Global Classroom Module

Our Friends from Portugal

Melinda Parsons
Integrating Technology: Global Perspectives
Dr. Tamara Blesh
October 26, 2014

Our Friends from Portugal

Summary: For this project, students will be using the network, Global StudentNet. The
title of this project is called My Friends in Portugal. During this project, students will
be communicating through video, voice threads, and a group blog. This project will
satisfy the Maryland State Standards for Social Studies for Kindergarteners. This will
also include some small writing samples from the young students describing their country
and what his/her home life is about. I will want all students to learn about the culture,
climate, food, language, shelter, simple traditions, and a day in the life experience with a
student. I also want all students to compare and contrast the similarities and differences
between the United States and Portugal.
School Background: Harmony Hills Elementary School is located in Silver Spring,
Maryland. Harmony Hills is a public school in Montgomery County and has a total of
557 students. Harmony Hills offer grades from PreK-5th grades. This a table of the
student demographics:
Asian
6%
Black
22.44%
Hispanic
65.35%
Native American
.18%
White
5.57%
http://www.movoto.com/schools/silver-spring-md/harmony-hills-elementary-school240048000848/
Time frame: Over a six-week period divided into two units of three weeks each.
Subject And Grade level: Social Studies - Kindergarteners
Proposed Topic and Rationale: The main purpose of this project is to educate students
on another culture other than their own. Students will learn, gain understanding and
respect another culture. Students will do this by interacting and connecting with other
students in Portugal and learning about the students life style while comparing it to their
own.
Global Network You Plan to Use: Global School Net:
(http://www.globalschoolnet.org/index.cfm)
Key Challenges: There are a few challenges that I have to face:
1. Language Barriers- Teachers will have to make sure that the classroom that they
will work with, knows some English, so my students can participate. Teachers can
also teach students some words in Portuguese.

2. Time differences- Portugal is 5 hours ahead of Maryland. This means teachers

will have a very small window to communicate live to one another. Teachers may
need to send videos and e-mails instead of doing a live Skype chat.
3. Parent Permission- Students will be communicating with other students as well as
showing pictures of themselves at school and at home. Parent/ guardian
permission is important to have. If parent/guardians does not give students
permission then teachers would need to create another activity for them to do.
Prior Knowledge: Before students participate in this global project, Teachers should
make sure students have prior knowledge about Portugal. Students would first learn about
the geography of Portugal. Teachers will each give the students a map for them to color.
Teachers will also have my kindergartners work in groups to create the flag the Portugal.
The students can use tissue paper, paint, dotters, colors pencils and crayons. Teachers will
also take students on a virtual field trip around Portugal using the Smart board. Teachers
will also teach students how to say a few words in Portuguese (hello, bye, how are you?
Etc.)
Standards and Key Concepts
Maryland State Standards for Social Studies at a Kindergarten level:
Standard 2.0 Peoples of the Nation and World
Students will understand how people in Maryland, the United States and around the
world are alike and different.
Standard 3.0 Geography
Students will use geographic concepts and processes to understand location and its
relationship to human activities.
Standard 4.0 Economics
Students will identify the economic principles and processes that are helpful to producers
and consumers when making good decisions.
Standard 6.0 Social Studies Skills and Processes
Students shall use reading, writing, and thinking processes and skills to gain knowledge
and understanding of political, historical, and current events using chronological and
spatial thinking, economic reasoning, and historical interpretation, by framing and
evaluating questions from primary and secondary sources.
School Improvement in Maryland (2014)
National Standards for Technology:
Creativity and innovation
Students demonstrate creative thinking, construct knowledge, and develop innovative
products and processes using technology.

Communication and collaboration

Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively,
including at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of
others.
Research and information fluency
Students apply digital tools to gather, evaluate, and use information.
Critical thinking, problem solving, and decision-making
Students use critical thinking skills to plan and conduct research, manage projects, solve
problems, and make informed decisions using appropriate digital tools and resources.
Digital citizenship
Students understand human, cultural, and societal issues related to technology and
practice legal and ethical behavior.
Technology operations and concepts
Students demonstrate a sound understanding of technology concepts, systems, and
operations. ISTE (2007)
Global Theme: I believe that this project has a Race and Ethnicity: Human
Commonality and Diversity theme to it. I will be discussing with my students about
celebrating different cultures and beliefs, and enhancing my students self imagine and
concepts. It also gives students the opportunity to compare and contrast our traditions and
beliefs to another countries traditions and beliefs.
Pre-lesson steps:
1. Research the network and contact a school from Portugal to see if they would like
to participate in a project.
2. Once teachers get an OK from the school from Portugal, teachers will ask
permission from the Principal to see if the class can participate in this project.
3. Teachers will contact the school from Portugal and together create a small unit,
including activities, games, and blogs.
4. Teachers will then send permission slips home to parents/guardians telling them
that their students will be participating in a global activity with a school from
Portugal. Skype will also be involved, so students will be seen on video.
5. Present this project to my students, and start some activities about Portugals
geography, land, watch video clips, and show my students pictures.
Technology Use:
Students will be using:
1. Skype
2. Virtual Field Trips on the network
3. E-mail (For a key-pal activity)
4. Classroom Blog

Essential Questions:
1.
2.
3.
4.

