Virtual Field Trips

Across the Curriculum What is a Virtual Field Trip?

"A Digitally vicarious experience that allows the participant to travel through space and time free of the constraints of real-world travel, including places, people and events that occur naturally throughout human and natural history." “ A topical collection of Web sites that help students to build upon their existing understanding of a subject or concept by vicarious experience.“

Virtual field trips are a great alternative when you can't go to the real location because of cost, time, disability, danger, or impossibility due to a different time period or remote location. Effective Virtual Field Trips Include…

• Authentic learning • Real-world writing and audiences • Inquiry-based learning • Varied learning modalities • Flexible learning Elements of a Virtual Field Trip

• Standards and Objectives • Essential Question and Learning Task • Information Resources • Student Activity • Assessment Activity • Enrichment Activities • Teacher Support Materials Evaluating a Virtual Field Trip

• Is it a quality project presentation? • Is the information current and accurate? • Does it meet curriculum goals? • Are the support materials appropriate? • Is it a good use of the Internet or would a video, book, or other tool be as effective? Let’s Go on a Virtual Field Trip! Ancient Civilizations Cites, religion, buildings, writing, trade and technology Blues Journey Out of the hardships of Black at the turn of the 20th century came the blues, a music that helped ease their suffering Becoming an American Look in folder Creating a Great Virtual Field Trip

Essential Question & Learning Task

Find the Why? Essential Question How? in the Standards! Which?

Develop questions that require analysis, interpretation, inference and synthesis Information Media

• Text • Primary Documents • Images • Maps • Video • Data • Audio • Interactive Activities • Narration • Simulations • Ambient Sound • 3D Panoramas • Live Web Cams Authoritative Copyright-Free Resources

U.S. Look under: • Photos and Multimedia • History and Culture • For Teachers Section • Podcasts • Web Cams Library of Congress American Memory

Photographs Video Audio Music Interviews Documents Maps • Multimedia Gallery • Classroom Resources National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Education Resources Multimedia Gallery Additional Resources Scholastic • Online Activities and Interactive Learning • Scholastic Videos National Geographic • Click Video Link Internet 4 Classrooms • Collections of VT’s • Ancient Civilizations Panorama Resources

• Alix’s Delicious Bookmarks – panoramas • Mt. Saint Helens • Chichen Itza – Mayan Ruins – Mexico • Missions • • Historical Site • The Great Wall of China Packaging a Virtual Fieldtrip

• How to present the virtual field trip to learners? Think of this as the package or suitcase that holds all the resources

• Lots of ways to “package” a virtual field trip, depending on the tech skill level of the teacher and students Easy-Tech Skills

• Digital word document or .PDF with links • PowerPoint with links • Shared folder with web links to click Intermediate-to-Techie Skills

• Social bookmarking list – Delicious • Google Sites web pages • VoiceThread -multimedia • MuseumBox - multimedia • Google Maps and Google Earth • Prezi web-based multimedia presentation