Talking with Olivia Holt from Kickin' It

Last week my 2nd-4th grade students participated in a very special call with actress Olivia Holt from Disney XD's Kickin' It. Throughout her call, Olivia encouraged students to plan for the future and follow their dreams. She also told students to work hard and reach for their goals, even when they face challenges. This call was a very enriching experience for my students because they got to hear about the struggles and effort it takes to accomplish goals from someone who has a successful career at a young age. This call could not come at a better time, especially since my students are exploring future career paths this semester. I was proud to see my students ask some insightful questions about acting to find more about the entertainment industry. We were thrilled to have the opportunity to talk with Olivia and learn about her experiences!

Have a look at our call below.

We even tweeted about our call and were very excited that Olivia tweet us back!

Acknowledgements

This call was made possible by Jeff Rivera (@gatekeeperspost), Partner and Editor in Chief of The GateKeepers Post. Through his OpenEdu Talk Program, he arranges Skype calls with celebrities in entertainment and sports to talk to schools around the globe about issues that are relevant in today's society. This fall's program included an impressive line-up of celebrities and focused on achieving goals. To learn more about this program and how to participate, click here.

I think what Jeff is doing is absolutely wonderful! The topics discussed in The OpenEdu Talk Program are ones that today's youth can relate to. I also think it is important for students to discuss issues such as personal struggles, challenges, and future goals with individuals who have been down that same path.

Virtual Career Skype Tour: Our Talk with Dr. Lora Wilson

As part of our Virtual Career Skype Tour, my fourth graders had the opportunity to connect with Dr. Lora Wilson. Lora is a scientist and post doctoral fellow who works and leads a lab in The University of Colorado's Health Sciences Center. She conducts research related to treating and curing pulmonary cancer.

After briefly introducing herself, Lora showed us around the lab where she spends most of her days. She described a typical day at her job and showed us other parts of the lab. We even had the chance to meet other scientists who answered some questions we had.

Have a look at a clip from her tour.

After the tour, my fourth graders interviewed Lora to learn more about her work and how she came into the field of science. Here are some clips of the interview.

We thank Lora for taking the time to talk to us about her career. She is a great role model for girls who are interested in science and we respect her dedication and work in finding a cure for cancer. I know that this call has influenced my girls and has made them think differently about science.

Connecting with the Global Read Aloud

This was our first year participating in the Global Read Aloud. I decided to have my 5th grade students take part in this project because I felt that it would complement our novel studies unit and saw it as an excellent opportunity to connect with other classes around the globe who were also reading the same novel. When I first introduced the concept of the Global Read Aloud, I don’t think my students quite grasped what it involved. It was not until I showed them the Participant Map on the Global Read Aloud Wiki that they realized how large this project was! At this point, they were excited to connect with other classes and this is how we did it:

Edmodo- Throughout the Global Read Aloud we used this secure networking site to post the journal prompt in our Tuck Everlasting Group.Our journals revolved around themes for each section in the book and had students relate and make personal connections with the novel. Our partner classes in Delaware and South Korea were also part of this group and posed questions and polls that our students responded to. It was nice to see students and teachers responding to each other. Edmodo has allowed us to share and reflect in ways we have never imagined.

Skype- This project has also granted us the privilege of meeting our Delaware friends through Skype! Thanks to Lisa Mims in Delaware, we were able to arrange a call and participate in Literature Circles virtually. Students from both classes were responsible for sharing their assigned jobs and discussing the novel. Lisa and I were impressed by the how much thought and effort our students put into their Literature Circle jobs and discussion.

Here is a clip of our call. Watch as our Delaware friends guess an illustration for a scene in the book.



Overall, I am very pleased with the whole experience and for what it has done for my students. Reading alongside other classes made learning much more authentic for my students. The technology tools also engaged my students throughout the unit. I plan to continue using these tools and hope to connect my other classes for Skype Book Clubs later on in the year. To read more about these, click here. I welcome you to join us!

Virtual Career Skype Tour: Talking with Kristan Cunningham

This week we kick started our Virtual Career Skype Tour with the very own HGTV star, Kristan Cunningham. Kristan is the former host of Design on a Dime and is now working on a new show that will air on the OWN Network.

Our call started with a brief introduction, where Kristan outlined her educational background and work experiences. The remainder of the call was dedicated to student-led interviews, which covered a variety of questions from what skills and preparation are necessary for a career in interior design to what are the challenges and perks of your job. Before the call, my students researched the different expectations for careers in the arts field and compiled questions that related specifically to the field of interior design.

Throughout the call, students also had assigned Skype jobs. Because this was our first call of the school year with this particular group, I chose to keep my jobs simple and to a minimum so that students can focus on our guest speaker. The three main jobs were super stars, question keepers, and blog writers. The super stars were in charge of answering the call and interviewing our guest speaker while the question keepers kept track of the questions being asked and noted any additional questions that came up during the call. The remaining students were blog writers and took notes on key points that could be mentioned on a blog post about this event.

