Please help Abby with her Homework

http://thefischbowl.blogspot.com/2008/09/please-help-abby-with-her-homework.html

Karl Fisch, whose blog I really enjoy, posts about an assignment his daughter has: to create a travel journal and write to friends to ask for postcards. Karl thinks like I do. What about the online component?

I think this assignment is fine as far as it goes, and we mailed it off to a friend in Kentucky on Friday. But, and you’ve got to know what’s coming, I thought this assignment was ripe to have a “virtual companion” to it. So, I haven’t asked for much on this blog (well, other than changing the world), but I’d like to ask those of you who are still reading this blog to consider contributing to Abby’s travelogue wiki. There’s an explanation on the wiki itself, but here’s the basic idea:

  1. Add your information to the wiki (first name, last initial, city, state/province, country).

  2. Upload or link to a picture (a “digital postcard” if you will) that’s representative of your city.

  3. Write a short description of your city.

  4. Then, if you want, send the link to the wiki on to friends or family that you think might be willing to participate. (Note – please not “send this to everyone in your address book!” – I don’t want this to be Fischbowl-generated spam.)

  5. Then, if you really want to go the extra mile, actually send a postcard to Abby at her school (pdf).

Now, I really have no idea if we’ll get five or five hundred responses, but I figured it was worth a shot (and it takes a lot less postage). Not only would you be helping Abby and her classmates learn more about the world, but also helping other students (and adults) that visit the wiki learn about the world. I think it would be especially nice if other students added to the wiki, in addition to adults, but we’ll see what happens.

I hope other educators are thinking this way. What online extension of current assignments could be useful and instructional. Libraries could play a role as well: offering guidance, access and educational opportunities for teachers and students to make the most of the virtual companion.
If you have time, swing by Abby’s wiki. 🙂