Superfriends!

Technology skills, writing and grammar skills, peer mentoring – the Superfriends Project has it all! This collaborative project was between 2 classes – Amanda Johnson’s 4th grade class at Midfield Elementary School in Midfield, Alabama and Julie Ramsay’s 6th grade class at Fultondale Elementary School in Fultondale, Alabama. The classes wrote letters, emailed and instant messaged each other sharing writings, projects and ideas.

The two classes formed a cyber-classroom working on Language Arts projects together. In addition to creating fantastic projects together, strong friendships and peer mentoring occurred. The students at the showcase proudly displayed letters, puppets, collages and posters. The cyber-classroom also has been in the newspaper several times too!

Six students were at the showcase – Kaleb, Alex, Tiffany, Karleena, Raven and Chelsey. Each one took NECC attendees through their showcase. All visitors received a smiley face pin which represented the fun and positive experience the Superfriends project was to all the students.

The 6th graders had taught the 4th graders how to make fabric puppets based on characters of books the students read. The 4th graders showed the 6th graders READ Posters they created posing as characters from books they read and the 6th graders wanted to make their own!

The classes shared directions and book reviews while practicing descriptive, expository, narrative and persuasive writing. The students studied grammar and editing skills while composing letters, emails and instant messages. They also improved their technology skills – keyboarding, MS Word and a variety of computer programs and peripherals.

The Superfriends Showcase was fun to review! The enthusiasm of the students and the teachers was evident from the pride they took in displaying their work and the terrific way they described their projects. I think the Superfriends Showcase is an excellent example of technology seamlessly integrated into classroom curriculum! The use of technology enhanced student learning and the collaboration between students and teachers allowed the formation of a great learning community!

You can learn more about the Superfriends Project by visiting their website at: http://ramsaysclass.com/Epals.html.