Topic 16 - Skype

I know the Skype has been around for a while, but I am new to it. I Skyped with another teacher yesterday who I am doing a collaboration project with. We met yesterday via Skype to work out all of the details for our project with our students. My class is going to be collaborating with their class on a writing assignment. We are going to introduce our classes to each other via Skype. I'm really looking forward to doing this and I know my students will love it.

I think there are so many ways that you could use Skype in your classroom. I was thinking about the chapters I read this week and how we could use Skype with Art, Music, and PE. Those teachers could find athletes, artists, and musicians and Skype with them during class. You could have an athlete talked to students about healthy choices and being physically fit. A local artist could do a painting demonstration or talk about various works of art. Musicians could perform for students using Skype as well. I think it would be neat to interview and have a Q&A with people who are experts in particular areas.

Several teachers at my school have used Skype to talk with an author. I know that students find this very intriguing.

I am excited about this web 2.0 tool and I'm looking forward to using it in the future.