When I was in seventh grade, I had a South Korean pen pal named Kae-suk Kang. Our English teachers had connected us and, in a pre-internet era, we wrote letters by hand and waited weeks for each reply. My classmates and I loved the personal connections with friends from an entirely different culture.
I’ve never forgotten her name or the experience. So, when I became a teacher, I looked for ways to connect my students with classes across the miles. Some years, my students had pen pals, and when my students became bloggers, we used quadblogging as a way to connect with classes from all over the world. Connecting takes time, so I’ve been working to come up with a creative and easier way to get gifted students connected across the miles.
The approach I’ve developed is designed to encourage meaningful class connections that are also flexible and fun.
A Novel Approach ~ Team Pals!
TEAM PALS are small groups of students that connect. So, instead of connecting individual students with e-pals, your class is divided into small groups (3-5 students) and each group is connected with a small group from your partner class. This approach has several advantages: (1) if a student moves, no one is left hanging without a pal; (2) small group challenges and collaboration can be incorporated; (3) small group connections are more intimate than whole-class connections; and (4) each student has a greater chance of connecting with at least one person who has common interests and personality traits.
CONNECTING TEAM PALS: Once you have a Teacher Pal (more about that below), together you will determine the digital platform to use. I would strongly suggest Padlet. Its visual appeal, the ease with which students can upload and submit, and the automatic templates make it easy for students to see and respond to all submissions. Other platforms could certainly work; you and your Teacher Pal can determine what would work best for you. Each Team Pal group needs a shared page with a unique link so that it’s only seen by the two connected groups. Teacher Pals can share moderation rights so that all submissions are approved by a teacher.
One of the benefits here is that teams do not have to complete submissions simultaneously, but teachers can choose to have student groups “meet” at certain times. Also, Teacher Pals may decide at some point to do a LIVE video connection (e.g. Skype, Google Meet). If students complete the challenges at different times, teachers simply need to agree on a deadline date for each challenge.
The Challenges
There is almost no limit to the creative challenges that could be shared with other classes using this small group format. I’ve provided sample challenges that can be completed by teams in 20-25 minutes, including the time necessary to upload text and photos to the TEAM PAL PADLET (or chosen platform). Teachers will also need to provide time for TEAM PALS to view and respond to what others have shared and add their comments. Classes may want to collaborate on projects or participate in more involved ongoing monthly challenges – it’s your choice!
Below are 8 sample challenges to get you started! They include introductory activities and other creative challenges, some of which you can find elsewhere on this site. Classes may connect as often as you choose, but my suggestion is to aim to share at least six or seven times throughout the year.
Challenge Ideas (Editable Copy)
How to Connect
In our Facebook group, find the “How to Connect” post (shown here). To find it quickly, do a SEARCH using the hashtag #featured. Comment under the post or reply to another teacher who is seeking a connection.
I look forward to members sharing TEAM PAL experiences in the group and perhaps adding to the challenges!
If you are new to this site, please be sure to view the VIDEO TOUR and check out the pages under EXTRAS. There are many resources and lessons freely shared here! If you’d like to be updated when new resources are added, I encourage you to SUBSCRIBE to the blog (scroll on this page to find the form). Happy Connecting!