To kick off the project, each participating class created a "handshake" to introduce their country to the others in the project. This was an opportunity to present a few facts and pictures about Nepal so that other schools can guess where they think we are located. We wanted the students to create their own using Google Slides, take ownership of their work, collaborate in small groups, and learn something in the process. They succeeded on all levels.
Students were divided into groups of four and they decided who would serve in what role:
Research Assistant
Helps find information to include in the handshake
Project Manager
Must have strong leadership skills and be able to pull the group together and keep everyone on topic
Media Specialist
Helps find images to use in the slide that represent Nepal
Tech Specialist
Oversees the design and technical creation and sharing of the slide
Here are all six that were created:
Students were divided into groups of four and they decided who would serve in what role:
Research Assistant
Helps find information to include in the handshake
Project Manager
Must have strong leadership skills and be able to pull the group together and keep everyone on topic
Media Specialist
Helps find images to use in the slide that represent Nepal
Tech Specialist
Oversees the design and technical creation and sharing of the slide
Here are all six that were created:
They voted as a class which one should be sent on to the other 800 participating students. Here is the winner, turned into a jigsaw puzzle poll. Do you think the other students will be able to guess where we are?
[Teacher reflections: The students struggled at first with this assignment but were able to pull it off and will be stronger leaders in the project as a result. They stretched to assign and fulfill their roles, worked together on a shared slide that began with chaos but eventually took order, and sorted out their various group dynamics. They gained stronger design, research, and sharing skills within Google Slides. The students likely don't fully realize where they are headed with this project, but as we progress through the weeks they will gain a greater understanding of the power of what they are participating in. They really enjoyed solving other countries' handshake puzzles and I heard several of them chattering about what they had discovered as they made their way down the hall when we were done.]