Friday, October 30, 2015

Week 11: Did you say... Skype?

Week 11 began, and ended, with an Author Skype! I am thankful for Skype in the Classroom and the authors, experts, and teachers that are willing to engage with students in the classroom via skype. It has removed the "four walls" and enabled our students to experience so much more than we can offer... It Takes a Village.

The first author skype of the week was with Mrs. Clark's class. They had read the book "If an Armadillo Went to a Restaurant", then we skyped with the author, Ellen Fischer. The students listened intently as she explained the writing process and discussed her book. The students were able  to ask questions, which were terrific!

Tuesday evening was Reading Night at Nance, it was the first time that I had been able to participate. The teachers worked with a partner at a booth, facilitated an activity, and had a take away. The teachers and students were dressed up in amazing costumes. We played reading games, danced to the Monster Mash, and even took pics in the photo booth. What a fun night! 

We had three skypes with the Night Zookeeper this week. Each one was different, but each was fabulous! He had an accent, his time is 5 hours ahead of ours, and he lives in a zoo at night. He is an author/storyteller that takes care of the creatures in the zoo. The kids love him! 

Mrs. Thacker's class read the book, "Ruth the Sleuth and the Messy Room" then we skyped with author Carol Ekster, she  never disappoints. After 35 years as a classroom teacher in Massachusetts, she retired and began writing children's books. She discussed the importance of using action verbs in writing, the writing process, read a book, then answered questions. She is always so patient and so kind!

The last author skype of the week was in Mrs. Aston's class. They are reading the chapter book "The Cat in the City" and are loving it! We were ready to  skype with author Julie Salamon Thursday afternoon and due to sound issues we were not able to complete the skype. But, we got the issues fixed and it went off without a hitch on Friday. 


My Friday ended as it does every week: organizing, producing, and publishing the Weekly Recap. 


Thank you for allowing me to share my journey as I learn and grow each week,
Mrs. Hime

2 comments:

  1. What a high energy week of learning as you helped classrooms connect with authors!

    ReplyDelete