A Google Earth Tour of South America

Developing geographic skills such as reading maps and understanding the concept of relative location is essential to the second graders continent study. After a lesson on different kinds of maps and their purposes (physical, political, road, topographic, climate, road, etc.), second graders enjoyed a virtual tour of South America via Google Earth. 

Facts for each country along with images representing the geography, economy, and people were embedded within the tour. Students were asked to read the facts at each tour stop. They also spent time using the navigation bar to zoom in on landforms and cities. Students loved zooming in on the Amazon River and were amazed at its size. They were also surprised to learn that the country of Brazil alone makes up half of the continent. 

Students will continue to use the tour in their classrooms over the next few weeks. A follow up activity includes using a graphic organizer to record facts for each tour stop allowing students to practice taking notes.

iPads in Kindergarten ... Finally!

I never thought the day would come. Weeks searching for applications and days for setup - but finally, the iPads have been launched in kindergarten. It was so wonderful to see months of work finally come together. I'm not sure who was more excited - me or the kids! 

I was so fortunate to buy ten iPads for the kindergarten classroom. While the devices were introduced in the lab, they will be living in the kindergarten wing. The three classrooms will utilize the iPads during center rotations. They will also be used over the course of the year by Miss Diaz Leroy in her Music/Spanish classroom. Special connectors have been purchased to connect the iPads to the classroom projectors to facilitate instruction.

After their introduction, each class developed a class set of rules to follow. This list wasn't too difficult for the students to develop, especially since so many of them use these devices at home.  Here were some of the student recommendations for Our iPad Rules:

1. Only use gentle fingers. Play with then nicely.
2. Make sure your hands are clean and dry.
3. Always carry with two hands.
4. Always make sure the iPad is in a safe place. Never leave it on the floor where someone might step on it.
5. Only get an iPad from the cart with an adult.
6. Always walk when you carry your iPad.
7. Only use the apps the teachers tell you to use.
8. Don't forget to turn it off when your turn is over.

I think we are off to a great start!