Connecting Classrooms Across the World, #2015UTC

Edmodo Code:4f6zvc

Today's Backchannel:goo.gl/dAtF1h

#globalclassroom is an excellent hashtag to find wonderful educators across the globe to connect with!

Connecting your classroom with the global learning community is a vital need in preparing your students for their futures.  It will also reap a myriad of benefits for your students now through the amazing people, collaboration, and critical thinking skills they will develop. Consider these three ideas when wanting to establish worldwide educational relationships:

1. Develop goals for why and what you want to connect about. What interactions do you want create and develop to accomplish meaningful connections?

2. Find, contact, and build relationships with educators who are already globally connected. 

Michael Graffin @mgraffin

Marcie Hebert @marcie and Marlon Ng @NgMarlon!

#GlobalClassroom on Twitter

Lisa Parisi @lParisi Tina Schmidt @MrsSchmidtB4 and Louise Morgan @MrsMorgansClass

Global Nomads Group www.gng.org

Global Kids Global Authors

3. Tools

• Twitter/Google Hangouts/Skype: Your twitter feed has many hidden gems.  Here's the story of how one of my Twitter followers hooked me up for the Skype of a lifetime:

"Over the weekend, I had the most awesome opportunity come up.  A Twitter contact (@ksivick) helped connect me with Michael League, an explorer, researcher, teacher at the McMurdo Station in Antarctica!  He works with an organization called PolarTREC which stands for teachers and researchers exploring and collaborating.  Mr. League is currently in Antarctica, but will be returning this Friday. We don't have much time to prepare, but we are busily get ready for this exciting event!  My class is thrilled we could sqeeze in this excellent learning opportunity."

PolarTREC is a science research company that partners with educators.

International Skype With Beunos Aires, Argentina

• Voxer: Check out this excellent blog post by @pernilleripp about Voxer, "Why You Should be Voxing."

• Blogging/Quadblogging highlighting a lot of pictures and videos of the students curriculum learning and interactions (Youtube, Vine & Flippogram)

I'd love to hear about your stories and you begin your global adventures!  Keep in touch with me through Twitter @kitty_tripp and definitely blog and tweet about the wonderful worldwide learning that's taking place in your class.