Thanks to the efforts of Kevin Chang and our Lower School Chinese faculty, our LS Chinese classes have been connecting with students in Chinese immersion programs across the country! On Nov. 11 the 2 Red class had a Skype chat with a 2nd grade class at the Global Village Academy in Aurora, CO. Students had prepared questions in advance to ask. With Su Laoshi's guidance, students stood up one by one, greeted the other students, introduced themselves, and asked get-to-know-you questions to the children at Global Village Academy. It was a terrific opportunity for our students to experience other kids just like them learning Chinese!Since then, our 2 Green and 3 Gold classes have also Skyped with children in other Chinese immersion programs. The 2 Green class Skyped with kids from Global Village Academy while the 3rd graders Skyped with children at Unitah Elementary in Ogden, UT. In January our 1st, 4th, and 5th graders will also connect with other classes via Skype!
Think your students might benefit from Skyping with another class? Teachers in schools all around the world are trying to connect with other schools through Skype! To explore the possibilities, go to Skype in the Classroom (Skype's education website) and set up an account with Skype or sign in if you already have one. You can create a teacher profile for yourself where you describe your interests and what you're looking for. Then you may search for other classes to connect with. You can search by student age, subject, language, country, and more. In addition, Skype in the Classroom has a wealth of resources including videos, links, tips, and articles to help teachers use Skype. Check it out!
For a taste of one our classes' Skype sessions, here is a video clip from the 2 Red Skype chat with Global Village Academy:
