This post is cross-posted at the MACUL conference blog.

It’s the first session after Alan November, and the TWICE room (W2-66) is jam packed with participants anxious to learn virtual field trips. Greg Marten, Lenawee ISD is presenting How Do I Find A Virtual Field Trip? Look TWICE!

After an introduction to videoconferencing, we connected to Lynsey Russell‘s class at Woodlands Elementary in Cwmbran, Wales to hear their Read Around the Planet presentation that they did with Ohio a couple weeks ago. The class started with a little introduction of geography of the UK. Then they sang us a song. The kids were so cute in their red, white and black uniforms. Huge round of applause from the teachers in the audience. We heard a Welsh song, and then a poem about a dragon in English. The poem was about the dragon who ate the school. Complete with actions and wonderful expression! Wonderful performance poetry.

One of the participants on the front row sang all the songs with the students and did the actions. She had Welsh background so that was a nice connection!

We had a chance to ask them questions:

• What is the weather like?
• What kinds of things do you do on the playground? (football, cricket, and basketball)
• Do they learn Welsh in school?

After going to Wales, we got online for a while. People with laptops went to the TWICE website. The Projects section is where you can learn about connections like we did with Wales. The rest of the session focused on videoconference programs or field trips and how to search the Berrien RESA Videoconference Program Database. Participants learned about the TWICE discounts and other features.

Next, we headed over to the Michigan State University Museum to hear about their programs.

They gave us a tour of their studio – a little closet when you look offline. They have a green screen, which is of course very neat and makes it easy to see the visuals and the presenter at the same time. We got a nice overview of their programs: evolution, adaptations, and termites. We also heard crickets, saw pictures and video clips of various creatures. MSU Museum is one of the more affordable providers, with a cost of $50 per session.

If you haven’t seen a videoconference yet, plan to stop by the TWICE room (W2-66) for one of the upcoming sessions!