Grade Level: upper elementary (3-6) Telecollaborative Structure: This project is constructed around Judy Harris' framework for telecollaborative projects. It covers both the Interpersonal Exchange (Global Classrooms) and Problem Solving (Parallel Problem Solving) pedagogical activity structures.

Purpose: This project is designed to facilitate collaboration and interaction between elementary classrooms working on the Schoolyard Habitat Project sponsored by the National Wildlife Federation. By connecting students from different locations across the United States, students can better understand the needs of animals living in different habitats, such as desert, plains and mountains.

Curriculum Connections: In addition to the science benchmarks met by the larger Schoolyard Habitat project (as detailed on the main page), this project also addresses the following Michigan Core Curriculum Standards:

• make decisions and solve problems by specifying goals, identifying resources and constraints, generating alternatives, considering impacts, choosing appropriate alternatives, and evaluating results (Career and Employability Standard #4);
• Explore the relationships among various components of the communication process such as sender, message, and receiver (English/Language Arts Standard #3.2: Meaning and Communication);
• Respond to the ideas or feelings generated by texts and listen to the responses of others (English/Language Arts Standard #3.8: Meaning and Communication).

Participants: This particular project is designed for two classrooms (approximately 50 students) of 4th graders, but it can be adapted to be used with any number of students depending on how many adult facilitators are available. High school volunteers may also be involved as facilitators.

Activities: Each 4th grade classroom is involved in their own school's Schoolyard Habitat project. Using a variety of online communication software, the students will complete a series of guided discussions about their projects. Software may include:

• an email list
• a chat room
• a discussion board

Registration: Participants can be directly added to the group by their teachers, or they can add themselves at the group home page. Also, see this page for a sample of student work.

Timeline (Week By Week): One week is provided for each assignment. Students are required to respond to the posted assignment, and respond to at least one other person's post, before the Monday of the following week.

1. Introductions/Ideas: Students post an introduction to the list, as well as one idea they have to change their habitat, and why it's good for the creatures who live there.
2. Sharing Their Site: Students describe their chosen aspect of their site (the animal, plant or location they have chosen to work on). This helps the students at the other school get a concept of the other school's site.
3. Existing Problems: Students describe one existing problem on their school site, why it's a problem, and what they might do to fix it.
4. Compare/Contrast: Students compare their school site to the other school's site, and name one thing that is similar or different about the two sites.
5. Community Involvement: Students describe one thing they did to get the school or local community involved in the habitat project, and any problems they may have encountered.
6. Results: Students describe the results of their individual efforts on their site.

Project Resolution: After the six weeks of assignments, students will spend the last few weeks focusing on their own schoolyard habitats. When both classrooms are finished, the students will have an "online party" using the Yahoogroups chat feature. Classes will also share their results by visiting each others' Schoolyard Habitat web pages.