Connecting Students Across the Atlantic

I was so excited to use technology in my classroom to expose my students to another culture.  With November 13-17 being International Education Week, I wanted to give my students an International experience.  Two years ago I hosted Valeria, an exchange student from Italy.  What a perfect connection to make with my students.  Valeria and I set up a time to Skype with my class to teach them about Italy.   

Valeria talking about the differences between Italy and the United States

She presented information to the students about what it is like in Italy.  She described schools, common foods, climate, and different cities. The students thought it was pretty awesome to be talking to someone all the way across the Atlantic Ocean and that here it was 10:30 am, and it was 5:30 in Italy!  

A few examples from Valeria's presentation

We talked afterwards how the information we learned connected to our Geography Unit.  The students had to explain which of the 5 themes we gained information about.