Budget constraints have scaled back or eliminated field trips and other educational outings for students in school districts across New York state. But, thanks to the ingenuity of some NYSUT members, students can travel to far-off exotic locales without breaking the bank.
Donna Kingsley's third-grade class at Livonia Primary school, Livingston County, visited a school in a remote Alaskan village near the end of the Iditarod trail.
There, Kingsley's class learned about the 1,150-mile sled dog race across the Alaskan wilderness from children who watch the mushers pass through their village each year.
In Westchester County, Amy Rosenstein, a third-grade teacher at Concord Road Elementary School in Ardsley, took her students into the living room of two American children studying in Hong Kong.
The students "traveled" via Skype — an Internet-based service that allows users to make free Skype-to-Skype video and voice calls via their computers.
Users on both ends simply download the free software from www.skype.com, connect a microphone, speakers or a headset and, if video is desired, a web camera.
Although not required, an interactive whiteboard allows an entire classroom to watch comfortably, instead of huddling around a computer screen.
Skype has fee-based offerings available, but Skype-to-Skype video and voice calls are free.
Teachers who use video-conferencing in their classrooms say the technology is helping students meet New York state learning standards in multiple content areas.
'The last great race'
Kingsley, a newly retired member of Retiree Council 6 led by Margaret Bartolotti, ended her 34-year teaching career the same way she began — exploring new ways to excite students.
"I always liked to try new things," she said. Kingsley has long been enamored of the Iditarod and used aspects of the race as part of her Alaska unit.
For 17 years her classes wrote letters to students in Alaska as part of that unit. Last year was different. One letter stuck out.
"When I got a letter back from this one school — Martin L. Olson — detailing how different life there was, I thought it would be the perfect opportunity for our children to see how different and how similar we all are," Kingsley said.
She wanted her students to get a sense of the diversity within the country and give them the opportunity to experience another way of life.
"We are very heterogenous," Kingsley said of the Livonia school, which is 97 percent Caucasian. Skyping allowed her students to visit with the primarily Alaskan Native children.
The Martin L. Olson school is small — a 45-student, K-12 facility located in rural Golovin, about 95 miles east of Nome in western Alaska. A traditional pen pal relationship would not work: The remote village receives mail only once a month.
Though Olson had a computer and Internet access, Kingsley did not want to limit the children to e-mail. "I just thought Skyping would be so much more exciting and informative," said Kingsley. "To see their faces and their expressions. I felt the immediacy and face-to-face time was very important."
Kingsley said the Skyping experience proved comprehensive in its educational applications.
"It meets all the state learning standards," she said. "Think about the writing, the math work, the speaking skills, reading skills, the listening skills involved. We did map work together, about the Iditarod and then compared where they were to other places. Social studies standards ... Science standards ... When we talked about the tundra and what that meant and what their weather was compared to ours," she said.
'Do you like muktuk?'
The Livonia students learned that in Golovin snow machines (aka snowmobiles) are standard modes of transportation, that fish ice cream is a local favorite, and that whale blubber sprinkled with a little salt makes a tasty snack called muktuk.
Golovin students, in turn, were very interested in the New York students' description of standard fast-food fare, since none of them had eaten any.
"But when all was said and done," said Kingsley, "when the students asked each other what their favorite food was, they all said 'pizza.' In the end, they're all just kids."
Livonia students also learned that the Alaska school was not as well off as theirs. Approximately 75 percent of the students qualified for free or reduced-price lunch. Livonia students gathered up book bonus points and sent a large box of hand-picked books to their Alaskan video-pals.
Kingsley credits Livonia Primary's librarian, Ann-Marie Gordon, for helping with the Skyping process and recommends those interested in Skyping to seek out their own librarians as a resource.
Kingsley's students Skyped in half-hour-to-45-minute sessions, two to three days per week from October to May.
Time differences are an important consideration in planning Skyping sessions. Since Golovin time is four hours behind New York, the sessions took place in the afternoon.
Because Hong Kong is 13 hours ahead of New York, Rosenstein's class started Skyping at 8:40 a.m. in 20- to 25-minute sessions.
"That means it is 9:40 p.m in China and it is after 10 p.m. by the time we are finished. That's why we Skype on a Friday, because the kids there need to go to sleep," Rosenstein said.
Rosenstein is a member of the Ardsley Congress of Teachers, led by Nancy Adler.
"I've always been interested in technology in school, but this year, with the budget cuts, there is very little money," she said. "But we did have a video camera and a microphone, computer and a Smart Board in house, and Skype is free, so it seemed like a great way to teach social studies and technology."
Part of the third-grade curriculum includes study of world cultures, and this year Rosenstein's class unit focused on China. Serendipitously, she knew people who would be moving there — former fifth- and sixth-grade Ardsley students.
"The students need to be able to locate the continents and oceans in relation to each other," said Rosenstein. "I've shown my students maps and globes before this whole experience. Now that we know people in China, it seems to be sinking in better."
Rosenstein begins every video trip by projecting Google Earth on her Smart Board and prepares her students for the "flight" from New York to China.
Google Earth allows you to type in two addresses and virtually travel there beginning with a dramatic, spinning globe, making you feel as though you are traveling through space to your destination.
Rosenstein had students on both sides prepare questions for each other and coordinated the timing of the call.
"For third-graders, I feel anything visual or involving music is important," she said. During the first call, students in Hong Kong took their webcam to the window to show the Ardsley students the darkened landscape and the 13-hour time difference. "That made a real impact," said Rosenstein. "More so than me telling them it is nighttime there."
Rosenstein hopes to Skype with Chinese students soon. "It is important to promote global awareness in young children. The world is so interconnected now. Skyping is a great way to get it started," she said.