Global Read Aloud Connections

I've been participating for many years, but the Global Read Aloud remains one of my favourite learning activites of the year! The idea is that classrooms around the world read the same book on the same schedule and then make connections with partner classes in a different location to learn and share. I believe these connections are the most powerful part of the project!

This year in Park West School Division, a number of classes participated in the Global Read Aloud and made connections in various ways. Our students have sent postcards digitally or on paper, made Padlet posts online to discuss the book, participated in video discussion on Flip and met online via video conferencing to talk about the books and learn about each other.

One class got to experience an extra-special connection this week!

Ms. Courchene’s Grade 5 class had the incredible opportunity connect with their Global Read Aloud partner classes in New York to meet author Jarrett Lerner online for a Q&A session!

The students in both locations read A Work in Progress by Jarrett Lerner and connected online via Padlet throughout the 6 weeks of the Global Read Aloud to discuss the book. We were so excited when our partners in New York asked if we'd like to join their video call with the author!

The Grade 5s in each location created some great questions to find out more about the author and the process of creating the book.  We had watched some of Jarrett Lerner's Behind the Scenes videos about the book and used that information to revise and improve our questions.  We wanted to ask questions that he hadn't already answered in his videos or on his blog. 

I am super proud of the thoughtful questions that the Grade 5s created!  Students were brave about speaking up to ask the questions they'd planned and it was very interesting for all of us to hear Jarrett's answers.  

To put in perspective what a unique opportunity this is: I’ve been participating in Global Read Aloud since 2014 (with my own class and then with other classes as a tech coach) and this is the first time I’ve ever had the chance to meet a GRA author!  What a special experience!

Global Read Aloud 2020: Student-hosted Twitter Chats

 For Global Read Aloud this fall, I had the pleasure of working with staff and students at Miniota School to host Twitter Chat discussions about their books.  Mrs. Tynelle Graham's Grade 3/4 class hosted two chats about Planet Omar: Accidental Trouble Magnet.  Ms. Stacy Paull's Grade 5/6 class hosted a chat discussing Indian No More.  Mrs. Tricia Lelond's Grade 7/8 class hosted a Twitter Chat for Prairie Lotus.

Before the Chat
I met with each class for a planning session prior to the date of the live chat.  Each group of students brainstormed discussion questions and then narrowed it down to a rich question set for the Twitter chat.  The question prep led to lots of great discussion before the "official chat" even began.  The Grades 5-8 students used a Canva template I'd created to prepare the graphics for each question.  We Tweeted out the question graphics ahead of time for any classes wanting to prepare answers before the live discussion and shared the details for our chat in hopes that lots of other teachers and classrooms would join in.

Students also prepared their own answers to the questions for the chat, so they'd be well-prepared to participate in the discussion and share their ideas.  Some students wrote their answers on sticky notes to be photographed and Tweeted during the chat and some (older) students typed their answers in a Google Doc to be copied into a Tweet during the chat. 

On the day of the chat, each class developed a schedule for posting questions within their one hour live chat time.  Each class designated a couple of students to Tweet out the questions at the scheduled times...and they were very precise about following their planned schedule! 

During the Twitter Chat
During the live chat time, students had a few roles:

(1) Designated students posted the question graphics at the planned times with question numbers and a reminder to use the chat hashtag.

(2) All students posted their own responses to the questions.  Students answered 1-3 of the questions and the class made sure someone contributed their ideas to the chat for every question.  (ie:  Student A might have wrote an answer for questions 1, 2, 3 and Student B might have Tweeted their answers to questions 4, 5 and 6).  

(3) As a class, students worked together to moderate the chat and reply to other participating classes.  The teacher in each room used TweetDeck to follow the chat hashtag and projected their screen so all students could see the Tweets coming in.  Classes composed their responses together, with the teacher typing and sending Tweets that they could all view.

After the Chat

Tweets continued to come in after the live chat time, so classes continued to moderate and respond to messages on Twitter.  

It was a lot of fun to be involved with these student-hosted Twitter Chats.  The students did an excellent job of planning and hosting!  I hope it's something I'll get to experience again!

Skype Cooking Lessons with Chef Paola

I was part of a really special learning experience at Major Pratt School over the last few weeks.  MPS foods classes had the opportunity to work with a professional chef from Italy thanks to the technology available in our schools.  Chef Paola Martinenghi presented a 3 part series for students via Skype.   Her classes focused on Italian food and culture.   Chef Paola is incredibly passionate and she was an enthusiastic and knowledgeable presenter.   We are very grateful to The Chef and The Dish for making this connection possible.  It was such an exciting opportunity to have Park West School Division students connect with an expert in this way!  Thank you to Mrs. Nemez and Mrs. Falkevitch for inviting me to be part of this learning experience in your classroom!

Class 1: The Importance of Food, Country and Culture
Chef Paola's first session focused on iconic Italian foods.  We were transported right into her kitchen in Italy with high-quality video and audio.  As we were getting to know each other, she reached back to grab a bag of Manitoba flour off her shelf!  It was pretty incredible to see one of our province's products in her hands.   For our first class, Chef Paola taught us about where certain foods are produced and talked about the history and culture related to some of our favourite Italian foods.   Chef Paola's enthusiasm engaged us as she told stories of how parmesan cheese is made, where pizza originated and how foods become traditional.  Each group of students had slightly different experiences depending on their questions and interests.  When talking about their first impressions, everyone agreed that Chef Paola was an intelligent and passionate presenter!

Class 2:  Cooking with an Expert
The second class with Chef Paola was a cooking demonstration, which students really enjoyed.  She prepared traditional Italian foods with each class.  Each group of students watched her prepare bruschetta, studying her ingredients, techniques and tools.   She also prepared pesto with some classes.   Seeing Chef Paola in action in her kitchen at home was an awesome experience!   She told us about the local ingredients she used and explained the importance of using ingredients from her region.   To conclude the class, Chef Paola issued a challenge.   Students were asked to prepare their own, creative versions of bruschetta using any locally-available ingredients.

The Cooking Challenge
In the days between classes with Chef Paola, students worked together to create their own versions of bruschetta.   They used the concept of bread with chopped toppings, but tried substituting a variety of ingredients for the traditional tomato, cheese and basil.   

Class 3:  Sharing the Results
In the third and final session, students presented their bruschetta creations to Chef Paola.   Using screen sharing, students were able to share photos of their bruschetta interpretations.  Students talked about the ingredients they used, reasons for choosing those ingredients and answered questions posed by Chef Paola.   Chef Paola offered feedback on each group's work and provided tips and suggestions.  After presenting their creations, students were able to ask questions and hear a few more stories from Chef Paola. 

Enhancing Education with ICT
I was really pleased to be part of such an exciting learning opportunity.   I really liked that students used technology to connect with an expert to enhance their learning.  I thought that the cooking challenge was a great way to connect the digital, online learning experience with the in-class learning.  The high-quality video calls were an awesome way to see a professional chef in action.  For me, this experience underscores the potential for technology to enhance learning. 

Want to try it?
The Chef and The Dish offers Skype cooking sessions with a selection of master chefs from around the world.   The business typically offers in-home sessions, but they were willing to adapt their sessions for a classroom.   Check out their website for more information!