Careers and Distance Learning

I know that many schools like to do a Career Day to help students explore a variety of careers. There are several video conferencing opportunities that I wanted to bring to your attention in case you were planning a Career Day for your school:

MOTE Marine Lab: Marine Careers (grades 5-12) - be sure to call them months in advance!

Fort Worth Museum of Science and History: CSI: The Experience (5-12)

NASA Careers (5-8)

Pro Football Hall of Fame: Careers in the NFL (5-12)

San Francisco Giants: The Team Behind the Team (9-12)

Space Center Houston: Aerospace Careers (9-12)

Cleveland Museum of Art: Museum Careers (9-12)

Cleveland Institute of Music: Careers in Music (9-12)

-------------------

Make sure to contact the content providers well in advance (particularly MOTE Marine Lab) and let them know exactly what you want them to do. Here are some questions you might ask:

• The grade levels that will participate
• How many students will participate at a time, or if it will be a kiosk where people will drop by
• How long you plan to connect to the content provider
• What you would like for them to talk about during the connection

Please let us know if you have questions, or if you have some suggestions for worthwhile Career Day VLE's that you've done in the past.

DL@gstboces.org

Grade 1 Distance Learning Intro Session

I offered a DL Intro session for some Addison first graders on Friday afternoon and thought I'd share so you can see if you would like to schedule one for your class.

What a fun group! I asked if any of them had done video conferencing before. I thought it was neat that several students had already done some form of IVC. One had done a connection in Kindergarten where the class connected to students in another location. Another girl in the class had used Skype to visit online with a relative.

During these connections, I always talk a little bit about the equipment and how it works with the students. We learn about video conference etiquette and play a game of Simon Says to practice what we learned, and to get the "wiggles" out - it's hard sitting for so long when you're 6 or 7! Then we wrap up with a game of "Picture This" using vocabulary words the teacher sends me, and they get to ask me some questions about video conferencing. It all takes about a half hour.

I'm always impressed by how well the students behave and by the questions they ask. They wanted to know how they were able to see me and how I could see them. We talked about the cameras and microphones and how all of that is connected to the internet. They asked how they could see my computer during the games, so I showed them the wire that connects my computer to the camera.

We talked about how the top of the Tandberg remote control was a little like a TV remote - instead of changing channels, it can change from the main camera to other things like my computer. I also showed them the number pad on the remote and we talked about how it acts like a cell phone - by dialing the right number and pressing the green button, we can call and talk to anyone with similar equipment. On a humorous note, they also asked if they could visit my house (perhaps they meant my office?) and another student asked if I was a principal. That one made me chuckle! :-)

This first grade class is getting ready for a video conference with another class in Hawaii and they are so excited about it. I was glad to have the opportunity to help them prepare for the event.

I am doing several more DL Intro's in April and May. If you would like to schedule a Distance Learning Intro for your class, please let us know! DL@gstboces.org