Our call was a success thanks to Kristan's insight and honest perspective on working in the field of interior design and television. She offered some great advice for students who are interested in this career path. We were glad she took the time to talk to us and were thrilled about being featured in the local news!

Have a look at the interview below.



Here is a video of our media coverage.

Math Skype Buddies

Last week we had our first Skype call of the school year with our friends in Nebraska as part of our Teaching Enrichment Activities Time. During this part of the day, we focus on reviewing and applying different math skills in a fun way. And what a better way to review place value than by playing a guessing game!

I choose the game 0-99 Guess from the book, Mega-Fun Math Games: 70 Quick and Easy Games to Build Math Skills by Dr. Michael Schiro and Anna Walker. This book contains many hands-on and engaging activities that are well suited for our TEA Time. First, each team had to select a number from 0-99 and the objective was to have each team ask a series of yes or no questions to guess the opposing team’s number.

I added an extra component by assigning Skype jobs during the game to engage all my students. Here is a list of the jobs we had for this game:

1. Super Stars- These two students greeted our partner class and sat in front of the webcam to ask the yes/no questions.

2. Number Keeper- This student was in charge of writing our class number and referring to it when we were asked questions by our partner class.

3. Runners- I divided my class into two groups so that each group could take turns asking questions to our partner class. I assigned a runner in each group and their job was to obtain the question that was to be asked and whisper it to one of the Super Stars. Runners had to also check with question keepers and problem solvers at their table before delivering their questions to the Super Stars.

4. Question Keepers- I also had one question keeper in each group. Their job was to write down all the questions that we asked in order to ensure that we did not have any duplicate questions.

5. Problem Solvers- I assigned this job to the remaining students in my class. Each problem solver had a laminated 0-99 chart that they could mark on. Their job was to eliminate numbers throughout the game.

Overall, my students had a blast playing the game with another class. They worked well as a team and used their problem solving skills to eliminate numbers. I was also impressed by how they carried out their Skype jobs. We look forward to future calls with our Math Skype Buddies!

Invitation to Collaborate

Are you a teacher of gifted and talented students? Would you like more ideas and resource for your classroom? Are you interested in networking with others in gifted education? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then you should consider joining The Gifted Teachers Exchange Wiki.

I launched The Gifted Teachers Exchange Wiki in July of 2011 as an interactive space for PreK-12 gifted and talented teachers to share units, lesson ideas, best practices, and much more. Members are encouraged to upload content and contribute to the community library of resources. This fast growing wiki is an ideal a place to network with other educators. Right now, there are about 66 members who come from different parts of the United States, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand. The wiki even has a Skype Contact List to connect with other GT classes or educators! The idea is to join, share, and collaborate.

The Gifted Teachers Exchange also has an accompanying group on Diigo, a popular social bookmarking site. With this group, members are able to browse and add their favorite bookmarks that pertain to gifted education, learning, and teaching. To browse and join the Diigo Group, click here.

Interested in joining? Follow these steps:

1. Click here to request access.

2. Include your email address (preferably from your school or district).

3. In the Message box, tell me: a) where and what grade levels you teach, b) your Twitter handle (if applicable), and c) how you heard about this wiki.

4. Enter the letter in the box at the bottom and hit the “send to administrator” button.

5. Next Steps: You will be notified by email when your request is approved for the wiki and also receive an email invitation to the Diigo group once you’re approved.

I hope that you consider joining and look forward to sharing.

Acknowledgments

I would like to thank @KTVee for creating our snazzy banner. I would also like to thank @KTvee, @edu_ms_pagano, @ColoradoGKN, @ljconrad, @ladyhello, and @rondmac for spreading the word on Twitter about the Gifted Teachers Exchange Wiki. Feel free to follow and use the #gtew hash tag on Twitter for updates and to spread the word!

Gifted 2.0: Skype

What is Skype?

Skype is a video chat tool that connects people worldwide by allowing users to make video calls and voice calls to other users for free. Other features such as instant chat, to type messages to those on your contact list, and screen sharing, where users can share their desktop during chats, are also included. And for a small monthly fee, you can make a group video call with up to 10 people at a time.

Application

Skype has the capacity to connect gifted learners with the world and to offer enriching, real-life learning experiences. Some ways to use Skype in the gifted classroom include:

1. Bringing in Expert Voices
2. Cultural Exchange
3. Sharing and Collaborating

Here is a video of my, Skype in the Classroom session at the Reform Symposium Global E-Conference in July. I outline how to get started, places to find partners, and project ideas.



Resources

To accompany my presentation, I have included a Resource Handout that includes my favorite resources for Skype.