to well-known stories as in Task 3 - may work better? Also, focusing on ‘difficult’ moments in their life needs careful handling/knowledge of class. Ls loved being impolite! Politeness in English is getting to be automatic - great!
THINGS WHICH MADE US SAD:
POLITE CHILDREN PRACTISING OUR DIALOGUES
PICMONKEY SO EASY TO MAKE ATTRACTIVE ARTWORK.
p
TASK 3: THE WISE OCTOPUS – JUDGING BY APPEARANCE We considered times when outside appearance and inside character don’t match. First, in relation to the book and then in other stories. • •
We made a poster of the wise octopus in his cave and one of the Rainbow Fish. We thought about their appearance and behaviour. [ΠΕΑΠ Β10] We thought of fairy stories where outside and inside are different, we cut out ‘obscured’ pictures of well-known parts of these tales and we stuck them on the poster. We made a Padlet wall with them on for our partners to guess. We also made plasticine models of objects and characters .
Reflection – Could relate to the best outside not always being the best inside (- we used food and plant examples) and had a lot of ideas for fairy tale examples. Enjoyed ‘cutting and sticking’ and making things in plasticine. Not all the groups got the idea that the objects were to be ‘subtle’. The Padlet wall is very versatile and lets you add the answers at a later date.
TASK 3 : THE WISE OCTOPUS POSTER
TASK 3: THE RAINBOW FISH POSTER We cut out scales for our ‘beautiful’ Rainbow Fish and made a poster. We also used the poster to work on ‘sh’ sounds which were an area of difficulty. [ΠΕΑΠ Γ4]
WORK ON ‘SH’ SOUNDS [MAGIC BOOK 2 PREP.]
ship shark Shrek shells sheep shoes fish sharpener shower shop
TASK 4: ACCEPTING ADVICE – I CAN’T… I CAN! /FROM SELFISHNESS TO SHARING This task focuses on overcoming selfishness and the rewards of sharing . In actuality, time ran out on us and thus, we skimmed over The Selfish Giant [ΠΕΑΠ Δ7] and weren’t able to create a more interactive product . •
• •
Having read/watched the last part of the book we talked about how Rainbow Fish felt when he gave away his scales and we came up with adjectives to describe his behaviour/feelings. [ΠΕΑΠ B3, Toys song] [ΠΕΑΠ Δ2, Why are you happy?] We worked on the adjectives and their opposites and created an advice poem/rap. We also uploaded a Photostory3 with visuals of our advice.
Reflection – Planning: be generous with time needed to allow for elections, celebrations, etc.! (Difficult to reschedule even where the class teacher is flexible.) Lack of access to a laptop/microphone meant visuals not voice predominate. Disappointed not to ’finish’ project with an ebook [issuu] within term time. (Summer?)
TASK 4: OUR ADVICE!
FEEDBACK: HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT OUR ΠΕΑΠ/ETWINNING PROJECT?
THANK YOU! And remember… There’s so much you can do whatever your strengths and weaknesses, however little your free time and the technology available. There’s so much help available: from your schools advisor, from more experienced colleagues, from parents, as well as on the etwinning platform and from web2.0 tools. There’s so much satisfaction for you and your learners! Don’t be hesitant, have a go!
ps. If I can help, please do mail me: susanladia@yahoo.com http://new-twinspace.etwinning.net/web/99038