Assignment IV

Here are our 4 questions

1.) Who are the students your students will communicate with?

For this project, the students will communicate with students in Mexico City, Mexico through epals.com. They will connect with students in Mexico because it is located south and has a totally different climate than Michigan. We want the students to understand that what plants/foods can be grown in a garden depends on the climate of an area and people in different parts of the world can grow different crops than we can here in Michigan. We also want them to see what crops can be grown in a climate that is generally warm all year compared to us in Michigan experiencing 4 seasons. We decided on Mexico City because we wanted the place to also be a larger city so they can see that like us living in a city, we all experience the same struggles of where a garden can be planted depending on what land is available.

2.) When would your students connect with these students (at what point in their project work)?

The students would connect with the students early in the project. It would be the most useful to connect with them when they are in the planning stage of deciding what crops to grow in their garden. That way, they can see how the crops they decide to plant are different than the crops the students in Mexico can grow. They can also compare their crops with them and see how the climate really affects what is grown in different parts of the world. Also, that way they can get ideas from the students in Mexico about where the best place to grow a garden in the city would be. It is also good for the students to connect with the students right away in the planning stage because then they can see how the different crops there compared to the crops they grow here will grow at different rates. In order to do this, they need to already be connected with the students in Mexico because they would need to start the project at the same time.

3.) What kinds of questions would they ask each other and what kinds of information would they share?
The students would begin by asking questions about each other and their cultures/schools. They may ask what foods they eat, what music they listen to, what kind of clothes they wear, or what they do in their free time. Also they would ask questions about their climate and surrounding city. They would discuss the weather in each place and could begin with a question such as-What is the weather like where you live? This could tie the overall project nicely into the content areas of science, social studies, and math. The students would share information about temperature, percipitation, and overall weather patterns. They could also ask each other to describe their cities. The students could share information about the land and vegetation. Once the students have a feel for the climate and land of the other area, they could begin questioning about their gardens. The students could ask/share with each other the things they plan to include in their garden and why. Throughout the process, the students would be able to question each other about problems or issues they may be running into when making their gardens. The students would hopefully be able to assist and learn from each other. The students will also share pictures of themselves and their gardens. They could also share recipes common to their area based on things grown there.

4.) What will they do with the information they get from the other students?

With the information the students get from the other students in Mexico City they can compare the two locations using real life things they have collected such as information about culture, climate, land, and the gardens. From the questions about the students themselves, our students would be learning about a different culture. This will help them in their knowledge of another culture and global awareness. This will illustrate to the students that there are students in other parts of the world like them, but also very different. They can also compare what each was able to grow in their area, and this would be telling them about Geography and Mexico City itself. With this information they would be able to make observations and find reasoning for why the two areas had different plants and/or food in their gardens. The students could also use the information they gathered to make statements about the weather in other parts of the world.