When Australian teachers Martin Clery, Michelle Williams, and Nando Nicoletti pooled their efforts, experience, and class time, the result was Cities, an online inquiry-based project. Students across the United States and the world joined fifth-grade students from Connecticut to count the number of metal eyelets on their shoes. When Barbara Soto discovered a listserv whose members are active, community-minded senior citizens, an idea occurred to her. Through online projects sponsored by Co-nect , students can design an athlete or compare their activity levels with those of other students.
Chess is a tool for teaching other skills as well, such as concentration and critical thinking.
And it can help build student self-esteem. A Walk in Your Shoes, a show on the cable station Noggin, helps kids learn about cultural, religious, and geographical differences by watching youngsters from different backgrounds switch places for a few days. Education World gets a resounding answer to that question from Steve Mariotti, a former business executive who turned to teaching. The project ties together a host of education goals and develops students' skills in problem solving, research, persuasive writing, math, and Earth science. Aretha Franklin sings for it.