Teacher-to-Teacher
Teacher to Teacher
June 23, 1997 -- Next year, the entire 5th grade is going to participate in Class Afloat. As a final project, my 5th grade class made a presentation about Class Afloat to the 4th grade to get them ready for next year. My students were very excited to share what they had learned this year with younger students.
contributed by Angela Bask, Houston, TexasBecause we end our school year a few weeks before the conclusion of the Concordia’s journey, my students will follow the students’ travels through Belgium, Norway, and Denmark by visiting their neighborhood public library and getting updates from the World Wide Web site. (They were also encouraged to show their parents or siblings how they used the Internet in school this past year!)
contributed by Jerry Fielding, Rockville, MD
May 23, 1997 -- My students were very motivated by the experiences the Class Afloat students were having aboard Concordia. In May, we have arranged for our eighth graders to sail aboard the tall ship Clearwater on the Hudson River.
contributed by Elizabeth Kaplan, Henry Hudson School, Bayonne, NJ
Our students sail on the Ontario every May. This field trip inspires them to learn more and prepare for the trip.
contributed by Marc Gray, Highland Middle School, Louisville, KY
March 3, 1997 -- When the Class Afloat students arrived at Maldives, we began to talk about religion, especially Islam. One of my students brought to school the following legend which explains the arrival of Islam on the islands of Maldives. Legend says, in 1153 a sea demon plagued Male (one of the cities Class Afloat visited!), demanding that a young maiden be sacrificed each month. A Morrocan trader named Abul Braketh Yusef-el Barbary saved the capital by dressing up as the next maiden to be sacrificed and shouting verses from the Koran until the sea demon squealed in pain and disappeared under the sea. After witnessing the power of the Islamic religion, King Kalaminja agreed to convert Maldives to the faith...contributed by John Davis, Glen Burnie, MD
February 17, 1997 -- As part of our focus on geography, we have been using the Concordia’s voyage to learn about the land, culture and economy of Malaysia. As her voyage continues we will focus on several of her other ports-of-call in Greece, Italy and Spain. Tracking the Concordia has been an exciting task for my students. They look forward to hearing about the experiences of the students onboard and learning about the way children in other parts of the world live....submitted by Germantown Academy, Albany, NY
February 3, 1997 -- As the Language Arts teacher for the fifth grade, I have my students keep journals like the Class Afloat students do onboard Concordia. At least twice a week, I give my students a writing prompt that relates to what the Class Afloat students are doing. Last week, for example, my students answered the following question in their journals: How would you feel about leaving home for four months and traveling around the world on a ship? What would you miss about home and school? Have you ever been away from home?...submitted by Michelle Rhee, Harlem Park Elementary
January 20, 1997 -- Before the start of Class Afloat’s second semester, I asked my class what kinds of projects they would like to do. An idea that was popular with my students was to begin to have a morning meeting like Colors onboard Concordia. At these meetings, my students decided, teachers and students would be able to make announcements for the day. Also, students made flags from all of the countries Concordia will visit in the coming months and we will display them during our version of Colors...submitted by Mike Howe, St. Anne’s School, Seattle, WA
November 26, 1996 -- After training my students to use the Internet, I organized them into 4 Internet clubs. Each club, with the assistance of a mentor, is required to work on an on-going project using information from the Ocean Challenge Web site. Every week, students are required to participate in a news program in which they report on the project to the class. For homework, students, with help from their parents, find out about the places Concordia and her crew will visit in the coming weeks. Many of the parents have commented about what they are also learning from these homework assignments. ...Kathy Marshall, Juanita Elementary School, Kirkland, WANovember 14, 1996 -- Here’s a quick list of the many activities we have done that connect to Concordia and her journey. We plot the Concordia's progress weekly on our wall map and on individual maps. We use the web site to tour the Concordia, read Class Afloat students’ journals, and Q&A. When Concordia arrived in the Galapagos Islands, we learned about Charles Darwin and the peculiar animals that live there. While the Concordia was at Pitcairn Island, we saw a part of the movie, Mutiny on the Bounty. Now, we are studying the geography of Australia as we prepare for Concordia’s arrival there on November 18th. ...Joanna Anderson, 5th Grade teacher, Oklahoma City, OK, USA
November 12, 1996 -- This may sound exceedingly simplistic, but don't forget to take pictures of the activities that your class is doing. I have students coming around from last year to check on the old pictures as well as the new students. Plus, if you can send a picture along with an idea when you exchange notions with other teachers it really helps.
Here's another possible idea (I haven't tried it yet, but it sounds like fun): find a class elsewhere doing CA and exchange some creative writings such as journal entries from your activities. You can use the writing process and do share groups via e-mail or snail mail or you can simply have penpals across the continent who share a common interest. ...Jody Lemke, teacher, Seattle, WA, USA (jlemke@oz.net)November 9, 1996 -- We are collecting articles, following the ship's position on the map and making a book for the library so others can read about Concordia's Travel ...a teacher at Pebble Hills El Paso TX, USA (jlaza12287@AOL)
September 10, 1996 -- The first newsletter is wonderful (I'm handing it out tomorrow), and the website keeps looking better and better. My kids are REALLY excited about doing this--some of last year's kids even came around and "proselytized!" I am really pleased with what you're doing. Our first projects are in the revision stage right now and should be ready to mail to Easter Island!! Wow! ...Jody Lemke, teacher, Seattle, WA, USA (jlemke@oz.net)
September 14, 1996-- I'm interested in your whole teaching philosophy and the methods used to cover the basic spead of subjects when you have a constantly changing vista to work with as subject matter. Is the curriculum developed as a basic plan before leaving or do you pick up on the day's events as a basic teaching method? We use The Voyage of the Mimi here at MCDS but taking the students on the actual voyage is a little beyond our means. Just what is Tom Snyder's role in all of this. Some of our best software has been his stuff--especially Archeology Search--an ancient but cool program. ...Bill Been, teacher, California, USA (bbeen@mcds.org)
Ocean Challenge reply by Rich Wilson: Thanks Bill for your comments. Onboard Concordia, Class Aflloat follows a Canadian curriculum, as the program is based there. For our onshore Class Afloat: The Classroom Program 1996-97, we have taken the voyage as the basis for studying a variety of subjects: social studies, geography, math, science, language arts, environmental issues. It is a real link to these subjects, as all are continually embedded in the actual voyage, and thus these subjects can come alive in the classroom in a way unavailable without the live link. Our teacher's guides have much regional information, and then activities appropriate to the various disciplines mentioned above. Furthermore, we definitely use ship events, most pointedly in the Teacher's Page that comes with Class Afloat News, the newsletter of The Classroom Program. Those activities are created weekly, according to ship events. Tom Snyder Productions role in this is to market, and advise on, the program. (Look on page 27 of their current catalog Fall/Winter '96, or go to their website via the link on the Class Afloat title page, and look in What's New, or call them at 1-800-342-0236, or us at 1-800-890-3049.)
August 30, 1996 -- Hi Ocean Challenge! My packet came today at school and I was thrilled. I'm going to view the video soon. I see it's much longer -- cool! I'm excited about the new things I'm seeing -- you're really incorporating so many ideas that were tossed around before. The new page design is nice, and I can only hope that Steve's presence on the ship right at the start will help foster even greater involvement from the students and Class Afloat in the OCI program. Thanks for the good start! Your ever-present fan and friend...Jody Lemke, teacher, Seattle, WA, USA (jlemke@oz.net)
