Students
Students will largely communicate via shared blog posts, Tweets and recorded Zoom sessions. They will need to have accounts on Blogger, Twitter and Zoom before the unit begins. During week 3, students will also use Buncee, an online platform where students can create multimedia presentations. They should familiarize themselves with this site before creating their presentation. This project will require each student to have independent access to a technological device, preferably a laptop or computer. The device must be able to connect to the internet and have a web-cam. Portable laptops will work better than a computer lab since students will record and listen to audio and may want to find a quiet space away from their peers. Students should also be provided headphones or encouraged to bring their own.
In terms of communication needs, it will be challenging for our students to talk in real time due to the 14 hour time difference. This is why our students will discuss in-person with their 2 classmates and record their Zoom session. Students will come to class with a new portion of the text read and their role in the discussion circle completed within their blog post. They will also have Tweeted about the text the night before using the hashtag: #IASGcatcher. Each day, our students will be responsible for watching the Zoom session from the other 3 students in their literature circle. Then, students will craft their own Zoom recording to respond to their group members' content and questions, as well as share their discussion roles and questions to be answered.
Teachers
Teachers will also need access to their own technological device that can connect to the internet and has a web-cam. Teachers will communicate with one another through Zoom sessions, which will need to happen outside of our time at school to account for the time difference. This is how we will plan for each day and discuss changes we may need to make to the schedule. In addition, teachers also need to be able to access their students' blog posts and Tweets to ensure that students are completing their work on time.