Since Wikispaces is closing down, I’m moving my collaborative videoconference projects over to my websites and blog for archiving. Great project formats can still be used and adapted!

Goods and Services

Description: Students present goods and services-themed interaction to practice and exhibit their understanding of goods and services / producers & consumers. 

Agenda:
Five minutes introduction from each class.
Ten minutes presentation/interaction led by each class. (See preparation for ideas.)
Five minutes Q & A.

How To Create Posters for Videoconferencing

This VC Poster Handout for students gives simple tips for clear presentations via posters.

Preparation

Kindergarten Ideas

Goods and Services Guessing
A class can present a skit, poster, song, etc. that involves various goods and services. The other classes will identify which elements of the presentation are goods and which are services.

Show You Know!
A class can present various props that represent goods and services. As the first class presents each prop the other class will clap if the prop represents a good or stomp if it represents a service.

Costume Connection
A class can wear costumes that represent various services. The other class will guess which service they represent and identify goods that are connected with each service. (For example, an auto mechanic fixes cars-service, he uses goods to fix them-tools, doctor visits patients-service, but prescribes medication-goods)

Mad-Libs
One class will call on other classes for goods and services to complete the mad-lib. and then read the completed mad-lib for a fun story.

Story Time
Before the conference one class will read a story such as My Town, by William Wegman or Give a Mouse a Cookie, by Laura Numeroff, and identify goods and services in the story. The students will then write a short story such as the ones they’ve read to present during the conference. During the conference, the students will read their story to the other class. Students in the other class will then identify the goods and services in the story.

1st Grade

Adapt these ideas to a focus on the consumer or the producer of the good or service.

2nd Grade

Charades or Costumes: Act out a business providing a good or service to the local community. The partner class identifies the business.

Community Production: Present one or more goods or services created in your community. Describe the natural, human, and capital resources needed to create it and where the resources come from.

Community Specialization: Create posters, skits or visuals to show trading and specialization from your community. (Use examples to show that people cannot produce everything they want (specialization) and depend on trade with others to meet their wants.)

Standards

Michigan Curriculum:
E1 Market Economy
Use fundamental principles and concepts of economics to understand economic activity in a market economy.
Kindergarten: E1.0.2 Distinguish between goods and services.

1st grade: E1.0.1 Distinguish between producers and consumers of goods and services.

2nd grade:

• E1.0.3 Describe how businesses in the local community meet economic wants of consumers. (i.e. providing goods and services).
• E1.0.4 Describe the natural, human, and capital resources needed for production of a good or service in a community
• E1.0.5 Use examples to show that people cannot produce everything they want (specialization) and depend on trade with others to meet their wants.

Evaluation

This project used this Google Spreadsheet evaluation form for feedback.

Confirmation Letter Template

To: Teachers & techs on both sides, cc [coordinator]
Subject: Goods & Services VC Project Confirmation: [date]

Greetings and welcome to our Goods & Services Videoconference Project. The goal of this project is to increase student understanding of goods and services in different communities.

Dates & Times
[date & time in both time zones]

Technical Information:
[who] will dial.
[IP address]
If there are problems, please call [phone].

Introductions
The lead teacher for this project is [local teacher name, email, phone, school name, city, state, country].

The other participating school is:
[local teacher name, email, phone, school name, city, state, country].

Preparation
Preparation materials and resources are online:

Format
For the actual connection, I recommend this format as a rough guideline:
5 min. Introductions (be sure to prepare a map for each other)
5-10 min. One class presents
5-10 min. The other class presents.
5-10 min. Ask each other questions.

Action Items
Here’s what needs to happen next.

• Teachers: Please email each other to discuss further.
• Techs: We’re trying to do test calls for this event on January 22. Please email with the best time to test.

Let me know if you have any questions along the way. We really appreciate you participating in this project with us!

Janine

Wikispaces to Blog Conversion Feedback

Thoughts on the conversion of wikispaces videoconference projects to this blog format? This conversion is a summer project for me, and feedback is welcome.