Brewer Students Collaborate with Minnesota Students

Students in Mrs. MacInnes’ 3rd grade classroom have been using a web-conference format to communicate with 3rd graders in Eadin, Minnesota.

Each year 3rd grade students in Eadin learn about the New England region. 3rd graders in Brewer learn about the state of Maine, its forests, mammals and birds. Students from each state generated questions about life in Maine/Minnesota. Minnesotan students wanted to know what games were played by kids in Maine, the products produced in our state and, of most interest, do people in Maine have an accent! After much research, students in each state experienced being the local ‘expert’. Using a computer, projector, web cam and the program, Google Chat, everyone was able to discover the fun of instant response. Chatting live allowed for additional conversation to enhance understanding.

“It was really fun to be able to experience getting to know people from so far away,” said 3rd grader, Zac.
Lily commented, “ I liked doing something new. I learned that Minnesota has the biggest mall and 10,000 lakes!” Johnny thought the experience was cool, “I really liked getting to see what the kids looked like and hearing about the giant mall.”

“Brianna stated, "she learned that Minnesota has farms that raise a fish called a walleye". I just can’t believe I could look up on the white board and see people who live so far away!” Ethan exclaimed, “This project really excited me! I especially was interested to hear that there is an amusement park in their mall. I’d really like to ride an indoor roller coaster!” Both classrooms discovered that kids in Minnesota and kids in Maine have a lot in common!