http://web.photodex.com/create/?watch-bbbd2ax4
Summary of Usage
This slideshow will go along with the standard CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.2.1 that states that children will be able to “demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.” This is a writing standard for second grade. The character that I created is similar to Flat Stanley and he has been on all of my world travels with me. I have assembled some pictures of him in the United Kingdom to show the children what the culture is like over in that part of the world. I am teaching them about which countries make up the United Kingdom and a little about each country. After they hear this and watch the slideshow, they are to follow the directions given in the slideshow. The directions say for the students to use their imagination to create a journal entry for Traveling Tom. They have to sign it in his name like a letter, and tell about where he went, what he saw, and how he got there. At the top of the page, they have to date it to show the date of when he was visiting. I ask them to look closely at the pictures and pick out details that they can include with adjectives. Also, it only has to be one page.
At the end of the assignment, I want the children to partner up with another student and read what they wrote about his travels. Hopefully, each one of them came up with different travel stories about his experiences. Once they are done reading to each other, I will have a time where they can raise their hands if they want to share their entry. I will call on maybe three students to get a sampling of what the students came up with.
The diary entries will be collected once we are completely through so that I can display them around the room. This assignment might turn up more than once throughout the year to allow a creative writing time for the children, and I can change it to include checks on different grammar rules that I want to make sure that the children understand. I can include different pictures for different parts of the world to allow them to see multiple countries. The assignment will also, allow me to compare at the end of the year the progress that their writing has made to see if my teaching helped them improve or what I could do better for the following year.
By creating this assignment, I am hoping to let them use their imaginations to travel to these places, while hopefully instilling a love for these countries that may continue for some of the children. My aim is that this will inspire some children to read and research more about different cultures other than America to show them diversity. I also intend for this to lead to a topic of discussion for the children’s backgrounds and family histories.