Wonder - One Book: Many Stories - A Collaborative SMART Amp Project

From Dream to Reality...

Since about 2014 I've been using a collaborative learning software called SMART Amp. I have referenced SMART Amp in some previous blog posts and often refer to it as "Google Docs on Steroids." For years I have aspired to use this web based platform to connect my students with other classrooms who use SMART Amp as regularly as my class does. When Kimberly Ball, a former Gifted and Talented teacher now working for SMART Technology, approached me in September 2017 about a collaborative book study that would utilize Amp I was all ears. 

My 5th grade magnet classes have done several collaborative projects with students in other schools prior to this one. From Mystery Skypes, to ePen Pals, and multiple in person collaborations, we are certainly familiar with small or large group learning experiences. This was however, the first time getting a chance to collaborate with some fellow 5th grade students who were also enrolled in a gifted and talented program. 
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Teacher Talk

With Kim as the main facilitator I was introduced to three wonderful teachers from various schools in the San Antonio, Texas area. 

Amy Chandler - 5th Grade GT Teacher, Encino Park Elementary
@EncinoGT

Emily Lunsford - 5th Grade GT Teacher, Tuscany Heights Elementary

Stefanie Schropp - 5th Grade GT Teacher, Concordia Lutheran School
@ConcordiaGTE

After a few phone calls and emails we began planning for a collaborative journey that would help students become better readers, writers, and listeners. The project turned out to do much more than that!
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Wonder by R.J. Palacio

If you have not read the award winning novel Wonder by R.J. Palacio then I grant you permission to stop reading this blog and start on Part One now. Ok but seriously, the story takes empathy to a whole new level. All 25 students in my class had already read the entire book at least once. We decided to read over some of our favorite sections as well as the most pivotal parts of the story. The novel makes for a great tool for teaching perspective as well! 

Once all four classes had finished reading Part One, from Auggie's perspective, it was time for collaboration!
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​The Collaboration Begins

The first step was for students to log into the SMART Amp workspace the adults had set up. We used SMART Amp's "hand out copies" feature to put students into groups. Teachers could use the attribution feature of the program to monitor students' posts in the workspace. The first few activities required students to create a name for their team, introduce themselves, and participate in a chalk talk protocol. 

As the weeks passed the four classes continued to read the novel at their own pace and completed some of their own in class comprehension activities. In addition, the students engaged in various projects like this one and posted their final products to their group's SMART Amp workspace. Students responded to higher order questions about the text and shared their feelings on the concept of choosing kindness. 

Our original plan was for students to be doing these tasks at times that were convenient for the teacher/ class. There were multiple occasions however where the students got to participate in discussions with one another via SMART Amp's chat feature in REAL TIME! ​

That's right! Multiple 5th grade gifted and talented students from different schools in different time zones discussing a story about empathy, perspective, kindness, bullying, and so much more! The whole operation could not have been more appropriately named; One Book: Many Stories. 

Click below to see a Tweet I posted in October of students working together in real time on this project! 
https://twitter.com/mrdulberger/status/918541168769667072
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The Classrooms Collide!

As the weeks drew closer to Thanksgiving break the four classes reached the end of the book in preparation for the movie to hit theaters. Prior to finishing the book however, the teachers decided that it would be great for students to meet in person. On November 9th, 2017 we were able to successfully get all four classes to meet via Google Hangout. Students were able to put a voice and face to the peers they had been working with for several weeks. Of course, I had to crank this face to face meeting up a notch. So my students and I used an additional program that SMART Technologies makes called Class Lab to create a Monster Quiz! At the end of our Google Hangout meeting students from all four classes competed together in this comprehension quiz. Check out all the action below!

An Extra Curricular Field Trip

The motion picture Wonder featuring big name actors like Owen Wilson and Julia Roberts hit theaters just in time for Thanksgiving break. My wife and I were ecstatic to meet a few of my students and their families at the theaters to catch the show during it's second week at the box office. ​

Looking to the Future!

It is stories like Wonder that remind me each and every day to think about life in someone else's shoes. In fact, empathy has become somewhat of a thematic term in #5thGradeU this year. Students have worked hard to cheer each other up and look out for classmates who might not even be considered their friend. Furthermore, it is a project like this one that reminds me of the power technology. When used by the right people, in the right way, technology can truly make the world a better place.

​It is for that reason that the classes will be colliding once again in the spring to complete their One Book: Many Stories final project. A project that will require them to do something in their school, community, or town that will encourage others to choose kindness.

Stay tuned for a future blog post and feel free to check out all of the postings related to this project on social media by following our project's hashtag #KindnessRipplesOn !