Connecting my classroom with the world

Getting connected with other classrooms and bring different perspectives to our classsroom. Nowadays, it's not difficult for students to find answers for their questions/inquiries.
After reading the article Five Practical Ways to Connect Your Classroom to the World   I decided to connect a small group of EAL Grade 5 students I support using  KidBlog                   and #comments4kids.
KidBlog has many options that teachers want. "Setting classes up with blogs can be done in minutes. Blogs — and the comments left on them — can be as private or as public as teachers want." I've had an account for a long time and decided to use it (I have never used it).
For the first time, I will use #Comments4Kids. According to the article  read by Matt Miller, "Comments4Kids is a great resource to connect students to a real, authentic audience. Interaction is what has made social media so popular. When students can connect with their readers, they can get that same thrill in academic writing as they do when their Facebook posts get lots of comments and likes."
My students haven't written any posts yet. However, I believe it lbe very enriching. 

        

Being a Connected Educator

Being an English as a Foreign Language makes you want to connect with other people. When I started working at an international teacher this connection with teachers and learners from all over the world ended up being easier. I started connecting with teachers from my school who would move to other schools in the world to teach. Then, around six years ago, during my Master's course, I started using Twitter to connect with other teachers, educators, and other professionals.  My PLN has grown a lot. I have learned a lot.

By being a connected educator, I was able to make a connection with a Grade 5 teacher from Florida who was looking for Grade 5 students to be interviewed by her students who were getting ready for the PYP Exhibition. I talked to one of the Grade 5 teachers at my school whose students were also getting ready the PYP Exhibition and a Skype conversation was scheduled.  It was a rewarding experience to everyone who was involved with that experience. some months later, I connected again with the same educator I met on Twitter for asking her some ideas and suggestions when I was applying for a PYP coordinator at my school.

By being a connected educator,  I decided to start a TED-ED Club at my school. I had a group of middle schoolers during an elective class. I followed the TED-Ed club program with the students for a semester. During this semester, I had the opportunity to connect with other TED-ED Clubs from all over the world by video conferences. If you want to read more about this, read my article on AASSA Blog Amplify Student Voice: Be a Facilitator of a TED-Ed Club at Your School

I am lucky to work at a school where we have many resources available for teachers and students. (not yet a common reality in Brazil) However, social media is still blocked for teachers and students to use. If I want to use Twitter with my students or for professional development, I need to use the 4G from my cell phone. I understand the school's perspective because students bring their own device, they might use social media, not for educational purposes. As they have Internet on their phone, I believe they still access it. I do not know the answer to it but I think it is an issue to be discussed. Another feeling about posting on social media is that I do not feel comfortable to share photos or videos about the students. Our school has some guidelines for teachers about that.

Being a connected educator has been great for me. there are some constraints but I think it is rewarding.

TEDxYouth@PAS

On November 23rd, 2017, a group of students who are members of the National Junior Honor Society of Panamerican of Porto Alegre organized a TEDxYouth@PAS event. The speakers were students, parents, and people from our community.
Check some of the event photos.