Activity

Provincial Digital Pen Pals

Grades 3-5

Subjects: Communication & Collaboration, English Language Arts, Personal Wellness, Social Studies

Overview

In this activity, learners will begin to understand the value and importance of digitally communicating and collaborating across the globe. Learners will be encouraged to build digital friendships with peers across New Brunswick, as they also develop and become familiar with the technological tools available at their fingertips.

NB Curricular Connections

English Language Arts

Strand: Interactions – Big Idea: Exchanges
Strand: Reading – Big Idea: Reading Comprehension – Skill Descriptor: Connect and respond personally and critically to text.

Social Studies

Strand: Geography – Big Idea: Places and Regions

Personal Wellness

Strand: Relationships – Big Idea: Healthy Relationships

What You’ll Need

Book – Lost and Found Cat: The True Story of Kunkush’s Incredible Journey (by: Doug Kuntz and Amy Shrodes – available on Sora)
Smart Board or Projector
Printable Cat Cards – see below (need 1 per student)
Chart Paper
Markers
Microsoft Teams (Video Meeting capability)
Microsoft Outlook – access to email
PowerPoint Presentation, “Provincial Digital Pen Pals” (see attached PPT)

Instructions

LOST HAT ACTIVITY: Using Slide 2 of the PPT, discuss: Have you ever lost something? What did you do to find it? Were you successful? Allow learners to share some examples. Have one learner volunteer to be the owner of a lost hat. Give them the “owner” card (see below). They can study this hat and what it looks like, but not say anything before the search begins. Next, hand out 1 hat card to each learner. Instruct them to keep their card hidden from other peers and especially the owner of the lost hat. Next, explain that the owner will be going from learner to learner asking questions and describing what their lost hat looks like. Classmates CANNOT just show their card – they can only answer questions asked of them (yes or no). Before the search begins, set a timer, and keep track of how long it takes for the owner to find their lost hat. (Repeat, as desired.)
Now, choose a new owner of the lost hat. Shuffle the cards and hand out a new one to each learner. This time, (make sure the timer is ready) the owner will use Slide #3 (an Online Post) and show their missing hat to the entire class at once. The student with the matching card can simply shout out, “FOUND!” Once completed, compare the two times. Discuss: How did using technology help us in finding the lost hat? How much time did we save?

READ ALOUD – Lost and Found Cat: The True Story of Kunkush’s Incredible Journey: Gather together. Before reading, ask students: We played an activity with a missing hat. How would feel if it was a pet? Allow learners to respond. Read the story. Be sure to show and read the final pages with real photographs of Kunkush. After reading, discuss: Do you think Kunkush would be found without the help of technology and the power to reach people all around the world? Like in our activity, do you think technology saved time in locating Kunkush?

TECHNOLOGY & GEOGRAPHY DISCUSSION: Using Slides #4 and #5 of the PowerPoint presentation, have students view two maps: 1 is the map of Kunkush’s journey. How many countries apart were Kunkush and her owners? Have learners count and share. The second map is of New Brunswick. Point to various parts of the province and ask: What do we know about this area? What is there to do here? What do you know about the people that live there? Have students share their responses. As a class, choose 1 area of New Brunswick that most of the class does not know much about.

PROVINCIAL PEN PALS: Now that you have identified an area, what do you most want to know about it? Make a list on chart paper (tourist attractions, best food spots, natural wonders, festivals and celebrations, population, transportation, language, etc.) Look at Slide #6 to determine which school district your chosen spot best aligns with: Anglophone West, Anglophone East, Anglophone North, or Anglophone South. Once chosen, browse the district’s website.

Anglophone North: http://asd-n.nbed.nb.ca/
Anglophone South: https://secure1.nbed.nb.ca/sites/ASD-S/Pages/welcome.aspx
Anglophone East: https://asdeast.nbed.ca/
Anglophone West: https://asdw.nbed.ca/

Choose a school to email using Microsoft Outlook and co-write, as a class, an email to see if any teacher at that school would be interested in becoming Digital Pen Pals. Please see an example email below (feel free to copy and paste). *Remember, not only will you and your learners gain a deeper knowledge of this area of New Brunswick, but you will also have the opportunity to build digital friendships using the tools in your classroom – Microsoft Teams, Microsoft Outlook, and iPads (for photographs or videos).*

Note: If you are having trouble receiving a response, please do not hesitate to reach out to the Centre of Excellence for Digital Innovation lead, Adam Binet (Adam.Binet@gnb.ca) or K-5 Learning Specialist, Amy Tompkins (Amy.Tompkins@gnb.ca) to help connect you with a class.

SHARING: Discuss: In what ways can technology help us build stronger relationships? What are the advantages of using technology to communicate and collaborate with others? What can we do now, with technology, that we could not do 20 years ago? What do you think we might be able to do with technology 20 years from now? Using Slide #7, look at the various ways technology is helping businesses, education, and many other fields expand the work that they already do on a much bigger scale. With technology, the possibilities of how we communicate and collaborate are limitless!