Have students write weekly emails to an international pen pal.
If your school is encouraging a diverse curriculum with multicultural elements, you might be searching for projects that help students learn about their international community. These activities can help students see the world from a different point of view, and also encourage tolerance and acceptance. Modify these activities as needed to make them work for your classroom.
Studying Immigrants
In the late 19th and early 20th century, America had an influx of immigrants from all over the world. Gather pictures of immigrants from different parts of the world, and assign the pictures to students. Search pictures of Ellis Island for appropriate pictures of immigrants. Ask students to research the immigrant's home country. What would have made him want to come to America? What do you think the trip was like? How might America have appeared to the new citizen? Have students write a journal entry as if they were the immigrant.
Online International Forums
Your students can use the Internet to connect and discuss issues with other students around the world. Find an online forum, such as Taking IT Global, and have your students create a username. These international forums have categories for several different areas of interest, such as media, entertainment and current events. Have each student choose a topic that interests him, such as a particular international current event or a perhaps his favorite music. He can post information about his interests in the correct forum and ask others from around the world to respond. For instance, if a student chooses to talk about his favorite band, he can include a link for others to listen. After students have solicited several responses from the international community about their topic, have them summarize their findings in a short essay. How did those around the world feel about the current event? Ask students why those in different parts of the world had the opinions they did.
Internet Pen Pals
After students find international students on forums or through other social networking sites, have them keep Internet pen pals. This should include a weekly email in which they highlight their week's learning in class and any current events. They can talk about personal issues, too. Have students keep a spiral-bound notebook in which they detail their dialogue and analyze their conversations. How does the other student's daily life differ? How is it the same? If appropriate, have students become friends with their Internet pal on a social networking site and keep track of status updates and pictures.
International Literacy Day
Read Write Think, an international reading organization, estimates that 780 million adults don't know read. Divide students into groups and have them find and research areas of the world where literacy rates are low. Have them create an informal presentation that explains why the rate is low and what could be done to help fix the problem. End the day with a reading marathon, and allow students to read about their area of the world.
