At our small elementary school in Upstate New York, two classes of fifth graders are engaged in an Olympic Project that allows them to research the history of the Olympics, follow the performance of athletes and teams at the 2010 Games, and communicate with other student researchers via wiki, blog, and e-mail.  It is wonderful to see our kids enjoying the research and learning process!  

Because they are enthusiastic about the Olympics and they are allowed share their learning with a larger audience, students are doing their own research even while on vacation.  They are practicing research skills using online tools, and we feel confident that their experience using online communication tools will serve them well as they move on to the middle school and beyond. 

Our school district offers high speed, wireless Internet access in all of our schools, and without this, our students could not engage in this kind of research, learning, and communication.  As teachers, we feel that it is our job to guide students in the use of all kinds of online tools because this is what they will use in their future.  Access is essential.  We cannot prepare our students to be thoughtful, collaborative, productive members of our society without first giving them access to the basic tools that are used for this purpose worldwide.

You can see more about our activities on our wiki and blog:

Wiki  http://2010olympics.wikispaces.com/Glencliff+Elementary%2C+Niskayuna%2C+New+York%2C+USA

Wiki page with student podcasts:

http://2010olympics.wikispaces.com/Winter+Olympic+History+Glencliff

Blog

http://sites.epals.com/olympics5m/

Donna McAndrews is a School Library Media Specialist at Glencliff Elementary, Niskayuna Central School District, Niskayuna, NY