What are the similarities between the classroom in Portugal and our classroom?
What are some differences between the classroom in Portugal and our classroom?
What are some of Portugals traditions?
Are there any differences between the geography in the United States and the
Geography in Portugal?
5. What are some similarities between you key-pal and you?
Lesson Plans:
In the first lesson, both students and teachers will go on a virtual field trip to Portugal!
Students will look at different pictures and videos of the land of Portugal and learn about
some traditions that Portugal has. In the second lesson plans, my students will first learn
some words in Portuguese, and will assign students with a key-pal and start to
communicate with the other students.
Lesson one:
Warm-Up (20 minutes)
Students will draw a picture using crayons and white paper on what they believe the
country, Portugal will looks like (is it always sunny? Cold? Snowy? Hot? On a beach?
Etc Students will then compare their pictures to other students pictures.
Main Topic (35 minutes)
Students will go on a virtual field trip on the network website,
http://www.globalschoolnet.org/index.cfm
Students will first look at the different pictures of Portugal. Students will observe the
geography and note the similarities and differences to our culture. We will then look at
videos of traditional clothing, music, and dancing. Students will then watch a video of
students in Portugal and compare our classroom to the one in the video.
Closing Activity (15 minutes)
The class will have a group discussion on what they learn in the video. Students will also
discuss the pictures that they drew in the beginning of the unit and see if they were
accurate to the videos that we watched!
Lesson Two:
Warm up (15 minutes)
Students will learn how to say/white a few words in Portuguese!

Hello
Goodbye
How are you?
Friends
My name is
Nice to meet you

Main Topic (45minutes)

Each student will be assigned to another students in the classroom in Portugal. This will
be the first of many! Students will begin writing a MS document to their key-pal.
Students will include:
Their name
Age
Describe themselves
Talk about their likes and dislikes
Favorite hobby
Student will hand in their letters to me so I can proof read them so the can write the letter
in an e-mail.
Closing Activity (10 minutes)
As a class, students will start brain storming some questions we can ask our key-pals in
our next letter. The next letter will focus on Portugal and how the student describes the
classroom and their favorite subject in school.
Summative Assessment: These two lesson plans will start the groundwork on our global
projects. Students will learn about the country, Portugal through pictures and videos.
Students will also start writing letters to another students in Portugal and learn the daily
life of that student!
Module Overview

Lessons will be done 3 out of the 5 days.

Each Lesson will be 30 1 hour long (depending on the activity)
Some days, students will receive time to write to their key-pal.

Week
1

Day 1
Lesson 1: (See Full
Lesson below)
Students will
draw what they
believe, the
country,
Portugal looks
like.
Students will go
on a virtual field
trip on the
network
website,
http://www.glo
balschoolnet.or
g/index.cfm
Students will
discuss the
pictures/video.

Day 2
Lesson 2: (See Full lesson
below)
Students will learn
simple words in
Portuguese.
Students will be
assigned a keyPal
Students will begin
writing a rough
draft to their keypal (including
name, age, describe
themselves, talk
about their likes
and dislikes (etc.)

Lesson 4:
Students will
write their final
draft to their
key-pal and email to the
teachers.
Teacher will
then send the email with all
classes letter to
Portugal.

Lesson 5:
First entry on
classroom blog
between schools.
Students will each
describe their school.

Lesson 7:
Lesson 8:
Students will get
2nd entry on blog:
their one
What did you
question ready.
learn from our
first Skype
First Skype
experience?
interaction.

Lesson 10:
Students will

Lesson 11:
3rd blog entry:

Day 3
Lesson 3:
Teacher will set
up the classroom
blog. The
teachers will use
the interactive
whiteboard or a
computer lab to
have students
learn how to use
the blog
Teachers will
discuss
netiquette with
student.
Teacher will
hand out
students
individual
logins.
Lesson 6:
Getting ready for
first Skype
interaction
between our
classroom and
the Portugal
classroom.
Students will
each write one
question on what
they want to ask
the other class.
Lesson 9:
Students will
draw a picture to
MS Paint to
describe what
they have
learned this far.
Lesson 12:
Write to key-

look at picture
of different
traditional
clothing in
Portugal.
Students will
also watch a
video of
traditional
Portuguese
dance.
Lesson 13:
Cooking lessonas a class,
students will
cook, Caldo
Verde

Lesson 14:
Portugals
Geography- We
will take a
virtual field trip
to Portugal and
find where
Portugal in
located, what
type of animals
live in Portugal,
different
recourses etc
Lesson 17:
Write to keypals: What is
your favorite
subject in
school? Why?

Lesson 20:
6th Blog entry:
What are the

What did you like

about the
traditional
Portuguese
clothing?

pals- Topic:
What do you
want to be
when you grow
up?

Lesson 14:
Lesson 15:
nd
2 Skype
4th blog entryinteraction- Class
Compare the
will tell the
food you have
Portuguese
for dinner to
classroom about the
the Portuguese
dish that they made
food that we
and describe the
made? Taste the
taste.
same? Why?
Lesson 15:
Lesson 16:
Students will use a
5th blog entry
graphic organizer to
(finish this
compare and
sentence)- If I
contrast the State
were to travel to
geography to
Portugal, I
Portugals
would want
Geography.
to

Lesson 18:
3rd Skype
interaction:
Taking a tour
around the
classroom with a
portable tablet.

Lesson 21:
7th Blog entry:
What are the

Lesson 19:
As a class, we
will post pictures
of inside of our
classroom and
our homes on
our blog. The
Portugal
classroom will
do the same.
Lesson 22:
4th Skype
interaction:

similarities to
our classroom
and the
Portugal
classroom?
What are the
differences?

Lessons 23:
Students will
discuss as a
class what the
students learned
about Portugal.

similarities to our
homes and the
homes it Portugal?
What are the
differences?

Lesson 24:
As a class students
will create a
PowerPoint about
our experience!

Saying farewell
to our new
friends!
Write to Keypals: We will
say goodbye to
our key-pals
and wish them
lots of luck in
the future!
Lesson 25:
Students will
schedule a
meeting with the
administrators
and present the
PowerPoint.