The purpose of this blog is to share a journey -- a journey of two teachers -- Tyrone Santiago of CECR Escola Parque in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil and Cathy McDonald of Lovejoy Technology Academy in Brooklyn, IL, USA -- who want their kids to connect intellectually, socially, and culturally. Two separate classrooms on different continents merged to become one group who share their cultures, their ideas, their hopes and their dreams and their fears.
Cathy’s Thoughts:I don’t know that I have ever been in a classroom that had no bulletin board or posters on the wall or some kind of print – students or otherwise – on the wall. Some teachers do more than others. Elementary teachers are especially good. Some high school teachers claim not to do bulletin boards and may put up one to last for several years. I wonder how we would feel if there were no bulletin boards to do because there are no bulletin boards there. I remember Dr. Parks coming back from Brasil with pictures of rooms with sterile walls – white and bare. Knowing this you will better understand Tyrone’s joy at being the first teacher to get a bulletin board in his room – and what an unusual occurrence that really is.
April 20, 2009
Cathy, Thank you for your praises. I think we both deserve such praises. You, for instance, are more and more involved in the project and have been giving lots of creative ideas to our work - TappedIn usage, for example.
Of course I don't mind if you print the TappedIn material. You can print the whole material for your bulletin board. I think it is a way to show that we are really connected! My students have to pay more attention to the importance of TappedIn. Your boys and girls have done a good job using it. They take the job seriously! It was a pleasure reading their opinions on Freedom Writers: D---'s sincerity about his father, D---'s opinion... the polite way with which they have written.
I have to convince my students to act in the same way. They have been timid regarding the usage of TappedIn, and I think they haven't expressed themselves in a good Portuguese. They have to write more and more in order to improve their writing in our own language. TappedIn can help them in this sense.
April 20, 2009
Tyrone, Yes! I saw your material. You did a beautiful job. Do you mind if I print some of it up for my bulletin board? I will forward the e-mail to Dr. Parks. You are doing such an awesome job. It is great the way we can learn from each other, and we can work together so well. ---Cathy
April 19, 2009
Cathy, Let me get used to so much information! Just kidding!! Thanks for having created the new accounts. I don't think it'll be necessary to create new accounts besides those ones we have. I will try to use TappedIn as a moderator. Afterwards, I will give you a feedback about it!! Have you had a look at the TappedIn material that I have printed and will put on the new bulletin board? How did you like it?
By the way, I have a big bulletin board inside my classroom now. I asked the principal for it. One of the reasons for that was Dr. Park’s complaint about our classrooms here. She noticed public schools here didn't have students' works on the wall. I told that to the principal and suggested to him to ask a staff man to create a bulletin board and so he did.. So, you can tell her that at least at Parque School you are able to find a classroom with a bulletin board inside, I mean, a wall full of students' activities!!! Thanks! Thanks! Thanks!! ---Tyrone
April 19, 2009
Tyrone, I have created accounts for each of the students. You can create your own classroom or group. Then you add all of your students. You simply edit each name and put in your students’ names. Then we invite each other to collaborate as groups. My students can enter your classroom. Your students can enter mine. Do you want to try it? What do you think? ---Cathy
Cathy, I think the title of the poetry is perfect! I will stimulate my students to get involved in this work. It'll be nice. When I tell them their poems will be printed and published in the US, I think some of them will get interested in this process. You know, there are lots of students that have resistance to poetry. I will try to convince them to write something about the theme chosen.
My students and I create a new bulletin board and part of it is comprised of 17 pictures of each of your students. It is very nice to see them looking at your guys' pictures and respond to their comments. I thought I found a practical way to make them immediately have an idea about whom they are speaking to... I hope I can see you next Wednesday, via Skype, TappedIn and blog!! ---Tyrone
April 17, 2009
Tyrone, I will miss seeing you and the students, but enjoy the holiday and have a happy birthday.
I think you are right on with the subject of the poetry. Maybe we can have a title like "Facing the Future: Our Hopes and Our Fears" or something like that. We can work on it. I would like as many students as possible to be involved. I was thinking about the book being at least 50 pages. I need to check out pictures. I know it costs more so I have to check on it, but it would be cool to have a picture of the student with their poem.
I will use both my seniors and the juniors who you have not met yet. They will be joining the group the week you are back from the holiday. I think we should have every poem in both Portuguese and English. That way when each student gets a copy of the book, they can read every poem. I will have $500 toward publishing this. You and I will edit the work. I would like to get all the poetry from the students by the end of May -- then we can print a copy for each of us to make corrections. After that we will print the rest of the books.
I am very excited about this. I hope the students, yours and mine, will be excited too. Have a great weekend and holiday! ---Cathy
April 15, 2009
Hi, Cathy!! Great news!!
Of course, I would like to have my students taking part of this work. I would ask them about those ones who like poetry and I would make them write some poems in class. In this case, such poems should be translated, shouldn't they? What kinds of descriptions would they do? We would have to think about something related to our work. For instance, the difficulties teens face before finding a job, going to college, the relationship with their family and so on. Anyway, I would have to ask them about their ideas and the subjects they want to discuss about. How many students would you like to have in this student work? How many texts would you like us to send? I can't promise anything till I talk to them but I think the idea is great!
This week, students responded to comments of your guys; some of them also answered TappedIn questions and create PowerPoint presentations regarding the Verb to be, by using their own pictures. I will make them, afterward, create another PowerPoint to talk about their lives using several simple present verbs in English. Then, they will create movie makers about a student of yours that they liked most. Isn't it nice? ---Tyrone
April 15, 2009
Tyrone, I have been selected for a $2500 grant to buy more webcams and digital cameras to continue our project. One of the things I listed to spend money on was to publish some of the student work.
How would you like to do something together -- with the students writing poetry or descriptions in their native language and then translate it to the other -- unfortunately a lot of the editing will have to be your job since I don't know any Portuguese. But my students would write, use translation sites, and then you would have to check to make sure it made sense. Do you have any ideas?
Anyway this is quite an honor and I want something really good to show for what
we are doing. ---Cathy
