Earth

EDUCATORS
Creatures of Habit
or Creatures of our
Habitat?
BY: JESSICA CLELAND
Language Arts Teacher
Clarkston Junior High School
Most of us are creatures of
habit. We are engrossed in
our daily lives, and the consistency
of going through
familiar motions can be somewhat comforting.
I will be the first to admit that for a
long time my daily life has been predictable
- little interruption, little disruption. Ralph
Fletcher, educator, author, and writing guru
challenged me to see my life and the world
with a wider lens, all through a simple suggestion,
“Live a writer’s wide awake life.”
This got me thinking about my role as an
educator as well. How many of my students
are creatures of habit? Most likely, they, like
me, are comfortable with going through the
motions of life. How can I help students
wake up? How can I help them widen
their lens, not only of their own world, but
their lens of the global world to which they
belong?
I reached out to a friend, the Head of
Olympia Schools in Vietnam. Together, we
made a goal to connect our classrooms, and
as a result, each of my classrooms is now
globally connected.
Global Connections Through Google
Classroom. My 9th grade Language Arts
class is currently connected to 9th grade
students at Olympia Schools. By using
Google Classroom as a common place to offer
shared learning experiences, both teachers
have the ability to guide and invite
interactive student conversations by posting
assignments and questions. Students ask
questions, respond to each other’s writing,
and read and review resources
related to both of our grade level
curriculums. Students are sharing their
thinking with one another about their lives,
cultures, and global issues.
Global Connections Through Google Docs &
Digital Storytelling. Students in one of my 8th
grade classes are working to capture and tell
another person’s story. They dig deep for
reasons this person’s story matters, connect
it to what the bigger human story might be,
and finally recognize how stories of others
can help them learn about themselves and
their place in the world. To achieve this, they
are interviewing 4th grade students from
Clarkston, Vietnam, and China via Google
Docs, and then using this information to
create a digital storytelling project that will
showcase the stories. These projects will be
shared with all classes involved.
Pen Pal Global Connections Through Google
Docs and Blogger. My two 8th grade classes
are exchanging communications with 8th
grade students in Vietnam. They are sharing
information about themselves and their
culture through Google Docs and Blogger.
This brief excerpt from a Google Doc sums
up the excitement of their exchanges:
HI!
I was so excited when I saw your response! I was
in math and I saw this, I was like, I HAVE to
read it now! I love to shoot hoops….Also, don’t
worry, I do not like parsley either. Mac and
cheese is the best! I had it for dinner last night;)
And I have so much from bath and body works
too!!! I love the Beautiful Day scent. So, what is
school like for you?
Bye! -Maddie
Hi Maddie!
I was in Math when I saw your response, too.
Sorry that I didn’t reply to you sooner.
Beautiful Day is my favorite scent, too. It smells
so good! School is quite interesting in my opinion.
I have a tons of friends and they help me
a lot! I think we should talk more but it is not
convenient to chat on Google Drive. I hope that
we will be BFF =))
Bye! =Thuy Trang=
My hope is that through these class-toclass
global connections, students will expand
their cultural awareness, widen their
global lens, engage others in conversation
about global issues, and become agents of
change in the world. I hope that they will
no longer be creatures of habit in their lives
and classrooms, but wide-awake creatures
of our mutual habitat. As their teacher, I
will soon interrupt my daily teaching routine
to travel to Vietnam and to present my
students’ learning story at an International
Conference on Blended Learning and
Innovative Teaching. Imagine what knowledge
and “disruptive” ideas I might bring
back!
20 www.KidsStandard.org
Publication INC.