Math & Science Content Providers

This afternoon I have a group of teachers participating in our Math and Science Videoconference Field Trips workshop, or the Virtual Providers Showcase shared with us by the Macomb ISD. Thank you to Arnie Comer for sharing this with us!
The first content provider we’re connecting to is Mote Marine in Sarasota, Florida. They have an MTV like program with lots of visuals, interactive game shows, and a high energy presenter. These are definitely high energy quality programs. Mission Sea Deep sounds fun where the students are flying the ROV during the program to complete missions. If you have a Polycom or Tandberg unit you can run the ROV using the number pad on your remote.

Next we connected to the Cleveland Botanical Gardens. They are a new content provider. What I liked about their sessions was the inclusion of students drawing the plants to increase student observation skills. We look forward to them getting cameras out in the gardens to improve the visuals of the programs.

Next we connected to the Ocean Institute in California. Their programs are organized around observation sequences and encouraging students to participate in research as scientists do. I haven’t connected to the Ocean Institute in a while. I like how the students are participating in research and observation techniques. Having animations and visuals that would be difficult or impossible to find or do otherwise.
Finally we connected to Kigluait Adventures in Talkeena, Alaska. We started out with a live run on the dog sled with the mushers. We were “in” the basket of the sled riding along. Live! How cool is that?! Right away we jumped into asking questions of the dog mushers out in the snow with the dogs. We found out the names of the dogs. You could hear the crunch of the snow and the howls and yaps of the dogs. How totally cool! I think they might be hooking up an iSight in the snow to an iSight on the Mac which is hooked up to their Polycom. They are clearly stretching the technology as far as possible to show us as accurate visuals as possible.

A great evening it was, sampling the various providers’ programs and the pizza.

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