ePals is a website where educators from around the world can visit to connect with other classes from around the world. Through ePals, students and teachers can create a unique learning community where students can experience life in other countries and cultures. On ePals, students can complete pre-created projects cooperatively by connecting with another class. Teachers can also create their own cooperative projects that align more closely with their curriculum. Once posted, other teachers can read the project description and then choose to connect with that class to complete it. Teachers can also choose to use ePals to connect with other teachers in order for their students to become pen pals.
I can see myself using ePals in my 5th grade classroom. I love the idea that students can be connected with other students in order to learn about each other's countries and cultures. In our 5th grade curriculum, we do a unit on Puerto Rico and how it became a US Territory. I would love to incorporated ePals into this unit. My students can connect with a class in Puerto Rico to learn more about their culture and heritage. I feel that those personal connections would be more meaningful than if they were to just read it from a textbook.
Won't it be interesting when Puerto Rico is back on its feet to see how the students can talk about the enormous impact of Hurricane Maria. These will be conversations that students will not be able to get anywhere else.
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